When it comes to Rylee, I am beyond guilty of so many typical societal
flaws. In her younger years, one of
those flaws was not presuming her competence.
Learning about this concept laid the foundation for life changing events. I know I’ve mentioned it many times on social
media and this blog. However, I feel it
is vital for caregivers and educators alike to understand.
One major
obstacle I am seeing amidst our families supporting loved ones with complex needs, especially in school districts, is an overwhelming feeling
of not knowing where to start. Trust me,
I get it! I get it as much as anyone
because I was there once. I’ve lived it
and persevered through it! Throughout
our community, I hear comments such as “I wish my kid could do that,” “My child isn’t that high functioning,” “That
mom is CRAZY!” You know what? I get it.
You know what else? I’ll be that
crazy mom any day over the type of mom I was before! I’m not saying to do things just as I did
(that’s crazy). I’m saying there are
certain principles to follow that will lead you down a path you never knew
existed and one day your kids will thank you for it.
I have an
analogy for you. I had an epiphany while watching Ratatouille with
Rylee a while back. There is a segment I’m including
here that I want you to watch as it refers to what I’m talking about. The backstory (in case you’ve never seen it)
to this scene is Linguini accidentally messed up some soup of this fancy
restaurant. Remy, the rat, witnessed
this debacle and quickly fixed the soup which customers loved. He was discovered and Linguini was asked to
‘dispose’ of him because he was a rat.
In this scene,
Remy is trapped in a glass jar because he was found in a restaurant
kitchen. Linguini begins talking to
himself and Remy. He discovers Remy can
understand him based on his body language and therefore saves his life. What would have happened if Remy had a
complex body and could not respond to Linguini through gestures? Would harm have come to Remy if he would not
have been able to make it known to Linguini that he, in fact, could understand
him? That is why we need to presume
competence! Look at what Remy could create when given the chance!
Now, ask
yourself what happens when we rely solely on what our students with significant
disabilities demonstrate to us? What
happens when we base their educational opportunities primarily on what they can
prove? What happens to educational
opportunities when we lean exclusively on data collection for IEP
purposes? Data-driven decisions are not
always the only, or best, course of action for those with developmental
disabilities. If we do this, their
education and life experiences likely become very limited. What if our assumptions are wrong? Are we doing harm by limiting these
experiences? These are self-reflecting
questions I had to ask myself once I made that frightening decision to home-school and become responsible for Rylee’s education. Unfortunately, I asked these questions later
in the game than I should have and damage had already been done based on the
lack of presuming her competence.
Instead, let’s look into
portfolio assessments. Let’s rely on
presuming competence and seeing where it takes us. Let’s not create robots. We can write IEP goals in more efficient
ways. We can create authentic and
meaningful learning environments that support a wide range of learners!
Providing the least dangerous
assumption was a game changer for us.
The tables began to turn when I reflected upon what I needed to do to
make things better for my daughter and I had the research to support my
goals. I had to make a conscious
decision not to be like Linguini and demand results before I believed.
In the words of Jimmy Buffet…”There’s
a little bit of fruitcake left in every one of us!”
