Learning Support Policy
THE POLICY FOR LEARNING SUPPORT
This policy is formulated along the lines advocated by Palmer, Redfern and Smith (Support for Learning 1994) and therefore presented under the four headings suggested by them.
PHILOSOPHY
Because of the nature of the learning process, every child will manifest an identifiable special need at some time; sometimes this need can be addressed on a short-term basis and in other instances the need requires a longer-term input. Consequently, all the teachers in our institution are teachers of SEN children and therefore respect the unique needs of each of them.
Because success breeds further success, all the children in our care have a right to a broad, balanced curriculum, relevant to their understanding and differentiated to meet their level of attainment, thus ensuring not only that each child achieves success in the teacher?s eyes, but also that the child is aware of his/her own success. In this way, both the teacher and child work in partnership to ensure the development of positive self-esteem in the child. Negative self-esteem manifests itself not only in failure along academic lines and lack of confidence in taking risks, but also in lack of self-love and subsequent anti-social behaviour to others. On the contrary, positive self-esteem enables a child to become an active and valued member of the school community and consequently, a successful one. (Charlton and David 1989).
To enable us, as a team, to ensure the successful growth of all the children in our care, we need to be aware of the impact of:-
* negative home pressures,
* inadequate home input, with specific regard to pre-literacy input,
* first impressions of the school environment (these become lasting memories).
We need, further, to be aware of those children, whose home background has given them a head start and who find standard school tasks easy. These children are the coasters, who also require additional input. Following, then, the argument that extra input and support can enhance the educational chances of those at either end of the academic spectrum then, so too, can it enhance the chances for those historically branded as average.
With all these children in mind, we need to understand that our policy and subsequent practice are not just about how best to serve the immediate academic needs of our children, but also about how to improve the quality of their life. As Moore (1991) states
The improvement of quality is not a technique, but an attitude which comes from people who care and share commitment.
The policy affirms that all who play a part in the child's development are working together and involved in a common purpose - the child's emotional and social as well as academic literacy. This policy is our plan of action to meet that target. It does, however, need to be read in conjunction with this policy?s appendix and the Language and Maths policies for practical ideas on how best to maximise applicability of a curriculum for all. This policy?s appendix includes guidance on diagnosis of strengths/weaknesses prior to setting targets, a list of suggested activities, for example, for memory enhancement, lateral thinking and a list of centrally-held resources.
PRINCIPLES
1. The class teacher
* To retain overall responsibility for the educational provision for each child, ensuring full access to all relevant aspects of basic school entitlement.
* To be aware of the individual needs of the pupil and to provide differentiated tasks to suit those needs. Such differentiation has a dual purpose - to enable the child to develop an independent approach to learning and to afford the opportunity for regular praise from the teacher.
* To provide a situation, where mixed ability grouping occurs for a flexible percentage of class time, in order to enable all children to benefit from each other?s strengths and learn to tolerate/accept/support each other?s weaknesses.
* To meet with the SENCo a minimum of twice termly, once to set targets for particular children and once to review progress.
* To share responsibility with the SENCo for the development of individual education plans.
* To meet with the SENCo at any other relevant time, dictated by the needs of the child/teacher.
2. The SENCo (Annie Murdoch)
* To work in collaboration with the class teacher on identification and assessment of SEN and, where agreed, begin the School Action process.
* To be responsible for the development and review of IEPs, in collaboration with the class teacher and/or outside agencies.
* To ensure that basic school entitlement continues to broaden to encompass a greater range of basic needs.
* To work with individual children, both in-class and on an extraction basis.
* To be responsible for the SEN resource area.
* To co-ordinate, work with and support the volunteer team.
* To advise on particular approaches/tasks which may be relevant to a particular child's need.
* To work closely with the school governor, Mrs Pauline French, who has special responsibility for SEN. This will be a minimum of once yearly, prior to the governors? AGM and then as the need arises.
* To ensure that liaison with pre-school groups and home visits to meet the children and parents takes place prior to school entry.
* To ensure that a comprehensive liaison programme with the Middle School takes place prior to Year 4 transfer.
* To work with parents of SEN children, to enable them to give their child further support at home.
* To remain abreast of the latest research/writings in the educational field and to report back to staff. This can be verbal and/or in written form, to encourage further discussion.
3. The SEN Governor (Mrs Pauline French)
* To represent SEN at Governor meetings.
* To meet once termly with the SENCo, to discuss any changes/improvements in the department.
* To remain aware of the number of children currently on the register and the number of hours currently undertaken by the support staff.
