Hillcroft College is a sixth form college located in West Yorkshire. Near to Hillcroft College there is another sixth form college and a general further education college. When I began my research (January 2009) 83% of learners at the college are recruited from schools within the surrounding metropolitan area. According to Ofsted (2008) the pass rate for five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C including English and Mathematics, within schools in the local authority where the college was located, was below the national average of 46.8%.Significant numbers of learners entered the college with a much lower than average GCSE points score,
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placing the college in the bottom 10th percentile of sixth form colleges based on GCSE scores on entry.
By 1st October 2008 Hillcroft College had enrolled 2,115 learners with 21% from minority ethnic backgrounds, 28% from economically and socially deprived areas and 15% having learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Almost all learners were aged 16 to 18 with a small number of students aged 19 and over. At this time, the college provided courses from foundation to advanced level covering a wide range of subjects, including vocational BTEC courses at all levels. The college embraces an inclusive ethos and recruits many learners with relatively low GCSE results and as such is not a typical sixth form college. Hillcroft provides courses at levels 1 (foundation) and 2 (GCSE and/or equivalent) as well as 42 subjects at advanced level, 43 AS levels, 10 National Diploma courses, 1 National Certificate and 3 National Awards.
The college employs approximately 250 staff including the senior management team (SMT) made up of the principal and vice principals, teachers, administrative and secretarial teams across subject areas and departments, technicians in ICT, science, sport, performing arts and DT, student support assistants, SEN specialists, two librarians, health care professionals (including sexual health nurses) caretakers, cleaners and caterers.
Hillcroft College is situated on one large campus, sharing the site with a local high school. There is one main driveway to enter the site which takes you through a one way system via the bus bays. The college lies straight ahead with the high school located to the left.
4.3.2.1 The Study Centre and the role of Student Support Assistant
Hillcroft College’s ethos centred upon providing quality education in a friendly, safe and supportive environment. Emphasis was placed on valuing student individuality and diversity and ensuring equality of opportunity and support was available to all students. Arguably, the college strived to provide support and inclusivity for all the learners enrolled there.
I was one support assistant from a large team of fourteen. We were based in the college’s Study Centre which offered a cross college resource for all students. Generally, it was an area that could be used for private study. It had computers for students to ‘drop in’ and use and provided a subject timetable where students could access subject teachers for extra help or to complete extension activities to boost grades. Further to this, the Study Centre provided specialist dyslexia support via two specialist teachers, ESOL (English as Second/Other Language) support and mentoring. Due to the extent of support available in the Study Centre,
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it was also a ‘safe haven’ for the more vulnerable students who needed somewhere quiet to retreat to and feel safe and somewhere which provided a friendly face and a listening ear. The Study Centre was headed by a Study Centre Manager who as well as a teacher of English acted as a SENCO (Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator) and was answerable to the vice principal responsible for student support and learning. The manager was supported by the Study Centre Admin Manager who oversaw the day to day running of the Study Centre from its reception desk: general management of student behaviour, booking in students for assessment and support with the specialist teachers, paperwork and reports for the specialist teachers, up keeping spreadsheets and databases linked to students receiving support and the budgets for this, organising exam access arrangements with the specialist teachers and exams department, and generally acting as the first port of call for any student who arrived at the reception desk needing help or advice.
The Study Centre had one full -time and one part-time (2 days per week) specialist teachers who carried out dyslexia assessments followed by one-to-one support sessions for as long as the student required. They would also ensure students with dyslexia or with similar difficulties (for example medical conditions, ESOL) could have suitable access arrangements in their exams such as extra time, use of a word processor, reader or scribe. Students requiring the support of the specialist teachers were identified by a number of ways; firstly, prior to starting college via their application form and/or information from their school secondly, via a short online assessment given to all new students early in the first term to highlight learning styles and any indications of dyslexia and thirdly, through teacher referral at any point during the year.
The specialist teachers often got a high number of students requiring assessment and support. Once their assessments had been completed, where appropriate the specialist teachers would refer students to mentors for follow-up one-to-one sessions. All of the student support assistants were trained as mentors alongside a handful of admin staff and subject teachers across college. The role of a mentor ranged from helping students co-ordinate and organise their notes and assignments to providing social and emotional support for students experiencing anxiety, depression or bereavement amongst other difficulties they may be facing at home or at college. Mentoring sessions were agreed upon between mentor and student and involved meeting in a discrete, safe place where the student felt able to talk. At the start of each academic year I would be assigned the timetables of specific students who required support. Student information was gathered prior to the summer break from the
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students’ application forms and staff from partner schools in order to get a full picture of what support those students who had disclosed a learning difficulty or disability would need. I was required to work within the classroom setting to provide support tailored to the specific needs of individual students. This support included note-taking, spending time with the students listening to their worries or problems, discussing assignments or coursework, helping them plan a schedule to complete work, assisting with research and completion of work, liaising with subject staff on their behalf and reporting on their progress to relevant teachers and parents. For some students with more physical difficulties, I was also required to arrange transport to and from college, ensuring their arrival and departure was safe.
