Learning Support

Department of Learning Support

Staffing

The Learning Support Department has two full time Teaching Staff and eight Teaching Assistants, two of which are part-time, plus one centrally-funded TA who is currently working in the department to provide specific support to students identified by the LEA.  The team of teaching staff and assistants in the Learning Support Department work collaboratively to support students on the Special Needs Register at:-

• School Action               SA

• School Action Plus       SA+

• Statemented

   

Provision Mapping

Provision Mapping has been adopted by the school as an innovative system to replace Individual Education Plans (IEP’s) for students at School Action and School Action Plus. These are issued to parents and are available on the school network to inform all teaching staff. Specific subject targets are set by each faculty. IEPs continue to be written for Statemented students and these are issued to parents, teaching staff and other agencies involved in the students’ education. Reviews take place twice annually and parents are invited into school to discuss progress with Learning Support Staff.

In-class support and small-group withdrawal

Special needs students are often placed in smaller teaching groups with extra staffing, particularly where there is a learning difficulty, and they need help with basic literacy skills. They are withdrawn regularly for more intensive support, but more specifically for specially tailored numeracy and literacy programmes in order to boost their skills in these vital areas.

Resources

The Learning Support Department has fifteen up-to-date computers installed with the interactive “Successmaker” programme. This is an Integrated Learning System which is tailored to each student’s specific learning needs.  It is designed to increase basic skills in Reading, Spelling and Mathematics and each successive session allows the students to progress, testing and recording their results at the end of each lesson.  The programme also allows for individuals to re-visit areas where they have experienced difficulties and improve their skills.  Other programmes including “Wordshark” and “Numbershark” are also popular and help build upon, as well as work alongside, the foundations of achievement created by the “Successmaker” programme.

All computers are linked to the school network, which allows for some continuity in enabling students to finish classwork or coursework started in other lessons anywhere on the school campus.

The Learning Support Department also runs Homework, Reading and Writing Clubs each lunchtime and after school. This gives students access to more personalised help, resources and the opportunity to use all other school computer programmes, in order to complete their homework fully and effectively.

Apart from a well resourced classroom the learning Support Department also has an adjoining shower and toilet facilities to assist any special needs students with physical problems.