An Application Project I Found Myself Struggling At First

By working in a public school setting, I hope to integrate aspects of assessment, counseling, research, and skill training to create individualized intervention plans, and provide an optimum learning environment for all students. After receiving the opportunity to work with children with exceptionalities at Camp MATES and the social skills groups, I was stunned to discover how underserved that population is. I was appalled by the obscene amounts of money parents pay for their children to receive services tailored to them and their exceptionalities and how difficult it can be to get into those programs. As a School Psychologist, I hope to make academic success more attainable for all students despite their socioeconomic background. My goal is to assess students who are struggling academically to find an educational method that suits their individual differences and be able to refer them to community resources if needed. My dream is to bridge the gap between home and school and promote supportive environments in both that migrate seamlessly. I hope to provide students with strategies, such as social skills training, they can use to be successful both in and outside of the classroom. I aim to learn more about Learning and Intellectual Disabilities and interventions that improve the academic success rate of students with those

There is a concern that the lack of involvement by CTE teachers in the Special Education program planning of students in their classes and the ability to adequately meet the variety of demands of these learners exists. The purpose of the study is to identify the involvement of CTE teachers in Special Education programming for SWD. This literature review focused on scholarly research and relevant documentation to frame information related to the following questions: 1) What are the perceptions of CTE teachers who teach students with disabilities? 2) How does involvement in the Individual Education Plan (IEP) by CTE teachers affect teacher perceptions of their preparedness and ability to work with students receiving special education services?

For my Field Experience I chose to observe at Krahn Elementary which is a part of Klein Independent School District. After my approval, I was assigned to four teachers and their classrooms. I observed at Krahn Elementary on six Tuesdays between 15 September 2015 and 27 October 2015, and more or less followed the schedule that was given to me by the Assistant Principal Ms. Shannon Strole. From 8:30 am to 9:15 am I observed Ms. Judy Burkes, who is a third grade Math and Science teacher. Her classroom is comprised of twenty students which range from average to below average learners and a student with ADHD and another with autism. For most part of my observation, M. Burkes had been working with her students on fractions and multiple digits addition and subtraction. From 9:15 am to 10:30 am I observed Ms. Lisa Parker who is a Math co-teacher and resource teacher at Krahn Elementary for grades K-5. During my assigned time, Ms. Parker usually joined Mr. Duru’s fifth grade class of twenty three students as a co-teacher and when required would pull out a group of six students after initial instructions from Mr. Duru and would teach them the concepts separately at a slower pace. This particular group of students with special needs was mostly seen to be focusing more and more on mathematical word problems. These students were students with Learning disabilities, behavioral issues and one of them was a student with ADHD. From 10:30 am to 11:15, I was with Ms. Janice Bluhms, who is a

I am currently teaching second grade in an urban charter school in Cleveland, Ohio. My classroom has twenty-three students, twelve boys and eleven girls. There is one student in my classroom who receives special education services and four students receiving Title 1 interventions. My students are extremely social which leads to the use of small group and partner learning. The socialization has lead to some struggles with behavior and student independence this year.

By implementing this idea in Area Two schools to support special education students, we will create a more data driven approach to increasing student achievement. By following this idea the team will also do a better job of implementing professional development and mentorships that greatly increase teacher effectiveness. The idea will also increase understanding of the diversity of the schools and promote community involvement by establishing more open communication with the parents and the community to support their students’ needs. The leadership teams will work together to set goals and objectives to support achievement in all grade levels. They will develop a framework for good communication between teachers and leaders so there is

I will face many different challenges as a special education teacher including: data collection, making accommodations, and parental support. Data collection is huge in special education. I will need to be able to validate everything I do and make sure it coincides with everything in the student’s IEP (individualized education plan).

I interviewed several service providers in my school, Stephen Knight Center for Early Education, that included the psychologist, special education teacher and a general education teacher. I interviewed Ms. Iris, the school psychologist, Ms. Kathy, the special education teacher, and Ms. Hilary, a general education teacher. Ms. Iris’ responsibilities include working with students who have social emotional needs. This can include behavior challenges, learning new social skills, managing grief, etc. She works directly with parents and teachers to provide resources regarding the child’s well-being, and ensure good attendance by setting up plans. Ms. Iris works with children in general education, counseling groups, and one-on-one situations, including special education minutes. Ms. Hilary is a general education classroom teacher. She is responsible for the well-being of her students academically, socially, physically and developmentally. Ms. Hilary also advocates for families and students to receive the support that they need to feel successful in their first years of school. Finally, Ms. Kathy is the staffing

