Inclusion Policy

Our Inclusion Philosophy

IELEV Schools believe that every student is unique. Inclusion policy highlights the fact that students have different learning styles, skills and special needs. Therefore, IELEV schools encourage every student to participate in both curricular and extracurricular activities while providing support regarding their special needs in order to let students reach their full potential.

Inclusion of every single school member is provided with the help of differentiated learning, student clubs, CAS projects, support materials and school guidance services.

Implementation of the Inclusion Policy in Classroom

The size of the classrooms should be proportional to the numbers of students and teachers to enable differentiated instruction.

The school provides enough space for the students who have special abilities in different subjects.

Group activities are always encouraged both online and face to face that are also incorporated in the lesson plans.

The coordinator may arrange for appropriate seating to meet the needs of individual candidates (for example, sitting near the front may be appropriate for a candidate with a visual or hearing issue).

Dealing with Special Educational Needs

A candidate may take medication to minimize a medical condition and its symptoms.

A care assistant may be in attendance if this is necessary for the welfare or safety of a candidate. The assistant must not be another candidate or a relative of the candidate.

A candidate who normally uses an aid (for example, a colored overlay, a sound amplification device, a radio aid, a hearing aid, a low vision aid, a magnifying glass, colored filter lenses) is permitted to use it during examinations.

A candidate with a hearing issue may receive instructions from a communicator. This arrangement must be confined to explaining the conduct of the examination and the instructions in an examination paper. The communicator must not convey information about any aspect of a question in the paper.

Academic Support

The school believes that every student can learn and be successful.

The school provides additional support materials for the students who need extra help.

Teachers are aware of the importance of differentiated instruction strategies and conduct their classes while giving opportunities to different learning profiles by diversifying their classroom material regarding the medium of instruction and level of difficulty.

Students are informed about time management strategies by counselors and given various questionnaires to see their learner profile, interactional patterns, career tendencies and current status.

Cultural Diversity

The school embraces all students with different ethnicities, backgrounds and abilities.

There are European and Turkish teachers in the school teaching various subjects; students get familiar with different cultures and languages during their school education.

Student council also organizes events such as fundraisers and celebrations.

The school firmly opposes all forms of alienation, discrimination; the school community is against stereotypes whereas in favor of prototypes. All individuals are accepted as part of a diverse school community.

Access to the School and Quality Education

The school believes that every student can learn and be successful.

Every student has an opportunity to take IB DP.

The school rewards scholarships for the students who are far beyond the realistic expectations.

The school provides physical opportunities to promote support groups and self-study environments.

Responsibilities of the IB Coordinator

The IB Coordinator is responsible for working with teachers to support pupils with special needs. The IB Coordinator also assists in the application process to the IB for students with disabilities. Upon approval by the IB, the IB Coordinator may provide the student with support materials for examinations.

Rights and Responsibilities of the Parents

Parents are involved in the development of the students and the school informally, but also formally. The informal involvement is characterized by communication with the school about any changes in the child's learning support needs and special educational needs, as well as any other issues that may affect the child's learning. The formal involvement refers to the provision of all İnformation and documentation regarding their child's learning support requirement and of documentation needed for IBO accommodation requests.

The positive parental involvement is in general exceedingly important for the success of all children, therefore Parents will be given the opportunity to express their views, be active in decision making and participate in their child’s education, at review meetings, parent consultations and induction meetings.

Rights and Responsibilities of Teacher

Following good observation in and out of class, teachers are effective in identifying learning difficulties and referring the student to the counselor or IB coordinator as needed. 

Teachers are responsible for implementing appropriate interventions suggested by the Learning Support Board and maintaining accurate records of student progress. Teachers participate in all required training, if available demonstrate discretion and confidentiality in the delivery of special education services. Every teacher is provided with professional development opportunities.

The Student Council organizes meetings to hear from all of the students of IELEV and meets school administrators to discuss students’ concerns and requests. The student council and head of the council are not appointed by the teachers. Everybody can represent a classroom regardless of their academic success. Therefore, every student can actively participate in the council. DP students are provided their candidate accounts to proceed with their inquiries in case they are not satisfied with the way their complaints are responded.

Learning Support Board (LSB)

The LSB's responsibilities include providing information about inclusion and differentiation. In doing so, they receive support from teachers and pupils as appropriate and necessary.

When necessary, they play an active role in facilitating communication between teachers, and between teachers and pupils with learning needs about learning support.

They ensure high quality decision making in relation to learning support and assessment adjustments. 

Finally, they help to foster a culture of collaboration, respect, support and problem solving. The LSB's collaboration with parents and teachers is very important in this regard.

Guidance 

The school promotes teaching and learning facilities designed for students with special needs.

School counseling provides surveys to get feedback in terms of students’ skills, learner profiles and attitudes.

Students regularly meet school counseling teachers. If any student shares a personal issue, they are supported throughout the school year with progress reports.

Subject teachers meet counseling teachers to exchange information about the students academic and emotional development.

Communicating the Inclusion Policy

Our school Inclusion Policy is in accordance with the requirements for policy development as described in the New Programme Standards and Practices (2020). There are regular IB meetings held to update and coordinate the school staff. The school bases the policy implementation on Standard 0301 in order to nurture a school culture that acknowledges and celebrates diversity. The entire school team is included in yearly reviews of the Inclusion Policy.

Culture 2: The school implements, communicates, and regularly reviews an inclusion policy that creates cultures that support all students to reach their full potential. (0301-02)

IB philosophy and learning profile are incorporated into the curriculum and in-class activities; in addition, introduced effectively on the school website along with the policies and in the school premises with posters and students’ works.

Culture 6: The school implements, communicates, and regularly reviews its IB mandated policies to ensure they are cohesive and reflect IB philosophy. (0301-06)

This Policy will be reviewed as and when necessary to respond to any IBO or Government requirements. In the absence of any such changes the policy will be reviewed on a two yearly cycle.

References:

Learning Diversity and Inclusion in IB Programmes: Removing barriers to learning, Updated May 2020.

Guide to Program Evaluation for use from September 2020.

New Programme Standards and Practices (2020)