3.4 Supporting individual learners
Identifying students who require individual support to access the curriculum fully is a critical aspect of creating an inclusive and equitable learning environment.
Supporting each individual learner to achieve their full potential requires a deep understanding of pupils’ unique needs, abilities and backgrounds, as well as the ability to adapt teaching strategies and resources to meet diverse learning requirements. In this context, listening to learners explain their own experiences is of key importance and can help in future interactions with learners who need specialist provision.
Activity 9
Listen to the following audio where Aqsa, a year 5 pupil at Joseph Clarke School, is talking about her experiences as a visually impaired pupil at a specialist provision. As you listen to the audio, make notes on the points below.
- How does Aqsa describe her experience of using assistive technologies in their learning? What specific benefits does she mention?
- In what ways does the Aqsa’s visual impairment impact her school life and learning?
- What do her responses lead you to think educators should consider when supporting students with specialist provision?
Discussion
Aqsa describes using assistive technologies, like Braillers, as empowering and enabling her to access writing information independently.
Aqsa identified many challenges she had in previous schools and in her day-to-day life, such as difficulties with reading printed materials, navigating physical spaces, or participating in visual-based activities. You may have highlighted that these challenges have led to a need for alternative formats and adaptations to support learning and accessibility.
There are implications for classroom practice beyond Aqsa’s individual experience of school. Educators should consider how to support a student who requires specialist provision so that they can access the curriculum giving the student agency and independence where appropriate. Listening to the voices of children is important so that practitioners understand the lived experience of the children and can source the resources that are needed.
OpenLearn - Supporting children’s learning in primary education today
Except for third party materials and otherwise, this content is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Licence, full copyright detail can be found in the acknowledgements section. Please see full copyright statement for details.