Niittyvilla Special Education School

Niittyvilla Special Education School provides an accessible learning environment for pupils with demanding special needs.

All teaching is provided by special class teachers and school assistants. The school also features a hybrid class with both interval students and pupils from Vanamo.

Niittyvilla Special Education School is maintained by the City of Seinäjoki and is located in the region serviced by Eskoo, the Centre for Disability Empowerment.

History

The Seinäjoki Treatment and Teaching Unit was founded in 1985, in the premises of the Eskoo School for Disabled People. The school operated under the special care district of Southern and Central Ostrobothnia, whose teaching units were located in 18 different municipalities in the region.

The school was transferred to the City of Seinäjoki in 1996. One year later, a new law was enacted that granted every child the right to attend school, and the school’s educational tasks became the responsibility of the municipality’s education department.

Contact us

Email addresses
firstname.lastname@seinajoki.fi
niittyvillan.koulu@seinajoki.fi

Teachers

Morning and afternoon activities

Assistants
We have 25 assistants in our school.

Curriculum and operating models

Educational principles

Our key objective is to support our pupils in their growth and development, and our activities are based on acknowledging and respecting every pupil’s individuality. This requires an approach that flexibly tailors our teaching and education to the needs of each pupil.

Curriculum

Each pupil is provided with an individual educational plan (IEP), where their goals are defined according to their individual needs and skills.

The general objectives of our educational activities are the same as in all other Finnish comprehensive schools that provide special needs education. We place special emphasis on promoting the interaction between our pupils and their environment so that they can feel like they are able to take charge of their own lives.

Educational contents

Our educational contents emphasise functionality. This means that our teaching is based on everyday life and what it entails. We seek for individual learning objectives from the same environments where our pupils live in, and our objective is to teach every pupil the skills they need at this moment.

When a pupil can benefit directly from what they have learned, they will feel engaged and motivated. We provide our pupils with immediate positive feedback and encouragement, and we allow our pupils to hone their skills in everyday environments, to help them understand the general benefits of what they have learned. This is why our learning materials focus primarily on objects and tactile materials.

Collaboration between home and school

Collaborating with homes and other parties

The objective of the collaboration between the school and each pupil’s home is to support the development of our pupils in a versatile manner while also helping each family with their child’s education.

Combining teaching with rehabilitation demands a close level of cooperation between teachers, school assistants and all other parties involved in the teaching, education and rehabilitation of each pupil. Our school works closely with parents, even on a daily basis, to help their children with their affairs. We utilise face-to-face meetings, IEP meetings, phone calls, text messages, emails and Helmi messages. Every autumn, we host a day that celebrates the collaboration between home and school with different events.

Student welfare services

Student welfare services constitute a part of educational work. Our services are implemented in collaboration with each pupil’s parents and guardians as well as the school’s external parties. At our school, student welfare services are a constant process, due to the demanding nature of the special needs that our pupils have.

At Niittyvilla Special Education School, school attendance and learning are supported with both communal and individual initiatives. We strive to support the well-being of parents by providing their children with a safe environment that takes their individual needs into account.

Parents and guardians are encouraged to participate in the planning of their child’s individual educational plan (IEP). Due to the challenges presented by the demanding special needs of our pupils, a personalised student welfare team can also be assembled to participate in the process.

Our school is attended by a school nurse who performs basic health check-ups for our pupils. Pupils can also meet with a school physician when they are available. Our school hosts a group for educational and teaching tasks that includes representatives from Vanamo and the school’s staff. We also host a steering group that meets twice per school year.