Special Educational Needs
Special Educational Needs / Learning Difficulties and Disabilities (SEN/LDD)
The SEN/LDD team consists of 16 enthusiastic members of staff, who use their expertise, experience and knowledge to support students in mainstream and intervention lessons.
Joanne Bent: Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCo)
Charlotte Sleight: Learn and Progress (LeaP) Manager
Sara Horscroft: SEN/LDD Intervention Manager
Judith Evison: Specialist ASD Support
Julia Groves: Specialist ASD Support
Learning Assistants:
Julie Arnold Carol Bailey
Rebekah Burbanks Bev Gelder
Sharon Fountain Debbie Keating
Angela Marshall Lee Goodman
Sally Matchett Lynsey Smith
Julie Willis
The SEN/LDD department is based in the Student Support Centre.
The term 'special educational needs' applies to people who have learning difficulties, including dylexia, dyspraxia, autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In children, this means they require something different from or additional to what is provided for other children of the same age in order to make progress in their learning. The SEN/LDD department at Rossington All Saints Academyl supports students with a wide range of needs and difficulties. These include:
Autism - People with autism have difficulty communicating with others, forming relationships and making sense of the world around them. The Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) varies in symptoms, severity and impact from person to person and ranges from those with no speech and limited cognitive ability to those of high IQ and typically highly-focused interests and abilities. For the individual with autism, the world can be a confusing and lonely place, where everyone except them understands the rules of appropriate behaviour.
Attention Deficit (Hyperactivity) Disorder (ADHD) - Attention deficit hyperactive (or hyperactivity) disorder (ADHD) is a term applied to people whose behaviour is persistently impulsive, inattentive and often overactive in comparison to others of the same mental age. Attention deficit disorder (ADD) is the condition without the hyperactivity element. It affects the individual's ability to function adequately in a range of settings such as home and school and impairs social and academic performance. The term is associated with specific behaviours, for example a difficulty in sustaining attention, listening, following instructions and organising. Those with ADHD/ADD are forgetful and easily distracted; they may blurt out answers, make inappropriate comments and interrupt. The hyperactive element of the disorder can result in fidgeting, leaving their seat, talking incessantly and generally wanting to be 'on the go.'
Dyslexia - Dyslexia means 'difficulty with words'. It affects the ability to read, spell and write. It can also affect the processing of information, motor skills, sequencing, short-term memory, left/right orientation and awareness of time. The severity of the condition varies, ranging from difficulty with spelling to an inability to write or spell and great difficulty with reading. The symptoms change with age and experience but dyslexia does not go away. Each person has a different pattern of difficulties. Typically, the poor literary skills of dyslexic students mask their intelligence and ability. About 10% of the population are estimated to have some degree of dyslexia. About 4% experience severe dyslexia. It is found at every level of learning ability.
Hearing Impairment - Hearing impairment is the absence or partial absence of hearing, including profound deafness, partial deafness and distorted hearing. The impairment may have been present from birth or more recently acquired. Hearing loss or impairment occurs when there is a problem with one or more parts of the ear. A student with hearing loss or hearing impairment may be able to hear some sounds or none at all. People also use the words 'deaf', 'deafness', or 'hard of hearing' when they are talking about hearing loss/impairment. Some students with hearing impairment use British Sign Language. Some will depend on lip-reading. Others use standard hearing aids or radio hearing aids. These are improving but remain imperfect solutions.
Low Vision - People with low vision do not have the same characteristics as totally blind people, nor do they have the same visual abilities as those with normal vision. Low vision does not mean no vision. It includes people with some light perception as well as those who can read books and newspapers without using any aid or device. This is by nature an extremely diverse group. Visual impairment may affect a person's ability to see detail, the width of their visual field, their sensitivity to contrast and glare, their ability to see moving images and changing focus, their colour vision, and their response to changing light levels.
Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD) - If a student has MLD it means their scores for reading, spelling, writing and/or maths are not age appropriate and consequently means they need a lot of support to help them access work in lessons. Many of these students will suffer from low self-esteem and will be reluctant to try new work in the belief that they will fail before they have even started. People with MLD may have poor memory, difficulty acquiring basic literacy and numeracy skills and some motor coordination skills.
All students with SEN/LDD receive support through various mediums: in class support, group work or one to one sessions. Students are supported by our team of Learning Assistants during lessons. Amongst other things, they help the students with literacy and numeracy; prompt them to stay on task; encourage positive behaviour and are, themselves, role models for all students. Learning Assistants also spend time doing paired reading with students that have MLD. This creates a positive relationship between staff and students and helps to boost the students' confidence and self-esteem.
The SEN/LDD Intervention Manager splits her time between supporting students in class and liaising with SEN students and staff to ensure each student is reaching their full potential.
The group work and one to one sessions are run by the SENCo and LeaP Manager and are chosen to target specific needs:
Successmaker Spelling and Numeracy - Successmaker is a computer programme which is personalised to reflect the ability of every student. This means the students work hard but are able to achieve the target of 65% or more correct spellings/scores, thus boosting their self confidence.
Corrective Reading - This programme is delivered to small groups of students and has a good pace to keep students motivated. Corrective reading encourages both individual and team work to achieve success.
Both Successmaker and Corrective Reading offer students the chance to get a 'cheque' for their house, by getting five stickers (awarded for high scores) in their reward booklet.
Nessy - Nessy is a programme designed specifically for dyslexic students. There are ten folders to work through which teach basic literacy rules in fun ways. These lessons are very varied using worksheets, computers, card games and workbooks.
Rainbow Reading - This reading programme has a fantastic success rate in terms of increasing pupils' reading ages: The best to date is an improvement of 6 years. The Rainbow Reading programme needs to be done every day in order to be effective. The student chooses a book to read, puts the CD in and follows the story as it is narrated. This takes approximately 5 minutes. After listening to the story a few times, when the student feels confident they can read it with no mistakes and good expression, they read to the teacher. If they read well, they can move onto another book. The programme helps to develop fluency, expression and understanding words out of context.
The SEN department is a success in its ability to support students academically and socially during their school life. We work closely with parents and outside agencies to offer the best resources available to us and to help students reach their full potential.
