I am the Course Leader for BA Fashion Marketing and Content Creation which is a brand-new BA at London College of Fashion. Studying the unit Inclusive Practices has been very formative and timely as I embark on more regular self-reflections in my teaching and how today’s cohorts are shaping my practices.
It was the changing dynamic of my classroom and my need to accommodate and change myself that inspired me to create my intervention. In this report I will reflect on my own positionality and its influence on my pedagogies and teaching style, my intervention conception, evaluating on the progress I’ve made, and feedback garnered. Finally, I will conclude by evaluating my time on this unit, it’s success, it’s influences on me….and challenges that occurred.
As explained in my intervention proposal, my concept focused on supporting Neurodiverse learners and creating a more relatable and accessible teaching team. When reflecting on my own positionality within my practices and my research into my selected intervention, I wanted to address personal bias and also determined if my own positionality had influenced my ideation here. I had chosen to collaborate with a student I had much empathy for. I therefore referred to positionality research from Merriam et al. (2001 , p. 411) who notes that “positionality can shift depending on where the researcher stands at a specific moment, time, or space.” . Perhaps suggesting our identity shapes, us and influencers us when researching – but it can also change and shift as we continue on the research joinery. And if if we do hold bias, you can become ‘inside and outside’ the research based on your positionality.
I have also utilised intersectionality frameworks to reflect on my positionality and relation to the intervention. Whilst I acknowledge the white privilege I hold, I am female from a working-class background, working in academia. My own university experience was not inclusive due, in part, to these identities and intersectionality that prevented me from some progression and also recognition and acceptance in the classroom. By teachers and peers. My social economic background provided me with a strong ‘Essex accent’ and limited cultural knowledge! I could sense the prejudice. It is this experience that shapes my teaching and pedagogies today .
Intervention – Seminar support buddy for NDLs (Neuro diverse learners)
Overview
The Seminar support buddy for NDLs system is an extended tutor support network that takes place in the classroom within the ‘Intro To’ unit in the first 5 weeks of term. Inspired by the TA (Teasing Assistant) system used in primary schools, the Seminar support buddy will be LCF alumni Justine Baylis. A Neurodivergent learner and now alumni.
Aims of the NDL Buddy.
- To provide a relatable and visible face within the classroom to support the main tutor/Course leader for the initial introduction classes with year ones, helping to identify NDLs early
- To provide additional formative assessment during class time and workshops, with the NDL buddy tasked with liaising with the groups and individual to check lesson understanding and provide support and assistance
- To provide feedback and reflection to course leader/tutor on how tutor addressed the diverse learners and ND learners
- To assist tutor in creating accessible and diverse teaching material and seminar props
- Promote inclusivity and accommodate diverse learners
- To provide tangible support to students that can foster community and close learning gaps
The rationale. The context. Why is this needed?
Our post covid, post Brexit generation z students are like no other cohort in my 7 year teaching career. A diverse group of learners from an increased working-class home background – – where intersectionality plays a big part in shaping their experiences.
Data from our UAL dashboards shows that 100% of my first-year home students this year are the first to go to university in their family – which I believe is extremely conducive to the type of student we are seeing an increase in.
Figure 1. UAL Dashboards, 2024
We have streams of support and help at LCF from varying services. But it is faceless. It is distant. It is often distant from the teaching team. It is not a relationship.
Increase in home students from certain backgrounds and the ramifications, are seen in the King’s College research where they note ‘Undergraduates who attended state schools (15%) have on average worse mental health than their peers who attended private school (11%)’. ” Therefore, potentially meaning, our increased cohorts from more working-class Backgrounds with mental health condition or are perhaps neuro diverse due to these conditions, are not attainting at university, and are at risk of not completing their courses…and it could be argued that the current tutor teaching system at higher education, is playing its part here.
The overall aim of the intervention concept is to replicate the successful TA system used in primary schools where those (yet undiagnosed) learners are given another face. A teaching team member that isn’t’ an academic or a professional – but a supporter who can intervene and break down barriers and walls and connect in ways a busy course leader can’t. it may help to close attainment gapes with varying learners. Along with other pedagogies that I use to promote inclusive learning such as object-based learning.
