“As SENCO I have a clearer understanding of the process I would like us to use to identify, assess and support learners at risk of Dyslexia. As several other members of staff from our school are also doing the training there will be benefits that we've had the same input and same points of reference. It will take a while before I can comment on how the training has impacted outcomes.
“The training has taught me about dyslexia and how it impacts on children's learning at school. For example, when supporting a student in French lessons, it became clear that he could not understand new words that were introduced. A strategy to help with this is to use a visual aid when learning new vocabulary, e.g. a picture of a glass of orange juice and the French word for this written below.
“The case studies were particularly useful as they gave a good insight into the learning the deaf children were making, using the relevant strategies. It was interesting to see their viewpoints too. I have taken away some of these strategies and have implemented them in my class where I can.
“It has brought my knowledge/understanding up to date after time out of the workplace.
“This course has definitely improved my understanding of autistic spectrum disorder. I am applying all my new knowledge in my role as a SEND Assistant. This course has developed my understanding of meet the needs of the children I work with, the appropriate assessment tools to use and effective strategies that can be used. I really appreciate the opportunity to have taken part in this course.
“I feel the course has given me a greater confidence to support children with challenging behaviour. It was a very interesting and a useful course giving a variety of strategies to use in the classroom, classroom management and the classroom environment. The case studies were very informative too.
“The main thing I have taken from this course, among many others, is how to be very focused and specific in the setting of targets and interventions. I have realised I had a tendency to be quite broad in my outcomes - simply saying a child will learn a new sound - and didn't break the targets down in the necessary components. My tutor has been invaluable in helping me with this and it will definitely have a positive impact on both my teaching and my target setting for my TA.
“I have learned a great deal on how to support a pupil with VI and have been able to use this information in practice, e.g. new knowledge on additional low impact visual aids which I have now implemented for use in class to support Pupil X. I am more aware in how to meet the needs of the pupil and feel more confident in my day-to-day practice. I also found the case studies particularly informative and useful - these gave me a greater understanding of the needs of a VI pupil and how to meet them.
