Dwight London’s Quest Programme, which has been in existence for 40 years, evolved from Oxford University’s tutorial mentorship model. Today, Quest combines research-based special education pedagogy with the creativity of design thinking to provide students with strength-based and innovative one-on-one or small group academic support and organisational training.
While the programme is designed to help students with learning differences succeed in the rigorous Dwight curriculum, the integration of Quest support services benefits all types of learners in the school. The goal of Quest is to provide the structure and expertise of trained educators to maximise every student’s academic potential.
Why Quest?
Quest is far more than academic support. The programme combines convenience and reliability of on-site support with the efficiency of a teacher well-versed in the Dwight culture, curriculum and programme expectations. Quest supports students throughout the school to meet with success and to achieve great things at Dwight. The aim of the Quest Programme is to teach students with different learning styles or difficulties to function successfully and independently in an academically challenging, IB mainstream setting.
In Quest our teachers are all trained learning specialists with extensive backgrounds in special education. They are experts in working with students with learning differences, and all Quest teachers work solely in the Quest programme throughout the school. Students in Quest are required to have a special educational evaluation or an Individual Education Plan (IEP). Depending on students' needs, these sessions can be 1:1 or small groups and range from 3 to 6 sessions of support a week. This support is carefully considered so that it is a mix of withdrawal from lessons or push in support into the classroom.
Quest Tutors: Year 10 - Year 13
Quest students in the upper grades come to us from a range of backgrounds including full special education-setting schools, and our goal is to allow students to meet with success with the demands of the upper years of the Middle Years Programme and the academically rigorous Diploma Programme. These students range from those needing a Quest Tutor to get them over the line when it comes to academics and to fully prepare them for the Diploma Programme or those students who have aspirations of obtaining a higher DP score to enable an even wider range of university options for them.
The Quest Tutor programme is an extension of our Quest Learning Support provision and is targeted at students in Years 10, 11, 12 and 13, who either need support to meet with academic success and pass with a full Diploma, or those students who have aspirations to get a higher score through tutor support which will enable them to get into targeted universities/colleges. The aims of the Quest Tutor programme are to provide coaching and counselling for students who need additional support with their school life. This could include subject/programme specific support, assistance with self-management skills to manage workload or course content, or support for executive functioning skills. A student on the Quest Tutoring programme benefits from 3 dedicated tutor sessions a week.
Our Quest tutors support students with Dwight’s rigorous, high-level curriculum across a wide range of subjects and have backgrounds in all disciplines: they are plugged into the life of the school and know the students’ teachers and curriculum content well. Many teach a few classes in their specific area of expertise and all are required to participate in Dwight's special education professional development. Students in the Quest Tutor programme are not required to have an educational evaluation or an IEP.
At Dwight, Quest provides the individualised attention and comprehensive level of support that tutoring does not. At the most basic level, Quest tutors provide direct support for students in areas of academic weakness; however, Quest is much more than tutoring and offers many unique advantages. The Quest Tutor programme is more cost-effective as opposed to external tutors, and the main benefit of the Quest Tutor programme is that our tutors know their students really well and are best placed to network with the students' teachers to ensure a targeted approach to any support. Quest tutors are knowledgeable of the IB curriculum at Dwight and know what is happening in the classrooms so that they can connect the dots with ease when it comes to learning support. The Quest Tutoring offering focuses on academics, executive functioning and other key skill areas to ensure that the student experiences growth, progress and success.
Extensive Support for the Whole Child
Students are observed in the classroom setting by Quest teachers when needed and offered in class support as and when needed, and when resources allow.
Quest teachers and tutors coordinate with the pastoral team and other members of the student support team to provide support in all facets of school life.
Quest teachers and tutors help every student understand their learning needs and become self-advocates.
Data-based Progress Reporting
Annual reports chart student progress on the IB Approaches to Learning, a comprehensive toolbox of skills needed to provide a solid foundation for learning independently.
Quest teachers work with parents and students to set specific measurable goals, monitor progress, and revise goals throughout the year.
A Support Network
Students have access to the whole Quest team, including specialists in all curricular areas.
Quest teachers and tutors receive ongoing training in special education and learning differences. Training covers specific research-based teaching strategies found to be effective for students with language-based learning differences and attention deficits.
Quest teachers all have expertise and experience in Special Education.
Quest Teachers/Tutors Are…
Connected with a student’s teachers and school leaders on a daily basis
Well-versed in the IB curriculum
Knowledgeable of Dwight-specific assignments and expectations
Informed, caring, expert mentors for students
Experts in specific fields of study at Dwight
Quest Teachers Will…
Maintain active communication with families
Initiate ongoing communication with classroom teachers
Know the expectations of each student’s individual programme of study
Help students navigate specific situations that pose a challenge in school
In any random sample of students, the educational needs will be diverse. Quest students at Dwight School London are no different. Students have a variety of learning styles, strengths and backgrounds in different year levels. Some begin their education at Dwight, some come from special education schools and are ready for a more inclusive education, while others have come from mainstream schools where they struggled to access the curriculum. Quest students are able to succeed in a mainstream school with a rigorous curriculum from Quest support.
Dwight’s Quest Programme is designed to help different types of students. The first are students whose learning issues were diagnosed early in their schooling. These students often come from a full special education setting and have received support throughout their school careers. The second type of student has progressed through school without solidifying his/her basic skills set. The third type of students are those from Year 10 onwards who have aspirations to increase their predicted grades and scores to enable them a wide range of high quality university and college destinations.
The Quest Programme, with its specialists, is an integral part of the school community and is a resource for all teachers and parents. Participation in any aspect of the Quest Programme incurs an additional fee and, if recommended by the school, is compulsory and will remain in place for as long as is required to enable the student to successfully access the IB programmes.
