One of the important components of the “Ensuring the Development of Teaching Skills of Teachers and Teacher Assistants in Comprehensive Schools” program is the close cooperation with Territorial Pedagogical-Psychological Support Centers.
Within the framework of the 11th stage of the Program, mentors conducted another working visit to Territorial Pedagogical-Psychological Support Centers of the RA regions in the last ten days of October.
During the meetings, issues related to the activities of mentors and TPPSCs employees in educational institutions, opportunities for cooperation, and effective organization of work requiring joint solutions were discussed.
In particular:
- ✦ Peculiarities of the assessment process for students with SEN and procedures for completing the IEP (if necessary, organization of online or in-person seminars in mentor schools, and implementation of joint training sessions);
- ✦ Attaching importance to the individual, age, and psychological characteristics of students (conduct lesson observations and reviews, keep students who have been excluded from education and those with behavioral problems in the center of attention as much as possible);
- ✦ Identifying problems encountered during the activities of teacher assistants (active cooperation with teacher assistants, implementation of co-teaching, presentation of successful experiments, emphasis on the activities of teacher assistants during training sessions);
- ✦ Informing school teachers about the introduction of a new assessment procedure for students with SEN;
- ✦ Addressing the reasonable and environmental adaptations (provide necessary consultations to schools, introduce manuals, workbooks, and online resources developed by RPPC, making their applicability more accessible and affordable for teachers and schools);
- ✦ Diversity of tools for observing students and lesson observations (exchange lecture observation tools, continue to apply assessment and observation methods approved by the RA MoESCS and RPPC);
- ✦ Implementation of training sessions of primary importance for teachers (include them in future training programs, as well as plan and implement training sessions on topics related to stress management, self-awareness, mental health, and self-care);
- ✦ Complementing the activities of TPPSCs specialists and mentors, deepening mentor-TPPSC cooperation to enhance the effectiveness of inclusive education (organizing co-teaching and lesson observations, watching and discussing videos on success stories, conducting joint training sessions on topics related to inclusive teaching and the development of the IEP, attending training sessions on the program, in particular on the “Assessment”, “Active Learning Methods”, and “Pedagogical Technologies” topics);
- ✦ Selection of mentoring schools (select schools at the beginning of the next stage of mentoring support taking into account TPPSCs recommendations).
During the meetings, private cases related to the problems of individual students were also discussed, and joint decisions were made on their solutions.
Some TPPSCSs suggested developing packages on current topics for jointly implementing and presenting in a new format during the next 12th stage. Such meeting-discussions not only strengthen the current cooperation, but also provide opportunities to work together to ensure accessible, equal, and quality education.
The meetings were conducted in a warm and collaborative atmosphere.
01.11.2024
