Learning Support

El Alsson American School Learning Support

The Learning Support Services Department at El Alsson American International School caters to the needs of students in Grades 1-8 who have mild learning disabilities and/or who have trouble accessing the curriculum due to English language deficiencies or need for specific teaching styles. The department’s goal is to equip and develop these students so they can cope with the demands of the American curriculum independently by the end of Grade 8. The Learning Support Services Team works closely with classroom teachers and employs strategies within available resources to support students in reaching their full potential and access the mainstream curriculum.
A student is eligible for Learning Support services if s/he:
a.    has a mild, identified learning disability and/or,
b.    has deficiencies in English language skills which hinder access to the curriculum.

Learning Support Services are provided through a variety of methods, including:

• identifying students in need, which may include classroom observations and cognitive, academic and achievement testing.
• supporting teachers with developing and using inclusive teaching strategies that will best suit and support a child.
• planning and monitoring Individualized Educational Plans
• providing accommodations for students (ie: extra test time, laptop use)
• 1-1 and small group instruction to target specific needs, skills or academic areas.
• small group English language targeted support

All Learning Support Services are provided at school, during the school day.

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British Primary School Learning Support

Learning Support in the British Primary School (ages 3-11) falls into two categories: school action and school action plus.

School action involves students who are experiencing mild difficulties with the mainstream curriculum having support sessions with the school learning support staff covering various areas e.g. phonics, literacy or maths support in small groups (booster classes). Students are withdrawn from certain classes during the school day in order to attend these support classes. The majority of students having learning support fall into this category.
School action plus involves external support for students who need specialist support above and beyond that provided by the school learning support department. These specialist sessions can be run at school during the school day or externally after school depending on scheduling and the type of specialist support needed. As these sessions are run by external specialists, there are charges for this kind of support. If external support is required parents are expected to follow the advice and guidance of the school in seeking this type of support at or through one of the various centres.

By the end of the Primary School all students are expected to be working at National Curriculum Level 4 to progress to KS3, the Senior School.
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