Supporting inclusion in post-compulsory education: Developing trainee lecturer skills

Abstract

This article examines the current proposed initial teacher education (ITE) qualification framework from the perspective of pre-service vocational post-compulsory lecturers regarding the need to develop SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) inclusive classrooms. Considering the current post-compulsory staffing crisis, general further education colleges are often choosing to employ industry subject specialists with little/no teaching experience to deliver entry-level courses, often to learners with marked SEND needs. Due to the growing proportion of SEND learners choosing mainstream post-compulsory educational providers, an analysis of the ways that these trainee teachers are prepared through their additional professional study is called for. Employing a desk-based research approach, supported with a literature review, which ties together the seemingly disparate threads of the post-compulsory teacher training curriculum and SEND enrolment data, this study shows that the current post-compulsory teacher training qualifications need adaptations to support trainee teachers. With many lecturers only starting their teacher training after a period of employment, there is a disparity when perceiving inclusion theoretically versus practically. While equality, diversity and inclusion are a key factor in the ITE core content framework, the lack of strategies to support SEND learners within skill-based subject specialisms is potentially a barrier to SEND inclusion.