Asperger syndrome - Zuleika Vargas

To talk about the problems that can cause the syndrome of Asperger, it must first know what is.

Asperger syndrome (AS) is a developmental disorder characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction and nonverbal communication, along with restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. And is important to know that there is no single treatment, and the effectiveness of particular interventions is supported by only limited data. Treatment is aimed at improving poor communication skills, obsessive or repetitive routines, and physical clumsiness. Efforts may include social skills training, cognitive behavioral therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy, parenting training, and medications for associated problems such as depression or anxiety.

That is why, as a future teacher I will take into account this problem and will try to do my part so that children who suffer from this syndrome, do not feel isolated.

As we have seen in the video, there are four different cases that talk about how they feel in a world that think that they do not belong.  One of the main characters in particular, speaks of how it tried it in the class for being different, both the teacher and the students did not understand that this child was suffering from a syndrome and therefore needed a special or different from that of the other child education. Instead of realizing this, they dedicated themselves to insult him, make him bullying and making fun of him.

To prevent this, or eradicate it little by little, I think that the method which I would use would be the inclusive classroom.

Inclusive education is intended to provide educational care that promotes the maximum development possible of all the students and the cohesion of all members of the community.

The concept of inclusion is broader than the integration since it is related to the very nature of education and the school. It brings with it a particular community students learn together, regardless of their personal, social or cultural conditions.

An inclusive classroom is one that does not exclude absolutely anyone, that there are no current students or special students but just students, each with their characteristics and needs.

For the problems of the asperger's syndrome, in the inclusive classroom, these aspects can be treated: they have a visual thinking, this means that they understand, assimilate and retain better through visual information, this is why classroom Visual strategies will be the most suitable and we can use technology to facilitate this process. There are millions of App to learn visually, even images or videos that allow the learning of this type of person.

They have a thought focused on details. A way to learn that they have made that process easier parts and details and not the whole and the whole, for this, the guidelines and proposals from an inclusive innovation will generalize these concrete strategies to new learning. However, his extraordinary mechanical memory and surprising their superior ability to draw, for music, or even for the calculation. This means that as a teacher you must further develop those skills that do not usually done in the classroom.

Another feature, and to conclude, is that children with Asperger's have a selective memory, so I think that as a teacher you must motivate them and teach that each topic can be interesting from another point of view that is commonly used with other children. Basically, change the methodology to make the child feel more motivated and has an interest in these issues.

In the social field, the best thing can practice is that children understand the differences between the two and make lectures or workshops that explain that each person is different and must accept them as they are.

Miguel Carazo 1º B - Personal Toughts

¿Do we need a change in education?

I think we really need a change in our peculiar education system. This complex project has highly confirmed what I thought before. Some aspects of our education system suck.

Maybe this has been one of the most complex projects that we have done during this year, but it has been also one of the most of the enriching projects also. We have had the opportunity to explore a whole new world of possibilities in education, we have seen schools in Finland, in Japan, and each of the schools and each of the interviews and monologues has had something important to teach.

I want to talk first, about the videos, concretely about one that made me reflect on every aspect of my school life, I’m talking about Logan LaPlante’s speech in Tedx.

I think that we try the children to be mature very soon, and that’s a problem, because they don’t really enjoy their childhood. We have the preconceived idea of a happy and healthy life which is based in having a good (and long) education, then find a job, and then you’ll be “happy”. Really? I mean life is hard, and when you’re pushing a child to get good marks, and you put him under pressure the only result you’re going to get is sadness.

Logan talks about 8 Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes (Dr. Roger Walsh), which need to be done to reach happiness and health. And something that is not surprising is that unless we go out of the traditional education we are not getting reaching that goal. “Much of education is oriented to making a living rather than making a life” (Dr. Roger Walsh), I agree with him, because probably we focus on the ideal life that we can have, but we don’t pay attention to what really matters.

And here is where we introduce the Hackschooling* term created by Logan, which can be quickly summed up in deciding what do you want to study, how do you want to do it, and where do you want it. Studying using this new creative system, can open bunch of possibilities to improve not only the quantity of what the students learn, but also the quality, because they’re going to love what they are doing, and they will put passion on their work, and the truth is, that there is nothing more worthy than something in which you have put passion on.

Now let’s talk about about the different projects (not about each one) that all the class have proposed as our different ideal schools. I have realised that we have a lot of great ideas, and that the majority of them can be easily put in action right now, we don’t even need money, sometimes it’s only about using common sense, and logic.

