Let's Talk Newsletter - July 2006

Tēnā koutou katoa

This issue of Let's Talk follows on from the newsletters you received in April and September 2005. It contains more about GSE's progress on initiatives developed since your feedback in 2004 and introduces Better Outcomes for Children, the five year action plan for our work in the Ministry.

In late 2004, GSE met with about 5,000 parents, educators and children around the country. Information was sought about their aspirations for children who need extra support, what they thought was working well and their priorities for change.

Parents, families and communities told us they want their children to feel part of the school community and to receive an education that will help them achieve to the best of their abilities.

We share this desire, and at the same time we know that we need to do a better job of understanding and building evidence about what works for children, and ensure that we as a Ministry are delivering, and helping others to deliver, consistent high quality services right across the country.

So what have we been up to since those meetings in 2004? Firstly, we have several work streams under way across the Ministry, addressing issues raised. Inserted in this newsletter is a follow-up report which outlines the progress we have made. A fuller report is available on www.minedu.govt.nz/goto/LetsTalk (the original feedback is also on this site).

Secondly, our internal work: I am very pleased to introduce Better Outcomes for Children: GSE's action plan 2006 - 2011. This is our internal action plan that outlines how the Ministry will work to better understand what works for children; improve quality and consistency of service, and ultimately, improve participation and achievement for children who are eligible for specialist services from GSE.

By working directly to address issues raised by families and educators, and at the same time changing the way we work internally, we believe we are on the way to helping all our children enjoy "ordinary choices and responsibilities in all areas of life" (NZ Disability Strategy).

Barbara Disley
Group Manager
Special Education
Ministry of Education

Better Outcomes for Children: GSE's action plan 2006 - 2011

What is Better Outcomes for Children?

Better Outcomes for Children is an internal plan for the Ministry of Education. It sets out how we will work to raise achievement and improve services to children who are eligible for specialist services from GSE.

The plan is focused on ensuring every child who is eligible for specialist services receives a quality education that enables them to participate and achieve to the best of their abilities.

Better Outcomes for Children sets out some important outcomes for children who need extra support, ways to collect better information to ensure that what we are doing works, and how we will achieve this.

Why has Better Outcomes for Children been developed?

Over the last two years we have been working on different streams of work to improve the services we deliver and to address the issues raised by parents and educators in our meetings with them in 2004. Better Outcomes for Children is one of these streams of work.

At the moment, specialist service providers (both internationally and here in New Zealand) have limited information about how extra support can best contribute to raising achievement. Better Outcomes for Children will help us gather more and better information so we can be sure our services are helping every child achieve to the best of their ability.

What is the wider Ministry of Education context for this plan?

The Ministry focuses on three areas to raise achievement and ensure each child is achieving to the best of their abilities:

(1) Effective teaching for all children

(2) Engaged families

(3) Quality providers.

These are the areas that drive all the work of the Ministry, and they are set out in some detail in our Statement of Intent.

For children with additional educational needs, our long term goals are that we want all children to:

• enjoy a quality education that enables them to achieve and participate in the community and workforce (Ministry of Education Statement of Intent 2005-2010) and
• be able to say they live in "...a society that highly values our lives and enhances our full participation" (New Zealand Disability Strategy vision).

This is the context for the outcomes that we have outlined in Better Outcomes for Children.

What outcomes are we talking about?

In 2004, families and educators told us they wanted us to ensure that children felt welcomed at school, were able to participate and received the support they needed to learn.

Teachers, researchers and specialists in New Zealand and overseas also tell us these things are important if we are going to raise achievement for children.

So, in addition to the Ministry's overall priorities (see What is the wider Ministry of Education context for this plan) Better Outcomes for Children puts the spotlight on three outcomes that will ensure every child is able to achieve to the best of their abilities:

• Presence (in an early childhood education programme or school)
• Participation (that every child is participating)
• Learning (that every child is learning).

So the four important components of our internal plan are overall achievement, through presence, participation and learning. In the sections below we talk a little more about what we mean by each of these terms:

What does achievement mean?

Achievement includes what children know (knowledge), what they can do (skills), and who they are in relation to themselves and others (values and attitudes, including a strong sense of personal and cultural identity).

Educational achievement contributes to a child's general wellbeing.

When they are achieving, children have the knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and sense of identity they need to successfully take the next steps in their lives. They are optimistic about their future, have options, are confident and may gain qualifications.

Research shows that when children are achieving, they feel better about themselves and have more confidence.

What does presence mean?

Presence in an education setting means that the child or young person is:

• attending an early childhood education service or school
• in a safe learning environment
• able to enrol in and access the same range of early childhood education services or schools as other children living in the same location.

Parents, teachers and specialists will know that presence has been achieved when children who need extra support attend their school or early childhood education service regularly for the same amount of time as other children the same age. Parents and families will also be able to make a positive choice about the early childhood education service or school their child attends from the options available.

Our Better Outcomes for Children plan will help us to collect better information on presence (whether children are able to attend, enrol in and access the same services as other children). This information will help us identify the barriers to presence, and plan to overcome them. It will also help us identify the progress that is being made, and to learn from those gains.

What does participation mean?

Participation within an education setting means the child or young person is positively engaged in:

• interpersonal relationships
• social activities
• shared learning experiences

and is increasingly self-determining (able to make their own decisions).

Children who are participating and feel part of the school community develop the confidence they need to try new things.

Parents, teachers and specialists will know we have achieved this objective when children who need extra help are as welcome, valued and accepted as children who do not need extra help.

We will start working with the sector later this year to identify what information would be most useful to educators and families about participation and how it could be gathered.

What does learning mean?

Learning means the child or young person is in an education setting and engaged in experiences that maximise learning. It means learning experiences that:

• are planned and also build on spontaneous opportunities
• involve effective assessment and implementation and review
• implement the curriculum and are evidence-based
• take account of the child's perspective.

Parents and families are an important part of the learning process. Parents, teachers and specialists will know we have achieved this objective when parents and families are involved in the planning and reviewing of their child's learning, and when children can apply the skills they have learned in real-life situations.

We will have better information about how to ensure that children are involved in relevant, meaningful and achievable activities. We will begin working with the sector later this year to decide what information would be most useful to collect and how to do this.

What will be different?

Better Outcomes for Children will change the way we work.

As a result of this plan the Ministry will bring a more consistent, child-centred focus to the work we do for children with additional educational needs. It will ensure we work together with educators and families to gather better and more consistent information on the progress and achievement of the children we help.

Effectively, it means that we will know more about - and be better at delivering - what works for children.

The plan will also help us work together across the wider Ministry, early childhood education services and schools and with other agencies to better help and support children and their families.

How will Better Outcomes for Children help my child?

Coupled with the other work we have under way, Better Outcomes for Children will promote that every child who requires our help is welcomed and supported in school, is able to participate in school activities and receives a quality education that will help them achieve to the best of their abilities.

In a nutshell ...

To read the plan

A summary of the Better Outcomes for Children plan is on our website: www.minedu.govt.nz/goto/betteroutcomes

If you would like a paper copy please contact your local GSE office or national office by calling free on 0800 622 222. Braille and audio copies of the summary plan are also available from our national office.

Let's talk Special Education is a newsletter produced by the Ministry of Education, Special Education (GSE). If you wish to contact the editor Sally Champion please email: sally.champion@minedu.govt.nz
Your comments are very welcome.