The Professional Learning Support Person in Practice - Provision Mapping

University Degree Education and Teaching

Professional Learning Support Person

Review

On reflection I found the action plan that I completed at the beginning of this module very easy to use and practical. I feel that I fulfilled all of the targets that I set for myself. The only real problems that I encountered were that I was unable to meet with the educational psychologist and a change to our SENSS support was made. When I began this module the person who was the appointed Ed psych was only given the position temporarily, during the course of this module someone has been appointed permanently. However, I have found it difficult to contact and fix an appointment with her. I don’t feel that this was too much of a hindrance as the other people that I named as ‘Persons involved’ on my action plan have been very helpful and supportive. The other problem was that we had to reduce the number of hours that we have SENSS in due to the cost. Instead of the usual monthly visits they are now termly. This has resulted in us using SENSS in a consultation and advisory capacity. This has also meant that if we have a child who requires specialist testing there is a longer wait in between visits which results in a delay of a possible diagnosis and a possible delay in putting the necessary support in place.

In retrospect I feel that I devoted more of my time to my first target which was to construct and put into practice a Primary Provision Map. In my current role my SEN duties form a large percentage of my workload and some of my contracted hours are specifically set aside for SEN duties. I felt that it would be more beneficial to my role as SENCO and to the school to pour more of my energies into this target and to get the provision map up and running. The Headteacher was also very eager that I got it underway as soon as possible, and it was one of my professional development targets set at my last review to be completed by the end of the year.

My target for ‘whole-class’ teaching was easy to interpret and I was able to fulfil this without making any changes to the plan. The only slight difference, which was more of a bonus really, was that I was also given the opportunity to teach Foundation Stage and Key Stage One. This was something that I hadn’t considered as I am usually based in Key Stage Two. However, the opportunity arose for me to take the younger children for a few afternoon sessions.

Provision Mapping

Target: - To construct and put into practice a Primary Provision map.

During my yearly performance review the Headteacher asked me if I would be willing to set up a provision map as one of my professional development targets. Initially I was a little apprehensive as I had never heard of provision mapping. The Headteacher also had little knowledge of the process. I agreed that I would research the topic and look for any courses on the subject; if I was able to gather enough information I would set up a provision map for our school. My first port of call was Joanna Stuart who is the CPM for Inclusion for the East Riding. She was able to point me in the right direction. Following her advice I

accessed the East Riding website where I was able to view a list of up and coming courses (a list of these can be seen in the bibliography). I also accessed examples of existing provision maps (which can be seen in appendix (i)) by following the link : . I found this to be very useful as it gave materials developed by teachers in the East Riding, so in theory they are tried and tested examples. However, some of the examples were not very useful. One that I found to be unhelpful was the one categorised by PLASC (this is the bright green example). If you’re in a large school with hundreds of children something like this could be useful. I found that it was difficult to follow and had to engage the help of the school secretary who very kindly explained how the PLASC worked and how to get into it and access the SEN data that I needed. However, my difficulty with this format could be due to my lack of experience. Someone who has more experience of PLASC and of the role of SENCO may find this one easy to use.

The one set out by the code of practice (the red one) would also be useful if you had quite a few children on your SEN register or if you were co-ordinating a larger school.

The ones set out by year (the yellow one) and the one set out by class (the light green example) I found quite useful and would think that they would benefit a medium sized primary school. I adapted the yellow (year) one slightly and used it when I drafted up our provision map.

The one I found the most useful was the light blue one which is set out in waves. I feel that it is ideally suited to small settings.

I applied for the courses on Provision Mapping and for the 7th Annual Inclusion and SEN Conference: Riding Along on the Crest of a Wave! I also applied for other courses that I thought would be beneficial to me as a SENCO and for helping me to fulfil my provision map target (these can all be seen in the bibliography).

The first course for Provision Mapping that I attended I was very apprehensive. I always feel that I am at a disadvantage when I attend courses that are tailored for teachers and not teaching assistants. I tried to prepare myself by reading as much about Provision Mapping as I could. Unfortunately I was unable to find much, other than what I had already accessed online. However, I needn’t have worried as I discovered once I got there that most of the others who were there were as much in the dark as I was. I found this initial course extremely enlightening. We were given a talk by Hannah Hoad, who is a SENCO of a large school, who has already got her provision map up and running. She explained how provision mapping has been put into practice by other educational establishments to provide an ‘at a glance’ way of demonstrating all the provision that the school makes which is ‘additional to’ and ‘different from’ the setting’s differentiated programme of study.

In today’s education system, where inclusion is at the forefront of most mainstream school’s ethos, the need for good SEN provision is paramount in providing a balanced and equal education for children with varying special educational needs. A provision map should show to outside agencies such as OFSTED, how the school’s resources are managed and utilised to meet the requirements of pupils and its commitment to inclusion. It should also provide coherence across the school and eliminate repetition. The provision map shouldn’t only be for SEN, but under the Every Child Matters agenda it should include anyone who might be considered a vulnerable child. I found this an important point to note as SENCOs are now also classed as Inclusion Managers and as such can be asked to comment on vulnerable or under-achieving children.

Following this initial course I was asked by the Headteacher to chair the next staff meeting, giving a presentation on provision mapping. I prepared a PowerPoint presentation for the meeting (a good example of a PowerPoint presentation for the use in staff meetings on the subject of provision mapping can be found at: ).

I also prepared a folder for each member of staff containing a handout (see appendix (ii)) and examples of provision maps taken from the: website. I also downloaded some staff meeting consultation sheets from the above

website (see appendix (iii)). After the PowerPoint presentation, there was a short question and answer session, where I was able to answer the staff’s queries on the provision mapping process. I then asked them to fill in the staff consultation sheets. These I used to inform my planning when drafting up the provision map. The sheets are used to flag up any concerns that a teacher may have regarding particular pupils that the SENCO may be unaware of. Fortunately, because we are such a small school, we are in a position to know all of our pupils very well, there were no surprises flagged up on our consultation forms.

I feel that the staff meeting went very well, especially considering it was the first that I had ever chaired and my state of nervousness. I was able to answer all the staff’s questions confidently. The Headteacher was very pleased with how it went and commented on and how well prepared I was and how good the presentation and the resources I used were.

The next step was for me to produce a provision list. This was a list of all the SEN resources, provisions and interventions that we currently have in school. I then went through the list and deleted all the out of date resources and things that we no longer use (a copy of this list can be seen in appendix (iv)). I then physically threw away any out of date materials and things that we never use. I made the list in the hope that it would flag up any gaps in provision. It was successful in doing this ...