Dr Richard Woolley, Patrick Clark, Sharon Smith: University of Worcester
The principles fundamental to the Constitution of the World Health Organisation identify that, “the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or social condition.” This may be understood on a range of levels, including physical and mental health. Key to achieving this principle is the need to support all to learn and flourish within educational settings in order to achieve their potential and realise a sense of healthy well-being. Furthermore, the European Convention on Human Rights states that “No person shall be denied the right to education in the exercise of any functions which it assumes in relation to education and to teaching…” (Protocol 1, p. 31). This necessitate that educational settings support the individual needs of students, overcoming barriers to learning and supporting accessible learning activities.
This workshop uses a case study approach to facilitate discussion of best practice in enabling students with diverse needs to achieve. The University of Worcester (UW) has a long established reputation for enabling students with diverse needs and disabilities to succeed at university. Through the use of online resources staff are enabled to understand and develop strategies to support students’ needs, the use of SCIPS (Strategies for Creating Inclusive Programmes of Study) website provides one particular tool to support staff.
SCIPS provides materials for staff to enable them to be more inclusive in their teaching approach. SCIPS assists the academic community in developing a more inclusive approach to the design of teaching, learning and assessment strategies. This project was developed by Dr Val Chapman, lecturer at the University of Worcester and National Teaching Fellow. Originally funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, SCIPS provides lecturers with materials and strategies to help them to support their students. Freely available, it provides support for those working in a range of academic disciplines and after ten years still remains well-used by university lecturers around the world.
UW is currently developing future resources through the Student Centred Adult Learning Engagement in Higher Education (SCALE) launched in October 2018. This EU-funded Erasmus+ project aims at supporting lecturers delivering degree level courses in universities, colleges and other educational providers. The project involves partners from the UK, Poland, Spain and Italy and will result in an online resource freely available to staff in universities. This workshop will briefly introduce its aims and focus, potential to engage during stages of development, and the availability of resources.
Schedule of the session
- Introduction
- What are the needs? Overview of staff needs in light of DSA changes
- What are we currently doing? Case study approach to ways of supporting students
- Developing strategies to support staff in supporting students through online resources (SCIPS)
- Sustaining and developing resources
Inclusion in higher education 