The Center for Learner Equity concluded its final session of the Accelerating Inclusion Institute on June 2, 2022. In collaboration with the Camden Education Fund, this pilot program was a capacity-building cohort to improve the educational experiences of students with disabilities in Camden, NJ. Special education teachers, coordinators, and decision-makers were identified from 10 school teams to participate in the Institute during the 2021 – 2022 school year.
Camden, New Jersey
“A variety of educators from various school districts bring different background knowledge and experience that enhances my learning.”
“Our district has a lot of data for our teachers to use. We need to be more intentional with all of the data points when it comes to planning. The one-pager provides an aligned path between these two areas. As planning becomes more intentional with the use of data, instructional practices will change.”
At the start of the Institute, participants self-identified a critical issue that they wanted to resolve and presented their projects at the final session. Over the summer and into Fall 2022, the cohort will begin formulating the details of their projects and preparing to exercise the solutions to help ensure that students with disabilities are receiving an equitable educational experience within their schools.
“I gained that by working with a team at my school and diving into the program to examine our challenge even further is a great way to really focus on the issues and actions that need to be executed to help my school improve practices.”
Throughout the entire Institute, the participants were provided with resources and tools that provided assistance to enact change at their institutions. During the 8 sessions, 87% of participants “Agreed” or “Strongly Agreed” that what they learned will improve their own instruction or instructional practices at their schools. Overwhelmingly, the participants reported the group dialogue, deliberation, collaboration, and feedback to be most important to their long-term success of their final projects. The Center for Learner Equity is planning to follow-up during the Fall 2022 school year to get additional feedback from participants as they bring their project to life.
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