A New Book by a Local Author

—from submitted material

On December 8, 2011 from 7pm - 8:30pm Howard Bloom will celebrate the launch of his first published book, To Live and Learn with Neurological Conditions: Stories of Two Teenagers in a Learning Community.

This will be an informative reading and discussion, accompanied by some fine wine and cheese. Copies of the new book will be available for sale and signing by the author.

Howard M. Bloom, PhD., is full-time faculty at Georgian College with the Child and Youth Worker program. Howard has founded a summer camp and residential care community for complex children and youth. Howard has worked with at risk children and youth; and taught adult learners, in a variety of clinical, educational and recreational settings for over 20 years. Some of Howard’s areas of research and clinical interest are behaviour management, proactive support of at risk youth, and alternative curriculum delivery.

Abstract: About the Book
These stories took place within the context of Blooming Acres, my home, and the learning community that I co-founded with my wife Sherri-Ann. In the first chapters, I tell the story of how I came to home-educate learners with complex special needs at my farm north of Toronto, Canada. I describe the neurological disorders that the children in my care are diagnosed with and map out the main literature that guides how I think about and practice education. The aim of this section is to paint a picture of the context in which the research takes place and describe my role in this community.

The second section consists of my research with two of the children who lived and learned at Blooming Acres. This includes their stories as told by them, their parent(s), and the educators at Blooming Acres. As I juxtaposed the life experiences of these learners with each other, and wove together aspects of these stories, significant themes emerged relating to their academic and medical histories, as well as their social, extracurricular, and family life, and finally, their experience at Blooming Acres. I employed a life history methodology; one that honours the meaning and knowledge that exists in the storied lives of individuals. As I applied this methodology and engaged in the storied lives of these learners I learned more about what it is like to live and learn with neurological disorders.

Four major themes emerged. The first, Pathology for Support / Support for Pathology, relates to learning issues, referral, assessment, diagnosis, medications and “school battles”. Second, Parent Stress includes behavioural issues, judgment, stressful calls from teachers and principals and school failure. Third, Oasis Teachers / Mentors is an expression of care, support, social competence, self-esteem and relationships. Finally, Strengths and Coping is a culmination of issues such as advocacy for support, strategies for success, identifying and coping with stress, understanding diagnosis and becoming well. These emergent themes are articulated within the context of neurology and school failure (risk) and the context of transformation and getting well (resilience).

This work contributes to parenting, education, social work, disabilities, medical and risk / resiliency literature. Visit www.backalongbooks.com to purchase a copy.