Support Services

NIST International School supports students with an environment and resources for academic success

Our approach to support services is aligned with the NIST mission to inspire growth, empower excellence and enrich lives

We work to create a safe, secure and supportive learning environment for all students, inclusive of all abilities. We believe that every student in our care holds the potential to flourish, and it is our responsibility to ensure their access to the necessary resources and accommodations to help them achieve their highest level of learning success.

To support our students to flourish we will:

Provide an inclusive learning environment that is sensitive to the diverse learning and wellbeing needs of our students.
Implement a range of support services that cater to different learning styles, needs and abilities. This includes access to counselling, enrichment support, learning support and/or allied health services.
Ensure that all staff have access to information and professional development so they are equipped to identify and address the needs of our students.
Encourage open, ongoing and confidential communication between students, staff and support service specialists to foster a collaborative, cooperative and supportive learning environment.
Provide regular and open communication with parents to ensure effective home and school partnerships.
Regularly review and evaluate our support services policy and procedures to ensure they are responsive to the evolving needs of our students.

NIST has the resources and staff to support students with a range of needs. To ensure all student can be provided high-quality support and education, before accepting a student to NIST we confirm:

the student's needs can be catered for in the short, medium and long term
the resources are available to meet their specific needs
a pathway to graduation is available.

The school is committed to ensuring we offer a learning environment that supports the learning and wellbeing of the students in our care. Based on the information available we are confident our learning programme is accessible and the school environment is one where our students can flourish.

In accordance with this belief, NIST's responsibly managed approach and allocation of resources may not offer matched opportunities for students with intensive needs.

Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS)

NIST employs a highly skilled team of support specialists to cater to the diverse learning needs of our students. Through a referral system, a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) is used to determine the most appropriate intervention best suited to support the needs of the individual student.

An additional level of specialised, targeted, and continuing one-to-one support may be required for some students to ensure full access to the learning programme. When either an allied health professional or a Student Support Coach (SSC) is part of the student's Individualised Education Plan (IEP), these costs are added to school fees and invoiced on a semester basis.

Learning Support

A range of strategies and interventions are utilised to support the individual student's learning needs using a strengths-based approach.
All teachers and support specialists share responsibility for creating an environment that supports the needs of all learners.
Support is delivered in various ways, including but not limited to co-teaching, in-class support, pull-out support, one-to-one, small group, and check-in sessions. These are tailored to the individual student's needs.
Some students may require a Short-Term Plan (STP) or Individualised Education Plan (IEP). Qualitative and quantitative data inform the learning plan and ensures there are additional targeted levels of support which address the identified area/s of need.
Students who require either a STP or longer-term support are assigned a support manager. They provide emotional, social, functional and academic support working collaboratively with the student and liaising with other support service team members, teachers and outside agencies as needed. The support manager is the liaison for parent communication.

Secondary School (additional provisions in Years 7 - 13)

For students completing the Middle Years and Diploma Programmes, who may require additional support during the school day, NIST offers an Integrated Studies (IS) class. This class is designed around the student's pathway to graduation and their individual learning needs.
Secondary students are welcome to visit the Learning Centre, open after school three days a week, where teaching staff offer specialist learning support in all academic subjects. The sessions are supervised to enable access to specialist support in all academic subjects.

Enrichment Support

Enrichment Support ensures our highly able students have access to a rigorous and challenging educational programme that meets their individual needs. These students have demonstrated exceptional ability in one or more areas, such as academics, creativity or leadership.

Students eligible for Tier 3 enrichment support are identified through various methods, including:

Teacher recommendations
Standardised ability and achievement assessments
Psycho-educational assessments.

NIST provides a variety of enrichment opportunities and services. If a NIST student is formally identified as gifted and talented, an Individualised Education Plan (IEP) is developed. An IEP ensures:

Support is delivered in various ways: co-teaching, in-class support, pull-out support, one on one, small group, and check-in sessions. These are tailored to the individual's needs.
Students with an IEP are assigned a Support Manager. Their role is to work collaboratively with the student and liaise with other support service team members, teachers and outside agencies as needed. They are the liaison for parent communication.

In addition to school-based support

Provide opportunities that match students' interests and passions
Recommend a variety of holiday courses including online and residential options
Make online extension courses available, as appropriate and in consultation with the students' parents.

Counselling

Our inclusive counselling programme provides services to all students, regardless of their background or abilities. It is designed to create a safe and supportive environment where all students can feel comfortable seeking help when they need it.

A variety of services are offered, including:

Supporting advisors/homeroom teachers in the delivery of the Wellbeing curriculum
Individual counselling (short-term)
Group counselling
Crisis response and intervention
Consultation with teachers and parents
Educational workshops including parent sessions
Referral services to external specialists
Active involvement in child safeguarding responses
Transition support when students enter or exit the school
Providing recommendations to support school transfers or university applications.

Counselling can help students to overcome a variety of challenges, including but not limited to:

Academic concerns
Social and emotional challenges
Behavioural concerns
Family dynamics
Health issues.

Our team of qualified counsellors can support students and help them develop life-long skills including:

Problem-solving skills
Communication skills
Decision-making skills
Self-advocacy skills
Coping skills
Emotion regulation skills.

Allied Health Services

As part of our multidisciplinary team, NIST has access to a range of medical professionals available to support the social, cognitive and physical development of children, specifically targeting foundational skills to enable greater access to the curriculum. This is achieved through individual interventions as well as team-based consultation on complex cases with the aim of prioritising services according to the developmental and educational needs of each student.

Through collaboration with teachers and members of the support service team, all staff are better able to address the health and well-being of students, promote optimal learning outcomes and provide support for individuals with diverse needs. Allied health staff undertake assessments to determine areas of need and provide a targeted intervention to address these needs. This is typically on a one-to-one basis, however, in-class and group support is provided as required.

Occupational Therapist (OT): OTs assess students and support them to develop and improve gross and fine motor skills, visual perception, sensory processing abilities, attention and self-care tasks.

Speech and Language Therapist (SLT): SLTs provide holistic, collaborative, and coordinated support in order to maximise students' access and participation in the school curricula, and ensure that they have the opportunity to foster meaningful and long-lasting connections within our diverse school community. The SLTs assess, diagnose and support communication challenges including speech, language, voice, speech fluency, social pragmatics, oral motor functioning, and hearing/auditory processing. They work with students to foster their communication growth and provide strategies to maximise access to learning and well-being in the school context.

School Psychologist: Our psychologist supports the psychological and emotional well-being of students. This is achieved through direct student psychoeducational assessments, and via collaboration with relevant stakeholders, with the aim of streamlining interventions to address social-emotional and behavioural challenges that impact learning and wellbeing.