Some tips to motivate students with cognitive impairments in both social activities and learning Eng...

Some tips to motivate students with cognitive impairments in both social activities and learning English Page 1 experience initiative Some tips to motivate students with cognitive impairments in both[.]

experience initiative

Some tips to motivate students with cognitive impairments in both social

activities and learning English

PART A INTRODUCTION.

1 Rationales.

The disabled especially disabled children are the most unhappy and miserable people in the world They are definitely vulnerable and often have a reserved nature Many of them lead an aloof life Their complex prevents them from mingling with non-disabled people in social and public activities From the educational standpoints, disabled children are children who can not use part of the body in a normal way They can be physically or mentally disabled Physical impairments include mobility, visual, hearning, and speech ones Mental impairment means cognitive disability To children with physical disabilities, they can understand things easily On the contrary, to children with cognitive impairments, they have certain difficulties in learning and comprehending things, but that does not mean they can not learn Albert Einstein and Thomas Edison are two good examples Albert Einstein, the father of modern physics, could not read until he was eight years old and the latter, the inventor of light bulbs and many other important inventions, was expelled from school on account of being a muddle-head However, these obstacles did not stop them from becoming the greatest scientists of all time

To help students with cognitive impairments build trust in themselves, have enough confidence in social integration, be better at English and become

good citizens, I have decided to choose : “Some tips to motivate students with cognitive impairments in both social activities and learning English” as the

theme for my study

2 Aims of the study.

Each work has its own aims, so does this study The aims of my study are:

 To eliminate the hindrance and barriers that prevent students with cognitive impairments from taking part in social activities

 To help them believe in themselves, become better at reading, writing some simple exercises in English

 To change non-disabled students’ attitude toward disabled students

 To fulfill my career passion and improve my teaching skills

3 Objects of the study.

 Le Xuan Manh, a mentally retarded student from class 11A8

 The attitude and treament of the students in class 11A8 (Basic Class of the school) towards their disabled friend

4 Methods of the study.

 Studying the policies and directions of the Government dealing with the theme (mainly the datas on google)

 Using analytic methods

 Assigning students with pair and group work

 Observing and asking colleagues for ideas and experiences

 Practising the application of the study

PART B CONTENT.

1 Preparation

1.1 Teacher

 Prepares 10 questions to ask students before the study (These questions are utilised for 37 non-disabled students in class 11A8)

Questions for the survey.

Name : Class: 11A8

Please answer the following questions honestly, thank you so much!

1 Is there anyone disabled in your class?

2 Do you often play with him?

3 In your opinion, can he learn normally?

4 Are you willing to help when he is in trouble or in difficulty?

5 Is there any day for People with Disability in the world?

6 Do you think he can play games or sports like non-disabled students?

7 Is it wrong when we discriminate with him for his cognitive impairment?

8 Have you ever taken part in voluntary work to help the disabled?

9 Can disabled students contribute to our society and lead an independent life?

10 Should disabled students be given the equal study opportunities and be treated fairly?

 Collects students’ answers, marks and notes down the results

Each “YES” answer equals one mark, each “NO” answer equals zero mark Total mark 10 mark 9 mark 8 mark 7 mark 6 mark 5 < mark 5

The result shows that much as the students in class 11A8 do not discriminate or look down on their disabled classmate, they pay little attention to him They treat him like an acquaintance rather than a friend

 Searching for Le Xuan Manh’s family and his attitude towards learning before the study

Collecting information by visiting his home, talking to his parents and asking his classmates for help

Through the survey, Le Xuan Manh is known to be a child in a two-chidlren family His parents are poor peasants who mainly live on growing rice The family, in Xuan Giai village - Vinh Tien commune - Vinh Loc district, is about two kilometers from the school and Le Xuan Manh rides a bike to school everyday His parents said that they had thought he could not learn anything at all However, they still tried to send him to school with a view to helping him become more open and integrate in regular school In fact, there were few friends playing with, the others did not on account of his disability, which sometimes made them depressed They have a complex on their son and are afraid that his friends will hurt his feelings and play trick on him Therefore, so many times have they intended to let him stay at home without learning anything

To Le Xuan Manh, Learning seems difficult to him, especially English, a foreign language With his cognitive impairments, he can not read Vietnamese properly and his pronunciation is often deformed Therefore, it is not easy to understand his saying

