Everything still appears to be going well after a full seven days of school. I like to think they're easing us (and the students) into the year with a three-day week, a three-day (Labor Day) weekend, a four-day week, and now, finally, a five-day week approaching. By the end of the week we'll be golden and on our way to Thanksgiving!
Gnawing at my inside, however, since the middle of last week, is the memory of an early morning meeting about a particular male student in our class. Before school started, I was informed by my cooperating teacher about three students coming into Kindergarten with Individual Education Plans (IEPs): two for behavior, one for a language delay. My immediate reaction had been a bit of a cringe, especially on behalf of the two with apparent behavior issues. What a stigma to be slapped with at the beginning of your school career!
Now, fair is fair: IEPs are a well-organized and clear way of mapping out a successful route for students who are struggling in any one of many learning arenas. I do not intend to insult their purpose, but I find it a shame that they are usually associated with "trouble" kids (who are often, themselves, troubled by circumstances outside of school) and therefore might influence a negative impression of the child before his/her situation is really understood.
... Which is exactly how I felt the morning of this meeting. We had started school just four days prior, but both my cooperating teacher and I could not understand the picture presented to us of the student at hand in his IEP. Thus far, we had observed a pleasant little boy with some difficulty staying within the boundaries of decision-making (he was very determined to check out a Star Wars book from the library which was not available for Kindergarteners), but seemed to accept teacher redirection willfully given enough space to change his mind, i.e. nothing we couldn't expect from any of our other students.
However, this meeting brought to light a variety of factors - mostly home-related - that contributed to a recent burst in violent behavior on his part, mostly in situations in which he felt he did not have the control he desired, and was not able to make a choice for himself. The school behaviorist informed us that, above all, we are not to engage in any power struggles with him, but rather give him the parameters to make a decision and leave him alone with it. "Even if he makes a 'bad' choice, it is important that he is making a choice," he said.
I don't want to divulge too much information, but suffice it to say that I anticipated a much deeper story than the IEP originally seemed to report. Not that the external origins or potential factors influencing the behavior reported are necessary to mention in the plan, but it certainly helped me understand the situation better once I had a clearer picture of the context.
We all agreed by the end of the meeting to take proactive action to support this student in a number of ways, which we had discussed. However, the memory of the meeting that continues to gnaw at me long after I registered everything else was the large gulp of remembering how much children are exposed to that they don't understand ... and that I don't really understand, either. It looks like this student could struggle with his impulses for a long time, and for no other reason than that it has become the only coping mechanism he knows.
As his teacher, what is my role in helping him grow and succeed? What mirror can I hold up to his face that will show only the positive potential inside him? I remember, at this moment, the words of a colleague of mine from IslandWood: "I don't teach curriculum, I teach kids."
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2 comments:
Every I.E.P. has, or should have, stated measurable goals that can be observed using "benchmarks." Because students who have I.E.P.s have been diagnosed by professional educational evaluators, it is very important (in fact it's the law) for teachers to try and help these students meet their goals as stated in the I.E.P. I.E.P.s are state mandates and must be followed or the school (and/or the teachers) can be found
negligent. I would not advise any teacher to "experiment" or "outguess" a student's I.E.P.
While the use of I.E.P.s can well be debated and argued by educational theorists, teachers must follow them as closely to the letter as possible. I suggest sticking to the I.E.P. and work on discovering what best helps the child meet the stated goals.
Indeed, we realized at our meeting that the paraprofessional assigned to our room to be with this student is really there to be watching him all of the time, accompanying him to Specials, and specifically guiding him in making good choices. It's still an awkward situation, though, because the student is doing so well thus far. However, you're right: until the IEP has been officially reviewed and amended, we are required by law to follow exactly what it prescribes to help him achieve his goals. ... Or should I say, to help us achieve the goals we have for him. At his age, the goals are obviously adult-determined, which makes me wonder what he really understands his IEP to be, if he knows much about it at all. For my final portfolio, I am required to cover two case studies of students with special needs, and I'm quite sure I will be covering this student, simply because of the complicated implications of his IEP. So, I will learn a lot as I go, and look forward to communicating more with the support staff of the school that are involved with him.
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