HELPING STUDENTS

For close to twenty six years Barbara Broughton has been an educational advocate for children who have been on the edge of the classroom. The types of children who are failing in the traditional school system are often misunderstood and wrongly considered 'difficult'. It was these students who became Barbara’s calling. With a passion

AfternearlytwentysixyearsatSt.AndrewsCollegePreparatorySchool, BarbaraBroughtonmovestofocusonlocalprivatestudents. for professional development, she has continuously adopted the latest research for the advancement of neurodiverse children and those with specific learning requirements. Neurodiversity is the umbrella term for people who have a range of specific neuro types, some of which you have probably heard of like Dyslexia, and others you may not have like Dyscalculia. Neurodiversity includes people who are Autistic, A.D.H.D, A.D.D, Dyslexic, Dyscalculic, Dyspraxic, Dysgraphic and frequently pairs with emotional and behavioural challenges.

Following teacher training in Dunedin, Barbara moved to Canterbury and married local farmer, Gordon Broughton. This saw her take a position at Darfield High School before having a family and later briefly taught an extension program at Darfield Primary School. Stepping back into teaching after having children saw Barbara actually step out of the classroom, teaching a behaviourally challenged child at home. She observed the child working out his specific needs in a difficult home environment, and together they learned to skateboard. Barbara's next step ignited her passion for the hard to reach kids. In 1996 she was awarded a Government Scholarship for a Diploma in Special Needs. This was an emerging teaching specialty at that time.

The following year Barbara began at St Andrews’ College Preparatory School. Starting from the ground up, she established and grew the learning support department over twenty seven years, providing a pathway for success for students who were falling behind age expected standards, or were neurodiverse with specific learning requirements. The support she offered was not only for the students but often supporting the parents in the journey. For parents of these children, navigating the complex system to get support can be overwhelming, and Barbara sees supporting the parents as a key part to the students success. In her role as Head of Learning Support, Barbara developed a system that is a complete wraparound approach for students that includes: external consultant support providing specialist services and interventions (eg psychologists, and occupational therapists); research proven programs and innovative approaches (eg structured literacy before it was widely known as being the best way to teach literacy). All are delivered within the school day in ‘real time’.

There is an increasing awareness of students who need specific and specialist input to succeed. Schools are crying out for trained teachers and specialist consultants. “Research has provided more knowledge of the best interventions for these students, but funding for schools is not keeping up. This is contributing to the falling standards of literacy and numeracy in New Zealand,” commented Barbara.

Barbara is now moving to private consultancy focusing on local students who need specific support to find success at school.

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