UK Children’s Mental Health Week & Leading Inclusivity

This week is the UK Children’s Mental Health Week.

Set up by children’s mental health charity Place2Be, UK Children’s Mental Health Week aims to bring to the national attention the importance of children and young people’s mental health. For 2020, the theme is ‘Find your Brave’ and the organisers will be asking everyone to think about what makes them feel brave, what bravery means to them and tips for young people on how to be brave.
 

Understanding Social, Emotional and Mental Health Needs within your educational setting

According to Place2Be, around one in three children in every primary school class has a mental health difficulty, and many others struggle with challenges including bullying and bereavement. The issue has never been more apparent with the rise in importance of social media in the lives of young people. Having the theoretical understanding and practical skills to make a positive difference to young people with mental health challenges has become very desirable in educational settings.

Fortunately, these topics and more are covered in our module; Social, Emotional and Mental Health Needs (SEMH). This 30 masters-level credits module is available as part of our Masters in Leading Inclusive Education (MALIE) Programme, and our Master of Education in Special Educational Needs & Disability (MEd SEND) programme.https://www.dreamstime.com/stock-photo-group-school-kids-teacher-classroom-education-elementary-learning-people-concept-sitting-listening-to-image57820297
 

SEMH & MALIE

MALIE is an exciting, distance-learning pathway for education professionals from all phases and settings, who wish to progress into leadership roles or to develop their leadership skills, in the crucial area of inclusion. Developing inclusive education practice to support the needs of all learners is one of the most important challenges facing education professionals today. The programme includes the completion of two 30 masters-credit modules from a choice of six, of which Social, Emotional and Mental Health Needs (SEMH) is one. The MALIE Programme aims to develop your skills and confidence to enable you to lead inclusive practice in your setting, allowing you to create a safe, supportive learning environment for students with special mental health needs.
 

SEMH & MEd SEND

Social, Emotional and Mental Health Needs (SEMH) is also available as a skills & knowledge module in our award-winning SEND programme. This module has been designed to develop your understanding of social, emotional and mental health needs, understand the skills that you need to use to make a positive difference to your setting, and develop the essential knowledge of the latest policies, theories, and research. Completion of this module along with the Evidence and Pedagogy for Inclusion module leads to the Postgraduate Certificate SEND: Social, Emotional and Mental Health Needs, or you can take the 30 masters-level credits to work towards a Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits) or MEd SEND (180 credits).
 

We are pleased and proud to announce that a brand new Effective SEN Support Provision – Middle Leaders course we have created in partnership with Whole School SEND is now live – and all educators can access it free of charge!

This course is aimed at current and aspiring middle leaders who want to develop, embed and enact new skills in SEN support and provision.

You can learn more about the course and how it could benefit your teams by accessing the dedicated page here. If you think some of your colleagues may be interested, all they need to do to register here and to enter their name, school name and email address and they’ll be given access immediately.

How this course benefits participants and their schools?

By completing this free CPD course, delegates will be able to:

• Understand how middle leaders can support strategic SEND provision while identifying opportunities to coordinate with other leaders in the school #

• Consider how effectively whole school approaches are implemented in their subject area

• Reflect on how line management can support effective SEND provision.

• Identify strategies and resources to support colleagues, including early career teachers, within a department to develop their practice

• Reflect on how subject-specific content can be presented to pupils with SEND

• Consider how assessment and tracking can support the identification of pupils with SEND

• Assess the learning environment for pupils with different needs, then identify and implement key strategies and resources that will support them

How is the course delivered and how long does it take?

The Effective SEN Support Provision – Middle Leaders course is delivered fully online and should take most current or aspiring middle leaders no more than 15 hours. The great news is you’ll be able to access the course for 12 months, so you can enjoy the course at a time, place and pace which works for you. However, there is no time like the present to continue to develop your inclusive leadership skills and knowledge.

