Every environment in a school should enhance student's learning. Although we have curriculum standards, it is a teacher's job to adapt curricula for every student's needs so that they are able to learn to the best of their ability. Providing a flexible curriculum for your students provides them with different opportunities to bring out their strengths. Every students has strengths and weaknesses, and as a teacher it is our job to really get to know our students and help them excel in their areas of strength, and to improve on their areas of weakness. We have discussed multicultural education and some of the certain things a teacher needs to do in order to have a responsive multicultural classroom. The same goes for special education. We as teachers need to become more knowledgeable and make sure that we know their and adapt to their accommodations. While doing some research, I came across this AWESOME website that gives us a little insight and makes us see things in a different perspective.
For example, the author writes:
"We all have strengths in some areas and weaknesses in others. A student may have severe problems in math and science but be a gifted public speaker with a talent for learning foreign languages. A student may be an intelligent, creative learner in all academic areas, but may be hampered by a wheelchair that makes many locations and activities inaccessible. You may, for example, have students like these in your classroom".
"Jason, a tall fifth grader, can throw a baseball at eighty miles per hour yet cannot hear".
"Michael, an excellent mountain climber, cannot see".
"Susan, whose drawings and paintings show a sophisticated understanding of composition and color, reads two years beneath her grade level."
I thought that these were great examples of children who can excel in one thing, but may not be so strong in another thing. All because someone is restricted to a wheel chair, doesn't mean that they shouldn't have access to a general education classroom. It is the school's job to make sure that a student in a wheel chair is able to access a classroom with either an elevator or a ramp. Schools have to be handicap accessible now. No one is perfect, and us as teachers really need to take a step back and really assess our students. It will only benefit our students and us as well. By us assessing our students, it will help us become more knowledgeable on what the student's strengths and weaknesses are. We then can use the flexible curriculum so the students can learn in a way that is appropriate to their learning style. This goes for every students whether they are a special needs students, or they have a multicultural background, or if they are gifted/talented students. Every student should have the opportunity to shine and show off their strengths. I think that is what school is about; it is where we come to find out and bring out our strong side, and to learn and work on things that we aren't so strong with.
I thought that these were great examples of children who can excel in one thing, but may not be so strong in another thing. All because someone is restricted to a wheel chair, doesn't mean that they shouldn't have access to a general education classroom. It is the school's job to make sure that a student in a wheel chair is able to access a classroom with either an elevator or a ramp. Schools have to be handicap accessible now. No one is perfect, and us as teachers really need to take a step back and really assess our students. It will only benefit our students and us as well. By us assessing our students, it will help us become more knowledgeable on what the student's strengths and weaknesses are. We then can use the flexible curriculum so the students can learn in a way that is appropriate to their learning style. This goes for every students whether they are a special needs students, or they have a multicultural background, or if they are gifted/talented students. Every student should have the opportunity to shine and show off their strengths. I think that is what school is about; it is where we come to find out and bring out our strong side, and to learn and work on things that we aren't so strong with.
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