Some solutions in my professional judgment that can
address disproportionate representation in special education are the different
experience levels of teachers. Many teacher start out in inner city schools and
“move up” to suburbs. I say it like this because I have heard a few teachers
say this. I disagree with this completely. I do not believe going from inner
city to a suburb is moving up. The pay may be different, but if you are
teaching 2nd grade, the level does not change. All students learn at different
speeds and each student learns differently. Getting to know a student will
benefit the progress of that student no matter whether they are special ed.,
with a learning disability or gifted and talented. If a teacher understands the
best ways for a student to learn, they will be able to guide each student to
success.
As “Education
for All” states, the panel found reason to believe that schools with higher
concentrations of low-income, minority children are more likely to have
teachers who are less experiences and less well trained. These schools are also
less likely to offer advanced courses. I believe that our attention should be
focused in these low-income schools because they should have the same
opportunities as the other schools do. If children are gifted, they should be
classrooms that are beneficial to them. If there are students with learning
disabilities, there should be classrooms that are least restrictive to them as
well. The teachers that are hired in these schools are not less well trained,
however they do not have as much experience always. Having said this, a teacher
who has an open mind while teaching and teaches students to their student’s
zone of proximal development will be the most successful no matter what race or
ethnicity they are.
I am not a teacher in the classroom every day,
however I do tutor a girl three times a week at an inner city school. I am in
the library and I see the librarian interact with some of the children when
they first come into school. She asks them about their siblings, and parents.
She asks them how their weekends are and what they did. I have also heard her
state that she talked to some of their moms before outside of school. Doing
this, the librarian showed me that she is trying to take accommodations one
step further with incorporation. This is stated in “Education for All” as well. Although she is not a teacher, her
asking the students what is going on at home and then talking to the teachers
and telling them what the children’s responses were will benefit them all. The
librarian, teachers, and other staff members should all work as a team to help
improve the student in the classroom.
Megan,hearing about the librarian asking about students home lives is awesome to hear. I feel that, that understanding is vital to the success of students in the classroom because it shows that students aren't there just to "play school" but that teachers do care about them on a personal level, and want them to succeed. Like you said teachers knowing this will benefit all involved.
ReplyDeleteI agree that focus should be turned to low-income schools. These students should have the same opportunities as other students in more affluent communities. But this is simply not happening. To provide programs for low income schools, funding is needed. So not only are we discussing over identification of students for special education, we are now adding money and tax dollars into the equation. It's a very leggy issue. My hope is that teachers can make difference at their level with the resources they have.
ReplyDeleteBeing a literacy intervention teacher in the Youngstown City Schools, and having little to no experience elsewhere, I enjoyed your post a lot. Many people that I worked with are moving on to Boardman or Austintown schools just to get their foot in the door because they feel that they are moving up. I chose to stay because right now, as I get established, I'm trying not to make it about the income or the idea that if I left the city schools, that I'd be getting a better experience. I feel like as an educator, it is my duty to be where I am in order to service those kids because they deserve it just as much as students from other school districts. There isn't much funding and many of the schools do not have parent organizations. In fact, the school that I'm stationed just had their first PTO meeting this Wednesday. Unfortunately there wasn't a huge turnout. There were however, some parents that have always been interested in collaborating with the educators in order to make the school and their child's education as successful as possible. I fully agree that we need to be putting our time and attention into the city schools because the diversity is high, the income in low, and as mentioned in a previous post I made, the kids who have difficulty learning are often times the ones who get frustrated and eventually suspended for three days at a time. I think that your example of the interaction the librarian had with the students and families is how we need to approach education in general. If there's no equality when it comes to how we look at and treat the parents of our students, then how could we expect to have equality in the services that are provided to them? We need a strong force with valued and loud voices to make a change.
ReplyDeleteHi, Megan! Well written post. I am so happy to hear about the librarian that goes beyond todays standards of what an educator is considered and connects with her students. It reminds me of how some of my teachers were when I was little. I understand that it can be more difficult to know the students like that in a larger school district, but if you pay attention and actually work, you can learn an awful lot about your students. It's just like you said, "Getting to know a student will benefit the progress of that student no matter whether they are special ed., with a learning disability or gifted and talented. If a teacher understands the best ways for a student to learn, they will be able to guide each student to success."
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