Overlapping needs

Children may have sensory impairments such as hearing or vision impairments. These might be combined with physical impairments which could be of equal, greater or lesser significance.

Read the following case study about Xiuying, then complete the task.

Case study: Xiuying

Xiuying is a seven-year-old girl who has spina bifida, a condition that affects the shape of the spinal cord and causes problems with movement, and a visual impairment. She attends a mainstream primary school and has a full-time learning support assistant. She is a wheelchair user and the school has adapted its environment to include ramps and a stairlift to enable her to move around the building. In Xiuying’s case, her visual impairment is the more significant of her additional needs. To enable her to fully participate, the school must:

• ensure children move out of the way when she is moving between classrooms
• provide access to Braille materials
• enlarge print materials
• ensure the learning support assistant can describe any images to Xiuying when using the whiteboards, videos and other visual prompts.

In this way, every day and every lesson must be adapted and both of Xiuying’s additional needs taken into account to make sure she is included.

Your task: Supporting Xiuying

Estimated study time: 10 minutes

Make notes in your journal about how Xiuying’s various needs are supported in her mainstream school.

• What else might the school need to do to ensure Xiuying is fully included?
• How might Xiuying’s overlapping needs be met at home?

We’ve included an optional video in See also that you may find useful.

In the next step you will explore dyspraxia and consider how children with dyspraxia can be included in schools and educational settings.