For this post I would like to explore the different levels of autism and how those differences can influence a child’s learning and academic performance. Many children with autism are extremely intelligent but lack the social skills that allow them to perform as well as other children in a normal classroom. However, because of the integration system in the United States, many autistic children are placed in normal classrooms. Therefore, this research is important, for me and other current or future educators, because it may provide some insight on how to support an autistic child in our own classrooms based on their specific needs and knowing that those needs vary. Firstly, it is important to note that those with autism are placed on a spectrum and not a scale because each case of autism is unique. About 40 percent of those with autism have average to above average intellectual abilities and many on the spectrum pride in their distinctive abilities and “atypical” ways of viewing the world, as they should be (Autism Speaks). There are so many types of autism and the degrees to which one can be affected so not every child with autism needs the same accommodations. Besides the different degrees to which one is affected, teachers must also consider the fact that autism can be associated with intellectual disability, difficulties in motor coordination and attention and physical health issues such as sleep and gastrointestinal disturbances. It is a misconception that autism is only when one is either socially or intellectually limited. Visiting a school for special needs children located in the Netherlands, along with reading The Eagle Tree by Ned Hayes really made this clear to me through seeing examples of real people. The special needs school was good because even though some of the children had problems, they were still just as eager or more to learn as some of their more abled counter-parts. The Eagle Tree was helpful because it is written from the perspective of a 15 year-old boy with autism. Seeing the world through his eyes gave me a much better appreciation for how someone with autism might think and though I realize that not every case is the same it makes me more aware that there are small things that could make someone uncomfortable and that I should be aware of their reactions. I found a document discussing their findings based on research they did with both children with autism and cerebral palsy. The idea was to integrate technology in the classroom for those who struggled to communicate more verbally. Seeing as technology is a theme in our trip, I was interested on what the studies would find. Interestingly enough, children with autism were more likely to engage with an ipad than other technology. Based on what I was told in the school for children with special needs, children with autism rely heavily on routine and therefore, familiarity. An ipad is more recognizable, so it would make sense that a child with autism would be more likely to be comfortable using an ipad. In this study they were specifically trying to get a child with no verbal communication skills to communicate yes and no answers through the program on the ipad. It ended up being a success, allowing the student a way to communicate answers without relying on the other person to interpret their response (Desai, Chow, Mumford, Hotze, Chau 2014). The result of my inquiry is that I can apply this knowledge to my classrooms in the future. Implementing this kind of technology, special needs or not, may make students more comfortable engaging in my class. Since I would be an English teacher in high school, students are often hesitant to participate in discussions. If I use that kind of technology to start the conversation and get the ideas out, it could lead to more productive discussions later on. The information has also opened my eyes on children with special needs, but more specifically those with autism. Even though I had known general things about those on the spectrum and even known several people who have autism I still tended to think of autism as one general thing. Changing my ideas to that of a spectrum was extremely beneficial to me for understanding that there are different degrees to which one may deal with autism and how that will shape the way they think and react to what I am doing. I will be making an effort to get to know each student in my classroom and how they react to the things I am doing in order to create the most comfortable environment possible which will enable learning. References
Desai, T., Chow, K., Mumford, L., Hotze, F., & Chau, T. (2014). Implementing an iPad-based alternative communication device for a student with cerebral palsy and autism in the classroom via an access technology delivery protocol.Computers & Education, 79, 148-158. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2014.07.009 Hayes, N. (2016). The Eagle Tree. Little A. What Is Autism? (n.d.). Retrieved May 28, 2016, from https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism I’ve known that I want to teach in an international school for a long time and yet, I have never really done any research to figure out what steps to take in order to work towards that goal. It’s something I’ve been meaning to do and never gotten around to which is why I am taking this inquiry post as an opportunity to research what it takes in order to achieve my dream. I feel as if sending the past few years in the United States had dimmed that fire a bit. When I was in the British international school, I was reminded of the absolute need to be back in that environment where the students want to be successful and am willing to do anything to learn. I witnessed a class of students who were to miss class for another commitment, schedule a time outside of class with their teacher so that they would not miss a lesson. That is a place I want to be and that is why I will be finding more information on what it takes to get there. When I was still in high school I had already started asking some of my teachers what I should do in order to get to where they were. One of the first things I was told was that experience is one of the most important things. Of course, a higher degree or an extra program would be helpful, but if I did not have the teaching experience I would never be considered. While I was grateful to be receiving advice, I was skeptical at