They help special-needs students integrate better

She has helped students who have autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) and those with global developmental delay and hearing and visual impairment.

He has guided students with various forms of social communication and interaction difficulties, some of whom have difficulties sustaining their attention or inhibiting their impulsiveness.

Madam Fairoz Atan, 38, and Mr Kelvin Lim, 43, are allied educators for learning and behavioural support, or AED (LBS).

Allied educators work with teachers to nurture and develop children in school by raising the quality of interaction with every child.

The AED (LBS) provides structured and systematic support to students with mild special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream schools and enables them to integrate better.

Both Madam Fairoz and Mr Lim attended the National Institute of Education (NIE) and took the diploma in special education where they were introduced to special education, educational theory and different types of special needs.

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They were also taught how to plan for intervention sessions with SEN students.

They were both then enrolled in the Autism Resource Centre to deepen their knowledge and improve their skills.

Madam Fairoz told The New Paper: "My training is different from the standard teacher's training because that training concentrates mostly on pedagogy and curriculum."

She has taught around 50 SEN students over 11 years in Montfort Junior School.

She said that being an AED (LBS) comes with many challenges, one of which is trying to calm a student down when he throws a tantrum.

Tantrums happen when an SEN student is not able to cope with what is happening or has problems expressing himself and his frustrations.

According to Madam Fairoz, it may take a while for a student to be composed after a tantrum.

She said: "I have to accompany the student and wait. I also have to make sure that nothing will trigger the student into another tantrum."

Mr Lim has three years of experience as an AED (LBS) and he has helped more than 100 SEN students at St Andrew's Secondary School.

He noticed that with a major shift towards becoming a more inclusive society, parents are gaining more awareness of various learning difficulties and are more open in getting their child diagnosed so they can receive intervention early.

Mr Lim said: "We do witness an increase in the number of SEN students attending mainstream schools."

He added that these students are provided with numerous opportunities to learn and practise social skills with their peers in a natural environment.

However, he also admits that generalising social skills and norms may not come easy for some SEN students.

Said Mr Lim: "They may experience difficulties, discouragements or setbacks when practising their social skills with their peers. Hence, it is important for them to have a strong peer support group that provides support and encouragement in their learning journey."