ELC Colleagues’ Perceived Needs for Information and

Support on Addressing the Needs of Students with

Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Karen Wong

Christy Wong

Today’s Outline

01

03

02

04

Survey Results

A Case Study &

Survival Tips

Types of SEN

Policies and

Guidelines

What do we think we need

to know about SEN?

- Survey Results

Survey Response Rate(28 January 2019 – 13 February 2019)

Week 3 Week 4CNY

Survey QuestionsAre you interested in getting some more information on managing students with

SEN in your day-to-day classroom teaching?01

What kind of information would you like to receive regarding SEN?02

Have you ever had any SEN or suspected SEN students in your classes during

your teaching here at ELC?03

Do you mind sharing briefly some challenges you encountered with SEN /

suspected SEN students, if any?04

What did you do to address / overcome the challenges mentioned in your

previous response?05

What are some other concerns you have on this topic?06

Survey Questions

Are you interested in getting some more information on managing students with

SEN in your day-to-day classroom teaching?01

YES!78%

Not Sure…22%

Survey QuestionsWhat kind of information would you like to receive regarding SEN?02

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

Fact about SEN

Support services on campus

Skills and strategies for managing SEN…

Have you ever had any SEN or suspected SEN students in your classes during

your teaching here at ELC?03

Yes68%

No9%

Not sure23%

Survey QuestionsDo you mind sharing briefly some challenges you encountered with SEN /

suspected SEN students, if any?04

- Unstable emotions

- Aggressive

- Depressed

- Suicidal

Emotions

- Erratic behaviours

- Autistic

- Communication difficulties

- Isolated and withdrawn

Behaviours

- Arrangement for assessment

- Timing

- Grouping

Assessments & Classwork

- Absence of advance notice

- Lack of university guidelines

Policies & Guidelines

- How to avoid labelling?

- How not to add on workload too much?

Teaching & Workload

Survey QuestionsWhat did you do to address / overcome the challenges mentioned in your previous response?05

- More face-to-face interaction

- Don’t rely on email communication

- Be patient and considerate

- Be careful when talking to them

- Ignore the behaviours

- Stay alert to problems arising

- Provide extra care and encouragement

- Reflected on my own teaching

- Be very clear about comments & instructions

- Seek advice from colleagues

Teaching in response to SEN’s

behaviours & emotions

- Liaise with the assessment team

- Work with subject leaders & departments

- Talk to SEN students and group members

Assessments & Classwork

- Follow university guidelines

Policies & Guidelines

Survey QuestionsWhat are some other concerns you have on this topic?06

- How to talk to SEN students?

- How to encourage them to work with SEN students?

Teacher

Students

Support

Classroom Management

- Training?

- How to handle severe cases?

- Center guidelines? University support services?

- How to improve the communication channels with other departments?

- Skills?

- How to offer help / encourage others to help without breaching SEN students’ privacy?

- Are we overthinking this?

- Are we creating a problem?

- Will I be blamed for their problems in health and studies?

What are the types of SEN

that may be more

challenging in classroom?

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)A

B

C

D

Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity

Disorder (ADHD)

Intellectual Disability

Special

Educational

Needs

(SEN)

EPhysical / Visual / Hearing /

Speech and Language Disabilities

Dyslexia

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)ACore identifiers

- Language

development deficits

- Social interaction

abnormalities

- Restricted repetitive

behaviours (RRBs)

• Language communication:

- speech is monotonous and repetitive

- slow development

• Social development:

- live in their own world

- weak in interpreting verbal messages and facial expressions

- do not consider things from other people’s perspective

• Behaviour adjustment:

- insist on following certain routines (e.g. taking the same seat)

- repetitive (e.g. lining up and counting objects)

Asperger syndrome (AS) - high-functioning ASD

Intellectual

disability

- 50% mild intellectual disability

- 50% moderate to severe intellectual disabilityIntelligence

At college with learning disabilities(Hong Kong Free Press, 1 April 2017)