* To take part in the monitoring and evaluation process or to discuss with those governors who do, the outcome of same.
4. Parents to be notified on identification of concern and to be involved in the support process. The class teacher will make contact with, and obtain permission from, the parents, prior to completion of the School Action paperwork. The class teacher and SENCo will be jointly involved from then onwards.
5. Parents to be encouraged, where possible, to become complementary educators, both in-class and at home. Where parents, for one reason or another, cannot give the required support at home, the child will be given extra support at school in a bid to enhance the child's chances.
6. The child to be consulted at each stage and his/her views accommodated into the provision.
PROCEDURES
1. The class teacher's termly plans to include information about differentiation.
2. Class teacher and support assistant to liaise thoroughly each week, in order to ensure consistency of approach. SENCo to take part also, as often as possible. This is to be done during hymn practice, play times and lunch times. Class teacher and support assistant also to liaise, as far as is possible, once half termly with SENCo.
3. The class teacher, support assistant and SENCo to meet at least once termly, to discuss the progress of SEN children and update the paperwork. These meetings will take place during lunch times or after school on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays.
4. Individually-planned programmes to be reviewed termly by the class teacher and SENCo.
5. After initial recognition of need and discussion with SENCo, the class teacher will complete the necessary paperwork with the help of the SENCo.
6. Children to be identified as potentially in need of support from the pre-school visits and these children to get extra support from the time they start school. These children will not, initially, be recorded on the paperwork, unless in exceptional circumstances, where the child has already been identified as having a specific difficulty. If a child is already identified by external agencies, prior to school entry, a School Entry Plan will be devised. Responsibility for this will be shared between class teacher, SENCo and relevant external professionals.
7. Children to be identified and recorded on the paperwork as early as the Reception year, if they do not take readily to reading in particular and books in general. Identification can be aided by results from the entry profile.
8. Children joining us, mid-term, from another school to be assessed immediately on entry, by class teacher or SENCo, to determine whether support is necessary. These children are also to be introduced personally to the other children and adults in school, in order, not only to welcome and celebrate their inclusion on the school roll, but also to minimise the stress of their move and enable them to settle and feel at home immediately. Further, their progress should be monitored over a period of a term, to ensure easy transition. Agree other strategies for helping a child to settle, e.g. special cuddle and chat time with class teacher before the day begins, so that the child feels loved and wanted. Child chosen to run errands to other classes and to the office with a sensible friend from class so that s/he becomes familiar with other areas in the school. It is common knowledge that a child?s academic progress is greatly impeded by a move to a new house or school. We need to do as much as possible to enable a new child to settle quickly. Once happy and confident, the child's learning will progress.
The Levels of Provision
Basic School Entitlement
Basic school entitlement relates to broad, inclusive and balanced curriculum and strategies provided to all children.
Features of Provision
* General whole school approach
* Safe and supported learning environment
* Broad and balanced curriculum,
* Numeracy/literacy strategy ? to include all three waves of each
* Working behaviour policy
* Dyslexia-friendly school
* Subject differentiated curriculum
* Access to SENCo in general
* Inclusive school
* Access to equipment, eg, laptop
* Group/individual support
* Access
* Anti-bullying strategies
* All staff involved in SEN and fully aware of procedures for identifying and making provision
* ELS/ALS/Springboard
* Home visit during the summer tem prior to entry to school
* Workshops to encourage parents to support their child at home.
* Individual sessions for SENCo, parents and child, where needed.
Implications
Effective teaching and learning. Pastoral support. Inclusive systems. Flexibility in adapting the learning environment to meet diversity of need. Flexibility in provision of curricula opportunities to meet pupil need. Provision of a range of systems of delivery for literacy/numeracy/behaviour and managing emotions to enhance pupil progress. Provision map to show range of supportive activities available within each class. Playground audit. Early intervention. Whole school ethos in valuing and providing for individual need through all staff. Reflective, problem solving approach to school systems. Provision outlined in teacher planning. Enhanced involvement of Governors to use their best endeavours to see that children with SEN are supported to meet their needs. Enhanced partnership leading to effective home/school working. All teachers are teachers of SEN. More children's needs are being met without the need for individual intervention ensuring progress of all pupils. SENCo closely involved in strategic development of school policy and provision, either with or as a member of Senior Management. Adequate time and facilities for the SENCo to carry out duties effectively.
Development Required
Good practice. Monitoring, Partnership work. CLP links. Information to parents explaining graduated responses to meet SEN. Closer working with community and other agencies.
