Many theorists, such as Piaget, have tried to delineate the process of acquisition of cognitive abilities on a timeline starting with birth and ending with adulthood.  While such lists may be true in a general sense, the basic fact of the matter is that all people are different and grow at differing rates.  The unique rate at which children grow can be attributed to genetic causes, environmental causes or both.  Regardless of the source of the problem, the result is that there are students who don’t fit into the curriculum mold.  Those students will need specialized help in either moving into a higher order of thinking or in maximizing their potential within a threshold dictated by a disability.  For example, a child that will never progress mentally beyond the age of 2 years old will need to be stimulated within that threshold.  According to Piaget, that would mean the child would need sensorimotor stimulation. 

In the classroom of my practicum teaching there are several students with special needs.  There is one ELL student, who needs additional scaffolding in order to access material in English and two students with IEPs. 

The ELL student, for the most, part has adjusted to English being the language of instruction.  Presently, the classroom teacher, while keeping a careful eye on the student’s progress, is not adapting assignments in any significant way.  Since the language of the classroom is Japanese, everyone is a second language learner and any conversation is kept at a basic level.  Any instruction that must be done in English is done using vocabulary that is easily accessible by the ELL student.  After having spoken with the teacher, the teacher stands prepared to offer additional time on assignments and additional assistance before and after class should the student need it. That being said, the student has not taken the teacher up on such offers this year.

Another of the students in the classroom is on an IEP for transitional and writing skills disabilities.  The teacher is currently adapting the lessons in two ways for that student.  Firstly, the teacher is offering the student extra time on any assignment should the student feel it is necessary and the teacher has seated the student in such a place where the student could use a laptop to do any necessary writing, since writing on a laptop seems to be easier than writing with a traditional implement, as per the IEP. 

The last student with special needs is on an IEP for Autistic tendencies.  The student has trouble socializing and often needs to have special seating away from the other students in order to concentrate and do work.  In addition to needing preferential seating, the student is prone to becoming overly excited and, according to the IEP, needs help calming down.  However, pertaining to assignments and not environmental adaptations, the teacher is currently not making any.

There are presently no students with issues that could be classified as locomotive impairments or with blindness.  However, should I ever have a student who was physically impaired in a future Japanese language class, I would make sure that the student had access to every part of the room from a wheelchair.  I would space the desks so that the student could easily make their way through the rows.  I would make sure that all obstructions were moved away from the storage areas, bookshelves, and paths to the door.  Were I to ever have a blind student, I feel it would be necessary to have a specialist assist me in teaching the student how to write Japanese, since I’ve received no special training towards those ends.

With such an environment of welcome and consideration, not only would we be providing for our students the best education they can get, maximizing their potential of success, but we would also be showing them how to be caring persons that can then help others in turn.  With this goal of not just educating, but of educating a citizen who is concerned and caring of the troubles of others, we ensure the future for all.