Resource Teacher: Learning and Behaviour (RTLB)

Good classroom teaching is the solution for many, says RTLB

With almost 30 years' teaching under her belt, Lei is in a good position to coach and mentor today's classroom teachers.

And, that's exactly what she does as a resource teacher: learning and behaviour (RTLB).

Lei works with teachers in 15 primary and secondary schools. She helps teachers teach children and young people with learning and behaviour difficulties, using programmes that have a range of tools and strategies.

Lei developed her interest in learning and behaviour while she was a kindergarten and primary teacher and after gaining diplomas in kindergarten and school teaching, a bachelor's degree in education, and a post-graduate diploma in special needs resource teaching.

"I enjoy working with students who present challenges in learning and behaviour and looking at ways schools can accommodate them in the regular classroom."

"My role is especially rewarding because it's about helping classroom teachers use good teaching practice to ensure their students achieve within the mainstream system," explains Lei.

Working with Lei - the process

Resource teachers: learning and behaviour (RTLB) work very closely with Ministry of Education, Special Education (GSE) specialists and support staff, but are employed by and based in schools. RTLBs are itinerant and belong to a regional group of RTLB.

If a school thinks a student needs RTLB help, they refer the student to a local committee of RTLB called the review and intake committee. The committee considers the student's needs and, when the committee agrees that RTLB support is required, assigns an RTLB (like Lei) to the school.

Sometimes the committee will refer students with especially severe needs to the Ministry of Education, Special Education, (GSE).

Lei travels to schools, where she observes individual student's learning and behaviour needs, as well as their teacher's teaching practice, the classroom context and so on. Her assessments involve collecting a range of information about a student. For example, she'll look at their achievement data, medical records, and observe their relationships with their peers.

Lei then draws from the information to discuss possible strategies with a student's teacher. Together, she and the teacher draft an individual education plan for the student. The plan describes the possible learning and behaviour strategies to be used in the student's classroom and at home. It outlines how the strategies will help raise the student's achievement.

Lei and the classroom teacher then set up a meeting to discuss and finalise the plan with all the people who support a student's learning and behaviour, including the student, their parents, and the student's other teachers and other significant agencies.

This approach is part of a collaborative model because it involves consultation and collective decision-making.

One student with whom Lei works is seven-year-old Regan (not his real name). Regan has difficulty reading and is reluctant to learn. He knows three letters of the alphabet and how to write his name. He can rote count to five but is unable to match a number of objects to a numeral. He knows three colours and can recognise five body parts. His oral language is assessed as three years and one month.

Lei, Regan, Regan's teacher, his teacher aide and his parents have developed a plan to help him read and write. As a team, they discuss Regan's progress in each relevant curriculum area and work out his future goals as well as the strategies and resources needed to help him meet his goals.

When the plan is under way, Lei and Regan's teacher regularly meet all the people involved to discuss Regan's progress, their strategies and how everyone's getting on.

Lei and Regan's teacher work with Regan, his teacher aide and his parents to ensure his progress is monitored and evaluated and his plan updated with new goals and strategies as needed.

Another of Lei's students, Henry (not his real name), cannot concentrate for more than 40 seconds at a time, making learning difficult. His disruptive behaviour affects other children's learning as well. For Henry, Lei and his teacher develop a behaviour plan with behaviour-specific programmes, tools and strategies.

Working with RTLB - a point to note

Resource teachers: learning and behaviour (RTLBs) are employed by clusters of schools and work in the school sector advising teachers on how to help students with moderate learning and behaviour difficulties.

RTLB don't all work in exactly the same way. They adapt what they do to suit the needs of individual children and young people, the needs of families, whānau, educators and specialists, and to suit the context in which children and young people live and learn. They also adapt the way they work as new research evidence emerges and as their knowledge and experience grows.