I have a student who has Tourette syndrome so he twitches a lot, his neck jerks, which causes his head to shake quite often, his eye twitches and he stutters. On the other hand, he is a very talkative student who does talk more than needed and at times he irritates other students around him. Due to the fact his behavior is a problem at times the students are very short tempered with him. One student yelled out “would you shut up and stop doing all that twitching”. The teacher assistant immediately tells the student “No, do not say that” and silenced the student.
I think the student was confused on why she was being asked to stop talking. The teacher assistant did not want to draw attention by saying that is not nice to say. The student asked why she was asked to stop talking when she felt she was telling the boy the right thing to do. The boy in return told her he has Tourette syndrome and is unable to control his twitching. There was a long pause of silence and then she replied that she was sorry that she didn’t know.
I think in a classroom setting when the children and the student are going to be working together for many months, I think it is important to get a good understanding about each other. I think if we openly talk about things such as disabilities, it no longer becomes a foreign topic. I remember in school if we had someone who has a disability we would talk as a class and would ask questions so everyone would feel comfortable. Once you talk things out, it is out in the open and there is no more curiosity or ignorance which can lead to biases. The way things have changed so many people are scared of being sued. Even if the child is open to talk about their disability the discussion it brought to an end abruptly. I think if people were aware that he has Tourette syndrome the students would not have ridiculed him for twitching and been more sensitive.
I agree that giving students an opportunity to talk about who they are as well as their limits and differences is a very important part of creating a classroom m community. Children do not innately understand differences, and they definitely do not understand why they are not allowed to act in the same way as someone else. Additionally, allowing children to discuss their own differences will help them to accept themselves. When it is forbidden to discuss a disability or difference, it leads to shame.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that it is important for staff and students to have the opportunity to learn about one another. Children are curious by nature and are trying to learn about their enviornment. We often times find it easier to avoid such situations, but in the long run it will be more difficult on everyone. Great post.
ReplyDeleteKimberly,
ReplyDeleteGreat Post! I also agree that it is important to talk with children and inform them on issues like this. I feel that informing children will give them insight on the challenges of other students. It is also a great idea to give parents insight on issues that are going on in the classroom to ensure that they understand what is going on in the classroom.