ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors introduce a number of issues and concepts that the people will return to in other parts of the book. They discuss the nature of equality and some of the ways that it may be defined, then some of the central concepts that underpin the discourse on equality and, in particular, views about the barriers to achievement experienced by some groups. Equality can be looked at in various ways; each raises its own dilemmas. Prejudice is an unfavorable attitude to a person or group, that occurs prior to actual experience of that person or group. The effects of discrimination and educational disadvantage vary between individuals and between sub-groups. Equal opportunities policies and procedures need to be subject, to evaluation. Modularization can create difficulties in reconciling student choice and program coherence. The research tasks in the chapter represent simple starting points for the lecturer new to research.
