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When you are young, learning can be a delight or a difficulty. Some
young people are challenged by their inability to express themselves or
they hide their feelings behind a shield of self-doubt. Some have a
feeling of isolation, some a sense of being behind the other students,
while others are more able than the rest of their peers. These barriers
can be very real in a modern society, where children often need extra
personal or academic support, or long to talk over their problems in a
caring atmosphere with someone they can trust. So along comes LAP, the Learning Assistance Programme, with its mentors/volunteers, its empathy, its patience, its confidence building, its encouragement and its one-to-one dialogues. Students of all ages, backgrounds and needs are supported through the LAP programme. They work on a one-to-one basis with a caring volunteer once each week and benefit from the empathy, patience, encouragement, time and talents of their volunteers. The Learning Assistance Programme has been established in South Australia since 1976. Today, at least 10,000 volunteers in close to 1,000 Australian Government and non-Government schools are working in LAP programmes each week. A growing number of students in International schools in Germany, Switzerland, Denmark and the United Kingdom have been highly successful in transferring this Australian programme to the international education setting. The Bavarian International School in Munich, the Copenhagen International School in Denmark and the Zurich International School in Switzerland have all received awards in recognition of their outstanding LAP programmes by The LAP Association Incorporated. |
The Learning Assistance Programme International Conference
The 4th International LAP Conference took place at the IHK Akademie just outside Munich in Westerham from October 5th to 7th 2007. This was an idyllic setting in which to work and make new friends.The Bavarian International School (BIS) hosted the conference and the speakers included some of the leading LAP experts, including LAP’s founder Mrs. Penny Penhall. LAP, or the Learning Assistance Programme, was founded thirty- one years ago in Adelaide, Australia. There are now one thousand schools using LAP as part of their schools support programme.
The conference was well attended by schools that both have an established LAP programme or are in the process of setting it up. Delegates heard about the principles of LAP, suggestions for how it can be set up and run, and the whole ethos behind this very simple programme. They listened to some moving and inspirational stories of the success of LAP and how it can change a child’s life in school.
LAP is based on the one-to-one relationship between a student and their chosen volunteer. The LAP committee chooses the volunteer and this match is very important as the volunteer’s experience is linked with the needs of the child. Volunteers come from within the school community or from outside. They are people who have the time to listen and care for the student, and this is often the only one-to-one time a student gets in the course of a week. These volunteers offer themselves in a mentoring role for the student. They may work on academic things alongside self-esteem and building self- confidence. LAP opens up new opportunities and, in many cases, makes the difference between a student succeeding in school or failing.
Schools who choose to adopt LAP, provide an opportunity for parents to become involved in their school in a meaningful and fulfilling way. They also provide for senior students, a rewarding opportunity for community service.
One of the many highlights of the conference was the first international LAP session. One of the Australian team, Cathy Cronin, linked up on air with her LAP student in the outback of South Australia, 18000 km away. This was a great moment and showed the delegates how the School of the Air in South Australia uses LAP through their link-up via Centra. The student’s comment was – you sound as if you are in Adelaide as usual!
BIS would like to thank Penny and her team for an excellent conference. The conference ended with a group circle and it was obvious that no one wanted to leave.
