14 minute read
ADvICE FOR NEw AND ASPIRING SENCOS
misbehaved just because they were ‘naughty’! Reader, these particular students weren’t naughty, they had ADHD or ASD respectively and were receiving minimal support from support staff who themselves had little to no training.
As your setting will no doubt cater for students with a range of needs, it is inevitable that you will work with many external agencies too: PSS, an EP, CAT and so on. You will also have contact information for key staff in the LA (as the LA has many responsibilities too!) Get to know as many of them as possible – especially your LA links – and utilise them whenever necessary.
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Lastly, network as much as possible with fellow SENCOs; Twitter is again great for this. I myself am one of the moderators of the SEND Twitter Community. Reach out to others. You will gain knowledge, reassurance and make some good professional links too.
Some suggested reads to help with this
The pastoral team are those you will work particularly closely with in order to ensure that SEND learners are treated fairly (including making sure that relevant policies are fully inclusive). Take a look at some of these books to help you inform your work with Pastoral leads, Heads of Year etc.
‘The Complete Guide to Pastoral Leadership’ (Amy Forrester, 2022)
‘The Behaviour Manual: An Educator’s Guidebook’ (Samuel Strickland, 2022)
‘After the Adults Change. Achievable Behaviour Nirvana’ (Paul Dix, 2017)
‘Running The Room. The Teacher’s Guide to Behaviour’ (Tom Bennett, 2020)
‘The Ladder. Supporting Students towards Successful Futures and Confident Career Choices’ (Andrew Bernard, 2021)
4. Lead strategically and operationally
‘The SENCO has an important role to play with the headteacher and governing body, in determining the strategic development of SEN policy and provision in the school. They will Throughout my career thus far, I have been a SENCO as a member of Middle Leadership, Extended Leadership and Senior Leadership and in all honesty, the level of leadership itself did not impact my work. What did impact my work was the level of autonomy I was given, as well as my own ability to lead both operationally and strategically when required; confidence is absolutely key here – believe in yourself! Teachers are more likely to be invested when they are trusted (not constantly judged), given time and guided by a knowledgeable leader who empowers them. ‘Great Expectations: Leading an Effective SEND Strategy in School’ (David Bartram, 2018)
‘The Leadership Book: A Step by Step Guide to Excellent Leadership’ (Neil Jurd, 2020)
‘Leadership Matters 3.0: How Leaders At All Levels Can Create Great Schools’ (Andy Buck, 2018)
‘Intelligent Accountability: Creating the Conditions for Teachers to Thrive’ (David Didau, 2020) – definitely one to share with your line manager/SLT!
5. Keep the importance of pedagogy in mind
I have worked in schools where seeking an investment in SEND (CPD-time, staff interest, value in SLT’s eyes, etc) was a battle and I have also worked in schools where I was able to make SEND a priority without any struggle. How? Amongst other things, I leaned on The Teachers’ Standards; namely, Standard 5.
Yes, the SEND Code of Practice and multiple laws should be enough but The Teachers’ Standards are far easier to share via CPD sessions, which is why I tend to share this with staff prior to introducing them to legislation. They also add that extra layer of accountability. This has served me particularly well when faced with conversations about ‘bottom sets’, ‘simplifying the curriculum’ and ‘they can’t do that GCSE option, it’s too hard’ (cue lengthy sigh of despair.) Once I had staff investment in SEND (ie staff understood how important SEND learners are and how important staff are in ensuring these learners have access to a broad and balanced curriculum) I needed to provide guidance on how to make the curriculum accessible.
Some of my most successful CPD sessions for staff ensured that (a) staff gained a better understanding of how SEND can manifest in a classroom setting and (b) staff left the CPD session with ‘takeaways’ to help them address this and support student progress.
Staff were reassured that what works for SEND learners, will work for every learner; it’s not additional work. Moreover, I made it crystal clear that progress would not necessarily look the same for all SEND learners, especially in direct comparison to their non-SEND peers.
Some suggested reads to help with this
‘Teaching Walkthrus 3. Five-Step Guides to Instructional Coaching’ (Tom Sherrington and Oliver Caviglioli, 2022)
‘The researchED Guide to Special Educational Needs: An Evidence-Informed Guide for Teachers’ (Karen Wespieser, 2021)
‘Understanding How We Learn: A Visual Guide’ (Yana Weinstein, 2018)
‘Anna Murphy Paul’s The Extended Mind in Action’ (Emma Turner, David Goodwin and Oliver Caviglioli, 2022)
‘The Inclusive Classroom: A New Approach to Differentiation’ (Daniel Sobel and Sara Alston, 2021)
6. Never stop revisiting statutory guidance and the law
Be kind to yourself - you can’t be the allknowing oracle. The world of SEND is laden with laws and statutory guidance (I haven’t even touched upon the medical side of things in this article). There is a plethora of information to remember and refer to, which is made even more challenging by the fact that much of it is forever being updated.