Depending upon the nature of the student’s need determined how many students I would be assigned. The academic year that I conducted my research I was primarily assigned to Aysha who had a visual impairment and so required a note taker in all her lessons. Although I was there to specifically support Aysha, I became aware of other students who were struggling and so would become rather like a teaching assistant; making copies of my notes for other students, answering their questions, ensuring they understood what they were supposed to be doing, checking on their progress, proof reading their work and generally pointing them in the right direction. Aysha would be my priority and I would ensure she understood and had everything she needed to complete what was being asked before I went on to other students. Similarly, the students in the classes I was in knew I was there for Aysha and that I could not always spend my time checking on and helping them if she needed me.
Occasionally, as was the case in the year I was conducting my research, some students would emerge from the classes as more or just as needy of support. This was the case with Lucy. She had disclosed on her application form that she had dyspraxia (a movement and co- ordination difficulty that can affect thought, speech and language) but felt she did not need classroom support. Lucy was in the same Health and Social Care classes as Aysha and it soon became apparent to me that Lucy was struggling because of her inability to take handwritten notes down at the pace needed to keep up with the rest of the class. Positioned at the front of the class, Aysha was able to make independent notes which could then be supplemented with my own to ensure she had not missed anything. This then enabled me to support Lucy, as my note-taking for her, enabled her to listen to the teacher and not concern herself with writing the notes down quickly.
As I got to know the classes and students I was able to use my intuition as to which students understood the task set and which would need more help. Often those who tended to struggle would sit nearer to me in class and would seek me out in their free periods if they needed
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help with their assignments. Although ‘officially’ I was only present in these classes for Aysha, I felt it my duty to help other students who were finding their work difficult. This was the norm for many support assistants- assigned one or two students in September and ending up with five by December.
As evident in many of the roles and responsibilities I undertook as a support assistant, I worked with a diverse range of students, including those with speech and language difficulties such as dyspraxia, dyslexia and ESOL, those with physical disabilities, those with psychological and emotional difficulties, those with hearing and visual impairments and those on the autistic spectrum, who found social interaction and communication difficult.
In attempting to meet the demands of the diverse range of students I supported on a daily basis I had to be able apply my knowledge and understanding of the academic world and the range of subjects I supported in, which in the case of maths and science was, I have to say, limited! Nonetheless, I had to use my skills of logic and reasoning plus commonsense to the subjects in which I supported students so I was able to help them. By no means was I expected to teach the subject areas to the students, I was there to assist the students accessing the content of the lesson and the classroom resources. However, there was an element of self-teaching as I felt I needed to have some level of understanding in order to help the students to complete the tasks they were set. As such the life of a support assistant at the college was never quiet or dull. It was busy and hectic, changing from lesson to lesson and day to day as new assignments were set and new demands were required from the students.
4.3.2.2 Access to Hillcroft College
I began employment at Hillcroft College as a student support assistant on 28th August 2008. As discussed earlier in this chapter, I had graduated a month prior and was already considering post-graduate research within the field of education. I settled into my role and during the first half-term formed relationships with staff and students with whom I worked with on a daily basis. I became familiar with the layout, management structure, rules, mission statement and values of the college as well as the ethos and expectations of a support assistant working as part of the Study Centre team. I also became familiar with how the college ‘worked’; behaviour and disciplinary procedures, referring students for help and/or advice, timetabling, enrichment activities, college bus routes and timetables, departments responsible for ICT issues, photocopying, financial support for students, wellbeing and sexual health support for students and so on.
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At the end of the first half-term (October 2008) I had undertaken preliminary literature and policy reviews of post-16 education and student experience of post-16 education and given the nature of my job felt that subject to the college’s approval I could conduct my research there. I discussed the possibility of my research with fellow support assistants and the Study Centre Manager. All supported my research endeavour and felt that it was a beneficial venture for me to pursue and one that the college would take an interest in. My manager felt that I would not encounter consensual issues from the principal.
I verbally outlined my proposed research project to the college principal requesting her co- operation and consent in November 2008, and fortunately she agreed subject to adherence of the ethical precautions I had stated. Following, this I provided the principal with written confirmation of my proposed research (appendix 4, p.x) to which she confirmed and agreed to. I planned to begin my data collection during the next new term in January 2009.