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Research
Enquiry Based Research
“Inquiry is a symptom of a lively mind. It is the mindset that powers outstanding schools, teachers and students. Inquiry is within reach of us all from the tentative exploration of a child with profound and multiple learning difficulties to the boundary-shifting investigations of academics – we are all learners”
(Barry Carpenter, 2014)
Staff at Brookfields are encouraged to develop their own knowledge and understanding of the most up to date and effective strategies to help support pupil development though Enquiry Based Research.
Our research has been class based as well as through university based learning.
Autism and Emotional Engagement
Recently we have been trialling and researching the validity of REACh (Relationship Education for the Autistic Child), which is based on P.L.A.Y (Play and Language for Autistic Youngsters) as a tool to help support the interaction and communication skills of pupils with Autism and pupils with learning difficulties.
Sleep
Brookfields has also been linked with Oxford Brookes University and the Parks Hospital Oxford, who have carried out sleep studies with our pupils, many of whom have then gone on to benefit from the interventions offered.
Teacher Training
We deliver the keynote lecture on Special Educational Needs at Reading University and support students from the university who then express an interest in developing a particular area of research that may be of benefit to our pupils.
We offer Teaching Practice placements for students who have an interest in gaining experience in working with learners with a range of special needs. Through mentoring, coaching and working in partnership with the students tutor, we aim to give students an in-depth knowledge and understanding of how to be an outstanding teacher of children with special needs.
Brookfields School was commissioned by the TDA and SSAT to develop 1 of 16 online training module aimed at developing the skills, knowledge and understanding need to work with learners with special needs. To access our module on ‘Planning to meet the needs of children and young people with learning difficulties’, click here
Complex Learning Difficulties and Disabilities
Our lead teachers in Complex Learning Difficulties have worked in partnership with Prof Barry Carpenter and his team looking at the engagement of pupils with CLDD. This work has been endorsed by the DFE and is quoted in the governments Green Paper. This work has culminated in a series of training and support materials for parents and professionals working with pupils with CLDD. Click here to find out about the project
SSAT ‘The Complex Learning Difficulties and Disabilities Research Project’
MOVE and Cognitive Development
As a MOVE Regional Centre of Excellence we are working in partnership with MOVE Partnership investigating the long term impact of the MOVE Programme on the cognitive development.
