For What Child (PDF)

For What Child, a must read for parents, future educators, and those interested in the education of the child. Written by Dr. L. Lawrence Riccio, a professor in special education and international teacher training programs, he brings a unique set of skills to the problem of how to educate each child. The author presents a child first philosophy - a process to ensure a genuine teaching and learning experience for a child that focuses on the child, the child's immediate environment, and the rationale for instruction, where the child is both the consumer and co-leader of the instructional process. For What Child is about equal educational opportunity and social justice - the civil rights issue of the century. For any child, education today is the key to securing one's own place in the world. True education has the power to enable each individual to grow and evolve in society - moving from local understanding to global knowledge and its applications. Equilibrium must be established to support each child, paying special attention to the child's actions, beliefs, and community. As caring adults, we must look beyond the rubric of an army teaching to the curriculum. If we look at the whole child, and understand that each child is exceptional, the child has a right to learn for understanding. Instruction then must take many atypical forms, which are malleable, time-sensitive, and goal-oriented. A child is not just a body on a seat, but a living, breathing being with experiences, skills, values, talents, and dreams that must be investigated and understood before real and lasting learning can begin.