As
a teacher, what is your primary concern for ensuring that your
classroom is a place where all types of children can learn? What do
you need to do to ensure this? Post your response to the discussion
board.
There are
many learning disorders out there: ADD, ADHD, Autism, full-blown
mental retardation, Asberger's Syndrome, and other emotional and
behavioral disorders. Einstein was said to have autism. The
over-diagnosis of ADHD is attributable directly to the strict
hierarchies of classrooms. Rarely does any form of democracy pop up
during High School classes, and with so much curriculum, we teachers
need to stuff the student's brains with hour long lectures every day,
for three months, mostly about basic instructions, what other choice
do we have, but to Ben Stein lecture at them? We “Teach Others”
so we're retaining 90% of our experience, as the Learning Pyramid
points out, plus getting paid, becoming better public speakers,
gaining a receptive audience, in a position of authority, maybe even
a career, increasing our value, giving back to the greater good while
the students barely can stay awake, falling asleep at their desk,
drooling all over their outdated 12th Edition McGraw-Hill
textbook hand-me-downs. If they're able to stay awake, then only 5%
of that lecture will be learned through observing others, through
osmosis. So perhaps that's why some of the students can't sit still
in their seats. The human condition yearns for the polite and
pleasant decorum of remaining seated and silent at behest mein Fuhrer
to be smashed into oblivion. That's not ADHD. That's the pangs of
freedom.
Gifted and
Talented can be considered a learning disorder as well, for the same
reasons listed above. The students who are smart enough to figure out
all of the problems we put in front of them, can become bored, feel
unchallenged and discouraged, as well as question authority. Teachers
are required to teach to the middle of a classroom. We do not want to
dumb the material down, which is condescending, but also, we
shouldn't complicate our subjects with too much of the field's
jargon, or their own form of legalese, even if speaking the rich
language of Calculus is exactly what the doctor calls for what ails
little Johnny or Sally.
WEB DuBois
spoke highly about elevating a “talented tenth”, the intelligent
children, the top 10%, in order to raise up Black people as a whole.
That same philosophy transcends race. The
Prussian-Industrial-Education-Complex can benefit greatly by
elevating their best and brightest, harnessing creativity, focusing
their imaginations towards positive constructive tangible forms.
Those with the most talent, or potential, those with high I.Q.s, or
other intelligences, Gardner points out 8 other intelligences, and
physical motor skills takes genius, too... I recall coming across a
study, but logic had preceded the study beforehand, but it still
served as a reinforcer... but the study said the energetic, athletic,
the doers, they are smart. They have neurotransmitters firing in more
efficient ways. Exercising in the morning is a great way to wake up.
One is more focused right after a workout, a run, a basketball
scrimmage, etc. So America is slipping compared to world standards in
the basic subjects, Math, Science, Social Studies, Art, English, and
that goes for electives too. Just in general, a society should want
to improve from one generation to the next, and we're the Information
Generation, and the Internet will always be with us, as long as
Nuclear Winter never descends upon us, then it's smoothing cruising
from here on to Red River Gorge.
Because
we're all the same, yet we're all different, my number one focus is
to make sure everybody feels included, and welcome. Some folks can be
stubborn, but since I genuinely care about others, I hope those
sentiments can transcend the most bullheaded into being more
expressive. The Reggio Emilia approach says that we're all endowed
with over 100 languages in each one of us, and our goal as educators,
is to find those different methods of communication, and to
facilitate that growth. We all need to be included. The days of the
one-room schoolhouse should come back. Older children felt a sense of
obligation to helping out the younger students, and those more
competent would help out the less competent, which would help out
those who truly have ADHD, and other disorders, which not only
hinders their learning, but it also makes their basic living
functions more difficult too. We all should be included. Maslow's
Hierarchy gave a good overview of what we all need in order to be
self-actualized, and for real learning to occur.
While I
love the dream of the one-room schoolhouse, I also wonder if a
two-tiered system would be better for GT. The Gifted and Talented
would, theoretically, strive and thrive better around other gifted
and talented folks such as themselves. Instead of organizing a school
based on ages, we should organize according to ability. To not
educate our best and brightest, to marginalize them and to cap their
creativity, we aren't just hindering their own precious
development—socially, physically, spiritually, politically,
economically—but we're also destroying society and civilization as
we know it.
I would
also have many different methods for students to learn. This is my
dream classroom of course, but a classroom where one can get the
one-on-one help they need, the hands-on experiences, audio or visual
learning, or through dialogue, there's plenty of money for supplies,
good programs, etc. Khan's Academy opens up all teachers to become
administrators to over 30 subjects. All you need to do is track your
student's progress. Students are motivated by you caring about them.
One could just get the students a learning style quiz online, and
then have a tailor-made IEP written out specifically just for them,
based upon which styles of learning works best for them.
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Develop
a chart of comparative characteristics for special needs children.
Include at least 5 characteristics for each of the categories
listed below. You can use your text, the KRS Special Education
Guidelines or any other relavant source to complete the chart. You
do not have to cite your sources for this assignment. Post your
completed chart on the Discussion Board for this week.
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