Dumbledore’s Teachers Army

They focussed on the main problems that we can easily find in the current education system. They are structured in different kind of problems, we have value problems, like bullying; methodology problems, as the amount of homework children have, bags weight; They used as newspaper structure, using Harry Potter’s scenes in which they gave their opinion. Then they started giving different answers in their ideal School. They gave some keys to be a good teacher, some ideas for the buildings and installations, as the light, the open spaces concept… It was a nice job, and I liked the structure they used by presenting first the problems, and then giving their solutions to that problems.

Wanderlust Team

This team used an original idea, they dressed up like different inhabitants of countries like Finland, USA and Indonesia and they talked about their education system. The reason they did it like that was to use real examples to show that a new different school can be created, and with these ideas they created their ideal School, which was highly characterised by encourage children to protect the environment, work in teams and use cooperative learning.

Modern Students

This group made a really good project, and they didn’t make giant changes, they focused in two important things: a project based school rather than an exam based school; and in cooperation between teachers. I thing this two things are the base of a strong education system, first because if we cooperate between us we will be able to do a better labour with the children, and secondly because if we cooperate between ourselves we will be the role model that children will follow.

Amigos del Football

This team showed us again the differences between some European education systems, and we conclude choosing the German as one of the best. However not everything is not gold all that glitters, the German system has a big point against, which is that children have to decide about their education when they’re only 10 years old. And something that they clarified is that no matter how much you redesign the buildings and the installations if the methodology that some teachers follow doesn’t change, because sometimes this is what stops the new education models.

Musical Chairs

This team talked about having big spaces for the children to feel comfortable and free. They wanted colourful classes that could catch the eye of the children, and they also wanted to have present the nature, so that they would consider important the feelings and emotions of the children. They wanted a kind of education where every mistake is a new opportunity to improve, as they are the ones who solve any problem which appears. All of this must make the children learn, but without prevailing them from having fun.

So, in conclusion, it has been a very hard work, but it has been also really worth it. We have learned a lot about all the bunch of possibilities that we can use to improve the learning process. Also this has taught me that the only limits that exist are the ones that you put to yourself. However, with the sociology part the we prepared I also learned that there are many factors you have to take into account before planning anything, any significant detail is important when talking about education. And I would want to finish with one sentence that Sir Ken Robinson said in one of his Tedx’s speeches:

“If you’re not prepared to be wrong, you’ll never come up with anything original”. (Sir Ken Robinson)

Our ideal school

Our group thinks that the principal idea of an ideal school is to accept that everyone is different, for this reason, we want to show a different way to see the education system.

Conceptual map of our ideal school

Creative schools - Zuleika Vargas

Does the ideal school exist?

This project has been one of the longest I've had so far in the course but at the same time the most interesting of all. It's create your own college, a perfect school for me, an ideal one and that I meet all expectations that I have dreamed of.

To do this, we first read some texts, we create our work team and then we saw some videos related to the ideal school for some people.

I'm going to start talking about the videos because one of them I really liked: Ken Robinson talks about creativity influence a college and why it is so important for him. Today educates children only thinking about his intelligence, linguistic, logical- maths, just thinking about develop cognitive skills in children without letting them be free and creative and develop other types of capabilities.

Not everyone is born equal and that is something that we have clear, every person is unique, each person is a world and that world have to explore it, let it be expressed and that every day teach us new things.

This man also adds that education now does not work well, that we're trying to children as the ecosystem, we are finishing with them and for the future, that not going to run anything. Let the children express themselves, that solve problems, that experiment and learn what is fail, what you try to do something without being afraid to fail because failure is not the worst thing you can do, worse is not to try. When you try something new, it means that you are creative.

I believe that these ideas are the fundamental basis of the new system of education that the schools should have.

The following two videos deal with the structure and methodologies that have some schools. For example: this school has circular ceilings and open spaces so that children can be free, developing different skills, preventing separation between inside and outside. This idea avoids that children feel that they are locked up, it becomes nervous...

Noise plays an important role in this regard because being an open space there is no acoustic barrier, there is no limits of any sense and makes children to enjoy the school otherwise.

Being a school child, children most of the time want to play, run..., and that is that these clearances allow children browse, play, and feel that slight spark of danger and to help others in games, friendship, sincerity and friendship. Even the teachers do not oblige children to do any activity, if it is child wants, can join her and if you get tired, in free to play go.

With respect to the texts, you could say that the main topic is the inclusive schools and for this I guess a situation, imagine that one person invites another to dinner at her house with his friends but tells him that as is food intolerant going to dinner, that person has to sit at another table to not feel strange eating something different from the others. do you think that this person would be included in the group?, I if I could, would reject the invitation because I would feel completely excluded eating at another table.

