Providing special education services to students who qualify is different on the STEAM team in three main ways.
Heterogeneously Mixed into 4 Groups
Inclusion versus non-inclusion or regular education was not the case this past year. In fact, all classes were seen as both. Students with Individual Education Plans (IEPs) and 504 Plans were placed into groups based on learning needs and abilities. Services were then provided accordingly. It was easier to address learning needs within the curriculum. The regular education population (or those without a learning plan) were initially randomly placed in groups for instruction purposes.
Groups Changed
These original instructional groups changed throughout the year three times. Students were reassigned groups again and again, depending on the goal of an activity, project, or class. Students had the opportunity to work with everyone and had access to high level curriculum that would not have been available to in traditional groupings. Also, opportunities for enrichment is easy to make happen with the alterations of the groups based on skill performance, not IDEA classification.
Cultural Shift
The labels (sometimes demeaning and derogatory) related to special education appear to have been lost. All students are treated as if they have an individualized learning plan and all students' learning needs are accessed and addressed fluidly throughout the year with team projects specifically.
We look forward toward utilizing data to further differentiate instruction based on learning needs for all.
