When I worked in a leadership role, I joined forces with my supervisor to launch a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion project in the hopes that we could restructure the company. We weren’t able to make the change we wanted to see in the end (at least with a note of permanence), but it did start a path of learning and unlearning for me. In the same way that I didn’t expect my music teacher to spearhead most of my term’s Indigenous Education content, I was pleasantly surprised that my technology class had one of the most comprehensive sessions on inclusivity I’d attend so far. By far, across all of my subjects, my favourite lectures have been with guest speakers: getting to hear from Tracy’s experience as a person living with disabilities, as well as her and Kaori’s experiences as parents of children with disabilities hit home more than my own reading or watching could do.

Aside from the onset fidget toys, I didn’t think that I have a lot of experience as a teacher using tools that go outside of the box for including learners who need more support. So when we introduced technology and inclusion, I was thinking, “okay – what kind of apps have been released, what devices have been created, that have changed the game for assisting students?” (To be fair, the text-to-speech scanner that Dr. Michael showed was exactly what I was hoping to see in this regard, lol.) I hadn’t seriously considered what assistance can look like. Glasses, large-print font, text-to-speech for the visually impaired. Hearing aids, visuals, closed captions for the hearing impaired. Wheelchairs for those who struggle with mobility. Warm-coloured lights, earplugs or headphones for those who struggle with high-sensory environments. Recordings and live/online links available for those who are chronically ill. The way that we create supportive classrooms is not reinventing the wheel – it’s being attentive.

I think that I had a dated impression about what assistive technology really means as such. Referencing a video from Understood.org, I started to think about how our attitudes around assistive technology can be a matter of compassion and valuing equity in our classrooms. In my mind, AT looked like grand inventions that would provide a secret pathway to doing the task at hand. The kind that, if given to a kid without the particular disability, would make them even more efficient than they started (without barriers). But I realize that’s a false narrative: we’re not handing out cheat codes. It’s not about giving students with disabilities a shortcut so that they can either get a consolation prize, or knock out the typical “top students” – that’s ableist competitiveness. When we are competitive like that, or more specifically feeling like our ability to succeed is directly related to being above our peers, we not only risk damaging a student’s mindset about learning, but we miss out on the chance to learn from each other, too.

I wrote yesterday about my high school career being directed by self-motivation to be “the best,” which I think is fairly common. After considering what I learned from Tracy and Kaori about ableism, I started to realize that competition at the expense of others perpetuates harmful stereotypes and standards about ability across many levels. I’d like to think that I fall short of extreme on this spectrum, but I also think that small allowances make room for, or add up to, serious impact – kind of like Pandora’s box. I was shocked to hear that some teachers don’t read IEPs before they start classes. But is it so different from “working the system” so that I can get the top grade? Or now, not anticipating what assistance looks like for different learners? My Link2Practice teacher told me, “I don’t think about what kindergarteners need to do to be ready for my class. I think about what I need to do to be ready for my kindergarteners.” I see that here.

The more I learn, the more I’m unlearning: that’s been the reality of DEI for me, and all the more so now that we are being taught to add Decolonization to our teaching practice. I’m growing to love workshops on the topic because I feel like I’m getting better – or gaining the potential to do better – like those graphics for a fundraiser where the thermometer gets a little more full each time. Except in this case, there is no top; I’m trying to realize that there is no actualization of inclusivity work. Just a consistent reworking, reworking, reworking. To wrap up, here are a few articles that I found from Understood.org to inform what I didn’t know yet: