Huizinga,+Lauren+Inclusion+Strategies+in+Foreign+Language

For all intents and purposes I grew up here the in the Rogue Valley. My family moved here when I was in the third grade and my memories of much before that are all somewhat blurry. Both of my parents encouraged academia from an early age and I have enjoyed school, or at least learning about things that interest me, for as long as I can remember. I recently had twins-Henry and Emelia, and being able to see them grown and learn at such a young age has really been what has brought me joy lately. It has also sparked an even greater desire within me to become a teacher so that I can model for my children the importance of education and learning. Going through the MAT program is a bit of a new experience for me as I have not attended public school since I was in elementary school. Some of the aspects of teaching in a public school classroom are very daunting, (class size, standardized testing, rigid lesson plans, etc.) but I am looking forward to experiencing all of these things from the other side of the desk. I attended Gonzaga University where I double majored in History and Political Science with the original intent of going to law school. Once I graduated and spent some time working, law school did not seem like the ideal fit for me anymore. What I really wanted was to be able to go to school for the rest of my life and continue to learn. As I am not independently wealthy, my lifelong student-hood was not to be and I dedcided a career in teaching was the next best thing. Hopefully my enthisiasm to continue my education will translate into an enthusiasm my students are able to draw from. My greatest fear as a teacher is that my students will not respect me. I do not mean I wish my students to fear me or feel that I am unreachable, but it is important to me that I am seen as the authority figure int he classroom and what I have to say is important. This sounds like some sort of "power trip," but I feel that I will respect my students and will expect that same courtesy in return. I have been largely fortunate in my academic career that no particular subject area has been inherenly difficult for me. What has been difficult is staying focused and interested in subect areas that hold no real appeal for me. The feeling of panic I get when I realize I forgot to do something in a certain class, or that I haven't been paying attention and do not know what is being discussed is certainly strong enough to help me empathize with my future students with exceptionalities. No one wants to feel as though they are lost or the only one who doesn't know what is going on around them. From this course I hope to gain a greater understanding overall of what is expected of me as a teacher of all types of students. I know that I personally need to work on my patience and compassion towards all students. It is easy to forget that what comes easily to me, or what I may find riveting is not going to be the same for all of my students. **Inclusion Strategies in Foreign Language** I chose this topic becuase I have always been interested in other languages. Most of my family speaks at least two languages as both sides of my family are Dutch and grew up speaking Dutch and English at home. Unfortunately, this tradition stopped at my generation and my parents both have lost the majority of what they learned as children. I think it is a shame that as a nation we do not place more emphasis on foreign language learning for our students. While most highschool programs mandate 1-2 years of foreign language instruction, this is hardly enough to make one conversant, let alone fluent. I myself took Spanish for 7 years between middle school and college and still feel like I am barely able to communicate with a native speaker. I did not continue my Spanish learning in college because I simply did not have enough credits left after my two majors. I regret it still to this day as it would have allowed me more options as a teacher, and would have provided me with a greater ability to interact with my students. I see any way to help my students with exceptionalities express themselves as mutually beneficial. There will be obvious struggles for those students who struggle with their primary language, but I think strengthening communication, literacy, and language skills would be helpful across all content areas. The top 5 things I learned researching this topic are: 1. Inclusion strategies can be used to help all learners in the classroom. For example, using pictures to help autistic students communicate is very helpful for teaching vocab to all students. 2. Foreign language, like a primary language will put up the same types of barriers for students with disabilities. If there is a working strategy in their English classes, it can be incorporated into the foreign language class. 3. It is important to keep students with exceptionalities motivated to learn a new language when they may feel discouraged about the language they already know how to speak. 4. Learning a second language is hard for almost everyone, it is great evening of the playing field. 5. Language and communication skills are so important in the world outside of the classroom that any encouragement or improvement is wonderful and empowering for the student. This is a fantastic resource that covers all types of disabilites students may have in a foreign anguage class. It was one of the few sources I found that addressed students with visual or hearing impairments. It also links to tons of other resources available on the ERIC system for further learning. It was definitely the best resource I found, and by far the most encompassing of strategies and methods of inclusion. **5/5** @http://www.miusa.org/ncde/tipsheets/foreignlanguage This website addressed all types of students struggling to pick up a foreign language. Some of the strategies would not necessarily work for all students, but it provides a different focus than just students with exceptionalities. It is just as important to know how to