Support for Learning
The Support for Learning (SfL) department is a whole school resource working with pupils from the Nursery up to pupils in S6. It is staffed by specialist teachers who have Support for Learning qualifications in addition to their teaching specialisation. The department has support rooms in the Castle Building and the Grassmarket Campus.
Support for Learning: Staffing
Ms Valerie Higson (Head of Department)
Ms Higson has had twenty eight years experience in education. She has worked in both Junior and Senior Schools (subject teacher and Support for Learning specialist), delivered INSET training and worked as a SEN Development Officer for the Scottish Executive. She is also an Associate Member of the British Dyslexia Association. She is particularly interested in dyslexia, dyscalculia and strategies for learning.
Ms Melinda Churches
Ms. Churches has taught many things in many places over the years but at Heriot's she is a Support for Learning Teacher and a Year Teacher in Guidance. In addition to her training as an English teacher, she has qualifications as a primary teacher as well as specialist degrees in the teaching of reading and in Additional Support Needs. She is currently studying for a degree in Psychology. Ms Churches enjoys being able to teach within the broad and varied context that is Heriot's.
Mrs Ruth Armet
Mrs Armet spent fourteen years as a class teacher in the Junior School before joining the SfL Department where she teaches for two days each week. She is also a member of the Enrichment Department, teaching Thinking Skills and providing Enrichment support to classes in the Junior School. She is the Gifted and Talented Coordinator in the Junior School and is involved in a variety of extra curricular activities.
Mrs Joyce Jackson
Mrs Jackson is a Chartered Educational Psychologist who has worked at local authority level for eight years. She began her career as a teacher for pupils with Additional Support Needs and now combines these roles in her work at Heriot's. She is particularly interested in Early Intervention programmes, Specific Learning Difficulties, Bereavement support and promoting positive life skills for emotional and psychological wellbeing. Mrs Jackson is a member of the British Psychological Society.
Mrs Gwen Alexander
Mrs Alexander joined Heriot's at the beginning of 2008. She is a graduate of Aberdeen University and has a Modern Languages background. She teaches English as an Additional Language as well as Support for Learning.
Mr David Thain
Mr Thain has taught in Primary schools for eleven years, having qualified with a B.Ed at Edinburgh University. He has had many varied teaching experiences over these years including work in the Scottish state system, the Solomon Islands, Spain and five years at George Heriot's. Recently he has been studying for a qualification in Additional Support for Learning at Heriot-Watt University.
Support for Learning Roles
The Support for Learning Department is committed to raising the standards of attainment and achievement of all pupils. It operates as a whole school resource offering services to pupils and teachers. The progress of all pupils is carefully monitored and evaluated through screening procedures, through pupil referral by staff, and through the school's reporting system.
Support is delivered by the Support for Learning Department through the five Support for Learning roles:
1. Consultancy
Advice is available from SfL staff and via the Intranet. This may include:
- discussion of suitable resources and approaches
- consideration of learning needs for individual pupils
- teaching and learning approaches
- differentiation, adaptation- meeting all pupils' needs from less to more able
2. Co-operative teaching
SfL teachers teach alongside class teachers in the classroom. Clear aims are set out beforehand and the success of these reviewed. The benefits of co-operative teaching might be:
- providing direct support to pupils in class
- assisting in the teaching
- developing classroom approaches with the subject teacher
- assisting in recording and assessment
- collaborating in curriculum development.
The learning of pupils in the classroom always remains the responsibility of the class teacher.
3. Tutoring
Sometimes it is necessary for pupils to be extracted from their normal classes and given direct teaching help from the SfL staff. For example, pupils with specific, dyslexic-type, learning difficulties usually require an intensive structured programme addressing their particular difficulties. It is not possible to deliver this help in a classroom setting.
Every effort is made to ensure that disruption to coursework is kept to a minimum but all staff should be aware of the benefits and necessity of extracting pupils for SfL help and should support pupils who may miss their classes.
4. Services to individual pupils
The SfL Department ensures that services are delivered to pupils in a coherent way. They collate information on individual pupils and are involved in further investigation. They have responsibility for ensuring that information on individual pupils is appropriately disseminated.
The SfL staff ensures that appropriate arrangements are made for pupils sitting examinations and that resources such as readers, scribes, access to ICT are available.
5. Staff Development
The SfL staff have input in the development of staff expertise in teaching and learning. This is done through sharing of insight and experience: presenting in-service sessions; offering guidance on materials, equipment and approaches; commenting on guidelines and briefing documents; disseminating information from seminars, courses attended and other personal development opportunities; participating in curricular and policy developments in school.