Team Work

Last year as part of the Assist work I attended a powhiri, this custom welcomed me on to the kura and meant that I could come in to the kura as I was no longer a visitor but part of the kura whanau. I had several visits to the school meeting the parents, class teacher and senco and building a relationship with the akonga to support her self managing her new aids (with some support from school staff). One of my visits was to upskill the office staff so that they could in turn support Kitana to have optimal output from her hearing aids (making sure that they were clean and batteries changed). Discussions with Mum and also the senco and RTLB indicated that while Mum had good intentions often these fell a little short in relation to Kitana being at school and Mum being able to support Kitana with wearing of the hearing aids. Systems were put in place as mentioned above to support Kitana to develop independence and self management with her hearing aids. The initial referral supporting the use of the hearing aids was in relation to Kitana's learning. Concerns had been raised in relation to her lack of achievement and could this be to do with her not being able to access the curriculum to the same level as her peers due to her hearing loss. For me this highlighted the importance of building a relationship with Kitana and her family and her school as if we could support her to wear her aids at school ad hopefully at home, we could help her to learn to understand what was being said around her. The exposure to the two spoken languages - Te Reo and English are shown at different areas on an audiogram. If Kitana wore her aids consistently this would in turn help her to differentiate between the two language. For me the learning around and feeling comfortable in the kura was able to be linked back to the te ara reo courses I had done at the open wananga. I realised that without those opportunities I would have felt considerably more nervous however it does raise the need for me to go back and refer to the notes I made around common phrases and conversations so that I can take the opportunity to develop my te reo further, This year(term 2) audiology contacted me in relation to the possibility of Kitana getting an FM system at school. Kitana was wearing her hearing aids at school (above noted strategies had been successful in helping Kitana to wear her aids at school). I contacted the senco and had several email conversations about an FM system. This technology was unfamiliar to the staff at the kura so a meeting was organised (term 3, week 1) with the class teacher, senco, Mum, Kitana and myself. This meeting was an opportunity for me to come and talk to them and show them all what a personal Fm was and also an opportunity for them to ask me any questions. The day before the meeting I checked to see if we were still all set for the meeting and yes we were. Unfortunately on the day of the meeting Moira the senco contacted me to say that Kitana was not at school and they weren't able to get in contact with Mum or grandma. She asked me if I would still like to come and see her and the class teacher or would I prefer to reschedule. I asked if we could reschedule as I would like Mum and Kitana to be there so that they are involved in the discussions and decision making and not having things 'done to them'. The collaborative process provides opportunities for best outcomes for Kitana. The kura also put high importance in having the whanau involved. They are aware of the challenges involved in this but are passionate about having high expectations for their akonga. As well as acknowledging the strengths and needs of their akonga and their family. These values fit in well with my own values and beliefs and support the assist perspective too. What worked well was acknowldege that some things can take longer than first planned and that's ok if you want buy on from everyone. what next - is to have the meeting and work on next steps and who support the student, family. The meeting has been reschedule for term 3, week 2. PTC 9 respond effectively to the diverse language and cultural experiences, and the varied strengths, interests and needs of individuals and groups of akonga - demonstrate knowledge and understanding of social and cultural influences on learning, by working effectively in the bicultural and multicultural contexts of learning in NZ. PTC 10 - work effectively within the bicultural context of Aotearoa NZ - specifically and effectively address the educational aspirations of akonga Maori, displaying high expectations for their learning.



update: 7.8.2016
The meeting booked for week 2, term3 - the hui for the providers went ahead.  The outcome of this meeting meant that the Senco, RTLB and the public health nurse as well as the social worker for the schools now have a better understanding around what a personal fm is and the potential benefits for Kitana, the class teacher and the other students can be. During the meeting a discussion was had around Kitana not being at school when I was coming in, so we were not able to see if the hearing aids were working properly, we talked about was there a possibility that the aids weren't working and Kitana was worried what would happen if this was found out. For me this meant that we needed to reassure her that if they weren't working it wasn't a problem but further more it meant that the upskilling of the people last year in relations to checking if the aids were working had not been successful as they were not regularly being checked. In turn this lead to a discussion around how we could change this to make it work.  I am going to go in next Thursday when it was already planned for me to meet with Gran, Kitana and the class treacher, I would also meet with the RTLB, Senco and the health nurse to show them how to check the hearing aids are working. This then means that there are three people who can check the aids.  The senco is going to learn the hearing aid checking and not the class teacher at this stage but she will look at supporting the class teacher to learn this skill.  Also from the discussions at the hui as well as applying for the inspiro fm I will also apply for the mic that can be handed around during class time, powhiri and other events at school.

my mihi and karakia -  something that came out of the meeting that I need to improve is my confidence in introducing myself in te reo, I did the te ara reo courses and know my mihi but need to practice it more so I can say it more confidently. Also I need to practice saying and knowing a number of karakia as it is part of the protocol at the  kura to start meetigs with a karakia (if you have not already said one for the day) it also reinforces what we have been doing at our own staff meetings.


