Essay on Novel

Essay on Novel: My Thirteenth Winter

“I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that special education saved my life” (p. 100, 2003) - My Thirteenth Winter by Samantha Abeel

My position on the role of Catholic schools is personal, connected, intertwined with emotion, methodical, purposeful, and meaningful because I connected to Samantha Abeel, the main character of My Thirteenth Winter, who’s labeled with dyscalculia and later diagnosed with depression because I have ADHD and an auditory processing disorder. Samantha’s memoir truly serves as a catalyst for explaining my position of Catholic schools need for effective, longitudinal, continuous, and individualized support and services for students with learning disabilities. This essay delivers the laws, provisions, integral delivery systems, and key roles Catholic schools play and should play to provide support and services for all students with learning disabilities. Ultimately, Catholic schools should integrate all necessary components within the schools, which includes informing parents and utilizing all shareholders, resources, materials, and services under the provisions of Individualized with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

Catholic schools are made of many components that support and service all students through the environments, persons, community, and advocates that provide and extend support and services. And stemming from the Catholic leaders (principals, teachers, priests, bishops, community, etc.), unique “service delivery systems” are crafted for all students (Scanlan, M., p. 1, 2009). Catholic leaders must challenge federal and state laws, advocating the students’ rights, services, and supports within private environments. Ultimately, Catholic schools should provide the tools to the services or supports within the physical school grounds and, if needed, nearby public school buildings. In doing so, students with learning disabilities should receive the proper diagnosis, medication, or any other individualized form of necessary accommodations to support them.

Samantha Abeel’s memoir titled My Thirteenth Winter provides a glimpse of the daily challenges a girl with dyscalculia and depression endures. Within the memoir, Samantha recalls the role antidepressants play in her life. The diagnosis of her disability with the prescribed antidepressant positively impacts her life, and emotions. She said on a family vacation, “It struck me, as the quiet liquid inched up over my knees, around my thighs, and up to my hips, that for the first time I am really living my life. I am not just watching people from the shore, but I am swimming with them” (p. 203). The goal for all Catholic schools is to effectively integrate, assess, and provide services and supports for all students. As children of God, we are all called to participate and “craft service delivery systems” for all students, including those with learning disabilities (Scanlan, M., p. 1, 2009).

This book also demonstrates the flaws within the special education and public school system, and how the needs are not met for students with learning disabilities. It also illustrates the loneliness and depressing results this system has on those individuals. Catholic schools should not fall short of providing appropriate and inclusive guidance for students with learning disabilities. Catholic schools should not lack inclusive and integrated services and supports in welcoming families with students with learning disabilities. My Thirteenth Winter delves into some key components of a failing school system that does not meet the individual needs of the students with learning disabilities, nor inform parents on the ways to assist their child.

As a catalyst, Catholic schools must advocate the rights to parents, and be a voice that supports all persons. Informing parents at meetings, newsletters, and online website. As Samantha Abeel stated, “Most were desperate parents who wanted to tell me about their child’s difficulties, grasping at anything they could to help their child drowning in a school system that didn’t understand” (p. 119, 2003). Parents must be informed and knowledgeable of special education services and rights for their child. In doing so, they become a role in the necessary change for advocacy and fairness for students with learning disabilities at Catholic schools.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires “state education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) to ensure the equitable participation of parentally placed children with disabilities in programs assisted by or carried out under the equitable participation requirements that apply to them” (U.S. Department of Education, 2008, p. 1). However, IDEA is not an equitable law for all students because my parents are taxpayers; nonetheless, their child may not be entitled to services if enrolled in a public school. Our nation must understand that the separation of church and state does not mean unfairness if one’s right to choose a private school means one’s rights to learn within one’s Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) is removed.

             For some students with learning disabilities at Catholic schools, the LRE is not an option. Special Education classrooms at Catholic schools is not funded by the state of California, which denies the equitable participation of these students, removing their rights to learn in a special education classroom (LRE) with Catholic values. Under IDEA and our SEA, the implementation of school-wide interventions has been recommended.

