1. Invest your time at the initial stage 

Create your support network (with your fellow teachers and best if parents can be onboard as well) and invest your time at the beginning to piece together a ‘fuller’ pic of your students with SEN needing your support. Spending time together discussing student needs and their unique strategies for building upon student strengths and successes is an investment and will reap benefits in the end. You can then come up with a support plan and also agree on similar routines for the students in class or in other parts of the school.  KNOWING your student well and being CONSISTENT will be key factors for successful support. 

 

2. Sources for Information Gathering 

Where can you gather information on your student? Please refer to the table on the right (via 3 pics). This process can be beneficial not only for you and your ‘team’ to support the student, but if the case needs to be escalated for further support or advice by the MOE Educational Psychologist (EP), this collection of information on the student would be required for submission to the EP. It is thus useful in more ways than one for you (and your ‘team’) to gather such information first. 

 

3. Ways of finding time or ‘space’ to discuss or meet with fellow collaborators

 

-       Use of online communication e.g. WhatsApp / Telegram / Microsoft Teams / Zoom 

-       Use of common recess or after school lunch breaks for a meal together (with discussion during the meal)

-       Use of ‘meetable’ moments e.g. common free period for a short ‘touch-base’ or update

Note: If it is a serious case of support, do work with the school leaders / middle managers to enable you and your ‘team’ to have a common ‘white space’ for an on-going discussion/planning or review time per week or fortnightly.

 

 

Six Evidence-based tips on how to help a student with selective mutism in the classroom

 

1. Accept non-verbal communication at first

a) Whenever possible, do try to find low-stress, non-verbal ways to incorporate a student with selective mutism into activities. In order to help them feel like that they are part of the class, do give them a task or responsibility that does not require communication, such as putting up things on the notice board or holding the door open for classmates. 

 

b) Accept non-verbal responses. If they are too anxious to answer a question or participate using their voice in any situation, offer and accept a way for them to respond non-verbally. This will be temporary, with the expectation that eventually the student will be able to give verbal responses and participate in the conversation. But even after the student has made progress, if he or she still struggles to respond to a question or shut down, do remind him or her that a non-verbal response is still an option for him or her. 

 

2. Avoid questions at first and ease into one-sided spoken communication

Students with selective mutism often benefit from a warm-up period where they are not expected to speak. This would give them time to feel more comfortable in a new setting. When a child with selective mutism enters the classroom, instead of greeting them with, “Good morning, how are you today?” you may start with something like, “It’s so good to see you this morning! We’re going to have a great day today.” This takes the pressure off from the student having to give a verbal response. As time goes on, you may be able to move into having them giving you a non-verbal greeting such as a high-five or a wave.

 

After that, do ease into one-sided communication. You may start with descriptions, reflections, and other self-talk that can connect you to your student’s interest or situation / circumstances. 

 

3. Ask forced-choice questions and give specific praise

When the time is right and your student has warmed up to non-verbal forms of communication, you may start asking questions which will force them to choose between two options, such as “Do you like the pink or purple crayon better?” or “Does your house have stairs or no stairs?” or “Did you ride in a car or on the bus today?” This way, they have to answer beyond “yes” or “no,” but they do not have to formulate a long response either. Even if you begin making a yes/no question, you may always add an option at the end to make it a forced choice. For example, if you ask, “Did you ride with your mum today?”, you may add “Or with someone else?” to the end.

 

When the student does answer a question or otherwise interacts with their peers, it is important to give specific with praise and positively reinforce the behavior. Even actions like smiling, waving, moving closer to a peer, or handing you a piece of paper should be acknowledged. Say things like: “Great job handing me that paper!” or “It was really brave of you to smile at your classmate!” or “Thank you for telling me you like the pink crayon!” This lets your student know exactly what he or she is being praised for and will help him or her feel motivated to continue doing it. 

 

4. Avoid mind-reading and reinforce speech, not gestures

As the child gets more comfortable in the classroom, don’t let the child simply point or shake their head yes or no, and don’t assume you understand what they are trying to communicate by projecting a response for them. Instead, encourage speech by continuing to ask questions. For example, if the student points to a particular book, you may ask him or her, “I see you’re pointing at the blue book. Do you wish to read it here or borrow home to read?” 

 

When the student responds, remember to positively reinforce with labeled, specific phrases: “Great job telling me that you wish to borrow it home to read! Would you like to borrow another book as well or just borrow this book? ”

 

 

5. Offer small group work

Being in a smaller group setting can help lessen anxiety and the social demands of speaking. If a child with selective mutism is too anxious to complete a task in front of the whole class, offer an opportunity for them to participate within a small group or complete an activity one-on-one with you. Additionally, studies have shown that small-group instruction benefits both teachers and students. In fact, small-group instruction has positive cognitive and social/emotional implications for a student’s development. Although it may not be possible for every activity or lesson, do note that classroom activities in small groupings can benefit all students including those with selective mutism.

 

 

6. Be positive, encouraging, and enthusiastic

Selective mutism is not oppositional or defiant behavior. Even if it seems that a student with selective mutism is refusing to answer questions or speak, they are simply anxious and unable to speak—even if they want to. Do not reprimand or punish a child with selective mutism for not talking and avoid using guilt to try to get them to speak. 

