Community Acceptance: Children with Special Needs

Abstract

The environment and the pupils’ health may both benefit from teaching kids who have a specific handicap. According to New Mexico Statistics for Special Education, parents pay an average of $326 per month, or little under $4,000 per year, for their special needs child’s out-of-pocket medical expenditures. In high school or college, improving the atmosphere might boost students’ academics and social engagement (2017 Annual Disability Statistics Compendium). At the postsecondary level, 17% of high school students are given accommodations and help. No student’s capacity to do an activity or perform a job is characterized by a handicap. It’s crucial that the children with disabilities feel supported, whether it be in the school, at sports, at work, or in other settings. Clinton, a special education teacher at an elementary school in Iowa, teaches pupils who must constantly move options like tapping their finger on the table. Students with ADHD are supposed to benefit from fidget spinners. Between the ages of 4 and 17, about 6.4 million kids have been identified as having ADHD. The Acoma Pueblo might benefit from the various approaches.

Introduction

Around the year 1776, special education programs were first proposed in the United States. Special education was hardly nonexistent when it first began. Over time, rules and regulations were created to support children with special needs or people in special education. 91% of the financing for special education in the 1970s came from state and local institutions; the remaining 9% came from the federal government. The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) was founded in 1975 to provide students who need special education with a free and public education. IDEA gives parents the opportunity to have input in their children’s education. Under IDEA, an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is used. From kindergarten through the 12th grade, an IEP is a plan that offers assistance to suit a child’s specific requirements. Only 13 impairments, including ADHD, hearing loss, and autism, are covered under IDEA and IEP. An IEP and a 504 are not the same. There are no age restrictions for obtaining a Section 504 under the Rehabilitation Act, which is a plan for how the kid will be able to study in school. Students who have had head trauma or medical conditions like epilepsy might also benefit from a 504 plan. Additionally, pupils are given accommodations under Section 504 in the form of longer test times, excused absences, and modified class schedules. Speaking to a community about special education may be difficult. Since I am unsure of how things are for younger children with disabilities in the schools on the Pueblo, I am want to learn more about the issue of special education. “It’s critical to attend to people’s needs so they may succeed in and outside of the classroom” (Raelene Woody. Interviewee. Sept. 13, 2018). How and what the educators are doing to provide the greatest education possible for the students. The families also gain from this, in addition to the children. When he was just 4 months old in the womb, my brother was discovered to have Down syndrome. He is now 1 year and 9 months old. As I began to understand his issues better, I began to consider what I could do to support him and be an advocate for his schooling. It is crucial for me to understand what sort of assistance he would be receiving to help him learn and communicate. For him to succeed, as well as for the other children in Acoma who have disabilities, receiving an education is crucial. I’m curious to know whether the Pueblo is at least providing for their medical requirements, including speech pathology, physical therapy, and other necessities. What services does the school provide for those kids with special needs? Do they provide services for all kids with special needs?

My brother had open heart surgery on October 3rd, 2018, to repair a hole in his heart that we first believed would close on its own. I went to see him in the hospital, expecting to find him sobbing, but instead he was animated and smiling. He is an extremely content baby who loves being noticed. His mother sends him to the Acoma-Canoncito-Laguna (ACL) Hospital to be examined since he gets ill often. His mother initially had no knowledge of his condition and had no idea where he would attend school. enhancing the community by educating the parents, other pupils, and anybody else who may have a relative with a handicap. I want to make education available to everyone. I want members of my community to connect with kids who have special needs, whether it is to chat to them or just observe how their behavior changes. An easy way to start educating the community is to include a brief biography in the Acoma monthly newspaper. The topic of education for kids with disabilities is seldom discussed and maybe entirely neglected. In Acoma, the programs include little to no information on what the schools have to offer, including what the individual pueblos are doing. Because all children should have the same rights to an education, no kid should be left behind in the educational system. I truly want the kids to feel proud of being Acoma-enrolled tribe members. All people with special needs must be welcomed with open arms by the whole Acoma community.

Learning and Accepting Theories and Methodologies

For some kids, special education in today’s world might be quite frightening. Why is special education so vital today? is because there are children with learning difficulties who attend school and who have a special education class to assist them improve their learning deficits. Students who need the most assistance with their schoolwork, such as those who need it for projects, tests, and examinations, benefit from special education. (Interviewee Kaylene Valencia. Jan. 8, 2019.) Today, special education is becoming more cognizant of things like what schools may do to provide the kid the greatest education possible. The kids and regular education pupils used to be kept separate in the past. In 1975, the Individualized Education Plan and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act were both introduced. Since the early 1970s, special education enrollment has grown over 90% over time (ASCD Services).

Action Plan 1: Interactivity: Wonder

I gave a movie presentation to any high school student who wanted to attend on December 18 in the atrium of the high school hostel. Wonder was the movie I presented. A little kid called Auggie who was born with facial abnormalities is the subject of the film. He enrolls in a public school for the first time, and he does encounter several difficulties. I had two freshmen and two sophomores watch the movie with me. I gave the students a questionnaire regarding the movie after it had finished playing to check their attentiveness. The person who correctly answered every question won a $15 Target gift card. The screening of this film will raise awareness of people with disabilities and the similarities between them and us. presenting a positive viewpoint in order to emphasize how crucial it is to get acceptance from family, friends, and even coworkers. I also offered refreshments. I had intended to speak at the October special education parent meeting at Santa Fe Indian School prior to this Interactive Action Plan. That didn’t exactly turn out the way I had hoped because of a pressing family issue. My action plan would have suffered greatly if I had cancelled it. It was simple to come up with the idea for the movie. I spent around $65 on snacks for about 25 people, and everything I bought went to waste since I had no idea what to do with the leftovers. I’m happy that any pupils turned up at all.