Catholic schools should effectively implement interventions, such as a Student Success Team (SST), which is a collaborative intervention team. SST provides effective and collaborative collection of data, documents measurable and individualized progress, and consistently provides interventions for each student. SST involves the family, or primary educators of the child, a team of professionals, and resources/support for the student to have positive learning experience. Thus, SST will develop some necessary services to support the needs of struggling learners and ensure a high-quality and life-long learning experience.

SST also documents interventions used, meeting discussions, materials integrated or adapted, and other strategies implemented for each student. This longitudinal collection of data serves as a quantitative form of data that is purposeful and demonstrates the holistic learning and/or behavioral experience of students. In addition, it provides a voice for Catholic school students within the public school system if eligible for testing. SST is one service and form of inclusive support for students, being a collaborative, purposeful, and effective process.

Another important role Catholic schools must utilize are the use of multiple forms of assessments, demonstrating the knowledge of area(s) of concern for the student. Catholic leaders must use benchmark assessments, standard-based tests, informal observations, portfolios, and any other additional components that provide progress or digress in academic and/or behavioral areas. Samantha’s mother depicts the value of education for her daughter, as all Catholic schools and leaders should. “… confront[ed] by my mother’s absolute determination, the superintendent of Special Education finally came up with a different way to evaluate me. He suggested that I be tested by grade-level objective to see if the material I was supposed to know at the end of each grade level. The results of this test would help determine where my skills really were and just how delayed I was, if at all” (Abeel, S., p. 91, 2003). Her mother challenges the standard testing, which do not play an important role in supporting her learning experience. Catholic schools should provide a variety of testing throughout the school year, and provide a continuum of benchmark testing from Kindergarten through Eighth Grade. In doing so, the benchmarks display academic areas, and subject matter that the students need additional support. 

Catholic schools must provide LRE’s for students with learning disabilities, and environments for optimal progress in challenging areas. Students with learning disabilities should also be given the additional time, accommodations, or adaptations for subject area(s) that are well-below grade level or settings that raise anxiety or stress. Placing Samantha in a special education class for mathematics led to the stopping of panic attacks (Abeel, S., p. 99, 2003). I recall repeated, daily panic attacks in high school and early college years. My anxiety level for some courses was overwhelming, and seemingly impossible, due to coursework, teacher/professor relationship, and classroom environment. For most of my classes in high school, I worked almost all hours of the night to receive a C in the course. I couldn’t finish tests on time, due to the anxiety, comprehension and retaining levels of the information learned, and auditory processing disability. College eased my anxiety for testing, due to the test taking room and extended time for tests. Each final took me about 4-6 hours, but I was given the opportunity to demonstrate my knowledge of the material and complete the tests given. In the end, Catholic schools must support the students with learning disabilities by accommodating, adapting, or providing additional services for areas that are challenging to include them in a holistic learning environment.

Catholic schools have an important role in providing the environment that allows learners to focus, engage in class-work, build social skills, and support mental health and wellness. A form of building positive mental health and wellness is mentoring and counseling to guide and employ strategies that fit the needs of the student. Catholic schools should inform families of nearby counselors for children with learning disabilities and already have a mentoring program established to better support them. Well-informed parents bond the child with the school accommodations and services used to better support the child. As Samantha’s mom became her confidante, the Catholic schools should include the child, making him or her feel fully open to share feelings and struggles so that the building blocks of their learning experience nurtures their unique needs.

Catholic schools set the tone to special education for families and students with learning disabilities. An inclusive environment and atmosphere is provided through the collaborative partnership of Catholic leaders and their shareholders. As Samantha stated that special education saved her life, I agree with her. I do recall the years of challenges of comprehending my “differences,” but through the mentors, Church leaders, embracing community, and college counseling and disabilities center personnel, my compassionate position on the role of Catholic schools would not be the same. We must all be active advocates of the rights and equality students with learning disabilities receive, and provide the most positive, unique, compassionate, and meaningful services and supports for them. They all have a story. Let us celebrate their abilities, and stand strong for their exceptionalities.

