There are many legislation requirements within the Further Education Sector. As a summary of the legislation requirements, some of those that are essential are Every Child Matters, The Equality Act 2010 and Safe Guarding Vulnerable Groups.
Every Child Matters is a legislation requirement which was introduced in 2003 in response to the death of Victoria Climbie, who was murdered by her carers. An inquiry was launched by Lord Lamming to improve child protection issues and there are now five outcomes of which education establishments must ensure are achieved. They are that pupils are being healthy, staying Safe, enjoying and achieving, making a positive contribution and achieving social and economic well being.
The Equality Act 2010 is an act which legally protects people from discrimination. It sets out ways in which it is unlawful to discriminate others. It has replaced previous discrimination laws by including them all in one act, making them easier to understand. Safe Guarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 is an act which relates to the protection of children and vulnerable adults. The Act was brought about after an inquiry was made chaired by Sir Michael Bichard, relating to the Soham murders. Listed in the table below are a few other legislation requirements of which staff within the FE Sector should work towards:
An overall summary of why codes of practice and legislation requirements are important within my role in the further education sector is that they help prevent any harm to people and secure a safe learning environment. L0 – 1.3 – EVALUATING RESPONSIBILITIES WITHIN THE FE SECTOR Whilst working in my role within the further education sector as a Music Tutor, there are many responsibilities that need to be maintained to ensure a safe and sufficient learning environment. They are as follows:
INCLUSION: Inclusion is essential
and it is important that I take individual students’ needs into account. For example some of my students are disabled so I have to plan lessons accordingly so that they are inclusive of everyone, whilst working towards the required criteria/curriculum. PROMOTE EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY: It is important that within my role I give every student a chance of success. In order to do this it is my responsibility to ensure everyone is treated equally and fairly. There are students from many different backgrounds in my teaching establishment so I must take this into account by adapting various things where necessary to suit the needs of their religion/beliefs or other requirements.
SAFEGUARDING: It is my responsibility as a Music Tutor in the Further Education Sector to ensure students are safe within the learning environment by abiding by codes of practice and legislation requirements such as Every Child Matters. If I felt a student was at risk it would be my responsibility to take necessary action such as reporting it to relevant people. Exceptions would also be made regarding confidentiality if I felt the student or others were at risk. PREPARATION: Lessons should be planned accordingly to suit the requirements of every student whilst ensuring any objectives and learning outcomes are met. In my role in particular there are students with many different requirements. Some are visually impaired and have various disabilities so it is my responsibility to ensure that lessons are tailored in order for them to achieve what is required.
LO – 1.3 – EVALUATING ROLES WITHIN THE FURTHER EDUCATION SECTOR With regards to roles within the Further Education Sector, I have recently learnt that there are many roles required of an FE Tutor/Lecturer. For example my current teaching placement involves roles other than teaching, such as: ASSESSING: Assessing is an important part of my role as it ensures that lessons are planned accordingly to the needs of others. It also lets me know where students are with regards to achieving learning outcomes. AMINISTRATIVE ROLES: Administrative duties are an important contribution to my role as organised records of information have to be maintained. Administrative duties also help with the preparation of lessons, such as creating slides or presentations.
PERSONAL TUTOR: As well as teaching within a group setting, my current teaching placement also requires me to engage in one to one tutoring. These tutorials are important as they give students a chance to address any questions or difficulties they may be having and also helps me assess where students need to improve and how they develop musically. Listed below are a few more roles required of an FE Lecturer:
To conclude my evaluation of roles and responsibilities within the Further Education Sector, my opinion is that there are a broad number of roles entailed in teaching and it is important that teachers are aware of the skills required to ensure students receive a good education. I believe teachers’ responsibilities of procedures such as legislation requirements and codes of practice are essential to ensuring students are safe and learn in a positive environment.