Special Education officials hope that a weeklong summer institute on St. Thomas will give educators and professionals the skills and resources they need to effectively deal with students in the classroom.
This is the first year that the St. Thomas-St. John District’s Division of Special Education is hosting the institute, which is being held at the Sugar Bay Resort. The division has a new director and program manager this year, and they are hoping that the event will be a "stepping stone" toward taking special education in the territory to new levels.
"We would like to have all teachers have the knowledge they need to be able to work with all children, whether they have disabilities or not," said Truvia Plaskett, the division’s program manager. Plaskett said the territory is working toward having fully included classrooms (where both general education and students with special educational needs learn together), and needs to get everyone from parents to principals involved in order to make that happen.
"That means teachers working together more, the administrators providing the support to the teachers as they should, and the paraprofessionals doing their part to provide the proper assistance and services," Plaskett said. She said that the division hopes to hold workshops that provide the same skills to parents, so they can continue teaching at home.
Plaskett said that putting the emphasis on collaboration could also make the students feel more connected to adults and one another, and cut down on destructive behavior such as bullying.
"If we work together to curb that kind of behaviors and show the students how to turn their attention toward something positive, we will then get more positive results from our children, as well as adults because what we put into our kids now is what they will become in the future," Plaskett said. Along with the parent sessions, the division also hopes to have motivational workshops for students that encourage productive behavior, she said.
Other discussion sessions this week have or will focus on other areas that the division hopes to develop, including establishing a program for students with autism. Speakers at the institute spoke to the participants about teaching tools that calm and motivate students while improving the learning experience, and officials said Wednesday that they are looking to make that kind of training available to teachers throughout the year.
Speakers will also be talking this week about methods for transitioning students with special needs into the post-secondary environment and what programs can be put in schools to help them prepare. The institute runs until 4 p.m. Friday, and the public is encouraged to attend. Other workshops also focus on writing legally complaint IEP’s (individualized education programs); effective co-teaching models; and promoting sensitivity among educators that work with students with disabilities.
For more information, contact Plaskett at (340) 774-4399.
