Role of a shadow teacher in the education of a student with learning disability
We all know what a shadow is and what a teacher is!! But do you know the magic that happens when the two come together?
Yes!! A Shadow teacher evolves.
Who is a Shadow teacher?
When a person chooses to be a shadow teacher he/ she provides one to one support to students with special needs. The support provided to the student helps in the development of their academics, behavioural and social skills. The student is assisted by the shadow teacher to perform better in a few or all activities done throughout the day that the student is at school.
What does a shadow teacher do?
A team of professionals such as Special educator, Behaviour therapists, Occupational therapist and Physical therapist make the Individualized goals for the student and the shadow teacher works on reaching the goals set for the student. Sensory goals are also worked upon with the guidance of the Occupational therapist.
A Shadow teacher can work either in a class that consists of special students or it can be an inclusive setup. The work of a shadow teacher to make things simpler for the student to comprehend, follow and perform.
For example- when the class teacher gives an instruction to a group of students, a student with special needs may find it difficult to process, comprehend ad execute the instruction given, The shadow teacher steps in here and helps the student by breaking down the instruction according to the level of the student and helps him/ her to perform the task given.
When a shadow teacher gives prompts to help the student achieve their goals, she /he should use actions (physical prompts) more than words as the child will be able to follow physically what the shadow teacher is doing. It is important as physical prompts fade easily and dependency of the student for the prompts will decrease as he/ she masters the skill. Usage of verbal prompts will defeat the purpose of helping the student achieve the mastery of the skill.
Social skills is another area where the student can show reduced skills.
Special needs students may have issues with the following-
A few verbal cues that can be given to help the students are
Some of the non-verbal cues can be:
To improve these skills a shadow teacher can take the opportunity of free periods, lunchtime or even playtime classes. If the student is having difficulty in understanding the environment around him/ her and what is expected from him/ her the shadow teacher may use verbal or non-verbal cues to help the student interact with others. It is important for the shadow teacher to identify the peers who are good in communicating with the student and then use the buddy system that can help the student gain more confidence in his/ her social skills.
If the shadow teacher feels that the student has learnt an activity in a wrong way, he/ she will keep aside the activity for some time and will introduce it after sometime and make the student learn the concept in the correct way.
Shadow teacher…. For how long??
Parents have this question as to how long the student will need a shadow teacher when he/ she will learn things eventually by imitation and observation.
Another shadow teacher has mentioned that in her experience she has seen that the child does not learn from the mistakes, but actually he learns the mistake.
Importance of a shadow teacher
A shadow teacher not only helps the student but also helps the class teacher to understand the specific needs of the student who is autistic or who has a learning disability. The shadow teacher can provide clues to the class teacher by which they can make instructions simpler for the student to understand.
She/ he sensitizes other students and classmates about the type of disability and makes sure that his/ her classmates help in achieving the goals set for him/ her.
The shadow teacher gives constructive feedback of the student to a team of therapists working with the student.
Who can become a shadow teacher?
It is not necessary that only a teacher can be a shadow teacher. Even a parent or a person interested in teaching children with learning disabilities or different types of disabilities can train to be a shadow teacher.
In Mumbai, SNDT University at Juhu has a diploma course for people who are interested in training themselves to be a shadow teacher. Special schools in Mumbai hire shadow teachers for improving the skills of the students with learning disabilities and other types of disabilities.
A student with special needs, when given an opportunity to learn and flourish with the help of a shadow teacher, the student will give out his/ her best in every area of learning.
Author: Pramila Mankikar
Teaching Faculty – Junior, The Aditya Birla Integrated School
