[Pibe-division] Reaching your potential

Dr. Denise M. Robinson dmehlenbacher at yahoo.com
Mon Sep 19 22:52:25 UTC 2011


Reaching Your Potential 
One of the biggest issues in the blind field (and there are many) is how much should a para educator be with a child?

What I have seen:
When a district has no one, a para is glued to the child's side and does
 most of the work for the child because the para lacks the blind skills 
to help the child do for themselves.  The child is succeeding (though 
only because of what the para is doing, NOT the child) and all are 
happy. BUT the parents do not realize how much their child is NOT doing 
and many times, the district is unaware of this also. Or parents fight 
for a para next to their child all day, without realizing this para will
 be a big brick wall between their child making friends and achieving 
their own goals and potential.

I have come into districts and watched the blind child rocking back and 
forth while the para did the work, sitting side by side, away from 
class, in their own little world. When I talked with the child, the most
 intelligent words came from her mouth, so I knew there was a brain 
there. We spent the next couple of years teaching her all the 
technology, braille and other blind skills and she was completely 
independent by the third year. The para just adapted the work for her 
and made sure she had it in class when all the other students did. This 
is what SHOULD be happening all the time. 

I have had the first scenario over and over and depending on the "pain" 
level of weaning the child from the para, is really up to the child and 
parents. Most are on board with the heavy duty technology, braille 
lessons and other blind skills and within that 2-3 year window you can 
have an independent child.

However, there are the people who are not thinking ahead to graduation, 
college, a job. They really think that somehow, miraculously their child
 will be completely independent when they graduate, when in fact, they 
have been completely dependent on a para throughout their school career 
and this dependence and lack of ability  will follow them.  The child 
ends up living with the parents and the parents continue to do 
everything for this child who has the potential of Mt. Everest inside, 
but instead the child sits like a glacier holding her down and going no 
where.

Parents and child bring the fear to each other.  The child brings that 
fear to the parents and the parents have the same fear, or the parents 
put the fear on the child and they tell the child they cannot live 
without the para (the second scenario  is the most common). They truly 
believe they cannot live without that para being right next to the child
 all day long. It kills the confidence of the child. The child lacks 
friends because the para has become the end all to be all of their life.
 They fail to gain enough skills to go onto college, and worse be 
gainfully employed to their IQ level.

So, back to reaching your potential. We can't do it without "pain". It 
will be painful, not physically, though I have seen a lot of sweating, 
but emotionally. The fear. The dread of not being able to do your work 
because you forgot something. The fear of getting lost in the school or 
on a bus ride because you took a wrong turn.

I use the phrase: We learn more from our failures than our successes. I 
give everyone permission to fail because we are going to fail at 
something no matter what it is. Don't feel bad about it, feel happy that
 you are progressing toward something. We can learn from our mistakes, 
but if we never try, we do not know our own potential.

When they are getting ready to take their first solo bus ride, they are 
very fearful of getting lost. I tell them, "Don't worry (very 
cheerfully)...you will!! And they laugh.  That is why God gave you a 
mouth. Speak up and ask someone directions. Same thing goes for class. 
Speak up and ask. I see relief come over my students. Yep, it is better 
to fail at trying something than to never try anything. You can only 
reach your potential with work and pain....but the pain goes and 
confidence and success follow. 
 
       Denise 
 
Denise M. Robinson, TVI, Ph.D. 
Teacher of the Blind & Visually Impaired
TechVision-Independent Contractor
Specialist in blind programming/teaching/training
509-674-1853     deniserob at gmail.com
 
http://blindgeteducated.blogspot.com/
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://nfbnet.org/pipermail/pibe-division_nfbnet.org/attachments/20110919/c83c7f78/attachment.html>


More information about the PIBE-Division mailing list