Comment by Caren Levine on December 25, 2010 at 9:17pm

Hi, all! I noticed that there is a small group of us starting to collect here and figured I would kick off a bit of a discussion, given the expertise that is beginning to assemble... I'm wondering what your vision/s is/are of Jewish education for all of our diverse learners? What changes need to be implemented to achieve this vision? What are some of your promising practices and lessons learned?

 

Looking forward to learning more with you!

 

Caren

Comment by Debbie Weinberger on December 31, 2010 at 11:45am

Hi Caren,

 

Thanks for kicking off our discussion.  My interest and expertise is in early childhood, with a vision of creating a space which includes all learners.  Change needs to take place on a variety of levels - administratively, in the classroom, and especially in the realm of professional development and classroom support for teachers.  

Teachers are the front-line leaders.  They need and deserve to be educated about recognizing and identifying learning challenges, and providing strategies for creating success for all learners in the classroom. 

I am working to develop such training program.  Will keep you posted....

Comment by Debby Jacoby on September 27, 2011 at 9:09pm

Just saw this on Twitter - great resource... keep adding ideas to the Google Doc @cybraryman1 aka Jerry Blumengarten.

Please share Tech Resources for Special Ed classes on this document tinyurl.com/3fyzzuz #spedchat #tichat

Comment by Eric Chafetz on February 23, 2012 at 10:01am

Hi Debby,
Don Wertlieb and I were working on material for HIER (Hebrew College Inclusive Education Roundtable) and came across the list that you linked from Google docs on tech resources. We are looking forward to some quality technology sessions at the annual GISHA (Good Ideas Supporting Hebrew Access) conference on April 29th and 30th, and we do expect to have a special education tech course next spring. Please feel free to email me at Eric.Chafetz@hebrewcollege.edu if you would like more information regarding the GISHA conference
L'Shalom,
Eric Chafetz

Comment by Eric Chafetz on February 23, 2012 at 10:05am

Shalom Chevrae,
Here is some good news about serving our students with special learning needs in Boston http://www.cjp.org/jewish-day-school-grant.aspx Yasher Koach, and Kol HaKavod to CJP, Gateways, and Yeshiva University, as well as a big Todah Raba to the Jim Joseph Federation, and the Ruderman Family Foundation for such a wise and generous investment!

Comment by Andrea RC Kasper on July 22, 2012 at 9:59pm

Hello,

I am joining this group to learn more about special education in the Jewish ed. world and because I am working to found a new kind of Jewish high school, Yadaim academy of Applied Academics and am exploring a fully integrated program for students managing ADHD. Here is a bit about my vision. If anyone is interested in learning more, I would love your insight.
Yadaim Academy of Applied Academics challenges and expands the very understanding of what it means to be a Jew in the 21st century by elevating creative activity and allowing all of our members to be productive and essential. Yadaim puts into action the rhetoric of student-centered, holisitic and inclusive education by exciting and instilling a healthy respect for the work of the hands alongside intellectual and cognitive development, fully integrating right and left brain work. Those engaged with Yadaim will affect meaningful change within their communities and beyond by learning and modeling diverse pathways and expressions as they engage in the world as Jews.
Imagine a high school where students learn about math, science, and writing as they create a prototype bicycle and bring it to market, or work in teams to design a green building. Yadaim Academy of Applied Academics is a Jewish high school grounded in the integration of work-based learning with Jewish and academic subjects. Using project-based learning, students in multi-age groups focus on the Jewish, ecological and production aspects of each project. By facilitating the development of skills in fields such as farming, textile production, green construction, and fine and culinary arts, the school offers students pathways to diverse career options. The co-founders envision a thriving year-round school community built on past wisdom yet unencumbered by old assumptions, with the goal of redefining Jewish education.
Yadaim presents a new educational model that addresses system-wide change within the context of both the American educational system and Jewish education in the United States. Yadaim rethinks pedagogy, student body, applicability of Jewish education, hands-on work and production, faculty roles, age-based groupings, cognitive and intellectual development, work-based learning and preparation, and the appropriate methods to most effectively meet the needs of students. Yadaim directly challenges the dominant image of the Jewish community by educating a generation of young adults who are diverse and well equipped to not just think about the world, but confidently act upon it.

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