Class: Richard Levoire/IPP Process September 29, 2010

Today we learned about the IPP process and what it entails. There are 12 steps to this process and I think that each step is as important as the last step. The center of the IPP or the "engine" is creating measurable goals and objectives. If these goals are not created for the student there is no essential direction for the IPP process. Now that I have received this information I feel more comfortable being informed. I can say that after the IPP assignment we are required to write, it will feel less stressful thinking about writing one once in the classroom. I do feel more informed after learning about the IPP process today.

We also watched the video "Beyond F.A.T City" by Richard Levoire. This was a very interesting video for me. It was more of a reflection video about the studies performed. There was one situation he talked about when he told the student he knew how they felt when the student had spelling and composition issues. It was nice to know that even professionals can make these mistakes. I have been in the same situation and told a child the exact same phrase. It was a huge eye opener because the child looked at me like "ya right.. you don't". Even as the words came out of my mouth I knew I would regret saying them.

His other point that really hit me was "never do to a kid what you would not do to an adult". I have to be honest and say that I would never have thought of using this phrase in my future teachings. But as he explained it in more depth it truly made sense. It is not fair to these children to treat them as inferior to you as a teacher. They should get what they need as human beings. Not what others believe they should get.

Rob asked us to reflect on this question "How might you use some of Richard's insights in your own inclusive classroom?" I could not really come to a decision so I am hoping that watching the rest of the film today will allow me to better understand myself and how I relate to his ideas.

Cohort Retreat September 22-23

So our retreat is done and it was extremely successful. At first I did not feel comfortable thinking this was going to be the group of people I will spend the next 2 years with. But it is very nice to feel at ease with these people and it helps when trying not to stress about school work. I now feel comfortable enough with these people that doing presentations will not make start to feel nauseous.

We did many activities at the retreat that started to build our teamwork skills as a cohort. Trust seemed to be the main focal point for the weekend so we worked on building trust and creating relationships between one another. We also had a chance to get to know Mona and Julia much better over the 2 days we were out at Sylvan Lake and that made it much easier to approach them with any issues that may occur.

When we had down time to relax over half of the cohort went down to the sauna and relaxed. It was really cold out so it was nice to steam off some stress! Then a few of us bared the cold and went diving into the lake over 3 times!! That was a major relationship builder for me with a couple other people. It was awesome to see that not only is our group risk takers, but they are also very passionate about where they are going in life.

Finally, we did an exercise where we had a chance to write on the backs of everyone on paper plates. This was to say anything specific and personal that will make that individual know that we took the time to get to know them! It was very entertaining and exciting to read what our cohort had to say about one another.

Video "A Mind of their Own" September 21, 2010

Today we watched a movie that dealt with issues and overcoming obstacles for kids with minor learning disabilities. It was an interview and overview of what 4 different children have to deal with everyday in a school setting. It was not new to me that children deal with these learning disabilities daily and have problems with such things as reading, writing, and math. It did give a point of view that was more realistic than watching teachers and parents discuss their children's needs. Usually children do not have such an understanding grasp on their own problems in the classroom.

The movie made sense and allowed the viewer to see that each child could embrace their strengths and weaknesses when dealing with different people in different situations. But all of their strengths were obvious when put in a more specialized situation. It makes sense that children with disabilities can accept and deal with their disabilities when surrounded by other children with the same types of learning disabilities.

So would a more specialized setting make sense for children with these disabilities? Yes, I think so. It allows them to embrace each day and not be frustrated with issues that may occur in a regular classroom. But obviously the issue is money and funding for these programs. It really is frustrating that the Board of Education cannot see what is working and what is not. Putting stress on teachers to deal with multiple learning disabilities will ultimately cause behavioural issues to occur and the children with other needs will not gain the attention to improve. Somehow there must be some understanding that individual help is important for students to gain confidence in a regular classroom and being forced into a class of 40 with one teacher will not be sufficient.

If I were put into a classroom with these children I would feel completely overwhelmed. Somehow I would need to distribute my time efficiently to my sure my lesson plans correspond with the student. All students must feel involved in an inclusive classroom to reduce negative situations. These students also had major test anxiety so testing strategies would need to be looked over and possibly even taken out of the unit to help these children with disabilities reduce anxiety. I do think that this is a major issue in many classrooms and first year teachers need to understand that anything can happen.

