Jargon Buster
There is lots of jargon used in education - words, shortforms, phrases, etc. There are also lots of things we may use in reports which may be confusing. We hope the following will help you. Scroll down to see more.
| ABA | Applied Behavioural Analysis |
|---|---|
| ADD | Attention Deficit Disorder |
| ADHD | Attention Hyperactivity Deficit Disorder |
| ADOS | Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule |
| AFL | Assessment for Learning |
| ALN | Additional Learning Needs |
| APD | Auditory Processing Disorder |
| AQA | Examination Board |
| ARP | Additional Resource Provision |
| ASD/ASC | Autistic Spectrum Disorder |
| AST. | Advanced Skills Teacher |
| BESD | Behavioural, Emotional & Social Difficulties |
| BSL | British Sign Language |
| BSP | Behaviour Support Plan |
| CAF | Common Assessment Framework |
| CAMHS | Child and Adult Mental Health Service |
| CARS | Childhood Autism Rating Scale |
| CATs | Cognitive Ability Test |
| CF | Cystic Fibrosis |
| C&G | City & Guilds Examination and Accreditation Board |
| CIN | Child In Need |
| CLA | Child Looked After (used to be LAC) |
| CP | Cerebral Palsy |
| CP | Child Protection |
| CPD | Continuing Professional Development |
| CYP | Children & Young People |
| DD | Disability Discrimination |
| DfE | Department for Education |
| DT | Design Technology |
| DSA | Disabled Student Allowance |
| EA | Education Act |
| EAL | English as an Additional Language |
| EBD | Emotional Behavioural Difficulties |
| ECS | Education Children's Services |
| EDEXCEL | Pearson Edexcel - Examination Board |
| EHCP | Education Health Care Plan |
| EFL | Evidence For Learning (an app that allows school and home to share photographs and videos of pupils achievements) |
| ELC | Entry Level Certificate |
| EP | Educational Psychologist |
| EVC | Educational Visits Co-ordinator |
| EWO | Education Welfare Officer |
| FDT. | Food Design Technology |
| FE | Further Education |
| FNS | Functional Numeracy Skills |
| FSM | Free School Meals |
| GCE | GCE Advanced Level |
| GCSE | General Certificate of Secondary Education |
| HI | Hearing Impairment |
| H.T. | Headteacher |
| HLTA | Higher Level Teaching Assistant |
| HYDRO | Hydrotherapy |
| JCQ | Joint Qualifications Council |
| KS 1 | Key Stage 1 students aged 5-7 years (years 1-2) |
| KS 2 | Key Stage 2 students aged 7-11 years (years 3-6) |
| KS 3 | Key Stage 3 students aged 11-14 years (years 7-9) |
| KS 4 | Key Stage 4 students aged 14-16 years (year 10-11) |
| KS 5 | Key Stage 5 students aged 16-19 years (Years 12-14) (Sixth Form) |
| LA | Local Authority |
| LBH | London Borough of Hillingdon |
| MALT | Maths Assessment for Learning and Teaching |
| MDT | Multi Disciplinary Team |
| MFL | Modern Foreign Language |
| MHS | Meadow High School |
| MLD | Moderate Learning Difficulties |
| MSI | Multi Sensory Impairment |
| NARA | Neale Analysis of Reading Ability |
| NC | National Curriculum |
| NCES | National Council for Special Education |
| NCFE | Examination and Accreditation Board |
| NGRT | New Group Reading Test |
| NQT | Newly Qualified Teacher |
| NVQ | National Vocational Qualification |
| OCD | Obsessive Compulsive Disorder |
| OCR | Examination Board |
| ODD | Oppositional Defiant Disorder |
| OFSTED | The Office for Standards in Education |
| OFQUAL | The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation |
| OT | Occupational Therapist |
| OTT | Overseas Trained Teacher |
| PD | Physical Disability |
| PCLA | Previously Child Looked After |
| PDA | Pathological Demand Avoidance |
| PDD | Pervasive Developmental Disorder |
| PE | Physical Education |
| PECS | Picture Exchange Communication System |
| PEP | Personal Education Plan (only for CLA (Children Looked After)) |
| PEEP | Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan |
| PHP | Positive Handling Plan |
| PLIMS | Personal Learning Intentions Map |
| PMLD | Profound & Multiple Learning Disabilities |
| PPF | Pupil Premium Funding |
| PRU | Pupil Referral Unit |
| PSHE | Personal, Social and Health Education |
| PSHCE | Personal, Social, Health and Citizenship Education |
| PT | Physiotherapist or PHYSIO |
| RA | Risk Assessment |
| RE | Religious Education |
| RS | Religious Studies |
| RWI | Read Write Inc. (A phonics based reading system) |
| SALT | Speech & Language Therapist |
| SEMH | Severe Emotional and Mental Health |
| SEN | Special Educational Needs |
| SENCO | Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinator (in a Mainstream School) |
| SEND | Special Educational Needs and Disability |
| SLCN | Speech, Language & Communication Needs |
| SLD | Severe Learning Difficulties |
| SLT | Senior Leadership Team |
| SNO | Special Needs Officer |
| SpLD | Specific Learning difficulty |
| STEM (subects) | Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths |
| TA | Teaching Assistant |
| TAF | Team Around the Family |
| VI | Visual Impairment |
| VMI | Visual Motor Integration |
| WEX | Work Experience |
| WOW | World of Work |
| WJEC | WJEC/Eduqas Examination Board |
| WRL | Work Related Learning |
National Curriculum Levels
What do they mean?
There are eight National Curriculum levels, covering the ages 5-14 years. The lowest is Level 1, which describes the achievements of children at around the age of five. The highest is Level 8, which is attained by the most able pupils at the age of 14.
There is also a description of ‘exceptional performance’ above Level 8, which only a very few pupils are expected to reach.
High School students who pass GCSE at grade C have achieved level 7.
Some children will be working below level 1 of the National Curriculum. They are assessed according to P scales. P scales exist for all National Curriculum subjects, including the non-core curriculum subjects of personal social and health education (PSHE) and religious education (RE). There are eight levels of performance, with each describing some of the important knowledge, skills and understanding that pupils may gain from the programmes of study of the National Curriculum. Children do not undergo any formal assessment or testing and, unlike the National Curriculum, the awarding of a P level is left to the judgement of staff. It’s expected that teachers will use their knowledge of the child, consider the contexts in which learning takes place and gather evidence from a variety of sources to support their decisions and to make a ‘best-fit judgement’ based on everyday activity and continual monitoring and assessment.
At KS4 and above the students will be involved in Options Groups and will only be following specific subjects or courses. The other courses will become not applicable. (n/a)