What is Neurodiversity? by Caroline Miller

Argument Statement: The author of What is Neurodiversity?, Caroline Miller argues that the world of education and everyone should embrace neurodiversity, because when we create environments that value everyone's differences, we can create powerful opportunities for all students.

Talking Points:

"Instead of thinking of people with autism or ADHD as needing to be 'fixed', we put a spotlight on things that they're good at and help with things that they're working on."  This resonates with me as a connection to Shifting the Paradigm and asset verses deficit thinking.

"There is no single 'correct' way for the brain to work." Everyone's brain works differently and that should be celebrated. This challenges thinking that there is one right way or standard way to learn or get to the right answers.

"A wide range of perceptions and responses to the world should be accepted and encouraged."  Different ways of thinking should not be challenged but rather celebrated and this can create a more inclusive learning environment.

Reflections and Connections: As I was reading this article, I quickly connected the reading to Renkly and Bertolini's Shifting the Paradigm which speaks about advocating for change in how we view students and learning. This made me think of the fact that all students bring diverse interests, strengths and reasoning skills to the classroom and how this should continue to be celebrated. We can all get to answers differently. Just think about the many ways there are to unpack a math story problem and the many different ways work and thinking can be shown to get to the answer.  

This also makes me think about how in my school, there is a large learning gap between general education students and students with IEPs and makes me think that there needs to be more resources and training for all educators, not just special educators to support students with diverse needs. We have students with diverse needs in all classroom environments and I think we need to all be better equipped and trained in supporting all learners so that it doesn't feel like it all falls on special educators.

I found this article that I think connects really well to this week's reading and teaches readers how they can support neurodivergent students.

https://sheridan.brown.edu/resources/inclusive-teaching/supporting-neurodivergent-students-classroom

Rethinking Schools on ICE

The authors argue that ICE should not be allowed to infiltrate school settings and make students and teachers fearful.  Educators already have so much responsibility and need to resist ICE and advocate for students so that they are safe.

Three Talking Points:

Beginning: In the first article, Kicking ICE out of our Schools and Communities, the author states that "students need to feel safe -- physically and emotionally -- to learn, and ICE's presence in our communities destroys that sense of safety" (By the Editors of Rethinking Schools).  Educators' highest priorities are that students are safe, known, valued, learning, and having fun.  We first need to ensure that our students feel safe on our campuses and in our classroom and school communities.  We need to be inclusive and stay informed for the safety of our students.  We also need to ensure that we are creating a supportive environment for students to express themselves and any concerns or questions they may have.  Students might come in feeling overwhelmed, worried, or stressed if they have seen or know someone close to home or in their community that has seen or been in contact with ICE.

Middle: The next article I am going to reflect on is LA Educators vs. ICE.  "In California, about one in five k-12 students come from mixed status families, meaning at least one parent is undocumented. Every school day, these students face the possibility of coming home to find a close family member missing."  I can only imagine how distressful this could be for students not knowing if this situation could hit close to home.  In this article, educators in this community came together to support and raise money for food for these students. Trainings were also created so that educators would be in the know for protocols and for ways to take a stand.

End: In the article, In it for the Long Haul, the author stated, "Those things that we need in a restructured society are foundational to our personal community safety.  Within that context, it's not that you are taking abolition and putting it into an educational context; instead, it's a process.  It's a practice, a way of being, and a way of acting in the world that provides you with an opportunity to reach the restructured world we are trying to build."  This makes me think of the way we show up for our students day in and day out is a practice or a way of being and being able to support and help our students requires us to come from a place of calm and collected.  We have to be emotionally and mentally prepared to support students in general as well as in times of distress that they could be feeling.

Connections/Reflections: While reading these articles, I kept thinking back to when our school had sightings of ICE very close to school property and we had very little information provided about what to do and we were in a shelter in place protocol.  We didn't get much clarity about what happened off campus nearby which was unsettling because there wasn't a debrief or a meeting with what to specifically do if ICE is spotted nearby or on campus.  I think we definitely need more training as a school surrounding this topic.

Recommitting to the Joyful Classroom by the editors of Rethinking Schools

The author argues that "joy is not an escape from the hard realities of our world, but a dive into them... and that joy and academic achievement are partners, not enemies" (Editors of Rethinking Schools). 

Three Talking Points

Beginning:

"We must reject district initiatives that begin from a narrative of "learning loss", echoing the tired lines used over decades to track students by their test scores with problematic and inaccurate assessments tied to ineffective and deadening teaching" (Editors of Rethinking Schools).  Rather students need to feel connected to the learning and intrinsic motivation verses extrinsic motivation must also be taught.  Students need to feel the joy and the spark in learning again.  Some days, I start to feel so sad with our mandated scripted curriculum that we must use because the district paid a lot of money for.  But so much of it needs to be made more engaging, culturally relevant and accessible for students. 

Middle:

"We need to reject the supposed need to be "efficient" in the classroom and instead take the time required to restore young people's fractured relationships with others.  What may be efficient at racing another few pages through the textbook may be decidedly inefficient at building community and a love of learning" (Editors of Rethinking Schools).  Our students need to be able to pause and discuss and grapple with these big ideas, concepts, and themes that we are teaching about.  We need to also make the learning connect to their real lived experiences.  A lot of the time, I feel we are forgetting this piece and the joy and many other feelings that we should experience while learning.  Think wonder, awe, empathy, gratitude, sorrow, confusion, etc and all the many other feelings that can take place when learning new things. 

End:

The following quote really resonates with me.  "We so desperately need to insist that our classrooms and schools be sites of joy, of imagination, of humanity.  It is why we need to resist the narrative that after two and a half years of the pandemic, schools should be hurry-up sites where we single-mindedly address "learning loss" (Editors of Rethinking Schools).  I feel as though there has been this narrative surrounding the pandemic that we have so much learning to make up and that students are "so far behind."  We have to keep in mind that many of our students grappled with living through the pandemic (my current Kindergarteners were literally born during the pandemic).  So much of the time I hear educators and school leaders saying that we have so much catching up to do.  It never feels like we are doing enough and feels like as soon as one testing cycle is complete, we are onto the next.  Students and teachers alike need to feel joy in the learning and teaching otherwise it starts to feel like an uphill battle almost instantly. 

Connections/Reflections:

I stumbled across this article after doing some research around this topic and thought that it connects well.

https://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy-posts/bring-joy-back/

As I was reading the article titled Recommitting to the Joyful Classroom, it made me really pause, think, and reflect on how much of the time I feel rushed to get through the curriculum and make sure that I am following guidelines and standards.  Much of the time I feel I am so focused on getting through the next unit or module that I am forgetting to see the big picture.  Are students seen, known, valued in these lessons?  Can they see themselves in the learning and in the curriculum?  Are they able to access the material?  Is it rigorous enough?  It made me think of all of these questions and I am pondering how I can bring more joy into the learning.