What is more, there is no limit at all to how many people from one setting can take this course, so if you think several colleagues might benefit from taking this CPD course, please forward this email to them. Alternatively, if you or a colleague have any questions about this course, or any of our other programmes, please don’t hesitate to contact us either by email at info@realgroup.co.uk or call on 01273 358080.

iSENCo: a unique qualification designed for educational professionals working in an international setting

This year has been one of professional recognition for Real Training. In April, we were awarded SEN Resource Supplier of the Year at the GESS Global Awards ceremony in Dubai. Then to top off a fantastic year, our SEND programme was awarded the top 5-star award in the CPD category of the Teach Primary awards in October. The acknowledgement from established industry awards is extremely important to us, as it demonstrates our courses are valued by leaders and experts in the education sector as well as employers and our own delegates. One of the latest additions to our award-winning SEND Programme is our International Award in SEN Coordination (iSENCO).
 

The iSENCo course

This is a unique qualification designed for educational professionals working in an international setting. The aims are:

• To develop effective leadership and management skills in relation to SEND coordination within an international school setting.
• To develop an understanding of how wider cultural, political, historical and community contexts influence SEND provision internationally.
•  To engage with international research and evidence-based practice regarding inclusive education.
• To critically examine the research on interventions in the field of SEND and demonstrate both knowledge and understanding of both its applications and limitations.
• To develop different models of partnership within their setting, with an understanding of the place of power and ethics in listening to and understanding children, parents and carers

What’s more, our Campus Online platform allows you to be completely flexible with your learning schedule, as well as giving you access to support from course tutors, fellow delegates and a wealth of resource materials. The iSENCO course will fully enable SEN professionals in an international setting to deal with the unique challenges associated with working with third culture kids, students with EAL and students with SEN who may require additional support.
 

Who is it for?

The iSENCO represents a fantastic opportunity for career growth for school SENCOs, inclusion managers or teaching staff who aspire to become a leader in SEND. Unlike the UK-focused NASENCO course, they do not need to hold the UK Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), unless they wish to complete an additional module to gain the UK’s mandatory qualification for mainstream school SENCOs – the NASENCO qualification.
 

When can I start the course?

The iSENCO runs three times a year: 15 January, 15 May and 15 September.

If this is a course that would benefit your school and pupils and you would like to know more, contact us or call us on +44 1273 35 80 80. 
 

Read what some of our past delegates have said about our iSENCO course

“The tutoring I have received has been really helpful, the advice given has been clear along with any questions I have had about a module, or assignment – I have felt supported throughout the course and Katie has been really quick with her responses.” – Sophie Kilding

“It is a fantastic opportunity for correspondence learning to complete courses and attain qualifications in fields of study that are not readily available in this country.” – Amanda Varkel

“[The tutor] was an excellent support, as were all of the Real group staff. My tutor was always very supportive, gave good and constructive feedback.” – Stacy Coombs

“I’d thoroughly recommend it … The course has helped me delve deeper into things like academic language, and think about the effect of culture on motivation for example.” – Louise Linton
 

Promoting UK Anti-Bullying Week 2019

As you are no doubt already aware, this week is Anti-Bullying Week in the UK. Organised by the Anti-Bullying Alliance, UK Anti-Bullying Week runs in schools across England with the goal to inform schools and settings, children and young people, parents and carers to know that it takes a collective responsibility to stop bullying. Whether it is verbal, physical, online or in-person, bullying has a significant impact on a child’s life well into adulthood.

Creating and leading a fully-inclusive setting

So what better time than now to focus on ensuring your setting is fully-inclusive. Have you ever considered how diverse your curriculum is with respect to gender and sexuality? Do you think you use the best strategies to promote inclusion whilst respecting and valuing different cultures and additional learning needs? All these topics and more are covered in Real Training’s Masters in Leading Inclusive Education (MALIE) Programme. 

