Improving Outcomes For Children With Sensory Impairment

Lindsey Jane Rousseau shares resources and case studies on how to support students who have SI needs in the classroom.

The opportunities for all CYP with SEND are changing at a rapid pace. The school lives of those with Sensory Impairment (SI), which includes learners with Hearing Impairment (HI), Multi-Sensory Impairment (MSI) and Vision Impairment (VI) have perhaps changed more rapidly, in terms of educational environments, than most over the last decades. Advances in technology have assisted access to the mainstream educational opportunities with inclusion a welcome ‘norm’. We need though, to ensure that the learning journeys on offer to CYP with SI deliver all that an individual pupil is capable of in terms of educational outcomes and life chances. The challenge to education professionals is in supporting CYP and their families to achieve it!

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      string(5099) "outcomes for our children. Parent and carer engagementWe have always had very supportive parents in the school and parental engagement with their children’s learning is very good. As a result, we don’t face the same level of barriers that other schools may face. Our relationships with parents and carers are developed by the whole team; we consider their engagement to be crucial. Often we make it as informal as possible, so that it feels natural and not forced.  For parents who perhaps don’t want to come in or feel nervous about being in school, we try to have a ‘cup of tea culture’. This way, it feels a little more familiar and welcoming and we can get to know them. Over time, they then start to feel increasingly comfortable with our staff and our setting, and they feel able engage more with their child’s learning, and with school life. The vast majority of our parent and carer community are incredibly supportive and enjoy attending our many events. In terms of home-school partnership and communication, staff use the language and approaches within Achievement for All, with that same level of passion and belief that I hold.  Wider outcomes and opportunitiesExtra-curricular activities are a huge part of life at Clifford Bridge. We offer an incredibly wide range of sport, music and drama opportunities. In addition, many of our children attend music, sports or dance lessons outside of school. We have 414 pupils, with relatively few pupil premium pupils; this means we have to be careful that pupil premium pupils do not feel isolated. If pupil premium pupils want to attend extra-curricular activities which they might not be able to afford, we will pay for it. Participation and inclusion is non-negotiable, every single child in this building has the right to participate in the enriching and exciting opportunities we have on offer, so, if finance is a genuine barrier, then there is an obvious solution. As a result of low pupil premium numbers, Clifford Bridge has a very tight budget, but it’s like anything else in life, you pick your priorities and you hold them dear. Our culture, our ethos and our every move are about inclusion and achievement for all, so our spending of our limited funding reflects this.  We had one boy, who is now in secondary school, who won the termly Head Teacher Award. When he was much younger, he expressed an interest in music and really had a flair for it. He wanted to learn to play the guitar, so we taught him! Through a series of individual lessons, group lessons, School Band involvement and even gigs at local concerts, by the time he left us at the end of Year 6 he was an incredible guitarist who had never had a lesson outside of school. When he was nominated for the Head Teacher Award at the end of Year 6, we chose not to spend the budget on a trophy, and instead surprised him with an electric guitar! He and his family were so grateful and appreciative, and we’ve since heard that, upon joining his secondary school, he is now an active member of their school band, and continues to enjoy his guitar. Our early actions and encouragement with this particular pupil had a knock- on effect on his engagement in school-life and in his learning. We always try to find something that sparks a child’s interest, and create a bespoke provision and experience to keep that spark alive. We also carry this philosophy into provision for larger groups of children. For example, we have 60 children in one particular year group, with eight of them having a complex degree of need, such as autism or sensory processing needs. We introduced yoga into our PE curriculum, specifically with the purpose of improving mental well-being in this year group. We invested a lot into training our staff in meditation and mindfulness techniques which now underpin all of our learning experiences in this cohort; we turned PE on its head! The children enjoy it so much. For children with physical disabilities and learning difficulties, we try to think ‘outside the box’ and creatively adapt our curriculum to put the children, and their needs, at the centre of it.In summaryWhen visitors come and look around our school, there is often one bit of feedback that is repeated time and time again; how everything at Clifford Bridge Academy is “all about the children”. In fact, we’ve now heard this so many times that we’ve turned it into a huge display of photographs with that slogan right in the middle of it!  We really do think of each and every child in our school not just as a ‘learner’, but also as a little citizen of the world who we have been tasked with the responsibility of shaping. Along with our incredibly supportive parents, our Governing Body and the wider structure of the Multi-Academy Trust, we all endeavour to do everything in our power to ensure that every child achieves their potential and has the best possible primary education, filled with awe, wonder and FUN! Amy Husband is the Headteacher at Clifford Bridge Academy."
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Autism