the idea that I could only get teaching job by having teaching experience, which required a teaching job. However, when I found the website for The International Educator (TIE), a nonprofit organization for helping teachers find jobs in international schools, it says that overseas experience is not needed in order to get a job. However, two years of teaching experience inside the United States is a minimum requirement for becoming an international school teacher. The author says, “Contrary to a common misperception, teaching abroad is not the place to learn how to teach and to get your first experience running a classroom” (Nagrath). This does make sense because the environment within the international school community is largely competitive and schools must know their teachers can keep up with the demands of their students. It wasn’t until after I had looked on the TIE website that I came across an article from PRWeb Newswire that credits TIE as the most comprehensive service for securing a job in an international school. The other thing I read from The International Educator is that after one gains their two years of teaching experience in the United States that in order to obtain a job from an international school the best thing to do is get a list of schools in the place one wants to teach and contact them directly. This was interesting to me because TIE offers services to connect teachers with international schools that are hiring, so the fact that they are suggesting teachers go off and simply contact potential employers on their own combined with the fact that they are a non-profit organization, seems to convey the message that this organization is really there to help teachers achieve their goals rather than just being another corporation only looking for personal gain. As a result of this inquiry, I may want to explore the research done on the benefits of teaching abroad because as I was doing my search today a few popped up that looked interesting to me. I would also want to know the other side of things, the reasons I may not want to teach internationally because that is something that would be important to think about as I go forward with my future. The research I have done today has made me realize that achieving my goal of teaching internationally is going to require me to go beyond what may be normal and that I need to do more research, build some connections and network, and gain the experience needed before applying to schools all over the world in order to acquire that valuable opportunity to reach my dream job. References
"International Teaching Job Opportunities for American Teachers." PRWeb Newswire 28 Apr. 2012. General OneFile. Web. 22 May 2016. Nagrath, Cynthia. "Teaching Overseas: Are You Qualified?" The International Educator. N.p., 6 June 2011. Web. 22 May 2016. The Netherlands, 93% of people can speak English and most of them are speaking English as a second language (Edwards, pg. 316). Knowing this, and considering the fact that the students I had met in the Fontys Institute in the Netherlands I began wondering what the Dutch were doing right in their way of teaching languages. Language is a valuable and admiral tool, especially with the globalization that is becoming more prominent each day. Also, the American people are notoriously behind when it comes to language learning. It seems almost everyone has taken language classes from at least high school and yet many of them would not confidently claim they speak said language. It is important to examine some of the things that the education system in the Netherlands are doing to teach language in order to implement some of these things in our own classrooms. This is important specifically to me because I will be teaching English classes and students in my class may not always be native speakers. I could use the knowledge I gain from my analysis of the Dutch system in order to help students in my class who may need the support to learn English in a country that won't accept anything less. After visiting the elementary schools, everyone got together and discussed what they had learned and I noticed that each school started their English programs for primary school children at a different time. It seemed to be up to the digression of the school as to when their children would start learning English. When I looked for more information on this, I learned that schools were only given the freedom to start teaching English early a few years ago. The Dutch News quotes their Junior Education Minister, Sander Dekker saying, "Young children have the ability to pick up a foreign language in a playful way. This is an opportunity we should not ignore." While at the Fontys Institute the students had told me that English education mainly started in secondary education, so the fact that this policy if fairly new explains why the information I was given differed. My interest in the Dutch methods of teaching language was sparked by the students of Fontys as they gave their presentation based on the strategies they learned from a global conference they recently attended. There seemed to be a focus on creative and engaging activities that would capture the students' attention. They also emphasized that they really wanted to teach the language as a whole, rather than having students memorize separate lists of grammar and vocabulary. As they were speaking I immediately thought of my own struggles to learn Mandarin and how I am slowly learning through those lists of grammar and vocabulary that the Dutch students looked down upon. However, their ability in English is much better than my ability in Mandarin so decided to research what they do that is so effective. The interesting thing is, what I found is that their English skills have almost nothing to do with what they are taught in school at all. Philippa Law, in BBC UK, compares the UK foreign language education system to the one in the Netherlands and states that the Dutch students ability to speak English is largely to do with the fact that their pop culture is largely English music, movies, and television. René mentioned that because the Netherlands is such a small country they do not dub their movies, putting subtitles instead. One result of this inquiry post is that I can keep this idea of Dutch learning English through mainstream media and pop culture in mind as I maintain relationships