Talking Points (#8)

Citizenship in School:

Reconceptualizing Down Syndrome

By: Christopher Kliewer

Kliewer argues that all people able bodied and disabled are individuals and should be treated that way. We are all people and all deserve the right to be treated equally.

"Now we know that people with disabilities can learn and have a full, rich life. The challenge is to erase negative attitudes about people with developmental disabilities, get rid of the stereotypes and break the barriers for people with disabilities."

We all know that there are many different stereotypes in the world today. One common stereotype would be about the disabled people. We need to stop thinking like this because we will never see a change if we don't. We are all people and none of us deserved to get judged just because we may look different or we may not learn as fast as "average" person. We need to break these barriers because we are not treating everyone equally and that is wrong. Every human being is an individual and deserves to be treated like one.

"Success in life requires an ability to form relationships with others who make up the web of community. Though many of us have a certain level of control over who we meet and interact with, none of us can come close to claiming complete control."

I feel it is true that success in life requires an ability to from relationships. I believe this is a good attitude to have because this is how we form is good stable community. Everyone is different and if you just interact with people who have a lot in common with you, your missing out on so much more in life. We all have control of who we hang out with and who we interact with however i feel that everyone deserves a change and you could miss out on so much is you only interact with a certain type of person.

"Along with recognizing an individuals ability to think (Bogdan and Taylor) suggest that respect and citizenship require a realization of the person's individuality."

Once again I agree with that idea that we all deserve a change because we are all individuals. This means that everyone is different in their own way. Everyone person had something different about them and we should not be judged by these differences. We are all different however we all have the ability to think, this is was makes us people and we should not be put down because of our differences.

I actually really enjoyed this article. It was long, but it was very interesting to me. I think that i could connect with article because I see this type of stereotype in my own classroom. I have taught dance for the past 5 years and for 2 out of the 5 i had this little girl Katie who had down syndrome. She was the cutest little girl ever and she loved to dance. The one thing that bothered me was the way the other girls in her class looked at her. The treated her as if she were someone different. They could complain in Katie was in the same group as them, the never wanted to be her partner in class, and it was very rare that one of the girls would randomly start a conversation with her. I felt horrible about this but I didn't really know what to do about it. After some time the girls got used to the fact that Katie needed a little more attention and that she didn't learn the dances as fast but they started to treat her more like an individual rather than just someone different. Reading this article helped me understand a little more. And being a Special Education Major, I really learn some new and helpful information.

Talking Points (#7)

"One More River to Cross"-
Recognizing the Real Injury in Brown:

A Prerequisite to Shaping New Remedies; from The Institution of Education.
By: Charles Lawrence

Lawrence argues the idea what Brown really didnt eliminate segregation, and until we see change in our schools segregation will be a problem.



"There would be no final victory in their lifetimes. Each step forward was just that, a step. There would always be one more river to cross."
I really liked this quote because it brings up a real interesting point. Because we can make little changes and we can try and get rid of segregation but there will always be some people who dont agree and some people who will always rebel against it. There will always be "one more river" to cross because the issue will never be completely gone.




"Black children will remain 'less qualified' until we gain representative influence in both the institutions of preparation and the institutions for which they are being prepared."
This quote explains that black children will always be "less qualified" and that until we better prepare them, thats how it will always be. I dont think its fair for us to label back children as "less qualified" because this is not the case. If we keep thinking this way nothing will ever change. With this mindset, there will always be a problem with segregation.

Talking Points (#6)

Jeannie Oakes
Tracking: Why Schools need to take another route

Oakes argues that splitting students up based on their ability and level should be in all classrooms. He feels that should He fights that some children can handle it but others cant. He thinks its a good way to figure out a child's strengths and weaknesses. There is one argument however that states that it leaves children behind and that not all children benefit from it.

"In low-ability classes, teachers seem to be less encouraging, while students in higher-ability classes seem to be much more involved in their classwork."
I agree with this quote however i also disagree with this quote. I feel that is some school and classes this may be the case but i dont think its like that for all classes and schools. Not all low-ability classes have less encouraging teachers. I would fight this opinion because i dont believe it it true in all cases.


"Students need not be held back from ideas because of skill differences..."
I fell that this statement this true because not all children learn at the same pace and get the information right away. There are many different learning abilities in a classroom and not all students are ready for the same things.



"Higher-ability students are expected spend more time doing homework."
I agree with this statement because typically the higher-ability students are the ones who put in the most effort, and the most time on their schoolwork. I dont think this is always true because you can have a student who struggles in class but puts in the effort and the time into their work as well. I think it depends on the student.


Over all i thought the article was good and easy to read. It was short and kept me awake while i was reading. I think its good information for all of us future teachers to know :)