Speaks fluent

English,

Mandarin,

Filipino,

French,

Indonesian, &

Japanese

Unable to control

the volume and

tone of her speech

Forces her

Interest on

others

Your Text Here

Queeniea final year student of business

at VTC Youth College

High-functioning

ASD

Finds it difficult

to make friends

and find group

mates for projects

BAttention Deficit / Hyperactivity

Disorder (ADHD)

• Inattention

- easily distracted / have trouble focusing in class

- fail to work in a systematic way

- often make careless mistakes

- appear to be daydreaming or tired

• Hyperactivity / Impulsivity

- show constant energy

- cannot remain seated in class

- keep fidgeting or fiddling with objects

- lack patience / have trouble taking turns

- blurt out answers before the questions are completed

- unable to follow through the instructions

Subtypes

• AD (inattentive type)

• HD (hyperactive-impulsive type)

• ADHD (combined type)

Bipolar

Disorder

Dysthymia/

Depression

Anxiety

Disorder

Personality

Disorders

5% - 20% -

(Katzman, Bilkey, Chokka, Fallu, & Klassen, 2017)

At college with learning disabilities(Hong Kong Free Press, 1 April 2017)

Constantly

plays with

smartphones

Keeps chatting

with friends

Often draws

pictures on

lecture notes

Wishes to have

more than one

break in a 3-hour

lecture

Your Text Here

Kerrya second year student

of social sciences (behavioural science)

at HKU Space Community College

ADHD

At college with learning disabilities(Hong Kong Free Press, 1 April 2017)

Often gets

moody and

depressed

Noisy environment

and sensory overload

usually trigger his

symptoms

Screams, throws

things, and hits

people impulsively

Your Text Here

Timothya second year student

of biomedical sciences

at HKU

High-functioning

ASD and ADHD

How can we make

everybody’s life easier

in classroom?

What’s next after

knowing all these?Context

What is Learning?

Facilitating Learning in a Classroom with SEN

CLEAR and EXPLICIT communication of requirements and expectations

Course structure

and

requirements

Number

of assessments

Expectations

and

requirements of

all assessmentsStructured context

Scenario

“Miss, have

you ever failed

anyone?”

Week 1

“I don’t know what you

are doing.”

Week 7 - Assessment

One (in-class writing)

“I just can’t do it… I am an

illiterate”

Week 10 - Assessment

Two (out-of-class writing)

“Nobody is willing to

work with me …”

Week 13 – Assessment

Three (pair

presentation)

Your Text Here

“Don’t ask me

questions…”

“I can’t

do it…”

“I am

hopeless…”

“Leave me

alone…”

Inattentive

Withdrawn

from the class

Dozing off

Drawing

pictures on

notes

What are the policy makers

doing about SEN students

In tertiary education?

- The HK Government

- The HK PolyU

- The ELC

Primary + Secondary Schools2.5 billion every year

- Cash grant

- Additional staff

- Teacher training

- Educational psychology services

No defined policy on integrated education

No sustainable resources

No clear guidelines

Absolute autonomy of the institutions

Universities

1061 SEN students(1.4% of the tertiary student population, academic year 15/16)

39470 SEN students(7.1% of the student population, academic year 15/16)

(Audit Commission, 2018)

(The Equal Opportunities Commission, 2015)

Governmental Support

(Legislative Council, 2017)

Centre STARS

- Follow up SEN students

- Specialist teaching and learning aids

- Financial assistance and scholarships

- Volunteer support

- Counselling services

Fernando CheungLegislator

Lecturer at APSS, HKPU

Support and Guidelines- Note-taking services?

- Speech-to-text software?

- Medical support?

- Teaching and assessment adjustments?

- Acceptance of sign language?

- Effective identification?

Network on Students with Disability

(NSD)

Ms Belle Choi

Ms Polly Chan

Network on Students with Disability

(NSD)

Host departments

Subject leaders

Subject teachers

Thank YouAcceptance

We are not alone

EmpathyCommunication

SEN Students