Equality is recognised as giving an individual or group of people the same resources or opportunities in order to succeed. However, equity recognises that each person has different circumstances and allocates appropriate resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.
This microcredential will give you an understanding of the differences between equality, inclusion and educational equity, and of the ways equitable participation in online learning can be provided in different learner contexts.
Understand the importance of educational equity
We’ve seen an increased awareness of, and activism around, inequity in all aspects of society in recent years. Examples included the rapid increase in global momentum of the #BlackLivesMatter movement; the inequalities resulting in disproportionate death rates from COVID-19 amongst people from Black, Asian and other Ethnic Minority backgrounds; the increasing fight for trans rights across the globe, and the continuation of the ‘Me Too’ campaign.
In all sectors and settings, and all nations globally, it is emerging that formal education has a responsibility to address inequities through the design and delivery of teaching, learning, and assessment activities.
You’ll hear from experts in learning design who are experienced in addressing inequity in all its forms, including decolonising the curriculum and making it more inclusive. You will consider the importance of breaking the cycle of exclusion, discrimination, and disadvantage through the design and delivery of online teaching.
Design your online teaching to address inequity
This microcredential is relevant to anyone working in adult education and training in a variety of settings including higher education, further education and workplace learning and development roles in the private, public or third sector. It will provide you with the foundations to design equitable online teaching, learning, and assessment activities.
You’ll learn how to identify multiple aspects of inequity in education, such as race, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and socio-economic status.
You will also discover how to audit online teaching activities and institutional policies in terms of bias and inequity, as well as develop equity audit strategies that are appropriate to addressing diversity in stakeholders’ needs.
Learn from global experts at The Open University
Designed by a team of global experts at The Open University, you’ll learn from interviews with educators in diverse global contexts who are experienced in embedding equity in online teaching, learning, and assessment activities.
You’ll also hear first-hand from learners who have experienced exclusion and discrimination when learning online.
Throughout the course you’ll take part in weekly activities to support and consolidate your learning. At the end of the course, you’ll submit an assessment which is marked and graded by subject matter experts.
This course is part of a suite of Online Teaching microcredentials from The Open University: Creating Courses for Adult Learners; Evaluating and Improving Courses; Accessibility and Inclusive Learning; and Teacher Development: Embedding Mental Health in the Curriculum.
Academic credits from this course can contribute to The Open University’s Masters in Online Teaching.
