Why are social justice and inclusion key concepts in Scottish education?

This essay will explore the significance of social justice and inclusion within Scottish education today. They are interlinked and imbedded within educational policy, legislation, frameworks, and the substantive articles from The United Nations Convention on the Rights of a Child (UNCRC) which empower children’s entitlements, and promote active citizenship. The General Teaching Council Scotland (GTCS) also highlighted social justice and inclusion as a responsibility within the teaching profession, by establishing them as core themes in maintaining values and commitments for all students throughout their education. (Gtcs.org, 2012)

Social Justice

Social justice is an equivocal concept, however there is an overarching egalitarian theme present throughout, which aims to remove barriers for people, to promote an equal society where fairness is fundamental, and to ensure opportunities are available for all (Gov.scot, 1999) This links heavily with inclusion, embracing every child and respecting diversity. Despite the immersion within Scottish policy and legislation, ambiguity remains over successful implementation to achieve social justice pragmatically and coherently, and to ensure that all children and young people are benefitting from a rich and fulfilling education.

Barriers faced by children and young people in Scotland today include poverty, disability, race, culture, sex, gender and religion. Some people believe that underachievement can be detected from an early age with socio-economic background being a key contributor affecting language, cognitive, social and emotional development. (T. G. K. Bryce et al, 2013, p866) Others would disagree, suggesting that children and young people’s outcomes are not always predetermined (Pollard, 2014, p480) The fact remains that children are entering primary school with established academic disadvantages, which is impacting their experience and attainment during school. (T. G. K. Bryce et al, 2013, p866) The subsequent results of these disadvantages could continue through secondary school, potentially harming their future outcomes. Although there have been improvements in performance over the last decade, variations are still apparent between councils, schools and individuals. (Gov.scot, 2017), and children are still experiencing exclusion from education due to poverty, inequality and disability. (Pollard, 2014, p410)

The Scottish Government has introduced many initiatives such as The Early Years Framework and the Child Poverty Strategy as approaches to help target inequalities for children before they are established, by extending and strengthening support for parents and communities in addition to the children themselves. Despite these structures in place, children from the most affluent areas of Scotland are still significantly outperforming those from the most deprived areas in language, literacy and numeracy skills (Gov.scot, 2017) hence, contributing to the widely conversed poverty related attainment gap.

The Scottish Attainment Challenge was another approach aimed at tackling disadvantages for children and young people. The scheme, strengthened by the support from the Curriculum for Excellence (CFE) and Getting It Right for Every Child (GIRFEC), introduced the Attainment Scotland fund which provides schools located in the most deprived areas, access to £120million to spend on additional resources. The scheme grants flexibility to Head teachers, allowing them to spend money to help raise attainment. Although this approach could offer a partial solution to the crisis, there have been concerns over spending variations between local authorities, (Gov.scot, 2017) therefore it is crucial for the government to monitor these expenditures to reduce disparities. Specialist support must also be provided for Head teachers to ensure they are managing the money effectively and focussing on key areas where gaps in attainment exist. Poverty is deep rooted within Scotland and the government must continue to extend support if multigenerational changes are to be made. (Gov.scot, 2016)

Despite social justice being enthralled by poverty, there are other areas where inequalities are present and must be managed to improve egalitarianism. Issues regarding gender have impacted experiences faced by children in school over the years with homophobic bullying, harassment and sexism occurring. In the past, gender inequality was rife in Scottish education with comparisons being made between the achievement of boys and girls. Gender stereotypes were linked to socialisation processes and this subsequently impacted opportunities, subject choice and progression routes for both boys and girls. (T. G. K. Bryce et al, 2013 p875) In 2006, strategies were put in place to address gender inequalities in Scottish Schools, with the implementation of the CFE. Four capacities were developed to promote equality and fairness by creating more opportunities for children to build confidence, resilience and values. The Gender Equality toolkit for staff was also created using a range of quality indicators to ensure Scottish schools promote gender equality. (Gov.scot, 2007) Although the current Scottish curriculum has been described as gender neutral (T. G. K. Bryce et al, 2013, p875) the government is aware that gender inequality is still a concern in Scottish schools. They developed the Delivering Excellence and Equity in Scottish Education plan to target areas for improvement and have since re-examined progress through the Next Steps document. It is vital for the government to consistently monitor progress on equality to uphold children’s rights and ensure their targets are succeeding.

Scotland has seen a dramatic increase in migration over the last decade and consequently, has become extremely multi-cultural and multi-linguistic (Oecd.org, 2015) Although diversity is embraced in Scottish schools today, it has created some barriers in the past. Children with English as an Additional Language (EAL) were seen as an inconvenience and lack of bilingual teachers and resources were not available. Children were then segregated from school and sent to specialist language units. (T. G. K. Bryce et al, 2013, p895) This would have impacted their educational experience in school and further separated them from society. The Scottish government has since focussed on ethnic inequalities with legislation such as Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004/09 and GIRFEC. These frameworks put children at the centre and support their needs, to ensure they have access to equal opportunities to learn and develop.

To further promote social justice in Scottish education, the government identified the importance of highly skilled teaching professionals, who consistently challenge children, stimulate their learning, support growth and development, and help them build sustainable, equitable outcomes. (Gtcs.org, 2012) The importance of investing in high quality teachers was highlighted in Graham Donaldson’s review of teacher education, Teaching Scotland’s Future (2011). He acknowledged the need to strengthen teaching and reinforce leadership (Donaldson, 2010) as these are vital elements for enhancing school experience for children.

