When Parents and Educators Meet

Owl Moon Parents and educators who care about children with disabilities should overcome complacency to create the best education for them.

Picture a meeting with six participants: two parents, a classroom teacher, a special educator, a speech/language pathologist, and a school principal. Who will be the first to get that "glazed look" in his or her eyes?

We've asked this question of many parents and educators throughout the United States and Canada. The answer is almost always the same: the parents. And why not? Like most parents, they probably came to this meeting anxious to share their intimate knowledge of their child and discuss concerns about his or her education. Instead, they are bombarded with test scores, labels, piles of paper, a list of their rights and responsibilities, a litany of problems, and a lot of jargon.

The next person to lost interest will be the principal. In this case, the glazed look is probably accompanied by rapid thumbing through the pages of a calendar and an apology for the need to leave early. The next person to go on "recess" will probably be the classroom teacher, who is thinking "I've been to dozens of these meetings, and they all sound the same!"

Who's left? Well, our special education professionals are still hanging in there. After all, they speak the same language -- sort of. Jargon reigns in the conversation between the special educator and speech pathologist. But while the speech/language pathologist is presenting his "findings," the special educator finds herself nodding off. She catches herself -- "Hey, wait. I'm supposed to know this stuff!" and hurries to add at the next lull, "Exactly. My informal observations confirm your test results." To herself, she thinks, "What the heck is he talking about?"

Our intent in the above vignette is not ridicule. We have been in these roles ourselves. We've participated in meetings like this one and, unintentionally, have been guilty of acting in ways that were neither collaborative nor communicative.

Can parents and educators who care about children with disabilities overcome mediocrity, complacency, and a battlefield mentality in order to create the best education for our children? Our encounters with parents have convinced us that we can succeed only by becoming equal partners. In fact, the schools and communities that have been the most successful in designing and implementing inclusive education for children with disabilities are those where active collaboration among parents, educators, and students is valued and practiced.

by Jacqueline S. Thousand, Richard A.Villa, and Ann Nevin

Provided through Exceptional Parent magazine.