Fettes is committed to providing a high quality education for all our students. This includes those who may need additional support for learning from time to time during their school career, and those who may require more regular measures of additional support.

Our approach in respect of additional support for learning is drawn from the practices and processes defined in the Education Act (Scotland) (2004), and in other national standards such as the Act’s Code of Practice, and the guidance on assessment produced jointly by The British Psychological Society and the Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists.

Our approach represents a join effort by all concerned.  In addition to learning support staff, all our teachers are involved in continually assessing and supporting the student. We aim for the fullest involvement of the students themselves in the process.

Teaching staff are on hand for extra support informally throughout the term, and all departments have a 90 minute weekly slot for students to attend, to provide additional one-to-one sessions. Students may be advised and encouraged to make use of this at various times, but are expected to take responsibility for their own learning and to take this initiative.  Academic tutors monitor academic progress through regular meetings with tutees, and liaise with other staff and support for learning staff, should there be concerns about a student.

By arrangement, some students may receive small group or individual Study Support sessions. These can be timetabled into lesson periods if a student is not taking a full complement of GCSE subjects, or fitted into early mornings or lunchtime slots as necessary. Students need to show commitment to attending these sessions.

The School works closely with The Educational Psychology practice, and their practitioners consult with teaching and house staff, and understand and work with the structure and systems within the School.  This ensures that advice and intervention are focused within the context of the School.  In addition, they are able to feed back directly to teaching staff, with teaching strategies and other advice.

All additional examination arrangements are checked and approved by members of The Educational Psychology Practice, to ensure that applications and documentation for special exam arrangements run smoothly.

Individual Study Support sessions are carefully planned for each student.  Areas covered range from speed reading, comprehension practice and spelling assistance, to essay planning, note-taking skills, revision techniques and organisational strategies. In addition, specialist tuition with ICT programmes such as Dragon Naturally Speaking, Inspiration and TextHelp can be arranged. Students discuss at the start and end of term their targets for the following sessions, and are encouraged to take an active part in assessing their needs and committing to achieving these aims. In addition, subject staff, support for learning staff, and parents may feed into these discussions. Termly reports are written for all students who regularly attend Study Support sessions.