{"id":11112,"date":"2024-06-16T09:06:28","date_gmt":"2024-06-16T09:06:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/?p=11112"},"modified":"2024-06-16T09:11:46","modified_gmt":"2024-06-16T09:11:46","slug":"new-international-school-essentials-11-does-the-school-provide-or-have-access-to-qualified-teachers-who-cater-to-students-with-special-needs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/new-international-school-essentials-11-does-the-school-provide-or-have-access-to-qualified-teachers-who-cater-to-students-with-special-needs\/","title":{"rendered":"New International School Essentials #11 \u2013 Does the School Have Qualified Special Needs Teachers?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What reasons do parents think about when selecting a school for their children when they move abroad? Are there similar reasons why teachers choose to work at an international school abroad as well?\u00a0 There are many different kinds of international schools and they are all in different situations.\u00a0 How important is finding out about how well the international school deals with disciplinary problems?\u00a0 It could be beneficial to ask these types of questions at your interview before you make any big decisions to move or choose an international school at which to work.\u00a0 So, how do you choose the right international school for your children to attend or for you to work at?\u00a0 In this blog series, we will discuss the\u00a0Tips for Selecting an International School<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Image by HANSUAN FABREGAS<\/a> from Pixabay<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Tip #11 \u2013\u00a0Does the school provide or have access to qualified teachers who cater to students with special needs?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As parents and educators consider international living, school websites can answer many general questions.\u00a0 However, some parents have specific questions about the needs of their children.\u00a0 Likewise, teachers and administrators who seek international employment also want to know what services are available at schools and how their skills align with the school\u2019s programs and services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A growing concern in schools is the question of addressing the special needs of students.\u00a0 Today that question can have a broad spectrum—- physical, academic, emotional, medical, and psychological.\u00a0 Schools today have had to expand their programs and providers to serve all children adequately.\u00a0 Internationally, does this protocol of serving all students present similar challenges, and are different parts of the world answering the challenge the same or differently?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I invited various international educators to respond to this topic and share an international snapshot of this question.\u00a0 The results of my limited inquiry provided some common results: 1) the need for schools to provide for special needs students is prevalent; 2) many countries have a legal mandate of how this will be done; 3) what is written is difficult to attain; 4) special needs are scarce teachers; 5) some areas can better address the issues than others due to monetary resources and location.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, where does that leave a family who is searching for an appropriate place for their special needs child?  The answer I believe is that the parent will have to be the advocate for their child and do in-depth questioning, examining websites, visiting schools, and connecting with the right people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In England, it is required that all schools (public and state) have a SENCO (Special Needs Coordinator) who is a teacher responsible for pupils with SEN needs and for ensuring that their needs are being met.\u00a0 Also, all inspection reports must comment on the effectiveness of SEND and provision for English as an Additional Language students and how the school is meeting those needs.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Image by GrumpyBeere<\/a> from Pixabay<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Responses I received from India varied depending on location.\u00a0 While Boards talk about serving these students, the reality is colored by 1) the scarcity of special education teachers especially in small cities and 2) mainstream teachers not being trained in serving special needs. \u00a0Part-time tutors are hired and shared when available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From a different location in India, an international school educator indicated that there is generally a Head of Special Needs appointed in all schools as every child has a Right to Education as per the Government RTE Act.\u00a0 Under this head, there can be a few junior teachers who are trained to handle children with Special Needs up to a certain level.\u00a0 If the case is very severe and requires one-on-one care, there are special schools that have specially trained staff and facilities including lifts, special bathrooms to accommodate wheelchairs, etc.\u00a0 In cases of autism, dyslexia, and attention deficit, those children are identified and served on a one-on-one basis with the Special Needs Department in concert with the Classroom Teacher, Subject Teachers, School Counselor, Parents, and student peers.\u00a0 These students are closely monitored for improvement, and many times when they attend regular classrooms, a special needs assistant is alongside the student to clarify the lesson and ensure there is no interruption in the classroom.\u00a0 This responder concluded by saying that in his area of India, the Special Needs Department works hard to ensure these children grow up as normal kids who can have a happy schooling experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A third international school educator from India added that there are some special schools in urban and rural areas, noting that training centers have recently appeared to train teachers for special needs schools.\u00a0 Also, he sees in-service training starting to be offered.\u00a0 His summary statement on current conditions—-\u201cThere is a ray of hope: politicians, social activists, and educators are becoming more aware of the issues of special needs children and it is widely discussed and debated almost everywhere.\u201d\u00a0 From these discussions, \u201cwe can hope that all these moves will give a better platform for students with special needs in the coming days.