Educating children -in a not yet fully acquired second language- while expecting them to create meaning and learn new content is compared to expecting a fish out of water to find a place to thrive. Since, we do this on a daily basis while educating deaf/hoh students, it is about time we give them wings!
Some recommended websites:
http://www.netac.rit.edu/downloads/TFR_Tutoring.pdf
http://www.gallaudet.edu/clerc_center/rss.html
http://www.tulsacc.edu/campuses-and-centers/northeast-campus/northeast-services/engaged-student-programming/america-reads-2
http://www.theitinerantconnection.com/teachers.htm
http://www.learn4good.com/languages/evrd_idioms/id-b.htm
Two things needed to increase language comprehension is time to talk and a reason to talk.
According to Steiner and Waldorf, from age birth to seven years old children learn best through imitation, fairy tales, and folklore. At this age they learn the alphabet, numbers, colors, and names. Children ages seven through fourteen learn best by acceptance and emulation of authority figures in their life. School is thought of as an extension of the family unit. Their imagination and sense of fairness is developed at this age. They start to use communication as a form of expressing thought. From ages fourteen through twenty-one students learn best through self expression either by watching and/or joining in with others and through in depth discussion of the subject.
According to Piaget , students learn best when the emphasized critical role that experience, interaction, and play has with the current environment in establishing cognitive structures.
According to Gardner, students learn best when you expand the focus beyond the linguistic and logical mathematical intelligences. Incorporating all eight gifts of intelligence the student may possess.
According to Baker and Cummins , second language proficiency and learning occur when the student has consistent exposure and home access to language. Their studies have shown that it takes a child two years to develop Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) and seven years to develop Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP).
What might be considered BICS for a hearing student at a certain age and grade level could easily be CALP for their counterpart, a deaf and hard of hearing (d/hoh) student, at a similar age and grade level. This would depend on the students’ exposure or lack of to a language rich environment and linguistic role models.
According to Steiner and Waldorf, from age birth to seven years old children learn best through imitation, fairy tales, and folklore. At this age they learn the alphabet, numbers, colors, and names. Children ages seven through fourteen learn best by acceptance and emulation of authority figures in their life. School is thought of as an extension of the family unit. Their imagination and sense of fairness is developed at this age. They start to use communication as a form of expressing thought. From ages fourteen through twenty-one students learn best through self expression either by watching and/or joining in with others and through in depth discussion of the subject.
According to Piaget , students learn best when the emphasized critical role that experience, interaction, and play has with the current environment in establishing cognitive structures.
According to Gardner, students learn best when you expand the focus beyond the linguistic and logical mathematical intelligences. Incorporating all eight gifts of intelligence the student may possess.
According to Baker and Cummins , second language proficiency and learning occur when the student has consistent exposure and home access to language. Their studies have shown that it takes a child two years to develop Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) and seven years to develop Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP).
What might be considered BICS for a hearing student at a certain age and grade level could easily be CALP for their counterpart, a deaf and hard of hearing (d/hoh) student, at a similar age and grade level. This would depend on the students’ exposure or lack of to a language rich environment and linguistic role models.
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_Parenting Tips to Help You Enforce Special Education Law
Do you have a child with a disability who is receiving special education services?
Are you frustrated because it is hard to get needed educational services, for your child? Would you like a few parenting tips, to help you make sure that special education personnel follow IDEA? This article will discuss 4 parenting tips, that will help you in enforcing, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
IDEA enforcement by law is to be the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), which is part of the Department of Education. They are responsible in making sure that states, are in compliance with special education law. States are responsible for making sure that individual school districts comply with IDEA.
The reality is that parents are the main enforcement mechanism of special education law. Below are 4 tips to help you ensure that your school district is complying with IDEA, for the benefit of your child. Not only compliance but, do they use your student's interpreter correctly. The class room/ after school/ sports/ interpreter is federally mandated and should be used as the professional that they are and not as a classroom para-professional. Many districts still refuse to consider the interpreters' input regarding language levels and accommodations being used for your child. These professionals work one on one with your child and are very informative during the IEP process.
1. Develop a working knowledge of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. By doing this, you will know where to look when you need a particular section of the law. For Example: If you would like to look at what is required for a free appropriate public education (FAPE), you would look under 300.101. Or Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) at 300.115.