Second Interactive Action Plan: Education

I met with Ms. Rosetta on March 6 to talk about future scholarship financing that would occur either at SFIS or in my hometown. Ideas that Ms. Huber, my SHP teacher, and I have proposed include holding a potential Special Olympics competition with a gift of 5% or 10% of the funds, a senior account may be able to contribute some funds, or it may come from my community in Acoma. Ms. Rosetta thought my concept was a good one, but I will discuss the scholarship with the SFIS Board of Trustees. The amount of activities that are occurring around the end of the year make scheduling this meeting a bit challenging. A meeting with the Department of Education in Acoma will also be on my agenda in order to further my proposal. The scholarship I’m thinking about is called “Gifted.” Children in special education are endowed with a distinct talent that might be difficult. Giving them money for further education shows them that you are paying attention and care. Everyone should go to college and give back to the community, according to Acoma Pueblo. If I have difficulties convincing both of them of the value of this proposal, I’ll attempt to enlist the governor of Acoma in my observation of what goes on in the special education classes at Haak’u Community Academy.

I was inspired to establish this scholarship by Marla Gonzales, a 38-year-old lady. Ever since Marla was born, she has had Down syndrome. Marla is a Global Messenger, which means she fights for those who are facing difficulties. Spread the Word to End the “R” Word” was one of her all-time favorite speeches to deliver. For Marla, experiencing bullying in middle school was common. When Marla entered high school, her illness was more well known. Marla wanted to enroll in some college courses since college was just around the horizon. Finding out that she paid for college herself was a concern I wanted to address since it may be costly to fund education.

Information about special education: Santa Fe Indian School District

I ran a school survey at SFIS and had 102 replies from students in grades 9 through 12. I included these results in my Special Education Data. I started out by asking, “Do you have a disability?” The volume of answers I got and the amount of students enrolled in special education classes really astonished me. It’s astonishing to realize that 13 pupils have a disability; I had anticipated that there would only be three or four. Based on a definition, I then inquired, “Do you know what a disability is? ” I picked this quotation to demonstrate how a disability may extend beyond a physical one. It may be intellectual and mental. It may also emerge at the time of birth or later in life.

India and the United States of America are linked globally

Children who are not enrolled in school exist in India. 90% of the kids who are absent from school are the parents’ fault, according to research. Indian parents who are embarrassed of their disabled children keep them at home all day. 30,000 kids in India are now enrolled in school or have never done so (Special Needs in India). Some parents even murder their disabled children because they find them to be so distasteful to look at.

An autistic 13-year-old boy lived in California. When the youngster misbehaved in class, the instructor restrained him and ultimately killed him. This has occurred at this school today in California not for the first time. More than three times, the school has been spared, and the accusations have been dropped (Student with Special Needs Dead After Being Restrained at School). In my Senior Honors Project, I displayed a graph on the appropriate degrees of restriction for children with disabilities depending on race. American Indian/Alaskan Native now makes up 1% of the population, but I and instructors of indigenous kids would want it to be zero.

Final Thoughts and Long-Term Change

It would be even better and more enduring in Acoma to embrace special-inspired youngsters. Organizing a Special Olympics in the Pueblo of Acoma is one of my sustainable change goals. The Special Olympics will bring together a variety of families and foster a more accepting atmosphere for those with disabilities. Having this every year will encourage more conversation and maybe even generate some contributions. Second, I want to include a brief biography of each kid with a special need in the monthly publication published by the Acoma Department of Education. Including an area for kids with special needs might help the general public get to know these kids. Once you get to know the youngster a bit more, you may even say hello to them while you’re out and about in the neighborhood common spaces, at the feast, or even at the grocery store. Hosting a honorable night for the tribe leadership, the parents, and the children with special needs is another thing that should be done, in my opinion. Hosting this special event will demonstrate to the students that the tribe leadership fully supports their pursuit of higher education and enrollment as Acoma tribal members. Finally, I’d want to print some fliers with student artwork on them that may be distributed around garbage day or perhaps via the mail. The children’s artwork is really strong, and displaying it throughout the community will demonstrate how powerful they are both within and outside of the classroom.

The long-lasting change I would want to bring about at the Santa Fe Indian School is to have the first-ever Special Olympics competition here. Schools and families from all across Santa Fe are invited to attend and are free to contribute if they so want. The campus at Santa Fe Indian School is already friendly, and I would dearly desire for it to remain such. It is crucial that the kids understand they are accepted and welcomed here by the other students, staff, and teachers. It would be amazing to incorporate some artwork when progress reports or report cards are sent home to parents. Not to mention, I still want to keep my scholarship at Santa Fe Indian School. The scholarship will not only enable the kids to pursue post-secondary education, but it will also demonstrate Santa Fe’s support for their choice to enroll. In the future, I’ll continue to provide money to the scholarship each year. Any student who wants to keep discussing the issue of children with special needs has my full support if they want to go on with this scholarship and improve it.

As I’ve learned through my action plans and study, it’s crucial for kids to feel welcomed by everyone, including their parents, friends, relatives, teachers, and other adults. Everyone, including Acoma, wants to see these kids prosper in the future and realize what they are capable of. The kids will feel more at ease both inside and outside of the classroom if you accept them.