LD'er wants to be a teacher???

I have an idea. Max out a bunch of credit cards and file bankruptcy. I know it isn’t playing by the rules just think of it as do it your self justice in a world that for the most part doesn’t give a crap about you. Get your teaching certificate and do what you want to do. You should teach. get all the $$$ you can and go back to college. Iused to work for a collection agency and I can tell you this it is better to owe than to be owed.

HI Ishka:

I to want become a teacher. I finished my last class in my bachelors the week before Thanksgiving. I am starting in a teaching credential program in January. Most state are desperate for teachers and will pay for the credential. What state are you in? Have you look is to substitute teaching? Most people qualify with bachelors in most state to sub. I could help you more if, I knew what state you were in.

See

Hi it’s me…
I live in Wisconsin. I have already called the local Public School System and they are not accepting applications, thats what she said anyways.

So, what’s next?

Ishka

You have two issues

1)
a)
You need to go back to school.
I think I know the college you are referring too.
Have you gone in to see your admissions counselor to see what you need to do to get your teaching credential?

b)
Regarding paying for school you should be eligible for financial aid still. The federal government loans you can take out over $100,000. So I would contract your college financial aid department. ASAP.

c)
Could you get in for spring?

2) You need a job:
If you just want to get your foot in the door in the one district that you have already called .The main thing is getting your foot in the door by any means necessary. That may mean take a job as an classroom aide, secretarial, cafeteria lady, anything just to get your foot in the door.

How to deal with any district employee kill one with kindness. If you talk to someone and they do you some for you or give you information useful or not write a thank you note.

A)
Contact other local school districts and see if they’re hiring. I know the school district I live in isn’t hiring but neighboring districts are.

B)
Contact your local Cooperative Educational Service Agency. They may have jobs available through them I am mainly referring to substitute teaching.
I live in California my county agency had a more favorable substituting teaching job than the local school district. Because I could just substitute special education. But they also had a list of substitutes to be used by all districts in the county.

Be very persistent.

What are you trying to teach? Just curiosity.

By the way it’s OK to use the name of the college you attended.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,
See

Feel free to e-mail me at

You are a welcomed advisor/ counselor, SEE

I will go to my ALVERNO COLLEGE advisor today. (: Thanks.
I will probably be able to get in for the spring session.

Ishka

PS. My goal is to teach high school students - someday. My experience was that there is little education/ acknowledgement/ comfort / caring or understanding at the high school level.
I’ve found that the Montessori method is a wonderful approach to learning. But, here where I live, it is still largely a philosophy that isn’t “mainstream” methodology.

Though I don’t recall the stats, Maria Montessori didn’t have much of failure rate. I mean if you want to compare to the local public school system. Errugh???

But, I would probably start off at the elementary level.

thanks for your interest.

By the by, who is this Ball character?

Ball? I really don’t want to encourage any off color remarks, but,
I do want to thank you for the encouragement to return to school to teach. (:

Ishka,

Ball is a character alright. I encourage you to be ateacher even if you decide for some reason not to do it professionally. I tried reading a book by Jean Piaget about epistomology I’m still not sure what that is as I’m not sure if Piaget does either but I think that learning and intelligence are still seeking to be defined. Overall I think learning is a natural human event. Good teaching is the meaningful method of conveyence of information into a theoretical and practical in a gamut that the brain can process.

Ball is plagued by brain farts almost constantly but yet I can come up with brilliant sounding BS like the above statement. I am not a conventional thinker because I don’t know how to be. I am an avid photographer and often I will lay on the ground to take pictures of the ground and the sky. I guess I love seeing conventional things from an unconventional point of view. That to me is part of creative thinking. The conventional wisdom surrounding LD “ain’t workin to good” Break the rules!!

Ball you are a gem!

I too looked up Piaget and from what I understand his is a theory of constructionsim simplified is this:
Adults and children don’t learn or process information in the same way.

My retort to this is DUH! Of corse, he also had an almost obsession studying mollusks and his own children from infancy.

Not unlike the big government funding that went into the research on (loosely translated) what is the number one reason children get hurt? the answer: they fall down. DUH again!

I suppose back then when Piaget was around they didn’t have common sense.

I don’t know. Not to many of the theorists did/ do anything other than get theirselves professorships, chairs and nice lakeside houses. Ultimately, their theories also support the colleges need to take in folks and teach them so that when the graduate they will have no use for the information they paid to learn. Oh, oh…I am sounding somewhat Ballesque. sorry…

Bless you for bringing the endorphine levels back to my brain when I am feeling rather…endorphine depleated.

You are, brainfarts included, a genius.

Ishka ( :

Piaget conducted some famous experiments with children that demonstrated at what age thay were able to understand certain concepts. From what I recall his work was very valid. One experiment in particular showed that at aronud 6 or 7 years of age is when kids are able to understand volume. To me that sort of experiment is valid because it tests and evaluates the brain. It is scientifically sound and it is useful information for educators. At the risk of sounding”Ballesque” I wonder how many educators know about that experiment.

What Piaget did was put the same amount of water from identical glasses and poured one into a short fat glass and the other into a tall thin glass but before he poured the water hw would ask the child which glass had the most water. The children would respond saying the amounts were the same but when Piaget poured the water into the short and tall glass the childre always said that there was more water in the tall glass despite the fact that both glasses really had the same amount. At around 7 or 8 yrs old kids are able to make the mental leap and grasp the concept of volume. I think this experiment is worth repeating on large samples of children to so if todays children are developing the same as the children of Piaget’s time. You could probably do your doctoral thesis on it.

