Reflection Essay

When I first got accepted into Stuyvesant High School, I heard countless of rumors stating: “Oh the workload is terrible”, “The competition is so fierce” or “Out of schoolwork, extracurriculars, or sleep: you can only pick two.” I found it hard to let it faze me, since I graduated from one of the most prestigious middle schools. However, the rumors transformed into reality when I stepped into Mr. Nieves’ Freshman Composition Class. The workload at the beginning of the year was brutal, coupled with assignments from other core classes that seem unaware of the workload of other teachers. Reading assignments were a regular, and there were journal entries and occasional quizzes to keep us in line. What made it bearable was the friends I made in that class; everyone had their own opinion about the topic we were talking about, and listening to other perspectives really broadened my horizon and enriched my learning experience in Stuy. Another thing that this class has taught me is the importance of time management, a skill that I will carry on for the rest of my high school career and life. When I choose to sign up for Mr. Nieves’ AP American Literature class in my Junior Year, I was hoping to relive the discussion-based lesson plans and meet more outstanding peers. I was not disappointed, to say the least, reflecting through all the experiences at the end of the course. The lesson plans he laid out for us were an interesting mix between small lectures and class output, and what I

Because of the stigma surrounding the intelligence of students in special education, many children are embarrassed when others find out about their curriculum. Oftentimes students receiving altered instruction have lower self-esteem and lower expectations for themselves because of how they are perceived. Even when they are fully mentally capable, people will treat them differently because of the circumstances in which they are educated. To most people with disabilities such as blindness, deafness, extreme dyslexia, and autism, it is offensive to be talked to like they aren’t capable of understanding- something that wouldn’t happen as much if we changed our view of what special education is and who exactly receives it.

It is still so surreal to reflect back on my first semester as an incoming college student in the ENC1101 course, analyzing at my progression as a reader and writer in literacy. Since the first day of class I set in stone my goals for this class: receive a 4.0 GPA, develop my connecting theories skills in writing, and become more aware of objectives for each Unit throughout the course. All of these goals became achievements that not only make others proud but most importantly give me self pride. In order to earn the grades and achieve these goals, I went after every opportunity that I was given as an incoming college student, such as office hours and extra credit. By taking this course I have gained confidence with the utilization of literacy, and made an addition to my group of impactful literacy sponsors. Once students are finished with high school they assume that there is nothing else to learn beyond the stereotypical five paragraph essay, but they are so wrong. I was able to obtain so much knowledge about numerous course concepts from Writing about Writing, articles, and my professor. These concepts will carry on with me throughout a bright future of writing courses, job interviews, and any other skills that require literacy. The four outcomes listed below will help illuminate how I improved as a writer, by being a driven college student and going out of the way to earn my achievements in this course. In the first outcome I improved comprehending scholar texts,

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.

In today’s world there are more and more children coming into the general education classes having a disability. More general education teachers have to take on a bigger responsibility than what they signed up for, but that is part of being a teacher. I feel as long as the teachers collaborate with each other they will be putting the student’s needs first.

Labeling is essentially giving an individual a diagnosis. These diagnosis include developmental delays, autism, and emotional disturbance, among others. Once an individual receives a diagnosis, they have the option to apply for resources that were otherwise unavailable. Although labeling is necessary to procure additional funding for school districts, this additional funding is not always used to benefit the individual needs of a child, but rather the needs as labeled by the disability. A label is only useful when it can procure specific intervention to enable a person to navigate in an environment effectively where the disability has otherwise made it difficult or impossible. When an individual is labeled as having a disability, they are

During the early 2000’s students with exceptionalities were mainstreamed into the regular classroom setting and everyone knew who they were. They usually didn’t attend the class every day and didn’t have to complete the assignments that all of the other students had to complete. They would generally come late to class, leave early, and sometimes have someone with them. No one made fun of them because all the students knew that they were “special” and accepted them as part of the class. There were other students that were in the school that students knew was there but they never attended the classes with everyone else. They would change classes but never would have books and also seem to never have homework or the daily struggles that most of the students had. The general population had no idea that they were identified as students with

This article discussed what it really means to be disabled, different words people use when referring to people with disability and their negative connotation, and what is the correct way to address people with disabilities. The part of the article that I found to be the most interesting was the first paragraph about the disabled as a group. I had never really thought about or considered how unique the group of people with disabilities is. It is the most inclusive and diverse group within our society. People with a disability do not have to be a certain age, gender, or race, but instead it’s a group of people that anyone can join. The only thing that all of these people have in common is how society views them.

