Learning Development
The Learning Development team offers support and guidance to those who need help during their time at College. This includes learners who have additional support needs, health issues or a disability. Our friendly and professional service covers all College campuses and offers a wide range of support.
1. How do I get support?
If you would like to discuss any support needs you have before you apply to the College, please call us on the number below or email us.
If you have a place on a course and would like support, complete an Additional Support Needs form, which is available at all campus receptions and on all college noticeboards. The completed form should be handed in at any campus reception. Once this is received, we will give you an appointment to discuss your support needs in more detail or you can discuss your support concerns with any member of staff and they will link you to our service.
You can contact us directly by:
Email support@forthvalley.ac.uk
Phone 01324 403330
2. Types of support available?
Learning Mentors
A Learning Mentor can give you one-to-one support and is trained to help you with things like time management, organisation and study skills. They can also give you training on assistive technology/software to help with reading, writing and study skills.
Communication Support Workers
A Communication Support Worker (CSW) aids the communication between Deaf and hearing people, although they are not qualified British Sign Language Interpreters. CSW’s provide educational as well as communication support in the classroom. They can help deaf students to understand and produce written material, adapting the language of learning materials. They can also advise on how the learning environment could be improved for the benefit of the d/Deaf learner and are able to assist hearing-impaired students with exams.
Equipment
We can lend certain pieces of equipment to students, including digital recorders, spellcheckers and digital dictionaries. We also have a range of ergonomic furniture available for learners to use in class.
Core Skills
"Core Skills Count" drop-in sessions provide support with numeracy (to level 1), reading, writing and IT. There are also maths drop-ins, for any level, within the college.
Note-taking
If you have a hearing or physical impairment, or injury, we can arrange for a member of staff to be present in the classroom to take notes for you.
Funding
We can provide help if you want to apply to SAAS for Disabled Students’ Allowance (H.N. learners only). For more information go to the SAAS website.
Exam arrangements
We can also help if you need any special arrangements put in place for taking examinations, such as extra time, a reader, scribe, prompter or a separate room.
