SPARK EDUCARE Learning Centre: Overview
SPARK Educare Learning Centre is a Community Interest Company (C.I.C) based on the Oxford Road, West Reading. Our Learning Centre provides one-to-one teaching during term time (9 am to 3 pm) to support pupils who are struggling with mainstream education - particularly focusing on excluded pupils and NEETs. Majority of these students have been out of mainstream for long periods and struggle with core curriculum subjects. We provide them with the necessary Basic Skills for Life programme - Literacy, Numeracy, ESOL, Pre-entry and Embedded skillsto enable them to gain vocational qualifications before they turn post 16. We are SPARK believe that skills for life qualifications give them a better chance in the already saturated job market.
Many of the problems these students have with learning/proressing are caused by poor understanding of some of the basic ideas and techniques. Sometimes too little time was spent on early learning – the alphabet, number tables, spellings, handwriting, etc. Sometimes students missed some early work through long absence due to exclusions, illness, family relocation, etc.
Often students’ understanding is good in most of the early work, but the ‘gaps’, the small things that they do not fully understand or have forgotten due to inadequate practice/revision, cause problems in later work.
To remedy this, we at the SPARK Learning Centre go right back to the basics (the alphabet, number tables, spellings, handwriting, etc) and go through all the simple ideas and techniques that pupils ought to know. Much of it they will be able to do already, but there will be little things that they are unsure about and need to get sorted. Also, going back over the basics that they already understand is a memory-jogger which will help when tackling the more difficult techniques in higher level work.
Every session of tutoring at the centre starts with a short mental arithmetic test. The aim is to find weak and unknown “gaps” in techniques that students ought to know and fill them, hence boosting self-confidence as well as improving mental arithmetic expertise. After each level is completed, the pupil can move to the next level of test, which will include new skills/techniques.
Outside of school times : Afterschool (3 pm -7 pm), weekends and holidays the Centre serves as a community learning resource and young people are able to join in both Educational and ‘Fun’ activities including Homework study Clubs, Art, Dance, Canoeing and Cooking.
We provide a vital service to local schools, parents and pupils. We focus on enabling young people to reach their full potential, to gain core qualifications and expand their employment and further education opportunities. We support 5-19 year olds in all CORE curriculum subjects from Key stage 1 to A/Level, as well as engaging with them to promote and improve their social and emotional well-being, confidence and educational attainment.
Our pupils’ learning needs range from those with "Learning Difficulties and Disabilities (LDD)" to those who are "Gifted and Talented”. Our students include those unable to attend mainstream education for various reasons or who are in school BUT at risk of exclusion; Looked-after Children, students at home or in hospital, children who are having ‘timeout’ of mainstream education for personal reasons and children who have relocated to the Reading area while their application for mainstream is being processed.
Our support is delivered according to the needs of each young person, as a result we offer one-to-one tuition, run a homework club with 4 local primary schools and provide local schools with qualified and experienced cover teachers (in case of emergencies, illness, trips and courses).
We are an approved member of the network on UK Online centres providing Free ICT training to the community. Our application as a Cambridge examination centre for ESOL and GCSE for external and private candidates is at an advanced stage.
We offer a positive, flexible, appropriate personal learning experience and a caring and stimulating environment; this includes provision of user friendly ICT learning resources. All of our staff are CRB (enhanced) checked and have varied backgrounds and experience creating a multi-disciplinary team. We have a dedicated team of volunteers who run the centre and without whom we could not function.