Suggestions on How to Make Catholic RE Programs Inclusive

By Anthony V. Coccia

EXED 550Dr. Fisher

Suggestions on How to Make Catholic RE Programs Inclusive

Observed a Catholic Religious Education Program- 2 classrooms, 3 different Sundays

Interviewed: Director, 3 teachers, and 2 parents of students with Special Needs

Researched a wide range of websites- Scholarly articles and journals- Websites- Books

Research Method

Teachers had little or no SPED background- Not a requirement for volunteers

Low motivation

Collaboration is weak- Teachers do not collaborate with each other- There is a weekly written update for parents but little face to face.

What Was Discovered

The curriculum is very traditional- Does not allow room for change

Assistive Technology is limited- The parish does not have any- Teachers do not know where to get them- Difficult to get them from the diocese

More Discoveries

Restructure curriculum to include students with special needs

Try to change teachers’ attitudes

Find volunteers that have SPED Background

More easier: Educate, educate, educate- Provide resources and materials (Inclusion and access, 2009).

- In-service

Suggestions for Changes

Collaboration (Kluth, 2004-2005)- Teachers with Teacher/Directors- Teachers with Parents (Connor, n.d.)- Teachers with students

Hands-on materials and Visual Aids

Differentiated Instruction (Collins et al., 2001)

Assistive Technology

More Suggestions

Set up conferences about inclusion

The goals of the conference (Collins et al., 2001) :

- Provide methods

- Create curriculum

- Explains and discuss guidelines

That’s All My Worship

Special Religious Development

Started by Fr. James McCarthy of Chicago Diocese in 1960.

Set up centers. Each center has a core team- Each core team belongs to the parish- Leader, spokesperson, and activity catechist on each team

Volunteers are either SPED cert or experience

SPRED ( Harrington, 2009)

They help children become active members in the parish.- Inside and outside of the classroom

Volunteers work with students w/ special needs

They use manipulatives to talk about religion- i.e. paper crosses to talk about God (Muckelbauer, 2009)

More on SPRED

Foundation of Inclusive Religious Education

Non-profit organization founded in 1996

Main focus is to assist RE programs with SPED

Helps subsidize the cost of SPED

F.I.R.E.

Negative Aspect: Not a national organization- A service for Diocese of Kansas City- St. Joseph

Willing to help other diocese set up their own

Can be an example of starting block for others

Teaches all about differentiated instructions

More About F.I.R.E.

ResourcesBlackburn, B. (2007). Religious teachers. In Archdiocese of St. Louis. Retrieved

May 1, 2009, from Archdiocese of St. Louis Web site: http://www.archstl.org/ education/ index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=89&Itemid=217

Collins, B. C., Epstein, A., Reiss, T., & Lowe, V. (2001, May/ June). Including children with Mental Retardation in the religious community. Teaching Exceptional Children, 33(5), 52-58. Retrieved November 13, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database. (4563109)

Connor, D. J. (Ed.). (n.d.). Supporting inclusive classroom: A resource [Brochure]. (Available from People with Autism Special Citizens Futures Unlimited, New York City)

FIRE: Foundations for inclusive religious education. (n.d.). Retrieved May 1, 2009, from Diocese Kansas City Web site: http://www.fire-program.org/ Home/ UntitledFrameset-9.htm

Harrington, S. M. T. (2009, April 30). About SPRED. In Special religious development. Retrieved May 1, 2009, from Archdiocese of Chicago Web site: http://www.spred.org/ index.html

ResourcesInclusion and access: Parish religious education programs. (n.d.). [Pamphlet].

Retrieved May 1, 2009, from Archdiocese of Philadelphia Web site: http://archdiocese-phl.org/ evangelization/ resplife/ prepresourcesweb.pdf

Kluth, P. (2004-2005). Paula Kluth: Toward more inclusive classrooms and communities. Retrieved May 1, 2009, from http://www.paulakluth.com/

Muckelbauer, D. (2009, February 27). SPRED leads kids with special needs on spiritual path. In gmToday. Retrieved May 1, 2009, from gmToday Web site: http://www.gmtoday.com/ news/ local_stories/ 2009/ Feb_09/ 02272009_08.asp

Schipani, K. (2007, September/ October). Inclusion is at the heart of catechists. Momentum, 38(3), 20-23. Retrieved November 13, 2008

Special religious education. (2009). The Catholic Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee. Retrieved May 1, 2009, from Catholic Diocese of Memphis Web site: http://www.cdom.org/ departments/ religious%20education/ specialreleducation.htm

Webster, J. (2004, August). Religious education for children with severe learning difficulties. Support for Learning, 19(3), 119-124. Retrieved November 8, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database. (14173565)