Social justice also features heavily in the GTCS Standards for Provisional Registration (SPR) alongside inclusion which suggests that modelling and demonstrating professional values as teachers is fundamental towards removing barriers and creating learning opportunities for all. Improving teaching standards will impact children’s educational experiences and opportunities indefinitely, however inconsistencies may remain between teachers, schools and communities. Children must remain at the centre of future planning; and support must continue for schools, parents and communities to create a robust network for the future of Scottish education.

Inclusion

Like social justice, inclusion has multiple interpretations, however, the predominant focus is on, “presence, participation and achievement” as cited by Ainscow (2005) (Pollard, 2014, p421) All children are entitled to learn regardless of their skills, abilities or needs and should not be discriminated against. This is further emphasised in article 2 and 28 of the UNCRC. (Unicef.org, n.d.)

It has been suggested that effective learning occurs in the classroom through social activities, paired work, and using collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches. Lev Vygotsky was a developmental theorist and an advocate for inclusion. He strongly believed that encouraging children to work together would co-construct knowledge and understanding whilst building social, emotional and behavioural skills which are essential for children’s development. Vygotsky’s work was fundamental and has built the foundations for many educational policy documents. Theorist Jerome Bruner also believed that social and cultural influences during learning are crucial. His notion was that any child can learn at any stage of development provided there are scaffolds and support in place. (McLeod, 2014)

Those with a strict alliance to inclusion would argue that all children, regardless of their additional support needs (ASN) should be taught in mainstream classes. (Riddell, 2009) This would promote participation and acknowledge children’s rights. The UNCRC is rooted in educational policy and legislation and should be exercised and applied in schools. Children should be allowed to share their perspectives, take ownership of their learning and be aware of their entitlements when it comes to their rights. Some schools however, remain apprehensive that inclusion may unintentionally promote exclusion. They believe that inclusive approaches may have a negative effect on children, impacting overall achievement of pupils. These differences in opinion reflect Black-Hawkins suggestion that “There can be no such institution as a fully participatory one, but it is an aspirational well worth pursuing” (Kristine Black-Hawkins, 2007, p47)

In the past, children requiring additional support were segregated from mainstream schools and thrust into special schools to effectively cater for their needs. Traditionally in Scottish education, there was an emphasis on redistribution rather than recognition. It was considered acceptable to remove “the difference” from school instead of recognising variation, and adapting to meet the needs of children. (Riddell, 2009) This may have been beneficial to those with severe learning difficulties, however local authorities had great control over systematising children and deciding who required special provision, thus cementing the disability and deepening marginalisation. (T. G. K. Bryce et al, 2013, p252)

Other versions of inclusion have placed less focus on educational location, and more on the quality of the education, for example, if, support and resources are in place, then the location of learning is irrelevant. The removal of children from class to receive additional support for areas such as literacy may help them academically in the future, however it may impact their participation and social development in the class. This style of inclusion evolved from integration. Children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) were welcomed in schools, but taught separately in an educational base. This was a step forward from segregation, but still affected children’s inclusion in class.

The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 was introduced to facilitate inclusion and tackle discrimination. The Act identified that needs are not fixed entities. All children may require additional support at some point throughout their school experience as they grow and develop, therefore educational settings must be responsive to this. (Gov.scot, 2004). As a result, they changed the term Special Education Needs (SEN) to Additional Support Needs (ASN).

Those teaching and working in schools are critical towards the implementation of inclusion practices. The national Framework for Inclusion was designed in conjunction with the GTCS, and highlights expectations and standards of student teachers and qualified teachers throughout their professional career. The framework reflects current educational policy and legislation and is heavily supportive of social justice and inclusion. It identifies progressive steps towards values and beliefs, professional knowledge, understanding, skills and abilities that are required to generate a comprehensive education system in Scotland. (Frameworkforinclusion.org, 2014)

To further promote inclusion in Scottish schools, various approaches to assessment have been developed as a way of tailoring work to meet the needs of children, whilst monitoring progression and learning. Assessment is for learning (AIFL) is a formative approach which utilises students prior learning to adapt teaching to meet the individual needs of students. AIFL incorporates class discussions, promotes autonomy, ownership and independence for children and young people. (Pollard, 2014, p354) Learning intentions and success criteria are shared with the class to indicate the overall objective and can be designed with input from the children, to ensure they are challenging as well as achievable for everyone. (Pollard, 2014, p361) To promote self-management, children can self, and peer assess which not only builds on their reflection, but may also scaffold their learning. (William, 2016)  If practiced proficiently, this approach to teaching will enhance inclusion and social justice with the classroom.

Conclusion

Social justice and inclusion will continue to remain key concepts in Scottish education as they are central for towards creating equity and fairness for children and young people whilst upholding their rights. Children of today will soon be responsible for sustaining our society and looking after welfare, therefore we must support their education and enrich their learning to help them in the future (Pollard, 2014, p482)

However, to generate an unprejudiced system of education, the government must continue to action strategies to target inherent social inequalities to build a sustainable environment. This complete overhaul may take years to action, nonetheless, “restructuring schools to ensure they are more responsive to student diversity” (Kristine Black-Hawkins, 2007, pg21) will facilitate this transformation.