Derrington 2012 thesis.pdf - Anglia Ruskin Research Online

close joint systems approach between the school and family can promote better
communication and behaviour management. ‘However well systems are set up and
monitored, the vital component for success is the relationship between teachers and
their pupils’ (McSherry, 2001, p109). Systems which reward positive progress are
invaluable and students at The Centre School work with clear targets and
performance indicators. Section 3.5 explains how music therapy fits into this scheme
of work.
Incidents of challenging behaviour and incidents which involve restraint are logged
by the school staff team. Howarth and Fisher (2005) clearly define levels of
challenging behaviour as follows:- Level 1 refers to a student who swears, answers
back, gets out of their seat and constantly makes noises; Level 2 is when a student
becomes verbally abusive to another pupil, continuously swears and refuses to work,
preventing the teacher from speaking to the whole class; Level 3 relates to verbal
abuse to an adult, a student’s refusal to obey reasonable requests, assault on another
pupil, or leaving the classroom without permission; Level 4 relates to behaviours such
as verbally and/or physically threatening an adult, assault on an adult, leaving the
school grounds without permission, providing illegal substances, or a violent attack
on another pupil. The logbooks at The Centre are essential for tracking the behaviour
of pupils and intervening with behaviour plans before things escalate to incidents at
level 4. Referrals to music therapy are generally made when a student’s behaviour is
getting worse, as shown by entries in these logbooks.
3.3.1 Students at The Centre School
On the whole, students at The Centre School are very troubled young people. All the
students have complex needs and many are battling against economic and social
difficulties as well as emotional and behavioural problems. The majority of students
have a statement for special needs 18 for social, emotional and behavioural difficulties,
and many have associated learning difficulties. Some of them have parents with
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") !A statement of special educational needs sets out a child’s needs and the support
they need in school. This is reviewed annually.
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