You don't know till you try...
Not everyone is built for working with children and young people with special needs. Anyone who works in the sector should know this. But most of us, I think, found our calling for it not by reading or studying the topic but by getting involved. You can read and plan about working with autism or social & emotional students, but it takes experiencing it first hand to work it out. No two are the same, and your strategy and approach has to evolve on the fly. And it takes confidence, make no mistake. There is a LOT of negative thoughts and writing out there about what young people with additional needs are like; non-responsive, violent, unfocussed, hard work, frustrating. And that puts people off. You get asked to go into a behavioural school for the first time and you'll make some assumptions. And you know, that's ok. But only to a point. You have to open to having your opinion changed, by trying things. The first time I worked with kids from gangs I was tentative and nervous, but 5 minutes in they are just like any other kid that wants to be musical or succeed in life. They just need someone to nurture them, coach them and offer them a chance at something new.
I write this stream of consciousness because I went to observe a 'Meet the tutor' session at a school for additional needs and one of the tutors ended up bowing out before the event. Which, you know, good for me as I got to teach some piano and have a great time with some lovely kids. But if I wasn't there those students wouldn't have had anyone to talk to or play or even just watch on a piano being played. And the tutor isn't an evil person for deciding it wasn't for them, they're an adult and entitled to do what they want and feel safe & comfortable in their work environment. But a quick conversation with myself to learn a bit more and hopefully be put at ease, having a slightly more open mind and, well, you just don't know till you try. They would've (hopefully) learnt something new, picked up some techniques and, hopefully, gained some confidence in this field.
We need to break the barriers in both directions, for the young people to have a better chance of succeeding, and for the adults and tutors to be there to give them the tools.