MALIE is an exciting, distance-learning pathway for education professionals from all phases and settings, who wish to progress into leadership roles or to develop their leadership skills, in the crucial area of inclusion. Developing inclusive education practice to support the needs of all learners is one of the most important challenges facing education professionals today. With modules such as Gender & Sexuality, Communities & Culture, and Migration & Language Acquisition, the MALIE Programme aims to develop your skills and confidence to enable you to lead inclusive practice in your setting, allowing you to create a safe, supportive learning environment for those at most risk from bullying and social exclusion.

Inclusive National Professional Qualifications

For those looking to attain a DfE-accredited NPQ in middle, senior or headship, Real Training also offers practice-led, fully-online courses to provide current, innovative and practice-led training that will give school leaders the insight and tools they need to become highly effective leaders, with a particular focus on inclusion.

Supporting children with SEND

In addition to these qualifications, Real Training’s 5 star award-winning SEND programme, ranging from the NASENCO course; a mandatory qualification for all SENCOs in schools, right up to the MEd in SEND. These focus on the inclusive education for all children with SEND, and can be tailored to suit your individual institution’s needs. To celebrate recently winning the 5-star Teach Primary Award in the CPD category, 5 lucky winners who book a SEND Programme module for the January 2020 cohort by 31 December 2019 will win a £60 Love2Shop voucher. A perfect excuse to hit the January sales!

Dr Richard Lewis is an experienced Educational, Community and Child Psychologist, having worked for many years in Surrey, as well as lecturing on the Tavistock & Portman doctoral training programme.  We were delighted when he recently joined Real Group as a professional and academic lead.

In the latest issue of the International Journal of Nurture in Education, Richard and research partner Dr Amy Gibb investigate how nurture group practitioners make sense of their relationship with the nurture group child. Through interviews with the practitioners they interrogated the development path of the relationship; what enables a relationship to form, as well as the related challenges.

What formed from the analysis of these interviews was that there is an emergent journey that develops through a process of an anxious period of ‘getting to know each other’, or ‘beginnings’ as Gibb and Lewis put it, through gaining an understanding of the child and beginning to meet the child’s needs, to trust, and eventually, a close relationship.

The study is also careful to highlight the challenges that are faced by practitioners, such as the child’s behaviour making it difficult to facilitate change for the child. This creates a barrier to the formation of a connection between the child and the practitioner. Revealingly, the research also points out the importance of support for the practitioner, in response to the heavy emotional load they carry.

The implications of the study, the authors point out, are for training and development of nurture group practitioners; to inform them how to create successful relationships and manage the challenges that they face. The links to the psychodynamic and attachment theories can improve the theoretical understanding of the process. Additionally, the findings can help ensure that sufficient supportive structures are in place to help the practitioners manage the emotional load. If you would like to learn more about this research, view this PDF for the full, published paper.

Just a matter of weeks after being awarded the top 5-star award for our SEND programme by Teach Primary Awards, Real Training has also reached the finals of the EducationInvestor Awards as Provider of the Year for Content & Education Provision Skills.  In 2018, we were finalists in the category of Exporting Excellence, recognising our efforts in developing and delivering courses and qualifications to suit the international market, such as our innovative iSENCO qualification and delivering our CCET programme as a face-to-face course overseas. This year, the Skills Provider of the Year award recognises how we support a large number of educators, both in the UK and overseas, with our full range of qualifications including our professional assessment courses, our qualifications for SENCOs, the SEND Programme, our MA in Leading Inclusive Education and also our DfE-accredited NPQ qualifications.

After each course, we gather and review feedback from our delegates to ensure that our qualifications continue to meet the needs the schools, educators and the children that they are supporting. In the 2018/19 academic year, we launched new modules in our SEND Programme which were developed as a result of us listening to this customer feedback and monitoring the needs of the ever-changing education sector in the UK and worldwide. These include the International Award in SEN Coordination (iSENCO), Psychology for Education, Cognitive & Learning and Evidence & Pedagogy for Inclusion. iSENCO is a unique qualification developed for SENCOs and Inclusion Managers working in international settings. This qualification combines key skills and knowledge required for all SENCOs with expert guidance for SEN professionals facing unique and specific challenges in international education, such as local legislation and culture, the impact on learning of third culture kids and language challenges for EAL students.