Resources Allocated
Element of age-weighted pupil unit, grants, standards fund
School Action
This is basic school entitlement relating to broad and balanced curriculum and strategies provided to all children plus actions taken by the school that are additional to and different from the school arrangements for individuals.
Features of Provision
* Detailed school assessment of child?s needs, learning and behaviour.
* Individual/group education plan.
* Individual pastoral support plans.
* Consultation with parents.
* Further assessment and collection of information.
* Link to outside agencies.
* Access to support services (for short-term, indirect or direct intervention).
* Differentiated learning materials.
* Special equipment.
* Group and/or individual support.
* Consultation meetings.
* Multi-professional teams supporting school development.
* Decreased bureaucracy.
* Pastoral support programme subscribed within IEP.
* Learning mentors.
* Peer counseling.
Implications
IEP to reflect both adaptations within the learning environment and to support child targets through the provision of additional or different resources. Flexibility in provision of curriculum opportunities to meet pupil needs, eg activities in playground to meet fine/gross motor and/or social development needs. Different or additional action taken by the school. Effective IEP process in use for a smaller number of children than previously. Effective communication with parents/outside agencies. Meeting training needs of the staff. Appropriate records to monitor and evaluate progress. Ongoing monitoring to identify SEND PLUS applications.
Development Required
Review and target SEND funding to support early and planned intervention for proven levels of need. SENCo support network. Working practice of support services reviewed in the light of Code and Best Value. Closer working with community and other agencies.
Resources
Element of age-weighted pupil unit. SEND. Central services.
At this point Individual Education Plans (IEPs) are completed by the class teacher with support from SENCo. In order to do so, it is necessary to assess and record both strengths and weaknesses to prevent the construction of a within-child deficit model. Identification of strengths will also enable us to highlight these to build up the child?s self-esteem and maintain motivation while addressing the weaker areas in the child?s learning programme. Strengths can include a lovely smile, willingness to help, artistic talents, spatial awareness as manifested in construction games, computer literacy, kindness to others, to name but a few.
Targets will be set after discussion and agreement between class teacher, SENCo, parent and child. Review will generally be carried out termly in Years 2 and 4 and twice yearly with the other groups (January and June). The parent will be notified by the class teacher. The major input, at this stage, will be from the class teacher, learning support assistant, parent and child. The SENCo will be actively involved with some of the children and their families.
Target Setting
There will generally be three targets set at a time and will incorporate some of the following:-
1. Strengthening of the child's self-esteem. This is dependent on the quality of the relationship between the child and any adult with whom s/he may come into contact during the course of the day. A target of this nature would generally be set to address a behavioural problem (but also equally applicable to an academic one). Any admonition to be done in private, any praise, whether for a smile, a kind word/deed or a piece of work well done to be public, so that the rest of the class also receive a positive message from the teacher about a particular child. (A child?s behaviour problem is not lessened if the class perceives him/her to be naughty). When positive self-esteem is achieved, the rest of the set targets will become eminently more achievable. The target may also include the development of a closer working relationship with home. As McNamara and Moreton state ? ?emotional and behavioural difficulties are to do with children who are hurting but don?t know what to do with that pain? We need to firstly understand what is causing the pain and secondly to influence the behaviours of all those dealing with the child if we are to effect positive outcomes for the child.
2. Encouragement of learning behaviour - child to become an active participant in the learning process by developing listening skills, variety of reading strategies, basic skills to enable confident emergent writing, ability to self-correct, confidence to take risks. Every child can and does succeed with sufficient, high quality experience. As Sacks (1982) states- music does contain unconscious counting. We may feel all this vividly, if we set out on a swim or a run: we start conscientiously and consciously, counting every step or stroke and then, often rather suddenly and without our being aware of it, we have 'the feel' of it and are running or swimming in perfect tempo, or musical inner time, without any conscious counting at all. We have leapt, unwittingly, from the metronomic to the music. To enable the child to make this leap, we need to acknowledge the social nature of learning and follow an approach which acknowledges two things:-
*The importance of keeping the pressure off and that accepting surprise, puzzlement, excitement, patience, caution, hones attempts and wrong outcomes as legitimate and important elements of learning leads to their further development?. (Duckworth 1987 The Having of Wonderful Ideas)
*The first attempts of the child are to do something that is like the skill he wishes to emulate. This activity is then shaped or refined by immediate rewards supported by ready assistance and by good natured tolerance and almost inexhaustible patience for inappropriate responses?. (Holdaway 1979 The Foundations of Literacy)
3. Strengthening of skills in numeracy/literacy in multi-sensory way and concentrating on both direct and indirect approaches. Each class to display lists of easily legible key and other common word, numbers and letters as an aide-memoire and to encourage independence.
