ADSHE SW Regional Meeting 20Th May

ADSHE SW Regional Meeting 20Th May

ADSHE SW Regional Meeting 20th May

Attendees

Patricia Duckworth, Alex Wilkinson, Kassandra Clemens, Claire Tomalin, Sally Hewlett, Sue Bond, Mei Chen, Melanie Sibley, Joanna Rowland, Pippa Pearce, Julie Arnold, AneliyaVasileva, Zakia Shaikh, Heidi Green, Nicky Connell, Julia Platt, Helen Kings, Clare Rees, Tina Di Meo, James Lock, Kelly Goodfellow, Tanya Zybutz, Janet Skinner, Tess Gilbard, Barbara Kelly.

Apologies

Drew Greenwell, Judith Todd, Kathy Fox, Alison Shaw, Felicity Rees.

10-10.30 Welcome.

  • Introductions and housekeeping.

10.30-1.30 Professional Peer Supervision

  • Overview.
  • PPS in ADSHE Quality Assurance - a model that fits for one-to-one dyslexia tutors.
  • PPS is unique to ADSHE among associations in this field.
  • Exercise 1 - groups discussed the purpose of PPS and how it might benefit our work. Some thoughts included:
  • Confirmation from peers.
  • Reflecting on practice.
  • Taking off the burden.
  • PPS limiting factors.
  • Potential for ‘moaning session’.
  • Time.
  • Vulnerability.
  • PPS is not -
  • ‘Counselling’.
  • A conversation with a more experienced colleague.
  • Teaching masterclass.
  • A skill swap.
  • All of these other things are important, but they are not PPS.
  • ADSHE PPS Roles:
  • Presenter.
  • Facilitator.
  • Group members.
  • Exercise 2 - the skills required for each of these roles. Groups discussed the requirements of the roles and suggested:
  • Presenter - listening, communication, clear aims (?).
  • Group member - restraint, listening.
  • Facilitator - time-keeping, able to challenge.
  • Exercise 3 - listening exercise. In pairs we talked about how and why we became involved in specialist SpLD support in HE, while the partner listened in silence. This demonstrated how we often do not really listen in normal conversation, and focus on ourselves a great deal.
  • PPS workshop - model exercise in front of the group featuring presenter, facilitator and 2 x group members.
  • Broke into groups. Groups of 3/4 did PPS sessions. Everyone had opportunity to present, and also to facilitate and be a group member.

1.30 Break for lunch.

2.15 Visual Perceptual Disorders

  • Key question: are students that you’re sitting with, seeing the same thing on the page that you are?
  • About 1 in 5 of population thought to have a visual perceptual disorder.
  • Linked with epilepsy, migraines and others.
  • Visual perceptual disorder mainly affecting reading and writing based activities.
  • NOT scotopic sensitivity - it is neurological.
  • Not generally classified as an SpLD.
  • Underpinning theories - certain wavelengths of light interfere with the visual pathways between eye and brain.
  • Individuals with M-I put in more effort with reading - sometimes classified incorrectly as dyslexia.
  • You may see students physically move away from page.
  • Present in 6% of the general population, but probably 50% of dyslexics (it is an accompanying difficulty).
  • General / environmental problems:
  • Many HEIs very brightly lit.
  • Glare from bright objects.
  • Headaches from reading, computers and many more.
  • Daylight bulb lamps? Dimmer switches?
  • Reading:
  • Poor comprehension, skipping lines etc.
  • Red eyes.
  • Looking away from the page often.
  • Slow and hesitant.
  • Avoid white and glossy paper.
  • Avoid black pen.
  • Sometimes cheapest white note paper is best (not the glossiest).
  • Overlays can be successful if they continue to be used.
  • Exercise 1 -
  • Looked at difficult to read text - leading to discussion around font etc.
  • Problems associated with M-I very similar to those related to dyslexia.
  • Students can often make changes to text unconsciously and we want to change these to conscious decisions.
  • Examples of what students might see: halo, rivers, blurry, distorted etc.
  • How is a student diagnosed?
  • Arnold Wilkins pack. Work round a colour wheel of overlays.
  • Requires Irlen training, even if submitting colorimetry.
  • 6 categories of indicators for M-I: photophobia, visual resolution, sustained focus, span of focus, depth perception, eye strain (Irlen).
  • Should be differentially diagnosed from other optometric/SpLD/health conditions.
  • Looked at MRI images of neuro-scientific evidence around M-I.
  • Exercise 2 - Practice using Wilkins’ Rate of Reading Test Record Sheet.

3.45 Discussion about next meeting.

  • Referred to recent survey results.
  • Possible next meeting in Plymouth around first or second week of October.
  • Possible content may include an ADHD presentation, PPS time (longer) and maybe Apps for SpLD students.
  • Suggestions for future meetings from the group post-it notes and the survey:
  • AT apps.
  • Autism.
  • Directive and non-directive approaches to tutoring.
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