 Assign the members of the special help group

1 Pair 1 includes the monitor TRINH THU HUONG and the secretary NGUYEN THI THANH HUONG: Count Le Xuan Manh into class activities

2 Pair 2 includes TRINH DUC HAO and PHAM THI HANH DUYEN: Guide Le Xuan Manh to read and write simple English exercises

3 Pair 3 includes DANG MINH DUC and NGUYEN VAN CANH: guide Le Xuan Manh to kick shuttle cocks

4 Pair 4 includes HA VAN LINH and TRINH CONG SON: encourage Le Xuan Manh to comply with the school regulations such as uniform, student card, sandals

5 Group work includes all the above members with the leader PHAM THI HANH DUYEN and Vice TRINH DUC HAO: prepare essays on:

 The problems facing children with cognitive impairments

 Some outstanding people with disabilities in the world

 Is there any day for the Disabled in the world?

 Some important policies of Vietnam Government for the disabled

1.2 Students:

 Be willing to do the assignments given by the teacher

 Answer the questions for the survey frankly and honestly

 Prepare for the lessons carefully at home

 Pay attention to every lesson

 Give help and support in class activities when necessary

 Be respectful to the disabled friend

1.3 Special help group:

 Work in pairs and in group, co-operate with groupmates to do the assignments given by the teacher

 Be respectful to the disabled friend and be willing to help him

1.4 Le Xuan Manh- the student with cognitive impairment:

 Co-operate with classmates and the teacher in different activities

 Eradicate the complex, appreciate himself and what others are doing for him

 Try hard to reach the target in integration and in learning English

2 Procedure:

2.1 Presentation.

2.1.1 The representative : PHAM THI HANH DUYEN - the leader of the

special help group will present “The problems facing children with cognitive impairments” in front of the class and the rest listen to her attentively.

In developing countries, there are many children with cognitive impairments In addition to lack of medical care and economic hardships, these children face a lot of discrimination in life They are treated less fairly because

of their disabilities and many non-disabled people have negative attitudes towards them

How can we solve this problem and help these children? First, People should learn more about children with cognitive impairments They have different learning difficulties but the fact has proved that if we believe in them, give them equal opportunities, they can do magic things Second, there should be more contacts between people with cognitive impairments and other non-disabled people Study groups or group work can bring them together and will help to build their self-esteem When working together, we will recognise each other’s limitations and discover hidden talents This will also unite people from different backgrounds under a common goal and strengthen our community Many people think that disabled people can do nothing and can not live

independently They think disabled people are burdens to their family and the society but in fact many disabled people can do magic things such as swimming fast without arms, using legs to write and do certain things

PHAM THI HANH DUYEN continues with “Some outstanding people with disabilities in the world”

Marla Runyan is the first blind athlete in the Olympic Games and she also

won the gold medal for the disabled

Hugh Herr is a talented climber but a terrible accident derived from him two

legs, and after 20 years studying, he is the inventor of Massachusetts Academy

which specialize in designing facilities for the disabled

In PARALYMPIC 2016, Le Van Cong won the gold medal in weight lifting

Nguyen Hong Loi, a swimmer without legs, comes from Ho Chi Minh City He

won the bronze medal in Asian Para Game 2014.

May be the most familiar to us is NGUYEN ANH TUAN, the son of a well-known actor QUOC TUAN He was born unlucky with his mentally retarded development Mr QUOC TUAN used to confine in a television pragramme that when he first knew that his son was a child with cognitive impairment, he felt very disappointed However, with the strong will and determination as well as the great efforts, his son became one of the five most outstanding candidates recognized by Vietnam National Academy of Music This makes Mr QUOC TUAN feel proud of his son

After all, we should listen to their problems, give them encouragements, and

help them to overcome their difficulties and especially never discriminate against them.

2.1.2 The ideas of some students in Class 11A8.

To determine the students’ attitudes towards their disabled classmate after the presentation part, Teacher asks some students in class 11A8: “What do you think of helping the disabled in general and Le Xuan Manh in particular?”

TRINH THU HUONG, the monitor of the class said: “Everyone has a problem,

no one is perfect With the help of the classmates especially the special help group, I do believe that Le Xuan Manh can create something amazing!”

