Student Advisor Equity Champions Becky Kemp Arnold, Kiranjit Khera & Natasha Wollen interviewed Dr Ban Haider further to find out more about her approach to inclusive education.
The Power of Education
Committed to education and lifelong learning, Ban has always had a passion for learning about equality, and she recalls being interested in Malcom X from a young age:
Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” - Malcolm X.
Here are a few highlights of Dr Ban Haider’s approach to inclusive education:
Engage in Collaboration
Ban has faith in the power of students and staff collaborating on projects and working together to identify areas of discrimination. She speaks enthusiastically about the passion and motivation her students have shown, and how she is hopeful for the future of inclusive healthcare.
Curate Safe spaces
Ban has been working on initiatives to tackle discrimination on placement. This involves creating safer spaces for students on placements and responding effectively to reporting/complaint tools for discrimination and sexual harassment.
Report a case of bullying and harrassment (sgul.ac.uk)
Run Inclusive practice sessions
Inclusive practice sessions are being developed for all undergraduate and postgraduate courses with content specifically applicable to those courses. Everyone benefits from developing an understanding of healthcare inequalities and how to be a part of addressing them.
Promote Allyship and Advocacy
A collaboration with Melanin Medics to run an allyship and advocacy session in the first year of Medicine as well as within the Physician Associate Programme has been running for the past 3 years. Ban has also been involved in developing and delivering training on a number of other clinical and healthcare science courses at SGUL.
Ensure training is inclusive
Ban is also working with colleagues to improve staff experience at St George’s University by ensuring mandatory diversity training for staff is relevant and fit for purpose.
Visit the Inclusive Education Toolkit (sgul.ac.uk) for more ideas on Inclusive Practices.
Ban Haider was awarded an Education Excellence Award for Inclusive Academic Practice through teaching and leadership and the Vice-Chancellor Prize for sustained commitment to addressing discrimination and inequalities in education.