Managing Behaviours in the Learning Environment

Task1 (i):- Describe and discuss the aspects of national legislation which have relevance to behaviour in the learning environment.

There are many areas of legislation that are relevant to managing behaviour in the learning environment. I have outlined below some of the areas covered by legislation:

The Race Relations Act (1976) amended in 2000 has relevance to managing behaviour, as the act makes it illegal to discriminate on the grounds of colour, race, ethnic or national origins. I consider this act when managing student behaviour and their use of inappropriate language to others who are different to them. Wilson (2009:21) states ‘ for the teacher this means ensuring language ,handouts and other learning materials are free from bias, and that inappropriate comments are challenged and excluded from the classroom’.

The Equality act (2006) formally the (Sex Discrimination Act 1975). This piece of legislation places a statutory duty on all colleges and educational establishments to have consideration to remove all unlawful discrimination no matter what gender students are and promote equal opportunities between sexes. As this legislation covers discrimination due to gender, I must manage situations that may arise between students of both sexes so they do not breach the act e.g. when a student makes reference to another students inability to complete a task due to their gender.

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 is an umbrella act which sets out the responsibilities of organisations with regard to health and safety issues. I carry out risk assessments to ensure that the environment in which students are taught is safe. The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 allows me to keep under control any situations of dangerous behaviour in the classroom or workshop, such as enforcing the wearing of the correct personal protective equipment (PPE), safe handling practices and the use of risk assessment. As stated by Wilson (2009:19) ‘all activities have an element of risk, some more than others. It is the teachers responsibility to assess the level of risk, establish practices to minimise and record such activities’.

By considering these acts that cover both the work place and educational establishments it allows me to provide an environment in which students feel both physically and psychologically safe. Gravells (2008:33) states ‘always try to establish a purposeful learning environment where your learners can feel safe, secure, confident and valued’.

(Word Count 307)

Bibliography
Gravells A (2008) Preparing to teach in the life long learning sector, Exeter, Learning matters.
Wilson L (2009) Practical Teaching: A guide to PTLLS & DTLLS, Andover, Cengage Learning EMEA.

Bibliography: Gravells A (2008) Preparing to teach in the life long learning sector, Exeter, Learning matters. Wilson L (2009) Practical Teaching: A guide to PTLLS & DTLLS, Andover, Cengage Learning EMEA.