special education

In most classrooms, the role of special education teacher is that of a glorified para-educator (assistant, aide, etc.) They drift and ride herd on behaviors. Never teach. Aren’t an equal partner in the planning process. Some don’t mind, others do mind.

From what I know Susan is correct. However, I do know that the sp ed teacher in my child’s class previews the tests and makes suggestions about changes prior to their administration. For my child I do not care, however, overall I think it is done improperly, and reg ed teacher is going along with it. Here is an example of a middle school test- In English the teacher will give a vocabulary test. She originally had a spelling section in adddition to having students use the word in a sentence, definition, syn and ant. sections.The sp ed teacher decided that the spelling section would be inappropriate (after viewing ieps). Now for my child spelling is appropriate and I feel he should know how to spell the word he is using. The spelling was entirely deleted from the test for ALL students, not just those with lds that cause a problem learning how to spell correctly. I find that improper. Most parents do not know that these changes occur, I know bcs the sp ed teacher told me about the test change suggested. Since my son spells well, I do not see this as an issue to debate (carefully picking what I discuss), but I think it is wrong to make that change based on ieps of some, for all children. Making the change based on the fact that it is a vocabulary test may be okay, although they no longer get spelling tests, and spelling is an important skill when spell check is not around :).

Hi Christine,
As a special ed. teacher, I have had great experiences and horrible experiences in the regular ed. classroom. I can tell you that it all depends on the regular ed.teacher. In some classrooms, I’ve been that glorified aide and hated every minute of it. In other classrooms, I’ve sat down with my co-partner and gone over lesson plans, made changes to expectations, modified tests-homework-classwork, retest students, reteach students, oversee projects, etc. In one classroom, I actually sat down with the teacher designed lesson plans with her and graded all the assignments & team taught.

Lisa

Yes, Christine I agree with the others. As a special education teacher, it’s been my experience that the personality of the regular ed. teacher is an important factor in inclusion success. What is ideally talked about in workshops etc. is far from reality. I feel special educators are more often than not taking on the role of a teacher’s assistant rather than a co-teacher, planner, or lesson leader. I’ve come to the realization that this will probably not change. In the future, I wonder if special education teachers will be coordinators of sed paperwork and aide schedules rather than direct teaching of students. However, when the right chemistry happens in a co-teaching situation it’s awesome for everyone involved.

Here in Georgia, many of the teaching prep programs are preparing both the special education teacher and general education teacher for inclusion by having them take course work together, and assignments given through the courses often require the participation of these two types of teachers. I have met several teachers who have graduated from this type of program and they have stated that it has prepared them well for inclusion. I am sure that more colleges throughout the country have this type of program in their curriculum. It couldn’t come at a better time as more and more students are in need of inclusionary type of service. Unfortunately, many of teachers today have not had to encounter inclusion in their classrooms, much less every having had a special needs student. We are all very aware of the fact that some people just don’t change easily.

Laurie

It depends on the needs of the students. The special educator can act as a consultant—not working with students but with the teacher, giving her strategies and modifications to allow the child to be successful in the general education classroom. If the child’s needs are excessive and the team recommends resource support outside of the classroom, then she may interact to a different degree with the general education teacher. If there are special needs students who are receiving their support in the general education classroom, rather than resource, the special educator may indeed be co-teaching. His/her involvement will depend on the needs of the students. A good working partnership between the classroom teacher and special educator is essential. If both instructors have the welfare of the students as a primary goal, then such a situation can be beneficial. Communication and planning are essential for success.