Parents of Deaf Children’s Post

Children often interact as individual components of a singular unit; children in a classroom, players on a sports team, or members of a family. Most of us can’t conceive of a situation where one member of the unit is singled out, but this scenario is what often occurred to children with disabilities at school, in public and private recreation programs, and at home, until a pivotal concept was embraced: Inclusion. Inclusion is a model typically seen in education settings that involve special needs children – without regard to their specific disability – in activities and programs designed for all young people. It sets up reasonable accommodations to ensure children with special needs can participate in the learning process.  https://lnkd.in/enWvX54v 

Following the recent proposal by Ofsted to introduce the inclusion “criterion”, I’m reflecting on how this could be more than just a box-ticking exercise. The real goal is to shift from seeing inclusion as a compliance issue to actively tackling ableism, creating truly inclusive schools. According to Edutopia - George Lucas Educational Foundation, “When we stop looking at inclusion as a compliance measure and start confronting ableism, we can achieve authentically inclusive schools.” – and frameworks like LEAD might just help us get there. What is LEAD? LEAD: Listen, Examine, Acknowledge, Disrupt. 🔉 Listen: Emphasise the voices of those with disabilities and challenge society to actively listen to and learn from the disability community. 🔎 Examine: Identify and address ableist barriers in schools, move beyond compliance towards authentic inclusion by reimagining classrooms, question segregation practices, and create environments where all students, regardless of ability, can learn together and thrive. 🤝 Acknowledge: Continuously re-evaluate and update educational practices through initiatives like Universal Design for Learning, acknowledging past mistakes with humility, and staying informed about current trends. 💡 Disrupt: Emphasise that recognising ableism empowers educators to interrupt it at all levels, from challenging discriminatory language to initiating systemic changes, ultimately dismantling ableist structures in education. 🔗 Useful resources: More about LEAD - https://lnkd.in/eYyHQYkF 4 Inclusive Practice Strategies for Any Classroom by Inclusive365 - https://lnkd.in/ehi-yiXW About Universal Design for Learning (UDL) by Belinda Evans from LGfL - Broadband and Beyond - https://lnkd.in/eTSmQThp #Inclusion #Accessibility #UniversalDesignForLearning

An incredibly powerful piece by a fellow parent, capturing so many of the challenges we and our children with disabilities face every day. It’s time for our voices to be heard! #DisabilityAwareness #InclusionMatters #ParentAdvocacy #SpecialNeedsParenting #DisabilityRights #EmpowerParents #HearOurVoices #AdvocacyForChange #EquityInEducation #RepresentationMatters

Last week, I watched “Out of My Mind” on Disney, and to say it moved me is an understatement. It was as if my own family’s story unfolded on the screen. Melody, the young girl who uses a communication device to express herself, reminded me so much of my own child’s #determination and #resilience. Her journey exposed the barriers people with #disabilities face daily, barriers created not by their conditions but by the world around them. ♿️One quote from Melody stayed with me: “I have a #voice, but people don’t always want to hear it.” How often have I felt this frustration on behalf of my child? The pain of watching systems, from schools that are quick to label and slow to adapt. Insurance companies that make accessing essential therapies a bureaucratic nightmare. Social spaces that claim inclusivity but rarely deliver. It’s not just exhausting, it’s heartbreaking. The call for #inclusion starts at home Inclusion begins in the spaces we control ”our homes”. As parents, we must model acceptance, teach siblings about empathy, and celebrate differences. But it can’t stop there. 🚸Schools must be better: every child deserves an education tailored to their abilities, not one constrained by outdated policies and unrealistic expectations. Teachers and administrators need training to understand how to foster inclusive classrooms. Programs that encourage peer support, such as buddy systems, are vital in breaking down stereotypes and fostering meaningful connections, helping students with disabilities build lasting friendships and combat feelings of isolation. 👩💻Workplaces and society have roles too. As our children grow, they deserve the dignity of work and participation in their communities. Employers need to see the value in hiring individuals with disabilities, creating environments that accommodate them instead of excluding them. One of the most profound moments in the movie is when Melody says, “I might not be able to do everything, but I can do so much.” That’s all what parents want the world to understand. 🌻To my fellow parents: Let’s advocate for better systems and inclusive societies, demand more from legislators, and support each other. 🧑🏫To educators: Take the time to learn about every child in your care. Understand that inclusion isn’t charity, it’s justice and fairness. 🧑🧑🧒🧒To employers and society at large: Recognize that #diversity includes individuals with disabilities. Their contributions enrich our workplaces and communities in ways we often overlook, actively seek to challenge biases, amplify underrepresented voices, and build systems that work for everyone. It’s not enough to acknowledge the barriers; we must work to dismantle them, creating spaces where individuals of all abilities can thrive. #Together, we can ensure that every voice, no matter how it’s expressed, is heard and celebrated. #outofmymind #inclusion #everyonehasavoice #somuchtosay

