3rd April 2019

We all know that the teachers the founding stones for each and every child’s development (of course apart from the parents). When one is a good teacher, they always encourage the students so that they can achieve success both inside and outside the classroom. ]

But when one teaches a special needs child then the teacher must have certain characteristics so that they can help those children who are born with cognitive and physical disorders. There are many children who have learning disabilities and for them a SEN teacher is required. If a child has a learning disability then they will definitely demonstrate a discrepancy than the others. They will have a different way of listening comprehension, oral expression, written expression, reading skills, calculating skills and other things.

Special Needs Teacher

They are the teachers who are specially assigned to teach kids who have special needs and certain disabilities which should be taken care of when one is teaching them. Special children do not behave like other regular children. As a result, the teachers need to use some common indicators so that they can communicate with their students well. The teachers need to behave in a certain way so that the students with special needs can understand and then learn slowly and steadily from them.

But how will a SEN teacher identify whether their students have a learning disability or not? Well, here are some indicators to identify them.

• Students have a poor auditory memory which can be both long and short term.
• They have a very low tolerance level.
• These students tend to suffer from poor self esteem.
• They are easily distracted.
• It is very difficult for them to stay put at a single task for a long time.
• They cannot control their emotions.
• They can easily get confused.
• They find it very difficult to work with others and in large group settings.
• They might also suffer from coordination issues even when they try to learn in small groups.
• Has a very poor skill in handwriting.
• Their concept of time is very poor.

Special needs education is always specially designed for the children who have these above mentioned issues. So, the SEN teachers who are taking up the responsibility will face with some regular distinctive and unique challenges. These students always want some more patience from the teacher and the teachers will also need some specialised strategies to teach these children. That is why; special education courses are there and one needs to do that course and complete it to obtain a degree and a certificate in order to become a SEN teacher.

The SEN teachers should always remember that these students are not incapable of learning. They just need a different method and a different set of instructions as well as communications so that it becomes easier for them to cross the hurdle and learn different things.

How a SEN teacher should behave and teach in a class

 

When one has taken the responsibility to become a SEN teacher, there are a certain things they can follow or behave in a certain way to communicate better with their students. Here are some following things that they can do:

• The teachers can provide an oral instruction set for the students who suffer from reading disabilities. They can also present some tests and reading materials in an oral format so that it becomes easier for the students to understand.
• Always keep a progress check with the students who have learning disabilities. The teacher can communicate with them individually and make them learn about their progression.
• Give immediate feedbacks to the students as a teacher. It is even better to communicate with the parents and make an analysis and assessment of an individual student on how much and how well they have learned.
• Make the class teaching activities short and concise because long drawn projects can be difficult to comprehend for those children.
• When students have learning disabilities it becomes easier for them to learn when they see, touch and smell things. So, try to make them learn through objects and events and not in a theoretical way.
• Keep praising your students when they learn something as this will boost their confidence and make them eager to learn more. Always keep a smile on your face when you are teaching them.
• Keep repeating things if the students do not get it at the first time. Repeat them in both verbal and written formats.

Special education teacher training is something which makes every individual capable of teaching special needs children. A few things are a must when one is a SEN teacher.

Patience

If a child has special needs the teacher has to be patient. These students always take longer to learn and to perform a simple task. A SEN teacher should have ample patience so that the student can complete the task till the end. Also, the teacher needs to maintain a cheerful ambience in the class.

Organization

Always keeping the class and the teaching procedure organised can be a very positive point for the SEN teachers. They can thus give their students a rise in confidence by doing that. To keep the students engaged in class the teacher can use colourful texts and books and keep the ambience light yet serious.

Creativity

These children have different learning styles. The SEN teachers have to be more creative when they are making them learn new things. Interacting and communicating with them in a particular way can make them learn things in an easier way.

A SEN teacher always keeps facing new challenges. To overcome them is the most important thing. This is what they need to learn on a daily basis. Also, behaving in a very calm and patient manner is what matters the most. There will be students who will have different needs and problems. SEN teachers need to understand them and make them learn.

Understand the special needs child and treat them as normal child in classroom. Find the best way to manage special child in this blog.