For Scotland's learners, with Scotland's educators

Do luchd-ionnsachaidh na h-Alba, le luchd-foghlaim Alba 

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Equity and closing the poverty-related attainment gap

Aims

For Scotland's learners, with Scotland's educators

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Do luchd-ionnsachaidh na h-Alba, le luchd-foghlaim Alba 

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To consider:

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• Equity and the GTCS Professional Standards
• Poverty in Scotland and Aberdeen City
• The impact of poverty on educational outcomes
• What closing the poverty-related attainment gap means for teachers

Social Justice, Equity and GTCs

What do we actually mean by 'poverty’?

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Professor John McKendrick …

“Poverty is about not having enough.”

Typically, ‘poverty’ refers to not having enough resources.

In Scotland (and the UK), income poverty tends to be understood in one of four main ways:

• absolute poverty
• relative poverty
• persistent poverty
• Severe/ extreme poverty

A family is considered experiencing poverty if, after housing costs, they are living on:

• Less than £333 a week or £17,400 a year for a single person with children aged between 5 and 14
• Less than £450 or £23,400 a year for a couple with children aged between 5 and 14

Understanding poverty

For Scotland's learners, with Scotland's educators

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Do luchd-ionnsachaidh na h-Alba, le luchd-foghlaim Alba 

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Child Poverty Facts and Figures

The facts and figures show the reality of child poverty in the UK.

• There were 4.2 million children living in poverty in the UK in 2021-22. (29% of children, or 9 in a class of 30).
• 44 per cent of children living in lone-parent families are in poverty. 
• Children from Black and minority ethnic groups are more likely to be in poverty: 48%, compared with 25% of children in white British families.
• Work does not provide a guaranteed route out of poverty in the UK. 71% of children growing up in poverty live in a household where at least one person works.
• Children in larger families are at a far greater risk of living in poverty – 42% of children living in families with 3 or more children live in poverty.

(All poverty figures are after housing costs)

Child poverty facts and figures | CPAG

Poverty – busting the myths!

• 61% of working age adults in relative poverty were living in a household where someone was in paid work.

Families impacted by poverty do NOT lack high aspirations for their children - they may often lack practical know-how and networks to help them navigate and overcome barriers as and when they arise.

Families in poverty give their children just as much homework help as middle-class families but their help is often less well-informed because the parents may not have sufficient knowledge themselves, and may not have social networks with such knowledge. 

68% of children in poverty live in working households.

SIMD through a lens

Check SIMD here

What do we mean by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD)?

Refreshed Scottish Attainment Challenge

To use education to improve outcomes for children and young people impacted by poverty with a focus on tackling the poverty related attainment gap.

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Scottish Attainment Challenge Funding

Pupil Equity and Care Experienced Children & Young People Funds

• Care Experienced Children and Young People Fund (CECYP)
• £1225 per child/young person aged 5-15
• Funding goes to the local authority
• To support children and young people 0-26 years who have care experience
• To improve educational outcomes

• Pupil Equity Funding (PEF)
• £1225 per pupil P1-S3 pupil registered for free school meals P1-S3
• Funding goes directly to schools
• To raise attainment of children affected by poverty and close the poverty-related attainment gap (P-RAG)
• 97% of schools receive PEF
• Focus on literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing
• Themes: Leadership, Learning and Teaching, Family Support

Impacts of poverty

For Scotland's learners, with Scotland's educators

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Do luchd-ionnsachaidh na h-Alba, le luchd-foghlaim Alba 

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Source- cpag.org.uk

Equality v Equity

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Equality is about SAMENESS, it promotes fairness and justice by giving everyone the same thing.

But it can only work if everyone starts from the SAME place, in this example equality only works if everyone is the same height.

Equity is about FAIRNESS, it’s about making sure that people get access to the same opportunities.

Sometimes our differences and/or history can create barriers to participation, so we must first ensure EQUITY before we can enjoy equality.

Equity means treating people fairly, but not necessarily treating people the same. Equity in education means that personal or social circumstances such as gender, ethnic origin or family background are not obstacles to achieving educational potential and that all our young people are well supported to secure wellbeing, skills for learning, life and work and the best possible post-school destination.

Excellence and equity

Excellence and equity

• Excellence through raising attainment: ensuring that every child achieves the highest standards in literacy and numeracy, set out within Curriculum for Excellence levels, and the right range of skills, qualifications and achievements to allow them to succeed
• Achieving equity: ensuring every child has the same opportunity to succeed, with a particular focus on closing the poverty-related attainment gap

Impacts of poverty

For Scotland's learners, with Scotland's educators

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Do luchd-ionnsachaidh na h-Alba, le luchd-foghlaim Alba 

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Reflection Point

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• What does poverty look like in your classroom?

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• Who can you ask when working in a school that is new to you?

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• What interventions and supports have you seen provided?

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What matters ?

Considering the gap in each cohort, group or class

universal support

targeted support

Teacher Professional Judgement

Moderation and assessment

Tracking learner progress

Use of data to support decisions

Identifying barriers

Provide high quality teaching- be the best teacher you can be

• Evidence indicates that highly effective teaching teaching is the most important lever schools have to improve pupil attainment. High quality teaching is essential to achieving the best outcomes for all pupils, particularly the most disadvantaged among them. (EEF)

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• The effects of high-quality teaching are especially significant for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. (Sutton Trust)

For Scotland's learners, with Scotland's educators

Ensuring equity…what can you do?

• Be alert to the signs of poverty and take action
• Provide strong social and emotional support, build relationships based on respect and trust
• Meet individual learning needs, get to know ALL your pupils and be data informed
• Create an ethos of attainment for ALL, have high expectations
• Provide high-quality teaching, be the best teacher you can be

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For Scotland's learners, with Scotland's educators

For Scotland's learners, with Scotland's educators