More dynamic assessment could be considered. Critical race theory has been applied in the early years education system to help crate strong inclusive policy and use of assessment. Alice Bradbury (2011) explains “in primary education, CRT has been used to consider the operation of new assessments which are conducted through teacher assessment, which thus allow for different expectations of children from minoritized and low-income families.” Perhaps therefore using the lens of CRT to adapt our teaching team but also assessment could provide a fairer assessment system that also accommodates ND learners as well all as changing cohorts.
The course and unit content has encouraged me to reflect further on the stubbornness of higher education tutors to adapt and change. There seems to be a resistance to adapt to changing needs of cohorts. Why are our diverse learners expected to fall back in line once they reach higher education? Is an 18-year-old with neuro diversity who suddenly joins a new educational hight pressured environment suddenly expected to adapt? how will this maximise attainment? And let’s revisit intersectionality here? Let’s look at the potential additional barriers faced with a neuro diverse student from different race and culture who may not have English as a first language. The intersectionality prevents them from progressing even further as they arrive in higher education settings and find there is little contact and nurturing support from their weekly tutors.
Evaluation
Whilst there has been no opportunity to carry out the NDL buddy yet, I conducted my programme director Louise Stuart Trainer, to discuss the feasibility and the support internally for this. I presented my concept to Louise for her input which I found to be invaluable. Louise challenged some of my ideas with her key questions focusing on:
- How would this work with our large cohorts? (there will be project 130 students arriving for the next term)
- In those early stages, how will you identify who is neurodiverse as some students do not disclose this
- How will you ensure there is not separate teaching within the classroom?
- How will you ensure this is inclusive? How does this also take into consideration race and gender?
I reflected deeply on Louise concerns and these have helped me reshape the intervention which will be introduced much more subtly. I have utilised SMART objectives to provide an action plan going forward to help drive this initiative – potentially exploring further into my next unit.
| Specific | Introduce the NDL buddy system successfully into the first teaching unit of the academic year as a pilot scheme that can be evaluated in block 2 |
| Measurable | Generate positive feedback around support and mental health provision within CSS survey, maintaining green status in this area for the course. |
| Attainable | Provide robust lesson plan and implementation plan for the NDL that is feasible for the class size and NDL capabilities |
| Relevant | Create specific briefing guidelines and KPIs for NDL to ensure their presence is effective and need – and to also generate feedback and actions |
| Time-based | Introduce this provision in week 2 of the Introduction to Fashion Marketing unit for incoming year 1 students, revisiting in week 5 ahead of submission |
In order to provide an overview of the planned delivery and introduction of the NDL buddy, I have created a lesson plan which also details resources and CTAs for the students. (See Appendix 1)
Conclusion
Last year, I experienced an attack from a BAME student with severe mental illness history. The student was in the care of the LCF disability team but the team had failed to raise warnings to myself and teaching team and I wasn’t aware of her background. When I questioned the student on attendance, she felt she was targeted due to her race. I was then subject to abusive emails and death threats at which point she was suspended from UAL. It is through this unit, that I have first heard of Intersectionality – which has now enabled me to reflect on that experience with the student and if I had have been aware of her background….and understood her barriers more….we could have avoided the conflict.
When reflecting on my experience with this unit and indeed the year, the PGCERT has in somewhat been a eureka moment for my practise. I was able to explore deeper theory and research that helped me understand how we got here. How my classroom has changed so much and why. There is no doubt that topics relating to intersectionality have been instrumental in helping me reflect and acknowledge the challenges for my diverse cohorts – and my own personal challenges in teaching them. We have explored race and faith and reflected on research and theories – and yet I am still somewhat in the dark about how we teach and handle sensitive materials that are triggering. When creating a workshop in class recently around Beyonce’s album cover that denotes cowboys and americana, an aggressive debate ensued where a white international student questioned the authenticity of Beyoncé doing this. A BAME student challenged this and had strong opinions on the black artist’s freedom to do so. The debate was shut downs by myself but if left an unease in the classroom and I did not feel prepared for that conversation. Whilst this unit has enabled me to continue my journey into creating inclusivity and accommodating diverse learners, I still feel us tutors are not being fully prepared for what lies ahead with our incoming cohorts and the rise in contextual admissions from home students. I have struggled to engaged and attend as much as I would have liked due to intense working hours…. but the content is extremely relevant and interesting, and I hope to be able to continue this journey of learning.
References
Positionality in research, Bayeck 2022
King’s College – www.kcl.ac.uk, 2023
A CRT Framework for education policy analysis, Alice Brandbury, 2011