School Action Plus
Definition
Basic school entitlement relating to broad and balanced curriculum and strategies provided to all children plus actions taken by the school that are additional to and different from the school arrangements for individuals plus allocation of SEND PLUS.
Features of Provision
* Access to ongoing direct intervention from support services.
* Audit framework/SEND PLUS
* Wide range of activities listed in AEN Funding Guidance (27.09.01).
Implications
* IEP which reflects need to adapt learning environment as well as assuring pupil?s progress.
* Transparent deployment of SEND PLUS resources to target pupil need and assure progress.
* School identify specific training requirements and outside agencies address need.
* Monitoring systems to provide regular feedback on success criteria for individual pupil.
* Maintain ongoing records to ensure that monitoring requirements are met (evidence).
* Small groups of pupils likely to require focused intervention.
* Strategic whole school planning for meeting individual pupil needs.
* Funding can be accessed without needing a statutory assessment.
Development required
Good Practice Guidance. Continue to fine tune SEND PLUS, including moderation arrangements. Links with specialist provisions and outreach work. Closer working with community and other agencies.
Resources Allocated
Element of age-weighted pupil unit. SEND. SEND PLUS. Central Services.
The needs of most our children are adequately met by the first three levels. However, some children need the added support of the last two levels which, following assessment by the Educational Psychologist and a medical update, could culminate in a statement for a particular child.
PERFORMANCE
All of our children benefit directly from the input from the Learning Support team. Most receive whole class, small group and individual help, where needed. The children whose needs are greater (at least 30% of our children) receive specific individual help which varies from daily sessions at a maximum level of input, to three sessions weekly at a minimum level. This input is provided by the SENCo and/or the learning support assistants, who each support daily. Individual support is given, both discreetly in class and on an extraction basis, if the particular programme, suggested for the child, demands this. Individual support is particularly beneficial for some children as it creates an opportunity for the development of a trusting, confidential relationship between the supporting adult and the child - an opportunity for the child to feel special for a few moments every day and to experience the success that stems from a patient, stress-free environment. It also provides an opportunity for the child to work at the level at which s/he feels comfortable, thus ensuring steady, if sometimes slow, progression via small, daily successes. These individual sessions are not determined by the clock, but by the daily need of the child.
All our children further benefit from the in-class support given by our voluntary helpers (parents, in the main), as well as our learning support assistants and the SENCo. Each class benefits from such support, in order to maximise the opportunity for immediate feedback for the children, to enhance child/adult relationships and to enable the teacher to relax, in the knowledge that another adult is sharing the workload. We believe that both children and teachers have rights - the child to positive self-esteem, success and a full curriculum, and the teacher to feel that s/he is doing a good job, enjoying it and helping all her/his children to be successful; in the process, the teacher's self-esteem will also be enhanced.
Finally, children are extracted for group work, this work ranging from self-esteem exercises to supporting with a variety of exercises. This offers the opportunity for the SEN child to feel a valued and useful member of our community and at the same time allows them to practise and develop the sort of support skills that they have benefited from, thus spreading in an indirect way the present expertise and sharing ethos in the school.
The externally imposed tests (SATs) are used as a check, to ensure that every child who needs extra input and who may have slipped through the support net during the first two years of school life, is then supported.
The department has a yearly budget of £500. This is used to widen the reading material, to ensure a wealth of consolidation material for those children who require it and to encourage the use of different approaches to the teaching of reading, for those children who, at school entry, are inexperienced in literacy skills. A list of resources can be found in the Appendix.
Monitoring and Evaluation
Each term, the SENCo will spend a session with each learning support assistant, sharing the learning experience with both adult and child. These sessions will sometimes be planned and at others, will be spontaneous meetings to share the progress and success of a particular child. It will afford an opportunity to share ideas, develop existing practices and ensure consistency. Positive points will be reinforced. Learning support team meetings will also be used to encourage good practice to be shared between colleagues. The SEN governor will also be invited to take part in the monitoring and evaluation process.
Conclusion
We believe that the class teacher's role is of vital importance, as s/he is the first to identify a problem/challenge to existing practices. We also believe that all our children have potential for success and that the responsibility for fostering this lies in the positive partnership between home and school. Early identification of difficulties and successful intervention, via the teamwork and co-operation between class teacher, parent, child and SENCo is the positive way to success.
