Introduction
The rationale for the action research element of the project was based on a feeling that our chosen students in travel and tourism did not see equality and diversity as being especially relevant to their vocational area. At the outset of the project we sought to capture this in a 'Before questionnaire' that we gave out to the students to complete at our first meeting. Students were asked to tick 1 of 4 boxes as to how strongly they agreed or disagreed with 5 statements relating to different aspects of diversity including faith and religion. The results were surprising in that they showed a level of understanding of relevance that was higher than anticipated. For example 100% of students ticked that they would be able to give examples of how consideration of people's differences is relevant to a future career in travel and tourism However, when discussion followed it proved difficult for students to provide any examples or elaborate on why they had answered in the way that they did. This was not taken any further due to time constraints but it does suggest that our initial thoughts were correct and a more productive method of evidencing this would have been via a focus group type of discussion. It did however confirm that a different approach was needed to provide a route that would allow equality and diversity to be seen to be more meaningful and relevant to this cohort of learners. This also supported the evidence gained from feedback following staff development sessions which pointed to a need to refresh our approach in how we embed religion and faith in the curriculum.
Making equality and diversity more meaningful
Our Travel and Tourism students were commissioned to research, plan and deliver a conference on the theme of faith and religion in the workplace. The commission came from Just Lincolnshire, an equality and human rights charity working across the county. There was common agreement that this event would give students a real and practical example of conference management, whilst also recognising that such an event would help foster good relations and promote social cohesion within Boston. There was an important time management element to this project as well, as the students would only have 6 weeks to deliver this conference. Support and guidance was offered to the students through workshops delivered by AFAN, Just Lincolnshire and staff from the college. A student visit was undertaken to the local Mosque which allowed students to learn more about the Islamic faith. Students also went along to Boston Guildhall which was to be the venue for the conference so students could familiarise themselves with the building and its layout.
Method
We wanted to capture learning of equality and diversity from our students, as they applied themselves with organising the conference so it became firmly embedded and understood in a working environment relevant to their vocational study. Qualitative evidence for this was captured from evaluation forms given out at the conference and via a focus group held with the students at the end of the project. The latter allowed for more reflective learning of the project as a whole and gave them the opportunity to see the distance travelled in both conference management skills, together with a wider understanding of faith and religion.
Conclusion
The project has shown that when applied in a practical and relevant way, equality and diversity issues such as faith and religion can be hugely beneficial to enhancing the learning experience of students. However, more planning and evidence gathering at the start of the project as to gaining a better understanding of equality and diversity from the students would have given greater depth as to the impact of the project and the distance travelled, both from an individual and group perspective.
The success of the project was dependent on the College taking a whole organisational approach, from the Principal, who welcomed everyone to the conference, to the teaching and administrative staff who worked tirelessly to support and encourage our learners. We are hugely indebted to the contribution from all our partners including Dale Newman & Wes Shelbourne from Just Lincolnshire; Raheed Salam from All Faiths and None (AFAN) and Arif Mateen, at the Boston Mosque and Islamic Centre. However, the biggest thank you goes to our learners who were brilliant throughout, especially considering they were given just 6 weeks to plan and deliver the conference and at a time that was very close to their final course deadlines. In participating in the project, they were able to demonstrate a wide range of skills and talents and maintained a very mature, professional and competent attitude throughout.
Frank Hanson
Equality and Diversity Manager
August 2014
The rationale for the action research element of the project was based on a feeling that our chosen students in travel and tourism did not see equality and diversity as being especially relevant to their vocational area. At the outset of the project we sought to capture this in a 'Before questionnaire' that we gave out to the students to complete at our first meeting. Students were asked to tick 1 of 4 boxes as to how strongly they agreed or disagreed with 5 statements relating to different aspects of diversity including faith and religion. The results were surprising in that they showed a level of understanding of relevance that was higher than anticipated. For example 100% of students ticked that they would be able to give examples of how consideration of people's differences is relevant to a future career in travel and tourism However, when discussion followed it proved difficult for students to provide any examples or elaborate on why they had answered in the way that they did. This was not taken any further due to time constraints but it does suggest that our initial thoughts were correct and a more productive method of evidencing this would have been via a focus group type of discussion. It did however confirm that a different approach was needed to provide a route that would allow equality and diversity to be seen to be more meaningful and relevant to this cohort of learners. This also supported the evidence gained from feedback following staff development sessions which pointed to a need to refresh our approach in how we embed religion and faith in the curriculum.
Making equality and diversity more meaningful
Our Travel and Tourism students were commissioned to research, plan and deliver a conference on the theme of faith and religion in the workplace. The commission came from Just Lincolnshire, an equality and human rights charity working across the county. There was common agreement that this event would give students a real and practical example of conference management, whilst also recognising that such an event would help foster good relations and promote social cohesion within Boston. There was an important time management element to this project as well, as the students would only have 6 weeks to deliver this conference. Support and guidance was offered to the students through workshops delivered by AFAN, Just Lincolnshire and staff from the college. A student visit was undertaken to the local Mosque which allowed students to learn more about the Islamic faith. Students also went along to Boston Guildhall which was to be the venue for the conference so students could familiarise themselves with the building and its layout.
Method
We wanted to capture learning of equality and diversity from our students, as they applied themselves with organising the conference so it became firmly embedded and understood in a working environment relevant to their vocational study. Qualitative evidence for this was captured from evaluation forms given out at the conference and via a focus group held with the students at the end of the project. The latter allowed for more reflective learning of the project as a whole and gave them the opportunity to see the distance travelled in both conference management skills, together with a wider understanding of faith and religion.
Conclusion
The project has shown that when applied in a practical and relevant way, equality and diversity issues such as faith and religion can be hugely beneficial to enhancing the learning experience of students. However, more planning and evidence gathering at the start of the project as to gaining a better understanding of equality and diversity from the students would have given greater depth as to the impact of the project and the distance travelled, both from an individual and group perspective.
The success of the project was dependent on the College taking a whole organisational approach, from the Principal, who welcomed everyone to the conference, to the teaching and administrative staff who worked tirelessly to support and encourage our learners. We are hugely indebted to the contribution from all our partners including Dale Newman & Wes Shelbourne from Just Lincolnshire; Raheed Salam from All Faiths and None (AFAN) and Arif Mateen, at the Boston Mosque and Islamic Centre. However, the biggest thank you goes to our learners who were brilliant throughout, especially considering they were given just 6 weeks to plan and deliver the conference and at a time that was very close to their final course deadlines. In participating in the project, they were able to demonstrate a wide range of skills and talents and maintained a very mature, professional and competent attitude throughout.
Frank Hanson
Equality and Diversity Manager
August 2014