Chapter 11

This chapter discussed using Multiple Intelligences in Special Education. The chapter focuses on seeing a disability in terms of strengths and not deficits. By using it as a backdrop you will see strengths in special needs children that you would not have seen otherwise. It expressed how one thing a student may be struggling with may only be in a certain intelligence, so it is important to try and teach special needs students in every intelligence to find where they learn strongest in. It is often a good idea to teach lessons in this strength and incorporate weaker learning styles into the lesson to strengthen every intelligence the student learns with. The chapter provides charts that gave examples of hard-working people who faced challenges in their lifetime, along with tools to use in every intelligence. If we as teachers work hard to incorporate every intelligence for our special education students, we will see a dramatic change in special education. Fewer referrals to special education classes will be seen, the role of the special education teacher will change, a greater emphasis on identifying strengths will be seen, the self-esteem of the student will be seen, and an increased understanding and appreciation of students will be seen.

Every special education program in every school differs, and while it may seem intimidating knowing some of the challenges we will face, we know incorporating multiple intelligences into our lessons will really help us in the long run. As we discussed in class, if we use every intelligence for every student, those with special needs wont feel left out. I think it is important for us to use every intelligence and really work to strengthen those weaknesses of our students. We really have a chance to make a difference in our students lives and give them a chance at learning. The chapter also hit home for us. Some of us faced challenges when we were younger, and others see it in our family members. Because of this it will be easy to relate to some of our students in the future, and we will be able to incorporate different learning techniques into our lessons from personal experience.