Disability awareness/rights in schools – how do you feel?

IamMine

^^^^^^^^

I KISS-FIST ya! (Except I would really like it if they knew inside and outside about my community, not me personally! hehe (edited). :P)

By the way, it was Bjorn's birthday today. :P

Yeah, give us our rights, dammit!

Notice how we know more about our rights than an average American in general?

It's interesting when something happens to one, they learn about their rights. Not being born and taught of what our rights are.... tsk tsk.

blondieblue227

IamMine wrote:

:

Notice how we know more about our rights than an average American in general?

if WE you mean we the two disabled chicks:

yeah it's because of all of the shit we face every day.
we better know our rights.

IamMine

blondieblue227 wrote:

if WE you mean we the two disabled chicks:

yeah it's because of all of the shit we face every day.
we better know our rights.

Yeah, that! :P

I am having trouble sleeping tonight... hubby's been out of state with the girls, awww. Looking forward to their coming home tomorrow night!

Anyway...I realized about "The People Speak" on History channel tomorrow night... so Noah (yup, that kid's up late! He's really fun to hang out with!) found it for me to set it for DVR.... was happy to see that it is CC.

That's GREAT!!

EXCEPT..... they left out "facts" that you've been making your point here.

Once again.... we've been.....

EXCLUDED!!!!

:evil:

Is it also because we're STILL living the history? Do we have to wait until we're dead and problems "solved"?

I could see people in 50 years talking about my community going... "I could have been one of those people...but thanks to the miracle genetic engineering [or] stem cell treatment, I'm no longer deaf and might have been communicating in ASL. But I have done research and was amazed at how much oppressed, prejudiced, and discriminated those people were....and I am going to 'speak' in American Sign Language and *points at a fake interpreter*... she will be voicing me as I sign."

Same thing with your community.

Is that what it's gonna take?

Yes, I know I'm being dramatic... but as usual, we're being excluded from this significant history!

Perhaps I should write to Howard Zinn, eh?

Or am I jumping to conclusion here?

blondieblue227

Yeah they NEVER mention the disabled community, I’m not surprised one bit.

When Obama made a couple of his first big speeches he mentioned us.
I could not fucking believe it!
….speaking of we’re often forgotten.

The buttons my advocacy group wears to the general assembly say something like We vote! In bold letters across the bottom.
(I say that in light of some people might think we a silent group)
The buttons hopefully remind people.

You bring up a good point!
Sure, I’m comfortable in my skin but I’d love to see a cure.
I make this point in my paper: I’m glad these ‘newly’ disabled celebs are pushing for a cure, but I feel they should spend an equal amount of energy on improving the barriers people with disabilities face in the here and now.
But than again, that’s because there’s something wrong with you and needs to be fixed mentality if you're disabled. Fuck you!
(i'd go for a cure to fix my body sure. but at the same time there's nothing wrong with ME inside. hope you see what i'm saying)
And I really do believe we would’ve reached a cure for a lot of this crap a long time ago, if there wasn’t so much opposition from the right.

Don’t teach my kids tolerance. Don’t cure crap...Because it’s against my religion!

So I think if the right had their way, there’d be no end to the disabled community. To answer your question.

Some rightys are against abortion, and also against stem cells that may fix your disability.
So a mother knowingly has a disabled baby that nothing can be done for because stem cell researched is frown upon.
It’s insane!

"The People Speak" better be in CC!

IamMine

Hear, hear!

See, see!

There, there!

I, too, was very very thrilled when Obama said that... we even talked about it for days! That gave us so much hope for equality and respect as human beings - whether we wanted to be fixed or considered ourselves disabled or not, our disagreements on certain things....

We all agree that we want to be treated as equals and there's NOTHING wrong with us, dammit! Stop stigmatizing us so goddamn much.... stereotyping....i could go on, but you said it better!!! So, I'll STFU here.

Right on, girl! *fists*

blondieblue227

IamMine wrote:

Hear, hear!

See, see!

There, there!

hahahaha!

And I’m sorry I got so political in my last post.

My hope to see the disability rights history taught in school has nothing to do with politics.

IamMine

blondieblue227 wrote:

hahahaha!

And I’m sorry I got so political in my last post.

My hope to see the disability rights history taught in school has nothing to do with politics.

I was wondering if anyone would get that... or I was just plain stupid!

"Get it?!" *crickets chirping*

Right...um...want some dessert? Coming right up!

Don't. Apologize.

If you do...I've got plenty to start apologizing for... :P

blondieblue227

i thought of helen's post when i read this........



Clearly, Frankly, Unabashedly Disabled
By MIREYA NAVARRO

http://mail.cnunext.org/pipermail/visit ... 00017.html


'....Ms. Haddad, whose right leg was amputated below the knee in 2003
after a car accident, said she has no problem wearing shorts when
she goes shopping. Neither does she shy from removing the
prosthesis in order to swim at the neighborhood pool.


She said people gawk and some have even tapped her on the
shoulder to ask her to put her leg back on. She said she¹s been told,
³It is upsetting my child.² But she refuses to hide.


³You either accept me as I am,² she said, ³or you don¹t have to look at
it.²......'


turn that around. as an amputtee would it bother her to see people with both of their legs? would she ask for all the abled-bodied people to leave because they reminded her of the days before she lost her leg?
unthinkable!

fear of the unknown, that's all it is.

IamMine

blondieblue227 wrote:

fear of the unknown, that's all it is.

Yup!

Hey everyone - here's the message from a lady who is trying to do something about this that Blondie has been talking about here:

Hello All!

I am THRILLED to tell you my comment at the Virginia Beach Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC) meeting today was well received. I simply explained how, in my time, growing up we learned about the African American and women's rights movements. How learning about those movements through the civil rights curriculum taught me about the struggles of other races and how through that I learned to have more respect, better communication, compassion and inclusion. That it is my belief, by teaching the history of the disability rights movement it will have the same impact for children with disabilities. How empowering it would be for children with disabilities to learn about the pioneers of that movement and about all of the inspiring things they had done. That this may show children with disabilities to advocate for themselves and raise their voices knowing it can and will make a difference. I asked for them to please consider having further discussion on this topic and to consider adding it to curriculum.

I felt the SEAC thought this was important and would have further discussion and communication with the school board. We also, had a school board member present who mentioned bringing this desire to the attention of the school board. Now this will not happen over night because things like this take time. However, I feel very strongly this is possible.

Additionally, it was mentioned that there was a $900,000 history grant where money is currently available that may be used for this purpose. Now is the time to let our voices be heard. Please consider going to your local SEAC meeting and making a public comment on this same topic. The more positive voices behind this movement the better chance it has of coming to fruition.

Thank you in advance for you comments at your local SEAC and for your continued support! Please let me know how your meetings go.

Cherese

blondieblue227

that was really smart to post that here because not everybody joined the cause.
thanks!

things always go slow, but hey it's going.

IamMine

blondieblue227 wrote:

that was really smart to post that here because not everybody joined the cause.
thanks!

things always go slow, but hey it's going.

That's why I posted the message - I knew not everyone joined the cause and even if they did, they might have not read it due to notification preferences, etc....

*snickers* I'm SO bad. *cackling*

blondieblue227

holy shit!
somebody decided to feature my longass editorial on their site!


Connecting Communities has featured an editorial of mine!! (scroll down on page) http://connectingcommunities.wordpress.com/


blondieblue227 aka Ivy

IamMine

Way to go, IvyBlondie!!!

Jeanwah

I joined.

My daughter has Down syndrome and the more tolerance and inclusion she can get as a part of society, the better.

IamMine

Jeanwah wrote:

I joined.

My daughter has Down syndrome and the more tolerance and inclusion she can get as a part of society, the better.

Welcome and I agree with you... do you think this article is good in how to teach a child with Down Syndrome?


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http://specialed.about.com/od/disabilities/a/downs.htm

For those who don't want to click on the article, I'll copy/paste:

From About.com: Special Education

Teaching Down's Syndrome Students

From Sue Watson, former About.com Guide

Down Syndrome is a chromosomal abnormality and probably the most common genetic condition, occurs in approximately one in every eight hundred to one thousand live births or accounts for approximately 5-6 per cent of intellectual retardation. Although, most students with Down's Syndrome are between the mild to moderate range of mental retardation.

Initially, Down's Syndrome was given the label of Mongolism due to the physical characteristics of the disorder. A student with Down's Syndrome is usually quite recognizable due to characteristics like a smaller overall stature, flat facial profile, thick epicanthal folds in the corners of their eyes, protruding tongues which is due to their smaller oral cavity and muscle hypotonia - low muscle tone.

Best Practices

* Inclusion: Students with special needs should be full members of age appropriate inclusion classes to the extent they can be. Effective inclusion means that the teacher must be fully supportive of the model. The strategies you use to reach and teach the Down's student will often be beneficial to many learners in the classroom. See the inclusional checklist Inclusion is a good practice for students with Down's Syndrome. The inclusional environment is less likely to stigmatize and provide a much more natural environment for the students. There are more opportunities for peer relationships to occur and much of the research states that full integration works better.