So I think this is what is happening with the education system, we think that integration and inclusion mean the same but inclusion is a concept much more profound, inclusion means to make you feel valuable to all students, feeling part Dela class, without exclusion, "normal" students or students "special", just with different characteristics and needs.

For this reason, being each one different, each one a "world to discover" as I've said before, it is necessary to change the educational system and the form of the teaching.

Several of the works presented in the ideal school made by different groups had many ideas in common: methodology structure (open spaces, the provision of classrooms), school (project-based learning, cooperative learning, few duties, few tests...) and the critical role parents have in the education of children.

Dumbledore teachers army

Its main point to be treated was about the methodology applied today in schools, they think that there is much theory that is not put into practice and that in the long run is not worth anything (agree with this thought) and also added some values or themes that are should dig deeper into schools such as , bullying. But his work had a point that I am not fully in agreement, I remember that his group wanted to promote competitiveness and is something that in my opinion is not at all favourable to children.

Wanderlust team

As several teams, started explaining the different educational systems that exist in some countries trying to get the best out of each one, making the ideal school visualized and not be completely fantastic and unreal. This group gave more importance to teamwork, to the development of different intelligences and to develop skills in students.

Modern students

This group exhibited one of the points most important to mi for an ideal school: cooperation between teachers of the Center. This idea is essential not so much for a same course classes go to matches but to learn from the starting point have to start the following professors and not waste time on teaching always the same. Another interesting point was the importance given to parents for education on her children, who had to attend some classes and see the operation and be about the most small. And, as my group, they also gave importance to the presence of plants or pets in a class to promote the responsibility of having another human being.

Amigos del football

This group, like others, talk about different educational systems: Turkey, Germany and Spain and compare between the good and bad that saw in each of them. For members, the best system is the system German although there are many differences from ours, for example: decide their future to the 10 years since they had to decide which branch of Education wanted to go. In my opinion, these types of decisions not okay take it at that age because it is a great responsibility and a great decision that the child is not sufficiently mature to take it for himself.

Another important point in this group was extracurricular activities and use of resources to develop other skills in activities such as dance, music, among others.

The unknows

This group commented two very important points for me, first, the importance of culture. I think that this topic do not speak any group (except mine) and it's something the diversity that have classes today, is a very important topic to try. Another point was that of technologies, included it in classes giving great importance because what nowadays is more used and schools must be updated.

These are the main points that treated all groups on their ideal schools but really... all this is necessary to make a school ideal?

In my opinion, putting together all the ideas that I've compiled so far on videos, texts and papers presented by my colleagues, my ideal school would not need to change the entire school, simply exchange or depeen more on some points:

Regarding the space: to me are fundamental areas of leisure, i.e., good facilities for the sport, for activities such as music, dance...

The space does not have to be very large but if with open spaces and green spaces that allow the children have contact with nature with respect

Methodology: the work in group, project-based learning, less duties, and application of the theory in practice are the bases where my ideal school should be based. I would like, as I've put in my thoughts of the viewed videos in class, kids to create their own learning, that have curiosity and desire to learn more. They do not be afraid to fail and be creative.

The issue of diversity, of cultures, of respect among peers and knowledge of a world outside school, with travel, excursions and lectures about weird things that can draw the attention of the child

Teachers is also very important: the recycling of the teachers to know the level and the enthusiasm that have over the years is very important for me, a school depends on their teachers and if these do not have more motivation than the children, they will not transmit the values in general.

I would like to also talk to les and educated with different techniques to deal with problems like bullying is one of the leading schools nowadays

Family should become more involved in their children's education, so my ideal school would create open days, invite parents into the classroom to witness any of the classes of children and in addition would tutorials custom with all and each of parents and students (not only those who have problems)

Classes: the table layout would be shaped in that everyone to share with colleagues and above all, to my essential is the presence of a pet or plant in the class.

In conclusion, I can say that my ideal school is very similar to the current schools. I am not in favour of giving so much importance to the technologies, but if to how to educate children to use it (not only for videos). Either I give too much emphasis to the spacious because children adapt to any environment, but if you must have open spaces to enjoy nature.

Amaya Retuerta Mingo, 1ºB

MY IDEAL SCHOOL

I had never thought that designing an ideal school would be something so complex. We must not only take into account values and rights, but laws, spaces, contexts...

For me, the perfect school would be one in which predominated the good values, in which there is peaceful co-existence and all are considered equal, where there are no distinctions between social class, culture, religion, the physical and the skills and capabilities of each. My ideal school would be one in which all can educate us with the same opportunities, irrespective of our capabilities as individuals; and where children develop in a space in which concerned them as children, and not those who should study and do homework and pass exams and courses. Children should develop their full potential and take to maximize their abilities and skills.

