Academic literature on the topic 'Work situation of the special educational needs coordinator'

The volume “Building bridges: Promoting wellbeing for family. Handbook for parents ”, published by Lumen Publishing House from Iași in 2018, was developed within the project “Building bridges: Promoting social inclusion and well-being for the families of children with special needs (PSI-WELL)”, and is the result of a cross-sectional and transnational study on social inclusion, stress levels and the well-being of families with children with special needs, carried out in each of the 6 countries that were partners in the project (Romania, Spain, Portugal, Croatia, Turkey and Lithuania). The volume coordinated by Assoc. Prof. PhD. Aurora Adina Colomeischi provides concrete results of the extensive research undertaken within the project and seems to be a viable starting point for the development of an educational policy for parents and families of children with special needs. The work is very well substantiated scientifically, and is especially useful for parents who face the special needs of their children, but also for the specialists who undergo therapy with them. In our opinion, the book deals with desirable aspects in the development of social intervention programs often aimed at parents with children with special needs, programs dealing with improving personal resources and parenting skills needed to solve various special and difficult situations presented by children.

Abstract The study includes the possibility of extending tutoring over gifted children at a younger school age. Ability is defined as a complex of innate predispositions and abilities that in favorable conditions enable the student to achieve significant successes in a certain type of activity. In this sense, the creation of educators fosters the gifting of life and educational space. The authors present an aesthetic approach to realizing the specific educational needs of a talented child who has been developing dynamically in Ukraine in recent decades. Ability is treated as a phenomenon of achieving a special level of development of mental and emotional processes, manifesting itself especially in the child’s movement, sensory, perceptual responses to the surrounding world. Tutor in the work with gifted children should be a coordinator of development of his abilities, moderator of creative situations. It must also give the child an individual development trajectory. Tutor’s task is to lead a talented child into a „field of creative achievements”, where he will have the opportunity to perceive the ideal cultural patterns of relation to the world and to carry out his own creative attempts based on personal impressions and fascinations. An algorithm for individual tutoring has been proposed, which aims to provide a child capable aesthetic and educational environment based on creative correlation with nature. Examples of how the tutor organized the linguistic creativity of a talented child during the minutes of admiring nature.

