Blog #7: Language

This week my group did the presentation on language, so I had a very in-depth look at the entire chapter in the book. Much of the in-class discussion centered around bilingual education and ESL students, which are very "hot" topics in education today. Especially in Texas, but in the nation as a whole, our classrooms are becoming increasingly diverse when it comes to language. In Irving ISD, 70.84% of students are classified as Hispanic/Latino, and among those students many come from homes that speak Spanish only, and 39.3% are considered LEP,Limited English Proficiency (according to the 2009-2010 AIES Report: http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/cgi/sas/broker?_service=marykay&_program=perfrept.perfmast.sas&prgopt=2010%2Faeis%2Falltyped.sas&year4=2010&search=distback&year2=10&topic=aeis&gifname=g_aeis10district&title=AEIS+Report&level=District&ptype=HTML&sublevel=dist&distback=057912). This is a large percent of the overall student body, and these students require special programs, teachers, and curriculum. Irving offers bilingual programs at the elementary level, ESL for all levels (elementary, middle, high), Dual Language programs at the elementary and middle school level, and ExcELL (Excellence for English Language Learners) at the middle and high school level. More information about Irving's Bilingual/ESL/Migrant Department can be found here: http://www.irvingisd.net/bilingual-esl/

Another unique population in Irving ISD is the students that belong to the Regional Day School Program for the Deaf (RDSPD). This program serves students who are "auditorally-impaired and whose hearing loss interferes with processing linguistic information." (http://www.irvingisd.net/schoolforthedeaf/) The Irving RDSPD serves students more than 130 students (from age birth-22 years) living in Irving, Grand Prairie, and Duncanville. Here's a video about the Irving RDSPD and the services it provides: http://www.irvingisd.net/schoolforthedeaf/RDSFD.wmv

I'm glad I work in a district with such broad diversity, language and otherwise. As a teacher of the Deaf, I try to see the school through my students' eyes, and although they are very different in one way, they are welcomed and accepted by their hearing peers. Similarly, I see the ESL students receiving similar support and acceptance from Native English speakers. It seems in Irving there is a common unity in their diversity. The one thing they all have in common is that they're all different, and language is no exception.

Blog #6: My Book

"When two elephants fight, it is the grass that gets trampled." -African proverb

For my book, I read They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky. It is a narrative written by two brothers, Benson and Alephonison Deng, and their cousin, Benjamin Ajak, a few among thousands of boys who become known as the "Lost Boys of Sudan." The boys were born into the Dinka tribe of Sudan, but their childhood was cut short when civil war broke out and they were forced to flee the only home they knew and loved. All under the age of seven, they were separated from their families amidst the panic of attacks on their small village and fled into the night. Over the next five years, they along with thousands of other orphaned boys, travelled by foot over a thousand miles through Sudan, Kenya, and Ethiopia  to find safety.  After several incidents of separation and reunions, the three boys all eventually ended up in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya. Six years later, the boys were given the opportunity to move to the United States as part of an international refugee relief program where they still live today.

Once I started this book, I could not put it down. The way it is written is in short memoirs written by the individual boys. It starts out with the boys retelling memories from their young childhood in Sudan, in which they paint a vivid picture of the simple life they embraced in their remote village. The Dinka tribe, who were primarily cattle herders, lived in a very close-knit community residing in mud huts thatched with grasses. Although the lifestyle described seems primitive, the boys lived happy, fulfilling lives, in which the greatest threat was lions and pythons who crept beyond the village fences.  That is, until war broke out.

Over the next two hundred pages, the boys describe, in short flashes of memory, their grueling journey across thousands of miles, with little or no food or water, in a desperate search for safety. They trekked through deserts with thousands of other young boys in the same situation, often falling dead around them. Their struggles were so great, but I was constantly amazed by how their inner strength and resilience conquered the odds.

At times, the graphic images the boys recalled were disturbing, but there was always an underlying feeling of unwavering hope and determination. Although the hardships they faced were utterly unimaginable to most people, their ability to survive was even more amazing. All in all, this was a fantastic book that I would highly recommend to anyone.