educate our students without special needs, so I felt this should be included. **4/5** **@http://www.ldonline.org/article/22725/** This website allows for text-speech translated into several different languages. It is a bit limited, and there were several other options for purchase if a teacher felt it was a worthwhile addition to the classroom. It would be great for hearing vocab repeated or quick translation questions. **4/5** **http://imtranslator.net/translate-and-speak/#window** **"Por vs. Para"** **4/5** This video does a really good job of writing out instructions and advising the viewer to take his/her time and pause as necessary. It also uses colored text and pictures to help make everything clearer for the viewer. It simplifies a rather difficult concept for Spanish learners and does so in an engaging way. media type="youtube" key="R8ozhgEp2zY" width="425" height="350" **"Ser and Estar Spanish Rap"** **3/5** This is a somewhat silly video of three boys rapping the difference between two Spanish verbs meaning "to be." It's engaging and humorous. They do speak somewhat quickly and it may be a little difficult to follow, but it could be a good intro to a lesson on the two verbs to swith things up a bit. media type="youtube" key="Dot2t-qGKQQ" width="425" height="350" "**Learn to speak Spanish" 3/5** This is a series of videos that a man does from his home. His presentation is really terrible, but he says the words in English and Spanish several time, spells them out, and provides a visual of the word on the screen. What is most interesting is that his thick accent disappears when he speaks Spanish and he has a decent Spanish accent. I think kids would find his presentation humorous and would appreciate that a thick accent or speech impediment is not necessarily a hinderance to correct pronunciation. media type="youtube" key="GYGxqVNNisk" width="425" height="350" This link is to a resource created for teachers in the UK who now face mandated inclusion in their foreign language classes. It includes strategies and guidelines that they are able to implement to help students with disabilities as well as those without. It is slightly confusing as it uses acronyms I am not familiar with that are part of the UK teaching system. Overall it is moderately helpful, but seemed largely to put the teachers' minds at ease. **3/5** **@http://www.llas.ac.uk/resources/paper/2724** "**Second Language Acquisition in Under 5 Minutes"** **3/5** because it has some good strategies, but it pre-supposes an understanding of grammar in general. This video, though apparently intended for adult language learners, really breaks down the steps of learning grammar in a way that students with learning disabilities could benefit from. media type="youtube" key="3_LOBBLmgYc?version=3" height="360" width="640" **"Rethink Autism"** **3/5** because it would need some tinkering to apply to foreign language and it is specific to one type of disability. This video teaches strategies for language learning for students with autism. The focus is on English language learning, but I felt the techniques would be applicable and helpful in a foreign language class as well. media type="youtube" key="hoF1UJ9YBUY?version=3" height="360" width="640" **Community Base Learning Project: Outside Resources for Families with Students with Special Needs**  For my project, I was fortunate enough to have a sister who works in a position to give me outside perspective on how local families are able to use resources available to them and their children with special needs. My sister is currently a grad student at PSU working towards her Master's in Health and Human services and Social Work. Prior to re-enrolling in school, she worked locally in the valley as an advocate for abuse victims and their families, families invovlved in family court, and families needing assitance through the county. She worked with several agencies and in different capacities within each agency giving her an amazing perspective regarding what resources local families really need and use. The following is an interview I had with her followed by my thoughts on what she had to say: The definition for "emotional disturbance" under IDEA is rather broad:"(i) The term means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational performance:   (A) An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors    (B) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers. (C) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances. (D) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression. (E) A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. (ii) The term includes schizophrenia. The term does not apply to children who are socially maladjusted, unless it is determined that they have an emotional disturbance" When you are working with families, do you feel like this definition is accessible to parents trying to help diagnose their children? Do you feel like the jargon or psych references might turn parents off from wanting to help their children as some people do not appreciate pysch interferences or see them as necessary? I think that for some parents, the process of diagnosing in and of itself causes resistance. For others, it can provide relief to have a common language to describe the things they experience with their child(ren). I think that the inclusion of schizophrenia might be confusing for some parents? Because that diagnosis tends to be associated with such severe symptomology, that for parents to consider their child being diagnosed under an umbrella that is inclusive of the disorder may be alarming. In all though, I think that items A-E are pretty 'user friendly' for parents for a couple of reasons; they describe symptoms in terms of the situations that they happen (i.e. school, peer relationships) which is relatable; they don't suggest an etiology that blames parents for contributing, which may make a 'diagnosis' more palatable; and the wording is pretty normalizing (unhappy mood, for example) rather than being medical or jargony.

