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SpecialneedsIT at the NASEN and TES special needs exhibition
With SpecialneedsIT and the How-IT-Works seminars, plus all the extra benefits of the NASEN and TES Special Needs Exhibition, Nasen Seminars, the Book Awards and the prestigious Business Design Centre, this was always set to be an exciting event. And there were many new resources and lots of opportunities for teachers to develop their skills and get involved in professional development opportunities.
The new Special
Needs ICT Training Directory could be collected from the Inclusive Technology and CENMAC stands. This is a
new resource to help special needs educators and therapists support their
learners. The Directory includes a wide range of training, information days and
exhibitions from a range of providers. It also includes details of how
educators can access training by the Inclusive Consultancy and Training
Syndicate that took place under NOF.
NOF training had a considerable impact in the special needs sector and the ICTS programme reached thousands of those working with pupils with severe and complex special needs in special schools throughout the UK. It was highly rated by the participants, the schools and by the Teacher Training Agency. The training represents the combined experience of the ACE Centre; ACE North; the Advisory Unit; the CALL Centre, Edinburgh University; CENMAC; the Down's Syndrome Association; Inclusive Technology; Janet Larcher Associates and the RNIB. Now, anyone who missed it can enjoy the same benefits.
During the How-IT-Works seminars, Bob Black introduced a new support pack from the Down's Syndrome Association. It is designed to help schools and support services successfully include children with special needs in mainstream classrooms. Attendees at the seminar were first to obtain a copy of the 120-page ringbound resource, written by a consortium of leading professionals including Stephanie Lorenz, Sandy Alton, Jane Beadman and Cecilia McKinnon.
Cambridge Training and Development (CTAD) is a leading developer of literacy and numeracy resources for adult learners. They also provide professional development products and services for basic skills tutors. Their Basic Skills On Line provides guidance for those using ICT to teach basic skills and additional backup through an online community. The CD Rom has 11 learning modules, which include an overview of basic skills and ICT, teaching the skills and evaluation and further development. Each module contains slideshows, videos, animations, graphics, web links, advice on using resources and activities that generate evidence for teaching qualifications.
For teachers who need information and advice on meeting the needs of children with special educational needs, the Inclusion website from Becta is a must. It offers easy access online to news and a wide-ranging catalogue of resources. Teachers can also ask other teachers about classroom practice or pose questions to the experts on specific hot topics. The Inclusion site can be found at: http://inclusion.ngfl.gov.uk.
Plus! New resources for teachers
Here is a round-up of new resources for special educators from around the show…
On display for the first time in the UK were Lexia Basic Reading and Lexia Advanced Reading. Based on the latest research and developed from the original Lexia Reading System, they form an interactive reading skills development programme. Lexia's software is designed to supplement existing reading programs to provide example and practice, and to do so in a way that the student enjoys.
HTI (Heads, Teachers and Industry) is an independent educational charity working with education, business and government to enhance leadership and management in schools. They demonstrated a DfES-sponsored software package that allows students to develop social and emotional skills in a safe environment prior to leaving school, to help prepare them for the world of work.
Helping teachers through the daily tangle of red tape is EPAR Software. They demonstrated their school management packages, which were launched nationally this year. This software can create and store IEPs; Annual Reports and Statements of Review; track behaviour; record restrained incidents in the Team Teach format; store test results; create easy-to-use lesson plans; plan school trips and visits, and track pupil development - all the features that senior management and staff ask for. It also produces instant statistics that would take hours to create manually. Separate versions are available for mainstream schools and schools with a large proportion of pupils with MLD, SLD or EBD.
Topologika has released the best-selling early language pack Speaking for Myself for Mac. Developed in co-operation with the Down's Syndrome Association and the Down Syndrome Educational Trust, Speaking for Myself helps to develop speaking and listening skills. It uses on-screen and printable resources and includes Rebus symbols and Makaton signing videos.
Crick Software showed Daisy, a new series of Clicker resources following the adventures of Daisy and her pet dinosaur, Thingummysaurus. The stories are provided both on-screen and in print and there is an extensive range of word, sentence and text level activities on each CD, tied to key literacy targets.
New from Inclusive Technology was SwitchIt! Christmas, with 12 festive stories, 12 seasonal pictures to build and numerous computer 'flash cards,' all on the theme of Christmas and the New Year. The charming Choose and Tell: Nursery Rhymes was also on display. This allows learners to choose a character from a popular nursery rhyme and decide what happens next. They can take Baa Baa Black Sheep off to the beach on a space rocket, or Humpty Dumpty can visit the castle on his green boat! This is a great way to get children using their imagination and taking control of the story by making decisions.
Sherston Skill Builders are brand new basic skills resources, designed to enable pupils to practise and consolidate simple skills through repetition. Any pupil who needs to concentrate for short periods on a specific skill such as recognising colours, listening carefully, word-picture association or developing visual memory, whether in mainstream or special education, will benefit from short periods of time spent on these titles.