Supporting Pupils with Special Educational Needs

1. Supporting Pupils with Special Educational Needs June 2011 LASI /ASPIRE

2. Aims • To ensure an accurate definition of “special Educational Needs” • To develop further understanding of teachers responsibilities towards pupils with SEN • To raise awareness of the inclusion agenda and appropriate curriculum delivery • To discuss good practice in ensuring lessons meet the needs of all learners

3. Some initial questions to discuss • Have you been given guidance on the pupils with SEN in your class? • How was it decided that they have a special educational need? What criteria were used? • How is additional support organised in your school?

4. Current SEN Code of Practice states …. • “pupils at SEN School Action or above must be receiving support which is “additional to” or “different from” the educational provision made generally for children of their age in schools maintained by the LA, other than special schools, in their area.” • This is not “more literacy” or “more maths” but would be interventions which address the underlying learning needs of the pupil in order to improve his or her access to the curriculum.

5. Ofsted message is… At present, the term ‘special educational needs’ is used too widely. Around half the schools and early years provision visited used low attainment and relatively slow progress as their principal indicators of a special educational need. In nearly a fifth of these cases, there was very little further assessment. Inspectors saw schools that identified pupils as having special educational needs when, in fact, their needs were no different from those of most other pupils. They were underachieving but this was sometimes simply because the school’s mainstream teaching provision was not good enough, and expectations of the pupils were too low. A conclusion that may be drawn from this is that many pupils are being wrongly identified as having special educational needs. Ofsted National SEN Review 2010

6. SEN Green Paper message is… • “we intend to tackle the practice of over‐identification by replacing the current SEN identification levels of School Action and School Action Plus with a new single school‐based SEN category for children whose needs exceed what is normally available in schools” (p10) • At present, the way that schools identify children with SEN is not achieving this. In particular, children are often identified as having lower‐level SEN (at School Action) when in fact the barrier to their learning could and should be addressed through normal day‐to‐day classroom practice” (p67)

7. Moving from : To Pupils needing to catch up School Action School Action Plus Statement Underachieving Or less-experienced learners - “target group” Special Educational Needs

8. Activity In 1931 there were 2.3 million cars on Britain’s roads and 7,000 deaths in motoring accidents.In 2006, there were 33 million cars on the Britain’s roads and only 3,150 deaths in motoring accidents.Discuss

9. Pre-requisite cognitive skills for success in core curriculum areas • Complex shape discrimination • Shape location within close parameters • Minimal Difference Visual Discrimination • Auditory Discrimination • Auditory Sequential Memory

10. Left to right visual pattern sequencing • Fine motor skills for pencil writing or keyboard • Translating 3D to 2D, 2D to 3D • Short term memory • Time sequencing • Sentence Comprehension of 3+ Information Carrying Words

11. Provision mapping • For all vulnerable learners – inc those on SEN list • Only useful if cross-referenced with progress • Ongoing exercise • Some pupils on provision map will also have IEP

12. “in order to reduce the bureaucratic burdens on schools, in reviewing and updating the “Code of Practice”, we will remove the advice on using IEPs” (SEN Green Paper 2011) • will encourage schools to explore the ways in which new approaches, including provision mapping, can be used

13. While/if schools retain them, IEPS should … • only record that which is “additional to” or “different from” the educational provision made generally for children of their age in schools maintained by the LA, other than special schools, in their area • not be“more literacy” or “more maths” but be interventions which address the underlying learning needs of the pupil in order to improve his or her access to the curriculum. • state what the learner is going to learn – not what the teacher is going to teach (ie state the outcome – be clear about what the pupil should be able to do at the end of the given period).

14. be accessible to all those involved in their implementation – pupils should have an understanding and “ownership of the targets” • be seen as working documents • be manageable and easily monitored • be based on informed assessment • Be time-limited – there should be an agreed “where to next …” – not necessarily another IEP

15. Being specific: • To behave more appropriately in class To be able to sit on the carpet without interrupting the teacher during registration on at least 3 days of the week • To be able to play with others appropriately To consistently be able to take his turn when playing a board game with 1 or 2 of his peers • To improve her self-esteem To be able to choose a piece of work she has done during the week that she is proud of and tell a friend the reasons for choosing it.

16. Where do the targets come from? • Discussion between teacher and SENCO • Discussion with pupil • Discussion with another professional

17. Discussion and flipchart exerciseHow do you currently, in your class make differentiated provision for :1. Slower, less experienced learners2. Pupils with a genuine special educational need?

18. How do you avoid the following? TA only working with less able group Individual pupils becoming over-dependent on TA support – TA impeding inclusion rather than facilitating it TA becoming narrow-skilled Lack of opportunity for teacher and TA to liaise and plan together so that TA is very clear about the learning objectives

19. Learning objectives Teaching styles Inclusion Access Quality first teaching • ‘tracking back’ objectives to earlier year groups / key stages • giving significant time to those parts of the curriculum which are priorities; • maintaining, reinforcing, consolidating and generalising previous learning as well as introducing new knowledge, skills and understanding; • identifying skills which require regular and frequent practice and teaching; • Having high expectations of all pupils.

20. Differentiating the QFT offer • Differentiated and/or different objectives • Content / task • Interest • Pace • Level • Access / resources • Response • Depth / sequence • Structure • Support • Teaching style • Grouping

21. Other General Strategies • Support with spelling / writing independently • Support with reading • Peer support • Practical experiences • Alternative forms of recording, including ICT • Worksheets • Appropriate forms of assessment • Modes of communication • Age-appropriate resources • Use of games • Using TAs effectively • Effectively using IEPs Which of these strategies do you already use to support pupils with SEN?

22. Girls and boys Others at risk of disaffection or exclusion Special Educational Needs Vulnerable groups Gifted and talented Minority ethnic and faith groups English as an additional language Travellers, asylum seekers, refugees ‘Looked after’ by the local authority Pupils who may be at risk of not being included

23. LA Support • LASI/ASPIRE Inclusion Team-BA SEN EMA • EP Service • Additional Needs Support Teachers • BACIN • EWO’s • SN-IP (parent partnership) • Area SEN placement officers