Diploma in Teaching (Further Education and Skills) / DET Specialist Pedagogy: Teaching English, Maths and Disability/SEND Syllabus

Write the formula linking percentage change to original and new values.

$\text{percentage change} = \frac{\text{new value} - \text{original value}}{\text{original value}} \times 100$.

State Pythagoras' theorem for a right-angled triangle.

$a^{2} + b^{2} = c^{2}$, where $c$ is the hypotenuse and $a$, $b$ are the two shorter sides.

Name three strategies for developing learners' maths skills and reducing anxiety.

Use real/vocational contexts to show relevance; build from concrete manipulatives (CPA); low-stakes practice and modelling 'mistakes are learning'; and develop number talk/estimation to build number sense.

What is a 'low-stakes, high-frequency' approach to maths practice?

Regular short tasks (e.g. starters, quizzes) carrying little or no grade pressure, used to build fluency, recall and confidence without triggering test anxiety.

How can a teacher assess numeracy authentically within a vocational task?

Embed measurement, costing, scaling, time or material-calculation tasks into the vocational job (e.g. calculating ingredient quantities, area for tiling, dosage, or wage estimates) and assess the maths used.

What is the difference between a formula and an equation?

A formula is a general rule relating quantities (e.g. $A = \pi r^{2}$); an equation is a statement that two expressions are equal, often solved to find an unknown value (e.g. $2x + 3 = 11$).

What does SEND stand for and who does it cover in the post-16 sector?

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities; it covers learners aged up to 25 who have a learning difficulty and/or disability that calls for special educational provision to be made for them.

Name the four broad areas of need set out in the SEND Code of Practice (2015).

1) Communication and interaction; 2) Cognition and learning; 3) Social, emotional and mental health; 4) Sensory and/or physical needs.

What is an EHC plan (Education, Health and Care plan)?

A legal document for children and young people up to 25 with significant SEND, describing their needs and the education, health and social care support required to meet agreed outcomes.

Under the Equality Act 2010, what is a 'reasonable adjustment'?

A change a provider must make to remove or reduce a disadvantage faced by a disabled learner (e.g. extra time, assistive technology, accessible materials) so they can access learning on an equal basis.

Under the Equality Act 2010, what are the nine 'protected characteristics'?

Age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

How does the Equality Act 2010 define a 'disability'?

A physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term (12 months or more) adverse effect on a person's ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.

Distinguish between the 'medical model' and the 'social model' of disability.

The medical model locates the problem in the individual's impairment to be 'fixed'; the social model locates disability in barriers created by society/environment that must be removed to enable participation.

What is the difference between 'differentiation' and 'adaptive teaching'?

Differentiation traditionally means creating different tasks/resources per learner; adaptive teaching means flexibly adjusting teaching in response to learners' needs in the moment while keeping high expectations for all, avoiding fixed ability groupings.

What is Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and its three core principles?

UDL is a framework for designing inclusive teaching from the outset; its principles are providing multiple means of: 1) Engagement, 2) Representation, and 3) Action and Expression.

Name three inclusive teaching strategies that benefit learners with SEND.

Chunking information and using clear structured routines; multi-sensory presentation (visual, auditory, kinaesthetic); assistive technology (text-to-speech, coloured overlays); and flexible/extended response options.

What is 'scaffolding' in the context of inclusive teaching?

Temporary, structured support (e.g. prompts, frames, worked examples, modelling) that helps a learner achieve a task they could not do alone, gradually removed as competence grows.

Define dyslexia and give two typical classroom indicators.

Dyslexia is a specific learning difficulty affecting accurate and fluent word reading and spelling. Indicators: slow/effortful reading, poor phonological processing, weak spelling, difficulty with working memory and organisation.

What is the 'zone of proximal development' (Vygotsky) and its relevance to adaptive teaching?

The gap between what a learner can do unaided and what they can do with support; effective teaching pitches tasks within this zone and uses scaffolding to move learners towards independence.

What is meant by a learner's 'transition' in the post-16 sector?

The process of moving between phases or settings (e.g. school to college, course to course, or college to employment/higher study/independent living), which requires planning to ensure continuity of support.

What is 'preparing for adulthood' (PfA) and its four pathways for young people with SEND?

A SEND outcomes framework for transition; the four pathways are: 1) Employment, 2) Independent living, 3) Community inclusion/participation, and 4) Health and wellbeing.

Name three ways a teacher can promote learner independence and progression.

Develop metacognitive/study skills and self-assessment; gradually withdraw scaffolding; set individual targets and review them; build employability and self-advocacy skills.

What is 'metacognition' and why is it important for progression?

Metacognition is learners' awareness and regulation of their own thinking and learning strategies; it improves independence because learners can plan, monitor and evaluate their work and transfer skills to new contexts.

What is an Individual Learning Plan (ILP) and what should it contain?

A personalised, working document recording a learner's starting points, SMART targets, support needs/adjustments, and progress reviews, used to plan and track their learning journey.

What does SMART stand for when setting learner targets?

Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound.

In maths, how do you calculate the mean, and how does it differ from the median?

The mean is the sum of all values divided by the number of values: $\bar{x} = \frac{\sum x}{n}$. The median is the middle value when the data are ordered; it is less affected by extreme outliers than the mean.

Convert the ratio $3:1$ into a fraction and a percentage of the total.

Total parts $= 3 + 1 = 4$; so the parts are $\frac{3}{4} = 75\%$ and $\frac{1}{4} = 25\%$ of the whole.

What is the difference between 'assessment of learning' and 'assessment for learning'?

Assessment of learning (summative) measures achievement at a point in time (e.g. a final exam); assessment for learning (formative) uses evidence during teaching to give feedback and shape next steps.

Why is contextualising English and maths to a learner's vocation important for engagement?

It demonstrates relevance and purpose, increases motivation, overcomes the 'I'm no good at maths/English' mindset, and helps learners transfer the skills directly to their workplace and assessments.

What is 'differentiation by outcome' versus 'differentiation by task'?

By task: learners are given different activities/resources matched to their level. By outcome: all attempt the same open task but produce responses at different levels, allowing for a range of achievement.

State the simple interest formula and identify each term.

$I = \frac{P \times R \times T}{100}$, where $I$ is the interest, $P$ the principal, $R$ the annual interest rate (%) and $T$ the time in years.