Learning Support & EAL
Many families choose Read School because of our firm commitment to helping all the children in our care to fulfil their potential.
We believe that well targeted support can go a long way towards meeting this wide-ranging objective. Each child is respected and valued as important in the school, and for the contribution they can make now, and in the future, within the wider community. Our pupils have a wide range of abilities and skills; we aim to develop the particular gifts they possess, whilst providing a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum to aid them in their future career and life.
The Inclusive Learning Department (ILD) exists to enable all children in the school to achieve their best. We understand that many children require extra input for a wide variety of reasons; often for a short period of time to deal with specific issues, and sometimes for an extended period to help children access the wider curriculum successfully.
Pupils we support include those with:
- developmental delay
- specific learning difficulties (e.g. dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, autism & Asperger’s Syndrome)
- general learning difficulties
- communication problems
- emotional and social difficulties
- speech and language difficulties
- physical disabilities
- gifted and talented requirements
- sensory, physical or medical conditions
- Educational & Health Care Plans, identifying special needs
- gaps in knowledge for various reasons
Our inclusive school educates pupils with extra needs alongside their peers within the curriculum, wherever possible. We do recognise, however, that some specialist provision outside the classroom will raise self-esteem, help our children succeed in the classroom, and improve results in their final examinations.
The following support is put in place after due process according to need and agreement:
- classroom support to increase curriculum access and pupil achievement
- differentiated work according to need
- small group tuition to raise attainment in any area required
- individual tuition to raise attainment in important areas
- counselling as part of our pastoral responsibilities
In order to provide timely support, pupils are screened at appropriate intervals, and additional needs are identified as promptly and thoroughly as is possible. Specific professionals and agencies are used as appropriate, to provide the best possible support for our children. We use provision mapping to provide all pupils on the ILD register with relevant support, to maximise access to the school curriculum, and we provide individual action plans for pupils in need of more intensive help.
We believe successful education and pastoral care is dependent on active and positive dialogue between parents, pupils and teachers. We are happy to discuss any educational or pastoral issue in partnership with parents or guardians and welcome the opportunity to talk to prospective parents about what our school can offer your child.
EAL (English as an Additional Language)
We currently have several pupils working towards GCSE and A-level qualifications in their ‘additional language’, which is English. Some pupils join us quite young however the majority of pupils join later, in Years 9 or 10, and several go straight into Sixth Form.
In recent years we have welcomed pupils from Hong Kong, mainland China, Vietnam, Germany, Thailand, Macau, Japan, Malaysia, Korea, Ukraine, Spain, Portugal and Russia. The EAL (English as an Additional Language) Department supports our overseas pupils by providing lessons in the English Language and support in other subjects. Younger pupils adapt very well and have extra EAL lessons wherever possible.
Year 10 EAL pupils are entered for the PET (Preliminary English Test) Cambridge examination, and Year 11 pupils work towards the Cambridge First Certificate exam. Both these examinations test pupils’ speaking, listening, reading and writing skills. Upper Sixth Form students generally take the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) Test, which is needed for entrance not only into British universities, but also into overseas universities.
The EAL department offers support socially as well as academically. Outings are arranged, the highlight of which is a meal at a local restaurant to celebrate the Chinese New Year! Every overseas pupil, and their culture, is welcomed and the added dimension this brings to the life of the school is highly valued and appreciated.