I’ve been thinking a lot about inclusivity both within this new mode of learning we’ve developed and outside it.  I went to high school in a small town and although I have no idea whether these inclusivity discussions were happening behind the scenes, they didn’t seem to be coalescing into any visible changes within the school system.  Perhaps that is simply because these elements were not as much part of the discussion between 2010 and 2014 when I was in high school or perhaps it was because my school had about 600 students at a time.  Both explanations certainly make sense but the latter leaves me a little concerned that schools that don’t have as high of a budget will get left behind in the forward march of progress.

 

During one of our Wednesday observation visits, the Superintendent of Schools and CEO of the Saanich School District, Dave Eberwein, came and spoke to us.  One of the things he shared was a robot named Milo, a few of whom had been purchased for elementary schools within the district.  Milo is meant to help students with ASD learn better.  He never gets frustrated, distracted or tired and he delivers lessons consistently in a way that learners with ASD respond to.  However, Milo retails at $7,500 plus all of the software upgrades that need to be adapted semi-regularly.  A school system that already doesn’t have any money to spare might be hard-pressed to find the budget for a tool like this.

 

There is also the consideration that these technological tools are not cure-alls and while they can be extremely useful as supplements to a teacher or therapist the should not be seen as a way to deal with staffing constraints or something that will be a perfect teaching tool unsupported by any other forms of teaching and interaction.  There is, of course, also the fear that teachers will one day be replaced by automation or that technology will advance too quickly for them to keep up with training or the belief that there are much simpler solutions to accessibility and inclusivity issues.

 

I think these inclusivity tools are fascinating and have the potential to do a lot for our ability to be more inclusive instead of outsourcing students to specialty schools when we feel as though we are unequipped to manage them in a positive way.  However, I also think that there is a long way to go in our understanding of how to implement these tools and how to budget for them.

 

If you’re interested in reading more about Milo this link is a pretty good place to start!