SEND charity launches online training resources
Tuesday, July 18, 2017
Special educational needs charity nasen has launched its first early years training webcasts.
The first two webcasts are now available online offering information for early years practitioners to help them identify and support children with SEND.
The subjects of the webcasts are ‘What are Special Educational Needs and Disabilities?’ and ‘Key documents to support children with SEND’.
The five-minute programmes include ‘reflection points’ where viewers are asked to pause the video and think about topics raised and engage in feedback and discussion.
Each webcast is accompanied by a supporting document, containing a transcript of the webcast, short activities and references to other relevant sources.
Staff can complete the activities individually or as part of a group, and the webcasts can be used as standalone resources or as a whole series.
The charity’s early years page provides information for leaders on how to use the resources as well as inviting them to share case studies and best practice.
The webcasts will form part of a series of seven, which will focus on topics including:
- the role of the key person in relation to children with SEND
- the role of the SENCO in supporting children with SEND
- early identification of children’s needs
- the four broad areas of need
- working with children, parents, families and carers.
Nasen (National Association for Special Educational Needs) secured £315,000 of DfE funding for its SEND training and resources project earlier this year, with the aim of improving outcomes for more than 50,000 children in early years provision across the country. Nursery World is media partner for the project.
In addition to the webcasts, the project will feature four mini guides available from September, and materials for use in face-to-face training available from January 2018.
The resources will act as a companion to nasen’s existing Focus on SEND training, a nine-hour course of six modules which consist of online content and practical exercises.
Nasen’s education development officer Alex Grady said, ‘This first set of seven webcasts will really provide the nuts and bolts and essential information specific to early years practitioners. We hope that everything they need to know will be covered here, with some interaction built in in the form of moments to pause and reflect, and “think points” where questions are asked.
‘We also have two more series of webcasts coming later this year and at the start of 2018, which will look in more detail at practice and how best to meet children’s needs.’
