Reflection for Foundations of Inclusive Practice Class

Reflection

     During my time in Foundations of Inclusive Practice with Robert Schultz I learned many aspects of teaching that I will use throughout my whole career. This class focuses on special education and all facets that are involved with teaching students with special needs. During this semester I read many useful textbooks that helped deepen my understanding of the various types of disabilities some students might face. These textbooks were Learners with Mild Disabilities by Eileen Raymond, Formative Assessment and Standards-Based Grading by Robert Marzano, and lastly Universal Design for Learning in the Classroom by Tracey Hall. Each book gave me a different aspect to teaching that I did not have before, along with a better understanding of how I can design my classes for inclusion. Along with these books I had to attend 20 hours in a host school observing that particular school’s special education program and type my second entry to the State of Vermont for my licensure.

     During my time at my host school I was able to witness the school’s special education program first hand. This experience was necessary for me as a teacher because previously I only had my own ideas on what education for special needs students entailed, but now I have real life experience with how these programs operate. During my time with the host school I was able to observe how the teacher conducted her program to include all her students into both the special and general education programs. I was able to experience many different types of disabilities students there faced which gave me insight into how disabilities like ADHD, Cognitive disorders, Behavioral disorders, and ASD actually affected the students in school. I was able to witness students on IEPs and 504 plans which was a new experience to me since we had only learned about it in the Foundations class. Previously I had only read about the disorders and how they could possibly affect a student's ability to be taught, but with this experience I gained first hand knowledge of how students struggle with their disabilities. I saw how ADHD can cause students to have a harder time paying attention to the teacher’s lessons, and how behavioral issue students can act out in the class in a variety of ways. Because I had read the books from my Foundations class I had an understanding of why these students were acting the way they did. From actually observing this I was able to understand how to approach the students and how to apply the lessons I learned to teach them in a way that will help lessen the difficulties these students face.

      From my Learners with Mild Disabilities book by Eileen Raymond I was able to get a very descriptive insight into what the medical and educational terms are for each disability. This was important for me because it gave me better background knowledge on how the disability came to being identified, along with how it has grown to affect the students with it. Raymond’s book was very in depth on the various disabilities students might face, so reading this material prepared me for what I observed during my time in my host school. For the last two books, Formative Assessment and Standards-Based Grading by Robert Marzano and Universal Design for Learning in the Classroom by Tracey Hall, I was able to understand how to assess students and create an environment that benefits all types of learners including ones with disabilities. These books, combined with my observation, are what helped me develop my answer to the guiding question of this class. This guiding question was, “How can we design for inclusion?”, which in the beginning of the semester I had a hard time answering with any depth. Now that the semester is ending I have more insight into the question. Before taking this class I thought that each teacher just takes every step possible to include all students. I believed that the teacher would teach one way, then another way again to reach every type of student’s needs. After taking this class, with the required material in combination with my observation hours, I was able to fully understand what inclusion is and how I can integrate students into my class. Now that the semester is ending I believe that for me to design my class for inclusion I will have to take the UDL (Universal Design for Learning) approach to teaching. This approach was eye opening for me because it showed me that my previous approach of taking one step at a time to teach various types of learners wasn't working for all students. For me to include all students I will need to have one approach that reaches all students, which is what the UDL approach is all about. My approach should include all student’s needs at once, which might be daunting at first because it will be a lot of work, but will meet my goal of teaching all students about art. I will aim to have my lessons and class be set up in a way that accommodates all students whether or not they have a disability. I hope to have my class be an environment that accommodates all types of students so when a student that does have a disability attends my class, it will not be a problem for them to learn. The Foundations of Inclusive Practice class was a great learning experience for me to understand the special education world along with the various disabilities students may face. This classes reading material, observation hours, and entry to the State of Vermont were useful in my growing experience as a future art educator.

References

Eileen B. Raymond (2012), Learners with Mild Disabilities: A Characteristics Approach. Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River New Jersey 07458.

Tracey E. Hall (2012), Universal Design for Learning in the Classroom. The Guilford Press, 72 Spring Street, New York, NY 10012.

Robert J. Marzano (2010), Formative Assessment & Standards-Based Grading. Marzano Research Laboratory, 555 North Morton Street, Bloomington IN.