I'm stuck in a loop... One that many parents of neurodiverse and/or disabled children get stuck in. When a cohort/group of their peers want or need to learn a new skill. But your child will never be able to use that skill - for whatever reason. Do you... Take your child out of the situation so they're not exposed to what they'll never do. So it's not the kick in the guts it'll inevitably be - highlighting, once again, what they can't do. Oh - and isolate them from their friends/mates/peers at the same time. Losing the social interactions and possibly the chance to show those peers that not everyone can do everything but they're still capable of a load of other stuff. Or - play the 'inclusion card'. Potentially leaving the rest of the group unable to learn that skill or resentful they can't do something they wanted to do in that particular environment. In order for your child not to be 'left out'. Except we're the first to say to our own children that not everyone can do everything. And we're all different. And that sometimes we just can't do things. Which sucks but it's not a reason to stop trying. Or stop anyone else trying. So round we go again... One thing I can promise you though, having to watch people do things that you can't or never do from the sidelines is cruel. Traumatic. And those memories don't leave you. And you'd never want to put your child through that if you've been there. Believe me. Round we go again... Now try and do your job, be a partner, keep the house from poisoning anyone, look after your other dependents, manage your own medical conditions and everything else... Now make that decision about what to do about this particular activity (bear in mind yesterday's post about fight/flight and sensible decision making...) You'll speak of compromise. Compromise takes skill, knowledge and flexibility. And frequently doesn't meet a learning outcome or competency tick box. If those teaching the skill are volunteers, those adaptations may well be outside their skillset. Which is one of the reasons I'm an inclusion advisor for Girlguiding Hertfordshire. If I, as a volunteer, can help those adaptations be made by other volunteers, we can make a big difference. Hopefully I can break that loop for someone else... Want to know more about reasonable adaptations, how sh!t it is to be made to watch things you'll never do and talk real lived experiences - drop me a message. It might just make the world of difference. (picture shows Jen, a white female with brown (and grey) hair sitting outside Jez Levy's shop EYES on St Albans in the sun. She's wearing her trademark glasses which have gone purple in the sunlight and is wearing a black top. The glasses are almost hiding the bags under her eyes. But not quite)

🎉🎉🎉 Special Announcement: Applications Now Open for the 2025 Early Childhood Education Equity Champion Award Applications are now open for Pennsylvania's fourth annual Equity in Early Childhood Education Champion Awards. This award brings awareness to and highlights the equity work being done within Pennsylvania’s early childhood education settings, including child care, evidence-based home visiting, and early intervention programs. These professionals and organizations align with the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC), Advancing Equity in Early Childhood Education Position Statement. Pennsylvania recognizes outstanding achievements in advancing equity by individuals and early childhood education and/or afterschool programs. Pennsylvania invites nominations of individuals or programs that have demonstrated support to children and their families by embracing diversity and full inclusion as strengths, upholding fundamental principles of fairness and justice, and/or working to eliminate structural inequities that limit equitable learning opportunities. Applicants (individual and program) must demonstrate how the individual, early childhood, and/or afterschool program has supported children and their families through embracing diversity and full inclusion as strengths, upholding fundamental principles of fairness and justice, and/or working to eliminate structural inequities that limit equitable learning opportunities. Application deadline is 11:59 pm, Friday, January 24, 2025. Click here for more information and how to apply. https://lnkd.in/eHc-ntWc #earlychildhoodeducation #education #prek #educators #childcareprovider #Pennsylvania #businessdevelopment #smallbusinesses #businessowners #founders #nonprofits #entrepreneurs #sbe #dbe #mbe #wbe #lbe #mwbe #wosb #edwosb #veteranowned #womanowned #supplierdiversity #minorityowned #wealth #lgbtq #smallbusinessresources #smallbiz #grants #startups #disabledowned #funding