This policy is formulated along the lines advocated by Palmer, Redfern and Smith (Support for Learning 1994) and therefore presented under the four headings suggested by them.
PHILOSOPHY
Because of the nature of the learning process, every child will manifest an identifiable special need at some time; sometimes this need can be addressed on a short-term basis and in other instances the need requires a longer-term input. Consequently, all the teachers in our institution are teachers of SEN children and therefore respect the unique needs of each of them.
Because success breeds further success, all the children in our care have a right to a broad, balanced curriculum, relevant to their understanding and differentiated to meet their level of attainment, thus ensuring not only that each child achieves success in the teacher?s eyes, but also that the child is aware of his/her own success. In this way, both the teacher and child work in partnership to ensure the development of positive self-esteem in the child. Negative self-esteem manifests itself not only in failure along academic lines and lack of confidence in taking risks, but also in lack of self-love and subsequent anti-social behaviour to others. On the contrary, positive self-esteem enables a child to become an active and valued member of the school community and consequently, a successful one. (Charlton and David 1989).
To enable us, as a team, to ensure the successful growth of all the children in our care, we need to be aware of the impact of:-
* negative home pressures,
* inadequate home input, with specific regard to pre-literacy input,
* first impressions of the school environment (these become lasting memories).
We need, further, to be aware of those children, whose home background has given them a head start and who find standard school tasks easy. These children are the coasters, who also require additional input. Following, then, the argument that extra input and support can enhance the educational chances of those at either end of the academic spectrum then, so too, can it enhance the chances for those historically branded as average.
With all these children in mind, we need to understand that our policy and subsequent practice are not just about how best to serve the immediate academic needs of our children, but also about how to improve the quality of their life. As Moore (1991) states
The improvement of quality is not a technique, but an attitude which comes from people who care and share commitment.
The policy affirms that all who play a part in the child's development are working together and involved in a common purpose - the child's emotional and social as well as academic literacy. This policy is our plan of action to meet that target. It does, however, need to be read in conjunction with this policy?s appendix and the Language and Maths policies for practical ideas on how best to maximise applicability of a curriculum for all. This policy?s appendix includes guidance on diagnosis of strengths/weaknesses prior to setting targets, a list of suggested activities, for example, for memory enhancement, lateral thinking and a list of centrally-held resources.
PRINCIPLES
1. The class teacher
* To retain overall responsibility for the educational provision for each child, ensuring full access to all relevant aspects of basic school entitlement.
* To be aware of the individual needs of the pupil and to provide differentiated tasks to suit those needs. Such differentiation has a dual purpose - to enable the child to develop an independent approach to learning and to afford the opportunity for regular praise from the teacher.
* To provide a situation, where mixed ability grouping occurs for a flexible percentage of class time, in order to enable all children to benefit from each other?s strengths and learn to tolerate/accept/support each other?s weaknesses.
* To meet with the SENCo a minimum of twice termly, once to set targets for particular children and once to review progress.
* To share responsibility with the SENCo for the development of individual education plans.
* To meet with the SENCo at any other relevant time, dictated by the needs of the child/teacher.
2. The SENCo (Annie Murdoch)
* To work in collaboration with the class teacher on identification and assessment of SEN and, where agreed, begin the School Action process.
* To be responsible for the development and review of IEPs, in collaboration with the class teacher and/or outside agencies.
* To ensure that basic school entitlement continues to broaden to encompass a greater range of basic needs.
* To work with individual children, both in-class and on an extraction basis.
* To be responsible for the SEN resource area.
* To co-ordinate, work with and support the volunteer team.
* To advise on particular approaches/tasks which may be relevant to a particular child's need.
* To work closely with the school governor, Mrs Pauline French, who has special responsibility for SEN. This will be a minimum of once yearly, prior to the governors? AGM and then as the need arises.
* To ensure that liaison with pre-school groups and home visits to meet the children and parents takes place prior to school entry.
* To ensure that a comprehensive liaison programme with the Middle School takes place prior to Year 4 transfer.
* To work with parents of SEN children, to enable them to give their child further support at home.
* To remain abreast of the latest research/writings in the educational field and to report back to staff. This can be verbal and/or in written form, to encourage further discussion.
3. The SEN Governor (Mrs Pauline French)
* To represent SEN at Governor meetings.
* To meet once termly with the SENCo, to discuss any changes/improvements in the department.
* To remain aware of the number of children currently on the register and the number of hours currently undertaken by the support staff.