Education of students in today’s conditions requires new ideas and concepts that are related to the peculiarities of the socio-economic situation in society, namely: revaluation of values, changes in priorities of prestigious professions, contradictory attitude to education in the labor market, lack of a clear youth policy, adequate to modern conditions.Today’s education should become not just one of the subsystems of the social sphere, which satisfies a number of personal needs, but also a specific domain of social life, in which the future is modeled, resources of development are formed, and the negative effects of the functioning of other social institutions are compensated. As a result, the education system essentially extends its sphere of influence. One of the most important characteristics of student youth is its social needs, a large proportion of which is implemented in the field of education. Concerning higher education, certain requirements are put forward regarding the implementation of social needs of student youth; at the same time it is the institutional environment that mostly influences the formation of student social.Defining the development vectors of the education system requires the search for answers to questions relating to contemporary students, its social needs and expectations in relation to higher education, as well as the clarification of the conditions correspondence that education creates to realize its demands. The article highlights the peculiarities of student social needs in the field of education and their implementation; the content of such concepts as «needs», «social needs», «educational needs» were clarified.It was emphasized that social needs are connected with the inclusion of the individual in the family, in various social groups and communities, in the various spheres of production and non-production activities, in the life of society as a whole. These are the needs for work, social and economic activity, as well as spiritual culture, that is, everything that is a product of social life. They are needs of a special kind, the satisfaction of which is necessary to support the life of the social person, social groups and society as a whole.Social needs are met by the organizational efforts of society members through social institutions. Satisfying needs ensures social stability and social progress, dissatisfaction generates social conflicts. Social institutions are the leading components of the social structure of society, which integrate and coordinate the actions of society members, social groups and regulate social relations in various spheres of public life. Four groups of social needs were defined:- Vital for the social person needs, whose dissatisfaction leads to the elimination of a social person or the revolutionary transformation of social institutions, within which this satisfaction occurs;- Needs, the satisfaction of which ensures the functioning of the social person at the level of social norms, as well as allows the evolution of social institutions to be realized;- Needs, the satisfaction of which occurs at the level of minimum social norms, which ensures the preservation of the social person, but not its development; - Needs, the satisfaction of which provides comfortable (for data of socio-cultural area and social time) conditions of operation and development.The article gives attention to the relation between the concepts of «social needs» and «educational needs» and shows where they overlap. The existence of educational needs is an essential feature of students. Educational need is a need arising from the contradiction between the existing and necessary (desired) level of education and encourages the person to eliminate this contradiction.Educational needs were defined as the needs for the formation of the education means of those personal qualities that contribute to personal self-realization and the formation of personal qualities in the field of education that will enable them to obtain the desired social benefits and improve the social well-being of the individual. Such qualities are: high level of intellectual development; theoretical knowledge and practical skills necessary for professional activity; communicative skills and a high level of culture; personal qualities (integrity, workability, creativity, etc.). Education itself is a factor that allows the formation and accumulation of socially significant qualities in an individual’s arsenal that enable them to receive the benefits, satisfy the urgent needs and be realized as an active and active-oriented member of society.It was emphasized that in today’s conditions, students according to their characteristics are quite different from all other sections of the population, first of all ideological formation, influence mobility and their kinds of needs, which to a great extent determine its social well-being.Social needs of students are considered in connection with the functions of education, primarily with the functions of intelligence reproduction of society, vocational, economic and social. The article used data from nationwide surveys of students «Higher Education in Ukraine: Students’ Public Opinion» and «Higher Education in Reform Conditions: Changes in Public Opinion» conducted by Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation in 2015 and 2017 respectively; the data of a sociological survey «Values of Ukrainian Youth», conducted in 2016 by the Center for Independent Sociological Research «OMEGA», by request of Ministry of Youth and Sport of Ukraine.Based on the data of sociological research, we concluded that the level of social needs satisfaction of students in the field of higher education is not high. We need more detailed analysis of students who are studying at various educational institutions, as well as to identify the trends that are characteristic for education sections in different areas of study.

Abstract Introduction: In order to build a quality inclusive environment (not only in education) it is not enough to have material and personal capacity. The students themselves also need to be included via quality assessment of this environment. Research focused on the attitudes of university students with special educational needs (SEN students) towards the inclusive environment quality at a specific educational institution in Slovak conditions has never been done before. Methods: The research team aimed to identify SEN students’ attitude (N=20) to the quality of inclusive university environment. To maintain anonymity, university will not be specified; as for students, only their degree of study and gender will be listed instead of their age (65% were females). An attitudinal questionnaire developed by the authors was used to identify how the respondents perceived the quality of inclusion in the respective university environment. Results: SEN students’ attitudes show the highest score in emotional components (AM=3.607; SD=0.602). Additionally, there is a statistically significant relation between their attitudes and the coordinator’s work quality. A statistically significant difference was measured between the attitudes of those SEN students who were satisfied with the work of their coordinator and those who were not (p-value 0.008). We noted a strong deviation in favour of the satisfied students. Discussion: SEN students generally perceive the inclusive environment at the faculties at which they are currently studying as positive, which can result from the fact that coordinators are appointed specifically to cater to their needs. A distance course has also been created to improve the inclusive environment for students; it helps to improve the effectiveness of communications between coordinators and students, and quickly resolve any issues related to education. Limitations: Both the size of the research sample and the fact that the survey was conducted at only a single university were limiting factors. Thus, we cannot generalize our findings to the entire university SEN student population nor to all Slovak universities. Conclusions: In the conditions of the institution in question no research of this nature has ever been done before. In order to increase the internal quality of the school environment a reflection on the inclusive environment quality from SEN students is necessary. Looking forward, we recommend carrying out a more detailed observation of the inclusive environment quality in relation to the coordinator for students with special educational needs (hereinafter SSEN coordinator), their work quality and expertise.

