The Benefits Of A Special Education Teacher

After reading chapters one and two of the book “Exceptional lives”, I could more easily understand special education. As a teacher, I will mostly likely have many students with disabilities in my class throughout my career. With

Special education teachers no longer may identify themselves as teachers of just a specific category of students. Rather, they must identify themselves as teachers of all students and be willing to provide whatever support is needed to meet the varied needs of students. Likewise, students should not be identified as self-contained or resource, but as students needing specialized instruction and supports for specific skills/subject areas for specific amounts of time in either a special education setting or a general education setting.

A child with disabilities is a major focus in today’s education. Achieving my Bachelors in Special Education, I need to be aware of the need to ensure appropriate education for all children with disabilities. “The education of children with disabilities is a top national priority. Our nation’s special education law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), sets high standards for their achievement and guides how special help and services are made available in schools to address their individual needs (National Dissemination)”. This is my biggest challenge. I feel with the right tools and

In 1991 the Public Law 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act was replaced by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This law was passed to provide free and appropriate public education to every child with a disability. It requires that each child with a disability “have access to the program best suited to that child’s special needs which is as close as possible to a normal child’s educational program” (Martin, 1978). The Individualized education program (IEP) was developed to help provide a written record of students’ needs and procedures for each child that receives special education services. The IEP will list all the services to be provided, the student's performance level, academic performance, and

The work environment for a Special Educator is in a public, magnet, private and charter schools. Some can also work in preschools. Many work the traditional 10 month school year with two months off during the summer months. Some may opt to work with special summer programs. It is not uncommon for a Special Educator to work in residential facilities, hospitals and student homes. They also can teach the child’s parents methods and ways to help the child develop skills. This career can be highly rewarding but also extremely emotionally and physically draining. This is a reason why there are not many Special Educators.

“One of the essential roles of special education teachers is coteaching and working with other professionals, as well as communicating with family members and between special education teachers and other school-related professionals(Vaughn & Bos, 2015, p. 114)”. With the importance of a least restrictive environment special education and general education teachers are working together in a classroom with varying levels and abilities of learners. It is vitally important to have an effective relationship between the two teachers while developing and implementing lesson plans for learners with special needs. The physical space and dynamics of the classroom should fit the needs of the students and the established procedures should ensure a highly functional environment. Importantly, educators need to communicate to families “encouragement about what they can do at home and about an effective plan for providing instructional supports for their child(Vaughn & Bos, 2015, p. 114)”.

I will face many different challenges as a special education teacher including: data collection, making accommodations, and parental support. Data collection is huge in special education. I will need to be able to validate everything I do and make sure it coincides with everything in the student’s IEP (individualized education plan).

The student’s present level of academic performance and functional performance and a statement of how the disability affects the student’s involvement and progress in the general education curriculum. Preschool children must have a statement explaining how the disability affects the child’s participation in appropriate activities.

The special education teacher interviewed, talked about this goal to meet each child’s need is challenging to her especially in eleventh and twelfth grade. The teacher tries to strive towards their educational goals, their need areas, and work on their strengths.

A special education teacher needs to acquire a variety of different skills in order to succeed. “The majority of young men and women who major in special education bring a heaping helping of heart, personal commitment, and passion to the profession” (Hollingsworth). A special education teacher must enjoy working with children and developing activities and lessons to help them learn. Qualities necessary for

What does it mean to be a special educator? This question arises frequently in the world of education. There are many people who ask themselves this question every day. One could say that a special educator is an individual who has special interest and a passion for primarily interacting with children with disabilities. The special educator would also have knowledge of certain disabilities and the way they can influence children differently. Finally, they would want to have an added level of patience, due to the extra attention required to educate

When it comes to education, special education is a much needed service for students with disabilities. In order for students with disabilities to succeed in life, it is imperative to expose them to as many educational tools as possible. Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), 2004 solidified equal education opportunities for persons with disabilities. Researchers Diliberto and Brewer (2014) indicated that working together as a team to develop an effective IEP ensures academic success for students with disabilities. So, how important is an IEP? According to Diliberto and Brewer (2014) the IEP is the major key to planning the student’s instruction and provides an intervention to their educational needs. Diliberto and Brewer developed six tips that would assist an educator with having a successful IEP meeting.

In the career of special education, teachers are trained to work with students who have either a disability, or requires of a unique instructor. However, in order to become a special teacher it has a variety of requirements. For example, some of the requirements that this career requires is of a long term education that includes: schooling , a bachelor and master degree, at least two years of

“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.

An effective teacher of students with disabilities is one that actively utilizes the available resources to positively influence students’ educations. This includes anyone that may be on the IEP team or other school professionals that could be of assistance at that time. The most common person