The most common provision of assistance to children with disabilities in schools is an aide. These personnel can be referred to as Integration Aide, or Education Support Officer. They require no qualifications or training.
Despite DET policy being that such aides are always supervised by a teacher, parents report that aides can:
- take their children out of the classroom and assist them without supervision
- teach their children without any formal Individual Education Plan being in existence
- complete a child’s work for them
- often do not have the academic knowledge to actually assist in some subjects (such as mathematics)
- are the main “teacher” for their child
- can only work a certain number of hours depending on the level of Program for Students with Disabilities funding received by the school
- are shared with other children in the classroom who did not receive individual funding
- restrain and seclude students
Often, the use of aides will result in the least qualified person in the school being largely responsible for the child with the most challenging and complex needs.
Aides (and teachers) may have attended short workshops on disabilities. Even those with Certificates relating to integration aide work will find that they have received an overview of disability issues which while generally helpful, will not equip them to begin work with children with complex individual needs.
When an aide has sufficient training in the area of the child’s particular disability, is working from a formal and professional Individual Education Plan, or for example, from a language program developed and supervised by a speech pathologist, such a support can be of great assistance to a child with a disability.
Due to the DET practice of having programs and plans in teachers ‘heads’, many aides will not be provided with the support and structure that they require.
Children and their parents do not have the right to be involved in the selection of an aide, and do not have the right to request a change of aide if the class relationship is ineffective. This is at odds with the value placed on the opinions of parents as set out in the Student Support Group guidelines.
Advocacy
Request to know the training your child’s aide has had in areas that are important and relevant to your child’s disability.
Ensure the aide is working from a formal Individual Education Plan and attends Student Support Group meetings.
If you believe for whatever reason the arrangement between the aide and your child is not resulting in him or her meeting the goals in their Individual Education Plan, call a Student Support Group meeting.
See sections on “Individual Education Plans” and “Student Support Groups“.