Blog #5: Exceptionality

I have little experience with students who are considered "Gifted and Talented," but my world is consumed with Special Education. Deaf Education is one branch of Special Education, and in Texas it is organized into RDSPDs (Regional Day School Program for the Deaf). Texas is divided into 5 Regions, and among these are about 60 RDSPDs, serving students from 500+ school districts (http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/deaf/directory.html). I work in the Irving RDSPD, at the middle school campus.

Chapter 5 of the text, "Exceptionality," spends a significant amount of time going over Legislation involved with Special Education. Although this is not the most exciting topic, it is critical to Special Education as we know it. For example, Public Law 94-142, the Education for all Handicapped Children, establisehd "free and appropriate education for all children with disabilities." In other words, all children qualify for free education, appropriate to their personal needs, in the least restrictive environment. For some children with disabilities, depending on their needs, this may mean a self-contained classroom with highly qualified special education teachers, or it may mean placement in a mainstream classroom with inclusion support.

As the only deaf education teacher on my campus, I have to make decisions about the placement of my students, with assistance and input from the other members of the ARD (Admission, Review, Dismissal) Committee. This may be perhaps one of the most difficult parts of my job because I have to distinguish between the desire for my students to be successful but also the need to challenge them. The key to least restrictive environment is finding the setting in which the student will be most successful, and most similar as possible to the regular education classroom. For some of my deaf/hard of hearing students, they can function successfully in a regular education class with only the use of a sign language interpreter, others need an interpreter plus an inclusion teacher, and some need to be in a self-contained classroom with only other deaf/hard of hearing students and a certified Deaf Education teacher.

In addition to finding appropriate least restrictive environment placement, I am in charge of creating and implementing each student's IEP (Individual Education Program). IEPs are very helpful because they focus on the specific needs of each individual student, but it can be difficult when I am teaching a class of students on a variety of academic levels and differing IEP goals. Even more troublesome is the fact that some general education teachers are not familiarized with the students' IEPs and accommodations. I teach self-contained Reading, English, and Math for the deaf students, but they all go to science and scoial students in a general education classroom, with support from a deaf education teacher.  For some of my students, they struggle just to keep up with the lesson in the general education classes, but it is made more difficult when the teachers are not familiar with their IEPs and especially their accommodations (i.e. a copy of class notes, modified tests, reduced assignments, extra time, etc.) I know the general education teachers have their hands full with six classes and about 30 students in each,  but it would be more successful for teachers and students if they would take the time to read and understand the students' IEPs and accomodations. 

Sometimes it seems the "least restrictive environment" is most restrictive for my students considering their struggles and needs. I'm afraid they are missing out on the "meat" of the lesson because they are spending so much time and effort just to figure out what's going on. On the other hand, I do recognize the importance of them interacting with students without disabilities, and the need to access the regular education curriculum. It is an ongoing battle, but I will continue to work to make sure my students are getting the best education possible.

Blog #4: Gender & Sexual Orientation

Flashback: December 1999. The dreaded "Y2K" was only days away, and the future was unknown. The whole fear initiated around the fact that computers were not programmed to switch to year "00," but that fear evolved into a potential Armageddon- blackouts,  stock market crashes, and overall chaos. But, as we know, January 1, 2000 came and went, and the world, despite everyone's worst fears, continued to spin.

Flash forward: Y2GAY! Sounds ridiculous, right? About as ridiculous as Y2K was as soon as the clock stroked 12 on January 1, 2000.  Although this video is clearly poking fun at some people's irrational fear of gay people and gay rights, this fear is as real to some as the fear of Y2K was. Looking back now, we know our fears of the 21st century were completely irrational and absurd, so when will people realize their prejudices and fears towards gay people are equally absurd?

After our class session on Gender & Sexual Orientation, I decided to call my good friend, Daniel, who is gay. When I called him and told him about the class he asked, "So, you wanna play 'ask a gay'?" Essentially, yes, I did.

We had a long conversation ranging from gay rights, marriage, politics, social action and so on. This is just a very brief recap of the highlights.

