[senco-forum] Training for all teachers

Sharon -- the parental role is my primary concern -- I work as a parental  
advisor! Sheila has made the point that parents were also a priority for her.  
But this point, as made, was a fatuous red herring. Whenever the hard work of  
professional training in terms of what has to be done in schools and 
classrooms  in order to effectively teach and provide for SEN children is raised  --  
someone comes up with woolly comments about having "good relationships" with  
parents -- setting aside the need for very well trained specialist  
teachers/therapists to be available for direct 1:1 tuition and therapy, etc. LAs  love 
the confusion caused when we -- on this forum -- argue about parental  
involvement as opposed to (as if it were an oppositional argument) high levels  of 
professional provision. LAs are the experts at talking parents to death in  
meetings rather than providing urgently required specialist tuition  and high levels 
of classroom support which is what is usually required. Sheila  quite 
sensibly set out a short list of required aspects of SEN knowledge  for all teachers 
-- and then was rubbished for not listing parental invovelment  at the top of 
her list. For Gods Sake! Parental involvement is a "given". It is  not, 
however, the basis of a sensible curriculum for SEN aspects of initial  teacher 
training -- grow up please!! Brendan