ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the role of the TAs in working with teachers to support the identification of SEND.
In the UK a special educational need is identified in terms of a deficit or barrier to learning, leading to levels of progress or attainment that fall below age-related norms. Specialist diagnostic resources are often only available for those in most severe need, meaning that classroom teachers are faced with a daily task of identifying and addressing undiagnosed difficulties, which may be having a profound and negative impact on learning.
The Needs Matrix offers the teacher and TAs a user-friendly framework in which to collaborate with teachers and other professionals and to consider the learning behaviour of their pupils. It offers a comprehensive set of prompts to help TAs identify barriers to learning. These barriers may be impacting progress across the curriculum. It also helps professionals to develop their SEND awareness by encouraging close observation of pupils and the use of a common approach and accurate terminology.
