Inclusion and Diversity in the Early Years: A practical resource to support inclusive practice in early years settings

Title Page

INCLUSION AND DIVERSITY IN THE EARLY YEARS

A practical resource to support inclusive practice in early years settings

by Anne Rodgers and Dr. Elaine Wilmot

Publisher Information

Published by Practical

Pre-School Books

A Division of MA Education Ltd,

St Jude’s Church, Dulwich Road

Herne Hill, London, SE24 0PB

Tel: 020 7738 5454.

www.practicalpreschoolbooks.com

Digital edition converted and distributed in 2012 by

Andrews UK Limited

www.andrewsuk.com

© MA Education Ltd 2011, 2012

Front cover (clockwise): © iStockphoto.com/digitalskillet, © iStockphoto.com/tirc83, © iStockphoto.com/quavondo, © iStockphoto.com/Tomasz Markowski, © iStockphoto.com/Kim Gunkel, © iStockphoto.com/Danish Khan

Please note all page numbers in this book refer to the print edition on which this ebook is based. All photos © MA Education Ltd. 2011, with the exception of p.8 and p.35 © Elaine Wilmot; p.21, p.25, p.40 (left-hand picture), p.42, p.47 © Anne Rodgers; p.5 (left-hand picture) © iStockphoto.com/eyenigelen; p.6 MARY EVANS PICTURE LIBRARY; p.11 (Louise Batalla Duran)/Alamy; p.19 © iStockphoto.com/ktaylorg; p.37 (Kathy deWitt)/Alamy. All photos © MA Education Ltd. 2011 taken by Ben Suri, with the exception of p.13 (left-hand picture), p.14 (right-hand picture), p.28 (left-hand picture), p.53 and p.54 taken by Lucie Carlier.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopied or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to all the settings used as examples of good practice in this book, including Pembury House and Woodlands House.

An introduction to inclusion and diversity

This book has been written for early years practitioners looking to focus on issues surrounding inclusion and diversity within their practice. It is important to focus on what inclusion and diversity really means when working with young children, and its importance in truly understanding the nature of children’s differences, similarities, and their development when being cared for in the early years setting. It is vital to meet the individual and diverse needs of all children and to help them reach their full potential.

The Early Learning Goals (QCA, 2000) in England state that children should:

Understand that people have different needs, views,

cultures and beliefs which need to be treated with respect

Understand that they can expect others to treat their needs, views, cultures and beliefs with respect

Begin to know about their own cultures and beliefs and those of other people

Have a developing respect for their own cultures and beliefs and those of other people

Furthermore the Learning for All: Standards for Racial Equality in Schools document (CRE 2000) states that effective provision will enable children:

To achieve their full potential and that expectations are high

To have access to and make full use of the facilities and resources

To be prepared for life in a diverse and multi ethnic society

Be in an environment that has a positive ethos on diversity

Inclusion and diversity is an integral part of effective provision and this book sets out to promote best practice through planning and resourcing early years provision, as well as show how others have achieved this. This book is divided into five chapters as follows.

Chapter one looks at what inclusion and diversity means and why it matters. It asks the reader to consider how inclusive their setting is and also looks at the history of inclusion and considers children with English as a second language. It also considers children with special educational needs, the stereotypes and assumptions made and cultural diversity.

Chapter two will look at the inclusion of children with special educational needs with regards to the requirements of legislation and then will give some information about a range of special needs, with reference to where further information can be sourced.

Chapter three will look at the Early Years Foundation Stage (2008) and what this means when considering inclusion and diversity within the four themes of the curriculum. It also considers Ofsted requirements and legislation in the UK, as well as the rights of children.

Chapter four looks at why working with parents is so important and focuses on establishing relationships with them. It gives ideas for ways to engage parents within the setting and how to continue relationships with them and looks at what may go wrong. This chapter also looks at family learning and inclusive practice.

In chapter five we look at the role of the adult in promoting inclusion and diversity, as well as that of the learning environment. The chapter covers how to promote positive self-esteem and plan effectively to ensure that children’s diverse individual needs are met. Examples are given from other practitioners, and next steps and further possibilities explored.

