Caroline Suchman

Chapter 5 Reflection
The most important idea in this chapter was viewing behavior as a form of communication. In
previous classes of various disciplines, I have been confronted with the question of whether humans and
other animals behave in certain ways due to their genetics or due to their environment. I have
concluded that it must be that both are factors. We have a tendency, due to our genes, to act in a
certain way when faced with specific stimuli. Being faced with positive stimuli allows us to train our
positive reactions and being faced with negative stimuli forces us to train our negative reactions. This is
why people who have come from abusive homes are quick to lash out or become defensive and those
from more wholesome homes are quick to be loving and understanding, that is what they have been
trained to do, whether it was intentional or not. Behavior is simply a reaction to a stimulus and as such is
a form of communication. This is a good thing because while we may not be able to solve the cause of
negative behavior, it lets us know that we can modify our own behavior in order to cause a different
reactive behavior, something I will have to reflect upon when I have my own classroom.
The story about Jack and his friend Chris was very heartwarming. It reminded me that full
inclusion is not only beneficial to students with lower abilities but also those with high ability levels.
Perhaps now that Chris has seen the good he can do for his friend he will have greater confidence in his
problem-solving capabilities. One thing I really loved about this story was that his invention was not
extremely complicated or unheard of, he simply thought outside the box and added zippers to an
unconventional place that would seem unnecessary to a person with a full range of motion.
Accommodations do not have to be difficult in order to make a difference.
A question that came to mind as I was reading this chapter was about how so many school
believe they have an inclusive environment when they are only halfway there. Is it that they do not
understand the meaning of true inclusivity or do they just want to feel better about what they are
doing? Calling a school inclusive when it is not seems misleading.