Ensure you familiarise yourself with key laws, as well as statutory guidance including: Children and Families Act (2014), Equality Act (2010) and the SEND Code of Practice (2015) to name but three.
It is also worth getting a subscription to a reputable organisation such as NASEN, as their publications will help you keep up-to-date with key SEND news and reforms etc. If on Twitter, Special Needs Jungle (@ SpcialNdsJungle) are also a brilliant source of information, as well as IPSEA. The latter is an organisation that runs regular CPD on SEND Law for professionals and parents.
Some suggested reads to help with this:
An example of SEND Funding explained (Birmingham Local Offer, 2022) – please note, this Local Offer website is for Birmingham in the UK, every LA will have their own LA Offer website. Ensure you familiarise yourself with any LA websites that apply to your setting’s cohort. For instance, if your setting is based in Birmingham but has students who live in Sandwell too, then ensure you engage with both LAs (Birmingham and Sandwell.)
‘How Grand is 6 Grand?’ (Garry Freedman, 2020)
‘The SEND Green Paper – how can we move towards a more affirmatory conception of SEND and learning disability?’ (Ben Newmark & Tom Rees, 2022)
SEND and Disability Statute Law, Regulations and Guidance (IPSEA, 2022) The role of SENCO is one of the most exciting, pivotal and rewarding roles I have ever undertaken. However, I have also, on many occasions, sat in my office wanting to scream ,through sheer exhaustion as well as frustration, at the ongoing misconceptions about SEND (eg the idea that EAL is a category of SEND – ugh!).
Consequently, it is paramount that you make time to ‘switch off’ from work completely every day, as this job (like most in education) will consume you if you let it.
Sacrilegious as it will sound to many, do not keep a stock of chocolates, soft drinks and coffee in your room/office ‘in case of emergencies’ either; treat yourself but please do so sensibly. The job is strenuous as it is, hence being and staying healthy is absolutely paramount. Now, I do have a penchant for bonding with a Bounty or pack of Bourbon biscuits after a particularly challenging day but this is only on the odd occasion, not a daily occurrence.
Have a snack drawer by all means but stock up on healthy treats that will give you much needed energy boosts; protein bars, fruit, nuts (only keep nuts if your setting isn’t nut-free and you don’t work with any students who have severe nut allergies), seeds (particularly squash and pumpkin), as well as Green Tea (Matcha has a particular kick to it!) I have deliberately suggested a range of reads that are mostly succinct and not dear in cost, as I wish to give you some variety. I also am fully aware of the lack of time and CPD budgets that many SENCOs face. By all means, purchase as many of these books as you so wish – and as your pocket allows – but where possible, ask for your choice of books to be purchased in your school as part of your own CPD or for a staff CPD library (if your setting has one). Also, do not feel compelled to read any of them from cover-to-cover; ‘dip’ into them as required.
All in all, the world of SEND is always evolving, hence your role as the SENCO will too. Prioritise your SEND learners and their families, collaborate with colleagues and external agencies, keep holding your LA accountable (remember the law, as well as statutory guidance) and most importantly, ensure you eat healthily and take toilet breaks on time!
The role will always be challenging, so learn from every mistake and celebrate every win, no matter how small. I guarantee that even the smallest win will make a BIG difference in the life of your SEND learners, as well as their families.
PEDAGOGY
A whistlestop tour through the science behind testing and why it shouldn’t just appear at the end of our teaching.
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PEDAGOGY
Taking the complex ideas behind test-enhanced learning and simplifying them, doesn’t seem to make it any less complicated. So forgive me, when I attempt to deliver my insights into retrieval practice in approximately 1500 words. Fasten your seat-belts!
Despite the “wealth of evidence” (Agarwal et al, 2021) about the “reliable advantage” (Yang et al, 2021) of test-enhanced learning – more commonly referred to as the ‘testing effect’ or ‘retrieval practice’ – it is actually far more complicated than it is often presented.
By Kristian Still
A model of memory
“Without an understanding of human cognitive architecture, instruction is blind,” Sweller (2017).
When it comes to cognition – to thinking – theory is unavoidable. Therefore, a model is almost always inevitable. And a model, generative of pedagogical strategies, helps us understand the mechanics or processes of test enhanced learning. For the purpose of a shared understanding, let’s go with Willingham’s (2009) Simple Model of Memory (other models are of course available), a model that highlights the abstract cognitive processing of encoding1 , storage2, and retrieval3. Attention is the primary gatekeeper of learning and relearning, and is the ultimate commodity of our classrooms.
encoding1: The process by which information moves from short-term to long-term memory.
StorAge2: Securing newly acquired information into memory and maintaining it.
retrievAl3: Accessing learned information held in longterm memory.
To add a little meat to these bare bones, “using our memory shapes our memories,” Bjork (2012).
