The Learning Support Zone in a Maltese State Secondary School: A 'Third Space' between Home and School
Keywords:
education, Learning Support Zone, social-emotional and behavioural difficulties, out-of-home careAbstract
The Learning Support Zone (LSZ) in the girls' secondary school within St. Margaret College, Malta, was born out of necessity, in turbulent circumstances. It slowly developed from its initial priority of re-socialising adolescent students with severe emotional and behavioural difficulties. The focus gradually shifted to the reintegration of these students in the educational mainstream in strict collaboration with their families/carers, and the resumption of their lifelong learning journey. This paper presents and discusses highlights from this journey, also through composite case studies which explore the extent to which the LSZ can effectively function as a 'third space' between where the students are residing and the mainstream school. Pertinent strengths and limitations of this approach with special reference to adolescents with Social-Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties (SEBD) in out-of-home care have been identified. The paper concludes with proposed recommendations based on three years' experience.