Preamble
My first experiences in the education system began where I do not distinctly remember there to be any discrimination or bias. I had the opportunity to be surrounded by fellow children from all different walks of like, some of whom had disabilities. I had never considered what children in special education were going through, what their daily thoughts regarding their education were, nor how they had been assessed as such. Most of what I knew about the disabilities of fellow peers was kept a secret - a hint towards the stigma that once prevailed amongst the classification of disability. The first and only time that my mother received a phone call from my teacher was in Junior Kindergarten. I was zealous, and could not find it in myself to sit on the carpet and pay attention to the teacher as she read a book. The teacher was concerned that I may have a behavioral or learning disability that inhibited me from paying attention. My mother can recount the story to this day, as she had to explain to the teacher that my actions were regular for an energetic four-year-old child. Upon further discussion, it was revealed that this teacher had been quick to refer students that did not comply with her rules to special education classrooms. A lapse in her efficacy of Classroom Management and not my ability to learn. The circumstance was never brought up again and I never received separate learning assistance throughout the entirety of my education. Thinking back to the moment, I cannot help but wonder how many students were regularly dismissed to ‘other’ classrooms or misidentified with disabilities because the teacher deemed their learning needs inconvenient or misinterpreted students’ actions. Without a mother who was as educated in the field as she was, my educational experience may have not been the same. I cannot compare my experience to those of students from other ethnic backgrounds, because I do not have the cultural upbringing that they had; however, I can wander about the identification process of Indigenous learners who are placed into special education.
Introduction
In Canada, the variation of provincial and territorial educational jurisdictions allows for inconsistency in definition, identification practices, funding for support, and intervention services. Schools are tasked with identifying, evaluating, and appropriately accommodating children with disabilities. Because this responsibility is placed upon the schools, these practices may be surrounded by pervasive thoughts of ableism and racism, not to mention a lack of resources in some circumstances. The referral of a student to special education may omit a teacher from having to address specific learning challenges that stem from cultural and ethnic backgrounds - especially in students that arrive from Indigenous communities. Teachers who are not familiarized with some of the characteristics of Indigenous culture can misread situations and refer a student to special education practice. According to the Learning Disabilities Association of Ontario, statistics on incidence rates of misidentification are vulnerable to distortion and bias for a number of reasons (2018). Of these reasons, the resources available to students that arrive from minority backgrounds and the potential for teachers to misread certain behavioral qualities as disabilities are two that stand out.
There remains an alarming amoung of disproportionate classification of Indigenous students into special education. In a report published by the Ministry of Education - British Columbia Aboriginal Educational Branch and Special Programs Branch revealed that an alarming number of Indigenous Learners were placed in special education programs (Addo, 2011). Historical and past discriminatory practices against minority communities indirectly contribute to this statistic. The overrepresentation of minority students, specifically Indigenous students, in special education raises serious concerns because education is often seen as an opportunity for upward mobility in social and economic contexts, and a viable tool against inequality for minority people (Allen and Hood, 2000). However, not all Canadian children with disabilities have proper access and appropriate accommodations to health services as other students from other ethnic backgrounds. Research consistently shows that the most prominent differences in health care in Canada are those between Indigenous people and the rest of the Canadian population (First Nations Families of Children with Disabilities Summit, Understanding the Disability Trajectory of First Nation). The barriers and challenges that Indigenous children with disabilities face are often overlooked; these children and their families are constantly at the intersection of jurisdictional and political disputes, not to mention the social exclusion, discrimination, and racism that they face. The effects of indigeneity and disability on a child must be explored in relation to Canada’s inclusive practice for special education.
