Lessons+Learned



Jennifer Smith
I learned that it is important to write out the information to be taught before making accommodations for special needs students. It would not have been possible to decide the best way to accommodate the material for the special needs students without knowing the content of the material. After knowing the content of the story, it was easier to decide the best way to convey this information in a way that hearing impaired and visually impaired students could understand the material. I learned there is a much more involved process for making these accommodations for the special needs students. Susan did a great job of including accommodations in her the instructional activity she wrote for the project. She included a follow up recommendation for students who still needed help understanding the lesson. Angela also did a great job of researching what type of extra help hearing impaired students needed. I learned that you cannot just change the book completely, but you should make a few accommodations for special needs students. It takes research to ensure the right changes are made for the special needs students. The project took lots more time than I had imagined.

Susan Robinson
I learned that there is a plethora of information about accommodations on the internet for just about any disability there is. I learned that what you had originally intended to do might not be as practical to really do, so you have to be flexible. I also learned that it's a good idea to get things done early and test ideas out before trying to implement them.

Angela Pieniaszek
I learned that there are several different accommodations specific to different disabilities, and what works for one will not necessarily work for another. Often when accommodating for students in the classroom, I tend to make one or two modifications, thinking that they will work for all students. The biggest lesson I learned was various accommodations for deaf and hard of hearing students, and I had to ask and do research to learn what special types of challenges this population faces in the classroom. I was really impressed by Susan and Jennifer’s approach to creating accommodations of the same material. I love seeing how the original book has been changed to work for students with varying disabilities, and know that this project will help me think about how to best accommodate material for individual students in the future.

Robert "Tim" Wilde
Working through this project I have learned that the "inclusion" into the regular education classroom is not best for all students, especially for those blind and deaf students that we addressed in this lesson. To have a teacher make these accommodations for every lesson, project, or learning module is not very efficient and will lower the quality of education for all students. I think it is good to understand the differences brought to the classroom by various students and the ability to accommodate them in the short term is good, but for long term education of blind and deaf students it is best handled by those schools and teachers specifically designed and trained for those purposes. I also understand there are varying degrees of blindness and deafness and those students who are partially impaired may best be served in the regular education classroom. As teachers we need to be ready for these situations and this lesson has "opened" my eyes and ears to those needs.

I have also learned that working a group project of this nature has some similarities to being blind or deaf. At times I sent messages to my group and wasn't sure if I was "heard". I couldn't "see" their reaction so for all I knew, they might as well have been blind or deaf to my message. But as the project rolled along our communication improved and we were able to get things accomplished. I really appreciate the hard work and effort all three of my group-mates put forth in the completion of this project. Could not have done it without them.