Planning, Assessment, and Learning - Essay Example

?Planning, Assessment and Learning Introduction Teaching special children is starting to become a more challenging task as time passes. It is now greatly dependent on the ability of the teachers to provide quality education to the children. The role of the teacher is not confined to the provision of knowledge to the child with special needs but also to stimulate, direct and promote the child to seek knowledge by himself (Rosy 2009). The paper focuses on the development of a medium term unit of work of about four to six weeks for a group of pupils with SEN in Key Stage 3. The curriculum is based on P3 to P6 levels for assessing the progress made. The paper will discuss the effectiveness of the planning, teaching and evaluation as well as the need for assessment of the learning in the context of a learning plan for special children. The choices for different learning approaches are justified by drawing from various learning theories. The Ideals of Special Education Every child has his or her own potential. High standard education for special children is one where the individual potential of the child is recognized and promoted. The philosophy of teaching should focus on a learner centric approach, with the child taught through different ways to encourage learning. Ideal learning and teaching requires that the child is the centre of the learning experience and all learning activities are planned and organized taking into consideration the specific learning needs of the child. The child has a range of activities to choose from, carried out under the supervision of the teacher to facilitate and enhance learning. According to Vygotsky, learning is arbitrated or facilitated by teachers in the environment that pupils find themselves in and that a major proportion of the facilitation is brought about by communication via language (Woolfolk 2006). Education should focus on the integration of the experiences of the child with their mental maturation. This is exemplified by the constructivism approach presented by Piaget. Piaget contended that the “interaction between biological maturation and experience” is the underlying mechanism for the progression of the child along the different stages of cognitive development (Sigelman & Rider 2008). The current learning theories, no matter what they emphasize on, have a central element common to them all- all theories encompass “participation in relationship and community transformation both of the person and of the social world” (Office of Learning and Teaching 2005). These activities are instrumental in encouraging learning through different learning styles; thus, children can maximize their learning by following the learning style that suits them the most. Encouraging pupils to discover and use their learning styles is a successful approach to learning. Kolb’s learning cycle also highlights the same phenomenon. He suggested four levels of learning which constitute the learning cycle: concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization and active experimentation (Smale & Fowlie 2009). Kolb asserted that learning can occur at any one of these levels. Honey and Mumford furthered upon this learning model and suggested learning styles that corresponded to each level. They suggested that activists are those who learn from concrete experience, reflectors from reflective observation, theorists from abstract conceptualization and pragmatists from active experimentation (Smale & Fowlie 2009). This follows that people have their own unique styles of learning and learning can be acquired through the effective use of any of these styles. According to Every Child Matters, a prime priority in learning these days is personalized learning and evaluates the value being given to education in schools and provision of more specialist services for children with special needs (Teacher Training Resource Bank 2011). Key Stage 3 and P levels Typically, Key Stage is a legal terminology used to describe the pupils in Year 7, 8 and 9, corresponding to 11 to 14 years of age. The term is employed for ascribing the group of individuals who are required to study at least 15 subjects as set forth by the National Curriculum. Generally there are specific subject strands that the individuals are taught. These include language and literacy (English and Media Education for instance), mathematics and numeracy (including Final Capability and Mathematics), modern languages, science and technology, arts, environment and society etc. Devising a learning plan for special children in ks3, a review of the necessary learning theories is resourceful in establishing the effectiveness of the plan. The P scales are used as a tool for description of the accomplishments of pupils with SEN. They tell about the knowledge, skills and comprehension abilities of the pupils with special needs. Level P3 to P6 are more specific than the initial three levels, and compromise of increasing difficulty of attainment targets. Planning and Teaching for SEN When devising learning activities for special children, the curriculum should focus on the provision of pertinent and challenging learning to all the children, encouraging their thought process. The program should set out suitable objectives to be achieved, which not only take into consideration and respond adequately to the learning needs of the children but also remove any impediments in the way of their learning and assessment. Maslow’s hierarchal structure of needs implies that nature and quality of learning of the students is dependent on the nature and quality of the needs which the teachers are able to satisfy (Mangal 2007). Therefore, it is essential when planning the curriculum and teaching that the needs of the students are addressed. Learning of the children should encompass the aspects that they have performed better in the previous key stages. This means that the individual potential of the child is polished. The knowledge, skills and understanding the teachers provide are best suited to the learning needs of the children, with greater differentiation for children who are performing below their expected standards. The converse may be relevant for children who exceed their required levels of learning; in such cases, more challenging tasks are created by introducing activities from later stages and incrementing the depth of the activities provided in the current stage (National Curriculum 2011). When planning the curriculum, the educationist should take into consideration certain essentials that should be inculcated in the teaching. One element is that the curriculum should cater to the diverse educational needs of the pupils, based on the differences in their backgrounds, ethnicities and cultures. The environment should be conducive to learning, promoting the motivation and interest of the pupils and giving equal opportunities to them. In fact, social justice and equal opportunity is regarded as the credible knowledge-platform for special education (Florian 2007). Due to the diverse needs with which pupils may present, with some having disabilities, teachers needs to approach teaching in a way that responds specifically to the