Learning Support Teachers Network
Network members are Learning Support, Resource and Special Education Teachers in Primary Schools in South and West Offaly. The Network meets five times during the school year in West Offaly Partnership's training/meeting rooms, Crank House, Banagher and is facilitated by community development worker Declan Costello.
Network
meetings objectives are to:
- Access the partnership’s Learning Support Resource Library;
- Support each other with issues/challenges;
- Identify members training and development needs and provide responses.
Learning
Support Teachers Network’s achievements to date include:
- The compilation of the Learning Support Resource Library with almost
700 reading/maths books, testing and some IT resources. These resources
are borrowed by teachers to aid the contact work with their students;
- Providing a forum to discuss issues/challenges that individual members may encounter and explore possible outcomes. This has helped to counteract the feeling of isolation sometimes felt by members;
- Identifying
and hosting the following training courses in conjunction with Laois Education
Centre:
xxx - ‘Responding Effectively to the
Needs of Pupils with AD/HD’ with Anita Prunty
xxx- ‘Differentiating the Curriculum
for students with Special Education Needs’ with Tutor Aine O’Neill
xxx- Summer Course 03/07/06 – 07/070/06
in Crank House -
‘Identification and Remediation of Speech and Language Difficulties
within a School Setting’ with Lily Lawlor and Triona Corry.
- Hosted
Summer Course 01/07/08 – 05/07/08 in conjunction with Athlone Education
Centre. The course addressed whole school approaches to meetings of pupils
with special education needs.
The Network have availed of presentations and talks that have included:
- Dept. of Education & Science Regional Office’s role by Seamus
Murray;
- Special Education Needs Organisers (SENO) roles with Mary Grogan and
Pauric Moran;
- Displays and presentations from software and resource suppliers.
For
further information contact:
Declan Costello
West Offaly Partnership,
Crank House,
Banagher.
Tel: (057) 9151622
Email: dcostello@westoffalypartnership.ie
