Christina Cannarella and Johnny Hatch: Champions of inclusion
A mothers persistence, a son's perseverance.
by Ava Rosate, chief editor / Originally featured in The Valley Star News
An unconditional love is radiated throughout the room when Johnny Hatch reaches to embrace his mother’s head to his heart.
Hatch is 24 years old and lives with autism. The second year Valley College student is considered a non-typical communicator — he expresses himself with physical touch, vocal sounds and facial expressions.
Due to his mom’s determination to harbor a conventional social life for her son, in the 13 years the disadvantaged student has been in the education system, he has never been enrolled in a special education class.
Christina Cannarella, a second year student at Valley and mother of Hatch, believes in and advocates for inclusive learning — when children with and without learning disabilities are taught in the same classroom with only slight modifications added to the course.
In 2003, Cannarella made the decision to move 2,000 miles away from their home in Wisconsin, to California. The move was prompted by her belief that her son should attend a school that followed the comprehensive course model in mind.
The now 24 year-old broadcasting student spent kindergarten through eighth grade in a school that fostered a more inclusive learning environment.
“Special education classes can become unmotivating for some students,” said Cannarella. “The system can be socially and educationally limiting. I wanted him to be in a place that nurtured his strengths and was socially motivating.”
Inclusive learning campuses reduce bullying and exclusion, as well as benefiting the students without disabilities. Typical students will gain patience and learn compromise, according to the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools, a series of campuses who foster inclusive learning.
“He needed to be around people,” said the 54 year-old mother. “He started walking at 3 years-old because he saw the other children around him doing it. He is motivated by the people around him.”
Cannarella, wanting what was best for her son and knowing the risks associated with a standard class, made the ultimate decision to enroll her son in a standard high school classroom for his freshman year.
After graduating from high school, Hatch enrolled into a school exclusively for young adults with learning disabilities. There, his mother connected with a parent of a young adult who was interested in enrolling at Valley. Curious as to what Valley had to offer, Cannarella visited the campus and immediately found a community that aligns with her and her son’s needs.
The first class the mother and son duo took together was a physical education class, where Dave Mallas, Valley’s athletic director, welcomed them with open arms. Their meeting snowballed into Cannarella embedding herself in the Valley community, speaking at two district meetings involving special needs students, becoming close with faculty and staff and earning the position of vice president of the Abilities Club.
Though the broadcasting student is allowed to enroll in any class he chooses, his mother is looking for hands-on courses, where the 24 year-old can have direct help from teachers. Due to common class curriculums based on textbook readings, most courses lack the inclusion efforts that would benefit students like Hatch.
“Courses that include hands-on learning in their curriculum have higher test scores,” said the abilities club vice president. “If the courses were slightly modified for the disabled, it would benefit all of the students in the class.”
Studies by the National Center for Construction Education and Research show that students who did not partake in an active learning course were 1.5 times more likely to fail the course than students who did.
“Integration is allowing people with learning challenges to learn the same way as people without those challenges,” said Cannarella. “Inclusion is slightly modifying the course to better accommodate all students.”
Comments