1. Dr. Tom Daly, Assistant National Coordinator, SESS
Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
Developing Provision for Exceptionally Able Students in Post-primary Schools - Examples of Practice from the Equality of Challenge Initiative: Introduction
ILSA Conference, Sept. 2009
Dr. Tom Daly, Assistant National Coordinator, SESS

2. Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
Encourage participants to visit the website – many features including fact sheets on categories of special educational need, teacher resources, official documents from the DES, and a Contact Us section for any specific queries.
The Supports Scheme should be of particular interest as it enables schools and / or individual teachers to identify their own professional development needs in relation to special education and apply to SESS for support. Support sought may be financial, professional and / or advisory in nature.

3. ‘Equality of Challenge’
Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
‘Equality of Challenge’

4. ‘Equality of Challenge’ - Focus
Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
‘Equality of Challenge’ - Focus
Aims to pilot a model of good practice …
Explore how general principles of can be applied in the Irish context…
Provide a framework and deliverables which can be generalised …
Inclusionary principles…

5. Policy and Strategy Pillars
Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
Policy and Strategy Pillars
Inspectorate’s post-primary guidelines on the Inclusion of students with Special Educational Needs.
NCCA’s draft guidelines for teachers of Exceptionally Able Students

6. Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability

7. Equality of Challenge Approach Framework
Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
Equality of Challenge Approach Framework
Coordination, Leadership and Management
Principal ( + SEN team, school planning process, etc); SESS
People Development
Knowledge and principles about EA
Teaching strategies
System Development
Identification, planning and monitoring
On-going professional learning
Methodological Knowledge
SESS
Other CPD agencies
Practice-based CPD
Knowledge and Principles specific to EA
ICEPE
NCCA ‘Guidelines’
School Policy and Systems
Identification
Planning
Monitoring
Practice-based CPD
Sharing practice
Peer mentoring
Distributed leadership

8. Learning and Teaching Environment
Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
Learning and Teaching Environment

9. ‘Examples of Practice …’
Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
‘Examples of Practice …’
Pauline Burke – English Teacher, Mercy Mounthawk Secondary School, Tralee, Co. Kerry
(Focus on mainstream differentiation strategies)
Jean Johnston – SEN Coordinator, Schull Community College, Co. Cork
(Focus on testing, Dual Exceptionality, and the role of the SEN system in the school)

10. Assistant National Coordinator, SESS
Special Education Support Service - Teaching Students with Exceptional Ability
Contact
Tom Daly
Assistant National Coordinator, SESS