by Chara Kouppa and Sarah Kaldelli

OLP

How Does Inclusion Of All Learning Abilities Ultimately Empower Students To Make Change?

by Chara Kouppa, OLP Inclusion Specialist and Sarah Kaldelli, OLP Coordinator

“The human mind, overstretched to a new idea, never goes back to its original dimensions.”

(Oliver Wendell Holmes)

How often do we ask our children and students to generate solutions for much bigger problems of the world, such as climate change and gender equality? Students have incredible ideas and solutions that adults have neither thought of nor considered. Inclusion in education makes an essential contribution to building inclusive and democratic societies, where a wide range of voices can be heard, in pursuit of social cohesion and a sustainable world that celebrates diversity.

Problem-solving and finding creative ways to circumnavigate a difficulty are at the heart of the Optimal Learning Program (OLP). We do this by maintaining systematic collaboration with parents, faculty, and staff to provide support services that meet the social, emotional, and full range of cognitive needs of all students. Crafting structured opportunities for students in OLP to collaborate with each other on individual goals provides them with multiple avenues toward the achievement of their learning. By giving students opportunities to present their learning growth within mainstream classrooms and by creating a safe environment for risk-taking, OLP assists in empowering all learners to problem solve, think creatively, and actively contribute their strengths to the community. Through the different models of support offered through OLP (Full OLP, Consultation, Individual Support Plan, Advanced Learning Plan, and Inclusion), students participating in this program are able to ask more questions and thus initiate more answers and solutions.

At the heart of the ACS Athens’ mission are the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), which are an urgent call for action for the planet and all beings depending on it. Education, the environment, health, hunger, gender equality, animals below water and on land, and reduced inequalities are all different parts of what the world must focus on if it’s meant to survive longer. Following the Conscious Citizenship model, we strive to develop balanced students who can make responsible decisions to render our planet a better place. Based on our students’ metacognition, which is the encouragement to think about thinking, OLP strives to offer all learners appropriate learning experiences to explore further areas they find interest in. We strongly believe in our student’s strengths, and by offering multiple levels of support, we create an impressive environment of inclusivity. Our driving force is for our students to reach their potential and showcase their progress and strengths. We encourage them to challenge existing ways of doing and thinking about things as a means of stimulating new ideas, and ultimately, we strengthen their opportunities to improve life and living on the planet. We believe each of them can be a navigator of positive change.