Cited References

Abeel, S. (2003). My thirteenth winter: A memoir. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

Board of Education, San Diego County (2011). Special education services. San Diego

County Office of Education. Retrieved from

http://www.sdcoe.net/ssp/speced/?loc=home

Scanlan, M. (2009). All are welcome: Inclusive service delivery in catholic schools.

Notre Dame, IN: Alliance for Catholic Education Press.

U.S. Department of Education (2008). The individual with disabilities education act:

Provisions related to children with disabilities enrolled by their parents in private schools. Jessup, MD: ED Pubs, Educations Publications Center.

Module 4: Math

Module 4: Math

Part A: Website Math Videos (www.mathvids.com) and Mathematics Accommodations

The mathematics videos, as shown on the website (http://www.mathvids.com/nctmstandard/show_lessons/1), exemplify numerous strategies and forms of accommodations for mathematics instruction. This website (in its entirety) integrates the reinforcing tools for demonstrating the essential skills of the mathematics curriculum. To explain, the videos reexamine and reiterate the practices, models, strategies, skills, and other principles and/or teachings of mathematics. I would not have these videos be the direct instruction of mathematics, rather an accommodation and/or supplemental activity for students to grasp learning strategies, as active involved students.

The provided website includes a well-informed resource for teachers, as it supplies the description of the video, additional resources, questions answered within each video, staff review, and user review. What makes the videos more useful tools for multiple teachers is the ability to download the video. In doing so, the teacher could incorporate this into the lesson plan, accommodations, or additional activities/extension.

Accommodations the math video, called “How to Subtract Fractions Part 1,” provides are many examples and explicit instruction that is organized with step-by-step presentations (Lerner & Johns, p. 454, 2010). As stated on page 454, students with mild disabilities commonly have “memory deficits that interfere with the automatic learning of computation facts” (Lerner & Johns, 2010). This video reinforces techniques that help children learn and remember (without time restraints) the necessary steps to subtracting fractions.

“Written conversations or dialogue journals are written interactions between teacher and student or between two students” (Lerner & Johns, p. 413, 2010). The math videos interact with the students by communicating the ideas in pictures and numeral form. Using pictures to demonstrate the computational skills, such as multiplying fractions, sets a concrete level for students to grasp the abstract concepts. I find Mr. Burnett’s videos, such as “Multiplying Fractions an Introduction,” as an example for the helping students with disabilities to progress from concrete to abstract thinking and learning. He shows the pictures of the fractions being multiplied (concrete). Then, he explains through comprehensive words and dialogues as the fractions are shown (abstract), and relating the numeral form of fractions with the picture provided in the beginning.

One way I would implement “Subtracting Mixed Numbers with Renaming,” for instance, is after the students have advanced to a level that enables them to work by themselves. In doing so, they can complete the lesson on their own without distracting auditory stimuli (assuming they have earphones). In doing so, this supplies an aid in reinforcing and recalling procedural steps in solving mathematics computations.

Part B: High-Quality Math Instruction: What Teachers Should Know

1. The components of high-quality math instruction include the combination of the following implementations: a standards-based curriculum and evidence-based instructional strategies. A standards-based curriculum includes the content and skills for the math curriculum, as according to NCTM’s Principles and Standards for School Mathematics, includes the knowledge to acquire (content standards) and ways to learn and use knowledge (process standards). The teacher must use the standards, both content and process, according to the grade level curriculum and standards. Evidence-based instructional strategies are the strategies proven in thorough, detailed research to be effective and meaningful for students to grasp mathematical skills and concepts. These strategies are taught with fidelity, or as the researcher, for instance, intended.

