Learning Support

Quality teaching is provided by exceptional educators at St Benedict’s and is very well resourced in terms of equipment and support personnel. St Benedict’s provides learning support services and special needs programs, including access to specialists in psychology, occupational therapy and speech pathology.

Providing a meaningful and inclusive learning program, St Benedict’s caters for the intellectual, spiritual, emotional, social and physical dimensions of each student. It fosters the wellbeing of all students and other members within its school community so that each person is ‘empowered and challenged to become lifelong learners with optimism and hope for the future’.

St Benedict’s aims to provide a fully inclusive mainstream learning environment that reflects the principles of the Disability Discrimination Act (1992) and the Disability Standards for Education (2005). All students are included in the activities of the school community and given opportunities and responsibilities that recognise their value to the community and provide positive learning and social experiences. Our commitment to the practices of purposeful inclusion reflects the Gospel values of respect, equality and social justice. Within a Christian framework, we provide a learning environment that is supportive and responsive to individual needs and differences and that recognises and celebrates the individual student’s abilities and strengths.

We aim to do this by:

• helping all students reach their full potential, academically, socially and emotionally
• identifying individual strengths and needs
• providing appropriate interventions where necessary
• fostering the growth of student confidence and independence in learning and
• working collaboratively with parents and other specialists for the benefit of each student.

Implementation

Learning needs are catered for within classrooms through curriculum differentiation, identified in teacher programs. Adjustments are implemented by the class teacher and where applicable, the Learning Support Teacher (LST) and where applicable, supported by the Learning Support Assistant (LSA).

Learning provision for students with disabilities is monitored through the implementation of Personalised Plans. Regular meetings with teachers, LST, parents, medical practitioners and outside agencies assist in monitoring student progress and making adjustments where necessary.

Teachers are released to attend professional development targeting areas of special education relevant to students with whom they are working.

Individual students may work through targeted programs focusing on literacy and numeracy skills where their progress is monitored by pre, mid and post-testing.

The Learning Support Teacher is supported by the Catholic Schools Office Student Support Unit Education Officers – Speech Pathologists, Behaviour Support, Learning Difficulties and Developmental Difficulties.