Interviewing the special education supervisor has made me aware of how important my role is as a regular education teacher to special students who need additional support in my classroom. The goal of the teacher is to ensure that the IEP is followed to ensure the academic success of all students. IEP stands for Individual Education Plan and the plan is usually developed when students have several deficiencies in certain key subject areas such as: reading comprehension, basic reading, reading fluency, written expressions, math calculation, and math reasoning. Students are referred to the special education department usually in elementary school, additionally; according to the high school special education supervisor there are very few referrals

Victoria Dickerson is a second year teacher at Carolina High School teaching in the Self-Contained special education classroom. Victoria’s expectations for her students are high and she often uses innovative techniques which include project-based learning strategies. Her students are always solving real world problems that will not only prepare them for work but provides them with the necessary life skills they need to be productive after high school. The students in the classroom range from being low-functioning intellectually disabled students to students how are on the middle school level in reading and are categorized as learning disabled. Even with the population she serves, she still challenges her students to be excellent. During

Currently, I am student teaching at Alfred E. Zampella PS #27 School in the district of Jersey City. The school is located in a busy city, next to John F. Kennedy St. which is especially busy in the morning and during rush hour. This results in several late students on a day to day basis. On the other hand, this school is also highly accessible and as a little over a thousand students. The school has grade levels from kindergarten to 8th grade, and has a mix of general, special, and inclusion education classrooms. Typically, families that enroll their students into this school are of lower-middle socio-economic class, and tend to be majority Hispanic, Indian, and African American, with few Caucasians and Asians. This school provides a variety of special programs for their ESL students and special need students. Students may be offered speech language pathology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, ESL programs, reading recovery, and counseling.

Ms. C has been providing consultant services to all districts in Kings County area. She facilitates numerous professional development training for teachers and school staff. She also designs comprehensive evaluations for public school districts relating to special education. Prior to her present position, Ms. C has 22 years of public school experience. She has been a special education teacher and the Director of Special Education. In addition, Ms. C also has a private practice where she provides supervision for undergraduate and graduate students in the Brooklyn

In addition to designing and implementing instruction, teachers must also manage their caseload of students. Caseload management involves modification and adaptation of core content material, administrative paperwork (such as individual education plans, behavior intervention plans, transition plans), and implementation of assessments. Special educator’s responsibilities also include collaborative relationships with general education teachers, parents/families, paraprofessionals, and support service providers such as speech, occupational, and physical

Special education teachers are trained to work with children who have a wide range of disabilities. One of the primary responsibilities of a special education teacher is to assess her students' cognitive abilities, and modifies the standard age-appropriate curriculum to create a custom plan for the student. This plan is called an individual education program(IEP). An IEP often includes a number of social and emotional development goals as well as specific academic areas to be taught. The special education teacher’s core task is to meet each of the goals established in the students’ IEPs. In some cases, the special education teacher is located in a separate classroom. When this is the case the teacher will creates lessons geared to meet the objectives of the students’ IEPs. In many instances, special education students are placed in regular classrooms. In that situation, the special education teacher attends classes with her students. She often will work with students on life skills and behavior modification techniques as well. Skills that special educational teachers should possess include, better than average stress management, great multi-tasking abilities, quick thinking, and creative problem solving. A special education teacher must be able to think outside the box and develop an array of teaching methods and techniques to meet the needs of each individual student. Special education requires a vast amount of detailed record keeping, so it is essential for these teachers

I learned during my field observation that being a special education teacher for Gwinnett County Public School (GCPS) opens the door to many opportunities, one of which is the availability to work as a teacher for Extended School Year (ESY). I also learned in order for students to be eligible for ESY services, they must have an IEP, be in a self-contained classroom during the regular school year, and have data to support significant growth/gains made on their individual goals and objectives. In addition, the student has displayed regression when returning from a break. There are limited sites for ESY at the elementary level, as a result ESY is a competitive data based program for both students and teachers.

The school district I received the majority of my special education services School District 308, states, “The term "special education" means specially designed instruction, at no cost to parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability” (2016). My disability is what makes me unique and has happened in with my own philosophy of education. I am intrinsically and extrinsically motivated in school to be the best IEP student with the highest grade, high GPA, and try to be exempt from the Special Education Department. Not only do I feel and act this way in the classroom, I was feel and act this way with personal relationships and work. In the scheme of things, I have been influenced by intrinsic goals and reward by others. Just by these simple characteristic traits, this helps me forms my philosophical beliefs of education and how students learn.