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.
British Primary School Learning Support
The Learning Support Team in the British School supports students with identified learning needs. Some students might require support to access the curriculum, while others might need opportunities to extend the level of learning challenge at school.
Learning Support Team members work closely with classroom teachers to create plans of support for each child’s specific learning needs. These learning support plans clearly identify short-term learning targets that we strive to achieve within a six-week time frame.
The plans identify what the teacher, teaching assistant and parents can do to support the child, above and beyond what the Learning Support Team teacher does in class. Multiple support sessions per week are planned as we believe regular, focused support is more likely to result in an improvement in learning. These plans will be reviewed every six weeks and new targets set as required. If a child has achieved the learning targets, further goals will be set or learning support will cease, depending on the learning needs of the child. Either way, the parents will be kept informed of the child’s progress with the learning support plan.
Most of the time, the support provided to a child will happen in class. On occasions, children will be withdrawn from class for support if this is considered to be more appropriate.
Sometimes we will provide advice about seeking external support for students who need specialist support above and beyond that provided by the school Learning Support Team. 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.
British Secondary Learning Support
El Alsson offers an exclusive Learning Support program that provides a variety of services for our KS3/4 and 5 students. After the appropriate assessment in identifying children with particular needs. We create a personalised plan that informs and monitors progress and support given. Many of the services provide educational provisions for a child to succeed within their studies and coping skills. We strive to equip each child with additional lessons and one on one support to ensure a formal understanding of what they are learning. In addition Learning Support supplies every student with the proper access arrangements which allow every student to receive the appropriate time, equipment and provisions to achieve a smooth testing environment for their specific needs.
The Learning Support Teachers in KS3 and KS4 & 5 are responsible for ensuring that Access Arrangements for each student is provided as identified by need or more formal assessment by a qualified assessor. Evidence of support is collated by the Learning Support Teachers in KS3 and KS4 & 5 and referral made to a qualified specialist assessor for external examinations. Working alongside the Examinations Officer and Head of Centre the Learning Support Teachers in KS3 and KS4 & 5 ensure that all documentation and evidence needed for application to external examination boards is updated regularly