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Students with special educational needs: transitions from primary to secondary school
Author(s) -
Maras Pam,
Aveling EmmaLouise
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
british journal of special education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.349
H-Index - 38
eISSN - 1467-8578
pISSN - 0952-3383
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8578.2006.00439.x
Subject(s) - special educational needs , greenwich , special needs , transition (genetics) , space (punctuation) , unit (ring theory) , special education , psychology , qualitative research , medical education , quality (philosophy) , young person , pedagogy , developmental psychology , sociology , mathematics education , medicine , computer science , biochemistry , chemistry , social science , environmental science , philosophy , epistemology , psychiatry , soil science , gene , operating system
This article looks at the experiences of young people with Statements of special educational needs prior to and following moves from primary to secondary school. Pam Maras and Emma‐Louise Aveling of the University of Greenwich, London, used interviews to develop six qualitative case studies focusing on the transition process. Findings from these case studies reveal that the young people varied in their expectations and needs during the transition to secondary school, and that schools differed in the quality and efficacy of the support systems they provide. Parents' and carers' responses suggest that additional support services were not necessarily the most beneficial way to provide for all of the young people. What did appear to be beneficial was continuity of support throughout the transition to a new school, and the provision of a dedicated space within the school, such as a special needs unit. Several of the young people adapted easily alongside their peers without special educational needs, while others required more structured support. Pam Maras and Emma‐Louise Aveling suggest that effective communication between support services, the young person, and their parents can facilitate successful transitions by allowing support to be tailored to individual students' needs.