This time last year, we had delegates in 50 territories worldwide. Over the past year, we have extended our reach to almost 80 regions. This is something we are incredibly proud of as it means we are making an impact all over the world, not just with the educational professionals we are training but also with the children and families they are supporting.

We believe in supporting educators to improve the outcomes for ALL children, regardless of background, circumstance or challenge. If you believe in the same goal, get in touch with one of our course advisors on +44 (0)1273 35 80 80, email info@realgroup.co.uk or visit our website and we’ll be happy to help you and your educational institution achieve the goals of identifying and improving the outcomes for vulnerable learners in an inclusive environment.

We are now delighted to announce, with an enormous amount of excitement, that our SEND Programme is a 5-Star WINNER in the CPD category of the Teach Primary Awards 2019! We were also finalists for two Teach Secondary Awards for our Certificate in Psychometric Testing, Assessment & Access Arrangements (CPT3A) qualification and our sister company Dyslexia Action’s Dyslexia & Literacy CPD Programme.

The Teach Company Awards are designed to help teachers seek the very best educational resources, and the finalists and winners are decided by a panel of education experts, based on how the entries score in key areas such as originality and educational impact.

Here’s what one of the judges had to say:

“The SEND Programme recognises that by improving the professional learning of teachers and staff in regards to specific pupil needs, schools can raise pupil attainment, with a disproportionate benefit to the most vulnerable learners. The online learning modules are challenging and rigorous, with Masters level courses quality assured by Middlesex University offered at comparatively low rates compared to many face-to-face courses. The resource is innovative in its flexibility for busy primary school staff; offering the individual to tailor their choice of modules and plan in studying alongside their own timetable.”

– Maria Cunningham, Teach Primary Awards judge for the CPD category

We are absolutely delighted to be a 5-Star WINNER in the CPD category, and also to have reached the finals for two other awards! You can read more about the awards here.

Book a place on our 5-Star WINNER SEND Programme for January 2020 and enter our PRIZE DRAW!*

To celebrate the 5-Star WINNER award for our SEND Programme, 5 lucky winners who book a SEND Programme module for the January 2020 cohort by 31 December 2019 will win a £60 Love2Shop voucher. 

Choose from any of our SEND Programme courses:

• Our National Award for SEN Coordination
• International Award for SEN Coordination
• Psychology for Education
• Cognition & Learning
• Autism Spectrum Conditions
• Dyslexia – Leadership & Intervention
• Social, Emotional & Mental Health Needs
• Speech, Language & Communication Needs
• Evidence & Pedagogy for Inclusion
• Enquiry-based SEND Practice

Our SEND Programme has been developed to give you confidence and core skills to meet the needs of the most vulnerable learners and provide benefits to your school. You will receive first-class instruction and support, all from a programme that is quality-assured by Middlesex University. All modules have been developed in conjunction with leading SEND experts, educational psychologists, and partners, providing you with complete flexibility to plot a career development path that best suits you and your school’s needs. Please contact our course advisers on 01273 35 80 80 or info@realgroup.co.uk if you have any questions about the programme or the prize draw.

*Winners will be contacted on 2 January and vouchers will be distributed once your booking is confirmed (when initial payment is made and your registration forms are complete).

 
Trust the people who know your setting best to improve and lead SEN provisions in your school through effective SENCo training.

Concerns over recruiting qualified teachers to international settings have been spoken of time and time again, all the more so when trying to recruit UK-qualified SENCOs.

With the need for improved SEN provision and leadership being at the forefront of the minds of leaders in international settings, it’s time to look in-house where knowledge and ideas of the needs of your setting are already growing. It’s time to nurture these colleagues, train them to become qualified SENCOs and transform the SEN provision and leadership of your school with the International Award in SEN Coordination qualification.