For the past several years I have been engaged in graduate study in anthropology, with special focus on applied and especially educational anthropology. During this time economics have necessitated my employment outside academia, primarily in the field of child care and early childhood education. Since June 1994, I have worked with one child-care provider in particular: a large, public, for-profit, preschool and day-care company. I began in the Special Needs Program, but recently moved into the position of Training Coordinator. Rather than working directly with the children, I now work with the teachers who work with the children.

The article deals with the historical process of integration/inclusion of children with special needs into mainstream educational establishments in Latvia since 1998 when the pedagogical staff in Latvia was introduced the term “inclusive education” broader for the first time and there were offered practical recommendations for school and class work; afterwards some educational establishments started implementing inclusive education; the current situation regarding inclusion/integration of children with special needs in mainstream educational establishments is evaluated in the questionnaire provided to the heads of educational establishments. There are provided the data of the provided questionnaires regarding the readiness of mainstream schools in Latgale and Vidzeme regions and real situation in the integration of children with special needs.

The article presents the opinion of teachers and parents concerning the educational situation of students with special educational needs at general education schools. The qualitative research, which was carried out by means of a semi-structured interview with teachers and parents, helped to determine that students with special educational needs are included in the general education school on a theoretical rather than practical basis. Despite the fact that the school advocates the inclusion of students with special educational needs and provides various special support services, informants observe a number of weaknesses in the system that do not provide an opportunity for the subject to receive the support one requires. It is alleged that teachers working at general education schools are not trained to work with such students and there is a lack of means and facilities for individual work. There are too many students in classes. Due to the following reasons, education that the subject receives is not always efficient. It was also revealed that specialists working with the subject have difficulties in communicating with each other and working as a team in order to set and achieve a common goal. All interviewees work as they think is best. Poor parent-subject work at home was also emphasized. For the given reasons, there is a lack of continuation in the education of the subject, which is one of the most important factors influencing the educational success of students with special educational needs.

The article is an attempt to present the model of work of a school counselor. It reviews the approaches to the styles and concepts of school counselors work described so far in the literature. It was assumed that the model is a certain image of reality, its possible shape. In the case of the school counselors, the model refers to the process of educational interactions. It always results from the existing school situation, tasks assigned to the educational psychologist and school counselor, the needs of students, parents and teachers, and the educational environment. Six models of the pedagogue's work were distinguished and described: a tutor and social activist, therapist, creative educator, mentor of children and youth, a pragmatist and coordinator of educational work at school, and an interventionist pedagogue. The presented models of work may constitute a proposal for effective planning of activities undertaken as part of psychological and pedagogical support.

The paper analyses the modern situation of development in elementary school children. As it is shown, children with special educational needs display a delay in social maturation. According to the outcomes of a longitudinal study on behaviour in communicative/activity situations in normally developing children and children with disabilities, at the point of school entry the following features are prominent: incomplete decentration process; low levels of verbal regulation of actions; underdeveloped dialogue functions (communicative, programming, controlling/regulative); decrease in self-regulation, programming and control; lack of position dynamics in partnership etc. The paper also provides a review of the new basic professional education programme in “Correctional and Developmental Work with Children” designed in modules and based on networking. It is argued that students graduating in this programme have mastered all competencies required for working with children with special needs.

Authors of the study analyze key characteristics of tutor support for students with special educational needs in the context of inclusive education. An activity model of tutor support based on the analysis of foreign and domestic research is proposed. The main goal of presented model is to create conditions for the development of active position of the individual. Individual cases of tutor support for students with autism spectrum disorders and behavioral and mental characteristics that determine various difficulties of their inclusion in the educational process are considered in the article. Due to the mentioned aspects, the problem of tutor support is actualized. Case analysis shows the relevance of a tutor's work within the framework of an activity-based approach to provide conditions for the development of a conscious involvement of students in the educational process as well as the development of an active position. Present situation requires additional research.

