Professional Development
for Schools
| INCLUSIVE EDUCATION: Rediscovering Our Right to Belong In a fast paced and challenging presentation, Norman Kunc maintains that inclusive education is not simply something we "do" to students with disabilities, but involves a school making an intentional commitment to build and maintain a sense of belonging for all students and adults in the school. He maintains that our current emphasis on achievement, tracking, and segregation leads most, if not all students to see their membership in school and their "sense of belonging" as something which must be earned. A central tenet of inclusive education is that belonging is an inherent need of all people and must not be reserved solely for the "best of us." Learning to value and work with a diversity of people is the first step in building an education system which fosters a sense of belonging among students and staff. Inclusive education may prove to be a vital catalyst in this process. Type of Presentation: Keynote or Workshop |
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| In the space of one afternoon, Norm and Emma changed the worldview of two hundred Herzlia teachers, and inspired them to become excited about the potential of inclusion. They were a tremendous impetus in generating a school-wide commitment to make Herzlia a truly inclusive school. Since then, the extent of teacher buy-in to the programme has increased greatly, and is now, I think, well past the point of critical mass. Like so many things, when one has lived with inclusive education for a while, it simply becomes part of the furniture, part of the language, part of the culture -- and life without it becomes unthinkable. We shall never look back. Jeff Cohen |
DO ALL KIDS BELONG IN ALL CLASSES? Equity or Excellence in Education
There is increasing pressure being placed on school districts to include children with physical or mental disabilities in regular classes in their neighbourhood schools. Although this may be a noble gesture, there is some question as to whether inclusive education will jeopardize the quality of education for regular students. Norman Kunc examines this dilemma in detail and asks whether inclusive education is a fair practice especially when many students are preparing to enter a highly competitive and sophisticated workplace.
Type of Presentation: Keynote or Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 90 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
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"The key is to base the teaching strategy on how the student learns, not on what type of disability the student has. All of the teaching strategies that teachers already know apply to students with disabilities." |  |
NEW STUDENTS; NEW QUESTIONS: Supporting the Classroom Teacher in an Inclusive School
As an increasing number of students with disabilities are being included into regular classes, there is growing consensus among teachers about what supports need to be in place for inclusion to be manageable and successful. Based on personal experience and the input of classroom teachers throughout North America, Norman Kunc and Emma Van der Klift examine five areas of support which need to be present if teachers are to welcome students with disabilities into their classrooms:
- Information
- Collaborative Planning
- Shared Agreement on Goals and Expectations
- Classroom and School Based Supports
- Classroom Assistants
This session also addresses the question of fair and appropriate evaluation and briefly describes some ideas for supporting students with atypical or disruptive behaviour.
Type of Presentation: Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 90 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
THE HABITS OF EXCLUSION
In her book, "You Can't Say You Can't Play," Vivian Gussin Paley writes, "It is the Habit of Exclusion that grows strong; the identity of those being excluded is not a major obstacle." These words succinctly articulate our society's tendency to rely upon exclusion as a generic solution to social problems.
In this presentation, Norman Kunc looks at a number of these habits of exclusion and contends that these habits not only usually compound the original problem but often keep us from discovering more creative and effective alternatives to these issues.
Type of Presentation: Keynote or Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 90 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
THE RIGHT TO BE DISABLED
Most people view individuals with disabilities as being "deficient" in some way and believe that by minimizing their disability the person will increase their quality of life. Norman Kunc challenges this perception, claiming that people with physical and mental disabilities reflect the diversity of the human community. He contends that we need to place far less of an emphasis on "fixing" people and instead focus on the inherent assets and gifts that each person brings to the community and strive to find ways of welcoming ALL people into our midst.
Type of Presentation: Keynote or Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 90 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
Norm and Emma, through wit, intelligence and substance - and without cheap sentiment - are able to help us see the notions of ability and disability in a fresh and liberating way. Once you've heard their message, you'll be a far richer person.
David Chojnacki |
HELL-BENT ON HELPING: Friendship, Benevolence, and the Politics of Help
Many of us have created friendship circles and buddy systems in an attempt to help students with disabilities feel more included in their neighbourhood schools. In spite of genuine efforts and admirable intent, these supports have often perpetuated traditional attitudes of charity and benevolence. In this presentation, Norman Kunc and Emma Van der Klift examine the issues of friendship, help, respect, and benevolence. They suggest how teachers can support a student with a disability in their class without turning him/her into the "poster child" of the school.
Type of Presentation: Keynote or Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 90 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
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"What we call ‘behavior problems’ are often situations of legitimate conflict; we just get to call them behavior problems because we have more power than the other person." |  |
LEARNING TO STAND STILL : Supporting Students With Puzzling Behaviour
Students with mental disabilities sometimes act in unusual or non-compliant ways. As teachers begin to understand the underlying functions of these puzzling behaviours, they often find that they are more effective in helping individuals choose different ways of acting.