“Someone says people who bring happiness to others are the happiest people in the world I entirely approve of this idea Giving makes people happy and useful People with a disability can still participate fully in our community’s life,” said NGUYEN THANH HUONG, the secretary of the class

“I want to pay back to our community Volunteering is the most rewarding way

to get involved and change people’s life I believe that the students with disabilities should be offered support to do the things they like Eradicating the hindrance that prevents them from mingling with other non-disabled students is the thing I enjoy most,” said TRINH DUC HAO, the vice leader of the special help group

2.1.3 The result: After the presentation of the representative of the

special help group and the ideas given by some students in class 11A8, all the students in the class are aware of their responsibilities for the disabled, especially their classmate Le Xuan Manh

2.2 Practice

Assign the students in the special help group to assist Le Xuan Manh in each aspect required and support when necessary.

Pair 1 TRINH THU HUONG and NGUYEN THI THANH HUONG are the

monitor and the secretary of class 11A8: In the fifteen-minute meeting before the lessons each day, the whole class sing simple songs such as KHAT VONG TUOI TRE, NOI VONG TAY LON, DAU CHAN TINH NGUYEN, MUA HE XANH, MUA HE QUE HUONG Although Le Xuan Manh does not learn by

heart the lyrics of the songs, he seems very excited and claps his hands to the melody Smiles and happiness are shown in his face

In addition, in the class meeting each Saturday, after the comments and reminders of the teacher, the monitor and the secretary often organize small activities like singing contest among four teams, picking the note and explaining indirectly for others to guess what the word is, pulling right and left arms, picking balloons in pair of a boy and a girl without using hands In these activites, Le Xuan Manh is prioritized first The whole class cheer him up and make him feel much more confident

Pair 2 TRINH DUC HAO and PHAM THI HANH DUYEN are the two

students with the best knowledge of English in class 11A8 Guide Le Xuan Manh to read and write simple English exercises In the break after each English lesson, TRINH DUC HAO and PHAM THI HANH DUYEN in turn help Le Xuan Manh to read the simple words, simple phrases, simple sentences and then simple paragraphs At first, it was quite difficult since Le Xuan Manh had difficulty in pronouncing words or he had speech impairments His pronunciation was not clear enough for others to understand what he was saying Later, however, he gradually got used to reading repeatedly and perceived the meanings implied in each words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs To writing, TRINH DUC HAO and PHAM THI HANH DUYEN showed him the ways to observe the model examples guided by the teacher in exercises in Grammar parts Then if he did not understand, HANH DUYEN and DUC HAO tried hard

to make similar examples to enable him to realize the form and then repeated

that form The problem here is that Xuan Manh writes quite slowly Therefore,

he has to practise fairly hard to catch up with his classmates Sometimes, he feels frustrated but his classmates encourage him to do better after each lesson Thus, thanks to his great efforts, he is able to do simple exercises with simple structures such as Cleft Sentence, Conjunctions, Tag questions

Pair 3 DANG MINH DUC and NGUYEN VAN CANH: guide Le Xuan Manh

to kick shuttle cocks In the twenty-minute break in the afternoon, MINH DUC and VAN CANH implicate him to play shuttle cock kicking on the playground

of the school The first kicks were not easy at all However, this could not make him give up Xuan Manh was involved in this sport after two-week practice He looks more active now and is ready to play with not only two coaches, other classmates but also students from other classes in the school Not only can he now play shuttle cock kicking but he also plays football quite well In the physical education, Mr Trinh Van Quan, his PE teacher remarks that he is one of the students that play football the best in class 11A8 In his opinion, Kicking shuttle cocks and playing football are an excellent way to relax and develop the friendly relationship among students Living in the friendly atmostphere of the classmates and the support from the teachers Le Xuan Manh expresses his excitement Rarely do we now see him alone during the breaks at school His timidity seems to vanish

Pair 4 HA VAN LINH and TRINH CONG SON help Le Xuan Manh and

remind him to wear uniform, student card, and sandals Sometimes, he forgets the days in a week the students in school must wear the uniform To solve this problem, HA VAN LINH and TRINH CONG SON write a timetable for him and attach it on Xuan Manh’s handbag, which makes him follow the school regulations more easily Le Xuan Manh seems to look more decent when putting his shirt into the trousers with a belt He is aware of adhering to the school rules

He brings enough textbooks, notebooks, and other types of learning equipment that are needed for the lessons everyday In each lesson, he tries hard to listen to what the teacher is saying and notes down the things that make sense to him He does not write very quickly but slowly and carefully His handwriting is quite easily read by other students and the teachers This proves his great determination and efforts to get the same knowledge as others He says that wearing the uniform with the symbol of Vinh Loc high school makes him feel very proud and it is one of the things that interest him each day he goes to school In other words, to Le Xuan Manh, “each school day is a happy one”

