Integrating exceptional students into regular classrooms delivers exceptional results in Canada

Charlene Carruthers was overwhelmed when Scott, then a 13-year-old student with autism from her class, won the "Yes, I Can Student" award in 2006.

The award is given to a Special Education student who has learned to deal with activities of daily living such as individual hygiene, cooking, dressing, use of public transportation, etc.

It is one of the annual awards established by the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), Toronto Chapter 56, to recognize the achievements of students who have behavioral, communicational, intellectual, physical or multiple exceptionalities in the Torontoarea, Ontario province.

SCOTT STOPS RUNNING WITHOUT TELLING

Scott had never asked for help when he had problems until after six months he was inducted into Carruthers' Grade 7 class at the Holly crest Middle School. If he wanted to go to the washroom in a mall, he would only run without telling his parents until he found one.

Carruthers made lots of pictures symbolizing different school facilities including the washroom, library and gym in order to help Scott to learn life's basics. For example, Scott had to take the washroom picture when he needed to wash his hands, and ask Carruthers for permission. All of Scott's classmates would do the same thing. Step by step, Scott did not need the pictures, and asking questions became a habit. He improved his communication skills, too.

"We were worried he couldn't speak when he received the award in front of a big crowd of people," Carruthers recalled not without excitement in a recent interview with Xinhua. "However, he did very well, said thanks and shook hands with many people."

INTEGRATION BECOMES TREND IN SPECIAL EDUCATION

Scott is one of the tens of hundreds of exceptional students who have benefited from a trendy way of special education, that is, integrating special education students into regular classrooms.

Preliminary data show that in 2006-2007, 13.92 percent of Ontario's total student population, or 292,968 students were receiving special education programs and services, said Barry Finlay, director of Special Education Policy and Programs Branch, Ontario Ministry of Education, at an education symposium early this year.

Approximately 79 percent of all students and 82 percent secondary school students receiving special education are placed in regular classrooms for more than half of the instructional day, Finlay said.

Carruthers, 38, also president of CEC Toronto Chapter 56, has been teaching the special education needs students for 10 years and she is a keen advocate of integrated education.

In 2002-2003, Carruthers and one of her colleagues spent a year team-teaching a Grade 2 class and a primary special education class or MID (Mild Intellectual Disabilities) class at the Queen Victoria Public School in Toronto.

What she discovered over the course of the year was that "integration" promotes academic, social and emotional learning for all student as long as the necessary structures and resources are put in place to support it.

At the Hollycrest Middle School where Carruthers is now working, there are three classes for about 20 special education students with Developmental Disabilities (DD), or Autism, or MID. It is the only regular middle school that has autism class in Toronto.

A GENTLE HELLO CAN BE OF GREAT HELP

Carruthers, who is responsible for five DD students, continues to experiment with new ways of integration. She sets up her classroom quite differently from other regular ones. Instead of five small desks, she chooses a big table for her students to sit around to do all the learning activities. There is a fully equipped kitchen in the classroom.

The students have cooking class twice a week, Carruthers said. They cook lunch on every Wednesday and have a baking class every Friday.

From the cooking, students learn how to read recipes, create the grocery list, do grocery shopping, read thermometers, and measure. "In this way, I can incorporate language, maths, science, social studies together," said Carruthers.

It is also a good way to teach and train the students life skills, and make sure they can use kitchen appliances safely when alone at home, she said.

Carruthers would invite regular students to join the cooking class, thus creating an integrated platform.

"Children learn from each other, and special education students especially benefit when they can learn from their peers," she said. "They are very happy to work together and everyone wanted to be in our cooking class."

"At the beginning, some of regular students might be a bit nervous because sometimes the students with disabilities show extra enthusiasm. However, when they cook together, they gradually forget it," she said.

During the interview, the most frequent phrase Carruthers mentioned is "social skills."

"We hope every student can gain enough life skills as possible as they can," she said. "So they can live independently when they grow up."

To further integrate her students into communities, Carruthers often takes them to local restaurants and Tim Hortons (a Canadian coffee shop franchiser). She instructed them how to read menus, order food and mind their dining manners.

"The good thing is the waiters and waitresses are very nice to us and have great patience," she said. "A nice smile and a gentle 'hello' to the special needs students can be of a great help."

Source:Xinhua