Learning Support Responsibilities Preparation

How to start

Step 1: Choose an area or activity

• Choose an area or activity, for example recruitment, and read through the best practice standards, ideas and resources. Take plenty of time to inform yourself about this area of the tertiary environment you will be reviewing before starting to use the implementation toolkit.

Step 2: Find resources and build a partnership with disabled learners

• Consult the hot tips, links and other resources on any aspect of practice that you’re unsure about or you need more information about.
• Your organisation may have other information, policies, procedures or systems related to the area or activity that may help you to complete the questions in the toolkit.
• Think about how you will build a partnership with disabled learners with different impairments to review this area or activity – through a focus or project group, disabled learner group, representatives on a reference group, etc.
• Identify other staff you need to talk to, including disability support services staff.

Step 3: Refer to the learning support responsibilities implementation toolkit

• Using the learning support responsibilities implementation toolkit, choose an area or activity to review in partnership with disabled learners. Answer the questions to determine if you have met the best practice standards for that area or activity. This will determine what actions are required.

Step 4: Identify lack of provision

• Identify any barriers that exist for disabled learners with this area or activity and solutions to resolve these barriers to participation and achievement.

Step 5: Identify further actions

• Identify where a best practice standard has been partially or not met. Using the planning chart, plan the next steps, including the actions required to resolve any gaps.

Step 6: Peer review your thinking

• Go back to the reference group to peer review your findings.

Return to Step 1: Choose the next area or activity to review.

The review of these areas or activities will lead to development of your DAP. Have some fun and be transformative!

This toolkit can be implemented in different ways:

1. A team, in partnership with disabled learners, gradually works through the toolkit. Since most people know where the greatest barriers for disabled learners are, start there. 
   There may be some simple things that would make a real difference for disabled learners, so ask them what they are. Then do some brainstorming about barriers in the learning environment and possible actions for solutions. Use the tools provided as templates and re-use them.
   
   OR
2. Those coordinating the development of the disability action plan delegate parts of the toolkit to staff responsible for specific activities. They do a review in partnership with disabled students and report back to the disability reference group.

Building a partnership with disabled learners

When reviewing a particular area or activity it’s important to get feedback from  disabled learners with different impairments from representative disabled learner  groups on focus or project teams.

For example, those responsible for property  or facilities could work in partnership with an ongoing focus group of disabled  learners who meet regularly to discuss the design of buildings, facilities and  access routes. This group could also have a wider brief and be used by other staff  to get feedback about other areas or activities. 

Regular engagement surveys with disabled learners is another great way to  identify and resolve barriers to their participation and achievement. This will ensure  you are getting feedback from the wider learner group, as well as those who are  part of reference, focus or project groups.