The basic Philosophy
of Special Education is that all children, regardless of their
disability, have the right to a free appropriate public education.
This tells us that all children deserve to learn, grow and succeed
to the best of their abilities. This also tells us that a child’s
disability is only a small speed bump in the road to achievement.
Lastly, this tells us that we should be supportive of this decree
and do everything in our power to ensure fair and equal educational
opportunity for all children.
Whether a child with disabilities can learn is not a question but
how much a child with disabilities can learn is. Whether a child has
an intellectual disability, a learning cap due to their IQ level, or
a learning disability, a unique way of learning, would need to be
determined first but either way, providing the most education
possible is a necessity. Every child, with or without a disability,
deserves the best and most an education has to offer. There is no
limit. There is no fine line. There is no magic number or guestbook.
There is only a child willing and able to learn and an education
system with endless knowledge to be obtained.
The
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Section 504 are both
anti-discriminatory acts that prohibit anyone, anywhere from denying
people who have been identified with disabilities the right to an
education just like everyone else. These acts give everyone the
freedom to learn and grow academically in a least restrictive
environment. These acts also require that those with disabilities be
taught in a suitable way that meets their individual needs. Children
in the past were pushed aside and thought to be less than a “normal”
person therefore they were never taught the same. They were
basically babysat. These acts coming along in 1973 and 1975 opened
the doors for these children who are bright in their own way to be
afforded the same educational opportunities as everyone else. These
acts paved the way for these children to learn, grow and utilize all
the benefits of the education system.
Depending on the disability, children can face minimal obstacles or
children can live a very hard, struggling life. A child can struggle
to sound out words or a child can struggle to focus. A child can
have a hard time sitting still or a child can be confined to a
wheelchair. A child can have no way of communication or a child can
randomly loose control of their own little body. The only difference
in these children and the children without disabilities is the way
they learn. Children with disabilities have every right to an
education that non-disabled children have and it’s up to us, as
teachers and parents, to make sure they get it. Patience is key,
determination is required, education is the goal and concerted
effort is how we get there. Helping a child in any safe, productive
way necessary is what we do. Showing a child love and understanding,
rewarding a child for good behavior or a correct answer, taking
extra time to review with a child, constructively, clearly and
quietly critiquing a child when wrong are some examples of good
teaching. Notice I said “good teaching”; I didn’t say good teaching
of disabled children or good teaching of non-disabled children.
That’s because every effort that’s made to teach the non-disabled
children should also be made to teach the disabled children.
Teaching is teaching, regardless of the disability.
How
well a child handles and manages a least restrictive environment,
how well the environment handles and manages the child and where the
child functions and learns best are what I feel should be taken into
consideration when determining where to place a disabled child and
for how long at school. We want a safe, stable environment for all
involved, including the child and the teacher as well as all the
other students in the classroom. We want a child to feel welcome and
comfortable, but we also want the child to get the attention they
need. We want the child to feel involved and included but not lost
or forgotten. We want them in a beneficial setting but not secluded.
To figure these things out, I think it takes some trial and error.
Some test runs and some creative and innovative thinking. At the end
of the day, it’s about what is best for the child and where the
child is most likely to succeed as a whole.
When I think of a special
education teacher, I think calm. Caring. Collected. Patient. Strong.
Detail-Oriented. Quick. Stern. A special education teacher’s role is
to roll with the flow of a disabled child, or children. They assist
in the education of these children that have special needs or need
special attention. They tend to a child’s disabilities while helping
them learn and grow in an educational environment best suited for
them. They care for them like a parent does a child with their best
intentions at heart while protecting and advocating for their
future.
A
general education classroom teacher’s role in a disabled child’s
world is just the same as their role in any child’s world. A
teacher’s role is to provide the best education possible and to
provide that education in whatever way the child needs in order for
it to be received and retained. A teacher should have a high sense
of efficacy and only use the child’s disability as a challenge to be
a better teacher. A teacher should use tactics and strategies that
are beneficial to both disabled and non-disabled children. A teacher
should stress inclusion and involve a disabled child just as much as
they involve a non-disabled child. To me, the best way for a teacher
to teach a disabled child is to help them be so included and focused
on the learning that they forget they even have a disability.
Educational excitement and a “you can” attitude! That’s the recipe!
Everyone seems so focused on the children’s disabilities. Why are we
focused on what they can’t do instead of what they can? I feel like
these things should just be common knowledge. Common sense. DO WHAT
IS BEST FOR THE BABIES! Period. End of story. Figure out what works
best for the child and do that. Figure out where they struggle and
find a way around it. Figure out what their limitations are and push
them. Find their strength and encourage it. What do I feel like we
can do as teachers to best teach those WITH OR WITHOUT disabilities?
Take Albert Einstein’s saying “Everybody is a genius. But if you
judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole
life believing that it is stupid” and mix it with Dr. Seuss’s saying
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can
steer yourself any direction you choose.” and work with the children
instead of against them. Limits are most often self-imposed and it’s
our duty, as teachers, to reach and surpass them.