* To take part in the monitoring and evaluation process or to discuss with those governors who do, the outcome of same.
4. Parents to be notified on identification of concern and to be involved in the support process. The class teacher will make contact with, and obtain permission from, the parents, prior to completion of the School Action paperwork. The class teacher and SENCo will be jointly involved from then onwards.
5. Parents to be encouraged, where possible, to become complementary educators, both in-class and at home. Where parents, for one reason or another, cannot give the required support at home, the child will be given extra support at school in a bid to enhance the child's chances.
6. The child to be consulted at each stage and his/her views accommodated into the provision.
PROCEDURES
1. The class teacher's termly plans to include information about differentiation.
2. Class teacher and support assistant to liaise thoroughly each week, in order to ensure consistency of approach. SENCo to take part also, as often as possible. This is to be done during hymn practice, play times and lunch times. Class teacher and support assistant also to liaise, as far as is possible, once half termly with SENCo.
3. The class teacher, support assistant and SENCo to meet at least once termly, to discuss the progress of SEN children and update the paperwork. These meetings will take place during lunch times or after school on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays.
4. Individually-planned programmes to be reviewed termly by the class teacher and SENCo.
5. After initial recognition of need and discussion with SENCo, the class teacher will complete the necessary paperwork with the help of the SENCo.
6. Children to be identified as potentially in need of support from the pre-school visits and these children to get extra support from the time they start school. These children will not, initially, be recorded on the paperwork, unless in exceptional circumstances, where the child has already been identified as having a specific difficulty. If a child is already identified by external agencies, prior to school entry, a School Entry Plan will be devised. Responsibility for this will be shared between class teacher, SENCo and relevant external professionals.
7. Children to be identified and recorded on the paperwork as early as the Reception year, if they do not take readily to reading in particular and books in general. Identification can be aided by results from the entry profile.
8. Children joining us, mid-term, from another school to be assessed immediately on entry, by class teacher or SENCo, to determine whether support is necessary. These children are also to be introduced personally to the other children and adults in school, in order, not only to welcome and celebrate their inclusion on the school roll, but also to minimise the stress of their move and enable them to settle and feel at home immediately. Further, their progress should be monitored over a period of a term, to ensure easy transition. Agree other strategies for helping a child to settle, e.g. special cuddle and chat time with class teacher before the day begins, so that the child feels loved and wanted. Child chosen to run errands to other classes and to the office with a sensible friend from class so that s/he becomes familiar with other areas in the school. It is common knowledge that a child?s academic progress is greatly impeded by a move to a new house or school. We need to do as much as possible to enable a new child to settle quickly. Once happy and confident, the child's learning will progress.
The Levels of Provision
Basic School Entitlement
Basic school entitlement relates to broad, inclusive and balanced curriculum and strategies provided to all children.
Features of Provision
* General whole school approach
* Safe and supported learning environment
* Broad and balanced curriculum,
* Numeracy/literacy strategy ? to include all three waves of each
* Working behaviour policy
* Dyslexia-friendly school
* Subject differentiated curriculum
* Access to SENCo in general
* Inclusive school
* Access to equipment, eg, laptop
* Group/individual support
* Access
* Anti-bullying strategies
* All staff involved in SEN and fully aware of procedures for identifying and making provision
* ELS/ALS/Springboard
* Home visit during the summer tem prior to entry to school
* Workshops to encourage parents to support their child at home.
* Individual sessions for SENCo, parents and child, where needed.
Implications
Effective teaching and learning. Pastoral support. Inclusive systems. Flexibility in adapting the learning environment to meet diversity of need. Flexibility in provision of curricula opportunities to meet pupil need. Provision of a range of systems of delivery for literacy/numeracy/behaviour and managing emotions to enhance pupil progress. Provision map to show range of supportive activities available within each class. Playground audit. Early intervention. Whole school ethos in valuing and providing for individual need through all staff. Reflective, problem solving approach to school systems. Provision outlined in teacher planning. Enhanced involvement of Governors to use their best endeavours to see that children with SEN are supported to meet their needs. Enhanced partnership leading to effective home/school working. All teachers are teachers of SEN. More children's needs are being met without the need for individual intervention ensuring progress of all pupils. SENCo closely involved in strategic development of school policy and provision, either with or as a member of Senior Management. Adequate time and facilities for the SENCo to carry out duties effectively.
Development Required
Good practice. Monitoring, Partnership work. CLP links. Information to parents explaining graduated responses to meet SEN. Closer working with community and other agencies.