This Is What Inclusion Means To Me

17 Apr 2018

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      string(5701) "Neither deafness nor vision impairment is a learning disability. We have plenty of case studies of young people with sensory impairment achieving university degrees and qualifying in a range of different sectors when they have the right support in place, regardless of the severity of their impairment. Sadly, government data tells us that young people with sensory impairment lag well behind their peers in terms of attainment of A-levels or equivalent qualifications. % achieving 2 A-levels or equivalent Level 3 qualifications by age 19% achieving 5 GCSEs grade A-C (4-9) or equivalent by age 19No special educational needs65%91%Deaf44%77%Vision-impaired48%76%Multi-sensory impairment29%57%Table showing proportion of young people achieving Level 3 and Level 2 by age 19 in England in 2016.This article explores some of the key barriers that can hamper the progress of young people with SI in post-16 education. We have chosen these issues as they are perhaps less understood than the more obvious communication or mobility issues that may arise from not being able to hear or see as well as most of their peers.  Poor careers adviceCareers advice is often something that is not given much priority, particularly when funding is tight. However, Ofsted highlighted the lack of specialist careers advice for disabled students in further education as a key issue in their 2017 annual report. We have found that for young people with SI, it is patchy and is often not specialist enough. 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We believe it is crucial for students with sensory impairment to have access to support from specialists in post-16 education to enable them to overcome the barriers to learning they face.SI in social situationsThe social relationships we form at college or work play a massive part of our experience. Deaf or vision-impaired young people often find that they are the only person in their class that has sensory impairment. Where their peers lack awareness of how to include them within the group, they can feel very isolated. Social isolation and difficulty in forming close relationships can impact negatively on physical and mental health. It is important that young people with sensory impairment have opportunities to form friendships. For some, the opportunities may need to be more structured than normal (e.g. asking the young person to get involved in delivering an awareness session for their classmates). Young people with SI should have the same range of options available to them at 16 as young people without SEN. Government data on destinations after Key Stage 4 shows young people with SI within a range of settings with FE College being the most common. The vast majority are in mainstream settings with less than 10 per cent of deaf or vision-impaired students attending specialist schools or colleges. With sensory impairment being relatively rare compared with other types of disability, lack of awareness of the needs of students with SI can often be an issue. Where do young people with SI go at 16?DestinationNo special educational needsDeafVision impairedMulti-sensory impairmentFurther education college35%48%39%41%School 6th form42%28%32%25%6th form college14%10%10%9%Apprenticeship5%4%4%–Other education destination (e.g.  special school)1%6%10%18%Table showing proportions of young people with sensory impairment in different settings after completing Key Stage 4. Below are two case studies of young people who have overcome the barriers they face to arrive at positive destinations. With the right support and adjustments in place we believe young people with sensory impairment have huge potential. Chloe, Apprentice  My name is Chloe, I’m 20 years old and in October 2016 I gained a place with Channel 4 as an Agency Sales Apprentice. 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Post-16

Impaired and Thriving

10 Sep 2018

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      string(5564) "Legal BriefingLeadership Briefing – www.teachingtimes.comReports Summaries – a weeklyservice of essential summaries,in-depth reports and criticalanalysis that’s new and relevantto education, linked to originalsource documents.CHANGES TO FUNDING FOR SPECIALEDUCATION NEEDSKeywordsSpecialEducationalNeeds,DisabilitySummaryFrom 2014, parents will have a new right to buy in specialist special educational needs (SEN)and disabled care for children in what is the biggest change to SEN for 30 years.At first glance the changes to specialist SEN provision that comes into force this year represent awelcome attempt by Government to deliver some kind of joined-up thinking in the sector. Not onlywill parents be handed a new legal right to buy in SEN and disabled care for their children, they willbe given the authority to control personal budgets for their children with severe, profound or multiplehealth and learning needs. The Government says that this means that parents will be able to choosethe support that they believe is right for their child, instead of local authorities being the sole provider.Critically, though, the Government also believes that this change will force different agencies acrosseducation, health and social care services to plan the delivery of services together by law. This meansthat when children are assessed, parents should be assured that full provision will be provided toaddress their children’s needs. The aim here is to simplify matters and make clear who is responsiblefor delivering on the statement of special needs. Services such as speech and language therapy mayappear in the statement but have hitherto been funded and commissioned by local health services.But there is another issue here. The 1981 Education Act introduced the concept of ‘inclusive’schooling. Since then debate has raged between those who believe the education of children withlearning disabilities in mainstream, rather than in segregated ‘special’ schools causes problems andthose who regard a mainstream education as every child’s right.This remains a pressing issue. In total, according to Department of Education figures, almost onein five (18.7%) of children – around 1.55 million – were considered to have some type of specialneed (SEN) in 2012/13. Within this, there was a slight increase in the numbers of children who hada statement of SEN. This could range from speech and language problems, learning difficulties,behaviour issues, visual, hearing or multi-sensory impairments, physical disabilities or a form ofautism. Almost half a million primary school boys  – more than one in five – have SEN, with or withouta statement. In state secondary schools, 379,645 boys (23.5%) were classed as having some form ofSEN, compared to 228,770 girls.In 2010, an Ofsted report warned that many children were being wrongly identified as having SENbecause of poor teaching. It is all the more worrying, therefore, that the closure of many state-fundedSEN units may lead to a drain away from the state sector of the SEN teachers most qualified to makethose judgements and short term problems accommodating young people who cannot be placed in Legal BriefingLeadership Briefing – www.teachingtimes.comReports Summaries – a weeklyservice of essential summaries,in-depth reports and criticalanalysis that’s new and relevantto education, linked to originalsource documents.mainstream educational establishments.The feedback that we are getting is that whilst these reforms are broadly positive there may besome disconnect between the provision that parents feel their children need and that which theirschools and SEN teachers may feel they need. In addition, the closure of many state-funded units willcontinue to drive specialist SEN provision much more into the private sector. In turn, this means thatmuch of the talent and expertise that has been available within state schools is understandably goingto follow the vacancies into private and independent facilities. It is to be hoped that this does notadversely impact on children already in the state system and requiring SEN support.There is a likelihood that free school status may be used increasingly to create institutions thatoffer specialist SEN provision outside of mainstream schools but also outside of the public sector.The National Autistic Society (NAS), local authorities, voluntary groups, schools and parents havecollaborated on the establishment of Thames Valley School, one of five free schools for childrenwith special educational needs that opened last September. They join three others, which openedin September 2012, two of which were specific to children with autism. 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Leadership