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moving on to Shanghai where two international school educators shared their insight\u2026..\u00a0 One summarized that in his small school, there is no special needs program and that he did not know of any mainstream international school in Shanghai that has a robust program.\u00a0 However, that could be changing.\u00a0 He then connected me to an amazing couple who shared their personal experience. \u00a0They are both educators in Shanghai and they were seeking an appropriate program for their son with profound autism.\u00a0 When they struggled to find what they felt their son needed, Lori and Mike Boll last year started a small, inclusive school for all children called Shine Academy.\u00a0 It serves 20+ students that range in age from 3-18.\u00a0 Some have disabilities, some do not.\u00a0 By forming this inclusive program, they saw it as a way to bring services to their son and the greater community.\u00a0 See their story at www.shineacademy.asia.\u00a0 For families seeking support and teachers who are building an understanding of how to serve autistic children, the Bolls have additional resources at www.autismpodcast.org<\/a>.\u00a0 The Bolls are just one example of what one responder called the \u201cgeneral nature of international teachers—they just find a way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In conclusion, the special needs education picture is the same and different across the world.\u00a0 With a spirit of justice, parents, educators, and communities can make a difference by working collaboratively to improve the accessibility of quality education for all children.\u00a0 In unity, the possibilities can become realities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article was submitted by guest author and International School Community<\/a> member: Mary Anne Hipp<\/a> (contact her here – mahipp@suddenlink.net<\/a> or visit her Blogspot – http:\/\/mahipp.blogspot.com\/<\/a>)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Have a specific international school in mind that you thinking of applying to? Check out our “Where our Members have worked<\/a>” page and start contacting some of our members who know about the international school you are interested in knowing more about. Our\u00a028000+ members<\/a>\u00a0currently work at (or have worked at in the past) 1200+ different international schools.\u00a0 Feel free to send them a private message related to finding out more about their Special Needs programming at their international school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, 143 members have specifically stated on their member profile that they currently hold the position of Special Education Teacher. \u00a0Check out which positions our members hold here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What reasons do parents think about when selecting a school for their children when they move abroad? Are there similar reasons why teachers choose to work at an international school abroad as well?\u00a0 There are many different kinds of international schools and they are all in different situations.\u00a0 How important is finding out about how […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11114,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1319],"tags":[29,43,1355,185,186,1315,32,1736,1737,1734,1735],"class_list":["post-11112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-12-tips-for-selecting-an-intl-school","tag-international-school","tag-international-school-educators","tag-international-school-location","tag-international-school-parents","tag-international-school-teacher","tag-international-school-teachers-with-dependents","tag-international-schools","tag-resource-program","tag-sen","tag-special-education","tag-special-needs"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/integration-5192458_1280.jpg?fit=1280%2C905&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2flVT-2Te","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2242,"url":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/selecting-international-school-tip-12\/","url_meta":{"origin":11112,"position":0},"title":"Selecting an international school: Tip #12 \u2013 Is the school parent-friendly?","author":"ISCommunity","date":"October 20, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"What reasons do parents think about when selecting a school for their children when they move abroad? Are they similar reasons for why teachers choose to work at an international school abroad as well?\u00a0 There are many different kinds of international schools and they are all in different situations.\u00a0 How\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School"","block_context":{"text":"12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School","link":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/category\/12-tips-for-selecting-an-intl-school\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/parent-child-2247485_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/parent-child-2247485_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/parent-child-2247485_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/parent-child-2247485_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/parent-child-2247485_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9624,"url":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/selecting-an-international-school-tip-6-how-well-is-the-school-linked-to-other-international-schools-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":11112,"position":1},"title":"Selecting an international school: Tip #6 \u2013 How well is the school linked to other international schools?","author":"ISCommunity","date":"October 16, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"What reasons do parents think about when selecting a school for their children when they move abroad? Are there similar reasons why teachers choose to work at a school abroad as well?\u00a0 There are many different kinds of international schools and they are all in different situations.