* Self-Esteem: The physical characteristics of a Down's student will often result in a lowered self-esteem which means you will need to take every opportunity to boost self confidence and instill pride through a variety of strategies.

* Intellectual: Down's students usually face many intellectual challenges. Strategies that work for mildly retarded students and or students with significant learning disabilities will also work with Down's students. Much literature have stated that most individuals with Down syndrome do not progress beyond the intellectual capabilities of a normal developing six to eight year old (Kliewer 1993). However, always strive to move the child progressively along the learning continuum, never assume the child isn't capable. Solid intervention and high quality instruction have been proven to lead to improved academic achievement for Down's students. Use a multi-modal approach which works best for all students. Use as many concrete materials and real world authentic situations as is possible. Use language appropriate for student understanding and speak slowly when necessary. Always break tasks into smaller steps and provide instruction for each step. Remember, a student with Down's Syndrome will usually have a good short term memory.

* Short attention spans are also prevalent among students with Down's. Direct instruction in short periods of time along with smaller chunks of activities will help to support learning. Introducing new material slowly, sequentially and in a step by step fashion will help to ensure maximum learning occurs.

* Distractibility: Down's students are of[t]en easily distracted. You'll need to employ strategies that work to minimize distractions such as keeping the student away from the window, using a slightly more structured environment, keeping the noise level down and having an orderly classroom where students are free from surprises and know what your expectations, routines and rules are.

* Speech and Language: Down's students all suffer from serious problems such as hearing difficulties and articulation problems. Sometimes they will require speech/language intervention and a great deal of direct instruction. In some cases, augmentative or facilitated communication will be a good alternative for communication. Use patience and model appropriate interactions at all times.

* Behavior Management Techniques used for other students should not differ for the student with Down's Syndrome. Again, positive reinforcement is a much better method than anything punitive. Reinforcers need to be meaningful.

Todays classroom has many special needs students, and the inclusional model is often the best model and one supported by research. The inclusive classrooms lets all students learn what it means to be a full member of a school community. Treat all students as valued learners. Although many teachers don't have experience with Down's Syndrome, they have been teaching these students very well for a long time.

blondieblue227

thank you to you both!

that was a good article you found about DS and school.

Jeanwah

IamMine wrote:

Jeanwah wrote:

I joined.

My daughter has Down syndrome and the more tolerance and inclusion she can get as a part of society, the better.

Welcome and I agree with you... do you think this article is good in how to teach a child with Down Syndrome?


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http://specialed.about.com/od/disabilities/a/downs.htm

I thought this was good and pushing for inclusion (which I strongly agree with). But the word can still be touchy for some in the DS community. Some parents do not want it, and they have the right to keep their child in a separate classroom. (Usually those who are affected more severely and may also have autism). I also live in a state that has great services for these kids, so I do feel lucky. I've heard stories where parents can't get the kind of services that I'm used to (physical therapy, OT, speech etc.) or have to pay for it.

My daughter is considered high functioning, loves school, and so far, she's doing well. She is not mentally disabled, just has several delays in her development, and is pretty healthy (knock on wood). Her classmates just see her as a joyful and affectionate classmate. There's nothing obviously different about her other than her development is slower, her maturity is younger, can't speak well (speech being her biggest delay) and she's much smaller than her peers. Her classmates like to take care of her.

The one part of the article I completely disagree with is this:

Much literature have stated that most individuals with Down syndrome do not progress beyond the intellectual capabilities of a normal developing six to eight year old (Kliewer 1993).

This is completely not true. I've been to DS conferences, where they always have a young adult with DS as the speaker, and these kids go to college, are athletes, good public speakers, get married and more. And I know that my daughter can achieve anything she really wants to work for. These kids and young adults are completely capable of achievement (as the next sentence in the article notes: "However, always strive to move the child progressively along the learning continuum, never assume the child isn't capable.")

They just need to be believed in. They can do anything we "normal" people can, given that those around them have positive influence and truly believe in them. Expectations are everything.

IamMine

Thanks, Jeanwah!

I didn’t take everything I read in that article seriously...that’s why I asked you. Often I’d read about how to teach or raise a deaf/hard-of-hearing child, I cringe at the continuing misinformation here and there.

