Special Education Field Experience

Last year was the first time I worked the Special Olympics, and I didn’t know what to expect. I signed up for it with my basketball team because the Special Olympians would be playing basketball and volunteers were needed to help run the scoreboard and keep time. Mr. Campbell, the man in charge, told me that the opportunity to play basketball will be an incredible experience for the special needs participants, but working the event will have an even greater affect on me. I was

My career path to education is one that has evolved over the years. Growing up I always know I wanted to work with children. Within my undergrad experience become a teacher seem to feel like it was where I belong. Being in the position of starting my path as a special education teacher for mild to moderate, I can see how my role as an educator can have an impact on students’ lives.

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

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.

Everyone has their own set of strengths and weaknesses. Those with disabilities are no different they just have a different set then everyone else. I chose this project topic because in 5th and 6th grade I was part of a program called Peer Pals. Once a week during recess I volunteered in a special needs classroom. This work opened my eyes to the world of special needs and Peer Pals is one of the things I miss about elementary school. I realized that I needed to continue helping the special needs community. No solutions presented themselves and then one day the solution stared me in the face from it’s home in the Reston Community Center Program Guide. “Volunteer at the Adapted Aquatics Class,” I had found a solution to my problem.

The concepts of motivation allowed me to understand each of my students on an individual level as well. Not all students are motivated the same way and learning new ways to motivate first graders that are not, “if you do this, you will get a prize” changed my classroom environment. I used strategies like goal-setting to get my students motivated to do well on their assignments. When they saw the growth they were making it was pushing them to do better. They didn’t need to get something in order to do well. The satisfaction in seeing their growth gave them motivation. I am hoping that by starting them out with this strategy young, stays with them as they move on to the upper grade levels.

In ninth grade, my mother suggested that I volunteer with peers at my high school who are special needs. She thought it would be good for me to meet other people my age who have their unique struggles in school, much like myself. I protested originally, but little did I know I would love volunteering with my peers, regardless of their disability. During this time, I signed up to volunteer with a local organization called Buddy Ball. At Buddy Ball, I had the opportunity to teach children with disabilities ages five through twenty-one baseball. When I volunteered with my peers, I mainly saw high schoolers with severe autism, intellectual disabilities, and emotional disturbances, whereas with Buddy Ball most of the participants had severe autism, intellectual disability, muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, epilepsy, or a multiple of disabilities. Both of these experiences allowed me to gain knowledge of a variety of special

Venus is a Special Education Assistant (SEA) in the Minneapolis middle school for the past 5 years. She has worked in a different district with early elementary for one year. She has a high school diploma. She is currently teaching writing to the higher functioning group during 5th period in the self-contained classroom. The students work on writing their name, spelling Dolch sight words and practice writing in between the lines. She rides the bus to school every day with student Jay. Venus provides one to one assistance to different students at different times. She takes them to music, life skills, reading and writing.

Motivation is an important aspect of everyday life. "Researchers have consistently found that an approach based on extrinsic rewards and consequences actually reduces children's intrinsic motivation to learn" (Solley). Motivation is lost due to the pressure

Motivation can be defined as the desire or inspiration to carry out specific tasks or to do something. Motivation is required when goals are being set and more so in their execution. In a work setting, motivation can be defined as a process through which individuals choose between alternative forms of behavior with the aim of achieving personal objectives. The goals sought by individuals can be extrinsic or relatively tangible such as monetary rewards and promotion, or intrinsic or intangible such as self esteem or job satisfaction (Armstrong, 2006). In learning, the desire to attain good grades is what motivates a student to study hard everyday as they prepare for the exam. On the other hand, for a teacher to put his best foot forward, he

1. How do you perceive the field of education changing, especially in the area of serving students with special needs?

The Special Olympics programs includes a variety selection of sports and positions in which you can volunteer in. Due to the fact that I swim every day and I am comfortable in the water I teach down-syndrome, autistic, and attention span deficit kids how to swim. Some kids will throw tantrums and will start crying but others might just go along with it, and have fun with the water. Through this time that I spend with my swimmers we create bonds that can’t be broken. These kids give off positive energy that can warm anybody’s heart.

In the beginning of the school year, I demonstrated leadership by participating in a Special Education Field Day. Students aged from kindergarten to twelfth grade with mental disabilities came from all over West Texas to have a fun-filled day of running, jumping, cycling, and games.

I have known I wanted to be a teacher since first grade. I loved helping other in class, and my first grade teacher even let me run the class during our daily warm ups. I never really consider being a special education teacher until I got older though. My cousin has down syndrome and I have been working and playing with him since I was born. I always loved playing with him and going to Buddy Walks every fall to support him. Him and I just get each other and get along very well. About a year ago, for his birthday, he had a party at a bowling alley. He invited all his friends from his alternative class in Evergreen. There were children six children total, five with Down Syndrome and one with Autism ranging in age. I bowled with them the whole

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.