teacher question

[CookieandOatmeal]

I teach high school so the environment may be a little different. With any of my students with IEPs/504s, I always make a point to talk to their case manager (special education teacher) at the start of the school year to have an idea of what their strengths/weaknesses are. It allows me to put my best foot forward with each child so there will be success in the classroom. For every student I get that has a disability that hinders their learning, I remind myself to be flexible, realistic with my expectations, and to think outside the box. Also constant communication with case managers and parents are a must. It allows everyone with an interest to be involved and to help the student succeed.

 

[tinkerbellandeeyor]

I don't think anyone has said teachers and TA's don't "pull their weight". I don't think anyone has brought TAs up yet, so I don't understand your vent.

Regarding the bolded, did you mean workshops instead of worships? If teachers are at workshops & meetings, don't they have subs? TA's don't teach the class in a teacher's absence, do they?

Yes

I hate auto correct

 

[EMAW_KSU]

Yes

I hate auto correct

How to turn off Auto-Correct

 

[Mizzoufan]

How to turn off Auto-Correct

Sorry quoted the wrong person.

 

[phorsenuf]

I must be the odd ball. Auto correct helps me more then it hurts lol

I agree. If you are not a good speller it's very helpful. Better to have one random odd word then something that's hard to understand. Plus I think it helps you learn how to spell correctly.

 

[Mizzoufan]

Yes

I hate auto correct

I think auto correct helps me more then it hurts me. I'm an oddball lol

 

[Kitty 34]

I've had some weird words pop up when using my phone!!! And when I'm texting without my glasses....oh boy, watch out!!!

 

[bsblady01]

guys thanks for all the tips. I had a good meeting with him and his parents and the groundwork as been set for him to have an iep for first grade. please keep the ideas coming.

 

[piccolopat]

Please don't be offended by this question. When I was a child, children with disabilities were in separate classes altogether. Now it seems like the majority are mainstreamed. I'm not sure how a teacher can devote so much attention to one child with special needs without it impacting the other children. I'd like to hear from the teachers here how this impacts your ability to teach the rest of the children in your classroom. I'd also like to know whether you believe that mainstreaming these children has been a success in general or if changes to the practice should be considered. I have a family member with Asperger's and know the issues he caused in the classroom.

 

[msjprincess]

Please don't be offended by this question. When I was a child, children with disabilities were in separate classes altogether. Now it seems like the majority are mainstreamed. I'm not sure how a teacher can devote so much attention to one child with special needs without it impacting the other children. I'd like to hear from the teachers here how this impacts your ability to teach the rest of the children in your classroom. I'd also like to know whether you believe that mainstreaming these children has been a success in general or if changes to the practice should be considered. I have a family member with Asperger's and know the issues he caused in the classroom.

In my school district there different levels of classes depending on the needs of the child. We have special ed classes with only special ed students and teachers. Blended classes with some special ed students and two teachers, one special ed and one not. And some students are mainstreamed and are taken out of the class for services a few times a week.

 

[BearFamily]

New education law says that students must be in the "least restrictive environment". So if they can be successful in a mainstream classroom with support and assistance, that is judged to be the best place for them to be, rather than sequestered in a separate class. That assistance can be one-on-one help, or accommodations including extra time, speech-to-text software, preferential seating, or a huge number of other things.

Many students with more severe disabilities are still in separate classrooms, but there are even laws about how "separate" those classrooms can be. My previous school had a multi-age 8-1-1 classroom (8 students with various severe issues, 1 teacher, 1 TA) that was required, by law, to be in the same general vicinity as the other classrooms. It literally could not be down at the end of a hallway or separate from other classrooms. Those students came to music, art and most PE classes (some had special PE also due to physical impairments) with the rest of their age group peers, as well as recess and lunch. However, all of their academic work was completed in that separate classroom. When they entered middle school, they each went to a separate teacher for some subjects and had accommodations in others as they were able, again, to keep them from being segregated.

I think the idea behind the law is fantastic. I think many districts across the US do not always have funding, staffing or support to make mainstreaming work in all the situations where it could. Some non-special-ed classroom teachers do not have the training they should in order to be able to make it work, although teachers who have come out of school in the last ten years or so certainly should have more than those of us who started teaching in the pre-mainstreaming days, and it's a constant focus of professional development in just about any school - particularly in these days of standardized testing insanity. Any teacher in the field should have a long list of strategies to use with students with various issues, and people/resources they can go to for more ideas when they are stumped.

And trust me, it's not always the student with a diagnosis and an IEP that is the one taking up more of your time and attention than they really should...

 

[piccolopat]

New education law says that students must be in the "least restrictive environment". So if they can be successful in a mainstream classroom with support and assistance, that is judged to be the best place for them to be, rather than sequestered in a separate class. That assistance can be one-on-one help, or accommodations including extra time, speech-to-text software, preferential seating, or a huge number of other things.

