Understand The Structure Of Education From The Early Years To Post-Compulsory Education: CACHE Level 3 Award In Supporting Teaching And Learning Assignment, MU, Ireland

Learning outcome 1- Understand the structure of education from the early years to post-compulsory education.

 1.1: Early years provision is a key element at the first stage of a child’s education. This helps them develop in different key stages of learning such as supporting them at a very young age through play. At the age of 3 to 5 children attend nursery or reception. However, The Early Years Foundation Stage focuses on a child from birth to reception.

Examples of early years provision are the following; day nurseries, nannies, pre-school, playgroups, independent schools, out-of-school clubs, etc.

The benefits of choosing pre-school are, it’s fully flexible, children aged 2 to 5 are offered five-morning sessions or five-afternoon sessions.

1.1 Please include a detailed summary of each of them

Day nurseries are designed to provide childcare for babies as young as six weeks old to five years old. However, some nurseries may only offer their service to children at the age of 4 years or older. Day nurseries are usually run by local authorities, volunteers and community groups, local schools or private businesses.

2. Nannies

3. Pre-schools

4. Wraparound schools

5. Nursery school

1.2 Please include the key stages 1,2,3 and 4 and the age groups for each one.

1.2: They’re seven key stages of the statutory framework. We need them to ensure schools are providing a high standard and aim to excel in the following areas;  quality and consistency, a secure foundation, partnership working and equality of opportunity. The statutory framework is split into two main groups prime and specific areas in children’s learning and development. The prime group consist of;

1. Communication and language

2. Physical development

3. Personal, social, and emotional development

The four remaining stages are known as specific areas. They are literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and expressive arts and design.

1.3  Explain post-16 options for young people and adults.

1.3 Post-16 options for young people and adults. Traditionally, pupils aged 16 and over had just two options. They could either leave school and start work or they could remain in education. Whilst these two options are still available, there are other opportunities available, and these are; attending a college and gaining a higher level diploma. Young people can also start a course of work-based learning or they can go straight into employment by getting a job. They can also carry out voluntary work or be supported by social service/social care and health children’s service.

Please include more detail to the roles and their responsibilities

2.1 The role of a governor consists of about 10-12 members. Or in some schools, there can be up to 20 members. School governors are made up of one parent and one member of staff along with the Head Teacher. A governor has many different tasks and obligations, they set goals and objectives for the school, they create and adapt new policies which will allow for the new goals and objectives. Governor’s also set targets for achieving the said goals and objectives.

The main purpose of a senior management team is that they work closely with the Head Teacher. Since all schools are sized differently, the senior management usually consists of the Deputy Head Teacher, year group leaders, and the SENCO.  Their duties include the following; they regularly hold meetings and discussions to run their school with the highest quality and standards. They also discuss any implementations of any plans or strategies deemed necessary for the school to run smoothly and effectively.

It is a legal obligation for a school to have certain staff roles fulfilled, such as the role of the SENCO (Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinator) and the Foundation Stage Manager.  One of the main responsibilities a SENCO has is that they manage and monitor the provision of the support and education that it’s accessible for any pupil with special educational needs. They work together with the parents to ensure the pupils are progressing to the best of their abilities. The pupils are provided with a personised educational plan and they are reviewed regularly. The Foundation Stage Manager’s role is focused on pupils in Reception and nursery classes. They ensure classes are run in an accordance with the statutory requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Their main responsibility is that they oversee and observe classroom environments. They set out assessments and make sure all records are accurate and up to date.

Teachers have many different responsibilities. Mainly primary school teachers obtain the most. They create and plan their successful curriculum in all subjects under the National Curriculum. Teachers working with older students will usually specialize in one or two main subjects. Teachers should know about the curriculum development and they should effectively share this with other members of staff during meetings.

1. Teaching assistant

2. Caretakers

3. Breakfast club staff, after-school staff and extended school staff

4. Office and administrative staff

5. Site managers

6. Parent Support

7. Support Assistants for children with Special Educational Needs

8. Specialists or technicians, for example in the case of ICT

9. Learning mentors

2.2 Apart from the important roles mentioned above, they’re also many external professionals who may work in education such as;

A speech and language therapist is responsible for helping children and young people with speech problems in a school. They can also improve a pupil’s language and communication skills.

Another external professional needed in a school is a group of specialist teachers. They provide help and guidance to families who have English as an additional language.

School Im[rovement Partner works with the Head Teacher. Assisting them with any issues and offering them any advice regarding leadership matters.

1. An educational Psychologist plays a massive role in schools by supporting any pupil in SENCO.

2. An Education Welfare Officer provides the Head Teacher with important information regarding attendance and absenteeism.

3. Occupational therapists work mainly outside of the school, however, they still monitor and share the support of a pupil’s progression within the school.

4. The physiotherapist also works mainly outside of the school. They provide meetings for any struggling pupils who need support and guidance.

 3.1 Obtaining effective teamwork is an extremely important component to successfully run a school or college. The best method to creating effective teamwork is for all staff to agree on clear goals and objectives to maintain high standards and excellent results within their school.

The main characteristics of effective teamwork are the following;

1. Effective communication where honesty is of the highest importance.

2. High Standards set by each member of staff in the school or college.

3. Access to appropriate resources and training is provided effectively.

4. Understanding of expectation.

5. Clear goals and objectives.

6. Good leadership

3.2  Communication is essential to establishing strong professional relationships and trust for effective teamwork. Without communication, it would be difficult to build a rapport and gain respect with your fellow team members. Good communication helps a team create a mutual understanding and their overall goals and objectives are met in a successful manner. To be an effective communicator within a team and strengthen positive relationships we need to think about what we are going to say and how we are going to do it.

To obtain effective communication within a team we must do the following;

1. Give everyone a voice and take the time to listen to them.

2. Be open, honest and considerate.

3. Be respectful and value their differences.

4. Communicate clearly with key points when explaining information,

5. Communicate effectively whilst remembering issues may have a personal effect on individuals.