How to overcome barriers to inclusion in schools
Inclusion is key to giving all students the chance to learn in a space where they feel happy and safe. Overcoming common barriers to inclusion is an important step towards creating a school where your students can thrive regardless of their differences.
Common barriers to inclusion
Mainstream schools face several barriers to becoming truly inclusive. A common one is teaching classes of students with varying abilities, which can make it difficult to address the needs of all your students. This means some young people are likely to be excluded, usually because they are learning at a different pace than their peers or have special educational needs.
You may feel like treating everyone the same is the best route to inclusion – but acknowledging that people are different, for example being from different cultures, is the only way we can celebrate these differences.
Similarly, many teachers lack confidence in supporting special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Government research published earlier this year reported that only 45% of early career teachers felt their initial teacher training had prepared them for teaching students with SEND, demonstrating a clear lack of confidence amongst teachers – a significant barrier to inclusion that will specifically impact students with SEND.
Ofsted’s new reforms have a big focus on inclusion, with every inspection focusing on provision for disadvantaged children, those with SEND and who are known to social care – and with schools receiving a specific grade for inclusion. This further incentivises a focus on inclusivity and highlights the importance of understanding and addressing these barriers.
Overcoming barriers to inclusion
It might feel difficult to begin addressing barriers to inclusion, but it’s important to remember they can be overcome – and working towards overcoming them is essential to giving all students the same opportunity to succeed at school.
Supporting all students to learn
One way to include all students in a lesson is with differentiation. This refers to the ways a teacher varies lesson content or activities for students’ varying needs and abilities. For example, this may mean setting different tasks for different groups or presenting lesson content differently. Differentiation allows all students to engage with learning, supporting them to reach their potential.
Learning plans like education, health and care plans (EHCPs) can be useful to help teachers understand and address a student’s specific needs. When developing a learning plan, it can help to get support from specialist services such as psychologists and speech therapists, as well as staff members such as inclusion officers.
It’s also useful to include the young person’s family, as they know them in a unique way and can ensure the plan is suited to them and their needs. Including family members in decision-making also ensures support is consistent between school and home.
Software such as Tes Provision Map can also support you to meet a student’s needs. This supports SEND management and provision mapping, so schools can manage SEND provision more effectively and efficiently.
Building confidence
As a teacher or member of school staff, it’s important that you feel confident to create an inclusive classroom – and to support all your students, regardless of their background or level of ability.
You might find it difficult to acknowledge and celebrate differences if you’re afraid of saying the wrong thing. As such, educating ourselves on other cultures is key to giving us the understanding to celebrate what makes us different – ultimately, this goes a long way in creating an inclusive environment at school.
Similarly, lacking the confidence to support students with SEND is not only detrimental to these students’ learning, but will also likely impact your wellbeing as a teacher.
Professional development such as training is a great way to develop your skills and feel more confident at school. This could be on a range of topics including diversity and inclusion, supporting students with SEND, and anywhere else you would benefit from.
Building your confidence in the areas that’ll help you the most will improve your own wellbeing as well as the support you can provide to your students, ultimately enabling you to create a more positive and inclusive environment for all.
Celebrating difference and the journey to inclusion
Embracing other cultures is important in making everyone feel included, regardless of their cultural background. An easy way to do this is to incorporate literature and sources from other cultures in lesson plans.
Incorporating other cultures in this way not only shows acknowledgement of a student’s background but also makes it clear that they are valued and embraced for the things that make them different to their peers.
As well as cultural differences, it’s also important to embrace differences such as SEN and disabilities. This can be incorporated in lesson plans by using images or illustrations that include disabled children, such as wheelchair users or those with limb differences.
Visual displays that showcase values such as respect and tolerance for people who are different to us, such as those who look different or have different opinions, perspectives and experiences can also make your classroom more inclusive by instilling these values in your students.
It's also important to remember that inclusion is an ongoing commitment. Making your classroom and school an inclusive space is a journey, and a positive mindset can go a long way in helping you create an environment where your students thrive.
Streamlining processes to reduce workload
Workload and lack of resources can also be barriers to inclusion. Utilising technology that reduces pressure on staff, such as class teachers and SENCOs, can make a big difference in giving you the time and resources to commit to focusing on inclusion.
Tes Provision Map can save SENCOs 20% of their time, and senior leaders can get up to three weeks of time back by using the software.
Make your school more inclusive with Tes
Inclusion is more essential than ever in supporting students’ wellbeing as well as improving outcomes. Our Inclusion Advice Hub provides information and support for creating an inclusive environment in your school or classroom.
Our SENCO handbook is a free guide that helps you keep all your plans and paperwork together on one intuitive platform. Read it now to find out how you can reduce your workload and measure impact with confidence.