2. Develop a working knowledge of your state regulations on special education (This is how the state is going to comply with IDEA). Some states regulations are actually better for children and parents, than federal law. By understanding these, you will be able to use them to ensure that your school district is complying with the educational law. You can get a copy of your state regulations from your state board of education.
3. Bring copies of the laws with you to any IEP meeting for your child, and place them on the table. You will be able to look up certain sections during the meeting, in case you need them.
By bringing up the special education laws that apply, you will make sure that you school district is following them. You also want to make sure, that the special education personnel in your district understand that you know the laws, and that you will be making sure that they follow them.
Also, when you write letters to school personnel, always quote IDEA, ADA, NCLB, or the state regulations, for special education when you can. This will help bolster your case, for whatever you are asking for.
For example: IDEA states, that my child has the right to a free appropriate public education, which I believe that he is not receiving at this time. In order for my child with a learning disability to receive FAPE, she must receive the appropriate amount of reading remediation, using simultaneous-multi sensory reading program such as, we provide, EyeQ.
4. If your school district is in non compliance with the procedures of IDEA, consider filing a state complaint. The state complaint is filed with your state board of education; special education department.
The complaint should state the violation, the number in IDEA that is being violated, what your evidence is of the violation, and also the proposed resolution of the violation. Also, you can put more than one violation in a complaint, but number them for easier reading and tracking.
By doing these four things, you will be able to understand when special education personnel are not following special education law.
It is sad that parents are the main enforcement arm of IDEA, but it is reality! Good luck, and stay focused, for the benefit of your child!
Do you have a child with a disability who is receiving special education services?
Are you frustrated because it is hard to get needed educational services, for your child? Would you like a few parenting tips, to help you make sure that special education personnel follow IDEA? This article will discuss 4 parenting tips, that will help you in enforcing, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
IDEA enforcement by law is to be the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), which is part of the Department of Education. They are responsible in making sure that states, are in compliance with special education law. States are responsible for making sure that individual school districts comply with IDEA.
The reality is that parents are the main enforcement mechanism of special education law. Below are 4 tips to help you ensure that your school district is complying with IDEA, for the benefit of your child. Not only compliance but, do they use your student's interpreter correctly. The class room/ after school/ sports/ interpreter is federally mandated and should be used as the professional that they are and not as a classroom para-professional. Many districts still refuse to consider the interpreters' input regarding language levels and accommodations being used for your child. These professionals work one on one with your child and are very informative during the IEP process.
1. Develop a working knowledge of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. By doing this, you will know where to look when you need a particular section of the law. For Example: If you would like to look at what is required for a free appropriate public education (FAPE), you would look under 300.101. Or Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) at 300.115.
2. Develop a working knowledge of your state regulations on special education (This is how the state is going to comply with IDEA). Some states regulations are actually better for children and parents, than federal law. By understanding these, you will be able to use them to ensure that your school district is complying with the educational law. You can get a copy of your state regulations from your state board of education.
3. Bring copies of the laws with you to any IEP meeting for your child, and place them on the table. You will be able to look up certain sections during the meeting, in case you need them.
By bringing up the special education laws that apply, you will make sure that you school district is following them. You also want to make sure, that the special education personnel in your district understand that you know the laws, and that you will be making sure that they follow them.
Also, when you write letters to school personnel, always quote IDEA, ADA, NCLB, or the state regulations, for special education when you can. This will help bolster your case, for whatever you are asking for.
For example: IDEA states, that my child has the right to a free appropriate public education, which I believe that he is not receiving at this time. In order for my child with a learning disability to receive FAPE, she must receive the appropriate amount of reading remediation, using simultaneous-multi sensory reading program such as, we provide, EyeQ.
4. If your school district is in non compliance with the procedures of IDEA, consider filing a state complaint. The state complaint is filed with your state board of education; special education department.
The complaint should state the violation, the number in IDEA that is being violated, what your evidence is of the violation, and also the proposed resolution of the violation. Also, you can put more than one violation in a complaint, but number them for easier reading and tracking.
By doing these four things, you will be able to understand when special education personnel are not following special education law.
It is sad that parents are the main enforcement arm of IDEA, but it is reality! Good luck, and stay focused, for the benefit of your child!
https://sites.google.com/site/futuretutoringservicesllc/