For an insightful and sensitive podcast about inclusion by Kathern Burke (Executive Director, Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta, Canada) and parent of children with special needs, download the podcast from http://www.blogtalkradio.com/specialneedstalkradio/2011/09/09/inclusive-classroom. Below is Inclusion: Why Can’t We Be Friends?, a post that she let us reprint.
Why Can’t We Be Friends?
Guest Post by Kathryn Burke
Executive Director
Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta
Alberta, Canada
Some memories are so vivid it almost seems like a DVD is being played in your brain when they are being recalled. The memory I want to share is like that for me – so vivid I am still able to recall everything from the smell of the room to the buzz of the fluorescent lights. Read more...
conflict, Dyslexia, dyslexic, IDEA, IDEA 2004, inclusion, inclusion ideology, inclusionist, inclusionists, Kathern Burke, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, parent, parents, research, research on inclusion, SNTR, special education rights, Special Needs Talk Radio, struggling reader
Why Can’t We Be Friends?
Guest Post by Kathryn Burke
Executive Director
Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta
Alberta, Canada
Some memories are so vivid it almost seems like a DVD is being played in your brain when they are being recalled. The memory I want to share is like that for me – so vivid I am still able to recall everything from the smell of the room to the buzz of the fluorescent lights. Read more...
conflict, Dyslexia, dyslexic, IDEA, IDEA 2004, inclusion, inclusion ideology, inclusionist, inclusionists, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, parent, parents, research, research on inclusion, special education rights, struggling reader
Children with reading disabilities and other learning disabilities need intensive instruction. Usually, this statement generates little or no controversy. The definition of intensive, however, does. Recently, Robert E. Slavin and his colleagues (2009) critically evaluated the relevant research on the effectiveness of programs for struggling readers. Their key findings should help to define the word intensive: Read more...
- One-to-one tutoring works. Teachers are more effective as tutors than paraprofessionals or volunteers, and an emphasis on phonics greatly improves tutoring outcomes.
- Although one-to-one phonetic tutoring for first graders is highly effective, effects last into the upper elementary grades only if classroom interventions continue past first grade.
computer-assisted instruction, cooperative learning, decoding, Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, phonic, phonic program, phonics, phonics instruction, phonics program, phonics programs, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading intervention, reading problem, reading problems, reading remediation, reading research, remedial reading, remediation, research, struggling learner, struggling learners, struggling reader, Struggling Readers, tutor, tutoring
Is inclusion always good? No. It’s not. That’s why the “I” in IEP stands for individualized. That why the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) requires schools to have numerous placement and service options. That’s why IDEA requires IEP Teams to base all decisions about children’s programs on their needs, not their special education classification.
Inclusion is often good, but not always. Many children with reading disabilities need instruction that differs dramatically from that offered in general education classes. Even with major changes in curriculum and assignments, many general education classes are inadequate for teaching children with reading disabilities how to read. Read more...
children’s rights, Dyslexia, dyslexic, IDEA, IDEA 2004, inclusion, inclusion ideology, inclusionist, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, placement, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading problems, reading specialist, research, research on inclusion, special education rights, struggling reader
