Race and minority ethnic group awareness VLE version

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Race and minority ethnic group awareness VLE
version
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By the end of this CBT you will.

• Understand why the Race Relations Act is
  necessary
• Understand what is meant by minority ethnic
  groups
• Feel more confident in dealing with people from
  different ethnic groups and different cultures
• Be familiar with the law
• Be familiar with what the College is doing to
  meet the requirements
• Be familiar with your responsibilities

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Why is it important?

• Someone from a minority ethnic group is 2.3 times
  more likely to be unemployed than a white person.
  For those from Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Black
  African backgrounds, this rises to over 3 times
  more likely
• Ethnic minority groups comprise 8 of the
  population, but 22 of the homeless

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Why is it important?

• On average, workers from minority ethnic groups
  earn 93 of the average salary for white people.
  The gap in pay levels has been getting wider
  since 1998
• Black children are three times more likely to be
  excluded from school than white children
• The incidence of race hate crime reported in
  Dorset increased by 54 in 2005

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Why is it important?

• Compared to white people, those from minority
  ethnic backgrounds are -
• More likely to be excluded from education
• More likely to live in poverty
• More likely to be homeless
• More likely to be the target of hate crime

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What are minority ethnic groups? (1)

• Groups which share-
• A long shared history
• A cultural tradition of their own including
  family and social customs and manners often, but
  not necessarily associated with religious
  observance
• Either a common geographical origin or descent
  from a small number of common ancestors

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What are minority ethnic groups? (2)

• A common language not necessarily peculiar to
  that group
• A common literature peculiar to that group
• A common religion different from that of
  neighbouring groups or the general community
  surrounding that group.
• The characteristic of being a minority or an
  oppressed or a dominant group within a larger
  community

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Points to be aware of..

• Making assumptions about an individuals needs
  based on their ethnic and cultural background may
  cause problems
• In addition to potential stereotyping,
  assumptions can result in a failure to identify
  and address individual needs appropriately and
  effectively

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Points to be aware of.

• Use of language
• Be aware of how you use language and phrases.
  Some terms and phrases are very obviously
  unacceptable e.g. using the word Paki to
  describe someone who has a Pakistani background
• However others terms may be less obvious, e.g.
  black sheep of the family or whiter than
  white. It is always best to use alternatives to
  these types of phrases

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Points to be aware of.

• Interactions and behaviour
• When interacting with people from different
  backgrounds, it is important to recognise the
  role that culture plays
• Try not to interpret others behaviour through
  your cultural background
• What are your preferences and expectations, and
  what are the norms and preferences of the other
  person?

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Points to be aware of...

• Interactions and behaviour
• By failing to understand how culture impacts
  individual needs and preferences, we can often
  misinterpret behaviours
• Often without our realisation, culture influences
  how close we stand, how loud we speak, how we
  deal with conflict
• Most people don't intend to be deceptive,
  difficult or unproductive they are simply
  adhering to their cultural programming

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Points to be aware of..

• Interactions and behaviour
• Lets look at a couple of examples
• If you are a direct communicator, you probably
  expect a "tell it like it is," response, but the
  other person may be an indirect communicator
• His or her cultural background might require you
  to pick up on non-verbal cues to understand that
  his or her nodding and affirmative response is a
  polite, face-saving gesture, not an indication of
  agreement or understanding

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Points to be aware of..

• Interactions and behaviour
• You expect a student to think for themselves and
  challenge your views, however..
• Someone who has been taught deference to age,
  gender or title, might -out of respect- shy away
  from being honest or offering ideas because
  offering suggestions to an elder or a boss might
  appear to be challenging authority

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Aim of Race Relations Amendment Act 2000

• The Commission for Racial Equality (CRE)
• outlines the aim of the new duty as -
• To prevent discrimination happening in the
  first place, and to ensure that public bodies
  play an active role in creating a more equal
  society

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Race Relations Amendment Act 2000

• We have both general and specific duties under
  the Race Relations Act-
• General Duty
• To eliminate unlawful racial discrimination
• To promote equality of opportunity
• To promote good relations between different
  racial groups

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Race Relations Amendment Act 2000

• Specific Duties
• To consider impact of all policies on students
  and staff
• To monitor admission/progress of students
• To monitor recruitment /career progress of staff

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What is the College doing?

• The Race Task Group, race equality policy
  statement and race action plan, support the
  College to meet these duties
• Groups of staff, students and community members
  are being established to impact assess our
  policies

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Our responsibilities

• Awareness of, and compliance with, the Colleges
  statutory duties in relation to race legislation
• Challenging inappropriate behaviour by students,
  work placement providers, outside contractors or
  other employees
• Confronting racism, whether witting or unwitting,
  whenever it occurs
• Our responsibilities are outlined in detail in
  the Race Equality Policy Statement which is
  available on the VLE, via the Equality and
  Diversity page on the website, and on O
  Readonly Policies and procedures

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Sources of support

• The Resources folder in OEveryoneEquality and
  Diversity0607 contains helpful resources for
  use with students as well as guidance for
  teaching staff
• The Equality and Diversity page of the College
  website has some useful links
• The HR department and the Equality and Diversity
  Co-ordinator are happy to help with queries and
  concerns

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Completion

• Thank you for completing the Race and cultural
  awareness CBT
• Further equality and diversity training packages
  are available on the VLE
• For further information, or to provide feedback,
  please contact Theresa Linder lindert_at_bpc.ac.uk
  or call extn 5417
• Please complete an Equality and Diversity test if
  you have not already successfully done so