Resources Allocated
Element of age-weighted pupil unit, grants, standards fund
School Action
This is basic school entitlement relating to broad and balanced curriculum and strategies provided to all children plus actions taken by the school that are additional to and different from the school arrangements for individuals.
Features of Provision
* Detailed school assessment of child?s needs, learning and behaviour.
* Individual/group education plan.
* Individual pastoral support plans.
* Consultation with parents.
* Further assessment and collection of information.
* Link to outside agencies.
* Access to support services (for short-term, indirect or direct intervention).
* Differentiated learning materials.
* Special equipment.
* Group and/or individual support.
* Consultation meetings.
* Multi-professional teams supporting school development.
* Decreased bureaucracy.
* Pastoral support programme subscribed within IEP.
* Learning mentors.
* Peer counseling.
Implications
IEP to reflect both adaptations within the learning environment and to support child targets through the provision of additional or different resources. Flexibility in provision of curriculum opportunities to meet pupil needs, eg activities in playground to meet fine/gross motor and/or social development needs. Different or additional action taken by the school. Effective IEP process in use for a smaller number of children than previously. Effective communication with parents/outside agencies. Meeting training needs of the staff. Appropriate records to monitor and evaluate progress. Ongoing monitoring to identify SEND PLUS applications.
Development Required
Review and target SEND funding to support early and planned intervention for proven levels of need. SENCo support network. Working practice of support services reviewed in the light of Code and Best Value. Closer working with community and other agencies.
Resources
Element of age-weighted pupil unit. SEND. Central services.
At this point Individual Education Plans (IEPs) are completed by the class teacher with support from SENCo. In order to do so, it is necessary to assess and record both strengths and weaknesses to prevent the construction of a within-child deficit model. Identification of strengths will also enable us to highlight these to build up the child?s self-esteem and maintain motivation while addressing the weaker areas in the child?s learning programme. Strengths can include a lovely smile, willingness to help, artistic talents, spatial awareness as manifested in construction games, computer literacy, kindness to others, to name but a few.
Targets will be set after discussion and agreement between class teacher, SENCo, parent and child. Review will generally be carried out termly in Years 2 and 4 and twice yearly with the other groups (January and June). The parent will be notified by the class teacher. The major input, at this stage, will be from the class teacher, learning support assistant, parent and child. The SENCo will be actively involved with some of the children and their families.
Target Setting
There will generally be three targets set at a time and will incorporate some of the following:-
1. Strengthening of the child's self-esteem. This is dependent on the quality of the relationship between the child and any adult with whom s/he may come into contact during the course of the day. A target of this nature would generally be set to address a behavioural problem (but also equally applicable to an academic one). Any admonition to be done in private, any praise, whether for a smile, a kind word/deed or a piece of work well done to be public, so that the rest of the class also receive a positive message from the teacher about a particular child. (A child?s behaviour problem is not lessened if the class perceives him/her to be naughty). When positive self-esteem is achieved, the rest of the set targets will become eminently more achievable. The target may also include the development of a closer working relationship with home. As McNamara and Moreton state ? ?emotional and behavioural difficulties are to do with children who are hurting but don?t know what to do with that pain? We need to firstly understand what is causing the pain and secondly to influence the behaviours of all those dealing with the child if we are to effect positive outcomes for the child.
2. Encouragement of learning behaviour - child to become an active participant in the learning process by developing listening skills, variety of reading strategies, basic skills to enable confident emergent writing, ability to self-correct, confidence to take risks. Every child can and does succeed with sufficient, high quality experience. As Sacks (1982) states- music does contain unconscious counting. We may feel all this vividly, if we set out on a swim or a run: we start conscientiously and consciously, counting every step or stroke and then, often rather suddenly and without our being aware of it, we have 'the feel' of it and are running or swimming in perfect tempo, or musical inner time, without any conscious counting at all. We have leapt, unwittingly, from the metronomic to the music. To enable the child to make this leap, we need to acknowledge the social nature of learning and follow an approach which acknowledges two things:-
*The importance of keeping the pressure off and that accepting surprise, puzzlement, excitement, patience, caution, hones attempts and wrong outcomes as legitimate and important elements of learning leads to their further development?. (Duckworth 1987 The Having of Wonderful Ideas)
*The first attempts of the child are to do something that is like the skill he wishes to emulate. This activity is then shaped or refined by immediate rewards supported by ready assistance and by good natured tolerance and almost inexhaustible patience for inappropriate responses?. (Holdaway 1979 The Foundations of Literacy)
3. Strengthening of skills in numeracy/literacy in multi-sensory way and concentrating on both direct and indirect approaches. Each class to display lists of easily legible key and other common word, numbers and letters as an aide-memoire and to encourage independence.