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 Inclusion has come a long way, shaped by the relentless advocacy of parents, individuals with disabilities, and professionals fighting for equity and human rights.   Let’s look at how it has evolved: ➜ 𝐒𝐞𝐠𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Picture a young boy with a learning disability in the 1970s. He attended a separate school miles away from his community, isolated from his peers. His parents fought hard to give him access to basic education, even if it meant sacrificing a sense of belonging. ➜ 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Fast forward to the 1990s. A teenager with hearing loss finally attends the same high school as her peers. But she’s placed in a separate classroom, with limited interaction and a sense of being “othered.” Her teachers worked hard, but the system wasn’t fully inclusive. ➔ 𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠: Today, a child with autism sits in the same classroom as her friends. She receives support from an assistant who helps her navigate the curriculum while being fully part of the school community. Her classmates celebrate her achievements and learn about empathy and diversity. Each phase has been a step forward, but inclusion is still an evolving concept. The question is: What’s next? How do we ensure every individual feels valued and supported, no matter their abilities?   #Inclusion #Diversity #Equity #Accessibility #Progress

EKATVAM 2.0 - Leveraging the Advantage: Inclusion for Excellence Lotus Valley International School's Centre for Learning Enhancement (CLE) hosted Ekatvam 2.0, a transformative conference dedicated to highlighting the advantages of inclusive education, it brought together educators, experts, and stakeholders to discuss the pertinent aspects related to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. The event, held on 23 November 2024, was a powerful testament to the school's commitment to supporting neurodiverse students, with staff and parents of fifteen schools from Delhi/NCR attending the conference. Under the leadership of Director Principal, Dr Ruchi Seth, the conference explored critical themes through three engaging panel discussions. The first panel, featuring Ms Seema Tuli from Amar Jyoti Charitable Trust and Ms Reena Gupta from Ashoka University, delved into bridging understanding and action in inclusive practices. The second panel, led by educational innovator Dr Asha Singh and Parent Trainer, Dr Indrani Basu from Action for Autism India, focused on celebrating individual strengths and abilities, while the third panel examined the crucial role of parent partnerships in supporting inclusive education through the case studies of parent educators. Memorable moments included a powerful inclusive performance by students of LVISN and Amar Jyoti Charitable Trust, that captivated the audience by their power packed rendition of many songs on stage, highlighting the beautiful melodies that flow when different notes come together in a harmonious way embodying the true spirit of INCLUSION. Another highlight of the conference was a pre-recorded interview with IAS officer Ira Singhal, a trailblazing disability rights' advocate who has overcome significant personal challenges to become a transformative leader. Her story epitomized the event's core message: that inclusivity is not about overcoming differences but celebrating them as unique strengths that enrich our collective human experience. Ekatvam 2.0 Every Star Shines differently went beyond a typical event. It was a profound statement about the power of inclusive education—a vision of creating learning environments where every child can unlock their full potential, regardless of their abilities or challenges. The event served as a powerful reminder that true educational excellence emerges when we recognize, respect, and empower the individual strengths of every learner.

Inclusion or Exclusion: A Call for Reflection 💠 Are we truly inclusive—or just claiming to be? 💠Is our definition of inclusion genuinely inclusive for all groups of people? 💠Does inclusion in our context embrace all types of disabilities, visible and invisible? 💠Are our research efforts aligned with the real needs of children, teenagers, and their families, or are we merely adapting findings from predominantly English-speaking countries? 💠Do we prioritize the rights of disabled and neurodivergent individuals in every aspect of our society? 💠Are our environments and systems designed to be accessible to everyone, regardless of their disability? 💠Do our educational processes ensure no child or teenager is excluded? 💠Do we amplify the voices of disabled individuals? 💠Are they empowered to pursue further education and career opportunities? 💠Do we provide equitable employment opportunities for people with disabilities? 💠Are we fostering a society where individuals with disabilities feel truly comfortable and accepted? 💠Are we addressing the challenges they face? 💠Do we understand the extent of bullying targeted at disabled individuals? 💠Are we giving parents the support they need to navigate these challenges? 💠Are we equipping teachers and future educators with the right training to foster inclusion? Let’s pause and reflect: Do we ask ourselves the tough questions? Do we act on the answers? Questions by E.K.C. Photo by E.K.C. #Inclusion #InclusiveEducation

🌟 Key Takeaways from this DfE-Funded Report on Inclusive Schools 🌟 Reassuring findings highlight shared core values driving inclusion in schools: ✨ Feeling safe, valued, and belonging 👧 Child-centred, holistic approaches – recognising each child as part of a family & community 🤝 Relational practices – fostering meaningful connections ⚖️ Equity over equality – meeting unique needs fairly 🌍 Inclusion as everyone’s responsibility This report takes an important step in fostering dialogue to build truly inclusive environments where every child can thrive. https://lnkd.in/eUevPnTg #EducationMatters #InclusiveSchools #Belonging Thrive Approach