Making UK excellence work in the international setting

Having spoken to many senior leaders in international settings – we have current delegates in 79 countries across the world – we understand the National Award in SEN Coordination may not always speak fully to the international educator. Therefore we have taken the skills and knowledge we have gained by being one of the world’s leading National Award providers and redesigned it with a focus on the international setting. Looking at global perspectives and international policy surrounding SEND and inclusion, the International Award in SEN Coordination is made to fit within the context of your school, culture and the challenges your students and staff may face. With this focus, UK Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) is not a requirement for this course, broadening your pool of appropriate delegates.

A bespoke SENCO training solution, to fit your school’s aspirations

The International Award in SEN Coordination focuses heavily on the needs of globally mobile and third culture kids, more common in international schools. It’s suitable for aspiring SENCOs looking to develop aspects of English ‘academic language’ with their students whose first language may or may not be English.

Seven ways our level-7 qualification can benefit your school:

1. Retain and motivate your staff through career progression.
2. Optimise the knowledge already held by staff to improve SEN provision and leadership in your setting.
3. Meet the needs of students with SEND and students of determination in your school.
4. For delegates who do hold QTS, the opportunity to also gain the UK-recognised National Award in SEN Coordination with our free ‘top-up’ module.
5. Support for delegates with personal one-on-one tutoring.
6. Fully-online, flexible learning which can be delivered in any setting and works around teachers’ real lives.
7. Graduates exit the programme with a Middlesex University-validated Postgraduate Certificate and can choose to continue their learning journey by joining either of our SEND (MEd SEND) or Leading Inclusive Education (MALIE) Master’s programmes.

If this is SENCo Training course that would benefit your school and pupils and you would like to know more, contact us at info@realgroup.co.uk or call us on +44 1273 35 80 80. If you or a member of staff would like to book onto one of our September, January or May cohorts you can do so here.

Developing leading inclusive education practice to support the needs of all learners is one of the most important challenges facing education professionals today. The Masters in Leading Inclusive Education (MALIE) is a high-quality distance-learning pathway for education professionals from all phases and settings, who wish to progress into leadership roles or to develop their leadership skills, in the crucial area of inclusion. 

The Masters in Leading Inclusive Education (MALIE) is now available to book through Real Training for the February 2020 cohort, this unique joint venture partners London’s top modern university with the UK’s leading provider of professional training for SEND practitioners. It has been developed and is delivered and assessed by Middlesex University, in partnership with us. It is also quality assured by Middlesex University.

The Masters in Leading Inclusive Education is open to graduate professionals working in any educational setting – early years, schools, specialist settings, FE colleges, and universities – in the UK and internationally.

• Develop the skills and confidence to lead inclusive practice in your setting.
• Enhance practical leadership strategies.
• Receive high-quality support from experienced tutors.
• Access a wealth of academic research, interactive materials, and resources, including a free electronic textbook for every module.
• Build a professional network within your setting through collaboration and discussion with other delegates.
• Utilise an exceptional virtual learning environment that allows you to study from anywhere. 

Modules that make up the Masters in Leading Inclusive Education (MALIE) 

Compulsory first module:

• The leadership of inclusive practice (30 or 60 credits, depending on prior learning credits)

Two optional modules from this list:

• Gender and Sexuality (30 credits)
• Communities and Culture (30 credits)
• Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties (30 credits)
• Learning Difficulties (30 credits)
• Learning Conversations, Coaching, and Mentoring (30 credits)

Compulsory final module:

• Enquiry-Based Inclusive Practice (60 credits)

Experience state-of-the-art practice-led learning that combines our latest virtual learning environment technology (Campus Online^TM) with the extensive resources of Middlesex University.

For more information on programme content, costs and what is on offer, you can visit the website or speak to one of our expert course advisers on +44 1273 358080 or info@realgroup.co.uk.