Entry #3 Delivery Service Models September 17

In class, service models were described and examples were given for each. I have never been personally involved with someone in the classroom that has a disability. I was always in a school that had Special Education classes instead of an inclusion way of thinking. As someone who does not have a disability, my opinions and beliefs may have been non-realistic after going through education with these ideas. I never had experiences that would make me feel comfortable while being around individuals with disabilities. It was not until this past year that I had to do a volunteer assignment for a previous class that had me work with all severity types of disabilities. Once being around that type of environment I found that some inclusion and also some isolation might be best. Because of this assignment I believe that there must be some form of inclusion in the classroom so all people understand that all kinds of people are in this world. It will allow for all kinds of benefits but also some negative aspects. I do believe that the idea of "resource room" could negatively affect individuals that have severe disabilities that may not be able to function along with a regular classroom. It might be more effective if students are placed in classrooms that might correspond with their individual disability.

It was interesting to listen to other students experiences with individuals with disabilities. It helps us who do not have those experiences understand how truly difficult it is. To be honest, I am quite frightened about getting into the classroom that may be fully inclusive. I hope to find out different methods and strategies that may become a more balanced educator. I hope to have erased all of the pre notions that I have and replace them with a level of understanding and empathy.

My definition of DISABILITY: Disability is the definition of a responsive framework where individuals have attributes of uniqueness which may or may not require outside assistance.

First Official Class: First Official Thoughts September 14, 2010

In my first official class outlining Inclusive Education and the belief system involved, I realized I was not sure what I believe in as a future educator. I have possibly used a variety of outlooks which would include all four attitudes or beliefs about disability in the classroom but have not chosen a direct path of an opinion. I am guilty of "naming the suffering", intervening, nature, and also nurture. I am truly not sure which direction I would chose to lean since I have not been directly involved with an individual with disability. I would like to use this class to understand the most important attributes of each views and combine them so a biased opinion will not occur when finally getting into my own classroom. I hope to establish those beliefs and continue to have an open mind with reasoning because I know that whatever beliefs I choose will have a direct effect on how I will educate and base my opinions.
With every new student that you have an impact on, I believe there is a certain level of accountability and reflection. Did I truly give 100% or more in this child's life whether they have a disability or not? How could I have changed my attitude toward certain situations and could this have a negative or positive effect on the outcome? Will I be able to provide an uplifting experience for myself and those around me? I think that these are all very important questions for teachers that deal with children with disabilities. There is a level of accountability that you will not allow the child to become "disable first, person second". All people with disabilities are "people first, disability second" and this will definitely be a hard concept for some when we finally get into the classroom. Opinions, actions and attitudes will all need to be reflected on a day to day basis to make sure that we give 110% to each individual. Understandably this will be very hard, but why be a teacher if we thought it would be easy?? There are so many different areas of a child's life that we have an impact on and I think the most important is going to be a student's memory of the classroom. If we do not keep an uplifting and supporting environment children may become lost. Keeping every single child involved is a goal that all teachers should strive for when dealing with disabilities!

Entry #1 September 12- Introduction and First Thoughts

To be honest, I did not fully understand the concepts of this course until finally the first class had begun. I was naive and thought that it was a basic psychology course dedicated to the realm of teaching. That was all. When I learned that this was indeed an Inclusive Education course, I was fully engaged and asking myself what can I get from the information going to be presented. I know some data and ideas from previous classes such as Adapted Physical Education and basic psychology courses but not the actual psychology element that is involved with inclusive education. But I do understand the concept of coding and further more the IPP plans coordinated along with a teachers day to day process with specific children in the classroom and hope to be able to put information I will learn to practical use in the future.
I believe that there is in fact a reality point of view and a scientist or a teachers point of view. In our first classroom session I was placed with a lady who has been involved with the basic reality of inclusive education since her son was born. She had multiple opinions and concerns dealing with inclusive education and I found this was a huge reality eye opener for me personally. I have not been involved directly with issues that she faces everyday so as a future teacher it was devastating but also informative to hear her personal story.
The first piece of information that I have learned from this course is to "Assess often and assess differently with a variety of ways!" I hope to be able to learn and understand multiple ways to fulfill this mission and become an experienced, practical educator in the realm of education.
So long for now!