Education Development Toolkit

Welcome to the Inclusivity Theme

Inclusivity is central to supporting learning through teaching that is meaningful, relevant and accessible to all. It is a core part of a thriving university, recognising that every member of our community brings unique experiences, identities and perspectives that enrich our shared learning.

Inclusivity is a core principle of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), embodied in The Well-Being Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015, which aims for ‘a society that enables people to fulfil their potential no matter what their background or circumstances’. It is also recognised when the UN General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015, and created 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). SDG 4 is central to higher Education: Providing Quality Education, which aims to ‘Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’

Inclusivity aligns to the Professional Standards Framework (PSF 2024) overall requirement for ‘effective and inclusive practice’, and in particular to Professional Values V1: Respecting individual learners and groups of learners, and V2: promoting engagement in learning and equity of opportunity.

It supports the Cardiff University Strategy ‘Our Future, Together’ in supporting ‘an excellent educational experience for students of all backgrounds’ and the strategic priority of Culture, Cynefin and Community: “We value diversity and will take the necessary steps to be a genuinely inclusive, positively bilingual and anti-racist university.“

A title 'Cardiff University Inclusive Education Framework'. A Venn diagram of three overlapping circles with ‘inclusive education’ at the centre. The circles are named: fostering a sense of belonging, empowering students to fulfil their potential and developing inclusive mindsets. Around the outside is a circle with ‘furthering social justice through evidence-informed educational change’ and the ‘removal of systemic and cultural barriers and inequality’ to demonstrate that these commitments shape the three dimensions.

Structure

This theme has 4 subsections, linked to our Cardiff University Inclusive Education Framework:

Introduction to Inclusive Education
Fostering a Sense of Belonging
Empowering Students to Fulfil their Potential
Developing Inclusive Mindsets.

If you are new to teaching or to inclusive education, you may wish to start with the Introduction.

You can then expand your knowledge in order to Foster a Sense of Belonging for students, by considering issues in induction, transition, the hidden curriculum and belonging.

The Empowering section includes Universal Design for Learning, and Anti-Racist pedagogy, which gives suggested approaches to designing for diverse students, before considering the needs and expectations for different groups of students.

Finally, the Developing Inclusive Mindsets section supports you to enhance student understanding of Inclusivity, linking to graduate attributes and for those in leadership positions, how to use inclusive leadership of learning and teaching to develop inclusive practice.

Further Learning

You will find inclusivity in each of the other sections of the toolkit, in relation to inclusive design, teaching approaches, assessment and feedback, and evaluation.

You can also develop your understanding of Inclusive Education by engaging with our related workshops, which are available asynchronously, to take in your own time, and most can be followed by a live workshop (with enough demand), a 1:1 meeting with the lead, or a bespoke workshop for your team or Schol, to discuss application to your practice. Find out more on the LTA CPD page.