From the first day a child is born, parents are there to nurture their child, to support them as they grow and develop. There is a lot to learn about raising a child under normal circumstances, but when a child has special needs parents must learn this whole new language of medical and special education terms (Overton, 2005). Parents enter this new world where navigating for the best interest of their child is riddled with challenges and obstacles that they need to somehow overcome. This is especially true when parents are dealing with the special education program in their child’s school. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires parental involvement in the education of children with disabilities (Smith, Hilton, Murdick, & Gartin, 2005). The IDEA also guarantees civil rights to children with disabilities and encourages parents to act as an advocate for their child. This seems like it would encourage school professionals and parents to work close together in obtaining the best services needed for the child. Unfortunately it often leads to a struggle in balancing legislation, interpretation and understanding of the law, and a breakdown of communication (Yell, Shriner, & Katsiyannis, 2006). Parents often feel they have no voice in the educational system, which limits productive interaction between the parents and school personnel, and potentially has a negative impact on the student. Collaboration between school and family is necessary to successfully create a positive, enriched, learning environment for the student. There are a few ways that parents can achieve this: positive support of school participation including homework, communicating with the school on a regular basis, volunteering in the school, a... ... middle of paper ... ... Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Sands, D., Kozleski, E., & French, N. (2000). Inclusive education for the 21st century: A new introduction to special education. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning. Smith, T. E. C., Hilton, A., Murdick, N. L., & Gartin, B. C. (2005). Families and children with special needs: Professional and family partnerships. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Trainor, A. A. (2010). Diverse approaches to parent advocacy during special education home- school interactions: Identification and use of cultural and social capital. Remedial and Special Education, 31(1), 34-47. Yell, M. L., Shriner, J. G., & Katsiyannis, A., (2006). Individuals with disabilities education improvement act of 2004 and IDEA regulations of 2006: Implications for educators, administrators, and teacher trainers. Focus on Exceptional Children, 39, 1-24.
The United States, New Zealand, and Italy all acknowledge and have moved forward with and inclusive education approach. It is a worldwide reaction to the belief that all children have the right to be educated. For instance, New Zealand’s education system has undergone a series of transformations over the past 20 years, which has included modifications to how schools and their students are funded and managed, and the responsibilities various government departments have for ensuring all children receive the best possible education in a variety of environments (Powell, 2012, p. 1). Also, Italy has implemented an inclusive approach by implementing laws that guarantee disabled students the education they deserve.
As a parent, learning that your child has developmental disabilities can be a life altering moment in time and can cause a devastating chain reaction of events. These events have the potential to change family priorities and structure, hurt relationships, deplete financial savings and stability, and emotionally drain everyone intimately involved with you and your child. How do you find human services programs, agencies, or advocates, whose primary job is to help you provide everything your child needs? It certainly can be an overwhelming barrier, but it's the first step in giving you, your child, and your family a plan of action, goals, success, good mental health and bringing everyone back together.
Peterson, J. Michael and Hittie, Marie Michael. Inclusive Teaching : Creating Effective Schools for All Learners. Pearson Publishing. (2003)
Effective partnerships between families and school emerge from a mutual trust, respect and understanding of each other’s values and goals. By maintaining such partnerships, we create a healthy environment for children to develop. All families have something unique to offer and educators need to recognize this and make the most of it by incorporating all families into the school community.
Education World: Inclusion: has it gone too far? (1997) Retrieved November 1, 2002, from http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/curr034.shtml
Mrs. Davis is an Educational Diagnostician in Colslaw ISD. She is working with a group of school administrators and teachers at Harvey Elementary. This team is sharing and discussing assessment data on several of the special education students that are mainly served in inclusive classrooms and are and are also taking the regular STAAR test. (a) For this collaborative context, identify specific professional roles and responsibilities of the Diagnostician, special education teachers, general educators, and school administrators. (b) Discuss specific challenges and skills that Educational Diagnosticians face in identifying students’ educational needs that are derived from large scale and formal assessments and communicating with
Sands, D., Kozleski, E., & French, N. (2000). Inclusive education for the 21st century: A new
The students in our classrooms, both special education and general education classrooms, require individualized education to reach their full potential. Each child’s potential is different just as each child’s road to reach it is different. Our job as teachers is to be there for the student’s to help them reach their potential through their own unique way.
Two years ago, I embarked on a journey that would teach me more than I had ever imagined. As a recent college graduate, I was thrilled to finally begin my teaching career in a field I have always held close to my heart. My first two years as a special education teacher presented countless challenges, however, it also brought me great fulfillment and deepened my passion for teaching students with special needs. The experiences I have had both before and after this pivotal point in my life have undoubtedly influenced my desire to further my career in the field of special education.
For a special education student to be successful and reach their true potential, it takes a collaborative effort between both the special education and general education teacher. Both teachers need to have an understanding of each student’s disability and unique academic needs. Both teachers play vital roles in participating as part of the IEP team, providing professional input, and best practices to develop the student’s IEP, which will provide all stakeholders in the child’s education the accommodations and modifications for the special needs child to be successful in the
Hyde, M. (n.d.). (2010). Inclusive Education: The Way to the Future. In: Anderson, C., Carpenter, L. & Conway, R. eds. Diversity Inclusion and Engagement. 2nd ed. Melbourne: Hyde, Carpenter and Conway, pp. 393.
“What does inclusive education mean for me as a teacher in 2014 and beyond? “
Collaboration between a general education teacher and a special education teacher is important to a student 's academic success inside the classroom. Students who require special services need general education teachers and special education teachers to be in sync on all matters education. This coordination by both teachers will give each student the best possible chance at a quality learning experience. Accomplish collaboration can be difficult because of varying reasons. Findings by Eccleston (2010) suggests that successful collaboration combines four traits. Those traits are being thoughtful, knowledgeable, compassionate, and having leadership skills (Eccleston, 2010). Even though both teachers have their own pedagogies, earnestly implementing
The mental development of a military child is effected by military life and the overall lifestyle of the family from their beliefs, morals, and spirituality. When counseling and mentoring children, challenges they endure need to be taken into consideration such as disability, deployment, and family culture. Deployments impacts children emotionally, academically, socially, and causes them to react with anger and violence. Counselors and community resources play a role in assisting military families through these significant events. Factors that affect the mental development of a military child includes but not limited to military divorces, long separations, due to extended training events or combat deployments, long work hours and parenting style. Having a child that shows signs of a serious intellectual, emotional, or physical disability can be very problematic for a military family. Children with disabilities that cause their behavior to affect their reaction to life can place a significant strain on the family dynamic. Everyone in the household will be affected by the disability and will have to receive counseling to better understand how to live a productive life.
In society today, there are many children and parents who face the diagnosis of having a developmental disability that would qualify them for special education and needs. This time can come with many questions for the parents when they realize the specialized care and education their child will need. Most often, questions arise about their schooling and how they will be included with other children, as well as what services are available to their child. How their disability impacts their life is a very valid concern because their education will be impacted. When a disability is discovered, it effects trickle down from the child to the parents, to the teachers and finally the medical and educational specialists.