Useful tools
Evidence-based tools and resources have been developed by some of the research teams involved in SLDN and are available for teachers and related practitioners to use or to consult for guidance. We have included some examples here that you may find useful, and you can find out more via the links to the relevant sites.
AddUp Toolkit
A toolkit designed to help teachers and parents to identify dyscalculia.
This toolkit provides information on how to get support for children with dyscalculia. It is designed to raise awareness of dyscalculia and mathematical learning difficulties.
MetaSENse
Raising educational outcomes for students with SEN and disabilities (MetaSENse) was funded by the Nuffield Foundation do undertake a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of interventions to improve educational abilities for children with different special educational needs and disabilities to understand what works best for which children and in which settings.
ToolsforSchools/IN-Hub
ToolsForSchools and IN-hub are engagement projects run by the University of Exeter to improve provision for school-staff and increase inclusion for neurodivergent people in schools. IN-hub is a database of resources developed to help school-staff support neurodivergent people.
EPICThinkLearn
EPIC ThinkLearn supports neurodivergent children to better understand who they are and how their brain works. It encourages parents, teachers and clinicians to see things from the child’s perspective and to pick resources from its toolkit to match their child’s goals.
PAASS Access Arrangements
This project investigated the efficacy of exam access arrangements for students with Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD). Findings are of interest to practitioners, academics, families of students with SpLD, examination boards, policy makers, and academics specialising in related disorder groups. To disseminate the research as wide as possible a variety of outputs will be produced.
SEND: Developing Quality Inclusive Practice is a suite of online courses provides the knowledge and skills to improve provision in schools for pupils with SEND. The 16 units can be taken at any time and in any order making it possible to curate your own CPD pathway, learning at your own pace and focusing on your key areas of interest. The course is run by the Centre for Inclusive Education (CIE) at IOE, UCL’s faculty of education and society, and is aimed at aspiring special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCOs), early career teachers, learning support assistants and teaching assistants.
Exam Access Arrangements – infographic
As part of the PAASS project, which was funded by the Nuffield Foundation to examine exam access arrangements (EAA) for students with specific learning difficulties, a number of practitioner outputs were developed. These included an infographic which was co-produced with students and practitioners to explain the purpose of EAA to secondary students, a route map which identifies the important steps to ensure effective EAA provision, and a detailed school audit tool that encourages schools to reflect on their current EAA provision and whether they might improve what they offer.
EAA Self audit tool
Also part of the Nuffield-funded PAASS project, this detailed school audit tool encourages schools to reflect on their current EAA provision and whether they might improve what they offer.
EAA Routemap
The final element of the PAASS project resources suite is this route map which identifies the important steps to ensure effective EAA provision.
Relevant organisations
There are many organisations that focus on supporting specific learning differences, providing resources for individuals or researching this important area. Some are included below but SLDN is not directly associated with these organisations so is not responsible for content on these websites.
