Learning support
About
At Langley School we treat all students as individual learners and support them in two complementary ways. First we provide an educational environment that encourages, promotes confidence and fosters enjoyment. Class sizes are small and all teachers plan effectively to suit the needs of individuals and the whole group. There is a broad choice of subjects and a comprehensive range of activities in school time so that all students can excel and receive recognition in some aspect of their schooling. Success is a major source of motivation. Secondly, we employ a well qualified Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator and a team of Learning Assistants to deliver a range of programmes to individual students or small groups who are taken out of lessons. For a small group of pupils we provide in class support to enable them to access the full curriculum.
Defining Special Educational Needs
This policy accepts the definition of SEN as set out in the Revised Code of Practice 1:3 (page 6)
Pupils have special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty, which calls for special educational provision to be made for them.
Pupils have a learning difficulty if they:
a) have a significant greater difficulty in learning than the majority of pupils of the same age; or
b) have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for pupils of the same age in schools within the area of the local education authority.
Our aim is to raise the level of skills and thus provide individual students with access to the whole curriculum. Students are provided with targeted support and are taught in small tutorial rooms with access to IT facilities and up-to-date resources for promoting reading, the acquisition of spelling, writing and number, the revision of national curriculum subjects and the promotion of independent learning study skills.
The school offers a differentiated curriculum. When a pupil fails to make progress and shows signs of difficulty the school will place the pupil at “School Action” and support, additional to and different from the differentiated curriculum, will be provided through an Individual Education Plan (IEP) and alternative teaching strategies
Parents will be informed and pupils will be involved in decisions taken at this stage. They will receive copies of Individual Education Plans (IEPs) and these will be reviewed twice a year (more frequently if this is felt necessary).
Special Access for Exams
Assessments for public examinations can be carried out to include reading/spelling ability, writing speed and comprehension. As a result of an application to the Examination Board, students may receive special dispensation. All exams sat in Learning Support are managed and facilitated by the Head of Learning Support . Parents are informed by letter of testing and results.