I am currently a senior elementary education student, and I have to complete an interview with a parent of a student with disabilities. It would be very helpful to gain insight from the viewpoint of the parent, as well as how to help parents during the IEP meetings and educating parents about their rights. Thank you for your help! You can email your responses to these questions to [email protected]. The answers to these questions will only be presented in my assignment; my professor and I will be the only people that will ever see your responses. The questions are below:
1. What methods used by teachers have you found to work best with your child?
2. Describe one specific strategy used to help your child that worked most effectively.
3. What behavior management techniques have you found to be most effective in your child’s school experience?
4. In what ways have teachers approached possible school-related problems your child has faced?
5. In what ways, both positively and negatively, have you and your child experienced the impact of a teacher’s attitude and expectations have on children?
6. In what ways have you stayed involved in your child’s classroom? How do you develop positive working relationships with your child’s teachers?
7. How active is your role in developing your child’s IEP?
8. In your experience, how helpful have your child’s teachers been in educating you on your rights and the process of placement and IEP meetings?
9. Describe the collaboration that occurs between the general education teacher and special education teacher(s) in your child’s education.
10. What are your thoughts about full inclusion (your child spending the entire school day in the general classroom with no pull-out programs or classes)? Do you believe your child gains greater educational opportunities through inclusion?
11. In what ways have you experienced technology implemented in your child’s classroom? Do you believe assistive technology is a resource of which parents and teachers are aware?
12. How has the No Child Left Behind Act changed your child’s educational opportunities and experiences?
13. Have your child’s teachers in the past demonstrated awareness of the mandates and principles of IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)? To what extent did they work toward helping you understand this legislation?
14. How difficult do your think it is for teachers to create goals for the IEP, both short-term and long-term, that are both acceptable by standards and achievable?
15. What fears did you have when first sending your child to school? What additional fears have you experienced throughout your child’s education?
16. From what sources do you find strategies to help your child learn more effectively?
17. In what ways do you help educate others about your child’s disability? How receptive have others been to your child?
18. Do you find it difficult to communicate with your child’s classroom teacher? In what ways do you keep in touch with your child’s progress?
19. What advice would you give a teacher on the first day of school concerning teaching your child in the best possible environment?
20. What advice would you give teachers to help them find resources and educate parents of students with disabilities of their rights and resources?