Guest MaybeOz Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Hi All I am a special needs teacher / assistant specialising in speech and language and have carried out a search on here to see if anyone has commented on special need education provision in Aus - more specifically Adelaide and Melbourne - but cannot find any specific threads. What is the situation with special needs education there; do they have specialist schools/units or provision for the needs in mainstream schools using inhouse specialist staff / bringing in outside agencies? I would love to carry on with this work in Aus if we get there so any comments would be much appreciated. K :wubclub: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunsford Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 I'm not a teacher so I can't help you much, but there are at least 10 special needs schools in Adelaide and at least 30 in Melbourne. I'm pretty sure the demand for specialist teachers would be high. Some mainstream schools also have special needs provision. This site may be of help to you. Australian Schools Directory Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebrol Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Hi K I am a dyslexia specialist and I asked a similar question to you before I came out. The SN in Aus is very different to the UK. Autism and EBD seem to be quite well catered for but other areas are not really acknowledged e.g. dyslexia. I was quite shocked by this and have now set up my own business. Some schools have units for different special needs but there do seem to be quite a few speech and L centres - But I can only speak for Sydney. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MaybeOz Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Hi K I am a dyslexia specialist and I asked a similar question to you before I came out. The SN in Aus is very different to the UK. Autism and EBD seem to be quite well catered for but other areas are not really acknowledged e.g. dyslexia. I was quite shocked by this and have now set up my own business. Some schools have units for different special needs but there do seem to be quite a few speech and L centres - But I can only speak for Sydney. Interesting reading. Its sad that there appears is so little provision for some special needs :huh: - do you think Aus is just backwards in their studies and/or diagnosis of types of need or does the country simply chooses to be ignorant? Is your business in Sydney specialising in dyslexia; have you found a large demand for your services so far or is it too early to tell? K :wubclub: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebrol Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Hi K Yes I agree it is a bit sad that they do not recognise certain learning difficulties. My personal belief (and some may disagree) is that Australia is behind the UK in terms of education. I have taught in a number of Public schools out here and some of the planning leaves a lot to be desired. There are several organisations who are working really hard to gain more recognition and more training but this is a slow process. I know there is a working party for Dyslexia and they wrote a report which they submitted to Government last January - still no reply! As for my business Dyslexia NSW I have literally just set it up and so it has only gone live last week on the net and schools have only just gone back so we'll see! I hope this is helpful. Becky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jools123 Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 hi i cant help much as im not there yet , but would be interested in your findings as we are hopefully heading to adelaide and our son (6) has speech and language difficuilties and also the senco at school is now saying she thinks he has visual processing problems too, he is finding it very difficult at school, and i am worried what a move would mean for him. good luck jools x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Are you a special needs teacher or a special needs teaching assistant? All states in Australia have specific disability criteria and dyslexia for example is not classified as such pretty much across the board. They generally look at intellectual, physical, vision/hearing, speech language (although some states only look at language), pervasive developmental disorders and possibly behaviour disorders (not necessarily under disability funding). Learning difficulties are supported through regular school programs eg reading recovery, resource teachers etc There was a major inclusion push about 20 years ago and many special schools across the country were shut down so only a relatively small number remain. There are units within mainstream schools with varying levels of integration and there are still a few special schools but the bulk of students with disabilities are supported through mainstream integration support which is essentially untrained aide time. There are usually going to be opportunities for special needs teachers in units and special schools especially if you have post grad qualifications. Teacher aides are not so much in demand because they are generally (although some states now require cert iii integration studies) non skilled very lowly paid jobs in high demand from mums who want school conditions. My impression is that Aus is "behind" UK in disability support - many people claim that their child gets 100%1:1 - not likely to happen here, you are lucky to get 50% for the very highest needs child and most state assessment are based on "need" but not specific program provision and most states have a limited bucket of funds so a need at one level this year could receive less funding next year if the total number of students has been significantly increased but the funding hasnt kept pace. Speech language disorders by the way, jools, are usually very poorly resourced. You will need assessments which indicate below 2%ile on standardized assessment tools for receptive and/or expressive language (some states require both, some states only require one of the two). Some states have school based speech therapy others have family based speech therapy and many people find they have to pay for private individual clinical interventions. Unless the visual difficulties are because of significantly impaired visual acuity then there wont be any support for that. There is a sort of a catch 22 here too - if your child has a disability which will enable them to access special ed support then chances are they wont get a visa anyway. So if your child has a visa, chances are that their disability is not going to be significant enough to qualify for special ed support!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozzbound Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 I am an aide in a school in Melbourne. I love my job and we are very much appreciated by the teaching staff in our school as we have many challenging children. Our school has a SAL therapist who comes once a week and provides the aides with a program to run with specific children and we give feedback to her (cheaper than more SALT!!) There is a school near us that has a behaviour unit attached to it and the boy I worked with last year had been in the unit for 12 months before coming to us. I can't find a link about the unit but the school is called Mahogany Rise Primary School in Frankston Nth. The unit also supports children as an outreach program. There are 2 special schools near us one is the Naranga Naranga School for mild intellectual disabilities and the other is Nepean Nepean Special Developmental School Jobs for Victoria are advertised but the link isn't working go to google and type jobs in schools in victoria and its the first website. Click on education aide. The pay here is about the same as UK but living expenses are much more so its not a good wage. In Victoria most ES staff are advertised as ES1.1 basic starting wage is about $33,000 a year. In the UK I was a HLTA working for the Special Needs Service as an Outreach TA and was a level 4 plus SEN allowance but the majority of schools here will only pay ES1.1. The hours are advertised as .80 that is fulltime 9-3.30pm Any other questions and we will all try and help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nurse42 Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 There is a sort of a catch 22 here too - if your child has a disability which will enable them to access special ed support then chances are they wont get a visa anyway. So if your child has a visa, chances are that their disability is not going to be significant enough to qualify for special ed support!!! Hello Sorry to jump in on the thread but this could be a major issue for us and I wondered how true this statement was? Is it as cut and dried as that? If so, we've no chance as DS1 has del(22) which gives him some learning disabilities. Would be really grateful for any info/opinions? Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest flip Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 The Good Schools Guide Victoria 2011 says of special needs: "Schools will do all they can to enrol students with disabilites and additional learning needs into mainstream study and school life. .... There are students with special educational needs in both mainstream schools and specialist schools. Some mainstream schools have specialist facilities to help students with a particular disability; for example, there are currently 10 secondary schools with equipment and expertise for hearing impaired students. The federal government has also recently committed funds to specialist professional development training for teachers (including Victorian teachers) working with children suffering from autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In government schools, support funding is available through the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) Program for Students with Disabilities subject to eligibility and educational need. A copy of the 2010 Program handbook is available on line at http://www.education.vic.gov.au/healthwellbeing/wellbeing/disabilty/default.htm ..." Other sources are Welcome - DiVine Site or Association for Children with a Disability or speldvic.org.au From a personal viewpoint there is a lot of concentration over here on speech therapy - I know about 10 kids who've had help with this here where I didn't know any in the UK but instead I knew about 10 kids in the UK with dyslexia but none reported here - strange! Whether there's government funding or not schools do provide assistance but I think parental contribution is huge. My niece recently graduated in speech therapy and apparently had a job within days. Don't know her well so can't give you any more information - sorry. Good luck with your search. Cal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 Hello Sorry to jump in on the thread but this could be a major issue for us and I wondered how true this statement was? Is it as cut and dried as that? If so, we've no chance as DS1 has del(22) which gives him some learning disabilities. Would be really grateful for any info/opinions? Cheers In this case you really need to use an agent that specializes in medical conditions. If there is likely to be a significant cost to the Aus taxpayer because of a medical condition then there is a good chance that a visa will be refused. If you look at the eligibility for disability support in Aus schools then you are looking at very high needs kids (<2%ile usually) and the cost of supporting them in schools can be quite high and they take that into account when making a visa judgment. No it isnt cut and dried but it is a possible, if not probable scenario. BTW Peter Bollard and George Lombard are often names given as being very good in this situation, I have no affiliation or experience with either, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petals Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 Agree with Quoll. Each school has a budget in Victoria and controls how its money is spent so its spread thinly and unfortunately a lot of children slip through the cracks and although a lot is spoken about nothing much is done. We do not have cradle to the grave social here so a lot of things are dependent on parents providing resources privately themselves and this comes down to how much is in the hip pocket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozzbound Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Hello Sorry to jump in on the thread but this could be a major issue for us and I wondered how true this statement was? Is it as cut and dried as that? If so, we've no chance as DS1 has del(22) which gives him some learning disabilities. Would be really grateful for any info/opinions? Cheers Not every child with additional needs is refused a visa. If you want to go for it then speak to a migration agent that specialises in this field - some posters may recommend an agent as there are some with medical backgrounds who know what they are talking about. There are many agents that will tell you they can help but a minority will know from the initial consultation whether to put a case together for the visa. If you do a search of the forum there are many threads/discussions about this topic. Look for the poster named Gollywobbler as she has replied to many of these threads, or maybe start your own thread? EDIT: just seen Quolls reply and I would contact George Lombard if he cannot help he will suggest someone else who can. x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nurse42 Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Thank you both for your kind replies. More investigation needed it seems!:wacko: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest currymuncher Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I am an aide in a school in Melbourne. I love my job and we are very much appreciated by the teaching staff in our school as we have many challenging children. Our school has a SAL therapist who comes once a week and provides the aides with a program to run with specific children and we give feedback to her (cheaper than more SALT!!) There is a school near us that has a behaviour unit attached to it and the boy I worked with last year had been in the unit for 12 months before coming to us. I can't find a link about the unit but the school is called Mahogany Rise Primary School in Frankston Nth. The unit also supports children as an outreach program. There are 2 special schools near us one is the Naranga Naranga School for mild intellectual disabilities and the other is Nepean Nepean Special Developmental School Jobs for Victoria are advertised but the link isn't working go to google and type jobs in schools in victoria and its the first website. Click on education aide. The pay here is about the same as UK but living expenses are much more so its not a good wage. In Victoria most ES staff are advertised as ES1.1 basic starting wage is about $33,000 a year. In the UK I was a HLTA working for the Special Needs Service as an Outreach TA and was a level 4 plus SEN allowance but the majority of schools here will only pay ES1.1. The hours are advertised as .80 that is fulltime 9-3.30pm Any other questions and we will all try and help I am a Special Needs Teacher in Leeds and I am looking to move to Melbourne at the end of this year. Most of my job is taken up with teaching the bottom sets in many subjects as well as running alternative progs in Horticulture and enterprize. I am also a specialist in Geography and Geology which is also my degree. Having no specialism in SEN but years of experience do you think I might find regular or permanent employment in SEN or should I stick with Geography? I am considering mornington as well as Point Cooke in the West Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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