Special Education Needs

SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS IN THE NATIONAL SCHOOL

For resources see primary page

When you get your new class it is important to note any children who have been receiving Resource Teaching or Special Needs assistance.  Talk to the Resource Teacher about the needs of these children.

Read any notes given to you from the previous teacher and if possible, ask him/her how he/she worked with the child(ren) concerned. A copy of the previous year's report and any notes of recent parent/teacher meetings would also be useful documentation.

Each year the children in your class will be tested by the class teacher using standardised tests. Any concerns raised may result in follow-up testing by the learning support teacher. Any child found to be performing below the expected level will be given support by the learning support teacher usually withdrawn from the normal classroom.

If a child is considered unlikely to make the necessary progress even with learning support, a school can make an application for the child to be sent for assessment by the psychologist.

However, not all schools have an allocated psychologist and it can be difficult to have children assessed. Often parents are required to pay for the assessment privately. The assessment is normally done in school.

The recommendations of the psychologist may lead to the child being given special teaching by a resource teacher or it may result in provision of a computer or other equipment for him/her. Provision of resource teacher is usually between 2.5 and 5 hours per week but this is likely to include working as part of a group or with the help of the resource teacher within his/her normal class.

If a child needs some degree of care provision (e.g. physical disability or behavioural disability) then a special needs assistant may be provided.

Pupils with SEN can be exempted from learning Irish under certain circumstances e.g. where they have a learning need so severe that they are unlikely to achieve even basic levels of skills in English.

Further Information

Primary Curriculum Support Programme
http://www.pcsp.ie

The Department of Education and Science are trying to tackle social disadvantage and have a number of schemes in operation to target groups with special needs.

http://www.oasis.gov.ie/education/
(A program which develops self-esteem with the aim of encouraging pupils to value school and avoids alienation at an early age)

http://www.cidb.ie/live.nsf/
(School Completion Programme which tries to combat pupils leaving school early)

Exemption from Irish

http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/pc12_96.doc and http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/pc12_96_guidelines_psychologists.doc

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