Perspectives on Disability and Professional Development in Further Education and Training seminar at SETU included speakers from AHEAD and FESS
The School of Lifelong Learning recently held a morning seminar entitled “Perspectives on Disability and Professional Development in Further Education and Training”.
Stay AHEAD of the Game
The first keynote speaker of the day was Ms. Ann Heelan, Executive Director of AHEAD. AHEAD is the Association for Higher Education Access and Disability which is an independent non-profit organisation working to promote full access and participation in further and Higher Education for students with disabilities.
Ann’s presentation - Stay AHEAD of the Game: Building an Inclusive classroom discussed the importance of inclusivity in the classroom for learners with all kinds of disabilities in terms of the physical access but also issues around culture and learning. Ann also discussed innovation within the curriculum and deliberated on what can and cannot be changed, but also what steps can be taken in the design of core outcomes, skills and objectives within programmes to facilitate greater inclusivity in the classroom.
Changing landscape
The second keynote speaker was Ms. Jenny Whelan who is the Further Education Support Officer from FESS. FESS, is the Further Education Support Service (FESS) which was established in 1997 with the objective to offer a full-time, year-round consultancy support service to the Education and Training Boards (ETBs). Her presentation – A FESS Briefing discussed Further Education support services offered by FESS, the changing landscape of Further Education and Training within Ireland, the QQI and the National Framework of Qualifications and provided an outline of the Further Education and Training providers within Ireland.
The afternoon session consisted of a workshop on writing up a Teaching Practice Observation Form held by Ms. Geraldine Mernagh. The workshop aimed to support Teaching Practice Tutors on the L8 and L9 TEQ programmes. The aim of the workshop was to gather feedback from teaching practice tutors on the value and helpfulness of statement banks which are used to support the completion of the teaching practice report.