Indigenous Disabilities Context in Canada
Historically, people diagnosed with any kind of disability were excluded from general society and largely ignored. It was not until the mid-20th century when further research in language, reading, perceptual, and the motor abilities of students eventually evolved into a greater need for classification. While some exceptionalities have obvious signs of biological and physical markers, some disabilities remain harder to distinguish, such as that of Learning Disabilities. The concept of Learning Disabilities formally came to the awareness of Canadians in the late 1950s when a psychiatrist was “puzzled by children who [had] mild behavioral difficulties seem[ed] to have average intelligence, but had significant problems with school functioning” (Wiener, J., & Siegel, L., 1992). This awareness bore the idea of unexpected underachievement in which some children frequently required something more than what their peers received from their teachers. From then on, there has been a progressive inclusion movement throughout Canada, beginning with segregation and eventually evolving into the inclusion of all students with disabilities. These inclusion practices seemingly provided the solution for the lack of success achieved by children placed in separate classrooms: the historic segregation of special education students had often rendered them unable to interact with children of the same age who were moving at a faster pace academically. Therefore, the principal goal of inclusion was to prepare all students to be moral and productive members of the community. However, challenges remain. As a result of the increasing number of Indigenous children into special education and increasing variance of youth with respect to social class, race, culture, and ethnicity, teachers are faced with providing appropriate instructional methods that address all of their students’ individual and collective needs.
While more Indigenous students are placed into special education programs, the relevant legislation in protecting this demographic remains overlooked. These children are at the intersection of laws and conventions that should be protecting the rights of these individuals. Federally, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Canadian Human Rights Act serves to protect those that have disabilities from discriminatory practices. However, the responsibility for services acquired to Indigenous children is often shared by federal and provincial jurisdictions and First Nations governments (Also referred to as Band government, which are small groups of people joined together or tribal councils, which are larger regional groupings (Sabatello & Schulze, supra note 1 at 159)). Oftentimes, this results in disputes on funding and services available in Indigenous communities and creates problems for accessibility for children with disabilities. This disparity resulted in the implementation of Jordan’s Principle: an effort to ensure that children living on reserves will receive the same level of care as those living off reserves (79 S Johnson, supra note 8 at 234.). Unfortunately, even with the implementation of this principle, there continues to be an unequal divide in the services provided to Indigenous children with disabilities.
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Implications in Special Education for Indigenous Students with Disabilities
The cultural concept of disabilities within some Indigenous communities is not like that from mainstream Canada. Disabilities within Indigenous communities can be considered as special gifts or power which enable people to communicate with forces beyond this world (9 Yvonne Johnson, Stolen Life, The Journey of a Cree Woman (Toronto: A. A. Knopf Canada, 1998) at 423.). Such a perspective is not shared by those from Western educational institutions, who view disabilities as what a person can and cannot do, to their degree of inability. Indigenous students continue to be overrepresented in several special needs categories for years (Ministry of Education, 2014). When looking at the statistics that deem Indigenous students to be at risk for identification of a disability, it is important to look at other factors that play a key role such as intergenerational trauma, poverty, and disproportionate school discipline practices (Greflund et al., 2014). The historical context behind relations in schools and Indigenous peoples is long and wrought with unfair practices. These educational institutions were once structured upon racism against their people and therefore, there may remain serious feelings of mistrust in the system. Therefore most confusion when interpreting assessment results of Indigenous students referred to special education is due to a lack of progress monitoring, lack of culturally relevant pedagogy and assessment procedures, and lack of involvement of Indigenous community members in the referral and assessment process. For example, some Indigenous students may be less verbal, and less competitive, and they may not look at teachers and administrators in the eye (Gritzmacher & Gritzmacher, 2010). When you take these character traits out of context they can make it seem as though a student has behavioral and learning problems that need to be addressed; however, this may actually translate to normative behavior within a cultural context.
