|
Imagine
a world in which the ability to draw was considered
more valuable than the ability to read and write.
Or a society in which climbing sheer rock faces and
repelling down mountains was considered the norm.
Would you excel, be average, or would you lag behind?
(Perhaps a quick trip to the mirror to check your
physique or sketch a self-portrait would answer that
question for you.)
Visualize life as
a "special needs student" in a society governed by
skills and abilities which, by no fault of your own,
you do not have. So, you spend hours and hours every
day learning and relearning how to climb a 20-foot
vertical. And it takes you weeks to complete a drawing
of stick men having breakfast. (I don't know how to
draw stick-eggs!!) Still, you don't get any better,
but you do try. Oh boy, do you try!
Welcome to the misunderstood
and misinterpreted world of special needs students.
They spend their days
living in a world in which knowing how to spell preate
(pretty) and spishal (special) is, questionably,
more important than the message behind the spelling.
These are individuals who stare at words packed like
sardines onto a page. They are expected to absorb,
decipher, accumulate, and file data into a neat, orderly
mental package which can be regurgitated at any time,
without any difficulty or extra help. Right? Yeah,
sure.
Oh, by the way, climb
Mount Rundle and give me a Rembrandt-esque rendition
of the city dump. It's due at the end of class.
These kids are learning
to cope in a society that is geared toward accumulation
of facts and the ability to access them quickly. They
are penalized for not possessing the same skills as
the so called " normal " population. They are chastised,
segregated, shunned, laughed at , called names, and
must work twice as hard as "regular" students just
to get onto a "level" playing field called public
education.
Hopefully, our world
still appreciates the oddballs; the underdogs; the
square pegs - even if that appreciation is long term
in its arrival. There is a continual amazement offered
by the individual gifts and talents of special needs
students. Take Sharlene (not her real name) , who
can list the title of every movie made in the past
five years, not to mention the plot, main characters,
setting and what the stars were doing on premiere
night in Hollywood. Or Jacob (not his real name either)
, who arrived a wild -child, but took up the challenge
to find himself and define what he wanted in life.
Or Josie (not...well, you guessed it) , who, at 17,
has the work ethic and attitude of a seasoned university
student.
The best job in the
world belongs to special education teachers, who are
witness to many small miracles - as well as the continued
daily struggles through which special needs kids must
cope. They have been given the wondrous opportunity
to work with students who may never remember how to
figure out percent, or what the capital of Canada
is, but can share their own Sistine Chapels, and lead
an expedition on to mountains most of us don't see
and the majority would otherwise never ascend.
|
