Table of Contents
- What is The Learning Support Program?
- Who may receive direct services?
- What should parents who have a concern regarding their child do?
- What is a formal assessment?
- Other Learning Support Services
What is The Learning Support Program?
The Learning Support Program at OLA exists to address the individual learning needs of our students by providing assistance to students, teachers and parents. The mission of the program is to recognize and facilitate a successful learning environment for each student experiencing learning differences in the classroom. Assistance may be in the form of direct instruction to the student by the Learning Support Teacher, advice to the classroom teacher regarding learning styles and methods of instruction, provision of information to parents regarding services provided in the community, or a combination of all three.
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Who may receive direct services?
Students identified with a learning disability, learning concern, or attention disorders are assisted by the program. The Learning Support Teacher may take referrals for services from teachers, parents or students.
After receiving a referral, the LST will study the student's educational background, test scores, and academic performance patterns. The child may be observed several times in the classroom. The teacher and parents will be consulted. Several outcomes may be possible from this process: the child may be offered direct assistance by the LST, the teacher will be consulted and strategies employed in the classroom to assist the child, some informal assessment may be recommended, or formal assessment by an outside agency may be found necessary.
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What should parents who have a concern regarding their child do?
If you have a concern about your child's progress, first schedule a conference with the teacher. Work with the teacher to help bring about change. Often, better communication between the classroom teacher and home can bring about good results. Should concerns continue, consult the Learning Support Teacher.
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What is a formal assessment?
Formal assessments are conducted by professionals trained in a specific area such as:
Speech & Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Ophthalmology or
Optometry, Hearing , Neurology, Pediatrics, Psychology, Psychiatry. The Learning Support
Teacher will work closely with parents and teachers to identify areas of concern that may
call for such assessments. The Learning Support Teacher will serve as liaison between the
public schools and OLA should educational testing be carried out through the area public
schools.
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Other Learning Support Services
The LST has a library of books on learning disabilities, attention issues, and learning styles. These books are available to parents and teachers. The movie F.A.T. City, How Hard Can this Be? , is also available for loan. This movie offers good insight into the world of learning disabilities and strategies to help.
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Upcoming Events:
Look here for information about upcoming meetings which may be of interest. Local support groups such as CHADD and Learning disAbilities Association of Charlotte have regular meetings, as well as special conferences and talks by local professionals and nationally known experts. Contact information for these groups will also be posted here. Should you want information right away, contact Fran Cummins in the Learning Support Office.