Building a rich knowledge of the learner

The framework below embodies the key elements of an inclusive school curriculum that together ensure progress and achievement for all  students. It shows the teacher, student, and whānau at the centre of the inclusive curriculum, working together (and with others) to gather rich knowledge of the student. This knowledge, The 2007 New Zealand Curriculum, and effective pedagogy provide the essential foundations on which inclusive practice is built, supporting the teacher to build on all students’ strengths and aspirations, to make their learning visible, and to recognise their progress. 

The diagram is in the form of a circle, showing the elements of an inclusive school curriculum. It has the words "The New Zealand Curriculum" curving inside the upper and lower edges of the circle. 

At the centre are three small circles, arranged in a triangle and labelled "Student", "Whānau", and "Teacher". Overlapping these three circles at the points where they join is another circle with the words "Rich knowledge of the learner". These four interlocking circles are surrounded by the words "Working together". 

Around the outside of these interlocking circles, three double-ended arrows, each with the words "Effective pedagogy", form a triangle. At each point of the triangle is another circle. The top circle has the words "Building on strengths and aspirations"; the lower left-hand circle has "Recognising progress", and the lower right-hand circle has the words "Making learning visible". 

Near the bottom of the diagram is a curved double line linking the two elements "Recognising progress", and "Making learning visible" and containing the words "Progress and achievement within one curriculum level over an extended period of time". 

Knowing all students 

All students are active, capable learners with unique potential. However, students demonstrate competence in a range of ways and progress at different rates. A key role of the teacher is to really get to know their students so that they can help them to recognise their competencies, demonstrate their strengths, and work towards their aspirations. 

To build awareness of your current practice, you can ask: 

• How do I encourage each student to participate in learning? How do I acknowledge their strengths and support the development of them? 
• Do I use a growing knowledge of my students to make connections to their prior learning and enhance the relevance of new learning? 
• Have I identified strategies that are most likely to support my students to learn? 
• How does my teaching impact on my students? 

Addressing such questions will help you to think of each student as a competent and capable learner. It will encourage you to get to know students with an "inside" rather than an "outside" view. 

"We often stop at the outside of the child, focussing on how they appear, rather than looking through to the inside. For Pasifika students, looking inside is key to understanding important cultural values and principles, so that these can be used as a part of the foundation for learning." 

- Pasifika education facilitator, project interview, 2013 

Knowing our learners requires us as teachers to build relationships with them and to understand what we bring to these relationships – we need to know ourselves well in order to be able to really get to know our learners. Sometimes, our own beliefs and perspectives about disability and diversity may determine how we see, know, and teach students. Our assumptions can either support inclusive practices or be barriers to students participation and learning. 

If students come with "labels" or diagnosed disabilities, we should not assume they are less capable of learning than their peers. When we act on such assumptions, we may inadvertently deprive them of the chance to engage in the same activities and opportunities as other students. As we build knowledge of their strengths and aspirations, we are more likely to provide opportunities for them to realise their potential as active learners. The challenges they face should not be ignored, but nor should they limit them from learning within The 2007 New Zealand Curriculum with their peers. 

Example 

In Example 9 (see Inclusive Practice and the School Curriculum), a year 5–6 teacher builds on what she knows about her students to plan a science unit and creates space for students to bring their interests and talents to the fore. In the process, she learns more about her students and they learn from each other. 

Encouraging student voice 

"Often the student has the best ideas of how we might work with them, if we take time to reflect on what they might be trying to communicate." - Outreach teacher, project interview, 2013 

The best way to understand a student’s preferred way of learning is to ask them (Causton-Theoharis, 2009) and to include them in planning and assessment processes. This will mean working alongside them to understand what they want to learn and how to make learning accessible for them. 

All students can communicate. Some students use their physicality (gestures, signs, or eye movements) to do so, while others use augmentative technologies. Alternative communication modes such as visual representations (for example, Picture Exchange Communication) or voice activation devices enable students to develop and maintain relationships, gain and give information, express feelings, and control their environment. 

Classroom teachers play an important role in facilitating the development of language and communication. Encouraging all students to express their needs and concerns can be supported through strategies that identify effective ways of communicating for students. The teacher needs to consider how to support students so they feel comfortable and able to discuss their learning confidently with both the teacher and their classmates. Underpinning this is the teacher’s knowledge of the students’ cultural backgrounds and the approaches to communication that the students are comfortable with. Successful communication outcomes allow students to achieve in their learning and in their relationships with classmates, the school, and the wider community. 

Research by Dr Jude MacArthur (2009) showed that students with additional needs are eager to enter into conversations that will help teachers understand their views and their strengths and aspirations. 

"Students ask to be part of the group of all children and young people at school, and they want their teachers to: 

• get to know them 
• give them opportunities to talk about what school is like for them 
• listen to their views 
• take their views into consideration when they are planning and teaching so they can learn 
• support them to make school a better place for them 
• allow them to be part of the whole peer group and to be fully involved. 

For these things to happen, teachers need time: 

• to talk with their students and their families and whānau 
• to share ideas and experiences with other teachers 
• to consult with colleagues who can inform them about the effects of students’ impairments on 
• their learning 
• to develop respectful and equal relationships in their school." 

- MacArthur (2009), p. 42 

Example 

In Example 5 (see Inclusive Practice and the School Curriculum), a teacher collects student voice via text and images on a class blog. On reviewing the blog entry, he notices shifts in students’ learning and thinking in mathematics. 

For authentic student voice, there needs to be a high level of trust within the classroom. This means establishing an environment and processes that feel safe and comfortable for the student. In the following example, the teacher works with a student so that he feels able to contribute to the direction of his learning. 

Adam is a year 10 student. He wants to be involved in decision-making about his learning. He is able to think about and discuss his learning with some key people in his life, such as his parents, the specialist teacher, and his sister. However, he is overwhelmed and anxious about attending a planning meeting with other people. 

Adam works with his teacher to develop a PowerPoint to show examples of his current learning. He includes two new goals he wants to work towards. He decides that he will try to stay for five minutes to present the PowerPoint to his support team but will leave when he feels he needs to. In this way, he is involved in the process of decision-making and thinking about next goals, and team members have the benefit of Adam’s insights in a way that causes him the least stress. Decisions made after Adam leaves are discussed with him before his IEP is written up. 

When students like Adam see that their thoughts and opinions on learning are valued, they are more likely to let you into their world and share their hopes and aspirations. However, hearing and understanding student voice is not enough in itself – it must be acted upon. Only in this way will there be real student agency – where students feel that their voice has led to meaningful action and they will see the results of their decisions and choices. Students will hold back if they perceive that what they are saying is not going to make a difference. In the example below, the teacher tries to ensure that her students’ thoughts and ideas on learning are regularly incorporated into the classroom programme. 

Gina is a year 7 student who loves to read. She is able to use symbols to make sense of most work and can read some sight words, especially the names of people she likes. Each day the teacher stops the class ten minutes before school ends and asks students to think about their day as a learner. She asks the students to think about one thing that can change to help them in their learning for the next day. Students share this information together, using either a goal diary or a visual chart. Gina uses an adapted goal diary that has visual charts. She is able to discuss this with her teacher or with her peers. 

Activity 

 As a group, view the video clip and discuss: 

• What teaching strategies help to make Katrina’s school experiences positive ones? 
• What does this clip make you think about? How might you respond to it in your practice? 

You may wish to then also: 

• undertake the activity What Students Say,  to help you understand your students’ perspectives.  
• explore the guide Down Syndrome and learning