Likewise, the State of the World’s Children Report identifies that “children with disabilities encounter different forms of exclusion and are affected by them to varying degrees, depending on factors such as the type of disability they have, where they live, and the culture or class to which they belong” (UNICEF, “Children with Disabilities” (2013) The State of the World’s Children Report at 1 [UNICEF “Children with Disabilities”]). While there are several ways that a school setting could be inaccessible for a student, some of these may include other implications depending on funding and resources. First, the infrastructure of the school itself may prevent a child with a physical disability to carry out his or her everyday activities. Second, a child may be excluded from the learning because the curriculum is not adapted to his or her needs and teachers do not have the resources to make necessary adaptations. Third, the child may need additional and specialized support either in the classroom or outside the classroom. While the obvious physical obstacles present problems for disabled children, in unseen circumstances like that of learning disabilities, a misdiagnosis can cause serious implications. A child who is struggling with reading could always benefit from extra academic support, regardless of whether he or she meets the definition of disabled, however, some of the negative ramifications of a misdiagnosis can include stigma and lowered educational opportunity (Michael L Perlin). Once labeled as such, as teachers often lower expectations for children with learning disabilities, the misidentified child may actually under-achieve to the level that they are capable of. Therefore, Indigenous children are recurrently exposed to greater vulnerability at the intersection of their ethnicity and ability and this remaining stigma and perception may result in discrimination and marginalization from resources.
Strategies and Suggestions
Every child should be given the tools and resources to achieve their full potential and capabilities regardless of child’s ethnic background, beliefs, or status. Proper assessment, used consistently across various sectors in Canada, will limit the misidentification and disproportionate representation of Indigenous students in these categories. Responsibility for ensuring these equitable practices also relies on federal and provincial jurisdictional funding disputes. Considering that Canada committed to these Conventions, it is inexcusable that it is not fully committed to see its equal implementation nationwide. As the government takes an active role in ensuring that accommodations and solutions are investigated, the risk of marginalization of Indigenous children with disabilities will not be as prevalent as it is today.
Likewise, the assessment process involved in this identification must also take into account the cultural and linguistic diversity in schools. It is imperative for teachers to be trained to deal with diverse students within their classrooms before dismissing them with a disability. Special Education is not a ‘magic pill’ for all students’ needs and this assumption can be detrimental to a student’s well-being if misplaced. With the changing demography of our educational climate, there is a need for transformation in the way that schools operate to accommodate diverse students. Indigenous students continue to be the most overrepresented group in the special education program. A strategy to address this issue is to continue to educate teachers and school staff in regard to the culture of Indigenous communities and FNMI learners. Understanding cultural differences that may play a part in teachers misidentifying certain characteristics may help teachers work better with Indigenous students. Teacher Education programs must ensure that candidates, before completion of their programs, acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to teach students with all abilities in the regular classroom so as to make the classroom more inclusive and to understand that other circumstances may have a part to play in why a student is behaving the way they are. Educators have a professional and ethical responsibility to care for and educate children in environments that allow students to perform to the best of their abilities. These environments must be cognitively stimulating and support each child no matter their background or capability.
Conclusion and Reflection
While I think all of these strategies would be beneficial in minimizing these circumstances, it all comes down to how teachers view their students. The Professional Year of the Two-Year Program has done a good job to include relevant studies in teaching pre-service candidates the importance of not holding biased attitudes. While this may reduce the chances of disproportionate placement of Indigenous students into special education, it may not prevent improper special education techniques used to implement teaching methods to this specific demographic of learners. The methods used must be culturally responsive so that Indigenous students and their communities respond better to their identification in special education programs. With classes such as Inclusive Education and Social Differences in Education, we are able to reflect on our previous experiences in classrooms regarding subjects such as these. Some of these studies are but only a couple of years old. That fact alone is concerning. Also, in communities surrounded by reserves and Indigenous culture, the relevance for this practice is obvious; however, in other cities and towns that are further removed from FNMI culture, those teachers may not be as prepared for these circumstances to arise. The more education provided on proper practice and the responsibility that teachers have to their students, the less these occurrences will happen. As the curriculum continues to expand to encompass Indigenous culture, I believe more of this learning will become apparent. This situation regarding Indigenous children with disabilities in Canada will continue to have a need for implementing changes and improvements. To ensure that these actions are implemented successfully, recognition of the privilege that non-Indigenous children have and the systemic oppression that Indigenous students may face if the first step. In Canada, there is a lot of denial of unequal treatment of the Indigenous community and without admitting to it as a nation, no change will ever be possible.
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