Michelle White #23

SPED 5326:253
Reflection 1
January 26, 2016
In the LD Bubble
Lynn Pelkeys account of living with dyslexia as a working-class white woman was
insightful and directly addresses two debates about Special Education that you often hear now.
The first is whether inclusion or pull-out is the best way to go about successfully addressing the
needs of kids with mild learning disabilities. The second is whether or not it is appropriate for
kids to know what so-called disability they have.
Lynn Pelkeys story solidifies my belief that kids should know what they have from a very
young age. It makes them know what they have that makes their learning skills different as
opposed to being in the blue and just thinking something is inherently wrong with them and that
they will never learn. Like Pelkey said, I think that when students do not know and just assume
they are dumb, it becomes an endless cycle of self-fulfilling prophecies. When Lynn knew what
was wrong with her as a college student, she was able to advocate for herself. I have had
students that were dyslexic and dysgraphic and I admit that sometimes I would forget that they
are allowed to type up the writing portion of their STAAR exam. I would sometimes forget to
change out one students regular pencil for a large pencil with a grip. But because they knew
what their 504 files said and they knew what their accommodations were, they were able to
advocate for themselves and were able to remind me of what they needed. That was the part of
Lynns story that really stuck out to me the most as a teacher.
The second issue that Lynn talked about was inclusion. I do think that inclusion is the
best way to go, but I still also think its okay to have some pull-out. I know she felt ostracized
and excluded, but I do think the one on one attention is important in some ways. I also think
though that socializing with their peers is great too and based on what I have seen so far I do
think its okay that other students know and understand that we are all different types of
learners. If the classroom management is done right, even other students end up being
advocates for their peers.
Her story moved me. I know that I try to be pretty diligent at adhering to everyones 504s
but hearing her college experience about how teachers were not, I will definitely be more
diligent. It also makes me want to show all kids how life might be for someone who is dyslexic
but again, Im not sure if thats appropriate.
I would also want to ask her if she thought there were other girls in her school that were
also dyslexic but were overlooked. I think it would have also been nice to know the race of the
other kids in her LD Bubble which she doesnt address. I think it is pretty common for minority
kids to be put in Special Education classes more often than their white peers.
Last but not least, her story has also made me want to ask my students who do get
pulled out, how they feel about it. When I have seen issues in the past, I have been an advocate
that a kid needs to be tested and get the proper help they need, but I do not know how they feel
about it.