ESS304 THE INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM

Assessment One

Craig Edwards
11168546

Guidelines for the Field Trip Report 1,500 words

What were your first impressions of the Special School or Unit?
I visited Wodonga Catholic College approximately ten years ago and recall seeing the buildings near
the entrance to the school but never thinking much of it, just that they must just be additional
classrooms. So when the opportunity to attend Belvoir Special School for a few hours came up, it
made me wonder how schools cater for low ability students or students with disabilities. Arriving at
the school several of my fellow classmates were waiting out the front, I was amazed that none of
them hadnt noticed the lack of students about and we soon learnt that the school had moved. The
new school grounds looked immaculate, state of the art. But I know the buildings only provide the
foundation, I was more amazed at the friendliness and confidence of the AP and also the teacher
and aide in the room I visited. We were informed before entering each room of possible scenarios,
this concerned me however I also thought that the staff would need to be well trained so incidents
shouldnt happen. I liked the simplistic approach in the classroom, no major art works and two clear
working areas for the students to learn. I was surprised to see what I could only describe as a time
out room to the side, which for the whole hour and half I was in the room assisting was being
utilised by a young male not having a good afternoon. At the front of the room there was the
classes daily schedule, so the students could see what was planned for the day.
My exposure to students with special needs has been limited since high school so my knowledge and
understanding of their needs in a classroom is limited. So I was looking forward to this brief
engagement to learn how they interact in the classroom and with one another. I was amazed at how
inclusive the students are of one another and how polite they all are. Always thankful when
provided assistance and look engaged and wanting to learn.
My final first impression was I need to be careful with what I say and do, and that I need to follow
the instruction or the teacher to the letter to ensure the equilibrium of the class.

Give a general overview of disabilities - gained from observations during your field trip.
In the classroom that I was fortunate to visit there was several students that had varying
scales of Cerebral Palsy. Most these students operated with effective sending and receiving
communication skills. Of these students it was noticeable to discern which of them would
communicate in a slower pace and more challenging to understand, a skill that would be
acquired over time as one becomes attune to the students.
It was also noticeable with these students their ability to walk was quite good, with most
functioning with great Gross Motor skills; being able to walk indoors and outdoors, could
run and jump at a decreased speed, balance and coordination. One students ability to walk
was more uncertain and I would expect the need for a handrail with steps and may
experience issues on uneven surfaces.
I learnt that some of the students in the classroom required additional medication for
conditions such as epilepsy, asthma, attention deficit, hyperactivity. Asthma for example
can be easily controlled for a normal student but I could only imagine as coming into spring
could be troublesome for the few students that suffer from it.
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I was aware of one student who had Down Syndrome who was slightly affected, but was
able to participate and contribute fully in the activities exhibited that afternoon.
Several of the other students, I was informed had learning difficulties due to behaviour
management problems but also major trust issues, especially with males. Which was
concerning and upsetting, despite not knowing the situation it did make me wonder.
Despite this the student was comfortable with me in the classroom, I just ensured I
respected space whilst in the classroom.
The most impressive part that I took from these students that they did not let their disability
get in the way of their learning. All the students were polite and full of life and happy. I
believe that all the students in this classroom loved coming to school and spending each day
with the teacher and the aide.
The other activity that occurred in the classroom was reading a book off the Electronic
Whiteboard. Each student was allowed to take turns to read a passage, with the text being
enlarged when required. Again the same strategy of inclusion and meeting the needs of
every learner was applied.

What were some of the effective teaching strategies observed? Why were they effective?
During my time in the classroom it was difficult to observe many teaching strategies in the
classroom. Despite this the major one that was used was being Inclusive to all students in
the room. One activity was creating Milk Art, placing a small layer of milk and drops of food
dye into the milk and drop washing detergent upon to see the reaction provided. The
teacher asked every student a question about what they expected to occur, asked which
colours of dye they wanted, the teacher also allowed the more abled and steady students to
assist and pour their own ingredients. At Belvoir they are aiming to develop a safe,
thoughtful, courteous, caring and helpful environment where respectful and responsible
behaviours are modelled, taught, reinforced and encouraged by the all staff. This primary
focus support program that appears to be making a wonderful positive impact on the
students works by teaching the students the expected behaviours. Some of the strategies
observed in the classroom were Explicit Teaching, Social Stories and nonverbal positive
support. The non-verbal was displayed through thumbs up, eye contact and big happy
smiles and on two occasions two short claps. The students who consistently displayed
positive behaviours within the school and classroom were going to be rewarded and
acknowledged in a variety of ways, for example;

Student of the week awards

Friendship and encouragement awards
Presentation at assemblies and acknowledgement of success through the
newsletter.

These strategies were effective as it made the classroom a happy place. The students could
see how they were progressing with the rewards system and it was continually reinforced to
the students through the explicit teaching. Its effectiveness was displayed by how polite,
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courteous and engaged the students were within the class. Even though one student was in
the timeout room having a bad afternoon the other students had learnt to understand and
ignore the behaviour. The teacher informed that this was to teach the students respect for
one another as each of them may have bad days and need time to themselves.
What strategies were observed with respect of the management of challenging behaviours?
The main challenging behaviour that was displayed was by a student who stayed in the timeout
room the whole time I was there. Even when the students went outside for some play time, the
student chose to stay in the room. A lot of the time the student was bouncing a large exercise ball
off the walls, either through kicking or hitting it. The teacher and the aide monitored the student
whilst continued on with the lesson. They informed me that the student had not been well and this
was the first day back at school that week and as a consequence was having trouble readjusting back
into the classroom.
None of the students spoke rudely or said anything inappropriate, however, one student would
laugh along with another student when the other student said something funny. The student who
laughed as well was questioned if they understood why they were laughing and was corrected and
taught the correct behaviour that could be used in that situation.
Overall the teacher and the aide have done a fantastic job with the students and during session
three I hope to be able to volunteer in her classroom and learn some skills to assist in the future, but
to also observe some challenging behaviour so I can learn the strategies to overcome them.
As mentioned earlier, beside the teacher desk on the wall was a list of the daily activities that would
be done today. These were all stuck on by fabric so they could be easily interchanged with other
activities that were in a small bucket. This would help students learn and become familiar with and
understand structure better. It would also ensure no student was provided with surprises which may
upset the day and their daily routine.

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Guidelines for your Case Study Presentation:

Your Case Study Presentation is to be in class to your peers. It can be based on a child
you have observed during your field trip or can be chosen from the text Inclusion in
Action by Phil Foreman (2001) Decide on a disability that you would like to research
further.
2) Give a clear understanding of the issues associated with educating a young person with
this disability. What could be the social, educational, physical and emotional needs of this
student?

3) Outline an understanding of the strategies that could be put in place to ensure the success
of the present and future educational needs of this student.

4) Examine aspects of the learning environment, such as curriculum delivery. How would a
teacher modify the learning environment to meet the learning needs of this student?
5) Describe how you would meet the needs of this student in your classroom if you were the
teacher?

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