Katie Hughes investigates how schools are adopting new methods to support children with learning difficulties
There was a time when learning difficulties like dyslexia and dyspraxia were synonymous with stigma and second-best ? but not so today. Attitudes and provision have seen drastic changes over recent years, as has the way in which children with special educational needs (SEN) are diagnosed.
When Chris Guest speaks to prospective parents in his role as Head of Learning Support at Wycliffe College, Gloucestershire, he tells them, ?We place a great importance on boosting self-esteem, as poor self-worth can often be a barrier to progress.?
Special methods
Resilience training is just one of the tactics used by the school to fulfil this commitment to pupils with learning difficulties. A sound-therapy programme, which helps children deal with auditory processing and concentration problems, is another. Both are provided by highly-trained staff at its Preparatory School Learning Centre, which also offers occupational, speech and language therapy, one-to-one specialist teaching, and targeted teaching in small mainstream classes. Above, pupils at Wycliffe College in Gloucestershire
All this puts the focus on the individual pupil rather than a label; a shift similarly advocated by Adrian Wylie, Principal of Shapwick School in Somerset, which supports children with dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, and associated conditions. Wylie explains, ?For each child, we look beneath any im...