With the families you have worked with, what demographic seems to be the most represented. (Obviously this is skewed based on our demographics locally)?

As far as economic demographics: low income families tend to be most represented in domestic violence advocacy services, not necessarily because of a higher incidence of violence in low income family systems, but because low income families have less resources to respond to crisis. Families with intergenerational poverty, for example, may not have parents, siblings, or extended families to call upon for financial assistance, respite childcare, etc., which forces them to access public assistance services. The same also applies often to children in educational settings-- that families with financial resources may have opportunities to access support outside of schools and demonstrate less need for in-school accommodations. As far as a racial demographic profile, yes, Jackson Co. is predominantly white so we see a lot of white folks. Some might suspect that Latinos would be disproportionately represented, but often we see other cultural traditions fostering a type of community support that we do not see in white families- the same often goes for family structures in black families here in Portland-- black students identifying as title X (homeless or transitional) are more likely to fall into the category of those students living in a household with more people than capacity, whereas white kids are more likely to fall into the category of homeless in a shelter or camp. People often attribute this to the fact that other cultures value extended family support in ways that white culture doesn't necessarily do. I hope that made sense...

What, if any, prior knowledge do parents seem to have in regard to what their children may be entitled to? Most parents have already had contact with the school prior to any help or advice we may give them, and they seem to be well informed of what options are available to them and their students.

Are you familiar with IEP's? (individualized education program) Have you ever been involved with them in any way?

Yes, working with DHS child welfare and Jackson County Community Family Court, we often would see a level of involvement in children's lives that went beyond the basic concerns for safety and security that may have opened the case in the first place. Often CASAs would be heavily involved in advocating for children within their schools, and in bridging the gap between schools, parents, and caseworkers.

When you are working with or talking with families regarding their children and their educational experience, what are some of the concerns they have in regard to getting services for their children?

The system run-around is a big concern that seems to happen, especially for families that have children with mental health needs. They may know that their child needs counseling in order to be more productive in class, for example, and a teacher might be agreeing with that, but without the direct provision of services in schools, connected to schools, the linkage isn't very strong. So they go to Jackson County Mental Health, and wait 2 weeks for an assessment. In the meantime their kid gets suspended. Then their kid gets 6 weeks of counseling, the counselor has to interface with the school, only one or two teachers get the information about what the counselor recommends that the kid gets in the classroom for support, the counselor takes time to fax this, etc. etc. I think this web of connections and links is a big concern for parents, especially for parents who don't feel that they have the capacity to do all of the coordinating of the 'players' involved that is necessary to get their kids' needs met.

Since emotional disturbances are somewhat hard to measure, and are also a bit subjective, how do you think schools could improve getting services to needy students? Having the funding and capacity to provide support services within the schools themselves, ideally, rather than having to refer out to other agencies and partners. This seems to be where things can get difficult, especially for families who are already dealing with stressors and a lack of resources. If on-site services were more available, I think teachers, counselors, and other agencies would feel less in the position of having to 'triage' kids and prioritize, especially given the subjectivity of recognizing emotional disturbance.