11.8.16
I attended the meeting with Kitana, her Mum and Grandmother, the RTLB, Health nurse and the 2nd class teacher and teacher aide. The purpose of this meeting was to provide information to the whanaua about the FM and the benefits of it for the child and class teacher. It was also to take the opportunity to upskill some of the people who support Kitana with checking her hearing aids were working. At the hui it was decidied that Joce the public health nurse along with the teacher aide would learn how to check hearing aids to enable them to support Kitana having ownership of the aids and feeling confident in knowing the aids were working and how to look after them.
What went well:
Joce and Teacher aide now feel more confident at supporting Kitana to check her aids. A system has been set up to facilitate this. Mum and Grandma have a better understanding of what the FM is for and are keen for Kitana to trial one. Kitana is hopefully less worried about breaking or losing hearing aids or if they are not work - knowing what to do or who to ask.
What was a challenge:
the class teacher who works with Kitana the most was away and last year seemed to find the idea of another challenge re supporting a student with her aids to be in the too hard basket. We had set up support systems to help her but the senco acknowledged that the FM trial would be another challenge for her and was keen to get others on board to hopefully encourage her to see the potential. The other class teacher who was at the meeting was challenging in relation to her own needs that she wanted to discuss I found that by listening to what she had to say and acknowledging her suggestions (while not necessarily accepting them) meant that she seemed more willing to listen to suggestions made by other team members.
Where to next:
I need to order the equipment and once it as arrived liaise with the senco how to best bring it into the classroom and supporting the class teacher to use the equipment.


Update Nov 2016 - equipment ordered in September however I did not initially include the pass around mic which delayed the fitting. Met with Kitana and the with team supporting Kitana, class teacher, Senco, Mum and was going to meet with RTLB and Public Health Nurse to work with them re how to use the FM, unfortunately when I went to fit the FM one of the hearing aids was not working the other aid when the receiver was fitted it said it was connected however it was not giving the audio output of the FM. This was frustrating as the purpose of the meeting had been to up skill people in the use of the FM. I was able to take the non working hearing aid to get it checked and then organised to send it away and while there asked if there was a program that needed to be activated in order for the receivers to work. Audiologist was unsure so rung Phonak and it turned out that yes there was a program and it hadn't been activated. Once this had been activated I was able to return to the school on the same day and successfully connect one receiver to the roger fm. I then met with the class teacher to show her how to use it and give her the opportunity to connect and use it. The look on Kitana's face with the FM was initially turned on was priceless. She looked at me with wide eyes and a surprised look on her face. I said to her you can hear me? A huge nod and a yes was her response. She was keen to go out of the room and see if she could still hear me, which she could. The class teacher was keen to support the others to use the FM, the offer is there for her to contact me if she thinks the other teachers need support, discussed with Senco re class teacher taking the lead role in upskilling others and she thought this was a great idea as the class teacher is "tech savy" and it was a great change from last year. We decided not to introduce the pass around at that stage and I went back at a later time to introduce this. I also took the opportunity to talk with the teacher aide who said that the FM was being used. Application was submitted and awaiting a response. I do need to talk with the Senco about supporting the public health nurse and the RTLB with using the FM. I also need to liaise with Mum and Grandma re feedback from Kitana to them and their thoughts. My main point of contact has been Moira the Senco. One of our most recent conversations ended with her saying to me "thanks for how you have worked with us" to me that tells me I am doing my job. I am part of the team and while I may have areas of expertise it is my responsibility to pass these on in such a way that everyone involved feels empowered. I still think there is work to be done in making the use of the FM and the pass around mic part of everyday practice and supporting Kitana to take ownership of the system and having the confidence to ask for it to be used if it is not being used. Moira and I are in contact regarding organising a meeting with next years teacher to support them to gain and understanding around the use of the FM in the classroom and wider school activities.