Teaching And Assessment
Assessment, Planning and Review
How can I find out about how well my child is doing?
Ongoing monitoring takes place by class teachers to identify pupils who are not making progress in line with their peers. Discussions with key staff will follow to identify the possible reason for this and then a plan of action will be decided with the parents. The child’s support will initially be delivered by first quality teaching from the class teacher. When appropriate, additional support will be put into place to provide enhanced resources and targeted small group and/or individual support to help overcome any difficulties. The views of the pupil about their support will be given consideration at this stage.
This additional support is documented in a provision map /Individual Education Plan / Pupil Support Agreement or Behaviour support plan. In consultation with the Inclusion Manager and parents, short term targets are agreed which prioritise key areas of learning or behaviour to address and by which progress can be measured. Where external agencies are involved, their advice and recommendations are included in these support programmes. Actions agreed take into account each pupil’s strengths as well as their difficulties.
This support is deployed to ensure your child can engage in lessons and wider school activities and to facilitate independent learning to support transition to adulthood. In some cases teaching assistant support may be allocated.
Formal review meetings are held regularly. Parents, relevant external agencies and when appropriate, pupils are invited to this review and their contribution is valued. The impact of support offered is considered along with the progress towards targets set. Support arrangements will be updated and revised accordingly. If not involved already, this might include referral to external agencies. The outcomes of these meetings will be recorded.
If your child is continuing to have significant difficulties affecting their ability to make appropriate progress in line with their peers, further external expertise may be requested. Additional funding is available for children who meet the statutory higher needs criteria. This can be accessed using the Local Authority process and the guidance in the Banded Funding Criteria. Where this is agreed, a Pupil Resource Agreement will be drawn up and implemented with the school’s Educational Psychologist and other professionals where appropriate. Further details about this process will be explained in the LA Local Offer.
Curriculum and Teaching Methods (including groupings and interventions)
How will teaching be adapted to meet the needs of my child?
Teachers are well skilled at adapting teaching to meet the diverse range of needs in each class. Daily planning takes into account individual pupil’s needs and requirements. Differentiation is approached in a range of ways to support access and ensure that all pupils can experience success and challenge in their learning. Grouping arrangements are organised flexibly with opportunities for both ability and mixed setting to maximise learning opportunities for all.
Additional adults are used flexibly to help groups and individual pupils with a long term goal of developing independent learning skills. Monitoring takes place to avoid pupils becoming over reliant and dependent on this adult support. Additional intervention takes place for targeted groups of children at different times during the day to support progress in Phonics, Writing and Numeracy.
Tests and Examinations: Access Arrangements
For some pupils additional arrangements and adjustments can be made to enable them to fully access a range of tests. This might include additional time, rest breaks or the use of a scribe or word processor. The Year 6 teachers will inform you about eligibility and applications for these arrangements. Only tests and assessors authorised by the school and recognised by JCQ can be accepted for access arrangements for public examinations.
Transition
How will the school help my child move to a new class / year group or to a different school?
Children and young people with SEN can become particularly anxious about “moving on” so we seek to support successful transition by:
When moving classes / forms in school:
An information sharing meeting will take place with the new teacher
Opportunities to visit the new class / teacher
When moving to another school:
We will contact the School SENCO and share information about special arrangements and support that has been made to help your child achieve their learning goals
We will ensure that all records are passed on as soon as possible
In year 6-7 transition
The Inclusion Manager and/or class teacher will attend the Primary/Secondary Transition day meeting to discuss specific need of your child and the nature and level of support which has had the most impact.
For some individual pupils additional multi-agency meetings may be arranged to create a more detailed “transition” plan which may include more visits to the new school and/or additional visits from the new school.
Staffing Expertise
How skilled are the staff at TPS in meeting the needs of my child?
An ongoing programme of training is in place to ensure that teachers and support staff have appropriate skills and knowledge in areas that will improve their teaching and support of children with SEN. Recent training has covered :
Autistic Spectrum Disorder
ADHD
Dyslexia
Our Inclusion Manager actively engages with local opportunities to share best practice and keep abreast of current local and national initiatives and policy to support pupils with SEN. Mrs Maxwell has achieved the National SENCO Award at Post-Graduate level.
The school also seeks advice and guidance from the LBB Specialist support and Disability team including local special schools to review, evaluate and develop provision for pupils with more complex needs.
We also have staff with specialised expertise and qualifications in school including:
Accredited Training for Pupils with Autism
Specialist dyslexic teaching
Speech and language specialists