Are most parents of chilren with emotional disturbances cooperative when the schools attempt to get help for the students? In my experience 'cooperative' can be read in two ways: willingness and ability. Most parents I work with would be willing and grateful for their kids to have services and support. Whether or not they are able to meet those needs is another thing. Example: a mom has three kids, one in 5th grade whose teacher says he is considered to fit under the definition of emotionally disturbed. The teacher recommends that he have a quiet, structured place to do homework each night, that he have help from mom, that he have access to a counselor, and that they increase the number of conferences to discuss his progress. Mom is willing, but lives in a shelter temporarily because she left the kids' father, cannot guarantee that there will be any level of quiet and calm at the shelter during homework time, may or may not be able to help because there are two other kids to parent single-handedly, and she may not be able to get him to counseling appts or attend conferences while she is looking for employment, housing, attending court hearings with his father, and on, and on. So in terms of cooperation-willingness i say yes, in terms of cooperation-ability, it is not feasible for many to offer the follow through that is requested by schools.

What else do you think I should know? Statistics, examples, things the schools should be aware of, etc? In the vein of my own work, I think schools ought to be informed of and trained in dynamics of domestic violence. An alarming number of kids experience violence at home, and kids who witness or experience DV are at increased risk for a litany of health and school performance issues (anxiety, depression, disordered eating, sleep disturbance, digestive complaints, physical injuries, difficulty focusing, etc) and that often these school performance issues can and should be seen through the lens of what a child can actually accomplish in their home environment. My thoughts kind of tie into the next question...

If a student has emotional disturbance, but is unwilling or unable to receive services out of fear, embarassment, etc, what can teachers do to help facilitate learning and creating a trusting environment? Specifically for emotional disturbance due to exposure to violence, in order for kids and parents to feel safe disclosing or discussing the issue, there needs to be a culture of understanding and non-judgment about domestic violence. A pervasive culture of victim blaming and guilt for non-offending parents decreases the likelihood that survivors will feel comfortable being honest about the issue and related needs of their kids. Education and training exists for how to talk about DV with kids too, in a way that can help avoid making them feel defensive of their parents, or guilty for the violence that is occurring.I think for teachers to have a strong understanding of learning styles, and to be able to articulate this to kids in a way that makes sense and is not stigmatizing (like not calling IEP that, but saying that everyone has their "learning plan" or something) being creative and normalizing things to not single kids out. Clearly my sister is both very intelligent and very passionate about her work. This interview helped clarify some things for me as well as confirmed some things I was concerned about. I was unsure how much support families in need would be able to get outside of the school system. The interview dealt with only one kind of special need, and knowing that other agencies are versed in the IEP process was reassuring; the more involvement and people willing to help orchestrate an education path for students with special needs, the better. Unfortunately, my sister did confirm what I was afraid of: parents feel overwhelmed or not as helped by the school system as they should be. The whole process is obviously overwhelming and not something any parent wishes to go through, so any way to ease the process should be implemented. I feel that this interview was important because we are all going to have the opportunity (whether we take advantage of it remains to be seen) to work with students with special needs; it is inevitable in our student teaching. Getting another perspective from an outside source is always valuable in finding more ways to reach out to our students and their families during a difficult time. Increased understanding and awareness can only benefit everyone involved. I think one of the most telling answers she provided was in dealing with parents' willingness vs. their ability to take the steps recommended by teachers or the IEP. It is easy to read a lack of ability to help (her example of a single mother who wants to help her student with homework and provide a quiet space while trying to raise another child in shelter) and a lack of effort, or a lack of caring even. As teachers, we need to recognize the bigger picture. IEP's will work perfectly in a perfect situation. We need to be able to adjust our expectations to fit the situation and try to come up with alternative solutions. I also feel it is important to reach out to these alternate resources for informaiton. Yes, sharing amongst teachers an other school affiliated professionals is important, but people like my sister create trust on different levels with families that would be extremely beneficial to ourselves and our students.