The Expanded Core Curriculum: Finding the Time

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The Expanded Core CurriculumFinding the Time

• Kathleen M. Huebner, Ph. D.
• Pennsylvania College of Optometry

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A Quick Review of What is Included in the
Expanded Core Curriculum

• Compensatory Skills (Braille listening skills
  handwriting skills abacus)
• OM
• Social Skills
• Independent Living Skills
• Recreation and Leisure Skills
• Career Education
• Assistive Technology
• Visual Efficiency Skills (NA-1995)

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What Itinerant Teachers Report as Most Time
Spent on Expanded Core (CO)

• Braille Reading and Writing (listed on survey)
• Nemeth Instruction
• Braille Preparation
• Independent Living Skills
• OM
• Vision Utilization (not listed on survey)
• Technology Training
• Materials Adaptation
• Large Print Production (Suvak 1999)

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What Itinerant Teachers Report as Most Time
Spent Teaching NON-Expanded Core (CO)

• Math
• Language Arts (Suvak 1999)

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Additional Responsibilities and Time Consuming
Activities

• Communication-Teachers-Parents-Administrators
• Travel
• Report preparation/paperwork
• Assessment
• Reinforce students other needs--MH
• Other Expanded Core areas-social skills, career
  education, recreation/leisure
• Materials ordering
• Professional development

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Current Concerns of 70 Experienced Teachers (TX)

• Keeping up with required paperwork
• Arranging a balanced schedule
• Keeping up on morale and confidence

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Another Suspected but Unreported Time Eater

• TUTORING !

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How to Make the Best of the Time We Have
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Strategies to Make Best Use of Limited Time

• Teach Only Expanded Core
• Do Not Tutor
• Examine Your Strengths and Weaknesses
• Develop Appropriate and Shared
  Responsibilities-- Other Teachers/ Aides/Parents
• Increase Team Effectiveness

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Teach Only Expanded Core

• Be convinced
• Be determined
• Be resourceful--in other words YOU have to make
  it happen
• Be firm

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Avoid Tutoring

• Ask the question-- Does student need help because
  the visual impairment is impeding learning?
• If yes--teach
• If no--defer to other teacher, personnel, peer
  tutor, parents

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Examine Your Strengths and Weaknesses

• Be honest with yourself--Identify your
  weaknesses--its between you and yourself--not the
  world
• Weaknesses result in lack of confidence, slowness
  to accomplish tasks, and defensiveness
• Weaknesses result in inefficiency and
  ineffectiveness

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Change Weaknesses into Strengths

• Develop strategies and a plan to change
  weaknesses into strengths
• Seek out constructive ways to strengthen your
  skills and professionalism
• Work independently and seek out support where
  needed

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Weaknesses Changed into Strengths

• Recognize your improvements
• Note that tasks now take less time
• Note that you now have more confidence in your
  decisions and the quality of your work
• Note that you no longer procrastinate or resist
  doing what used to be weaknesses

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ADD OTHERS TO YOUR TEAMReauthorization of IDEA
(1997)

• Parents as members of the team
• Participation of regular educator

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Develop Appropriate and Shared
Responsibilities-- Other Teachers/ Aides/Parents

• Model--teach in the regular classroom
• Provide positive reinforcement
• Observe students in their regular classeseven
  snippets of time can tell you a lot
• Provide formal and informal training
• Teach your students to direct others for
  meaningful information-self advocate

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Appreciate Others Diversity

• Culture
• Education
• Socio/Economic Status
• Response to having a child with a disability
• Confidence
• Trust
• Lifestyle
• Responsibilities

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Keep an OPEN MIND and HEART

• Dont bring old baggage into the relationship
• Approach each new relationship with parents with
  a positive approach
• Find out parents perspectives, beliefs,
  strengths, realities of lifestyles
• Have high--yet realistic--expectations for not
  only your students but their families as well

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Facilitate ParentParticipation

• Keep an OPEN MIND and HEART
• Consider parents individuality/diversity
• See parents as childs mentors/teachers
• Consider parents perspective
• Give information to the parents through various
  means and modes

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Parents as Teachers/Mentors

• When my son was born blind, I didnt get
  enlightened as to how to teach him everything,
  but he is my fourth child, I know some things
  about raising children. Respect me but help me.

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Parents Perspective

• Teachers are not always hearing what Im saying.
  I see my child at home and I know what he can do
  and cant do. Why dont the teachers believe me
  when I tell them I see things they dont?

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Give Parents Information

• Dont just tell me to do it, explain how.
• Taking classes made me feel better, like I know
  something.
• Parents need resources too!
• You have no idea how good it made me feel when
  you asked me to help teach the mom of the new VI
  child at the school.

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Increase Team Effectiveness

• Build maintain positive relationships
• Maintain close contact
• Communicate a sense of teamwork
• Dont complain
• Be a good listener
• Neither intimidate nor be intimidated
• See others perspectives
• Ask questions

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Team Goals

• Group move toward common goal
• Each member needs a clear purpose
• Team members directed toward a goal that may not
  be clear to others

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Support Comes From Many

• Within yourself (UP TO YOU)
• Family and friends (90)
• Students (80)
• Special education teachers (61)
• Other Vision Teachers (53)
• Parents (52)
• Administrators (46)
• Regular Classroom teachers (40)
• Community (26) (Seitz, 1999)

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TAKE PRIDE IN YOUR CONTRIBUTIONSAND ENJOY YOUR
ACCOMPLISHMENTS