Interview Letter : A Special Education Teacher

Time is passing and opportunities are opening for more students with special needs. Many students in college are getting more interested in Special Education as career that will allow more organization to have more workers with a big potential that will have an important impact on these kids with disabilities. However, this will require more training for the students that organizations around the country can give them. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,“the career outlook for special education teachers should remain steady through 2024, with an increase of 6%, the national average for job growth in the United States. The median salary for this position is just over $55,000 annually,” (“Master in Special Education”) The approach the

For this assignment, I interview a service provider for special education services. The service provider I interviewed, takes part in the educational team, and provide services. The service provider is developmental therapist. I was able to develop a better sense of the importance of inclusion. After interviewing the service provider, and learning her philosophy of inclusion I have was able to better understand the accommodations and modifications for special needs students.

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.” – Henry B. Adams. For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to play a big part in children’s education, which is why I have decided to enroll for an education course. I believe that educators have a lifelong impact on their students and on the development of resilience. Thus, I aspire to inculcate my love for learning into the next generation, by influencing and inspiring children all through their formal education.

I completed my field experience at Cedar Crest High School in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. Since I serve the role of building principal, I am exposed to many different special education situations on a daily basis. Through this leadership field experience, I have learned a few additional things. It has taught me to stop and listen to what is occurring in our special education classrooms. By completing classroom observations, I was able to focus on the students, instead of rushing through a classroom observation on a teacher.

People are thought as child to dream big and reach for their goals. Throughout grade school to high school there are often asked what inspires them. Some people dream to become police officers, dancers, lawyers, and doctors. There are some people who chooses to become an educator. As they journey through college, to pursue the knowledge needed for their career, their passion leads them to special education. These teachers fine this career to be job satisfying, have empathy for the children, and the vacancy of the position viability. Not all teacher feel the same however, over time their dissatisfied with their job and leave because their brunt out.

The author performed two separate interviews face-to-face, selecting two individuals with different backgrounds in order to obtain unique perspectives. The first interviewee, named Jennifer Hodge, works for Allen ISD as a special education teacher for a self-contained DEAR (Developing Early Academics Readiness) class for students in kindergarten through sixth grade. In addition, her experience includes teaching for 22 years, with seven of those years teaching students with disabilities in both self-contained classrooms along with resource and inclusion environments. The meeting to discuss psychoeducational testing occurred in Jennifer’s work place during her conference period over a 45 minute period on Friday, August 28, 2015. The second

One of the most essential aspects of the educational process is to know how to motivate students for learning. A challenging part of being a teacher is to know and learn how to motivate students. First of all, a good definition for motivation is as Byrnes quote “Motivation is construct

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

The special education teacher interviewed, did not expect to teach special education when she graduated college. She got a job helping at a personal home with children ages 5-6 years old with some disabilities. After her experience with this first job she loved it, and began to seek positions in Elementary special education. However she was only able to obtain a position in a High School special education classroom.

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

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Carnes I feel as though I have a better understanding of dealing with the school system from the parent’s point of view. I think doing this interview can help me to be more prepared if a child with disabilities is present in my classroom. This is actually the cause of the high point of the interview because Ms. Carnes had a surprised tone when hearing my questions because of the dedication the educational system is putting into preparing the new generation of teachers to be fully aware of any situation we may face with a student with disabilities. I feel a sense of pride knowing I can be knowledgeable in any situation may face with these special cases in the classroom. On the other hand, I was surprised by the amount of patience she has as a parent with a child with cerebral palsy. From her answers in the interview she has to face challenges parents with the average child do nor. I gave me a deep respect to the parents who face these challenges such as making sure their child receives the proper education they need. Lastly, after completion of the interview, I feel slightly more nervous about going into the teaching field. I know teaching these students I want to make sure

First I would love to reflect on my experiences in my fieldwork classroom. I have to say I was quite nervous the first day I arrived. I have had experiences with special education students with my own family and other students I had to opportunity to work with, but never in this capacity. Emily was a great mentor teacher, she

“Special education labels don’t define children; Children define themselves” (Dalien, 2015). I am interested in becoming a special education teacher because I have always loved being around children, and I have a soft spot for kids with autism and other disabilities. The first time that I ever thought about working with special needs children was when I was in the fifth grade. My mom worked at my school as a teacher assistant in a first grade classroom, so in the morning I would go to her classroom and wait for the bell to ring. A little boy named Alex who had Cerebral palsy and a spinal problem, came into class early as well. I immediately connected with him, and began going to my mom’s room every morning to play with him before class. It soon became the highlight of my day. Alex could not talk very well and could not walk, so we rolled cars around the floor, traced shapes on to the whiteboard, or sometimes crawled on the floor chasing each other as monsters. I loved seeing how me playing with him made him smile so big and become more outgoing. My dream is to give kids like Alex a reason to smile and help them reach their full potential. In this speech you will learn all about special education teachers, including, but not limited to: What they do, where they typically work, their environment, how much they get paid, benefits the job entails, the education and skills required to become a special education teacher, and information on the job outlook.

For my interview, I interviewed a woman by the name of Mrs. Miskell. She is a close family friend and also teaches at the elementary school that I used to attend. Mrs. Miskell has been teaching for fifteen years. She has a class of 21 including 2 special education children who are mainstreamed into her class for a few areas of study. She team-teaches one day a week with the remedial math teacher, and one day a week with the remedial reading teacher. Her children switch classes with one other class for social studies and science. In this interview, I covered her views on special education and security in today's schools.