Moreover, the information we recall and access becomes “more retrievable in the future and things in competition with that gradually become less usable,”Bjork (2012).
In that sense, memory is reconstructive rather than objective. It is dynamic, forever changing, rather than static. And repeated retrieval and reencounters helps your students build accessing, networked, adaptive, durable memories.
To paraphrase the eloquent Sarah Cottingham (Twitter: @ overpracticed) think “less library system and more ecosystem.”
A Short word About forgetting And quick word About releArning
Our memories (what we attend to) are encoded (and possibly consolidated), stored and connected, either to be retrieved or forgotten. The fact that encoding and retrieval are two distinct phases is important and we will return to this later.
Secondly, knowledge of forgetting is also important. Once teachers foresee that their teaching and pupils’ learning, remembering and relearning is a process and not a product, we can see the requirement to “reteach”.
What is at first quirky, tricky to get a handle on, is that some forgetting, or spacing, is actually helpful to learning.
PEDAGOGY
“Remembering is greatly aided if the first presentation is forgotten to some extent before the repetition occurs.” (Roediger & Karpicke, 2011)
If we anticipate the requirement to reteach, we need to use forgetting, (spacing) in a way which delicately balances the effort needed to retrieve information with the likelihood of successful retrieval.
Now, let’s circle back around to “encoding and retrieval are two distinct phases.”
“Effort is vital and we must warn students of this fact: Human memory is fragile. The initial acquisition of knowledge is slow and effortful. And once mastery is achieved, the knowledge must be exercised periodically to mitigate forgetting.” (Lindsey et al, 2014).
Encoding (learning) is often pedestrian. Information may or not may have been stored in long-term memory and it is often difficult to access. Whereas retrieval, remembering or relearning, is much more efficient at doing this. Knowing this will impact upon how you employ testing to enhance learning.
why teSt-enhAnced leArning?
Suffice to say that given “the strong evidence for its benefits for memory, many cognitive and educational psychologists now classify testing as among the most effective educational techniques discovered to date,” (Pan & Rickard, 2018). “Testing is not only an assessment of learning but also an assessment for learning.” Yang et al, 2021.
The historic 2011 Roediger et al paper offered us “10 benefits of testing and their applications to educational practice.”
Testing aids retention, identifies gaps in knowledge, causes students to learn more from the next learning episode, promotes better organisation of knowledge, improves transfer of knowledge to new contexts, facilitates retrieval of information that was not tested, aids metacognitive monitoring, prevents interference, gives feedback to instructors and encourages students to study.
In the past ten years, we have evidence to add to Roediger’s paper. Where testing is used to enhance learning, students prepare better for lessons, take more notes, are more focused or less distracted in lessons, are less anxious about exams, more resistant to stress and have improved attendance.
It is a broad and convincing argument.
As Dr Tom Perry, who led the Education Endowment Foundation’s Cognitive Science Approaches in the Classroom review (Perry et al, 2021), summarised in a recent conversation, “We know a huge amount about learning, memory, cognition, attention, and it’s creating some really powerful and practical principles that we can trust.” But now it’s over to the educators, he said, “to really work out what good looks like in their own contexts”.
‘how’, in two phASeS And Seven StAtementS
Tom Sherrington is right to issue a warning shot at “rigid, formulaic quizzing regime[s]” and “performative quizzing.” However, get test-enhanced learning right, during encoding and as retrieval, and you can make a healthy contribution to the direct and indirect effectiveness of your teaching and to the outcomes for your pupils.
Firstly, directly, in securing superior long-term retention, durability, accessibility and transfer of knowledge.
And secondly, indirectly, as a vehicle for motivation, increased investment and attention in lessons and by providing a framework from which students can adapt their own learning and relearning.
retrievAl-deSign for low fAilure rAteS
increase success
During encoding
Use recognition recall: Matched pairs, Multiple Choice style questions, fill-inthe-blanks.
Retrieve more recent learning or deeply rooted learning; rather than selecting new retrieval prompts, retrieve then reorder
Shorten time intervals, (Eglington et al, 2020).
Reduce the breadth of knowledge being probed
Cue the retrieval, extend the cue(s) use hints
Massed practiced retrieval - selecting the same retrieval prompts repeatedly, or reorder* the prompts
increase difficulty
During retrieval
Use free recall or cued questions, or reverse the cue eg Q&A and A&Q
Extend the chronological reference. Retrieve learning from last term, or even last year(s)! Misalign the retrieval tasks, set homeworks from the previous topic.
Extend time intervals
Extend the breadth or weight of knowledge being probed
Remove cues - free recall
Block retrieval - securing high success rates on a set of flashcards before progressing)
Self-paced
Spaced practice: Select new retrieval prompts from the same topic or refresh the cards
Interleave retrieval, new prompts from across topics
Time pressured
