Kliewer: Quotes

First things first, I think everyone should have a better understanding of Down Syndrome, because everyones heard of it, but not everyone knows exactly what it is.

"Justify a competitive ethic that marginalizes certain students or groups of students ...[that] legitimize discrimination and devaluation on the basis of the dominant society's preferences in matters of ability, gender, ethnicity, and race... and [that] endorse an elaborate process of sorting by perceived ability and behavior" (73)

     This quote reminded me of a lot of things that we have learned in class so far. The main two would be SCWAAMP and the piece by Oakes. One piece in SCWAAMP says society today values "Able-bodiness" as one way to be able to obtain power in society. This quote just solidifies the fact, because it discusses about how in todays schools, children are sorted into classes of Able-Bodied and Unable-Bodied. Also, this backs up the piece from Oakes about tracking in schools. The schools are tracking these children by ability and behavior giving some of them a worse education then others. 

"He didn't get credit for it because he didn't do it right, but he clearly knew which was the block, which was the spoon. And he followed directions in an organizing sense." (Page 84)

     I feel as though this is an important quote because it shows that these children with down syndrome are being looked down upon. Even though this child was able to clearly know the difference between the blocks and the spoons, he was not given credit because he didn't do it the way that they told him to. Some students comprehend things differently, and the fact that he wasn't able to get credit even though he came to the same end result of knowing the difference between the two disgusts me.

"I have Down Syndrome, but I am not handicapped" (93)

     I feel as though this is a subject that is having it's "glass tapped" more often now than ever. Being able to see people with down syndrome for more than just their extra chromosome, but for who they are as an individual. People with Down Syndrome are beginning to push the boundaries of what people thought they were capable of. Two of the top people of this movement are Jamie Brewer of American Horror Story and also the first model with Down Syndrome to walk New York's Fashion Week, and Madeline Stuart, a very successful Australian model with Down Syndrome. Both of these women are spreading the word that maybe Down Syndrome is not a handicap, but an obstacle that can be overcome.

Questions and Points to Share:

At my little brothers elementary school, they are beginning to merge the special needs classrooms with the regular classrooms in order include all the children on the same level of learning, however the helpers of the children with disabilities and some of the problems they have tend to distract the class from learning and divert their attention to the special needs children. Is there a way to incorporate the children better without compromising learning time in order to get all of the children focused again?