Monday, February 25, 2013
SED 337
I just wanted to make a comment related to Cathy's story about her step son and haling a cab. I thought i interesting that you mentioned "it almost makes you think when do you need an interpreter." that made me think a lot over the weekend about reevaluating my motive for interpreting. thank you for that.
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I second the motion. I know that some of our professors have mentioned the fact that, if we're being advocates for Deaf individuals (off the job), the world shouldn't "need" interpreters at some point. Makes you think...
ReplyDeleteAs a teacher of the d/Deaf in a self contained classroom I always said my goal was to teach myself OUT OF A JOB! I taught in such a way that my students could function out in the mainstream classes as much as possible.
ReplyDeleteWhen I started teaching we had NO interpreters in the school. My kids didn't have interpreters when they went (25 years ago) to art, music, library and PE. The teachers did "the best they could" and I didn't stay with my students. Some of the kids who had more hearing or were older did a lot of the "relaying of information" that the teacher couldn't communicate.
As my students were more and more on grade level with their peers I saw no need for my students to be in a SELF CONTAINED situation and we began a lot of collaborative teaching, mainstreaming the kids within the school where I taught. That meant we had to have interpreters if the students were going to be fully mainstreamed for math or social studies.
But, to your point - I wanted to teach to a point and parent to a point where I was a "luxury" and a "choice" rather than a necessity.
Sekoe is fully independent and yet it's heart warming and fun to see the things he chooses to do fully on his own when we are together and yet the things he may turn to me and ALLOW me to do - maybe just because ;-).
Teaching this class makes me miss him - yes,here come the tears, more than I do at any other time of the year. The joys of being a mom!
I love that idea of teaching yourself out of a job and I think that is the whole point! For a teacher you want to do what is best for your students and for them to know they can make it on there own and don't need to depend on anyone.
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