Chapter One

I thought this was an interesting chapter, though pretty lengthy.  I forgot how different it can be to read a textbook rather than a regular book. One of the subjects discussed in this chapter that I found most interesting was the difference between "ADA" and "IDEA". Under IDEA, a plethora of learning disabilities are covered such as : Intellectual disabilities, learning disabilities, emotional disturbance, hearing impairments, visual impairments, orthopedic impairments, other health impairments, autism, traumatic brain injury, and speech, or language impairments, in addition to gifted or talented students, and at risk students. In terms of the ADA, I found it very interesting that this act applied to everything with the exception of churches and clubs, and unless a private school is associated with a church, it does not have to comply by these standards. This was an interesting concept to me. I also thought it was interesting that the book listed some supposed "negative" effects of inclusion. I have never thought of inclusion as something that would create a distraction in the classroom. The little girl that I nanny/babysit throughout  the year has Downs, and is in an inclusive environment, and has been very fortunate to have excellent teachers. However, her parents often tell me that there are problems with the resource teacher communicating with the "regular" teacher. In one case there was so little communication between the teachers that Grace was getting penalized for not taking AR tests, because both teachers were relying on the other to test her, and therefore nothing was accomplished. This was a main issue the book discussed. Programs that encourage inclusion are hinged upon the teachers ability to communicate and also the attitude and behavior of the teacher. I thought it was really interesting also that the book mentioned that in addition to the strict standards set forth by IDEA that teachers are also supposed to adhere to the NCLB guidelines. For my sociology class I did quite a bit of research about the ineffectiveness of NCLB. In my opinion a teacher focused both on the ridiculous standards of NCLB and "teaching the test" would put students with disabilities to the wayside, not intentionally, but just because they were more focused on NCLB accreditation. I think it will be interesting to see how the phasing out of NCLB will effect the education of students with special needs as the "common core" idea is being embraced. As a future special needs teacher, these are some very important issues to consider. One of the most valuable bits of information in this chapter was the focus on different types of special needs. I was also never aware of the rights parents of a special needs child had in concerns to their   child's education such as the due process rights and due process hearings. Although the chapter did not specifically word it this way, it also highlighted a lot of the paperwork involved with being a teacher.   This was a very useful chapter in introducing special needs children and methods used to educate them.