Chapter six looks at leadership and reflective practice and how practitioners can lead by example. This chapter contains a section on selecting staff, monitoring and evaluation.

What does inclusion and diversity mean and why does it matter?

Inclusion is the process by which we value all individuals, recognising their unique attributes, qualities and ways of being. Central to good inclusive practice are children’s rights. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, (1989) outlines the basic human rights to which children up to the age of eighteen everywhere are entitled: the right to survival; the right to the development of their full physical and mental potential; the right to protection from influences that are harmful to their development; and the right to participation in family, cultural and social life. The Convention protects these rights by setting minimum standards that governments must meet in providing health care, education and legal and social services to children in their countries.

In order to ensure inclusive practice, settings need to develop their ethos, policies and practices to include all learners with the aim of meeting their individual needs.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (DCSF, 2008), which must be complied with in all registered and maintained early years settings in England, states that:

Providers have a responsibility to ensure positive attitudes to diversity and difference - not only so that every child is included and not disadvantaged, but also so that they learn from the earliest age to value diversity in others and grow up making a positive contribution to society. (DCSF, 2008, p. 9)

It also outlines that:

All children, irrespective of ethnicity, culture or religion, home language, family background, learning difficulties or disabilities, gender or ability should have the opportunity to experience a challenging and enjoyable programme of learning and development. (DCSF, 2008, p. 10)

There are many definitions of inclusion. The Early Childhood Forum define inclusion as:

A process of identifying, understanding and breaking down barriers to participation and belonging. (Early Childhood Forum, 2003)

Early years settings must promote an inclusive society in which every person is fully accepted, respected and valued. This should not be affected by skin colour, disability, social background, gender, religion or belief, or any other factor.

All children should be seen as individuals in terms of their learning and development needs. An inclusive approach to education and care means that difference is recognised and celebrated, and that professionals identify and meet any associated needs through their provision. The task for anyone working with young children and their families is to engage with the physical and emotional needs of young children, bearing in mind the child’s racial, religious, cultural background and beliefs.

The inclusive approach is built on respect. It is important that we develop respectful relationships with children and their families because of the potential effects on children’s self-image and self-esteem. Showing respect is about demonstrating that you accept the right of others to conduct their lives in ways that reflect their values and traditions, even though these may be different to your own. It requires workers to be knowledgeable and curious, in order to identify and acknowledge difference. Once learning and developmental needs are determined, in conjunction with the child and their family, then outcomes should be agreed, both for the long and short term. The important thing to remember is that every child is an individual and should be treated such. This means that each child has individual: needs; ways of knowing and learning; and ways of responding to the world around them. What it does not mean is treating everyone the same.

When children enter a ‘formal’ early years setting, a major aspect of our role as practitioners is to ensure that we fully understand each one as an individual - their likes and dislikes, their wants and needs, how they express themselves, their routines - in fact, as much information as we can possibly collect to enable us to welcome each child as an individual. The parents or carers of the child will be the holders of this information.

Every child has their own specific needs

Point for reflection

It is vital that we do not treat every child the same. They are not the same and by treating them as such, through identical provision we will not be meeting their individual needs.

All children are different. We know that children progress at different levels — some walk early, others are still crawling well beyond the time when their parents expected them to begin walking. Some children are good talkers, others may be late to begin talking. What we must not do is ‘label’ children and then begin to treat them differently because of that label.

There is nothing so unequal as the equal treatment of unequals. (Aristotle)

What do you understand by Aristotle’s quote?

How do you think about individual needs?

Why does inclusion and diversity matter?

Inclusion and diversity matters because it is a crucial part of our role as early years’ practitioners to secure equality of opportunity for all of the children that we work with. We want every child to be the best that they can be. The Early Years Foundation Stage clearly states that All children are entitled to enjoy a full life in conditions which will help them take part in society and develop as an individual (Principles into Practice Card 1.2). One of its commitments is that No child or family is discriminated against (Principles into Practice Card