2. NCTM content standards encompass the knowledge gained within grades K-12. NCTM process standards enable students with the ways to learn and use the knowledge purposefully from prekindergarten through grade twelve. NCTM process standards entail the appropriate processes students develop for mathematics. NCTM content standards include the following: number and operations, algebra, geometry, measurement, and data analysis and probability. NCTM process standards include the following: problem solving, reasoning and proof, communication, connections, and representation. The content standards are the explicit skills and content for grades K-12. Further, the content standards are comprised of the essential concepts across grade-level curriculums, providing teachers with the focal points they are expected to ensure for student learning. However, process standards are the approaches the students are taught to learn and use, making mathematics curriculum and performance organized, comprehensive, progressive, and conducive to all learners.

3. The evidence-based teaching strategy being implemented begins with explicit teaching, whereby the teacher states the objective and expectation. She also states the importance of taking notes when trying to solve the area of the irregular shape. Another evidence-based teaching strategy is cooperative learning. This video clip demonstrates this strategy which the students collaboratively explain their ideas to solve the mathematical problem. The students are building upon the strategies and skills previously learned in a concrete manner; bridging the abstract concept of area in a conceptual format. This strategy is shown effective and meaningful because all of the students are engaged in the task, as they discuss the problems, and address them with the manipulative (poster board with design). In addition, the teacher questions the thinking process to solve the area, and provides immediate constructive feedback to the group’s explanation and work.

Part C: Dyscalculia Readings Responses


I love the idea of math journals within the mathematics curriculum. This reminds me of my student teaching experience in a sixth grade, where the teacher used math journals for math note-taking, projects, homework assignments, reflections, and timed activities. The students were able to reflect upon their work in a progressive and comprehensive style. They also had a “cheat sheet” in the front that the teacher would explicitly have them add new skills or strategies onto it. This cheat sheet was used as an aid when solving problems. Since my first grade students are learning to write sentences and complete thoughts, I would not find the math journal to be appropriate in this manner. However, I find packets focusing on a certain unit or content standard as an appropriate additional resource for students because I include places for them to write during explicit instruction, and organize the thought process for solving word problems, for example.

Many of my students struggle to use the English language (vocabulary, grammar, verb tense, etc.) correctly for reading and writing. I have also discovered the need for explicit instruction on math vocabulary as an important aspect of the curriculum because the students need to use it as they explain their reasoning and approaches to solving concepts. I recall a wonderful professor at the University of San Diego who taught vocabulary in an explicit manner, providing examples of the new concept. Then, she would have us use the language to solve the problem by communicating our thinking and supporting our use of the terminology in discussions and homework assignments. This article inspires me to establish a cooperative learning time for each math period to further support the math terminology used during oral discussions and in written form.

Marilyn Burns describes the wealth of information provided by what the students understand and how they think in Educational Leadership’s “Looking at How Students Reason” (p. 26). She discusses the importance of intentional and purposeful assessments to offer better alternatives and instructional choices and design. Differentiated instruction must hone in on the students understanding and thinking processes. In doing so, it can support their learning needs to acquire the tools for successfully solving problems. In the beginning of this school year, I assessed my students in mathematics, and found a few students well above the standards and expectations of the curriculum. As I provided additional and extensions for classwork and homework to challenge their critical thinking, I found the gaps between many of their understandings and thinking because they had memorized concepts rather than connect the learning or build upon the skills previously learned. In doing so, I did not provide additional materials to challenge them, rather have them explicitly learn the concepts with the class, then be a coach for students struggling to grasp the numerical concepts. These students gained confidence in using the math terminology and step-by-step procedure acquired.

First-grade science curriculum addresses many opportunities for students to contextualize problem-solving activities by applying the math skills developed and acquired. For instance, using a thermometer during Calendar Time, that allows the students to count in two-unit increments, reinforces skip counting, measurement, and using a thermometer to determine the temperature. When learning about capacities and measurement in mathematics, I teach the properties of matter and how they can change, due to external factors.