Changes to Funding for Special Education Needs

2 Jan 2014

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      string(5634) "task).  How about visually representing each letter in a word with children forming the letters with their bodies in groups?  Perhaps you could ask them to use cameras or audio recorders to film themselves chanting the letters or sounds in their words, or explaining memory tricks they have learnt for specific spellings.  Maybe children could use alphabet spaghetti to practise writing their target spellings and then eat the ones they get right.  Use scented markers and different colours for different parts of tricky to remember words.3. Using a spelling app to motivate and engage learnersChildren today are confident technology users and are often referred to as ‘digital natives’ which describes a person who has grown up in the digital age, rather than acquiring familiarity with digital systems as an adult (6).  Children are unafraid to ‘click a button’ and try things out, and with devices now more prolific and increasingly intuitive to use, it has never been a better time for children to use technology to support and challenge them in their learning.In 2011, the Internet security company AVG carried out a year-long piece of research called Digital Diaries.  They looked at the changing nature of childhood for 2-5 year olds.  In particular, AVG wanted to find out to what extent very young children are now learning ‘tech’ skills faster than so-called life ones.  They found that 58% of children aged 2-5 know how to play a ‘basic’ computer game, more could open a web browser (25%) than could swim unaided (20%), and twice as many could play with a smartphone application as could tie their shoelaces (7).  With the increasing proliferation of smartphones, and children having their own devices at younger and younger ages, it is very likely that these percentages will have increased over the last few years.  The question for us as parents and educators, as well as ensuring young children continue to develop their essential life skills of course, is how do we tap into this engagement and motivation, and these digital skills to ensure children’s love of using technology can have a positive educational benefit?In 2016, a group of teachers at Corsham Primary School, in Wiltshire, carried out a small-scale research project into the impact of using iPads to support the teaching and learning of basic skills in reading and maths.  A range of educational apps were installed on the iPads and children took them home to support them with their home learning.  They then brought the devices back into school and used them in groups to support their class-based learning.  Teachers found that using technology had a positive impact on self-esteem, motivation, enjoyment and interest in learning.  They discovered that using technology created stronger memory links which had a clear impact on learning, and found that the use of digital video to teach and reinforce key skills had a significant impact, particularly in maths.  There was a positive impact on attainment, especially for girls in maths and boys in reading.  For boys’ reading age attainment, the months gain in the intervention group was nearly double that of the control group (see graph).  Whilst this was a small-scale trial, it is indicative of the power of using technology to support teaching and learning, increase engagement and improve outcomes.I realised that the impact of using technology could be applied to increasing engagement and improving outcomes in learning and practising spelling, and explored the AppStore to see what apps were available .  Whilst there were a number of spelling apps on the market, through researching them more, I found that the quality and prices varied hugely, and several were too basic or gimmicky.  Some had clearly not been designed and developed by educationalists and most required in-app purchases to access the whole app – not appropriate in schools where the user (the child) is not responsible for purchasing or installing.  The key feature I was looking for and couldn’t find however, was the ability to create a list and then share it across multiple devices and for many pupils.I decided to design and develop a new spelling app that would address the above concerns, and be simple to use and intuitive, engaging and motivating, and suitable for all primary ages (including children with special educational needs).  Spelling Whizz app (8) is bright and colourful, comes with 90 built in spelling lists (over 1000 words and audio) based on the national curriculum and has the functionality to enable teachers and parents to create and share their own bespoke spelling lists and audio quickly and easily.  The app is educational and engaging, rather than just being a game with annoying in-app purchases.  I based the spelling practice strategy on the tried and tested ‘look, say, cover, write, check’ method ‘which is multi-sensory and […] involves visual, auditory and kinaesthetic processing’ (4).  Users simply select from wordlists organised into sets based on the spelling rules taught in each of the year groups in the English primary curriculum.  The first of 12 words is shown and pupils look at the word and then swipe to be able to hear it read aloud.  The next swipe covers the word and pupils can visualise what the word looks and sounds like before swiping again to have a go at writing it.  If they type it correctly a green tick is shown and they move onto the next word; if"
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Applications and Software

Spelling Is Important

17 Apr 2018