School Support Services is a multidisciplinary consultative program specialising in providing support to schools to enhance learning outcomes for students with Language Disorder and related difficulties.
The team includes a range of professionals, including speech language pathologists, occupational therapists, educators, a physiotherapist and a guidance officer.
Language Disorder impacts students across a range of developmental domains, including language, cognition, sensory, motor, perceptual and social/emotional. Using a multidisciplinary approach enables collaboration between teachers and allied health professionals in the development of inclusive, targeted support that recognises the influence of each domain upon accessing the curriculum.
Meet the Team
Educators
Educators bridge the gap to support the implementation of individualised approaches for students with Language Disorder. In supporting school staff, the educators provide evidence informed strategies, resources and recommendations to optimise student engagement with the Australian Curriculum.
Speech Language Pathologists
Speech language pathologists (SLPs) work with school staff to support students who have Language Disorder and related difficulties in the area of communication. Effective communication underpins many of the skills required for success in the classroom. Our SLPs provide a range of strategies, resources and recommendations specific to developing communication skills within the curriculum.
Occupational Therapists
Occupational therapists (OTs) support a student’s ability to participate in both required and desired daily school activities. This is achieved by providing strategies, resources and recommendations to teachers and support staff to address a range of areas, including perceptual, motor, and social-emotional skills.
Physiotherapist
The physiotherapist (PT) is primarily responsible for identifying how a student’s gross motor skills impact on their access to the curriculum. They provide strategies, resources and recommendations to teachers and support staff that can be incorporated into a student’s daily schedule.
Psychologist
The psychologist assists school staff to understand the impact of cognition on language development, as well as the implications of Language Disorder on mental health and wellbeing. They provide strategies, resources and recommendations regarding co-occurring difficulties with executive functioning (attention, working memory, planning), processing speed, problem solving and higher order thinking. Students with Language Disorder also regularly present with needs within the social-emotional domain.
Administration Officers
The team is ably supported by administration officers who assist the running of the program.