Finding the right school and
educational support for a child with
additional needs can be a challenge.
Larissa Downes
explores the options.
T
o meet their full potential,
some children need a little
extra help in the classroom.
This could take the form
of a short-term focus on an area of
difficulty, or it might be a more long-
term supportive approach to learning
throughout a child’s school career.
Children with additional needs all
benefit from a teaching approach that
can be tailored to suit their way of
learning.
Of course, parents of children of
all abilities want to find a school that
is a ‘good fit’ – and this is all the more
important for a child with additional
learning needs. Trisha Tran, a
parent and advocate for special needs
education in Hong Kong for non-
Chinese speaking children, suggests
some questions that parents should
consider when looking for a suitable
school:
• What level of need does the child
have? What specialist help is
required?
• What structure and approach to
learning is offered by the school,
academically and organisationally?
• Is there clear leadership support
and vision, for both educators and
parents?
hand
A helping
In terms of structure, one of the
first things to consider is whether your
child will benefit from a mainstream
classroom setting. Integration into a
mainstream class for children with
mild to moderate learning difficulties
is the goal for most educationalists
and parents, and it may take different
forms.
Levels of integration
Some children learn well within a
mainstream classroom with ‘pull-out’
or ‘withdrawal’ support into small
groups, and this is the approach
of most schools in Hong Kong
offering integration for children with
additional needs. Others may benefit
from an alternative ‘small classroom’
setting where children with special
educational needs (SEN) are taught
more intensively, spending some
of their time in joint activities with
mainstream classes. Some children
with a higher level of need may also
benefit from a ‘shadow’ or assistant
working with them one-on-one to
guide them through the curriculum
in either setting. However, some
educators discourage ‘shadow’ support
over concerns they may present a
barrier to a child’s learning. Teacher-
May 2016
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