Introduction

Creating the conditions for every one of our learners to thrive is a key goal for every teacher. But this is not that simple. Our learners come from varied contexts, have different interests, worldviews and varied learning abilities and preferences. It is important to plan our lessons considering how we can contribute to lowering the barriers that may be an obstacle for students to access and engage with quality education. This blog post is an invitation to consider these factors so we can make adaptations aimed at including all learners, especially when teaching remotely or online.

Inclusion in education

We used to talk about special educational needs (SEN) to refer to students who required extra support due to their learning difficulties or disabilities, but we now understand that these are only some of the factors that limit access to quality education. This is why when we talk about inclusion and SEN today we refer to practices that take into consideration all the barriers  that might affect students’ learning, and work to overcome them. In this sense, inclusive practices aim to achieve the UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education, which states that discrimination includes “any distinction, exclusion, limitation or preference which, being based on race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, economic condition or birth has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing equality of treatment in education” (1960, Article 1, para. 1). They are also a way forward to reach the UN Sustainable Development Goal 4, “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”. This requires the flexibility to respond to our learners' needs. 

Grant and Newton (2019, p. 120) in the Teaching for All project mention the importance of adopting an intersectional approach that helps teachers understand that there are a range of obstacles in different areas that could simultaneously prevent learners from accessing educational opportunities. Their model aims to respond to learners’ needs in the following five areas, which is a very useful grouping to consider in every educational setting:

  • “cognition and learning
  • communication and interaction
  • social emotional and mental health needs
  • sensory and/or physical
  • societal factors that have an impact on learning”

To tend to these, it is important to ensure our learners feel visible and appreciated, by creating a supportive environment in which they can express their identities and feel represented. 

Opportunities and challenges of remote lessons

Many inclusive good practices in remote and online teaching remain the same as in face-to-face environments. However, online and remote learning contexts offer a number of opportunities for dealing with diversity and inclusion as well as with their own unique challenges. 

There are different modes for remote and online learning: learners might be all together in the same classroom connecting to a videoconference, they might each be connecting with their own device from a remote location, they may learn through a combination of synchronous and asynchronous encounters with the teacher, etc. Each of these settings poses their own challenges and opportunities. 

In cases in which all students share the physical space, but the teacher connects through videoconference, some added obstacles could be the difficulty to manage the class at a distance and provide feedback and support to individual students, as the teacher always communicates to the whole class, which in turn makes it harder to establish an emotional connection with students, as Pintos (2018) has noted. 

However, probably the most challenging scenario is the one in which each learner connects from a different place as there will be a great variety of conditions that require the teacher to make differentiated adjustments. In this latter case, it is likely that not all learners will have a quiet space to join the lesson, some learners might feel uncomfortable exposing their surroundings or their family members that occasionally walk into the frame. Also, connectivity is many times differently reliable from one household to another. Devices vary considerably in their affordances. Students who only own mobile devices are likely to experience more tech constraints than the ones who can use a laptop or desktop computer. Learners who each connect from their own device and location might be exposed to more distractions than the ones who are all together in the same place (social media, pop ups, surroundings, etc.).

On the other hand, digital learning contexts allow for the possibility of reaching hard to access locations such as rural areas. Certain tech that is easier to implement in digital education can facilitate inclusive practices, as well as the use of varied and engaging material including videos and games, which is motivating for students. In some cases, learners can study from a comfortable place that is relaxed and safe and in which their family can provide support.

Considerations for inclusive planning for learning

Some key areas to consider when designing inclusive teaching practices in digital contexts:

1. Primary of pedagogy. This refers to the need for pedagogy to be the main driver of decisions regarding the use of digital tools and not the other way around: the tech selection and use should respond to informed pedagogical decisions. (European Agency, 2022).

2. The learning environment. As we have seen in the previous section, different remote and online learning environments have their own characteristics that provide added opportunities and challenges for inclusive teaching practices. 

3. Teachers’ beliefs and self-awareness. The first step towards helping learners overcome barriers to their learning process is becoming aware of them. As seen above, these come in many forms and they often intersect, so some learners might be facing obstacles on multiple fronts. It is also essential to become aware of our own biases and make sure our expectations are the same for all students (Coimbra and Taylor, 2020).

