Léo's Insights
A place where issues related to the Christian walk and its application to home education is discussed.
Topics are meant to challenge you to think differently, to make a difference in this world, starting with the children you have been blessed with.
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My “Special Needs” Students: Learning Challenges (Part 3)
I have been a part of the education industry for my entire life. In one capacity or another, I have seen or experienced a great many things most people do not even know exist.
Today, I simply want to share a few stories that are related to the “learning challenged” otherwise known as “special needs” and recently renamed “inclusive education.”
“Special needs” or “inclusive education” is a school based term that is actually code words for “increased funding.” Let me share an incident that occurred shortly before I officially ended my twenty-five year career as a high school teacher.
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On Being “Learning Challenged”: Learning Challenges (Part 2)
What is it like to have a “learning challenge”? That should be an easy question to answer. In fact, it is easy because there is no such thing as a standard learner, any more than there is a standard person.
When we consider that it is highly unlikely that anyone can learn everything and in every way, it is fair to say that everyone is challenged when it comes to learning in some way.
As discussed already, the main reason that there are any “learning challenges” is because the school system cannot comprehend that there are folks who cannot learn within its confines. Whenever someone does not fit, he/she is declared a misfit, given a label and medicated if required.
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Learning Challenges (Part 1)
What do Attention Deficit Disorder, Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia and Dyspraxia have in common? Besides the fact that they are complicated words that all start with the letter “D,” they are examples of the many learning disabilities listed in web sites specializing on this subject.
As a bona fide dyslexic who has been involved for over forty years in the education “industry,” I can say that I have had a lot of experience with this topic. I can also honestly state that I have great reservations about how we see and how we manage “learning disabilities.”
Let’s start by looking at how the dictionary defines learning disabilities:
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Introduction to the 2018-19 Academic Year
Welcome to this, our sixth year of blogging! That is a lot of blabbing over a long time!
At first the blog was only presented in a text format. I remember sometimes having to quickly compose something the night before as I was not only the writer of the blog, but the manager of everything, as well. Some of you may remember the occasional time when you went to the blog on Monday morning to discover that the “manager” had mismanaged!
But things have changed. Besides the fact that I am obviously six years older than when I began blogging, I now have a team of very competent people helping me write, rewrite, proofread, record, edit, process and upload the final product in text, audio and video formats. I am very thankful for having these professionals working with me.
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