Special Education Observation

What sort of education is best for a child with special needs? Does inclusion prepare a child who is mentally challenged for the real world or is it unfair? How does inclusion affect the whole classroom?

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.

The first educator that I observed was Mrs. Crystal Sullivan at Fox Meadow Elementary on September 14, 2017. Mrs. Sullivan is a music teacher at this school and on this particular day, Mrs. Sullivan had special needs students in her classroom in the early morning. I chose to observe Mrs. Sullivan while teaching special needs because I had a great interest in special needs students. The students came into the classroom and first went to sit on the risers in the back of the room. Accompanying them were 4 other adults who assisted the special education teacher. Mrs. Sullivan began her class with the “Hello” song which the students were receptive to. She played a small guitar while singing the song and they also began to pat the beat on their legs. The disabilities of the students ranged from severe to non-severe. There was one student who did not seem to enjoy the music because he continued to cover his ears. The teachers accommodated him by encouraging him to listen and participate. Mrs. Sullivan used many engaging techniques such as physical activity while teaching her music class with the special needs students. For example, Mrs. Sullivan played the “All Fall Down” song on the smart board and each student performed a move at various times in the song. The students would either act like they were cranking up or they would crank down and fall to the carpet. She also utilized the parachute which students held and walked around as music played. Mrs. Sullivan also used dynamics

In elementary school, my classroom had students with and without disabilities, and we all shared the same space while working towards a common goal, but over time this diverse community diminished. This phenomenon of tracking and hierarchy of opportunity in education that I notice today is also responsible for creating an environment in which secondary special education is often a segregated locale, physically and socially removed from mainstream public schooling. I've witnessed Syracuse University push against this norm and challenge these boundaries time and time again, and I feel that before entering my own my classroom I want to address these issues of homogeneity and continue to build my tool box of inclusionary practices that extend past my current

Some people may think that special education has been established since the beginning of public education. Others may consider a time when special education did not exist and students with disabilities were not able to attend school. The truth is, there was a time when this happened; these students were not allowed to be educated in the general education classroom alongside their peers. People with disabilities were treated differently, and some were forced into institutions because teachers and staff found them to be disturbances to their peers. Luckily, special education has come a long way since public education began. People, especially parents, advocated for their children, and today many laws are in place to ensure that all children

Teaching students with exceptional abilities requires funding, training and planning. Being in a regular classroom with children from various cultures, ethnic backgrounds and intellectual ability help students learn how to work together toward a common goal: reduce discrimination and stereotyping people with physical and mental limitations. Instructional strategies that break the work down so everyone learns better can improve education as well as reduce cost. This is achieved by including special education students in environments that will allow them to develop normal social interactions as well as receive specific attention to their learning needs. ("What is Special Education”)

As we grow in education, it always seems as in there is someone that is left behind. Educators need to be able to reach out as many students as possible, but some may argue that it does not feel this way. Often, students with special education needs are considered to be too difficult to teach, or simple just a “lost cause.” The way we interact and care for all students not only shows in each student, but it shows in the impact it has on the community as a whole.

I have had the opportunity to work with students in both the sub-separate and general education classroom to enhance students learning through their least restrictive environment. The working and teaching experience has allowed me to carry out the dedication that the Special Education program has for the students with disabilities in the current school system. I have been able to help students achieve educational success through providing a safe-learning environment for all students and helping students assessing curriculum and reach their full potential by promoting and supporting students diverse learning

There have been many changes in education over the last twenty seven years, especially in the area of Special Education. There has been constant revisions of the laws both at the government level and at the state levels. With each revision comes new hope for students who have disabilities. Being part of these experiences have helped in leading others through this profession. Through shared visions and inclusive actions by parents, administrators, advocacy groups, and more, students with disabilities continue to gain more chances at opportunities to live very productive lives. These advancements are, in large part, due to people willing to sacrifice time and energy promoting student rights. Going through the different experiences in this field, how situations are handled, continues to change, and for the most part, they change for the better. This could be due to different advocacy agencies campaigning on how the needs of the students come first.

Within the past decades and a big discussion has occurred regarding the most appropriate setting within which to provide education for students in special education. Although the change in the educational environment is significant for handicapped student the concepts of inclusion also bring up new issues for the regular education classroom teachers.

The idea of children with disabilities, whether they be mild or severe has been a very controversial and misunderstood topic. In the past inclusion has brought about huge changes for not only the students, but also the parents and families of these children, and staff at schools. Teachers and education professionals were the first to really feel the wrath and intimidation of this dramatic shift in education. There were several different factors that were coming about that made it very difficult for schools and teachers, the unorganized mandates were strict and didn’t allow much time for change. “President Gerald Ford signed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA) into law in 1975. Since the original passage of the EAHCA, the law has been amended four times and renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)” (Conroy, Yell, Katsiyannis, & Collins, 2010, para.1).

When I was asked to reflect on my experiences in EDSE 316 and the fieldwork, I had to think long and hard on how I would sum up four months of classes and fieldwork into four pages. I have learned so much about the various disabilities and how it has change the world of special education. I think a better term would be the “endless possibilities of education”. It wasn’t too long ago when children with disabilities would be stuck in a room in the back of school only to be seen in the beginning and end of the school day. They were the ones who rode the other buses and no one really talked about. This class has allowed me to speak of my own family and how special education impacted my life. I have a brother whose whole life was spent in the special education class, and my own sons with speech and learning disabilities who are now receiving special education services. It also allowed me to reflect on my own participation in the special education program in my early elementary years when I was struggling with my own speech disability. This class gave me the chance to see the timeline of special education, from its earliest beginnings to what it is now.

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

In order to get a true understanding of teaching in an inclusion classroom, I was able to observe a fourth grade classroom at Village School in West Windsor, New Jersey. The general education teacher was Ms. Welsh and the special education teacher was Ms. Wilush. Ms. Welsh has been teaching for many years, while Ms. Wilush has only been teaching for two years. Each teacher brings with them different strategies, that together make a wonderful classroom dynamic. The students make up an average size fourth grade classroom of a little more than twenty, but there are three students who receive additional instruction from Ms. Wilush in a resource room throughout the day. During my observation, I was able to sit in on writing lessons and science lessons. There was a wide variety of students in the class with all different strengths, weaknesses, and personalities. Watching and learning from both teachers through observation and interview was an extremely valuable experience.

According to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, students with disabilities should be placed in a “least restrictive environment.” One of the main ideas of this act was to improve the learning experiences of students with disabilities by giving them learning opportunities outside of a special education classroom. The number of students with disabilities being placed in their general education classrooms is increasing more and more each year. The U.S Department of Education’s 27th annual report to Congress on the implementation of The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (2005) indicates that the number of students with disabilities in general education classrooms has risen to almost 50 percent. This is about a 17 percent increase from the 1997 U.S