EDU30005: Understanding and Supporting Inclusion

EDU30005 Assignment 1: Reflective Essay

This assignment requires you to reflect on the information that you have encountered through the unit readings, to then explain your understanding of the factors that impact on the lives of children with additional needs and their families.

The purpose of this task is to enable you to critically think about your learning and develop a deeper understanding of the complex sociocultural factors and theoretical perspectives around disability, diversity, additional needs and inclusion. You will moreover explore and discuss how these factors and perspectives impact on the lives of children with additional needs and the people who care for them.

In this unit, your reflective essay will examine your understanding of Weeks 1–4. You will critically reflect and write about your understandings and answer following essay question:

What can be learned from history, policy and contemporary practices that can guide educators to ensure that all children and families are invited to fully participate in educational settings and the wider Australian society?

In addressing this question, you should reflect on the following four key questions to guide your thinking:

1. What do I understand about the historical developments of inclusive education in Australia?
2. What do I understand about the policy documentation that underpins educational practice?
3. What do I understand about the impact of the historical developments and policy documentation on contemporary practice?
4. Based on the understandings from questions 1–3, what do I believe educators should do to ensure that all children and families are invited to fully participate in educational settings and the wider Australian society?

Your reflective essay should be written in first person. The structure of your essay is flexible, but the following list offers a guide you may like to use:

• Introduction (approximately 200 words): Outline what your essay will cover.
• Body (approximately 1600 words): Address the key areas in the body of your essay, connecting these with a broad view of contemporary policies and practices.
• Conclusion (approximately 200 words): Present a summary of your response to the essay question.
• Reference list (not included in word count): List all references to the work and words of others correctly cited according to APA style.

This task requires you to investigate and summarise sociocultural factors, theoretical perspectives and contemporary inclusion policies and practices. While in the first instance the learning materials and readings in Weeks 1–4 provide a source of information, you are expected to look well beyond this material in formulating your essay. You will be required to use scholarly resources to support your views. This involves selecting evidence from peer-reviewed scholarly texts, as well as authoritative non-peer-reviewed primary and secondary sources. It also means you must write with clarity and precision, and correctly cite the references from which you have drawn your evidence.