Promote Equality and Inclusion in Work with Children and Young People

TDA 3.6 Promote equality, diversity and inclusion in work with children and young people

2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5
There are many ways in which children and young people can experience prejudice and discrimination in schools. Due to many pressures on children to fit in and follow the crowd, children can be discriminated against and bullied if they do not copy their peers and follow the same suit. This can happen right from when they first start school in reception and can continue throughout school in every year group. Children not playing with others that may be different. Children may being excluded because they are boys or girls Children only playing together that are the same race or ethnicity Comments about appearance/clothes
I find this happens quite a lot without children knowing that they are being prejudice and discriminative. A young girl was sitting alone during lunch play, I asked her what was wrong and why she was not playing with her friends. She said that her friends would not let her play because she was not wearing her hair the right way for the game they were playing. Children can be very mean and hurtful without realising what they are saying.
Children and young people can also experience prejudice and discrimination due to their sex, race, religion and age or even their culture and ethnicity. This is where it is crucial for teachers and learning staff to be aware and look out for children who may not be playing with others because they may be different in some way. I have had to console a child who was upset over a game of football. She wasn’t allowed to play because she was a girl. Children will naturally want to play with others of the same sex, race or ethnicity but this is where teachers and teaching staff need to make sure that children are not being excluded for any reason and that fair treatment is given to all children.

The impact this can have on children, can make them feel like they are being isolated and that they have no friends. A child may feel different, not included or excluded from their class or friends. The child may feel useless and uncomfortable, have low self-esteem and have no confidence. It can also interfere with learning and communicating with adults and their peers.
I ensure that I treat everyone as an equal and I understand that everybody has the right to an education. I ensure that when I teach that the children feel safe at school without the fear of being bullied about their race, religion, or disability. If I was to treat my colleagues in a way that was being prejudiced or discriminative the children would pick up on the way I was talking and would then talk to their peers in the same way. Children tend to mimic their teachers so by being a good role model and showing how to respect and behave around others. Be a good role model Appreciate and promote diversity and incivility of children and young people by acknowledging their positive attributes and abilities. Listen and involve children and young people in the delivery of services, and respond to their concerns. Recognise that the child is at their centre of learning by treating each child as an individual. Have realistic but the highest expectations of all children and young people and support ethos within school. Give pupils the confidence and skills to challenge prejusice or racial behavior of others Recognise and questions anti discriminatory practice.
Children and young people who may feel discriminated for whatever reason will feel that they are not valued as a person and may start to become very withdrawn from there social peers, and may lose confidence in themselves. They may not want to join in with class activates and will not want to draw attention to themselves.

By having cultural weeks this helps for children to understand the different religions some of their peers follow. We also have circle time once a week and this is a chance for all the children to say what is different about them and to give them an opportunity to ask question about their peer’s ethnicity if they wish to do so. There is no pressure on any child to talk or answer any questions they do wish to answer.
I ensure that any remarks I hear that I may think could be discriminative towards a child I would always challenge this and record what I have heard and report to the necessary teacher. Young children will sometimes not understand what they have said to their peers and will not understand the implications it can have on others. I always make sure that I explain to the children that their comments are not acceptable and that everyone in school should be treated fairly and with respect.