Inclusion Policy

Inclusion at ISO

At ISO, we believe in inclusive education where all learners have access to learning in an environment where they feel safe, respected, and supported. In line with this, students are admitted to ISO provided that the school has the expertise and capacity to cater for them to meet their needs.

We aim to support each member of our learning community by developing and sustaining inclusive education to help them explore their full potential. Therefore, access arrangements to teaching, learning and assessment (both formative and summative) are provided to students to remove or reduce barriers. These arrangements do not change what the student is expected to learn and do not lower expectations, but instead provide the optimal support to address challenges and to enable the student to work around them.

SEN Procedure at ISO

ISO makes every effort to support students with special educational needs, as early identification and suitable provision are important for removing barriers and increasing engagement in the learning process for all students.

If a student requires SEN support and services, be it a student with special learning needs or behavioral issues, the following procedure is applied:

Applicants / Prospective Students

Applicants who fail to successfully complete the placement tests (refer to the Admissions Policy), and/or applicants whose parents inform the need for support during Admissions, undergo the following procedure:

• Sit for a session with the SEN department for observation and screening.
• If the SEN department identifies the applicant’s problem, then a recommendation for support is issued.
• If the school has the resources and capabilities to cater for the applicant’s special need, then the applicant can proceed with the Admissions process.
• SEN department will seek advice and support from external educational agencies in the identification, assessment and provision of special educational needs for applicants whose cases require further examination.
• Based on report findings, SEN department will decide if the school can cater for the applicant’s special need or not. The decision of admitting the applicant is based on the best interest of the applicant or the school.

SEN Team

ISO SEN team will follow the graduated approach, which is a SEN support that takes the form of a four-part cycle: Assess, Plan, Do, Review.

Assess

• Teachers (classroom/single-subject) through observation of the student during teacher-student contact time recognize a concern with the learner’s academic, behavioral, emotional and social needs (minimum observation of 4 weeks).
• Concern is communicated to the SEN team who in turn informally observes learners inside the classroom and records their findings (observations are conducted at different intervals and over various sessions).

Plan

• Teachers and SEN team share their findings to recommend and plan for strategies.
• Strategies aim to provide optimal support to the student that allows the opportunity to work and learn equally compared to the student’s peers.

Do

• Strategies are implemented for at least 4 weeks.
• Observation of students continues.

Review

• A follow-up session is conducted by the SEN team and homeroom/subject teachers and programme coordinator to decide whether recommended strategies implemented have been successful.
• If strategies prove to be successful, then strategies are documented and an Individual Educational Plan (IEP), which includes the access arrangements, is designed by the SEN team.
• The programme coordinator is updated.
• Student’s progress is continuously monitored and the IEP is updated accordingly.
• If SEN’s recommended strategies prove to be unsuccessful, then SEN team will seek advice and support from external educational agencies in the identification, assessment and provision of special educational needs access arrangements.
• Based on the agency’s report, an Individual Educational Plan (IEP), which includes the access arrangements, is designed by the SEN team.
• The programme coordinator is updated.
• SEN team in collaboration with teachers report on the student’s progress on a regular basis to the programme coordinator.
• Progress is measured according to the designed IEP / Behaviour Intervention Plan.
• A revised IEP / Behavior Plan is prepared according to the student’s progress.

Note

• SEN obtains parents’ approval before observation of students who need support.
• Parents are continuously updated on student’s progress.
• SEN reports cases and updates to programme coordinator.

ISO SEN Support Resources and Services

• English as a Second Language (ESL)
• Arabic as a Second Language (ASL)
• Learning Support (LS)
• Differentiated instruction
• Outsourced services: Para-teachers and school also refers students to specialized centers for diagnosis and screening
• Remedial classes for students who need further support in the language

Assessment accommodations are detailed further in the Assessment Policy.

Criteria for Granting Access Arrangements

Criteria for granting access arrangement to students is based on:

• Current student requirements
• The school’s available resources and capabilities to facilitate access implementation
• IB eligibility criteria and is consistent with practices of the IB
• Individual merit cases for inclusive access arrangements
• Parents’ approval and consent

Language Support

The following procedure is followed to diagnose and support students’ linguistic needs throughout the learning process:

1. Language needs are identified through reading and writing diagnostic assessments in English and Arabic which are carried out at the beginning of each scholastic year. Assessments are given to all students to identify any problems students have with the language.
2. Language Support teachers (ESL/ASL) collect and analyze data from diagnostic assessment against the criteria indicated in the IPTs (International Proficiency Tests) for English language, and the predetermined criteria based on overall expectations and basic skills and competencies guided by the national Arabic curriculum of the grade level.
3. ESL/ASL teachers collaborate with homeroom teachers and language coordinators to plan for individual cases and remedial plans.
4. Language support strategies will be implemented through push-in or pull-out settings depending on the student’s language needs.
5. Once the student shows significant improvement, the student will be pulled out of support and assessed against the grade-level mainstream criteria.
6. Student language progress is monitored and reported, and records of language progress will be saved in the student portfolio.

Language interventions follow the principles set in the Language Policy.

Gifted Students

• Teachers, homeroom and specialists, who observe gifted students should report to the SEN department.
• Our teachers implement various differentiation strategies in the classroom, providing challenging, real-world applications and hands-on activities tailored to meet the needs of gifted students.
• Gifted students are encouraged to participate in international competitions and conferences, with the support and supervision of school teachers.

Inclusion is also supported by the Academic Integrity Policy, ensuring fairness and respect in all learning experiences.

ISO Inclusion Policy Review Cycle

The Inclusion Policy is reviewed annually based upon feedback collected throughout the review cycle. ISO Inclusion Policy is designed and studied to be in line with the Standards and Practices of the International Baccalaureate programmes.

The Inclusion Policy has been developed by the SEN department, the three sections of the school involving programmes’ coordinators and teachers with the intent of constant future discussion and revision of each component.

Bibliography

• International Baccalaureate. Access and inclusion policy. Cardiff, 2018.
• International Baccalaureate. Inclusive access arrangements: Decision pathway, 2019.
• International Baccalaureate. Learning diversity and inclusion in IB programmes: Removing barriers to learning. Cardiff, 2019.
• International Baccalaureate. The IB guide to inclusive education: a resource for whole school development. Cardiff, 2015.