St Patrick’s School
Special Needs
Policy:
Purpose:
St Patrick’s School is committed towards meeting student’s individual
needs. Our Special Education programme
will serve those students who have teaching needs which cannot be met without
additional support or programme changes.
Aims:
1.
To provide appropriate instructional programmes for
children with Special Needs.
2.
To involve parents, caregivers, outside agencies,
teachers, teacher’s aides and
students
in the preparation and evaluation of programmes.
3.
To support and encourage families of students with
special needs in the education of their child.
4.
To provide a physical environment that will cater
for children with special needs.
5.
To foster positive attitudes towards and in children
with special needs.
6.
To provide a smooth transition to and from each
educational facility.
Procedures:
1. Students with
Special Education Needs will require extra assistance, adapted programmes or
learning environments, specialised equipment or materials, to support them in
special or regular education settings.
2. – Teachers will
identify children with Special Needs through usual Assessment procedures.
- Referrals for children requiring support can
be made in the following areas:-
q Learning Support
for Curriculum Areas
q Severe Behaviour
Difficulties
q Sensory Motor
Development
q Speech Language
Therapy
q Physical
Conditions
q Medical
Conditions
This will be done early in
the first term of each school year, by all teachers and throughout the year as
individual needs are identified.
3. Organisation:
We will have a Learning Support team SENCO made up of
:- Principal, Deputy Principal,
Assistant Principal, Middle Syndicate Leader DRS.
The Learning SupportSENCO
Team will prioritise Learning Support Programmes termly, in consultation with
Staff and determine the use of Special Education Grant and other available
funds.
4. Learning Support Programmes:
The following programmes are
based at our school:
q Teacher Aide
Assistance
q Reading Recovery
q Sensory Awareness
q Successmaker
q H.E.L.P.
q Early reading
Programme
q
q Alphabet/Maths
Transition Group
q J.O.S.T.
q Special Needs
Teacher time (if available)
q
q E.S.O.L./Successmaker
q Lets Read
q Inschool
Behaviour Modification Programme
The following programmes and
resource personnel can be accessed through the school:-
q Resource Teachers
of Learning and Behaviour (referral forms available from Principal).
q Resource Teachers
of Literacy (spends one term in four at the school based on 3 term year).
q Speech Language
Therapist (referral through SENCO Team).
q BEST programme
(for severe behaviour after child has been through RTLB programme).
q Public Health
Nurse.
q Health Camp
q G.S.E.
5. IEP’s & IBP’s
An individual Educational or
Behavioural plan, that provides guidance for a students programme for a defined
period. Ensures that students with
special educational or behavioural needs, achieve
identified learning/behavioural outcomes.
IEP’s & IBP’s are needed
to unite those directly involved with the student and allow
q Sharing of information
q Identifying
outcomes
q Selecting
priorities
q Planning actions
q Agreeing on
responsibilities
q Determining
teaching and support strategies
q Deciding on
resources (materials and personnel).
IEP’s & IBP’s will be
reviewed at least twice a year for IEP’s and each term for IBP’s.
q IEP & IBP
meetings should be attended by the following where applicable:-
Parent/Caregiver, Class
Teacher, Principal, Teacher’s Aide, Specialist Teacher, RTLB, GSE
Representative, Speech Language Therapist, Occupational Therapist and Physiotherapist.
6. Referral Process
for Teachers:
q Identify child
needing learning or behaviour support.
q Use usual
classroom assessment and documentation to determine area/areas of need.
q Base referrals
for Curriculum Areas on the following guide:
Junior Syndicate 12 months below equivalent age
Middle SeniorSyndicate 12 months below equivalent age
Senior Syndicate 24 months below equivalent age
q For children
being referred to Resource Teachers of Learning and Behaviour, refer to
indicators in RTLB Information Folder.
q Gather data and
information to support referral.
q Complete Referral
Form.
q Forward Referral
Form top Principal.
q Complete RTLB
form if required.
7. Responsibilities:
q Teachers are
responsible for determining children in their class who require learning or
behaviour support.
q Teachers of ORS
children are responsible for planning the programme to be implemented by the
Teacher’s Aide.
q Learning
Support SENCOCommittee with Staff consultation
are responsible for determining and prioritising the use of SEG at the
beginning of each year.
q Learning
Support LeaderSENCO is responsible for collecting
Referral forms and organising the Learning Support Programme.
q Teachers’ Aides
are responsible for documenting a starting point for children on the
programme. They will assess a child’s
progress each term and document an end point when a child completes time on a
support programme.
8. Best Practise
Guidelines:
q SEG will be
targeted at children with high priority needs, who are not on ORS scheme, and
require continual learning support.
q Teachers’ Aides
of ORS children will work inclusively in the classroom, where applicable.
q Operational Grant
(as funds allow) will provide for children with specific short term needs and
can be used in any of the following ways:-
Ø
Teachers” Aides working inclusively in classes with
a high proportion of children requiring learning support.
Ø
Learning Support programmes with small groups to
achieve objectives.
Ø
Individual Learning support programmes as required.
Ø
To provide continued Reading Recovery Programme.
Ø
To provide a basic life skills programme for
children in the
Ø
To provide Professional Development.
9. Record Keeping:
q Information will
be kept for children in all areas of Learning Support.
q Individual
information will be recorded in Admin computer Student manager for children
working with Teacher Aides.
q Teacher
responsible for Reading Recovery will pass on relevant information.
q Information will
be passed to the Principal at the end of each term and will include;-
§
Starting date.
§
Finish date if applicable.
q
Recorded Anecdotal notes will be kept by class
teachers on child’s success on programme and effect on future learning and work
in specific learning support areas.
10. Reporting to Parents
o
Letters
are sent to parents for all special needs programmes.
o
For
pupils on Reading Recovery letters are sent out at the beginning and end of the
programme. Reading Recovery teacher has interviews with parents who have
children on the programme.
o
Parents
receive written reports twice a year.
o
Parent
interviews are formally arranged twice a year. They can also be arranged at any
other time as needed.
Reviewed Nov. 2001
Reviewed Nov 2002
Reviewed
Reviewed
Reviewed April 2006