Studien tar avstamp i de livliga diskussioner om specialpedagogens roll, uppdrag och arbetsuppgifter som förekommer i bland annat pedagogisk litteratur, tidskrifter och digitala forum. Syftet med studien är att belysa vilka arbetsuppgifter en specialpedagog, verksam inom förskola, grundskola och gymnasieskola i Sverige, bör utföra. Studien har en kvantitativ ansats och data samlades in med hjälp av anonyma digitala enkäter som besvarades av examinerade specialpedagoger. Resultatet visar att specialpedagoger är eniga om att en mångfald av arbetsuppgifter bör ingå i uppdraget. Resultatet visar också att specialpedagoger blir ombedda att utföra många arbetsuppgifter som de inte anser borde ingå i deras uppdrag. Av studien framgår att specialpedagoger önskar en tydligare rolldefinition och de lyfter rektors betydelse för detta. Studien kan utgöra ett bidrag till debatten om rollen och bidra till att klargöra behovet av tydliggjorda roller samt i förlängningen leda till ökad samsyn kring rollerna i skolan.
The study is based on the lively discussions about the special educational needs coordinator's role, assignments and tasks that occur in educational literature, journals and digital forums among others. The purpose is to shed light on which tasks a special educational needs coordinator, active in preschool, primary school and upper secondary school in Sweden, should perform. The study has a quantitative approach and data was collected using anonymous digital surveys. The respondents were graduated special educational needs coordinators. The result shows that special educational needs coordinators agree that a variety of tasks should be included in the assignment. The result also shows that they are asked to perform many tasks that they do not consider should be included in the assignment. The study shows that the special educational needs coordinators want a clearer role definition and they emphasize the importance of the principal in this. The study can constitute a contribution to the debate about the role, help to elucidate the need for clarified roles and in the long run lead to increased consensus about roles in school.

