Module 1 Interview

My first interview was with the teacher whose classroom I will be working in this quarter. She has been in the field for 17 years and loves what she does. She has worked in grades kindergarten through 5^th grade, it’s normally a surprise to her every year what grade she is going to teach. My primary focus right now is regarding inclusion with special needs so I started my interview off with these questions.

1.      What is your school’s philosophy regarding inclusion?

Inclusion has become a regular task for classrooms now and all students are now in the same classroom settings. Children with IEP’s may have shadows that may guide them through certain academic areas where they need to build on. Yet all children are treated equally regardless of their special needs or their work ethics. If children need further assistance there are aids that comes in depending on the area that needs attention or the teacher will offer extra one-on-one assistance to help that child.

2.      How many children who have been identified with special needs are you responsible for?

At this particular time I have 24 children in my classroom and there are 6 children that have been identified with special needs. I accommodate the children the best that I can, but giving the fact that I am usually the only one in my classroom. I have tutors that come in from time to time to help with the children who have IEP’s, but it’s not every day that they come in.

3.      Explain the ways in which you collaborate with parents/family members, as well as special professionals, to best build on the strengths and serve the needs of the children and their families who have special needs?

First, we set up a meeting with the family to discuss what we have found out regarding test that have been preformed and let the parents know that we are here to help them as well as the child. As we explain what is going on we then let them know what we think is best and set up another appointment for the children and the parent to meet with a specialist as well as with the teacher. Once that has been done we provide different sources for the parents and families to come to workshops and meeting that is set up to help parents and families.

4.      What strategies do you find most useful when implementing lessons?

The strategies that I find most useful is teaching to the class is allowing myself to make every assignment interesting somehow. This is how I keep my students engaged and interested in what I am teaching. It also lets me know what their interest are and how they are willing to work together to get the job done.

5.      What are some of the rewards and challenges of your work?

Some of my rewards are when I come to school on Monday and see all these faces ready for their next task, and there on point when we may go over something that we were working on last week. So I always try to keep my lesson interesting to them because they become more focused. My challenges when it comes to my job, is being able to implement instructions that entire class can understand and be able to do the lesson effectively.

6.      What do you believe are the advantages/or disadvantages to inclusive approach for children with special needs?

The advantage can be that the children with special needs can be included with their regular peers. The disadvantage can be that the child’s disability can be so severe that the child may not be able to function with their regular peers causing them to be disruptive and causing the others children to be disruptive.

7.      What do you believe are the advantages and/or disadvantages to inclusive approach for children in your classroom who have not been identified as having special needs?

The disadvantages for children that have not been identified with special needs are that they would not be getting the proper care or services that they need and it may hinder them in their achievements.

            These were some questions that I was able to get answered in a short amount of time that I had for the interview. I was surprised at how many children she had in her classroom that have special needs with the total number of student that she has in her classroom with no assistance daily. This is what we as teachers have to be ready for when you come into CPS. It’s the love of the job and dedication that will keep a coming back to teach our children.

            My second interviewee was an aid that comes in and helps this one particular special needs student. She comes in three times a week for 45 minutes and works with the child on her speech. The aid comes in when the class has their library time, and she comes in and works with the child on speech therapy. She says she has shadowed this child since she was in kindergarten and at first her speech was very badly broken where as though it was nearly impossible to understand what she was saying. She says that the school provided a phonics tool for her and she uses it 45 minutes for three days a week and it had done wonders for her speech at this point.

            As you can see my passion as well as my concentration is a special need. I have always had a soft spot when it comes to children with special needs it has been a call of duty for me, and I see in the near future that I will be the advocate and voice for children who have special needs.