HOW PARENT CAMP INTERNATIONAL BENEFITS SPECIAL PARENTS, FAMILIES, STUDENTS, TEACHERS, ETC. BY USDE ... (1840 hits)
When I first heard about the first ParentCamp International, I knew I had to be there! As a Hispanic/Latina mother of a son receiving Special Education services and who works closely with international families in schools, I felt I couldn’t miss the opportunity to meet decision makers in our educational system and share stories and experiences of our groups.
It was an eventful day! In addition to hearing from representatives of the White House, Justice Department and Secretary of Education John King, we were able to network and share stories during many breakout group sessions, which were incredibly meaningful.
During these sessions, we had truly honest conversations about issues international families and minorities face in our schools and communities. We were all able to talk about how we could collaborate to make changes that would positively impact their experiences. One thing that resonated in every session I attended was that every school with a high number of non-English speakers should have one or more bilingual liaison to assist these families and create a welcoming environment.
During the session about supporting families of students in special education (a topic dear to my heart for obvious reasons), we were able to talk about making the IEP (Individualized Education Plan) process friendlier for non-English speaking families. Having a child with developmental delays has taught me so much about compassion and acceptance, and whenever I sit at one of his IEP meetings, I cannot help but think about families who do not speak or understand English. Much of the terminology used in IEP documents can be very intimidating, even for English speakers! So, acknowledging something like this was very important to me. As a group, we talked about the importance of having highly qualified and trained interpreters who have a depth knowledge of all the vocabulary and terms commonly used in Special Education.
