During the 2010-2011 school year, I spent majority of my time working with special education children. Some of the children do not have physical or mental problems but are just extremely slow learners. For instance a few of the seventh graders were reading at a third or fourth grade level. Many people choose not to work with special education children (SPED) because they fear it will take too much patience and it is difficult. Indeed, SPED children do require a different kind of attention but they learn just like everyone else nevertheless. I have overheard other teachers in the building expressing negative remarks about SPED children “saying there is no way I could deal with those children”. I confronted one of the teachers and asked why she would say that. She told me she could not deal with children like that climbing all up and down the walls. Already there is a bias basically saying SPED children are just unbearable to teach; anytime someone categorizes a group, biases are produced. Saying that they are climbing up and down the wall makes it seem as if they are not even human. I remember talking with another SPED teacher who was furious with another teacher because of his remarks about SPED children. The SPED teacher told me a teacher asked what on earth made her want to teach SPED children, it just seems like you are babysitting all day. I was enraged with the comment as well because this teacher was acting as if SPED teachers are ranked lower and less important. SPED teachers are just as important as any other teacher. Dealing with the situation I experienced multiple biases; teachers holding biases against SPED children as well as SPED teachers. I guess I was shocked with the actions of some teachers. I feel teacher should have bond and be looked as one unit and should never put another educator down. For incidence such as this one to decrease people have to put their biases aside and not speculate. It is easy to guess about a situation but if you have not personal experienced a situation you should not be so willing to pass your opinion.
Hi Kimberly,
ReplyDeleteI also work with children that qualify for special education services. We are truly blessed! It drives me crazy when people make comments about how I am a saint for working with “those” kids. The implication being that children that are not perfect are harder to work with and less capable. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
An education professional who identifies a group of children as "climbing all up and down the walls" tells me that he or she is not familiar enough with the developmental needs of children, typically developing or otherwise, or is not a creative enough teacher to challenge children in productive ways. I heard prejudice toward children with special needs, and marginalization of their teachers in this description of staff talk. As Dr. Garcia expressed at the end of the video, In His Own Voice: Dr. Eugene Garcia (Laureate Education, 2011), we must remember to be respectful.Simply and powerfully said.
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Laureate Education Inc., (2011). In his own voice: Dr. Eugene Garcia. [Video webcast]. Retrieved from http://www.courseurl.com
It is sad to hear that professional educators do engage in conversations like you stated above. This simply shows that they are not vested and this field is not for them. It is sad that children's differences that makes them unique in their own way is used as a degrading factor. Our mind set has to change and it seems like we have a long way to go.
ReplyDeleteYou know its sad to hear professionals talk about children the way they do especially education professionals. You would think that teachers are a solution to the problem but the just make the problem bigger. I think to deal with SPED children you just really have to have to heart and patience.
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