SEN and Your School

Having a child with special education needs can be very worrying and confusing. Suspecting that your child might need help and hoping that does not go undetected is even more concerning. Without proper help and guidance, parents can feel terribly isolated and lost especially with so many myths and stigmas associated with special needs.

How do you detect any difficulties your child might be facing? How do you make sure his or her school is aware and deal with such needs effectively? There are a number of clues you might pick up on: General distraction is a common sign so is disruptive behaviour, underperforming in class or while doing homework, becoming quite worked up or stressed at simple tasks, forgetfulness, monosyllabic reading, boredom with work, clumsiness, unclear hand writing, hearing instructions but not carrying out step by step.... These are just some examples of signs which may concern you. You know your child best and if these or some of these signs seem unusual to you then it might be time to investigate further.

If you suspect that your child needs help, even if it is a slight concern, then please seek advice. Do not shy away and think it could just be a phase or a bout of bad behaviour. Getting advice and helping your child could be life changing for you and for them. SEN is not a label but a ticket to peace of mind.

So where do you start? School, nursery or your GP will great tools to start the ball rolling. Speak to them and follow their guidance. Many schools routinely test children for learning difficulties and should they feel the need, they advice for a more formal assessment which is then carried out by Educational Psychologists who carry out an extensive number of tests based on activities, discussions and sometimes quite fun workshops with the child. They then produce a detailed report which offers a full analysis that acts as a powerful guide for anyone teaching or tutoring or even mentoring your child. It also helps you understand why your child acts in a certain way, how they process information and instructions thus relieving tension and reassuring you that help is at hand.  On an academic level, such a formal assessment helps in providing your child with extra examination time – the length of which depends on his level of need. It also helps in deciding if and what specialist equipment could offer help and what kind of one-to-one tuition is needed and which techniques your child would benefit from.

There are many tools your child’s school can use to facilitate learning. Read up, do your research and stay on top of what the school is providing. Do not assume your child’s school has an efficient special needs department – state or independent – do your homework! Ask to speak to a SENCo (Special Needs Coordinator) and ask what they offer as well as how much time they are prepared to dedicate to your child. As well as the SENCo, make sure the school head is open minded and welcomes children of all abilities. It is all too common to hear a head say ‘we do not have great SEN facilities because we do not have many pupils that need them’! There are various degrees of SEN and more than can be counted on two hands! SEN is not purely made up of one or two kinds and the techniques to help vary immensely – it all depends on what your child needs and how much intervention is required.

Remember that help is at hand – from choosing the right school to being educated on how to help your child yourself. Ask for advice and take experts’ help on board.

Hands-on tips:

·        Make sure the school you choose uses muti-sensory learning and teaching styles

·        The school must devour your child’s report and closely monitor and review all their progress

·        There must be a strategic plan between you and the school on how to best approach your child’s needs

·        Make sure you and your concerns are being heard and addressed

There are many choices and many schools which greatly care for children with special educational needs. It is however a blessing finding the right school for your child and once that is achieved, then you can rest and let the journey of helping and properly supporting your child begin. Always remember, your child is not being ‘labelled’, they are being guided and supported. There is a wealth of information and resources that you can tap into. Start by taking the first step and you may well have facilitated life for your child and for yourself beyond realisation.

By Suzie Oweiss

Education Advisor and Director of PS Education,

Specialists in Education and Marketing

We offer a range of services to suit your individual needs from 30 minute advice sessions to tailor made packages. Call us on 07976 602 810 or email info@pseducation.co.uk    www.pseducation.co.uk

Choosing the Right Independent School for your Child – Where to start?!

So here you are – a parent who needs to make that almighty decision which could shape your child’s future. You need to find a suitable school either to kick off your son or daughter’s academic future or to move from one step of their academic career to the next. Where do you begin? What do you look for? And where do you look? What do you base your decision on?

To find the correct school and academic environment, firstly you need to understand what your child is like, where they would fit in best and where their attributes and character would be most nourished and cultivated.  You then need to ask yourself what you would like for your child. Have you decided on which route to take? Private or State? Co-ed or single sex? Faith or non-faith school? Which approach would you like for your child? Nurturing and an academic hot-house? A large school or a cosy small one? What about the facilities? Geographical location? Boarding or day school? Is your child gifted in music or drama? Does your child require learning support? Or are you simply starting out on this spiral staircase and hoping each step is the correct one?

Here we will focus on Independent Schools – fee paying, private establishments:

Finding a school has always been compared to finding a house. It is an elimination process and once you do your homework and walk into the right school for your child and for you as a family, you will know! So now, practically, how do you find THAT school?

There are a number of ways to start your research and there are many resources to help you through. An Education Adviser could be your first point of call. He or she would meet with you and basically do your homework for you – a little like an estate agent but the Education Adviser is commissioned by you and not by the school. They are therefore not trying to ‘sell you’ any particular school.