School Action Plus
Definition
Basic school entitlement relating to broad and balanced curriculum and strategies provided to all children plus actions taken by the school that are additional to and different from the school arrangements for individuals plus allocation of SEND PLUS.
Features of Provision
* Access to ongoing direct intervention from support services.
* Audit framework/SEND PLUS
* Wide range of activities listed in AEN Funding Guidance (27.09.01).
Implications
* IEP which reflects need to adapt learning environment as well as assuring pupil?s progress.
* Transparent deployment of SEND PLUS resources to target pupil need and assure progress.
* School identify specific training requirements and outside agencies address need.
* Monitoring systems to provide regular feedback on success criteria for individual pupil.
* Maintain ongoing records to ensure that monitoring requirements are met (evidence).
* Small groups of pupils likely to require focused intervention.
* Strategic whole school planning for meeting individual pupil needs.
* Funding can be accessed without needing a statutory assessment.
Development required
Good Practice Guidance. Continue to fine tune SEND PLUS, including moderation arrangements. Links with specialist provisions and outreach work. Closer working with community and other agencies.
Resources Allocated
Element of age-weighted pupil unit. SEND. SEND PLUS. Central Services.
The needs of most our children are adequately met by the first three levels. However, some children need the added support of the last two levels which, following assessment by the Educational Psychologist and a medical update, could culminate in a statement for a particular child.
PERFORMANCE
All of our children benefit directly from the input from the Learning Support team. Most receive whole class, small group and individual help, where needed. The children whose needs are greater (at least 30% of our children) receive specific individual help which varies from daily sessions at a maximum level of input, to three sessions weekly at a minimum level. This input is provided by the SENCo and/or the learning support assistants, who each support daily. Individual support is given, both discreetly in class and on an extraction basis, if the particular programme, suggested for the child, demands this. Individual support is particularly beneficial for some children as it creates an opportunity for the development of a trusting, confidential relationship between the supporting adult and the child - an opportunity for the child to feel special for a few moments every day and to experience the success that stems from a patient, stress-free environment. It also provides an opportunity for the child to work at the level at which s/he feels comfortable, thus ensuring steady, if sometimes slow, progression via small, daily successes. These individual sessions are not determined by the clock, but by the daily need of the child.
All our children further benefit from the in-class support given by our voluntary helpers (parents, in the main), as well as our learning support assistants and the SENCo. Each class benefits from such support, in order to maximise the opportunity for immediate feedback for the children, to enhance child/adult relationships and to enable the teacher to relax, in the knowledge that another adult is sharing the workload. We believe that both children and teachers have rights - the child to positive self-esteem, success and a full curriculum, and the teacher to feel that s/he is doing a good job, enjoying it and helping all her/his children to be successful; in the process, the teacher's self-esteem will also be enhanced.
Finally, children are extracted for group work, this work ranging from self-esteem exercises to supporting with a variety of exercises. This offers the opportunity for the SEN child to feel a valued and useful member of our community and at the same time allows them to practise and develop the sort of support skills that they have benefited from, thus spreading in an indirect way the present expertise and sharing ethos in the school.
The externally imposed tests (SATs) are used as a check, to ensure that every child who needs extra input and who may have slipped through the support net during the first two years of school life, is then supported.
The department has a yearly budget of £500. This is used to widen the reading material, to ensure a wealth of consolidation material for those children who require it and to encourage the use of different approaches to the teaching of reading, for those children who, at school entry, are inexperienced in literacy skills. A list of resources can be found in the Appendix.
Monitoring and Evaluation
Each term, the SENCo will spend a session with each learning support assistant, sharing the learning experience with both adult and child. These sessions will sometimes be planned and at others, will be spontaneous meetings to share the progress and success of a particular child. It will afford an opportunity to share ideas, develop existing practices and ensure consistency. Positive points will be reinforced. Learning support team meetings will also be used to encourage good practice to be shared between colleagues. The SEN governor will also be invited to take part in the monitoring and evaluation process.
Conclusion
We believe that the class teacher's role is of vital importance, as s/he is the first to identify a problem/challenge to existing practices. We also believe that all our children have potential for success and that the responsibility for fostering this lies in the positive partnership between home and school. Early identification of difficulties and successful intervention, via the teamwork and co-operation between class teacher, parent, child and SENCo is the positive way to success.