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ANNEX K GLOSSARY OF TERMS
ACCESS Centres
ACCESS Centres aim to facilitate access for disabled people to education, training and employment and personal development through services that include quality assessment and support in the use of assistive technology and/or specialised learning strategies. There are 4 in Scotland: 3 based at colleges and 1 at a higher education institution.
Additional Support Needs
The term Additional Support Needs is used in this document to describe any support need whether it arises from a disability or other factor such as family circumstances, ethnicity etc. Our intention is that the term should be considered in its broadest sense and should be interpreted as including any barrier to learning experienced by the student. The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 provides a definition of Additional Support Needs. Although that definition may be different to the one used here, the thrust is the same.
Assessment
A judgement or a series of judgements made by one or more assessors. This judgement or series of judgements are made on receipt of (written or verbal) information concerning the potential or current effect of the student's disability/impairment on the student's study or on their broader association with their educational environment. During assessment, the impact of the student's disability/impairment or other factors is evaluated in relation to the requirements of the course(s) on which the student is enrolled or is intending to enrol. An assessment takes into account adjustments already made to the institution's environment and to the teaching methods in place. An assessment may result in establishing additional support needs of the student in relation to their course of study, establishing a need for further institutional adjustment or for an individual reasonable adjustment, or determining that the student has no additional support needs and that no institutional adjustments are necessary. Assessments span a wide spectrum of activities. As a minimum, an assessment constitutes the assessor making a judgement based on information provided on a college, university or other application form that no further steps are needed. As a maximum, an assessment consists of a formalised procedure that may involve a series of meetings, appraisals of the student's disability/impairment, filling out official forms and evaluating equipment and ongoing review and revision of the student's needs over the duration of study, which can be many years. In colleges, assessment may also concern factors that are not necessarily related to disability/impairment but instead, are related to prospectively fulfilling criteria for Extended Learning Support. These factors include requirements for additional support in attending learning and potential requirements for specialised resources, facilities and/or technologies, means of communication and assistance with curriculum delivery.
Assistive or Enabling Technologies
Assistive technologies are resources developed or adapted to meet the needs of individual users to enhance their ability to perform tasks effectively. Many assistive technologies are linked to computers (for example, text-to-voice synthesized speech output systems which 'read' the contents of the computer screen for blind and visually impaired individuals and speech recognition software to enable people with limited or no use of their hands to replace keyboard input with input by voice). However, not all assistive and enabling devices are 'high tech'. Introducing a wrist rest and pad for the standard keyboard and mouse can reduce or eliminate wrist strain, which can otherwise lead to repetitive motion injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome. In the context of education and training, assistive technologies are usually introduced to support the processes of teaching and learning to enable people with a wide range of support needs to be included effectively.
Beattie Committee
The Beattie Committee was set up in 1998 to take forward the Scottish Executive's commitment to increase both the participation and attainment of young people in post school education and training and to improve their employability. It was specifically tasked with examining the range of needs among young people who require additional support. Its report, Implementing Inclusiveness Realising Potential, was published in 1999. This work continues to be taken forward under More Choices More Chances: A strategy to reduce the proportion of young people not in Education, Employment or Training in Scotland (2006)
BRITE
The Initiative includes the new build BRITE Centre, the development of regional training facilities at the Scottish ACCESS Centres, the creation of the website and the innovative 'Virtual Staffroom'. The BRITE Initiative also receives funding to enable staff from the Further Education sector to participate in training and to facilitate the distribution of - and support for - assistive technology workstations for Further Education colleges in Scotland.
Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004
The Additional Support for Learning Act received royal assent on 7 May 2004. The Act gives a new focus on supporting all children and young people who may need additional support, for whatever reason, to benefit from school education. It makes provision for improving transition from school with a view to ensuring that there is a continuum of support for these young people.
Inclusiveness
The Beattie Committee said that all young people on leaving school - whatever their circumstances - should have access to adequate and appropriate learning provision within a learning environment matching their needs, abilities and aspirations. The principle of Inclusiveness is essential for an effective transition from school to further education or training and for later transitions. Moreover, that it should underpin the policies and practice of the agencies and institutions which offer guidance education and training.
Mental Health/Mental Illness
There is a difference between 'mental health' and 'mental illness'. Mental health is more than the absence of clinically defined mental illness. Mental 'health' can be measured, and is often termed 'mental wellbeing'. Mental Wellbeing has a number of different dimensions and components - emotional, social and psychological wellbeing:
- Emotional: positive emotion, positive affect, life satisfaction
- Social: contribution, integration, acceptance and tolerance, coherence
- Psychological: acceptance, positive relationships, mastery, autonomy, personal growth, purpose.
Post School Psychological Services
Post School Psychological Services is an extension of the statutory Educational Psychology Service which supports vulnerable children and young people in education. It is currently in the final phase of roll out to all 32 local authorities. Whilst not intended as a one-to-one service, the aim of PSPS is to improve post-school transitions for young people through local, national and strategic partnerships by:
- identifying, developing and disseminating best practice;
- improving the understanding, skills and effectiveness of staff engaged in post-16 learning or training delivery (e.g. college, training providers etc); and
- complementing assessment and advice provided by learning providers and organisations such as Skills Development Scotland
Reasonable Adjustment
Under the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 which amended Part 4 of the Disability Discrimination Act, responsible bodies for schools and further and higher education institutions must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled students (or prospective students) are not placed at a substantial disadvantage in comparison with their non-disabled peers. The duty to make reasonable adjustment arises where a provision, criterion or practice, other than a competence standard, applied by or on behalf of the education provider; or any physical feature of premises occupied by the education provider places disabled persons at a substantial disadvantage. Whether it is reasonable for an education provider to make any particular adjustment will depend on a number of factors, such as cost and effectiveness. However, if an adjustment is one which it is reasonable to make, the education provider must do so. 14 Reasonable adjustment includes both institutional adjustment and additional support provided to the individual student. An education provider may provide reasonable adjustments through either institutional adjustment, or additional support, or a combination of the two. Needs assessment is necessary for an education provider to determine how precisely to provide adjustment in relation to individual needs.
Self-Directed Support (Direct Payments)
Local authorities have a duty to offer disabled people self-directed support (direct payments) as an alternative to providing community care and children's services. The Community Care (Direct Payments) (Scotland) Regulations 2003 identify those groups of individuals to whom direct payments can be made and the associated conditions.
SFC
The Scottish Funding Council is responsible for setting the overall strategy and allocation funding for the 43 colleges and 20 higher education institutions. This also includes advising the First Minister on funding matters and supporting his duty to secure adequate and efficient provision of further education in Scotland.
SFEU
The Scottish Further Education Unit helps Scotland's colleges tackle their most challenging operational and developmental issues. It aims to raise the standard of practice in the Further Education sector in Scotland.
Single Shared Assessment
Single Shared Assessment ( SSA) creates a single point of entry to community care services that will lead to better use of resources and more effective outcomes for people. Professional barriers can be broken down; individual skill ranges can be expanded. Self-assessment and assessment in partnership with the person should be the norm when assistance is required, and specialist involvement should be there only when it needs to be.
Skills Development Scotland
From April 2008 Skills Development Scotland has brought together Careers Scotland, the Scottish University for Industry (Sufi) and the skills and training functions of Highlands and Islands and Scottish Enterprise. Skills Development Scotland will deliver comprehensive information, advice and guidance for careers and learning as well as extensive support for skills development.
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