Learning Support Program and Accommodations
Funding:
For those students who are registered for our Options Program or who qualify for accommodations based on a diagnosis from a psycho-educational evaluation completed by a certified professional, there is a state funded program to assist families in tuition cost called Exceptional SC. Please use this link to read more about the program and possible funding for school: ExceptionalSC. We encourage you to sign up for its newsletters to be informed of deadlines and updated information.
Inspired by our belief in the dignity of every student and informed by contemporary scientific insights into brain function and Bishop England strives to make learning accessible to every student, despite learning ability. We understand that conditions such as ADHD, anxiety, dyslexia, and dyscalculia cause challenges in the learning process. Therefore, the Learning Support Program was designed to equip students, who experience difficulties in learning, with the tools and strategies they need to reach their maximum potential. Through individualized plans, our team provides support in three main ways: Accommodation Plans, Consultations, and a Learning Lab.
Who is able to utilize the Learning Support Program?
Students who have identified learning difficulties such as decreased attention span, slow processing, difficulty note-taking, difficulty studying, organization, difficulty with basic calculations, language processing, and anxiety due to a documented disorder such as ADHD, dyslexia, or anxiety. (Documented means a psycho-educational evaluation report provided by a clinical or school psychologist, within the past three years, indicates a learning impairment).
How do students access the Learning Support Program?
STEP 1
Current Bishop England Students
Students who have or haven’t been tested and believe they aren’t reaching their intellectual potential or believe they are experiencing learning struggles and frustrations that exceed those of their peers should contact, or should have their parents contact, the Director of Accommodations, Megan Myrick, to schedule a meeting.
New Applicants
Parents of students who have or haven’t been tested, who believe they will need Learning Support at Bishop England, should indicate the anticipated need on their student’s application and inform the Director of Admissions, Kit Brownell, of the anticipated need.
STEP 2
Students and their parents will complete an application and will meet with the Admissions and/or Accommodations Director to set goals and determine if the student would benefit from supports already in place at the school OR if the student would benefit from an evaluation by his/her physician and/or psycho-educational testing.
STEP 3
If the student proceeds with testing (which is available through Berkeley County Schools for free), it will take 2-3 months. If testing supports a learning difference, the Accommodations Director and the family will work together to create an Individualized Accommodations Plan, which will outline the supports and accommodations that will be made available for the student. Please note that this process will also be informed by input from the student’s current and past teachers and any accommodations assigned must be supported by an established need. Some recommended accommodations are not available at Bishop England (such as testing in a separate testing center).
What supports and accommodations are available at Bishop England?
- Class levels that are modified for different learning abilities
- Learning Lab is an elective designed to support students with self-advocacy, executive function skills, and study skills
- Math Lab, an extension of Learning Lab, provides extra math help with a Bishop England math teacher
- Accommodations (based on documented need) include extra time on assessments, specified seating, calculator use, computer use for typing answers, no penalty for spelling errors, and others according to a student’s need
- Consultations with the Director of Accommodations for goal setting and monitoring progress
- Study sessions
What if a student is struggling academically but doesn’t qualify for accommodations?
If neither psycho-educational testing nor teacher feedback support the need for accommodations but the student continues to struggle, the Director of Accommodations and the Guidance Counseling Department will work with the family to help the student take advantage of supports already in place at the school, such as ‘extra help’, the PASS program, and Flex periods; and will help the family find tutors or executive function coaches who may be able to support the student outside of school.