In my ideal school the first thing which would introduce would be inclusion. This would be done spaces in which people with disability can receive the same education as any other person. To do so, would install ramps and rooms in which anyone with a mobile disability could move, fields of sport in which to play and exercise with wheelchairs. It would also hire teachers who know speak sign language to give class to sordo-mudas persons; and it would approve the lessons with books in Braille language, so that blind people have the same opportunities as the rest.

The school would have all facilities: sports fields, gym to make children physical education, swimming-pool, cafeteria... There would be a large number of extracurricular activities such as sports, languages, music lessons, etc. There would be lots of green and natural spaces children learn to interact with nature and the important thing is to take care of her. There will also be a small orchard where can grow vegetables, fruits, etc. and will have a pet class, such as a rabbit and a hamster so they can learn to be responsible; It is a way to give them responsibilities with living beings.They have a large school playground to have fun in the playground and interact with others. In addition, there will be a mural in which children can write what they like or not of the school, suggestions, things that make them happy on this site, but can only write it in this mural, on any other wall of the centre may do so.

The school could have a slogan at the entrance to motivate children towards education, as a well known phrase of William Allin: "education is not the answer to the question. Education is the way to find the answer to all questions". It would encourage the motivation of students to eliminate dropout.

Teachers must be bilingual, with a level of at least B2-C1, and native teachers, which the students would practice the pronunciation of English, teaching with these native teachers only "speaking" would also have. The directors will also be involved in the education of students. In addition, all members involved in the education of pupils will be refresher courses to improve their skills as teachers, instruments, methodologies, etc.

At the school, in addition, it will boost to maximize the creativity of the students so that they are able to solve problems in the most efficient way and to find solutions to any problem. It is will boost also to maximize their skills and abilities and critical thinking, which will be able to reach the most fair and efficient before any question and problem response. Teachers will promote also the cooperative learning. In that way, children will sit down in group tables so they learn how to work cooperatively, to respect the opinions of others, to help in learning and be helped, to establish relationships with others... En el colegio, las metodologías de los profesores deben desarrollar al máximo las habilidades y destrezas de los alumnos así como todas las inteligencias: linguistic, musical, logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal and naturalist intelligences.

Teachers, also will make refresher courses to improve their methodologies, instruments, etc. and must use new technologies in the classroom and to employ the traditional learning tools such as books, pens, notebooks, slates...

Another thing that should change in education is the large amount of homework kids bring home. This is a problem, because as children who are, deserve to have free time to play, being with friends and family, relax, or do any extracurricular or important activity for them. In addition, throughout the day would have five minutes between each class and each lesson breaks would last forty-five minutes. After each two classes would have a break of half an hour to play, relax and have fun.

There will be numerous tutorials a month, both for all kind as to students individually to discuss what to improve or change, any problem that students have, and any suggestion that both students and teachers. Parents also attend various tutorials, both individually with the teacher, and all parents and the teacher and the parents and students attending tutoring.

Bullying is a problem affecting more and more everyday, so there will be many lectures to avoid appearing this problem and promote a peaceful co-existence in the centre. And the education will be focused in values. It means that children have to learn the respect, diversity, inclusion, multiculturality, etc.

Students will have plenty of activities, to learn in a fun way. There will be open days and multicultural meetings, like the day of sport, family, culture, reading, etc.

Thanks to my partners videos and the ones about other schools in different parts of the world, as for example in Japan, I've got great ideas to improve my idea of ideal school.

In particular, school we saw in Japan, I don't much like. I think that it is not based on the integration of all children, such as children with disabilities. It's fun for the students to climb a tree, but children with mobility problems may not play with others scaling. Nor do I see well that children play on a roof, although you have handrails so they do not fall, and I do not like the idea of not being too outstanding students, as at any time they may have a problem and caused us to realize to act at the time, avoiding that none suffered any damage. However, I like the idea of connecting children to the environment and adapt them to the environment, feel part of nature.

Videos and projects of my colleagues have been very interesting. Each group something different, I liked while many of the ideas were common in all projects.

It caught my attention and I liked that some groups speak of the educational systems of different countries. In this way we not only learned how it was for them the ideal school, but that we also learned new things from other places of the world, and above all things related to education, which could give ideas for our own ideal school.

OUR IDEAL SCHOOL - Elvira Astola

“CREATIVE SCHOOLS: GIVING AN ANSWER TO STUDENT NEEDS IN THE 21ST CENTURY”

First of all, I want to say that I have learned a lot with this project; as a future teacher and an actual student, I would like to make some changes in our nowadays school to have the final result of ‘’my ideal school’’ but as I saw and as we explained (in the part of sociology) not everything is as easy as we think; we need to change a lot of things and people to get the results.