Now so as not to let you down here is a truly Ballesque remark. Do you think todays educators are capable of making the same mental leap that Piaget’s eight year olds did or do you think that the analogy to Pavlov’s dogs would be more like it. After all, schools have bells and I have known many a teacher who would drool at anticpation at the sound of the last day’s bell but then agian perhpas the analogy of Mendel’s peas would be even better. Peas only have one chromosome. Now that was Ballesque!

Ball, you are neuron food!

Howard Gardner and Maria Montessori trip my trigger a bit more than some of the traditionalists.

Although, they were, most likely, inspired by the shortcomings of traditionalists. To get to the next educational/ learning plateau. gardner and Montessori seem, to me, to explore other, more comprehensive approaches to learning/teaching.

My reasoning is this, if you do well in the “normal” (perhaps traditional) linear system of education, you cannot fathom any other way to grasp reality. Ergo, educators who beat you over the head with the three R’s because that is the way that they learned it and by golly you will too.

For those of us who have a bit more perceptive(perhaps) delicate(maybe) alternative(absolutley) way of processing information, a mental beating up will increase the low self-esteem and decrease any desire to continue learning. (although it stinks of conspiracy theory, perhaps that is just what they want)

Oh, but you know this sweetie. Maybe I am just blabbing on and on because I hope to convince myself that I am a teacher. I so enjoy chatting with you. You are, er, a Ball! {:

Ishka,

Print your own diploma you already know more than 99% of the Special ed teachers out there but I think what makes you really valuable is that you learned first hand and by experience. Not only do you know it you are it as in some ways so am I. I had to learn how to learn and by doing that I believe I know things that the experts can not posibly know. It’s like you can read a book on how to fix a car engine but until you have done it for real you are not a mechanic.

As you may know I am suspect of the “expert’s” knowledge and methodology. I came to where I am from a series of concussions which makes me wonder this, If parents who are frustrated with how a school system is dealing with their LD kids were to take a baseball bat and modify the brains of these clueless pursuers of June, July and August the same way mine has been modified then perhaps they would have an understanding equal to that of mine on this subject.

That was so Ballesque, when I could have just said “they need to walk a mile in my shoes.”

This is fun.

Why yes Ball, there is a Santa Claus.

I would be honored to volunteer for this warrior like mission to convert those who doubt our “invisable” disabilities into warriors of ld. However the unfortunate thing is I do not look too good in day glow orange! (or horizontal stripes for that matter, depending on where you live)

It would be nice if we could these non-belivers into a LDer’s virtual reality room. Tell them that there is an exit sign over there (she points erroneously to any direction) and seal the room, and watch from behind the one way glass.

Of course, on occasion we would hold virtual IEP meetings and offer labels. these would only be in effort to patronize in condescending fashion, any questions that might come up.

Occasionally we could send in a “specialist” (AR AR AR…Yeah sure that would be fun)so we could diagnose and rediagnose the folks. Maybe mess with their meds or something. We’ll tell ‘em “No my dear, there is a door there you JUST HAVENT TRIED HARD ENOUGH to get out.” Okeedoke buddy?

I was born LD, I think, and recieved more than my share of knocks to the noggin. (which some say explains alot) One which actually knocked me out for- well they say I was awake but I don’t remember several months of my life. I was fortunate that it wasn’t later in life. Some info that I’ve read suggested that it is harder to re-learn when the noggin’ gets knocked after elementary school age.

There are so many mitigating circumstances for all the brain stuff, really. Genetics, environment, economics (after all if you don’t have the dough-there aren’t to many places to go!)you name it. then you multiply the factors by multiples of geographical location, politics and caste systems. Add a taste of the pharmacuticals game, you’re deppressed well we’ll give ya a couple of these and a couple of those, well…go figure! the brain is a sensitive organ/ computer.

Most people wouldn’t think throwing a wrench in their hardrive, but, they are quick to suggest meds.

Oh noooo! I am bumming myself out! Need endorphines, must have endorphines!

Quick, the Ball is in your court! HEE HEE

Hey Ball!

Gotta idea. About.com has chat room available called lds.
This goes for the rest of the folks reading this too. I am limited as far as hard drive/ server capacity and have tried other chatty rooms. Whats to say we can start our own space??? I mean i don’t know if that is what the ld in lds stands for. I tried creating a room called “knocked on the noggin’ ” but apparently didn’t have the cia clearance for it.

give it a shot. Lets say 7:oo ish standard central????

you know who…

I graduated with a SPED degree in LD, PK-9. I also have a dyscalculia and borderline learning disabilities, for labels-sake. I would suggest looking into U. of Wisconsin- Oshkosh. There is a program available for students with dyslexia. The program stresses phonemic awareness with a multi-sensory approach. I would never discourage anyone with LD to not pursue their passion but it is important to know your strengths and weaknesses. I occasionally struggle when trying to explain a math procedure to a student and an instructor can be patient but if not worded well can also cause a lot of confusion. Hope this helps and best of luck to you and in your future!

Some communities are very acceptable of people who have the ability and a learning disabilty of becoming any type of teacher and some are not. The answer that i have for those of you living in a community or county that is not and once you have attempted to go after a job just like any one else and you have all the credentials to do that job and you feel they are saying know because you a learning disability and teh ability challenge by filing a complaint I.e EEOC ot through another avenue and open the path for your selves and zillions of others.