4. Learners’ competences. Some key areas for inclusion such as making sure students feel seen, engaged and that they can actively collaborate with others require students’ digital and information literacy skills that will enable them to establish respectful and safe social interactions, limiting vulnerabilities and dangers. 

5. The principles of Universal Design for Learning. This is a framework that originated in architecture and seeked to create universally accessible buildings. Similarly, when we embrace it in education, we need to design flexible learning environments that can cater to the needs of the wide diversity of students in our classrooms. The European Agency guide (2022, p. 55) highlights these three principles to adopt an Universal Design for Learning (UDL) approach:

  • “‘provide information through multiple means of representation (present information and content in different ways)’
  • ‘provide multiple means of action and expression (differentiate the ways that learners can express what they know)’
  • ‘provide multiple means of engagement (stimulate interest and motivation for learning)” 

Strategies for inclusive teaching practices

Inclusive practices, while they can be conceived to adapt to the needs of a certain group of students, will actually benefit them all. Some examples of simple adjustments to cater for student diversity and foster inclusion are:

  • Share the aims and stages of the lessons at the beginning of the class. This will help students understand the big picture and develop their ability to plan, it will reduce their anxiety and help them understand where the lesson is going, which will especially benefit learners with difficulty to manage their executive functions (ability to plan, organise, sustain attention, prioritise, etc.).
  • Break down complex tasks into simpler ones. This also helps executive functioning. 
  • Give inclusive instructions: accompany oral instructions with written ones that students can refer to while doing the task, using concise, clear language and providing visual support. You can also record your instructions beforehand for extra support. Providing a model, time warning and using electronic timers are also very helpful.
  • Adapt tasks to suit the learners’ environment. For example, if students' surroundings are very noisy or they do not feel confident enough to speak yet, allow for chat participation or to record an audio they can later share. Consider the affordances of their devices for this.
  • Invite students to demonstrate their learning in different ways. Give them a choice on how to present evidence of their learning such as writing an essay, preparing a presentation, submitting a video, composing a song, etc. 
  • Facilitate group work. Help students organise it by suggesting different roles that will allow them to participate in a way they feel comfortable with. Provide models on the type of interaction that is expected. Intervene when necessary. 
  • Plan for interruptions. If connectivity or domestic duties are an issue, plan for ways for students to catch up like recording the lesson or sharing notes on the development of the class. 
  • Plan for learners to feel seen. Learner engagement and voice is a key aspect of inclusion. Ask yourself: do students have enough opportunities to express their identities? Can they relate to the material? Does it represent the diversity in society and in your classroom?

SEN Toolkit

The UK Consultancy LearnJam recently carried out research for The British Council on how to support teaching of SEN in remote ELT settings in the Americas. As a result, a toolkit has been developed that provides a comprehensive discussion of the subject, with a detailed description of principles and strategies, in which some of the ideas above, key considerations and practical tips to create a more inclusive teaching and learning environment are dealt with in depth. Listen to the experts who developed it describing it and access the toolkit here.

Using tech to aid inclusion

Most videoconference software offers the possibility to give students the choice to communicate through chat or using a microphone. Backgrounds are an option for students who aren’t comfortable showing us their homes. Apart from similar teaching adaptations that we can make to create an inclusive learning environment, there are a number of available technologies that have been developed to provide support to overcome certain barriers. For example, low vision learners will benefit from text enlargement and adjusting their screen for colour and contrast. Hearing impairments can be aided with transcripts, blind or visually impaired learners can use screen readers and text alternatives for graphics, etc. 

A broader list of available tech for inclusion and examples can be found on pages 19 and 20 of the UNESCO guidelines to include learners with disabilities, which was developed in the context of emergency remote teaching.

Conclusion

Creating an inclusive learning environment is a key goal to ensure all our students can make the most out of the educational opportunities. Technology can certainly aid this task, but being aware of what inclusion and diversity entail, are essential pedagogical concerns that should be the starting point of any action working towards this goal. This is a broad, crucial topic with so many different aspects that cannot be covered in this blog entry, so we invite you to engage with the resources shared above, keep exploring the subject with the ones linked below and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions in the comments box to keep learning together.

Keep exploring the subject

References