We all have similar ideas respecting to the things we want to change to get that ‘ideal school’; In the case of my group, we decided to make a ‘mini city’ where pupils were able to find all what they need, also we wanted to insist in the fact of the inclusion (no mattering the race, the capacities or the aspect) because nowadays buying it is one of the most dangerous problems of the schools. We also included extra activities like sports or arts and a lot of possibilities of learning new languages with native teachers because of the importance that it receives nowadays.

Then, referring to the methodology, we thought it was so important to promote the cooperative learning so they learn how to work in groups at the same time that they work by themselves, they need a feedback so they can change their mistakes, learn how to work in constructivism and behaviourism, use new technologies, and do more practice works. So, the arrangement of the class would change, the tables would be placed together so they could work in groups (we can see this nowadays in some schools) and develop a lot of skills that they couldn’t develop by their own but they could do it if they work in groups.

Respecting to the timetable, they would have less hours of class so they would enjoy the ones that they have, they would have more breaks so they can play (because we can’t forgive that they are kids) and they can also open and clear their minds for the next class.

Finally, talking about the places and spaces in our school, we emphasised on the importance of having big spaces with a lot of light, colourful classes so the kids love their schools, adding some points of nature with trees or plants so they start caring about the environment and a lot of different apartments adapted to the different activities like normal classes, funny ones, extra activities like football or art, the gym, the pool or the teacher’s room where they talk about the development of the pupils.

In class we watched some videos of different, new and creative schools around the world. The school was so open so they feel like they are free and they like going to the school; it also represent a place where their pupils can develop different skills playing in the playground and doing different activities. The want to promote the independence in the children so they let them explore the zone and see what they like and what they don’t.

Now I am going to talk about my partner’s works; we all had great ideas and some of them were the same.

Amigos del football divided the video in two parts, they started talking about the different education systems (including timetable, structures, methodology or free time) of Germany, Turkey and Spain and then, they started telling us the main ides of their ideal school. Their ideal school had so many similarities with the German one, but at the end, we noticed about something we don’t liked it. The kids around ten years old have to choose a branch to continue their studies and I think this is horrible. They emphasise on the fact that the teachers should change the actual methodology that is being used here because we have a lot of problems with education.

Modern students started the video with the plane of the school (the location of the pool, the library, the gym, the classes…) then, they started talking about the important things they would like to have in their ideal school like for example it should be located on the nature, the would have to do a lot of projects but exams, work using cooperative learning and a lot of things and activities to develop the different skills.

One of the ideas I liked the most was the fact of the parents assisting to the classes so they could say ideas to change and do a better job and also, as we watched on a video that the teacher put us, to finish with the enormous problem of bullying. Also I liked the idea of bringing plants and animals to class so they start respecting the environment.

Wanderlust team started explaining the main ideas of the education in USA, Finland, Indonesia and Holland because it is said that they have the best schools and education system of the world. They wanted to exemplify with real data to show us that it was possible to make a different and better school. And as the others, they made a plane, they had pool, gym and library and they wanted to promote values and make their students have passion for the nature.

Dumbledore teacher’s army started the video showing us the main problems of our actual school like for example the methodology or the bullying and then, using Harry Potter scenes they show us their ideal school; using cooperative learning and a lot of different activities to develop the different skills.

Musical chairs wanted to have big spaces where the children could feel free, coloured classes for the attention of the kids, adaptable real estate for the different conditions of the students; they also wanted their kids to have contact with the nature, to take account of the different feelings of the students, educate in a critical way where they can see their own mistakes and solve them and the most important thing, they have to learn at the same time they are having fun.

Team perk also would like to have different facilities, they would like to improve the different skills in the children, made curses of learning for the teachers, innovation in relation with the methodology, educate lots of values, change the actual timetable (adding more breaks and stuff) and making some special days like for example the family one where everyone bring their family and have a nice them with all the people at the school. The also emphasise on the fact of using new technologies and giving different guidelines to the teachers o they learn how to use them.

Finally I am going to make a conclusion about everything (my work, my partner’s ones and the project in general.)

I liked it, it was fun but stressful at the same time, it was a little bit difficult but I liked the idea. From the outset we had very clear ideas and work very well. And I think the result was very satisfactory.

I also liked my partner’s works, and I think we all had brilliant ideas but if there is something I have learned about this is that not everything is as easy as we think.

As I said before we all had great ideas but it isn’t easy to apply them in the reality, that is why I found very interesting the sociology part of the work using real data and percentages of the community of Alcalá de Henares.