I grew up in public schools where there were special education programs for the "Hearing-Impaired" (now either self-contained classrooms or for the ‘Deaf/Hard of Hearing’) with kids who had disabilities such as learning disability, behavioral/emotional problems, various degrees of mentally challenged, physically challenged, etc. Very small percent, which I was one of, didn’t any of those and only needed to be there for extra help from the ‘mainstreamed’ classes (missing information, elaboration on concepts, as well as tutoring) – but even this was not always met because of other students’ needs being attended.

It always bothered me that the ability to speak equates one’s intelligent. That really pissed me off to the end, especially when I was in ‘general’ classes with deaf/hoh kids who had learning disabilities, but they could speak fairly well or better. They would ask questions that are perceived as ‘retarded’ to other kids and even to the teacher. They often acted out in classes, disrupting the learning environment. Teachers and kids thought we ALL are like that, not as individuals. They did not identify the fact that they had disabilities that had NOTHING to do with their hearing loss.

It didn’t matter how I asked the questions like the "normal" (ugh) kids, because I always asked through the interpreters, so often the kids/teachers thought they, the interpreters, were the ones asking the questions FOR me. If an interpreter fucked up, it was ME who looked stupid. sigh. :roll:

The "low/high functioning" term – we were just discussing this term in recent meeting (I know, Blondie, I contradict myself sometimes about the political terms but when stigmatization or stereotyping plays a role, I cannot help it). One leader said she was very tired of seeing that "low-function" term used in the Deaf Community because it’s an insult – it’s not their fault due to lousy education. Many weren’t allowed to use sign language (whether it was used in school or not) to learn, but heavily emphasized on speech training in order to learn. As a result, many could not write well in English. I do agree because I saw this growing up – watching the teachers yelling or correcting the students’ speech when they had questions or trouble understanding a lesson, ignoring the lesson itself unless their speech were corrected. It frustrated the students so some of them did not even bother to ask because they knew they had to speak correctly first.

We agreed that we liked this term instead: delayed education.

Professional "experts" scare the parents with the ASL option by pointing out the average reading level upon graduation – 4th grade. Never mind the fact that most were first taught to speak and by the time it was "too late" they learned sign language in an effort to catch up with the language development. Interestingly, they also never bothered to point out that the average reading level for the HEARING is 5th grade. :roll:

They’re still pulling this shit with cochlear implants, the 'miracle' or 'cure', on kids and say they do not need ASL and strongly recommend that they do NOT teach or encourage ASL because it would "harm" their speech skills. Lies, lies, lies... or more politely - misinformation, misinformation, misinformation.

Same old shit they pulled on my mother. It’s like what EV described the Pearl Jam album back in 2006 – it’s like a new engine in an old car. :P Exactly.

One of the disadvantages to self-contained classrooms is that it’s often the same teachers with the same students for many years. This is not a good thing when they do not have good relationship or/and the teachers have low expectations of the students. I saw this growing up. :( And it’s still going on today.

What the hell is "normal" anyway...even the majority is fucked up and not really normal! Everything seems to be centered and derived from the "White hearing man who is smart and physically able to do anything".

:-/

Anyway, thanks for sharing... I do understand some of what you are dealing with and how your daughter faces the society everyday with stereotyping, discrimination and prejudice.

Education is the key to all of this. Over and over. Again and again.

blondieblue227

I know disabilities are more severe than others, but when I hear parents say I basically want my children secluded, here’s what runs thru my mind:
You aren’t going to live forever. How is your child going to cope once your gone?
Won’t be best to see how they cope with the real world when you’re still here to help?

Just my opinion and everybody has one.

Doctors need to stop playing God and stop making those general statements. It perpetuates the stereotype.
My dr. said I’d never talk.
Now everybody wishes I’d shut up!

People with disabilities CAN’T do everything a normal person can.
We do things in our own way and there’s nothing wrong with that.

(I say that because when I was young people told me I could do everything and it did me a disservice in the long run.)

why can’t people who are deaf use both and not be looked down upon? Use ASL and cochlear? Two ways to commutate, sounds good to me.

I was inspired today. Read it.
Honesty and the Disabled Community
http://ivys2cents.blogspot.com/2009/12/ ... unity.html

curmudgeoness

81 wrote:

i don't think schools need to spend in inordinate amount of time on it. i recall when i was in school, we had a kid that had that a problem that would cause him to blurt out stuff at random times. (i forget what it was called), anyways, before he joined the class, the teacher or somebody from the school came in and gave us a five minute speech about it/him.

It's called Tourette Syndrome.