School improvement research indicates that learning outcomes and pupils’ attainment can be raised if quality of teaching is improved (Barber & Mourshed, 2007). The research questions arose through reflections regarding how the special needs competence could be utilised better and in what way this could contribute to change and to development of the school and the learning environment. The aim of the study was to provide knowledge regarding the SENCO’s profession. The focus of the study was to make visible the perceptions that the school staff from six local authority compulsory schools within one municipality had regarding the SENCO’s duties and which fields they believed the SENCO should work with. Three research questions were formulated based on the aim of the study. These were 1) which perceptions exist regarding the SENCO’s duties, 2) which fields do the school staff believe the SENCO should work with and 3) which opportunities for development exist based on the fields that were identified. The study was conducted using a quantitative methodological approach whereby a digital Google questionnaire was distributed via e-mail to the six schools that participated in the study. The theoretical framing consists of the deficit perspective and the alternative perspective (Nilholm, 2005; 2007) in addition to selected concepts within system theory (Öquist, 2018; Ahrenfelt, 2013). The results show that all school staff advocate an extensive role for the SENCO encompassing the entire learning environment. All school staff advocate SENCO’s working with tasks regarded as typical for the occupational role such as pupils in need of support. The majority of the school staff were also in favour of the SENCO conducting pedagogical work and pedagogical leadership in conjunction with this. Regarding the pedagogical leadership the research showed that the school staff first and foremost believe that the SENCO should take on a pedagogical leadership in conjunction with pedagogical work on individual level and on classroom level not a leadership on organisational level. Great development opportunities exist for the SENCO within the occupational role and within duties connected to school development. The results can contribute to further development of the profession, to developing the SENCO’s duties and to better understand how the special needs competence can be utilised in conjunction with school development.
I skolförbättringsforskning har det bekräftats att det effektivaste sättet att förbättra elevresultat och höja elevers måluppfyllelse är att förbättra kvaliteten på undervisningen (Barber & Mourshed, 2007). Reflektioner kring hur den specialpedagogiska kompetensen bättre skulle kunna tas tillvara och på vilket sätt detta skulle kunna bidra till förändring och utveckling inom skolan och i skolans lärmiljö föranledde studiens frågeställning. Studiens övergripande syfte var att tillföra kunskap om specialpedagogens profession. Fokus i studien riktades mot att synliggöra vilka uppfattningar skolpersonalen, på sex grundskolor inom en kommun, har om specialpedagogens uppdrag och vilka arbetsområden de anser att specialpedagogen ska arbeta med. Tre frågeställningar formulerades utifrån studiens syfte vilka handlade om 1) vilka uppfattningar som finns om specialpedagogens uppdrag, 2) vilka arbetsområden skolpersonalen anser att specialpedagogen ska arbeta med och 3) vilka utvecklingsmöjligheter som finns utifrån identifierade arbetsområden. Studien genomfördes med kvantitativ metod i form av en digital Google-enkät som distribuerades via e-mail till de sex grundskolorna. De teoretiska utgångspunkterna bestod av specialpedagogiska perspektiv (Nilholm, 2005; 2007) och utvalda delar av systemteori (Öquist, 2018; Ahrenfelt, 2013). Resultaten visade att samtlig skolpersonal förespråkade ett brett uppdrag för specialpedagogen som är kopplat till lärmiljön i stort. Samtlig skolpersonal var positivt inställda till att specialpedagogen ska arbeta med arbetsuppgifter som kan anses vara typiska för professionen, som till exempel elevstöd, och det framkom även att majoriteten av skolpersonalen var positivt inställda till att specialpedagogen ska arbeta med pedagogiskt arbete och pedagogiskt ledarskap kopplat till detta. Gällande det pedagogiska ledarskapet visade studien att skolpersonalen först och främst tänker att specialpedagogen ska inta ett pedagogiskt ledarskap i samband med det pedagogiska arbetet på individ- och gruppnivå, inte ett bredare ledarskap på organisationsnivå. Det finns goda utvecklingsmöjligheter inom specialpedagogens profession liksom för specialpedagogens uppdrag inom skolutveckling. Om den specialpedagogiska kompetensen tas tillvara i samband med det pedagogiska arbetet och utveckling av undervisningen kan specialpedagogen arbeta för att skapa tillgängliga lärmiljöer för alla elever vilket i sin tur kan bidra till skolutveckling. Studiens resultat kan bidra till att utveckla professionen, till att utveckla specialpedagogens uppdrag och till att förstå hur den specialpedagogiska kompetensen kan användas i samband med skolutveckling.

It took 33 years of professional experience before the author attained docent status. His experiences are related to his various employment positions: research assistant, teacher at a school for children with special needs, educational supervisor in South Sudan, school counsellor, curriculum developer and founder of a social network related to counselling, assistant professor, associated professor and coordinator of a bachelor program in social education. At the outset of most of these positions, he had a strong feeling of incompetence and that he lacked the requisite knowledge. This chapter describes how such challenging beginnings have been transformed into fertile experiences of flow. The essence of his application for promotion to docent is also presented. The conclusion relates to the author’s vision for his work as a docent.

The presence of special needs students in regular classrooms makes it difficult for teachers to manage the situation, especially since in Romania the initial teacher-training curriculum doesn't include a class addressing the issue. This chapter talks about the teaching, learning, and evaluation experiences offered by an instructional unit on the subject of ADHD for over 700 primary and secondary school teachers from all areas of expertise. The purpose of this unit was to increase the teachers' knowledge and understanding of students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in an educational frame. This chapter presents content elements, learning, and assessment activities that the participants proposed and implemented during the work sessions: both face to face and online. The authors mention that this training experience was part of a larger project called “e-Mentor: Developing ITC Skills and Educational Mentor-ship of Disabled Persons, for Teachers” implemented by “Lucian Blaga” University of Sibiu.