In a post written by C. Lawrence she says, “In the real world we are all expected to function alongside with each other” (2015), so why are we separating/excluding children with special needs from other students, during the most important times in their lives, during their learning process? Aren’t we supposed to be teaching our students the importance of diversity and empathy towards one another? Placing children with special needs in mainstream classrooms is beneficial to children of all learning abilities because they will learn from one another and develop empathy for other human beings, whether they suffer official “disabilities” or not” (Concordia Online, 2012).

An exceptional student is any student who has abilities or issues so significant that they require a special type of education and/or services to reach their full potential. The use of labeling is extremely controversial. Some disadvantages to labeling exceptional students are that these labels are mistaken for explanations, they emphasize the most negative aspect of the student, these labels may be viewed as permanent, self- fulfilling prophecies and cause stigmas. Other drawbacks of labeling are that teachers may have preconceived ideas of the child’s capabilities based on the label and may not teach the child to their fullest capability. This can create ineffective schooling. Another drawback is the teacher may stereotype students and forget

A common belief among all is the simple fact that all humans deserve to be loved and respected by their peers. School can be tough for students in all grades due to the pressures of growing up, receiving good grades, having a social life, and the hope of being accepted among the peers there surrounded by more than their families. With that being said it can be even harder for kids with special needs to feel a sense of belonging. Why, because they are smart like anyone else and can sense the fact there different from the rest. While this is hard for them it is not the biggest struggle, the biggest struggle is the fact there excluded from there peers often secluded from their peers in different classrooms. There 's also the kids who chose to

The first smart goals I chose are to learn to become a leader and to have better time management skills. I chose these because I work on a small unit with no assigned charge nurse. Any day you go in to work it could be your day to be charge nurse so everyone on the unit needs to be able to step up and be a leader. Time management is a skill that every nurse needs to learn. In my opinion, if you have good time management skills it can decrease your stress level and make your workday more organized and enjoyable.

Between the summers of 2012 and 2016, I volunteered at the bible school offered by my church. The general goal for leaders was to work with elementary school children and lead discussions and assist the children in learning more about our religion. However, my personal goals were to make connections with my students, maintain a positive attitude, and gain communication skills. The group of students each leader works with alternates each summer, proving it to be difficult to create a relationship with my students; but in 2016, I met a child who despite his own difficulties, always remained positive and was grateful for every opportunity he received. I noticed a change in my attitude that summer, I had become both more positive and gracious. I was a role model and confidant for the student, despite our relationship only lasting the summer. In return for my healthy influence, my student taught me that there is a silver lining in everything and everyone deserves to be happy, regardless of their living situation. By reaching my goal of making a connection with a student, I was able to simultaneously achieve my goal of positivity, ultimately improving my leadership. Due to my work in the program, I became more confident and gradually built up my communication skills that helped me become an effective leader. The adults who ran the program recognized my hard work and dedication to the program and would praise my leadership and compassion. To know that my leadership was making a

Diversity in education is necessary to understand. We live in a society where there are diverse cultures and varieties. People have been raised in different settings and may not understand certain things better than others. As an educator, it is important to not let any students feel left out. It is essential to understand different diverse groups in an educational environment. There are so many different diverse groups in schools. Some include students who identify themselves as LGBTQ, children in poverty, and children with special needs. Specifically, in this essay, autistic and gifted children will be further described.

I  was part of the crew of a 688 class attack boats (USS Bremerton). When I was first assigned to the Bremerton, my life consisted of learning everything I could about the boat and all of its systems so I could earn my "dolphins" and be a real member of the crew. You were viewed as a non useful body when you first report for duty. you litterly can take the past 1 year of training and throw it out the window. little of what was tought in Sub School really prepared you for what was about to become your reality.