Achievement for All in International Classrooms: Improving Outcomes for Children and Young People with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

by Sonia Blandford

Overview

The organisation Achievement for All engaged in international projects in England, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, South Korea, the United States of America and Wales with the aim of raising the aspirations, access and achievements of vulnerable and disadvantaged children and young people. These projects were united in bringing Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) back into the classroom by focusing on the relationship between parents, leaders, teachers and wider professionals. Achievement for All in International Classrooms examines these projects, looking at the context of each and the research findings, before considering how this could enhance knowledge and understanding in other international settings.

Sonia Blandford examines the policy implications needed to bring SEND into the classroom, understanding of the scale of the issue, moral purpose, belief, commitment, collaboration and determination, through evaluation, research and practice. She also considers what it takes to change practice, bringing Achievement for All and SEND into the classroom, looking in particular at the implications for:

- Leadership
- Teaching and learning
- Parent and carer engagement
- Wider outcomes and opportunities
- Professional development for all staff

Drawing on her wealth of experience and expertise, Blandford then makes recommendations on what it would take to introduce Achievement for All in policy to bring SEND into the classroom, with particular reference to changes at national, regional and school level, as well as parental and carer engagement and a desire to improve outcomes for all children and young people.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781474254335
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	06/29/2017
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.47(d)

About the Author

Sonia Blandford is Founder and CEO of Achievement for All 3As, Professor of Education and Social Enterprise at the Institute of Education, University College London, UK, and Honorary Professor of Education, University of Warwick, UK. She is also a member of the European Agency Expert Group on Raising Achievement and advisor to the UK government, European Commission, and several international governments.

Table of Contents

Foreword, Brian Lamb OBE
Introduction
Part I: An International Issue: Bringing Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Back into the Classroom
1. The Achievement for All Framework
2. Why the Approach to SEND in Schools Across the World Needs to Change
Part II: Beginning with Achievement for All in England and Wales
3. England and Wales: Differing Contexts
4. The Achievement for All Programme
5. The Impact of Achievement for All in England and Wales
Part III: Why School Leadership Needs to Change
6. The Lithuanian Context: Developing Leadership for SEND
7. Time for Leaders Project
Part VI: Why Engaging with Parents Improves Outcomes
8. The Teaching and Learning for All Project: Norwegian Context and Case Study 1 - Lindeberg School
9. Teaching and Learning for All Project: Case Study 2 Hoyenhall School and Project Recommendations
Part V: Why School Environments and Parental Engagement Need to Change
10. The US Context: Engaging the Parents of Pupils Identified with SEND
11. Improving Outcomes for SEND through Parental Engagement: The Parental Engagement Partnership Program (PEPP)
Part VI: Embedding the 3As - Aspiration, Access and Achievement
12 Evaluating the Impact of the Parental Engagement Partnership Program (PEPP)
13. South Korea: Development of Middle Leaders
Part IV: Policy and Practice
14. Bringing SEND into the Classroom: Implications for Policy
15. Bringing SEND into the Classroom: Implications for Practice
References
Index

Editorial Reviews

Achievement for All has had a measurable impact on the education and the lives of more than three million children since the charity was founded in 2011. This book explains how AfA has benefited children and young people in seven nations. It explains how the core principles of Aspiration, Access and Achievement and the elements of leadership, teaching and learning, parent and carer engagement, and wider opportunities lead to successful education for all, particularly those children and young people with SEND and others that are vulnerable to underachievement. It will be essential reading for all school leaders.
Tim Cain, Professor in Education and Director of the Research Centre for Schools, Colleges, and Teacher Education, Edge Hill University, UK

Achievement for All in International Classrooms introduces the outstanding work of Professor Blandford and her team at the charity Achievement for All 3As. The AFA3As model is based on a fundamental belief in every child's ability to learn coupled with a clear framework for supporting and motivating the learner. The model engages parents, children and teachers in shaping the individual child's learning journey in order to maximise their personal potential. It is recommended to teachers, parents and policy makers alike.
Marilyn Leask, Professor of Education, De Montfort University, UK

From the Publisher