I started out by asking a very open-ended question: "What do you think about being gay?" Daniel responded, " I guess it can be boiled down to who you’re attracted to. And for some people that’s all it is. For other people, they take on other political/social attributes. But, no, it can’t be boiled down to one thing because it’s different for everyone. It’s not a choice whether you are or aren’t, but once you make the choice to be honest about it you become more…you. You can live up to your personal best."

 

 I asked him when he knew he was gay. He explained, " It was kind of like the perfect storm I guess. My [college] roommate moved out, so I was living by myself for the first time. It was getting to be a stress because I was worried people would find out. Didn’t know how they would, but I was sure they would. I lived by myself, so I could do whatever the I wanted to for the first time, which was a good thing, but I realized that if I didn't start talking about it myself, then other people will start talking about it and make it a bigger deal. That way I could control the way the situation turned out. I realized my friends would be okay with it. Then I met someone in basically the same situation. I made the decision at that point that I didn’t care. I stopped caring about it...I feel like I’m a better person after I  came out. It helps you live a more honest life because there’s a whole side of you you don’t have to keep a secret. It changes the way you approach people, and deal with people in general. I stopped caring, If people have a big problem with me because I’m gay, I won't surround myself with those people. "

Our conversation eventually shifted to education, and how the issue should be addressed in schools. Daniel suggested, "First of all, a better way of doing sex ed in school. People get confused between the differences between power of knowledge versus someone’s moral concerns. Knowledge is power. Period. You don’t have to discuss what gay people 'do', but they need to know they’re not alone. They need to know they will be able to gain personal acceptance."

So what role does the teacher play? How should we, as educators, address sexual orientation? Daniel brought up a good point, "Teachers, despite their personal views on gay rights/marriage/etc, need to focus on the success of the student as an individual." I think that's something we need to constantly remind ourselves of. It doesn't matter if the student is gay, straight, black, white, Christian, Muslim, poor, rich, or otherwise. What matters is that the student is in my classroom and it is my job to make sure I'm doing everything I can to help him/her be successful. 

So should gay people be allowed to be teachers? Daniel and I agree, yes. A teacher's sexual orientation does not affect his/her ability to be a good teacher.  Plus, gay students need role models, too. As Daniel explained, "Teachers have the power to prevent a student from harming himself because of feeling all alone. It helps if they can see a gay person doing something good in the community. The more people that come out, the more the stereotype is broken. They live next door to you, they’re in your family, whether you know it or not. When people come it, it’s always to a good end." And as far as teachers being concerned about students being negatively influenced by gay teachers, Harvey Milk stated it perfectly: "If it were true that children emulate their teachers, we'd have a lot more nuns running around." 

And should they be allowed to be parents? Again, a resounding yes. Daniel expanded on the point: "The religious right will site studies that a female/male marriage is the best situation for raising a child. But these groups have their own agenda. More scientific studies, with no agenda, show that the idea of two loving parents that give their child support, as a family unit, is what is important. Not male/female. A stable family unit that the community is allowed to legally support. Not just heterosexual married couples."

Daniel is a very kind, accepting, open-minded person who can get along with almost anyone. When we talked about more close-minded people with outright prejudice towards gay people, and who are strongly against gay rights, Daniel explained, "If they hold personal viewpoints and opinions that don’t fight for equality for everyone, then eventually they’ll find themselves having to explain their opinion to a family member as to why that person don’t deserve the same rights as they do. They’ll eventually find themselves on the wrong side of history. I feel sorry for them, their numbers are going down, they’ll end up in a more lonely situation. At this point, it’s not ignorance. There are plenty of openly gay people out there. It’s willfull ignorance and I feel sorry for them. What if they have a gay child? What will they say? "You don’t deserve the same rights as me'? That could be their future and that’s sad."

I agree, it is sad. As teachers we need to create environments that accept all students for who they are, despite their individual differences. We need to make them feel welcome and comfortable so they can have a safe place to be themselves and learn. Isn't that our job after all?

*Major thanks to Daniel for his knowledge and insight. I'm lucky to have such a great friend.