LibGuides: Education & Special Populations : Media

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Beyond the ADD Myth (36:03) Thomas Armstrong, a psychologist, consultant, and former teacher, believes that labels such as Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often create more problems than they solve. Dr. Armstrong feels that the behaviors associated with ADD and ADHD result from a wide range of social, psychological, and educational causes, and are not solely due to neurological dysfunction. Join Dr. Armstrong, Kaye Mentley, and other professionals who focus on educating students by providing them with nurturing, stimulating, and encouraging interventions. View programs in action that focus on a "wellness" model of children and learning. Produced for staff development and training for classroom teachers, this video provides an array of teaching strategies to work with children who are often diagnosed/misdiagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder.
Celebrating Diversity: A Universal Message from the Real Rain Man (27:53) This video is a powerful teaching and learning tool for general and special educators, parents, and students committed to creating more inclusive and tolerant schools and community environments. In it viewers are introduced to Kim Peek, the extraordinary mega-savant who was the inspiration for the character portrayed by Dustin Hoffman in the movie Rain Man. In the years following the film, Kim traveled around the country and around the world, carrying a message of accepting individual differences, recognizing that everyone is talented and special in different ways, and treating one another with respect. This video features clips of Kim speaking to school audiences, interacting with students, parents, and staff, and demonstrating his astonishing gifts. It is ideal for use with students in grades 5-12 as part of a character education unit to learn about accepting differences in others, developing tolerance, and appreciating diversity.
The Gifted Child (24:15) When a child displays advanced skills in one or more areas of development, a special challenge is set before teachers, parents, and childcare providers alike. This program seeks to foster an understanding of gifted children by identifying their characteristics, addressing their educational needs, and recommending ways to enhance their development.
I See Your (Dis)Ability: Inclusion in the Classroom (22:00) Listen 2 the Kids as they talk about the inclusion of their friends with special needs in the classroom, on the playground and in the lunchroom. This brief study fo the inclusion process in an exemplary elementary school accents the joys and challenges of everyday life. The culture of acceptance is evident throughout. This film is a must see for teachers, teachers in training, counselors, psychologists, parents and advocates for the education of special needs students everywhere. Challenging and uplifting!
Make Me Normal: Autistic Teenagers Speak Out (50:00) Roxanne appears to be a typical teenage girl who is into music and clothes but she is unable to make friends because her autism leads to inappropriate behavior. Moneer, a 12-year-old boy with Asperger’s Syndrome, is smart and outgoing but is prone to violent behavior. Roy is compulsive about the labels on his video collection and is easily thrown by change. Esther is a loner. All four are pupils at the Spa School in England, a state school for pupils with autism.These compelling profiles capture the frustration of young people who are aware of their disability but cannot overcome it. The patience and sensitivity of the professional staff is directed at helping the young people interact better with the outside world. This film is an important resource for people working with the autistic
Reaching the Autistic Mind: An Educational Challenge (1:13:00) Autism, a neurological disorder, affects as many as one in 150 children in the U.S., yet is the least funded of disabilities. By following six families with autistic children for two years, this film takes us inside the world of autism specifically at the Eden II School, in Staten Island, New York. There, the filmmakers gained unique access to children like Sarah, Aaron and Benjamin, triplets who all showed severely autistic symptoms at eighteen months. For years their mother, a speech pathologist, avoided seeking a diagnosis out of fear. When they were diagnosed finally, there was only one space immediately available at the Eden program. The triplets' parents chose to send Sarah. She has now transitioned back into a public school; she reads, talks, dances, practices karate and plays various instruments. The boys eventually were sent to Eden but lost two critical years. Today, at age thirteen, the boys are still severely impaired, but are happy, bright and learning. These individuals and the other autistic children in the film share moments of amazing clarity and uncanny perception with us. Their parents and teachers make a strong case for early intervention and Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA). Treatment has succeeded in moving some children past their diagnosis of autism.
Series: Differentiated Instruction Practice Differentiated Instruction Practice covers the English Language Learner, Inclusion and the Gifted. 3-part series, 38-52 minutes each.
Series: Teaching Diverse Learners A diverse learning environment benefits everyone, but it can put overwhelming pressure on an unprepared teacher. Produced by Illinois State University’s renowned College of Education and School of Communication, this two-part series empowers educators using real-world teaching methods—enabling them to overcome the obstacles and maximize the rewards of a diverse learning atmosphere. Viewable/printable instructor’s guides are available online. 2-part series, 13 and 18 minutes.
Series: Teach Me Different! Successful Strategies for Teaching Children Who Learn Differently, with Sally Smith In this classic four-part series, Sally L. Smith, founder of the renowned Lab School of Washington, distills her classroom and research findings into four tutorials that educators can use to guide their LD students to higher academic achievement. Professor Smith directed American University’s master’s degree program in special education and is the author of numerous books, including No Easy Answers: The Learning Disabled Child at Home and at School. Distributed by PBS Distribution. 4-part series, 55 minutes each.
Teaching Lessons and Learning Lessons in the Special Ed Classroom (25:47) This down-to-earth program shares the hard-won experiences of an award-winning special ed teacher. Speaking with an engaging mix of candor, earnestness, and passion, he explains how personal introspection, collaboration with other staff members, promoting trust, structuring the academic environment, instilling success, and developing teacher/student interdependence have transformed his classroom into a place where students thrive. Part success story, part how-to manual, the program is an excellent source of ideas and inspiration for teachers of all types of students.
Teaching Visually Impaired Pupils (33:00) Dorland House Special School in Kent aims to offer visually impaired pupils a fully-rounded education for key stages 1-4 to prepare them for an independent, confident life when they leave school. This programme explores how they do this. There's a multi-sensory cookery lesson in the nursery, and we follow 8 year-old Samuel as he practices vital mobility skills, there's Archery, and we sit in on a modern languages lesson taught by a visually impaired teacher. The programme also highlights the strong creative arts component coming out of an innovative link with Milton Margai School for the Blind in Sierra Leone, and we talk to three older pupils from Dorland House who are preparing to visit Sierra Leone for the first time.
Trouble with Reading (24:00) Why do so many children have such a hard time learning to read? What is at stake for them? Who can help them? This revealing documentary makes the important connection between early trouble with reading and serious behavioral problems in the classroom. The film looks into the lives of four schoolchildren who struggle to read while their classmates progress to higher levels of achievement. We discover their shame, frustration and coping strategies as a pattern emerges stemming from reading problems. Their home lives reveal common obstacles to learning: language barriers, social status, emotional problems and sensory deficiencies. Arturo, a rowdy seven-year-old, brings his teacher's reading lesson to a grinding halt. At recess, Melody, a fourth grader who reads at a first grade levels, shoves classmates half her size. Sparring in a boxing gym, Hakeem, sixteen, recounts his expulsion from school for aggressiveness and truancy. The film shows that a tutoring program can dramatically improve reading skills. Hakeem describes his progress from fourth grade level to tenth after three years of tutoring. Unfortunately, more children need help than is available.