"SEND school reports are reportedly harder to read than Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time. From my experience, staff often claim expertise, giving hope for the children I support—until real questions reveal it’s all buzzwords with little depth. 🧵 #SEND schoolsweek.co.uk/school-send-... - ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

icarszoey.bsky.social • 81 days ago

"SEND school reports are reportedly harder to read than Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time. From my experience, staff often claim expertise, giving hope for the children I support—until real questions reveal it’s all buzzwords with little depth. 🧵 #SEND https://schoolsweek.co.uk/school-send-reports-harder-to-read-than-stephen-hawking-book/"

Comments

ot-expert.bsky.social•81 days ago

I agree, I've found that to be the case most of the time too

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

Please do not get me started on the OT questions they could not answer. Shambolic!

ot-expert.bsky.social•81 days ago

I believe you 😔

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

When Courtney from the ICARS team (an advocate appointed by three state governors as well as federally) joined me a meeting, the lack of knowledge was so appalling she had to stop the school, saying: ‘Stop, stop, please—I think I’m going to have a stroke.’ It was truly shocking. #SEND

ot-expert.bsky.social•81 days ago

It sounds awful, and I'm sure not that uncommon, unfortunately

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

I can’t imagine how hard it must be to be a dedicated educator, striving to improve children’s lives, yet lacking the training and support needed to succeed. Then, having to face frustrated parents fighting for the best for their child—it’s a system failing everyone.

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

@icarsbecky.bsky.social will remember this!

icarsbecky.bsky.social•81 days ago

Yes I absolutely do, I wish I could say that it was unbelievable!

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

In basic terms the language means the school ensures all students get high-quality teaching, with extra support for those who need it through targeted programs. Staff meet annually to review and plan strategies, ensuring resources are used effectively to support every student.

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

Provision Management Approach: This refers to a systematic way of planning, tracking, and evaluating the support provided to students with additional needs. It ensures that resources (staff, time, materials) are used effectively to meet student needs and that progress is monitored.

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

Annual Dialogue Across the School:This suggests that staff (teachers, support staff, & possibly leaders) engage in discussions at least once a year to assess and plan for the needs of students.This may involve reviewing what strategies are working, what needs improvement, how resources are allocated

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

Additional Interventions: These are specific, targeted support strategies or programs designed to help students who need extra assistance beyond what is provided in regular classroom teaching. These could include small-group work, one-on-one tutoring, or specialized programs.

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

High-Quality First Teaching: This refers to the practice of ensuring that the initial teaching provided to all students in the classroom is of high quality. It means meeting the diverse needs of all learners through differentiated instruction, effective planning, and inclusive practices.

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

The article references “High quality first teaching and additional interventions are defined through our annual dialogue across the school contributing to our provision management approach." and that this is not easily understood so let me try and break this down for those interested.

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

This wasn’t an isolated experience. Buzzwords like ‘nurture,’ ‘relational,’ and ‘trauma-informed’ are thrown around without real understanding or implementation. Families deserve transparency, expertise, and real action—not empty phrases. Schools in England must do better. #SEND

yeshes.online•81 days ago

@stimpunks.org has a whole set of information that could be helpful here: https://stimpunks.org/pathways/education/

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

Thank you, yes I am familiar with Stimpunks great work ❤️

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

I requested more information—a breakdown of their approach, documentation, or even an explanation of their methods. Nothing was ever provided. The so-called ‘expert’ stopped attending meetings, as it was clear that had no clue what was being asked of her, nor did she have answers. #SEND

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

🧵When I asked what ‘nurture-based’ actually involved and what program they were following, I was met with silence. Then they pivoted again: ‘It’s a relational approach.’ Great, I thought—so I asked what that consisted of. Once again, no clear answer. #SEND

lizzybeesoraya.bsky.social•81 days ago

So glad this isn't just me! The school my son went to introduced "nurture" but nobody could explain to me what it was. All they could tell me is my son could no longer have ELSA because they had "nurture" instead. 🤦

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

It’s outrageous—while I don’t expect educators to have practitioner-level training, I did expect at least the most basic, informed responses. #SEND

lizzybeesoraya.bsky.social•81 days ago

If they can't describe it, I can't see how they can be putting it into effect.

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

The reality is many great teachers are being put through courses that fail to give them the answers they need. As a result, both the teachers and the children they support are being let down.

strangepaige.bsky.social•81 days ago

As one of those (former) teachers, I can confirm the trainings are great but without the follow-up, implementation with fidelity, and support from admin and other staff, it’s essentially useless. I would return from TIS training so excited to implement and immediately hit a wall of some kind. 💔

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

I then asked about the child's ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) and how they were addressing the specific types of trauma the child had experienced. The response suddenly shifted: ‘Oh, we’re not trauma-informed; we’re nurture-based.’ Right, so I asked what did that actually mean? #SEND

icarszoey.bsky.social•81 days ago

🧵Here’s an example: I was discussing a school’s ‘nurture room.’ When I asked what model they were using, I was told the staff member was trauma-informed qualified. This sounded promising, as I’ve also completed training for trauma-informed practitioners. #SEND