Why is RPS So Special? From an article written by Carol Richmond for our school newsletter. (September 2004) One of the very special features of our school and in fact a mantra of public schools in general, is that we are proud to be an inclusive school. We do not see ourselves as an elite, exclusive north shore school. As teachers and leaders within our school we are proud that we are inclusive and not exclusive. All children enrolled at this school are entitled to the same opportunities. This is the law, encased in several pieces of legislation like the Education Reform Act, the Anti Discrimination Act and the Disabilities Services Act. O:P. The school community and our P & C Association prides itself on providing equity for all students and families in our school. All children are different, they come from different family backgrounds, they have different personalities, their parents have different expectations, students have different learning needs, our students all have different abilities, strengths and talents. Some students have highly visible difficulties and disabilities, some have not so visible disabilities and some have invisible disabilities. And the lucky ones have no disabilities. Some children wear glasses, have hearing problems, some have life threatening allergies, some have obvious physical disabilities and some have learning or intellectual disabilities. We have had children in our school in wheel chairs and on walking frames, we have had a child who was partially blind and we have had a student with Downs’ Syndrome and of course some children have disabilities that are not so physically obvious like Aspergers and Autism. Everyone is different from everybody else in some way or another. Some children and some adults are fat, some are thin, some children and adults have darker skin or different accents. Some of our students and families are Christian, some are not. Every one of us in our community is different. We celebrate, appreciate and value our differences. There is plenty of research that shows that being educated in an inclusive setting improves the social and communication skills of all students and indeed fosters and promotes very positive student outcomes. Our P & C Association funds the employment of a reading support teacher to ensure that all children have an opportunity to increase their literacy skills. Hundreds of children have benefited from this tangible support. The P & C also manage and support a school-wide strategy called Tuckerbox to help families experiencing a crisis or turmoil. At various times in nearly all our school lives, different people have had different needs and different times of stress and in the main, our community respond and offer what ever support is required. When the difficulties or disabilities are physical, visible and obvious the community is unbelievably supportive and inclusive. As a school when special needs become obvious to us our Learning Support Team swings into action to try and support the student and the family as best we can, given the resources we have within the school, or the resources we might access through our Student Support Services at District, Regional and State levels and any other support that can be accessed from health or community services. This process is complex, there are referral procedures, applications to be written, waiting lists, case conferences, , allocation committees, competing needs and a range of personnel that need to be involved. We often make applications for additional teacher aide support, itinerant language, vision, hearing and behaviour management support. If needed we make application for special placement at other schools which might have a special class which may be able to better cater for a child’s specific needs. As you can imagine, competition for these resources is keen amongst all the schools within our Region and the bottom line is that all children have a right to be educated in mainstream school. If we want our children to develop a social conscience and a sense of social justice then we have to model such behaviours ourselves. We are pleased that our school is proudly inclusive doing all that we can to ensure that children and families are treated with equity and respect. Rest assured that no stone is left unturned as we try to effectively meet the needs of some 550 children.