with the Fontys students and also as I am doing my hour alone. With the Dutch students, this means that they share the same quotes and references to movies that are popular in the United States and it is something that we share in our cultures that I can use to relate. For my hour alone, I want to visit a Dutch toy store and compare the differences with what I know of American toys. Therefore, with this idea that we share pop culture I should be aware that there may not even be huge differences between the two and think about some of the different reasons that this would apply to the games just like movies are in English because it is cost efficient. I had hoped to learn methods to help students in my class who may struggle with English, so I would maybe show some clips of American television shows that relate to the lesson in order to spark their interest and help with their learning. If they become interested in the show, regularly watching it could help them in the long run as well. This even works for students who speak English as a first language as a more visual way to learn and be more engaging. References
"Dutch Primary Schools Get More Scope for English Lessons." DutchNews.nl. Dutch News, 11 July 2013. Web. 19 May 2016. Edwards, Alison. English in the Netherlands: Functions, Forms and Attitudes. N.p.: U of Cambridge, 2014. Alisonedwardsdotcom. Apr. 2014. Web. 19 May 2016. I want to explore the factors that decide which track Dutch students are placed in for secondary education. When I first heard about the Cito exam I immediately began making comparisons to the Gaokao test in China and the Suneung in South Korea which is something I had learned in one of my teacher education classes last semester. Both are high-pressure tests that are the sole factor that determine which colleges students are able to attend, and thus, the rest of their lives. These all seem to be extreme measures to me, putting immense pressure on the students, and in China and South Korea these exams are the cause of many cases of student suicides. However, after learning a bit more I realize that the significance of the Cito is closer to that of the SAT, because even though they may only take this test once it is not the only factor that decides what track students are placed in. This is important because I want to be able to analyze the Dutch placement system with a critical eye. I initially thought that students were placed on their track for their secondary education based purely on the Cito examination, however, after talking to the Fontys students I learned that there are other factors that decide where students are placed. Though they were not specific about this, they mentioned that teacher recommendations are a big part of the decision. Later, I interviewed a student from Bakel, Netherlands who stated that teacher recommendations can be good because it means their placement does not rely only on the test. However, he also said, “[Relying on teacher recommendations are] Bad because it is statically proven that people with lower educated parents tend to get lower advices [from teachers] even though their Cito is better” (Reijbroek, 2016). I made sure to fact check him, and found in the Dutch News (2016) that stated the same. When I attempted to find statistics on mental health of Dutch students, there was not much to be said. On the other hand, when looking up mental health in relation to South Korean students there are many shocking statistics on suicides. Almost 40 South Koreans commit suicide every day (Cain, 2014) and an NPR article states, "It's just one tragedy in a country where suicide is the leading cause of death among teens, and 11- to 15-year-olds report the highest amount of stress out of 30 developed nations (Hu, 2015). Though there are other factors that contribute to these statistics, the fact that the Suneung exam is the only thing that determines the South Korean students' futures, the stress levels are high. The Fontys students did mention that there was some social pressure to do well on their exams, as in peers would make fun of them for low scores, but they said it was not particularly concerning because there is no way to prepare and teacher recommendations are equally important anyway. Though I did not specifically state that I wished to improve my ability to apply new information to broader contexts as one of the global competencies I wished to improve, I believe this is something I have gained. I did this by applying what I learned in the Fontys University along with further research to the things I had learned in my class the previous semester. I did have the goal to improve my ability to communicate in a manner that promotes acceptance or agreement, and I believe that doing my research and finding reputable sources to back up my ideas and the ideas of my interviewee, I was able to further develop this global competency as well. Through doing my own research and finding differing opinions, this inquiry has opened my eyes to the idea that I should always be critical when learning about things that are new to me and not form any conclusions based on one source. References
Cain, Geoffrey. "Why South Koreans Are Killing Themselves in Droves." Salon. N.p., 15 Mar. 2015. Web. 17 May 2016. Hu, Elise. "The All-Work, No-Play Culture Of South Korean Education." Parallels. NPR, 15 Apr. 2015. Web. 17 May 2016. Reijbroek, Jorn. "Dutch Education." Online interview. 18 May 2016. "School Inspectors Warn of Rising Inequality in Education." Dutch News. N.p., 13 Apr. 2016. Web. 17 May 2016. So, for my inquiry posts I want to learn more about the local Dutch education system because I only know enough about it to know it is different. Since I have a friend who has grown up in the Netherlands he has told me a little bit about how they have a lot of different paths going through school and how supposedly being in higher levels earlier is better but he was in a lower level but is still doing better than some of his classments in terms of where he is in life.
I want to explore the different advantages and disadvantages each level has and the different ways a child can make it through school. Such as what if there are children who start in the lower level but then show remarkable progress. I want to know if there would be a system that would allow this child to move up levels as long as they keep reaching higher. |