Approach to Special Education

By: Genevieve Thomas,

Rocketship’s Director of Integrated Special Education
December 31, 2013

A school’s community values become clear by how it decides to educate its students with
special needs. It’s far too easy to move students who need extra help into a separate space.
But little good comes from keeping students apart. For students who have special needs, simply
being included in a traditional classroom could be the key to academic success.

Traditionally, public schools have placed children with special learning or behavioral needs in
separate classrooms first and then looked for opportunities to include them in the general
education program later. At Rocketship Education, our approach is the opposite. We start with
the assumption that all of our kids can be in their general education classroom for the entire
day. Then, students are brought out for specialized instruction when their unique learning
needs require it. Technology, specifically used in our widely-recognized blended learning model,
helps make this possible. Based on a student’s individual needs, we may pull them out for
targeted support for short periods of time or use a special app on an iPad to address a specific
Individualized Education Plan (IEP) goal. This means each student’s day is customized to fit
their needs and abilities.

This approach to inclusion is why a growing number of families with special needs children have
chosen a Rocketship school.

I started my teaching career as a very traditional special education high school teacher in Los
Angeles. Many of my students had been isolated in special day classes from their typically-
developing peers since third or fourth grade. By the time they were in high school, they were so
ill-prepared to tackle the social and academic challenges of the general education classroom
that, even if there had been opportunities to include them in the traditional school day, the
actual act would have been difficult. At that point, there was little I could do to change the
trajectory of their post-secondary outcomes, which was incredibly frustrating.

This is typical of many special education programs. Right now, over 35 percent of special
education students nationwide spend less than 20 percent of their school day in the same
classroom as their peers.

Don’t get me wrong, inclusion is complex. However, it’s important to me to be working in a

model where inclusion is non-negotiable. At Rocketship, we roll our sleeves up and do the work
to get it done. There isn’t another option.

Welcoming students with special needs into a traditional classroom starts with offering specific
tools each student needs to access and benefit from instruction. For example, students with
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder may be given an active seat cushion to help regulate
their sensory needs. A student with weak fine motor skills could benefit from having his own
Chromebook to use for writing assignments. Students with autism may function better by
having an augmentative communication app on a personal iPad, to be used to support
functional communication in the classroom.

This year, as part of our blended learning platform, we are implementing a program
called eSpark. Each of our schools has iPads that are assigned to students with IEPs in
kindergarten through third grade. The iPads are programmed with a suite of apps that are
customized based on the student’s unique needs. Individual playlists are automatically created
for students, so they go into different apps every day based on their playlist. While eSpark
wasn’t designed specifically for special education students, we’re finding that it works well with
this student population.

We’re also finding students who enter our inclusion program are making significant academic
gains. When Indy enrolled at Rocketship Discovery Prep in third grade, for example, he
struggled. Indy is on the autism spectrum and had spent most of his day in his previous school
separated from his typically-developing classmates. At the time, Indy was just starting to read
basic books and adding numbers to 5. He was far below basic. Today, with the help of our
inclusion and blended learning programs, Indy is nearly at grade level in both math and English.
He has also become a more confident student who can stay in his seat during class.

Inclusion benefits all students, not just those with special needs. This year, we started a buddy
program to foster 1:1 friendships between students with and without developmental disabilities.
In one class, two students with special needs have helped the larger group understand how to
interact safely and respectfully with others. In December, one of the special needs students,
Alan, presented his poetry project from his iPad in front of the whole grade. As a result of the
inclusion program, the fellow students were respectful and patient – a heartwarming testament
to the influence of the peer buddy program.

In the real world, our children will continuously experience and need to work with people
different from themselves. It’s our obligation as educators to prepare all students not only
academically but also socially. That work starts through creating a culture and opportunities in
which all are welcome.

Retrieved From: https://www.gettingsmart.com/2013/12/everyones-welcome-approach-

special-education/
 Reading Summary
Traditionally, public schools have placed children with special needs in separate
classrooms first and then looked for opportunities to include them in the general education
program later. Over 35 percent of special education students nationwide spend less than 20
percent of their school day in the same classroom as their peers even if there had been
opportunities to include them in the traditional school day. It can make students with special
needs in grade school to be ill-prepared in high school to tackle the social and academic
challenges of the general education classroom. It is important to be working in a model where
inclusion is non-negotiable. But at rocketship education this is possible, the inclusion
approach is different and it increases the number of families to choose Rocketship school for
their child with special needs. There program start with the assumption that all kids can be
place in general education classroom for the entire day. Then, students are brought out for
specialized instruction when their unique learning needs require it. Also, technology is used in
rocketship education as part of their widely-recognized blended learning model like using of
iPad that are assigned to students with IEPs in kindergarten through third grade to cater their
specific needs and address a specific goal in their IEP. This means each student’s day is
customized to fit their needs and abilities.

In rocketship education, they are providing and using different tools and instructions in
general education classroom to cater the needs of each special student’s. Like in student with
ADHD, they may be given an active seat cushion to help regulate their sensory needs. A
student with weak fine motor skills could benefit from having their own Chromebook to use for
writing assignments. Students with autism may function better by having an augmentative
communication app on a personal iPad, to be used to support functional communication in the
classroom. Rocketship education is planning to implement eSpark program. This program
wasn’t designed specifically for special education students, but it is for finding if it works well
with student population.

Rocketship education is not only using technology as a tool in helping students with
special needs but they are also practicing the buddy program to foster 1:1 friendships between
students with and without developmental disabilities. In one class, two students with special
needs have helped the larger group to understand how to interact safely and respectfully with
others because inclusion will not only benefit student with special needs but it can also help
develop and make improvements to regular children. Creating a culture and opportunities in
which all are welcome is one of the best ways to help children with special needs to cope with
the increasing demand in society and be able to interact with their peers without being uneasy.
 Reflection
The article is right that commonly and traditionally some public schools are placing
students with special needs in separate classroom and looked for opportunities to include them
in the general education program later. But it should not be like that, the school system should
give children with special needs the same opportunity as their typical peers. They should be
given a chance to show what they have in a regular classroom. Because there are some or
mostly children with special needs can cope with the demands in regular classroom but they are
being placed in separate classroom. The stigma that children with special needs should only be
placed in special education classroom or in separate classroom should be stop. Educators and
the school itself must promote equity and equality in the school community. With that the
rocketship education is a very good program for inclusion because it provides more
opportunities to children with special needs become more productive member of society and
reach their maximum potential as an individual.
I like the tools and the program that the rocketship is using because it is very helpful for
children with special needs like using an active seat cushion to help regulate their sensory
needs of children with ADHD, having own Chromebook to use for writing assignments for
children with weal fine motor skills, and etc. The rocketship education is also making use of the
technology like iPads to promote learning to children with special needs. Rocketship’s program
is very accommodating, convenient, and can make leaning more meaningful. But it doesn’t only
end with the technology, what I like the most is that they are using a buddy program wherein
the ratio is 1:1. One regular child and one child with special needs to foster interaction and to
improve both students socialization skills.
For me, what educators and school community should do is to see every child as a
unique individual whether with or without disability. Provide them the necessary skills that they
needed and stop looking for their weaknesses. Treat them equally with love and respect, and
put them to the placement wherein they can maximize their capabilities.