The second way to approach this is by doing your research yourself. Once you have decided that you would like to take the Independent Schools route, find out which schools are within your reach financially and geographically. Make a list and read up on each one. Look up reviews and Inspection reports. Find out if there are any School Shows in your area or ones where schools you are interested in may be exhibiting. It is always a good idea to visit such shows because you get the chance to see as many schools as possible under one roof and therefore, you gather all the information you need from prospectuses to details of Open events and you are also able to chat to representatives from the schools. Once you go home, you can browse through the literature you collected and make arrangements to visit those you like the look of.

Open events are vitally important and most schools hold one or two such events a year. Some hold more and others hold none. Make a note of the dates and do try to visit as many as you can. For those that do not have Open events, make an appointment to have one to one visits.

But how do you prepare for such visits?

Rule number one: Do not write off any school if you are not one hundred per cent sure it would not be a possible choice for your child. Give every school a chance. Go to Open events armed with research and questions. An Open event is a chance for you to view the school, its facilities, be shown the best of the school and be introduced to students and staff alike. Expect everything to shine, everyone to be welcoming and behave immaculately. However, do try to read between the lines. Students and staff will have been told and trained to make sure every corner is tidy, uniform is neat, classrooms are glimmering, the best work is on display and smiles are worn on every face! You will possibly be shown around by the crème de la crème of the school. You will be expected to ask questions and here will be your chance to dig deeper! Make sure you are satisfied with every answer you receive. Note how students greet teachers. Are they (the pupils) polite, respectful, happy? Do the teachers treat the pupils in a friendly and encouraging manner? Ask the pupil showing you around key questions:

·         Which subjects do they prefer and which do they not and why? What are their teachers like?

·         Would they prefer their ‘worst’ subjects had they been taught be someone different?

·         How long have they been at the school and how long do they intend to stay there for?

·         If they are leaving, why?

·         If they are staying when some others are leaving, why are they staying?

Take away as much information as you can and make sure you have met all the relevant staff – from Principle or Head, to Heads of Departments and pupils. Make a note of every detail down to the entrance of the school, the parking and how you were greeted upon arrival to how they bid you goodbye.

So, Open Day ticked off your list – what next? I always suggest and favour visiting the school on a normal academic day. At this stage, eliminate the schools you do not see your child fitting into and concentrate on the ones you particularly like. Make an appointment to meet with the Head and to have a personal tour of the school. Such a visit will help you see the school in action and on a more natural level. You will get a feel of how a day at the school actually unfolds. Once again, go prepared and ask all the questions you would like answers to. Remember that you are the one making the choice. You are about to entrust that school with your child and their future. You are asking them to help you mould your son or your daughter and make them that well rounded, happy person you wish them to be!

What do you look out for on a personal visit? Read on:

·         Make sure you meet the Head and not just the Registrar or the Marketing Director.

·         Ask to speak to pupils - NOT the house captains/head girls or head boys.

·         Ask to see ALL the facilities. If they say 'we are sure you are not interested to see such and such at this stage.' Say: 'YES, actually I would like to see it!'

·         Which subjects are popular and where the best results are.

·         The universities sixth-formers go on to and the courses they follow.

·         The head - is he/she impressive? How do they interact with the pupils? Does he or she know most of them by name?

·         If the school does not have a senior section, ask which schools they feed into. If it does have a Senior School, ask roughly how many stay and how many leave. Those that leave, why do they leave and where do they go? If you are looking at a Pre-Prep school, ask what they expect of their pupils and where do they aim to send them on to.

·         VITAL to ask about 'setting' - when do they start setting the pupils? How many sets are in each subject. Which subjects do they set them in?

·         At what age do they start languages? Which languages do they offer?

·         Which sports and which schools do they play against?

Armed with a wealth of information, you will hopefully leave with a pretty good idea on whether that particular school would be right for your child or not. What about my son or my daughter, I hear you ask! What about what THEY would like?! Experience has proved to us over the years that children (especially those of a younger age) can be very impressionable. One of the most common marketing tips to schools is to entice the children before the parents – make sure all the fun stuff is out when a child visits, hand out fun stickers, get them to see the playground in all its glory and make sure the child whole-heartedly says ‘Mum and dad I love it here!’. My advice is to take your child to either the Open event or the personal tour – not both! Ideally, if you have not made a decision, do not take your child to a school more than once unless you are sure in your head and heart that you are happy for them to get emotionally attached to it. Once you feel closer to a school then, by all means, take your child again and make sure they love it as much as you do! Remember that as much as we should give responsibility to our children, some decisions should remain ours to a large extent and we must not burden our children with them. Please be sure of what you would like for your child before you put them in the driving seat.

Choosing a school for your child can be very worrying and stressful. However, it is a process which brings back great satisfaction and rewards. Do your homework; invest time in finding out all you can about the possible schools on your list. When in doubt ask, ask and ask again! Remember that you are the one interviewing and investigating. Most of us as adults still get that feeling of ‘what have I done Sir/Miss?!’ when we sit in front of a Headmaster or Headmistress but believe it or not, they want to welcome you and your child into their school and offer you the best of their knowledge and education.

By Suzie Oweiss

Director of PS Education,

Specialists in Education and Marketing

We offer a range of competitively priced services to suit your individual needs from 30 minute advice sessions to tailor made packages. Call us on 07976 602 810 or email info@pseducation.co.uk    www.pseducation.co.uk