Career In Special Education Essay

Becoming a special education teacher has become a career path for me for the past 4 years. My first job was working at an after school program that gave me the experience of learning how to work with a diverse group of students. When I first began working for the Realizing Amazing Potential (RAP) Program as a Program Leader (PL). I began to fall in love with the school culture of working with diverse students. The responsibility of working for RAP Program was creating activities that implemented disguised learning with a variety of hands on activities. Students are constantly engaged in activities while learning something new as well. Within the program I have moved from being a supervisors assistance, which gave me responsibilities of working

As I grew older, I began to realize that students with disabilities have many significant obstacles to overcome. Seeing them get excited about learning things that we take for granted provided me with the desire to become part of their learning. For example, one kindergartner with Down Syndrome struggled daily to learn how to write the first letter of her name. It was such a joy for all of those involved when she finally succeeded. Working with these students furthered my resolve to not only fulfill my childhood dream of becoming a teacher, but I soon realized that special education is my niche. After 13 years of teaching in Glynn County, I still teach with the same fervor and enthusiasm as the first day I formally stepped into a classroom. My principal once said, “Teaching is not a job. It’s a profession.” I wholeheartedly believe in this philosophy. Education was never a back-up plan or alternative for me; being a teacher is who I am. As a special educator, I strive to

I have distinctly applied for Special Needs Education because special education has always been what’s near and dear to me in the field of education. Being a special education teacher would be an inevitably rewarding job, in which I get to watch my students grow, as I celebrate their small breakthroughs and victories with them. These small breakthroughs and victories will improve over time and turn into giant leaps, which will leave a lasting impact and ultimately change the child’s life. Beyond just educating children with special needs, I aspire to educate the public about children with special needs and special education. By doing so, I hope to remove any uncertainty and fear the public has on this group of children. Not only do I want to impart knowledge on these special children, I also want to advocate for them, which is something that goes

The United States Department of Labor states that “employment of special education teachers is projected to grow 6 percent from 2012 to 2022, slower than the average for all occupations. However, overall demand will be driven by increasing enrollment and continued need for special education services.” With the advance screening and the identification of different disabilities of children are expected to increase the demand for this career. But overall increase will depend on the government’s funding.

One of the reason people chose a career in special education is job satisfaction. Special education teacher perceived their job to be rewarding. They get personal fulfillment and gratification in teaching special need students. “It truly must be passion to continue working in special education because we all know it is a tough job.”(Participate 2010,”Motivational factor towards pursuing a career in special education”)They have the opportunity to make a positive difference in the students’ lives. When the student who is struggling in school graduate it brings great satisfaction to the educator. The most important part of this field is to help a child develop to their highest potential.

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

In the profession of a special education teacher, a person commits to helping children achieve their best and to help “students overcome their obstacles” while finding a way that the child can effectively learn (Hollingsworth). My mom’s career as special education teacher for twenty-two years, allows me insight and experience into the tougher aspects of this career, but also the rewards to the job. My mom helps me understand that a special education teacher guides a child to expand their strengths, develop strategies to overcome weakness, and to make best use of all available resources. Through helping her, and learning from her experiences, she taught me that a career in special education can not only challenge me, but may also become a

Today, over six million students receive Special Education services from public and private schools. The reason why there is a shortage of Special Education teachers is that they leave their position because they cannot handle the additional pressures they have to face.

The field of education is dramatically changing at an unprecedented rate. For example, a greater percentage of students are identified with autism than in the past ten years. The general education teacher is becoming more and more aware of special needs students due to inclusionary practices and must adapt his/her curriculum to help all students achieve. This can be a roadblock for the general education teacher if the special education teacher is consistently relied on for help. The increase in the special education population is now requiring more educators to be dually certified in order to service all students in all situations.

My goal is to be a High School Special Education teacher and teach dance in the afternoon and evening. This January I started attending Brigham Young University-Idaho with a double major of Child Development and Dance. I chose to be a Special Education teacher to improve the lives of these students and teach them they have an essential part and purpose in the world. I love working with these special individuals and had the unbelievable opportunity to secure an internship with the Miss Amazing California State Pageant. The experience is one I will never forget and I hope to one day become a pageant director for their organization. As my future second job, I intend to be a dance teacher and choreographer. Dance is an enormous passion of mine

In the article written by Saint Joseph’s University, it says that “a highly qualified special education teacher with an advanced degree, is best suited to help children face and overcome challenges, while striving to be their personal best” (“Saint Joseph’s University”). This quotation shows that if a person obtains the proper education and behaves the correct way, that person will most likely to be more affecting towards the kids while teaching. Special needs teachers need to obtain the proper education, understand how to behave, and know about the kids so they can be a successful teacher for their students.

Working in the school system and becoming an educator was NEVER my plan. My entire collegiate career was dedicated to the field of speech-language pathology, and earning the grades required for graduate school acceptance. Ironically, I found myself working for a school district as a speech-language pathologist assistant right out of college. I soon realized that my passion was not articulation or stuttering therapy, but rather, autism. I had the opportunity to work with several students on the autism spectrum and I soaked up every second. I felt compelled to learn more, do more, and become more for these students. Working with special needs students requires collaboration with many different teachers and other professionals. The special education

In recent years I have been re-evaluating the professional and personal goals I have for my future and have come to the conclusion that my current course of study is not where I see myself in 10 years. I have spent the last few years studying information design and technology at Emporia State University and have maintained excellent grades. However, the further I proceed into the program the more I have come to the realization that it just isn’t for me. I have been a special education teacher for the past 13 years and have an extreme passion for all that I get to do within the confines of special education for the students, their parents, staff, and community in the districts that I have worked. Therefore, through this self-evaluation of my future I have decided that I want to stay with special education, however pursue the endeavor of district level administrator with the end goal of becoming a director of special education.

Given my family environment of educators, I believe that I also possess the knowledge, ability, and ambition to develop into a quality public school administrator. Furthermore, I feel that my undergraduate degree will play a significant role in helping become an effective administrator. With Special Education laws and regulations at the forefront of modern educational proceedings, I believe that administrators must have a thorough understanding of what entitles students with disabilities to a free and appropriate public education. Accordingly, one of my hopes in obtaining an undergraduate degree in Special Education was that it would benefit me as an administrator.

The key to any successful school district is the administration. Teachers essentially provide structure, organization, and the background of a child’s future. To educate students with learning disabilities, it is essential that the staff has the training and resources needed for the appropriate people, place, and time (Lazarus) (What is Inclusion, 2001, n.p). It is unrealistic to expect that regular education teachers will always be aware of the latest research or be able to readily adapt the school's