Many students with more severe disabilities are still in separate classrooms, but there are even laws about how "separate" those classrooms can be. My previous school had a multi-age 8-1-1 classroom (8 students with various severe issues, 1 teacher, 1 TA) that was required, by law, to be in the same general vicinity as the other classrooms. It literally could not be down at the end of a hallway or separate from other classrooms. Those students came to music, art and most PE classes (some had special PE also due to physical impairments) with the rest of their age group peers, as well as recess and lunch. However, all of their academic work was completed in that separate classroom. When they entered middle school, they each went to a separate teacher for some subjects and had accommodations in others as they were able, again, to keep them from being segregated.

I think the idea behind the law is fantastic. I think many districts across the US do not always have funding, staffing or support to make mainstreaming work in all the situations where it could. Some non-special-ed classroom teachers do not have the training they should in order to be able to make it work, although teachers who have come out of school in the last ten years or so certainly should have more than those of us who started teaching in the pre-mainstreaming days, and it's a constant focus of professional development in just about any school - particularly in these days of standardized testing insanity. Any teacher in the field should have a long list of strategies to use with students with various issues, and people/resources they can go to for more ideas when they are stumped.

And trust me, it's not always the student with a diagnosis and an IEP that is the one taking up more of your time and attention than they really should...

Thanks for the info. I know about the laws that required these changes. I understand that the implementation of the law has benefited at least some children with disabilities but am curious about how it has affected other children. Since my sister is a teacher, I've heard that many of the day to day problems are caused by children without disabilities that have never been taught to respect others, follow rules, do their schoolwork, etc. Most times their parents are even more of a problem because they blame the teachers for their own failure to parent.

 

[bsblady01]

Please don't be offended by this question. When I was a child, children with disabilities were in separate classes altogether. Now it seems like the majority are mainstreamed. I'm not sure how a teacher can devote so much attention to one child with special needs without it impacting the other children. I'd like to hear from the teachers here how this impacts your ability to teach the rest of the children in your classroom. I'd also like to know whether you believe that mainstreaming these children has been a success in general or if changes to the practice should be considered. I have a family member with Asperger's and know the issues he caused in the classroom.

kids here are put in a regular ed classroom with pullout services

 

[BearFamily]

I understand that the implementation of the law has benefited at least some children with disabilities but am curious about how it has affected other children.

I think that answer to that would vary widely by state, district, and even by classroom. A classroom with a teacher who has a lot of tools at his/her disposal, a reasonable class size, lots of support from district special ed personnel and a community that is supportive of education and of teachers will have much more success with mainstreaming children with disabilities than a teacher with a huge class, with no help or special training and a community that distrusts schools and teachers. The problems there are much bigger than mainstreaming!

Since my sister is a teacher, I've heard that many of the day to day problems are caused by children without disabilities that have never been taught to respect others, follow rules, do their schoolwork, etc. Most times their parents are even more of a problem because they blame the teachers for their own failure to parent.

I have definitely seen the situation your sister is talking about in classrooms. She's absolutely right - not in every school or classroom - but it's out there. I think the issue of mainstreaming students with learning or emotional disabilities is a whole different question. Many students (particularly upper el and middle school girls) with learning disabilities are so invested in making sure that no one knows they are struggling in school that they are extremely quiet and well behaved - not the kids you notice drawing the teacher's attention.

 

[msjprincess]

kids here are put in a regular ed classroom with pullout services

All special ed students?

 

[bsblady01]

All special ed students?

yes they do it for all students that don't need one on one service. I love that they give these kids a chance and they don't put them in a class where they don't have a chance. in new York the special ed student's are re tested every year, and some student's do end up in a self contained classroom in the upper grades.

 

[Hrhpd]

I have a question, we just got our class list for next year today and I will have a little boy with autism in my class next year. this will be my first time having a student like this in my class. I asked his kindergarten teacher a little bit about him today and he had a big issue with seat time he was ok during free play. what can I do as a teacher to make things easy for him in first grade where we have more seat time and less play time. I have my room set up where four kids sit together would it be better to do each desk in a row next year and have him sit in the front of the room. I am going to email the parents and open the lines of communication now so I can get to know them better, his kindergarten teacher said that it worked out well for her this year. if you guys have any ideas for me I am open to anything to help this little boy have a great first grade year. are there any good books on this subject I should read this summer

How are things going now that school is in session?

 

[ez]

question about least restrictive environment. What do you consider to be success for a child with a disability in a mainstream class? I feel that my son makes more progress in a gen ed room (no aids) with access to full curriculum than in the ese room where expectations are so low, but am battling over him not being on grade level. First meeting with teacher this year she said, first thing, I would like your version of what happened at his last iep meeting because I heard that no one wanted him in my class (gen ed).

 

[bsblady01]

How are things going now that school is in session?

it's going well

 

[bsblady01]

question about least restrictive environment. What do you consider to be success for a child with a disability in a mainstream class? I feel that my son makes more progress in a gen ed room (no aids) with access to full curriculum than in the ese room where expectations are so low, but am battling over him not being on grade level. First meeting with teacher this year she said, first thing, I would like your version of what happened at his last iep meeting because I heard that no one wanted him in my class (gen ed).

does he have any pull outs during the day for extra help.