The Future of Learning Environment -Power of Diversity-

The Future of Learning Environment -Power of Diversity-

In February, I have visited a non-profit private school, Academy for Precision Learning (APL) in Seattle. APL offers K12 (kindergarten to high school) education and has 109 students in total, including students with disabilities. The largest number of disability is autism spectrum disorder which accounts two thirds of the total students. Other diagnostic representations include intellectual disabilities, Learning Disabilities, ADD/ADHD, and Depression. The specialty of APL is fully inclusive education and individualized curriculum. From a general Japanese education perspective, people might feel “What is the meaning of putting students with with disabilities with students without disabilities in the same classroom although they cannot study the same subject at the same speed?” There are actually important values and benefits of including all students from various backgound to learn in the same environment.

Leaning Environment for People with Disabilities

Leaning Environment for People with Disabilities

Kristen has been in special education field all through her undergraduate to graduate training at Vanderbilt University. After graduation, she taught students with a wide range of disabilities from mild to fairly severe and profound level in a high school. A couple years later, she went back to Vanderbilt University to get her Master’s degree in special education technology. During her research, she met Prof. Doug Fuchs and got involved with a lot of his research related to learning disabilities (LD) and academic related difficulties. In the doctoral program, she spent efforts on a program called Peer Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS), which is a peer tutoring program that is designed as an inclusive general education approach to accommodate a lot of kids with disabilities or academic difficulties.

The Limitation Is Not Caused by The Disability But by The Environment

The Limitation Is Not Caused by The Disability But by The Environment

The Office of Disability Services (ODS) is a place which provides reasonable accommodations and services for students with disabilities. In Syracuse University, approximately 1,300 students registered with this office. The majority of their disabilities are unobservable, such as learning disabilities, ADHD, and mental health. I had an opportunity to interview the Director, Paula Possenti-Perez.

Education Issues In Japan That I Found From Visiting Elementary School In The U.S.

Education Issues In Japan That I Found From Visiting Elementary School In The U.S.

I visited on of public elementary schools in the community the other day. It is the smallest public school with 420 students in the district. There are 75 students with disabilities. Most of them have learning disabilities. All students with disabilities learn with students without disabilities in the same classroom. There are special education teachers and teaching assistants to support teachers to help student to learn, since students with disabilities sometimes have a hard time to speak, write, or understand in class.

School Visit No.1 ~Jowonio School~

School Visit No.1 ~Jowonio School~

Jowonio School, a non-profit pre-school, focus on diversity and inclusion education in Syracuse, NY. The School of Education in Syracuse University established this school in 1969. Each child at Jowonio has a different background. You can see their differences visually like the color of their eyes or skin, and also invisibly, such as their mother languages. In addition, children with various kinds of disabilities, such as mobility disability, down syndrome, or deaf, are included in a regular class.