Special educational needs
The framework for children with special educational needs (SEN) can be valuable where a stammer is causing concern. The following is largely based on the SEN Code of Practice 2001 (the Code) which goes into much more detail. The Code itself is not legally binding but schools etc must have regard to it, and there are some legal rules underpinning the Code.
Who has special educational needs?
- A child has special educational needs if he or she has a "learning difficulty" which calls for education additional to or otherwise different from that generally provided in mainstream schools. (There is a different test for a child under two.) Most children with special educational needs are successfully educated in their local mainstream school. Only a very small percentage go to special schools.
- A child has a "learning difficulty" if he or she:
- has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age; or
- has a disability which prevents or hinders the child from making use of educational facilities of the kind provided for children of the same age in schools within the LEA area; or
- is under compulsory school age and would fall within either of the other two heads if special educational provision were not made.
- A child who stammers will often be treated as having a "learning difficulty" under head 2 (disability preventing or hindering the child from making use of educational facilities), and will thus often be treated as having special educational needs.
Graduated response
- The Code sets out a model of response, though there is scope for differences between schools:
- School Action - where a child is identified as having SEN, the school's SEN coordinator (SENCO) and teacher look at what action needs to be taken. (See below on parents and child also being involved.) They draw up an individual action plan (IEP). The IEP sets out strategies to be employed to enable the child to progress, so far as "additional to" or "different from" the differentiated curriculum plan for all children. The IEP also includes targets and, when the IEP is reviewed, outcomes/progress. The IEP should be reviewed at least twice a year.
- School Action Plus - this is where School Action is not sufficient and teachers and the SENCO are supported by specialists from outside the school;
- Assessment and Statement - where this school-based provision is not sufficient, the LEA can make a statutory assessment and, if it so decides in the assessment, make a statement of the child's special educational needs. This will be appropriate where the special educational provision cannot be met from the school's own resources - it is the LEA which is responsible for arranging the provision in the statement. Assessments and statements are largely based on statute and parents often have a right of appeal to a tribunal in relation to them. There is provision for annual reviews.
- The Code stresses the importance of involving parents and children, including taking into account the ascertainable views of the child. LEA specialists, the health services and other agencies may well also be involved.
- The Code also deals with early education settings: Early Years Action, Early Years Action Plus etc.
- Paras 7:55-7:57 and 8:49-8:53 of the Code particularly mention speech. However the Code needs to be read as a whole.
Application to a pupil who stammers
- The teacher of the child who stammers would discuss the child with the school's special needs coordinator (SENCO) and the child would be put on the special needs register. If the SENCO does not have experience of stammering, he or she would seek advice perhaps from the Speech and Language specialist from the LEA's learning support service where available, or from a speech and language therapist. Together with the parents and the child him- or herself, they would decide what specific steps should be taken within the school and an IEP would be drawn up. There would be a review after say half a term or a term to monitor whether the action is helping.
- For example, it might be agreed that, when asking children in a group situation to read in turn, the child should be chosen near the beginning. This would reduce the anxiety of anticipating stammering when their turn eventually comes.
- Another possible example: the child might not be required to give answers in class without choosing to do so, and his language skills might not be assessed in a public situation.
- For information on how to deal with stammering in school, see the BSA links below.
- The child may also be referred to a speech and language therapist.
- As well as seeing a speech and language therapist, a child who stammers will sometimes spend time with a SEN teacher or other specialist/supporter, e.g. an LSA (learning support assistant) or school counsellor. This might be to help build self-esteem, for example.
- An advantage of the child being placed on the SEN register is that specific measures are taken and monitored in order to deal with the stammer. If the child is not on the register, the school is not obliged to do this.
- A child may also need to be on the register to be considered for an extra time allowance in GCSE modern langauage orals (see article "Oral assessments ..." in Links below).
Statementing and therapy
- For most children who stammer, assessments and statements are inapplicable. A stammer alone is not normally enough for a child to receive a statement. That would normally require some further impairment such as a cognitive impairment.
- It is therefore particularly unfortunate that there are some areas of the country where speech and language therapy may only be available if the child has been statemented. (However, in many areas, therapy is available without the need for a statement.)
- Where a child does receive a statement, parents will want to ensure that speech and language therapy is included in Part 3 of the statement (educational provision) rather than Part 6 (non-educational provision):
- This is to try to ensure that there is an obligation to provide the therapy. The Code (at paras 8:50-8:51) says that, whilst prime responsibility for speech therapy services lies with the NHS, where the NHS does not provide therapy specified as "educational provision" ultimate responsibility for ensuring its provision rests with the LEA.
- Parents should normally be able to achieve this treatment of speech therapy in the statement. Para 8:49 of the Code says that since communication is so fundamental in learning and progression, addressing speech and language impairment should normally be recorded as educational provision unless there are exceptional reasons for not doing so. (This follows a recommendation of the Speech and LanguageTherapy Working Group, listed under Links below.)
Links
- British Stammering Association (BSA) - School-children index, including
- the two articles mentioned above are by BSA Education Officer Cherry Hughes and include discussion of the child going on the special needs register. The BSA website also includes details of the BSA helpline.
- British Stammering Association (BSA) - Teachers index, including
- The Child Who Stammers - Information for Teachers, a comprehensive guide compiled by the BSA's panel of specialist speech and language therapists.
- BSA Education Officer - about the excellent work the BSA is doing in schools. At present (2002-2003) the BSA is focussing on producing CD-Roms on stammering in schools, to be distributed to schools nationwide.
- Teachernet - Special Educational Needs - government website with many resources, including the SEN Code of Practice 2001, and SEN A guide for parents and carers.
- Teachernet (Management) - Speech and Language Therapy
- Report of Speech and Language Therapy Working Group: Provision of Speech and Language Therapy Services to Children with Special Educational Needs (England) (DfEE document 0319/2000, November 2000). Also Project page16199: Provision for Children with Speech and Language Needs in England and Wales: Facilitating communication Between Education and Health Services, where one can download the Research Brief: Provision for Children with Speech and Language Needs in England and Wales (RB239) and the related Research Report (RR239).
- Independent Panel for Special Education Advice (IPSEA) , charity providing help for parents of children with special educational needs.
- Connexions - government's new support service for all young people aged 13 - 19 in England, including but not limited to those with SEN.
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