Life Skills Classroom Instructional Assistant

I believe that I am a quality candidate for the Instructional Assistant position, as I have 5 years’ experience in various educational support roles. In each position, be it as a Library Assistant in the Westbrook LRC, Student Aide, or as FOSS Coordinator, I utilized my strategic planning, organizing and excellent communication skills to add value to the educational experience of the students and staff with whom I worked.

S is a 59 year old African-American female born and raised in Anson County who has attended several institutes of higher learning. After earning a Bachelor of Science in Secretarial Administration from Barber-Scotia College, she later received special education teaching licensure from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Because of her love for learning, S has also taken online classes through the University of Phoenix. She has been a secondary special education teacher for three years and currently works with 8th graders at Anson Middle School.

I am committed to working with all persons of diverse backgrounds, disabilities and other special needs. Every student should have the experience and ability of working with quality and caring teachers who care enough to take the time to make sure that they are given the tools they need to succeed. My life experiences have shown me how to be a better person and teacher for my students.

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

Despite my somber interest of my temporary workplace, I still yearned to do something different. Therefore, I took a clean shot at substitute teaching, but little did I know that the captivating adventures of Substitute Teaching, Up-Close and Personal were in steady progress.

While in High School, I was involved in the Peer Tutoring program. Although I had already been involved with the several other programs, I knew from an early age that a Special Education teacher was what I wanted to do. Helping students achieve their goals and help them to succeed in life was my true calling. But the desire to help the most challenged student drove me beyond regular education. The memories of my Peer tutoring experience kept me striving to be a

I have been working with the Coweta County School System since August of 2000. I began as a paraprofessional working with students with Autism through the Emory Autism Program. I enjoyed working with special needs students so much that I entered the TAPP program to obtain my teaching certificate. I began working at East Coweta Middle School in the fall of 2002 and am still currently working there as an interrelated special education teacher. I have taught resource, collaborative, and co-teach classes. I have even had one year where I worked one-on-one with a student that required specialized instruction.

Joni had worked for over 25 years in the local school system as an Educational Tech II, otherwise known as a teacher’s aide. In this capacity, she got to know generations of teachers, students and their families. In addition, working with high needs students with challenging intellectual disabilities, she sought to identify opportunities for her students to gain practical knowledge in local organizations and life skills to ensure their dignity as adults. To create these connections she often interacted with numerous small businesses, non-profits, and community-based organizations.

For this assignment, I chose to interview Ms. Lisa Parker, who is a Math co-teacher and resource teacher for grades K-5 at Krahn Elementary which is a part of the Klein Independent School District and is one of the teachers I have been observing for my field experience. Ms. Parker has been a teacher at Krahn Elementary since 17 years. She started as a 1st grade teacher and was moved to 3rd grade after three years. The administration saw that she was really good with management and math, so she was given the below average, special education students and kids with adaptive behavior after seven years of teaching. With this, she adopted a style for teaching kids with special needs and decided to get a certification in Special Education. Ms. Parker has been teaching specifically in Special Education (SPED) since five years now and the special populations served by her in Krahn elementary include Gifted and Talented students (GT), students with Autism, students with Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), students with Learning disabilities (LD), students with Other Health Impairments (OHI) and Emotionally Disturbed children (EBD)

Northeast Life Skills Associates serves a community that are chemically dependent and has a variety of services to meet their clients’ needs.

The necessity of education for students throughout the United States and the world continues to grow, making it necessary for teachers in all areas. Though most special education teachers work in public school settings, the need for teachers in residential areas or as tutors in homes or hospital settings still remains ("Teachers-Special Education"). Within the school setting, special educators can take on different roles. Their role may include supporting the general education teacher in the regular education classroom or they may offer resources in a special education setting. The term “inclusion” is often used for special education services offered by supports and accommodations in a regular education classroom with grade level curriculum. “Pull out” services are often in a special education classroom in smaller group settings with academics adjusted to meet their needs. The duties of a special education teacher often combine these responsibilities by determining what will best meet the needs of students.

Presently I am a Special Education teacher working with children who have a wide range of disabilities. My class setting is integrated, which mean half of the class is general and the other half is special. My primary goal is to modify general education lesson plans to meet each student’s needs and abilities. These needs may include, but not limited to emotional, physical or cognitive disabilities, teaching basic literacy and life skills. I have an interest in this field because I feel with the proper help and assistant; students make positive changes in their academic and social life. Providing early intervention is essential when teaching kids with disabilities. One of the main reasons why I have made the decision to pursue a PhD in education, specialization in Special educator, is because I enjoy what I do and would like to make a difference. My ultimate goal is to keep making a difference by helping those that needed it and provide them with the proper resources to enhance their ability. I want to be an example to my children and have them see the end result of what happens when one desire to strive for the best and what they can accomplish. I want my children to see that with hard work, motivation, dedication, concentration, and having no limits that they will attain any goals they may set forth.

Most of my experience was spent working as a Learning Disabilities teacher for grades K-4. I managed IEP caseload, set up conferences, chaired IEP meetings, and participated on the diagnostic team. It was also my job to help the regular classroom teacher with proper modifications for the IEP students. During my last few years, I was transferred into the regular classroom setting to teach 1st & 2nd grade. I quickly found out that my special education experience was put to good use, helping to identify future students with possible special education needs.

The only real downside I’ve experienced in the Community of Teachers (CoT) program here at Indiana University is that I was not required to take a course on special education. Although I could have taken this on my own, I did not have much wiggle room in my schedule due to joining education later in my career. Within some of my methods courses, I covered how to teach reading and writing, how to differentiate instruction, and how to implement different types of instructional strategies, but I never got to learn how to read an IEP or know how they are used. I never got to experience different techniques of teaching that was specifically tailored to students with various types of LDs (learning disabilities). After this late realization, I immediately went to thinking that I was left for dead. As soon as I got my own classroom I wouldn’t know what to do, how to act, or even how to be an effective teacher for a student with a disability. But if not taking a special education course within the CoT program was detrimental to my ability to be an effective teacher for all learners, my interactions with special educators within my CoT seminar, and in the field, has more than made up for it. When I expressed my convictions to my mentor teacher, he just chuckled. He quickly told me how well I differentiate my instruction to students with all different types of learning styles and abilities. He did say that it would be good for me to brush up on some of the information though. He

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