LEARNING SUPPORT
At the International School of Stavanger (ISS), we celebrate the unique potential of every learner. We believe that diverse perspectives and learning styles enrich our community, and we work collaboratively to provide personalized pathways that empower students to reach their highest goals.
Integrated Student Support
The ISS Learning Support team is a core part of our school’s fabric, partnering with students from Early Childhood through High School. Our mission is to foster independence and self-advocacy, ensuring every student has the tools to thrive within our inclusive classrooms alongside their peers.
Specialized Expertise
Our team consists of dedicated professionals experienced in supporting a wide range of neurodivergent profiles and learning styles. We provide strength-based guidance across foundational literacy and numeracy, communication development, physical and sensory adaptations, and processing differences such as dyslexia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia, ADHD, and autism.
In Early Childhood, our approach nurtures each child’s natural independence, ensuring they have the tools to engage fully with our curriculum alongside their peers. We prioritize strong foundations in language and communication, which serve as the springboard for literacy and numeracy.
Collaborative Support Network
Our work relies on close partnerships between classroom teachers, families, and specialized professionals to create a holistic, effective support system around each child.
Dedicated Individual Support
To further enhance a student’s learning experience and maximize classroom participation, some children benefit from the guidance of a Learning Support Assistant (LSA).
Shared Decision-Making: Integrating an LSA is a joint decision made through open dialogue between parents, teachers, and specialists to ensure the ideal environment for your child.
1:1 Support Fee: Because LSA support provides highly tailored, one-on-one classroom assistance, this dedicated service involves an additional fee
In Primary School, our Learning Support team empowers students to thrive within their core classroom community. We foster independence so students can participate fully alongside their peers, sharpening foundational skills in reading, writing, mathematics, and communication.
Tailored Academic Pathways
Support is delivered through dynamic small-group sessions or targeted one-on-one instruction by specialized teachers. This work is deeply collaborative, driven by ongoing dialogue between families and educators. Every student receives an annual Individual Learning Plan (ILP)—a living roadmap that outlines personal goals and tailored strategies for growth.
Dedicated Individual Support
For students who flourish with continuous, one-on-one guidance, we offer support through a Learning Support Assistant (LSA):
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Collaborative Choice: Introducing an LSA is a joint decision made between parents and our educational team to ensure the support aligns perfectly with the child’s needs.
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Specialized Service Fee: Because an LSA provides a dedicated professional focused exclusively on daily classroom success, this personalized service involves an additional fee.
The aim of learning support in the Middle School is to enable all students to access the curriculum in the mainstream classroom alongside their peers and to promote the students’ independence. The focus of learning support lessons in the Middle School is on supporting the development of individual reading, written language and mathematical skills, as well as introducing and developing a variety of study techniques and strategies to help the students become effective learners and self-advocates.
Students with relevant needs can take learning support lessons in place of a modern foreign language, after full discussion with parents, student and the Principal.In Middle School, we focus on cultivating student agency and resilience as academic expectations grow. Our goal is to foster the self-reliance and confidence students need to fully engage with the curriculum alongside their peers.
Essential Learning Strategies
Support sessions strengthen academic foundations while equipping students with a personalized toolkit of skills tailored to their learning style:
Strategic Study Skills: Developing personalized systems for organization, planning, and information retention.
Effective Self-Advocacy: Empowering students to recognize their strengths and clearly communicate their learning needs.
Advanced Academic Competencies: Refining higher-level reading comprehension, analytical writing, and mathematical reasoning.
Flexible Academic Scheduling
To provide adequate time for specialized coaching without overloading a student’s day, sessions can be scheduled in place of a modern foreign language. This strategic pathway is chosen through a collaborative conversation between the student, their family, and the Principal.
In High School, we focus on student autonomy and academic mastery. Guided Study sessions act as a high-level success workshop where students refine executive functioning skills, deepen their subject understanding, and master advanced study habits for university readiness.
Flexible Grade Pathways
Support adapts to each student’s needs as they approach graduation. In Grades 9 and 10, students may schedule Guided Study in place of a modern foreign language to dedicate focused time to core academic goals. In Grades 11 and 12, students take full ownership of their learning by arranging support sessions directly with specialists to match their individual timetables.
Assessment Accommodations
To ensure fairness, our team collaborates directly with IGCSE and IBDP coordinators to advocate for and implement tailored exam accommodations, giving every student an equal opportunity to showcase their abilities.
The Learning Support program at ISS was an essential, front-line service for my child for 3+ years. Most uniquely of all, ISS believed that my child with extra special challenges brought tremendous value to the learning experience of his peers and became a treasured asset in the early childhood classrooms. This combination of professional support and genuine acceptance is priceless. – Former Early Childhood Parent
