Don’t settle for “doing something else”

About this presentation

This presentation, by inclusion consultant Sarah Humphreys, will explore how going about the same learning activity in a different way is very different from being given “something else” to do.

According to the Disability Standards of Education, every child has the right to access and participate in teaching, learning and assessment experiences on the same basis as their peers. But what does this look like in reality? As a parent, how do you make sure it’s happening for your child? As a teacher, how do you make sure you are providing it for your students?

Many children with disability have individual learning goals. These are often formalised into an Individual Education Plan. As a result, the student often ends up doing different work than their classmates. Sarah will share examples of how these personal goals can instead help provide access to the same learning as the rest of the class. In this section, the audience will be invited to share their own experiences. The goal is for participants to feel confident to not settle for “doing something else”.

This presentation was delivered in 2021 as one of three preconference webinars in the lead-up to the Get That Good Life! conference.

Sarah Humphreys is an inclusion consultant and co-founder of Inclusive Schools Australia. She is passionate about developing and promoting curriculum access for all. Sarah promotes the use of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to achieve this goal.

She presented at the UDL Implementation and Research Network, USA, on how the principles of UDL were applied to the development of the Australian Curriculum. She now works with schools supporting its implementation.

Sarah has a Master’s Degree in Special Education from London University.