I thought this was a break-through day in class, so to speak. I really liked reading the 'Commitments' document as a class and then getting into a discussion about it. My previous blogs have probably been comparable to a broken record (only in a digital text medium) in their mentions of the very theoretical nature of our course. What a nice relief it was to be presented with a particular situation, and furthermore be given the opportunity to share thoughts and feelings about it. It was a great illustration of how there is no actual right or wrong answers when looking at inclusive education.
I felt very reminded that as we look forward at all of the situations we may be faced with, we are all human as we deal with it. I recognized in the study that Mrs. Thompson was trying to practice so much of what we have been learning this term: student-centred this n' that, inclusive education, goal setting and consequences, treating students as adults and citizens in their own classroom. I also recognized how quickly it unravelled on her, namely her mild tolerance for put-downs directed at Shawn whether he was in the room or not, and how in her determination to 'fix' Shawn she never held anyone else in the class accountable for their actions. It was, simply put, an illustration of a real-world situation that most teachers will be faced with at one (or many more) time or another, and there is no clear-cut path to an end result where everyone is satisfied.
I'm starting to feel a little bit stifled (in my writing) now, so I will conclude by saying that a common concern at this point shared by myself and many others in the cohort is that we are here going through the motions, and feeling like our learning will only truly begin when we are in practicum and eventually in our actual jobs. Today in EDPY things felt a lot more real and applicable, and that's awesome!
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