This workshop explores seven covert functions of behaviour: Lack of Knowledge, Communication, Equalization of Power, Hidden Benefit, Survival Strategy, Cultural/Familial Norms, and Biochemical Factors. The participants will also be given a series of questions which can assist teachers in identifying the particular function of a given behaviour. The presentation will also outline how problem-solving techniques can be used to uncover creative ways of responding to the individual.
Type of Presentation: Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 180 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
CONFLICT RESOLUTION /
SCHOOL CULTURE
INTERPERSONAL ALCHEMY: Turning Resistance Into Co-operation
Learning to work with people is relatively easy; the real challenge is learning how to work with people who won't work with you. Faced with resistance or refusal, most of us become increasing coercive and find ourselves attempting to "work on" people rather than work with them.
Drawing on the fields of conflict resolution and negotiation, Norman Kunc and Emma Van der Klift help participants expand their repertoire of responses to obstruction and opposition so that they can side-step many of the power struggles which seem endemic in schools and workplaces. Participants learn ways of negotiating contentious issues so that they are better able maintain respectful relationships without compromising their own views.
Type of Presentation: Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 180 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
ROCKING THE BOAT WITHOUT SINKING THE SHIP! Managing Conflict in Schools
The move towards inclusive education is often accompanied by significant opposition and conflict. Yet if we can seize this opportunity and learn to deal with conflict constructively, then inclusion may benefit schools in unexpected ways. This workshop focuses on how schools can build and maintain feelings of trust and belonging among faculty. The presenters will stress that conflict can be a positive process, and offer specific strategies on how to enter into conflict maintaining respect for others while not compromising our own views.
Type of Presentation: Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 180 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
| Dear Norm and Emma ..A heartfelt thanks to both of you for a powerful and engaging presentation on our in-service-day. As the enclosed participant feedback shows, your In-service will certainly be remembered as a district highlight of the school year. Participants are already using and sharing the information on your handouts. Terry Dennison,Participants’ Comments: - I really appreciated Norm and Emma’s humanness and the fact that the presentation and ideas were practical and useful. - Emma had a soothing and reassuring voice. She was a fine speaker and I enjoyed her examples and illustrations. - Norm and Emma are full of candor, a sense of purpose, they have a great style and a wonderful sense of humor. |
IF YOU WANT KIDS TO LEARN, TEACH ‘EM HOW TO FAIL!
The only thing that distinguishes failure from experimentation is perception. A student's fear of making mistakes can prevent them from enjoying the experience of from learning through trial and error; a teacher's fear of making mistakes can undermine their creativity and innovation. Failure can be our greatest resource. Yet, too often we see our mistakes as a reflection of personal incompetence rather than as a potentially enjoyable process of experimentation.
Drawing on his experience as a disabled person, Norman Kunc describes how life with a disability prompted him to see failure as an invitation to creativity. Norman shows us how to identify the fear of failure messages we send ourselves and learn how to experience the true joy of failure.
Type of Presentation: Keynote or Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 90 minutes
Max. Audience Size: Unlimited
THE 3 R’S OF SUPPORT
Several years ago, The Canadian Employment and Immigration Commission surveyed over 5000 high school dropouts and discovered that there were basically three reasons why students dropped out of high school: students felt the curriculum wasn't relevant, they felt they weren't respected by teachers, and they had few relationships in the school.
Apart from providing information as to why students drop out of school, this research also provides us with some valuable insights on what it takes to create a sense of belonging in classrooms, schools, and workplaces. In this workshop, participants are guided through a co-operative learning exercise in which they discover specific, practical strategies for building and maintaining a sense of belonging among their students and/or colleagues.
Type of Presentation: Co-operative learning Workshop
Length of Session: 75 - 90 minutes
Max. Audience Size: 200 participants
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"I eventually figured out that I had the right to be disabled; that I didn't need to hide my disability just to be accepted. But soon after I realized that most non-disabled kids had fallen into the same trap. They felt that they had to be better than they were just to be good enough to belong." |
| In a humorous talk to high school students, Norman Kunc describes what it was like to have cerebral palsy and go to a regular high school. He shares with the students his discovery that he didn't need to hide or minimize his disability in order to be liked.
Norman generalizes this message and points out that most people believe that they're not good enough as they are and continuously strive to find a place where they feel they belong. Unfortunately, a common way to create this sense of belonging is to focus on a common enemy which can result in racism, prejudice, gang activity and violence. He stresses that it is vital for schools to create a sense of belonging for all students, and especially for those students who are seen as the "strangers" among us. He encourages students and teachers to value their own diversity and to look for the stories in each other. In this way we can actively work together to create schools which are safe and positive places to learn. Length of Session: 45-60 minutes |
 Available on DVD $50.00 (U.S) Preview DVD Order DVD  DVD distrbuted by Special Needs Project Bookstore |
| "I dropped out of school four years ago. Now I’m back getting my High School diploma. If I had have heard Norman’s speech when I was in school the first time, I think it would’ve motivated me to keep going and finish high school." High School Student in conversation with Judy Robertson, Special Services Co-ordinator, Tuscon Unified School District, AZ Norm was cool! It was like watching a Disabled Dennis Miller Live! |
Preview video of Assembly
Questions for follow-up classroom discussion