After watching Kaori’s presentation it made me think about my own experience with learning with a disability. I am hearing impaired in both ears and didn’t get diagnosed until kindergarten. Growing up and learning to speak, I developed a lisp because I couldn’t hear certain sounds. I struggled with reading aloud and learning new languages as I continued school. A relevant memory I have is when my teacher chose to adapt the lesson and make it individualized for me so that I could succeed in my grade eight French class. We were expected to present in front of the class. Due to my hearing loss, learning the proper sounds and pronunciations in French was tricky, so presenting in front of the class when dealing with the general struggle of speaking the language became a dreadful idea. I expressed my concerns, and my teacher was able to acknowledge my efforts and adapt in a way to see me achieve my goals. He allowed me to create a recorded presentation to show in front of the class so that I could practise my speech more in-depth, re-listen to my sounds and pronunciation and have time to make sure it was correct. If he were to not be inclusive and that we all should have the same education, I would not been able to grow as a student as I would’ve struggled deeply. Due to his choice of being inclusive and adaptive, I learned the skills with an adapted task to fit my individual needs. Realizing what my teacher did for me as a learner made me reflect on what I will offer as a future teacher. I want to aim to encourage a student-centred and inclusive learning space.

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