Guidance, wellbeing and Special Pedagogy

January 25, 2023

Guidance, wellbeing and Special Pedagogy

Competence Goal 8

You understand the importance of special support and student welfare services in education.

a) You examine student welfare services and student well-being in the education of your own field. (Student Welfare Competence Badge)

b) You examine specific support measures in teaching and mentoring your own field. (Special Support Competence Badge)

The education is supposed to be inclusive and accessible for all the students. So, what does inclusion mean not only in theoretically but also practically? Inclusion means

"respecting and valuing diverse identities and experiences, and enabling full participation of everyone".

The educational systems of the Nordic countries are traditionally based on the idea of educational equity. One of their strongest principles is to provide equal opportunities and necessary support for learning for every learner, regardless of their socio-economic background, special needs or location.

Image source: InclusionAtoZ.pdf (salto-youth.net)

Inclusion means respecting and valuing diverse identities and experiences, and enabling full participation of everyone. According to the student welfare act 2013 by Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture:

Every student has a right to get wellbeing ( physical, social and psychological)
and support; both individual and collective and that too free of charge.
Student wellbeing is promoted by indulging in collaborative activities in school and collaboration between school and home.
Support is provided as soon as is needed.
The aim is to promote student participation, wellbeing and learning opportunities.
Good learning for students is promoted and maintained.
Psychological and physical health and social well-being are promoted.
Each student has access to multidisciplinary expert support group if needed.
Student's wishes are to be taken into account while making any decision about their wellbeing.

All these elements fall in the category of general support. In case of students who need regular support and that too in multiple forms, intensified support is provided. This is done on the basis of pedagogical assessment in accordance with the learning plan prepared for the pupil. Intensive support is more intense and persistent and it is individualized (personalized) for each student. If we talk about pedagogical accessibility in vocational education, multiple factors are taken into account during lesson planning, executing, assessing and evaluating the students' learning. The teacher's role is to identify student's strengths and needs for support as part of the individualisation process. the teaching objectives should be set realistically and students are made aware of them as at this stage students manage their own learning.

Source: Inclusive-VET-in-Finland.pdf (hamk.fi)

In case of special support teacher has to be aware of the steps to be taken to support and promote the learning process. For example, Sensory accessibility is important for people with autistic background. For example usual things like loud noises and bright lights can be overwhelming and unnerving for people with autism. In case of Adults, they have been in this situation for some time and they can somewhat handle themselves but when it comes to children who are new to this situation and are having hard time coping; adults (teachers in class) are very important people who can make the situation better if they handle it in appropriate manner. In this regards, its really important for the teachers to have basic training about what is to be done in such situations.

Tasks should be broken down into smaller sections.
provide clear and concise work instructions.
Be open minded and don't make assumptions about others.
You can always ask what students need.
Encourage students to try new things, listen to what they have to say and respect their point of view.

The aim here is to look for equity rather than equality. It means to provide each student the kind of support that is needed to make them progress in their education. Each student has a right to be heard, valued and taken care of. In this regard, the role of the teacher is to encourage, listen and respect students' ideas and views. Teaching tasks also include guidance, counselling and pupil welfare.