4/5/2020
Topic:
Students with Disabilities
Mary C Tappan
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Think of a student with a disability you have now or in the past. Describe ways in which their disability affected their learning in your class.
In my 15 years as an Art Educator, I had many students come through my door with various challenges from mental, to physical, to psychological. I think one of my biggest frustrations was that admin seemed to be simply satisfying the law/requirements of making sure they had integrated time with their peers, by popping them into Special Area. I had always wished that they would play to that child's strength. The Art room can overwhelming, especially at the elementary level. It is often loud, bright, and colorful. And the time is short, maybe 35 or 40 mins of special area time. On top of that, if they were in a self-contained class all day, then they were suddenly being thrown in with kids they aren't familiar with. And those kids aren't familiar with them! For example, I had a low functioning ASD student who did not handle the transition well or new places. He hated loud noises and bright lights. But with 28 other 3rd graders, I couldn't change all these issues. I did the best I could and made all the possible accommodations, but he was miserable. He loved math. He was high-level math, could solve complex problems in his head and loved to write out math numbers. His aide would always try to discourage that and encourage him to follow the lesson for the day. I told her one day, let's just let him make art about what he likes but ask him to use the supplies we are using. So he painted numbers, colored numbers, drew them, sculpted them, etc. It helped a little, but still, he had no interest in being there. I wish, they had found a way to let him attend a 5th-grade math class for his integration and give me a class period to work with him and the other exceptional students on their turf, doing art that they would like. It seemed the only thing admin cared about was checking the box off that he and others were getting gen. ed. class time but didn't care about the quality of that time. |
4/26/2020
Topic:
Tools And Strategies
Mary C Tappan
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Describe at least one way you have used technology to meet the needs of a student with a disability in your classroom. Be sure to identify or describe the specific technology and the student's disability. Share your response in the threaded discussion.
I was very fortunate to work in a county that had one2one tech...every student had an ipad. We used these to photograph their work (great if they were absent), create slideshows and movies, and for one student in particular, learning the information being shared. She had vision in 1 quarter of 1 eye, so she had to almost lay her head on the paper to see what she was drawing, But she loved drawing! We used her ipad to look at her work up close, she took pictures of classmates work and zoomed in to see it better, and I would send her any presentations I was doing so she could follow along on her ipad. It really helped her confidence and she felt like she was part of the class in real time instead of recieving help after everyone got settled. |
4/26/2020
Topic:
Assessment of Learning
Mary C Tappan
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Provide/Describe one or more examples of adapted or alternative assessments you have successfully used in the classroom for students with disabilities. Be sure to identify the student's disability. Share your response in the threaded discussion.
In my art room, I allowed all students to assess themselves. We started with an art show at the end of the term where they would show their 1-3 favorite artworks with a description, They could choose to verbally explain, record on their ipad for others to play, write their explanation, or have a conversation with me and I would describe the art as if was a docent. Finally, they filled out their own rubric. Depending on ability level, it could be a more in-depth rubric or a simple image-based rubric. They really enjoyed and learned from the self-assessment and were more likely to try new things and take creative risks. |