Learning Intentions and Introduction

Session Elements

• self-assessment
• practical exercise

Learning Intentions for this session

You will learn that:

• Paired and group activities can increase pupil success, but to work together effectively pupils need guidance, support and practice.
• Pupils are likely to learn at different rates and to require different levels and types of support from teachers to succeed.
• Seeking to understand pupils’ differences, including their different levels of prior knowledge and potential barriers to learning, is an essential part of teaching.
• Flexibly grouping pupils within a class to provide more tailored support can be effective, but care should be taken to monitor its impact on engagement and motivation, particularly for low-attaining pupils.
• Pupils with special educational needs or disabilities are likely to require additional or adapted support; working closely with colleagues, families and pupils to understand barriers and identify effective strategies is essential

Introduction

In your recent mentor session, you focused in detail on the role of key professionals and how to break content down for different pupils. You discussed the need to locate the education of children with SEND within inclusive policy and practice, with emphasis on improving the whole learning environment and the combination of teaching and learning processes applicable to all children. This is an approach that should serve to prevent some children from needing to be identified as having special educational needs.

In this self-study session you will extend your knowledge of teaching pupils with special educational needs. You will consider where to access the information you need to inform planning and explore the range of strategies that can be deployed when teaching pupils with a variety of different needs and backgrounds. Alongside this you will also consider again the importance of grouping pupils effectively.