The teacher: The principles when working with students in general and

disabled students in particular:

1 Build a trust and a good relationship with the students

2 Sympathize and do not discriminte when they have unusual behaviour

3 Care greatly for them regularly so as not to make them feel left out or out

of place

4 Encourage them to become more confident to take the chances of leading

an independent life

5 Tell them that they can contribute to the society as much as or even more than others can

6 In teaching, especially to the students with cognitive impairments, it is extremely essential to demonstrate things clearly and at times repeatedly for them to understand and remember easily To present structures, teachers should give model examples first to help them inculcate in their minds what Teachers want to transmit In addition, Teachers should tell short funny stories so that the students can relax and enhance their motivation in learning Also, Teachers should smile often to create a cheerful atmosphere in class When they make progress, praise immediately or I mean having timely stimulation, let them believe in themselves since the strong belief can help people do magic things After all, Teachers working with disabled students must have a devoted heart, respectful and positive attitudes towards their students

2.3 Further Practice: In this part, the students will get the chance to know more

about the intensive care of the world as well as Vietnam for the disabled

2.3.1 The first research : TRINH DUC HAO - the Vice Leader of the special

help group will present what the group have collected with the topic “Is there any day for the Disabled in the world?” in front of the class and the rest listen

to him attentively

Promoted by the United Nations, the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (originally called “International Day of Disabled Persons’) has been

celebrated on December 3rd since 1992 The aim is to further raise awareness of disability issues and to call for world-wide support for the rights and well-being

of disabled people Although this day has a different theme each year, its general theme is equal opportunities and full integration of people of disabilities in society

Here are some recent themes:

2010: Keeping the promise: Mainstreaming disability in the Millennium Development Goals towards 2015 and beyond

2011: Together for a better world for all: Including persons with disabilities in development

2012: Removing barriers to create an inclusive and accessible society for all 2013: Break barriers, open doors: for an inclusive society and development for all

2014: Sustainable development: the promise of technology

2015: Inclusion matters: access and empowerment for people of all abilities 2016: Achieving 17 Goals for the Future We Want

2017: Transformation towards sustainable and resilient society for all

According to WHO (World Health Organisation), at least one-tenth (1/10) of the world’s population live with a disability Many disabled people still face challenges, discrimination, poverty and limited access to education, employment and health care That is why it is important that people with disabilities receive the right support to perform the best they can

The way we think about disability has also changed, Disabled people are citizens like everyone else and have the same rights

2.3.2 The second research : DANG MINH DUC-a member of the special

help group will present what the group have collected with the topic “Some important policies of Vietnam Government for the disabled” in front of the

class and the rest listen to him attentively

Women and men with disabilities can and want to be productive members of society In both developed and developing countries, promoting more inclusive societies and employment opportunities for people with disabilities requires improved access to basic education, vocational training relevant to labour market needs and jobs suited to their skills, interests and abilities, with adaptations as needed Many societies are also recognizing the need to dismantle other barriers - making the physical environment more accessible, providing information in a variety of formats, and challenging attitudes and mistaken assumptions about people with disabilities

Current situation: In Viet Nam, more than six million persons age 5 or older, or approximately 7.8 per cent of the population, have a disability according to the

2009 Census However, recent statistics based on the World Health Organization’s (WHO) framework, known as the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), showed that disabled persons accounted for 15.3 per cent of the country’s population

1 A vast majority of people with disabilities in Viet Nam, or 75 per cent, live in rural areas and attend school at rates far below those of non-disabled persons Literacy rates are much lower for adult persons with disabilities (76.3 per cent) than those without disabilities (95.2 per cent)

2 In the world of work, few people with disabilities have stable jobs and regular incomes Many remain outside of formal employment systems As a group, they have lower labour participation rates and higher unemployment rates in both rural and urban areas than people without disabilities In urban areas, disabled persons are three times more likely to be unemployment than persons without disabilities (4.3 per cent compared with 14 per cent) With low levels of education and training, most people with disabilities cannot cover their daily expenses As a result, they and their families face numerous difficulties Approximately 80 per cent of disabled persons in urban areas and 70 per cent in rural areas depend on their families, relatives and social allowances

Governmental support for people with disabilities: The Government of Viet

Nam has adopted and implemented a number of laws, policies, standards and