educational needs of the child. Differentiation of tasks is recommended if the pupil is facing difficulties in comprehending the situation (National Curriculum 2011). There should be a focus on information and computer technology. Pupils should be encouraged to use ICT tools to refine their work quality and to build upon its accuracy. Key stage 3 learning also requires that pupils are taught not only to express themselves eloquently but also to read and write. Pupils should learn the pronunciations, spelling of words and grammar. They should learn to order their writings and use language clearly. They should be able to read and explain what they understand, be able to search for information, follow arguments and summarise them. Their vocabulary bank must be built up to include technical and specialist terms. Health and safety protocol should be taught to the students at KS3. Teaching should also encompass the spiritual, social and moral development of the students (National Curriculum 2011). Assessment Assessment forms the centre of an effective curriculum and is an integral constituent of good teaching. Not only does it allow learners to identify achievement but also acts as a means of feedback for the teachers, giving them knowledge about what areas need to be focused on. Teachers should take into account the fact that for an assessment to yield maximum benefits, it should be give the utmost priority to the learner. Assessment needs to test the pupil as a whole and should encompass reliable judgments of the progress of the pupils in the context of national standards. There are two main types of assessments: formative and summative. Formative assessment is crucial in providing an ongoing and cyclical feedback of the learning of the student over a given period of time and is therefore a resourceful tool for “planning and learning progression” (Spooner 2010); it may include diagnostic tests. On the other hand, summative assessments are effective means of acquiring a snapshot of the ability of a pupil to perform a certain task at a specified period of time. It tells the teacher whether the pupil is lagging or ahead his peers of similar age; examples of summative assessments include baseline or standardized tests (Spooner 2010). Over the past years, assessment in special education has been used in England for finding out the weaknesses of the pupils and the distribution of resources. The SEN Code of Practice has been such initiative supporting multi-disciplinary appraisal techniques for generating a learning profile of the pupil. The assessment strategies have been further developed by Every Child Matters and have been intended to enhance the relevance and credibility of the data taught. The Common Assessment Framework and the Multi Disciplinary Assessment have been used for formally identifying educational needs (Rayner 2007). One way of evaluating the curriculum and gain information regarding the learning of the students is by the Assessing Pupils’ Progress (APP) approach. The APP is instrumental in tracing the progress of the pupils as well as in identifying their strengths and weaknesses. APP materials can be used to evaluate progress in reading, writing, mathematics, science and ICT for KS3 students (National Curriculum 2011). Teaching assistants (TAs) can play an important role in the teaching of the students. Assessments can be a means for students to advance upon their learning, become more confident and to identify their weaknesses. The role of the TA is at the front line in such environments. By working in close association with the teachers, TAs can be a source of gaining feedback from pupils, facilitating discussion and maintaining the pace of learning (DFES 2005). In progression in assessment for learning, TAs can contribute towards the solutions of problems encountered. For instance, if students do not take part in peer and self assessment, the TA can undertake scaling and by employing progression tables, the TA can have an active role in the progression of the response of the student “from non-engagement to the characteristics of enhancing” (DFES 2005). The assessment cycle, as charted out by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority highlights seven steps that constitute the cycle (QCA 2009). The first step relates to the identification of priorities. The priorities in the case of assessing arts and design would be to understand how well the student has overcome the weaknesses he initially encountered at the start of the course. The second step requires that the starting point is recorded whereas the third step states that cogent objectives and goals should be drafted. These steps try to establish the intent of the assessment. Next step is the organization of the assessment and for arts and design this includes planning an assessment that tests the knowledge taught in the context of national standards. In arts and design, the student can be tested on his or her observational drawing, swagger portraits, digital collage etc. The last steps of the cycle help to establish the degree to which the teaching and learning aims are being met. Therefore, the fifth step requires that progress is reviewed through the assessment and the various areas in which the student either performs well or fails miserably are evaluated. The last step entails that the areas in which learning is maximized by maintained whereas changes are brought in the teaching in areas where the student does not perform well (QCA 2009). Maintaining and reinforcing those habits and learning of the students, which fare favorable outcomes, are a representation of Skinner’s operant learning theory. Skinner was of the view that repetition of actions which cause favorable results leads to the development of habits. Thus reinforcing behaviors which increase the probability of occurrence of effective learning can yield life-long benefits to the child (Shaffer & Kipp 2010). Conclusion The importance of planning, evaluation and teaching in the provision of special education cannot be overstated. Teaching, in particular, is an integral tool in the learning of the pupils. For devising a KS3 level plan, focus should be made on teaching of subjects in more depth and range. The performance of the students needs to be evaluated against national standards. Moreover, an assessment needs to be performed to ensure that children are maximizing their learning and teaching should be molded to put more emphasis on the weak areas of the student. References DFES 2005, Working together: teaching assistants and assessment for learning, Department for Education and Skills, retrieved 24 February 2011, Florian, L 2007, The SAGE handbook of special education, SAGE, London. Mangal, SK 2007, Essentials of educational psychology, PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi. National Curriculum 2011, The secondary curriculum, QCDA, retrieved 24 February 2011, Office of Learning and Teaching 2005, Current Perspectives on Assessment, Education Web Australia, QCA 2009, Developing whole-school assessment, QCDA, retrieved 24 February 2011, Rayner, S 2007, Managing Special and Inclusive Education, SAGE, London. 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