 

Children with selective mutism can be extremely sensitive to criticism and easily overwhelmed if they feel they are failing or disappointing someone. Thus, a teacher of a student with selective mutism should always remain calm, positive, and encouraging. Create a warm classroom environment so that your student with selective mutism can feel more and more comfortable expressing themselves. Ask the student or their parents about the student’s interests and then try to bring those into the classroom. This will give them a chance to be excited and confident when exploring the things they know about and use their talents.

 

All in all, do remember that students with selective mutism can and do make a lot of progress, but it usually occurs in small steps and takes time and patience. So do be patient. 

 

Areas to focus on to help a student with SEN prepare for the examinations

 

1. Access Arrangements (AA)

a) First of all, ascertain what type of AA would be suitable for the students. NOT all AA will be suitable or needed and it is important to apply for AA which will be useful and beneficial for student (to try out usefulness during class tests or exercises and discuss as a team – school and parents). Examples of AA include:

·      Extra time (students with needs like autism or social, emotional and mental health needs might require extra processing time). Note that this is NOT a suitable option for all students with SEN. At times, this may not be useful or may even cause extra stress and frustration for some students. 

·      Use of a reader

·      Use of a scribe

·      Use of a computer (This is useful if the student can type well as opposed to being unable to write normally or handwrite laboriously or with difficulty.)

 

b) It is very important to prepare the students with SEN for the type of AA that they will be having – once this is decided. A mock exam is extremely useful for SEN learners because it prepares them for what to expect in a real exam. The teacher (and SEN officer) may break down the steps needed for the student to benefit from the AA in an examination. Practice (e.g. during class test) is needed way before the actual examination. Review after the practice to ensure that the students with SEN is prepared for the examinations with the AA would be very useful as well. Mock exams should prepare learners for the conditions they will face and is the best way to experience what the final exam will be like. Use reasonable adjustments in your mock exams.

 

c) If the student is NOT getting any AA, then there must be a plan to systematically withdraw or remove the scaffolding e.g. extra time. However, it is important to have the withdrawal or removal as a planned move (after ascertaining that the student is ready for such a withdrawal or removal and it must be done gradually). Prior to this, your support plan should include having the student to be guided and to work towards this eventual withdrawal/removal. There should be appropriate assessments to ‘test’ if the student is ready for gradual withdrawal/removal of scaffolding. Every support plan should be accompanied by a plan to withdraw or remove scaffolding in due course. 

 

 

2. Handling examination stress 

 

a) Support via coaching the student on how to prepare for the examinations (content/skill-wise)

 

Many students with SEN find revision challenging – it can be difficult to know what and how to revise – and some students struggle to revise without support. One of the most important revision strategies is retrieval practice. Retrieval theory states that the more times you recall a memory the stronger it becomes. Retrieval works best with a scaffold or structure to complete rather than just expecting learners to highlight notes or read through their work. Consider using graphical information organisers or exam questions to scaffold recall (but stick to simple questions rather than those that test application).Developing application skills in SEN learners requires teacher input because these skills need to be modelled appropriately. One approach is for the teacher to scaffold the answering of application questions. 

 

Do note that the lower attaining learners often suffer from self-doubt and lack of confidence. So, start off with easy questions and build up to harder ones at their targeted level. Train students to check marks available and how to answer free response questions. 

 

 

b) Advice on exam anxiety

It is important for teachers to assure students that feeling anxious about exams is normal and students need to hear this message. Advice for students can include: 

 

Don’t overthink the exam.

Don’t put too much pressure on yourself.

Do get organised for the exam.

Do revise for each subject.

Do plan for the exam.

Get students to plan out their routine for during exam times - a checklist or visual timetable would help. Students should also have a list of the appropriate equipment to bring to the exam.

 

Additional methods to support students with exam anxiety 

-       Have “worry baskets” in which students are asked to write down the things that worry them, then to categorise them as things they need to act on straight away, things they can leave for now and things they have no control over (so they do not need to worry about them).

-       Show students breathing exercises (there are many websites and apps available, so they can find one that works for them). Mindfulness exercises might also be appropriate for some learners, which may help them with their thoughts and feelings surrounding exams and aid their well-being.

Five ways to help motivate a student with SEN (which will also benefit the whole class) 

 

1. Use of Positive Reinforcement

Praising a student with SEN for every right action made or giving him another try when he or she gave a wrong answer are positive reinforcements that will encourage more participation from the student and open a communication line between you and the student.

 

2. Use of Token economy

Students with SEN could be given small rewards (e.g. points, stickers) every time they give appropriate responses. These ‘reinforcers’ or rewards have to be interesting enough to a child to serve as motivation and should be based on a child’s personal interests and preferences. These rewards may help in the development of their social, language, and behavioural skills. 

 

3. Create opportunities for success

Encourage your students to work hard and to improve by offering opportunities for small successes and then celebrate those successes. Do celebrate WITH your students together as this is also your small successes as his or her teacher too (Give yourself a pat on your back or a reward for yourself!)

 

4. Keep things simple 

When it comes to teaching students with SEN, it is important to break down tasks into small, manageable steps – you should also keep projects short and sweet. The more complicated you make things, the more likely your students are to become confused or frustrated and that adds to the challenges that they are already facing.

 

5. Infuse Fun elements in lessons 

Every student loves to have fun! Creating a fun learning environment will help motivate your students to learn. Try turning the lesson into a simple memory game, trivia game, singing game or involve one of their interests. For example, if your child is going through a phase in which they love birds, create math problems that involve birds or read books about birds.  You can even use technology that is both fun and educational.