Embarrassingly, I speak only one language: English. When traveling in most other countries of the world, it is humbling to be surrounded by so many people that speak multiple languages. In the short time we have been here, I have had several encounters where my lack of Finnish language skills was a barrier for me. In each situation, I felt I had a glimpse into what it is like for our students (and even adults) that struggle with language and literacy skills. Consider the following situations:
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I have found the need to stop at the local department store on a number of days to pick up small items that I realized we needed. Each day, a similar scene unfolded. I walk to the register and greet the clerk in Finnish and hand her my items. She says "Kiitos" (a word I actually recognize, which means thank you) when I hand her my items. There is a pause. The clerk then says something in Finnish. For the first several days, I would hear the Finnish and become confused, apologizing and asking if the clerk spoke English. In response, they would then repeat in English to tell me the price of the item, to which I was then able to respond by handing over my credit card. Finally, I started to notice this pattern. I developed a "script" of how I expected each transaction to go. Then, yesterday I stopped to buy slippers. I went to the register and followed my "script" as usual. This time, when the clerk said the string of Finnish words, I confidently handed my credit card to her and smiled. However this time, the script had changed. She had not told me the price of my items, but rather asked me a question about what the sale price of the item was. (And interestingly, in Finnish, questions do not have a rising intonation pattern, so I couldn't use that as a clue that a question had been asked.) I was overly confident in following my script and was unaware that something had changed.
As I reviewed the interaction walking home, it struck me...how often do our autistic kids (see footnote) have the same experience? Social interactions can be a challenge for them, so we work to give them tools about following a prescribed "script" for social interactions. At the very basic level, this is helpful, but how often does life actually follow the script? This one simple interaction gave me a tiny bit of insight about how it must feel for our autistic students every single day. It also led me to question how we can improve our support of these students to better navigate the dynamic nature of social interactions in their daily lives.
As I reviewed the interaction walking home, it struck me...how often do our autistic kids (see footnote) have the same experience? Social interactions can be a challenge for them, so we work to give them tools about following a prescribed "script" for social interactions. At the very basic level, this is helpful, but how often does life actually follow the script? This one simple interaction gave me a tiny bit of insight about how it must feel for our autistic students every single day. It also led me to question how we can improve our support of these students to better navigate the dynamic nature of social interactions in their daily lives.
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I have participated in a few meetings and social gatherings that were conducted primarily in Finnish. I actually enjoy having the chance to be surrounded by another language, however at this point, I find myself listening to it more as a beautiful melody instead of meaningful words. When I concentrate hard on what I am listening to, I can pick out an occasional familiar word or notice words that seem to be repeated often. But the instant that I stop concentrating, it all just becomes background noise. More than a few times, I realized that someone was saying my name, and it took several tries for them to get my attention. Perhaps this is what it's like for our students that have poor receptive language or auditory processing skills. At some point, the load of language coming at them becomes too much to handle, and they begin to tune everything out. Imagine how exhausting every moment of the day is for these students. Even when attempting to focus, these students still may only understand bits and pieces of the information presented to them, making the effort they've expended seem useless.
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I have met so many new people in the last two weeks. Recalling names of new acquaintances is typically a struggle for me, which is compounded here by the fact that the names in Finnish are completely unfamiliar. Recalling a name, even after hearing it multiple times, is difficult because I lack the ability to discriminate some of the unfamiliar sounds in the Finnish language. It requires extreme concentration, lots of practice, and even writing names down with phonetic cues for me to recall names accurately. How similar of an experience do our students with auditory discrimination problems experience each day? Additionally, difficulty with letter-sound correspondence makes it challenging for students to encode/decode unfamiliar words.
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My lack of literacy skills in Finnish has also been in the forefront of many of my struggles. As a literate adult at home, it's easy to forget how much of our world is accessed based on your ability to read. Because of my inability to read in Finnish, I have lacked access to many things from the most simple to more complex. For example, in environmentally conscious Finland, extensive recycling is very common. There are several bins for all different types of recycling...different types of paper, packaging, containers, and even bio-waste are all disposed of separately. Signs, written in Finnish, label the many waste receptacles, however without the ability to read the signs, I can not participate effectively. That may seem like a minor example, but now consider more complex tasks: using a computer, navigating public transportation, or reading the directions on the Vitamin D supplement for our baby. As a mother, it was frightening to have to rely on someone else to tell me the instructions on the medicine bottle for my daughter.
While I am completely illiterate in Finnish (as is 14% of the adult population in the US) also consider adults that read below a 5th grade level (in the US, roughly 21% of the population according to the National Institute of Literacy.) In this situation, I began to think of the parents of our students that may have difficulty with literacy skills. Imagine one of these parents receiving a form in the mail to initiate an evaluation for their student, or reviewing the incredibly extensive and technical evaluation reports, procedural safeguards, and IEPs. How completely overwhelming! Knowing how important family involvement is in the success of our students, what can we do to ensure better access for all parents, regardless of their literacy skills?
While I am completely illiterate in Finnish (as is 14% of the adult population in the US) also consider adults that read below a 5th grade level (in the US, roughly 21% of the population according to the National Institute of Literacy.) In this situation, I began to think of the parents of our students that may have difficulty with literacy skills. Imagine one of these parents receiving a form in the mail to initiate an evaluation for their student, or reviewing the incredibly extensive and technical evaluation reports, procedural safeguards, and IEPs. How completely overwhelming! Knowing how important family involvement is in the success of our students, what can we do to ensure better access for all parents, regardless of their literacy skills?
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These are just a few examples of my experiences in the first two weeks in Finland. Of course these experiences have offered only a tiny glimpse into the experiences of my students and their families. While I've always actively challenged myself to view my actions through the lens of the people I interact with, I am hopeful that the parallels that I have drawn will help to make me even more mindful in my practice. By doing so, I will continue to seek out ways to improve how I deliver services to my students and their families.
What situations have given you insight into the perspective of someone else, in life or in your classroom?
How do you actively work towards considering the perspective of your students in your classroom?
Footnote: Yes, I said "autistic kids" not "kids with autism." Read about my evolving view on why I don't use "person first" language here. And while you're at it, follow Diary of a Mom for excellent insights from the parent of an autistic child.
What situations have given you insight into the perspective of someone else, in life or in your classroom?
How do you actively work towards considering the perspective of your students in your classroom?
Footnote: Yes, I said "autistic kids" not "kids with autism." Read about my evolving view on why I don't use "person first" language here. And while you're at it, follow Diary of a Mom for excellent insights from the parent of an autistic child.