\u00a0 How important is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School"","block_context":{"text":"12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School","link":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/category\/12-tips-for-selecting-an-intl-school\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/hamburg-285918_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C693&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/hamburg-285918_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C693&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/hamburg-285918_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C693&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/hamburg-285918_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C693&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/hamburg-285918_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C693&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8958,"url":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/selecting-an-international-school-tip-3-is-the-school-vision-consistent\/","url_meta":{"origin":11112,"position":2},"title":"Selecting an International School: Tip #3: Is the School Vision Consistent?","author":"ISCommunity","date":"November 27, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"What reasons do parents think about when selecting a school for their children when they move abroad? Are they similar reasons why teachers choose to work at a school abroad as well?\u00a0 Many international school teachers are in teaching couples that have children.\u00a0 There are also international school teachers that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School"","block_context":{"text":"12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School","link":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/category\/12-tips-for-selecting-an-intl-school\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/vision-g2c98b3a46_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/vision-g2c98b3a46_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/vision-g2c98b3a46_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/vision-g2c98b3a46_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/vision-g2c98b3a46_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9745,"url":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/selecting-an-international-school-tip-8-are-the-teachers-fully-qualified\/","url_meta":{"origin":11112,"position":3},"title":"New International School Essentials #8 – Check If Teachers Are Qualified","author":"ISCommunity","date":"January 15, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"What reasons do parents think about when selecting a school for their children when they move abroad? Are there similar reasons why teachers choose to work at a school abroad as well?\u00a0 There are many different kinds of international schools and they are all in different situations.\u00a0 How important is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School"","block_context":{"text":"12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School","link":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/category\/12-tips-for-selecting-an-intl-school\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/teacher-3765909_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/teacher-3765909_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/teacher-3765909_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/teacher-3765909_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/teacher-3765909_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8886,"url":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/selecting-an-international-school-tip-1-local-vs-international-school-systems\/","url_meta":{"origin":11112,"position":4},"title":"Selecting an International School Tip #1: Local vs. International School Systems","author":"ISCommunity","date":"September 25, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"What reasons do parents think about when selecting a school for their children when they move abroad? Are they similar reasons why teachers choose to work at a school abroad as well?\u00a0 Many international school teachers are in teaching couples that have children.\u00a0 There are also international school teachers that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School"","block_context":{"text":"12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School","link":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/category\/12-tips-for-selecting-an-intl-school\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/high-school-gc67acbf97_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/high-school-gc67acbf97_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/high-school-gc67acbf97_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/high-school-gc67acbf97_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/high-school-gc67acbf97_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8923,"url":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/selecting-an-international-school-tip-2-is-the-school-conveniently-located\/","url_meta":{"origin":11112,"position":5},"title":"Selecting an International School Tip #2: Is the School Conveniently Located?","author":"ISCommunity","date":"October 30, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"What reasons do parents think about when selecting a school for their children when they move abroad? Are they similar reasons why teachers choose to work at a school abroad as well?\u00a0 Many international school teachers are in teaching couples that have children.\u00a0 There are also international school teachers that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School"","block_context":{"text":"12 Tips for Selecting an Int'l School","link":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/category\/12-tips-for-selecting-an-intl-school\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Screen-Shot-2022-10-30-at-11.11.38-1.png?fit=1162%2C1026&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Screen-Shot-2022-10-30-at-11.11.38-1.png?fit=1162%2C1026&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Screen-Shot-2022-10-30-at-11.11.38-1.png?fit=1162%2C1026&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Screen-Shot-2022-10-30-at-11.11.38-1.png?fit=1162%2C1026&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Screen-Shot-2022-10-30-at-11.11.38-1.png?fit=1162%2C1026&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11112","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11112"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11112\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11114"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11112"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11112"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/internationalschoolcommunity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}