School Based Team

School District 46 has established procedures to support collaborative consultation and planning. Staff are identified within each school to be available for consultation and to be part of a school-based team. This team is established with clear procedures to provide support, consultation, planning, case management, and, when appropriate, to facilitate inter-ministerial or community approaches.

Referral to the School-Based Team

The school-based team can provide: 

• extended consultation on possible classroom strategies;
• planning for and co-ordination of services for the student;
• access to additional school, district, community or regional services; 
• planning for and coordination of services in the school.

What is a school-based team?

A school-based team is an ongoing team of school-based personnel which has a formal role to play as a problem-solving unit in assisting classroom teachers to develop and implement instructional and/or management strategies and to coordinate support resources for students with special needs within the school.

Who is on the team?

The school-based team includes a small group of regular members, usually including a school principal, a learning assistance or resource teacher, a classroom teacher and a counsellor. On a case-by-case basis as needed to plan for individual students, the team should also include the student’s referring teacher, and involve the parent, the student, and, as appropriate, district resource staff, and representatives from community services, regional authorities, or from other ministries.

What does the team do?

Upon the request of the referring teacher or parent, it provides support through extended consultation on possible classroom strategies and may become a central focus for case management, referrals, and resource decisions. It should appoint a case manager, identify the need for additional services, and/or initiate referrals to access other school, district, community, or regional services. The school-based team can also initiate or facilitate inter-ministerial planning and service delivery.