As I was listening to the latest podcast of the Teflologists  I came across the topic of students with special needs. (Podcast by Teflology
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-teflology-podcast/id897413013?mt…)

Interestingly enough, in all my 25 plus years of teaching I’ve just come across a blind student once. It was back in 1993 and we were a group of young teachers trying to make our language consultancy firm take off. Our office was very well located near the financial center of São Paulo and in the building where we rented 2 office rooms, there were several mid-sized companies and consultancies. One day my partner told me that Roberto Carlos’s son had an office in our building and asked if I could be his teacher. In case you don’t know, Roberto Carlos has been the king of Brazil’s pop romantic music for over 50 years. I said “of course, I’d love to”, jumping at the opportunity of meeting someone related to someone famous. Got my book, notes and also a magazine with lots of pictures to start off the class.
After the initial greetings, I asked him to look at a picture and describe it to me, as a warm-up activity. He said: “Sorry, I can’t.  I’m blind.”
Wah-wah-waaaaaahhhh.…. How could I have missed it? The blind one had actually been me.
And this morning it got me thinking about the lack of materials and articles for teachers to work with special needs students. Could I teach a blind or deaf person? I don’t think I’d have any problems with a person unable to walk or someone with no arms. Even though considering my thick skull I’d probably ask them to go to the blackboard and write something. (Chuckles).

“Take the example of Carlos (age 15), a refugee from Central America. He is not learning English as quickly as his teachers think he should be. He has been in Canada for two years and is falling far behind in his studies.
Is it because he:
has a language disorder?
is depressed over his brother’s death?
is developmentally delayed?
does not want to be in Canada?
is finding it difficult to learn English?
has limited literacy skills in his first language?
left school in his native country when he was 10 years old?
has a learning disability?
has not made the adjustment to living in Canada?
Or is it a combination of the above?
Students like Carlos raise questions about how we identify,
assess, and provide program support for ESL students with
special needs. There are no ready-made answers. There is no
single professional who can answer all of these questions.”*
I believe these questions will help any teacher identify his students’ needs and seek help whenever necessary.
Happy Teaching,
Cheers,
Mo
*Excerpted from ESL Learners With Special Needs In British Columbia:
Identification, Assessment, and Programming Prepared for
The British Columbia Ministry of Education, Skills, and Training
February 1998
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