Learning Impact Essay

Mark Dowler EDPD 587

During the past 6 months I gained insight into developing functional curriculum for low incidence students.  The insight I gained includes: understanding learning needs, issues, and skills; becoming familiar with the best practice of service and support plans; the function of low tech devices to enhance learning and participation; designing intervention plans; and collaborating with other teachers.  This insight promoted learning in my own practice, my practicum student MT, and a student in my current Grade 1/2 class, AA.

I have learned the importance of a team based approached.  Learning about a team based approached included: understanding the importance of the student’s team; the importance of overcoming barriers associated with a team based approach; completing quality assessments; planning; stating measureable IEP objectives; the importance of both inclusion and development of functional skills.  A student’s entire team should share a common understanding for the student’s needs and priorities. I learned that team members, who share a common understanding of the student, are more willing to work together to improve the student’s learning and solve problems along the way.  Myself, MT’s EA, and classroom teacher all share this common understanding of MT’s needs and priorities, thus, the EA and classroom teacher were able to help me during this course.  MT’s EA and classroom teachers worked with me to collect data of MT’s term 3 IEP update. I understood that collecting data can be quite time consuming, therefore, I provided them with a clearly written data collection sheet that and EA can follow since I was not regularly in the classroom.

Developing functional curriculum for MT and his IEP was not without challenges.  I learned about the challenges of scheduling incumbent teachers, therapists, and ministry support workers though collaboration with other Support teachers in my school district.  The challenge with scheduling meetings with other team members is that they often must be scheduled months in advance, which can cause delays in the program, especially if a meeting is postponed.  Another challenge I learned of is applying and receiving ministry support, especially during a child’s transition to adulthood.  I learned of these challenges related to the ministry when I first visited their website.  The ministry website was spammed with broad Mission and Vision statements.  For example, “Mission: To promote and deliver accessible, high-quality intervention and support services for children and youth with special needs and their families, through an integrated service delivery approach.”  Board statements do not help intervention and support services for children and youth.  Clear and measureable statements that can be supported and progressed through quality assessment are what will help children and youth with special needs.  For example, during this course I learned to change MT’s initial IEP objective of, “MT demonstrates appropriate behaviour in the classroom” to “With verbal prompting, MT will retrieve a book from the bookshelf 10/10 times. With less than 3 prompts, MT will sit at this desk and explore the book for 5 minutes 3 out of 5 days per week.”  Although developing functional curriculum comes with challenges, I have learned that the biggest part of learning in this course has been the importance of how to find solutions to theses problems. 

I learned the importance of long term planning.  Long term planning can be completed in many forms, such as PATH and MAPS.  No matter the form of long term planning used, a long dream should be established that includes predicated barriers, motivators, and fears. The dream vision and motivators should be referred to whenever there are revisions to a program.  I was able to apply this during the course when I ensured each activity of MT’s daily schedule was associated with a motivator. 

MT’s most prominent learning came in the areas of peers and communication.  Peers and communication are extremely important as MT transitions to Middle School.  I learned the importance of developing early relationships with the peers because early on the peers will learn and understand MT’s way to communicate.  MT uses sign language and a BIGmack to communicate.  During this course, I learned about the step-by-step communicator.  The step-by-step communicator will help MT’s communication and peer development because he loves to be silly with his peers.  The step-by-step communicator will help him tell silly jokes to his peers.

Peers who can communicate with MT will provide support in new classes, with new teachers, and in new schools.

Combing my own learning, and the learning I have applied to MT’s program, I was able progress the learning of a low-incidence child in my current grade 1/2 class, AA.  I saw improvements in AA’s communication through her use of the GoTalk20 for non-verbal communication.  She used the GoTalk20 to communicate what she wanted and to read books to her peers.  AA also practiced her decision-making skills by choosing new friends to read with.  To develop AA’s functional learning, she collected and sorted recycling in the school.  To improve her involvement with peers, she began inviting her friends to help.  The children would always return beaming because they got to work with AA.  Although not formally written in her IEP, I was able to keep track of the number of verbal prompts she would need in order to say “ha” to me in the morning and “ba” to me at the end of the day.  I communicated to her team how her communication goals can be made more measureable and include stretch.

During the past 6 months my life has been awarded with many learning opportunities that I am grateful for: teaching Support, teaching a grade 1/2 class, the birth of my second son, and the opportunity to learn with Terry Wendorf and Susan Batstone.  I believe that the insight I have gained will help me promote learning in many students in my future career.