St. Lawrence College recognises that all children have a right to learn, whatever their abilities and whatever the unique challenges they face to progression in their learning. Wherever possible the school provides differentiated lessons that attempt to address the specific needs of the children being taught, irrespective of their age and grade.
Children with diagnosed special educational needs receive support in the Resource Rooms of the junior and senior school sections of St. Lawrence College. This involves, following consultation with parents, senior management and specialised staff, allowing children to leave their class lesson in the junior school, or specific subject lessons in the senior school, to receive one-to-one specialist support from a designated and qualified teacher of special needs. Every child identified as having special educational needs has an IEP (Individual Education Plan) prepared which enables a unique set of objectives and a set of suggested methods that teachers should adopt to help that pupil attain their objectives. The IEP includes evaluation strategies that allow the IEP and its contents to be assessed and adjusted in order to maximise the gains to be achieved. Ideally, the IEP is constructed through a joint effort involving SEN staff, senior school management and subject or class teachers as appropriate, along with parental input as well.
Sometimes children exhibit characteristics that the experience of teachers within the junior and senior sections of the school believe may be indicative of diagnosable conditions. Naturally this is an extremely sensitive issue and teachers who are concerned by what they observe in a child’s behaviour and progress will always act in accordance with the procedure set out to them by the school. This involves communicating their concerns formally to special needs staff and the senior management of the junior or senior school, as appropriate. It will then be incumbent on the Headmistress of the junior school or the Head of the school (in the case of a senior school pupil) to contact parents, and discuss concerns raised by teachers. This may lead to the testing of the pupil by an educational psychologist in order to identify whether there is a condition present.
High achieving pupils are also recognised as having special educational needs. These children deserve to be challenged in their learning as much as any other child and teachers should differentiate their lessons accordingly in order to keep these children meaningfully occupied and consistently motivated.
Children with severe or profound learning difficulties may be advised that St. Lawrence College cannot accommodate their needs to an appropriate degree. Such children would benefit from more dedicated specialist support than our school can currently offer. At best, St. Lawrence College can achieve progress with children possessing mild to medium learning difficulties and it would be incorrect of the school to suggest to parents otherwise.