The Power of Student Involvement
Kaitlyn Yates, LSS Teacher at Dr. R. Bondar Elementary school recently experienced the power of student involvement while including her student in his IEP meeting. The student was able to share insight to some of the concerns staff was observing, was open to acknowledging his challenges and eager to collaborate in co-planning a signal to draw upon when feeling overwhelmed, like a break system. Kaitlyn expressed that she has seen how "It has empowered him and allowed him to feel safe and supported." Additionally, having open conversations with his parents and his school team has helped the student acknowledge his strengths and differences, while recognizing that it is okay to have differences. Kaitlyn has seen that her student being involved in the co-construction of goal setting has "Remov[ed] the weight of feeling like he "can't" do things" and helped him be openminded to different ways of tackling new learning.
Student involvement doesn't stop at the IEP meeting! The possibilities are endless, and the exciting piece is that all teachers are planning for competency-based learning and assessment. Student goals are co-created as "I can…" statements. Every student in BC is working to develop their competencies in Personal Social/Thinking/Communication and by intentionally involving students in the co-construction of their goals, students are directly building their competency skills. As we continue to include students in their own goal setting, we foster self-efficacy, student engagement, and the student's commitment to their own learning.
"Learning is more effective when it is an active rather than passive process" -Kurt Lewin