Equal opportunities policy - general

5.7Equal opportunities policy - general

There are three separate policy documents that fall within the auspices of the Department's 'Equal Opportunities Policy' i.e. policies on Differentiation, Gender and Multicultural education. In addition to these three policies there are several other areas of Chemistry education that need to be separately mentioned in a comprehensive policy on Equal Opportunities, i.e.

2. Teaching styles

3. Entitlement of access to the whole course of study

4. Progression within the course of study.

Ways need to be found of catering for the needs of students of all abilities which will fully challenge the most able students, and encourage those of average abilities and below to higher levels of achievement. We believe that setting is a major strategy towards achieving this aim. However setting alone will not ensure equality of opportunity.

2. Staff have a brief meeting to discuss the relevant students.

3. The HOD then speaks individually to the students that we consider could benefit from moving up a set.

4. The HOD then speaks individually to the students that we consider could benefit from moving down a set.

5. Students that we consider could benefit from moving up a set tell the HOD if they wish to do so or not.

6. The HOS and other staff make final decisions and then parents are informed by letter.

The following is an extract from the Department's 'Aims and objectives'.

All students follow the same Scheme of Work in years 7 - 8.

There is an implication in the way that the National Curriculum is set out, in the apparent hierarchy of levels, that students learn fundamental Chemistry concepts in a linear fashion. This is not necessarily the case and much care needs to be exercised in the construction of a scheme of work. We accept that some students make what appears to be erratic progress through the levels. For this reason our Scheme of Work is a spiral/progressive system that allows, in as much as is possible, for some scientific concepts to be revisited. The course is modular with most topics being visited in each of the three years.

Topic tests will often include one or two questions from the previous year's work - this allows for achievement of statements that were experienced/assessed in the previous year.

The current scheme of work appears to satisfy the needs of students of all abilities. It is also sufficiently demanding to test the most able students to the full, and encourages those of average abilities and below to new levels of achievement.

i. reflects the interests of both boys and girls.

ii. by celebrating the achievements and careers of famous male and female scientists.

iii. Encourages boys and girls to view their contributions as having equal value.

iv. values equally the experiences of both girls and boys.

v. is set in a familiar context to which all students can relate.

vi. shows that the teacher can by careful use of language avoid reinforcing stereotypical views of society.
3. Research has shown that girls in particular are less interested in Chemistry if they perceive it as being about ' things' rather than about people. Therefore we must :-

i. Emphasise that Chemistry is a human activity which relates to peoples lives.

ii. Provide opportunities to use a more personal, expressive language, in work such as projects, reports and posters and of course classroom discussion.

iii. Provide opportunities to discuss and explore opinions which relate to Chemistry-related social issues.

iv. We should demonstrate the importance of Chemistry education for everyone, showing the importance of Chemistry in a wide range of careers and everyday life e.g. healthy living, environment, communication/I.T. skills and wise consumer choice.
4. Recent research has shown that both genders experience increased levels of motivation and interest if Chemistry is delivered through the medium of I.T. The increase is more marked in boys who attain lower levels of achievement, as a whole, than do the girls.

Equal opportunities policy - multicultural education

Equal opportunities policy - differentiation

Each of the five components of differentiation are explored in detail below.

a). have an appropriate readability level.

The topic tests are written at a reading age and the sentence length and the number of syllables in particular words is considered. Staff aim to use familiar language and everyday examples of Chemistry in discussions with the students.
b). be easy to use.

Worksheets are clearly processed. Instructions are clear to understand and to carry out.

We provide students with attractive text books. We use our own and published materials.

e.g. texts, (laboratory and library) worksheets, booklets, P.C., C.D. ROM, ACORN/Arch microcomputers.

These features were central in the construction of our scheme of work - see the Scheme of Work.

Our resources are well managed and ordered. Our worksheets are kept in filing cabinets clearly labelled with their contents. Videos and computer programmes are centrally stored.

We inform the students at the start of Year 7 as to the methods of study they will be expected to use. We provide the students with various 'help sheets' e.g. how students are to write up investigations.

We work in the library and computer room when appropriate. Students have to revise regularly for the topic tests - these are perceived by the students and parents as important. We go over specific questions from the topic tests so as to clarify the finer points of 'examination technique'.

See the scheme of work for a list of suggested activities.

We have a variety of texts and worksheets that can be used to match resources/tasks with the student. Setting allows us to offer the students an appropriate learning pace and scientific content in years 10 & 11. Both written and spoken questions/vocabulary are structured to enable students of all abilities to understand and respond.

Lists of the tasks can be written on the board. We can leave demonstration apparatus set up at the front of the laboratory for students to refer to. We can provide structured worksheets.

Poster and model work done by other students can be used to illustrate possible outcomes and to inform and motivate students, e.g. making a body model, making a model Solar system, making musical instruments and timing devices. Project work should be accompanied by a brief to illustrate the areas that must be covered and to show the types of outcome that might arise, e.g. a poster. a report, a presentation, a play, a game or a magazine.

The scheme of work is designed to allow for continuity and progression.

Each topic has a clear contents list that is given to the students that details the topics studied in each year.

We wish to involve students in recording their own achievements in the National Curriculum by a 'user friendly' Record of Achievement. (to be developed).

We encourage students to comment on and discuss each others work.

During classwork students work in small groups of two, three or four students.

We endeavour to use constructive criticism and advice at all pertinent opportunities.

4. Support can be:
a). from other adults and students.

We have sixth formers who wish to do community work supporting staff in the Chemistry department. We encourage students who finish a task quickly to help others.

This can occur during a lesson or often in staff's own time, e.g. at break times and lunch times. Indeed staff sometimes support students after school on a mutually agreed basis.

e.g. texts, (laboratory and library) worksheets, booklets, P.C., C.D. ROM and video recordings are all well integrated into the scheme of work.

We celebrate achievement in many different ways - for further details see the Department’s policy on assessment. We display student's work in the laboratories.

5. Group Structure can support differentiation if:
a) we examine the structure of the teaching groups.

Setting is seen as a major way in which we group students with some respect to their potential ability to understand scientific concepts. It allows groups of students to work together on the more challenging aspects and increase their rate of work whilst allowing other groups to reinforce knowledge and skills, work at a slightly slower pace and/or gain the extra support they need.

b) we teach students in small groups.

During some classwork students work in small groups of two, three or four students. This helps to support the co-operation between the students and one hopes build up the confidence of the less confident students. The need to express their thoughts to others often helps students to prepare for AT1 work and the more open ended tasks.

c) we are flexible within the group when setting the task and responding to individual's needs.

Project work can be produced by larger as long as the students know their own role in producing the project. One collaboratively produced piece of work helps to encourage commitment and responsibility in the students.

d) we allow individual work.

Students will be able to develop their independent working methods and increase their progress if some aspects of the course are taught in this way. The more able will benefit from the intensity of such work. The less able and/or less confident student will benefit from the privacy if he/she is making errors. It is important to match the task to the student's ability in each case if progression is to occur.