Strategies employed in an alternative school setting for adolescents with special needs, to achieve academic and behavioural growth

Strategies employed in an alternative school setting for adolescents with special needs, to achieve academic and behavioural growth

This paper reports a case study focussed on a co-educational alternative secondary school in an Inner West suburb of Sydney, NSW, which caters to adolescents in Years 7 – 10 who are diagnosed with one or more of the following special needs: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiance disorder, autism spectrum disorder, learning difficulties and mental health complexities. The researcher identified, across the literature, twelve good practice strategies which should be included in alternative school settings in order to achieve a level of behavioural and academic success for adolescents. Four staff members employed in this alternative school setting were interviewed individually and were required to rank the twelve good practice strategies in order of effectiveness, based on their professional knowledge and experience in this school. Three themes emerged from the interviews, which highlighted the effectiveness of building relationships, positive approaches, and flexibility as the strategies that achieve academic and behavioural success for students in alternative school settings.

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