One concept I read about in this week's reading from chapter one that stuck with me was the concept of the teacher-student relationship (pg. 7). It stated that there is a strong association between the quality of the teacher-student relationship and school performance. Also, behavior problems among students early in school are less likely to have problems later in school if they have good relationships with their early year teachers. I have observed the special education classroom I am observing for this course before and it has many of the same students in it that it has had in previous years. Since the teacher has the students for many years in a row, they are able to build a great teacher-student relationship and I can see the trust and respect they have built for each other over this time. In my future teaching, I hope to build these types of relationships with students whether I have them for one year or multiple years. I think that having this relational support in the classroom helps students in their development and proves that teachers can make a difference in student's lives. One important way that I plan on supporting student learning in my classroom is through building relationships with my students so that they are more comfortable asking me for help and so that they can come to me with any issues that arise.
One concept I read about in this week's reading from chapter two that stuck with me was the concept of cognitive development and how to support it (pg. 42, 64). This struck me as important because I have researched Piaget's stages and his theory of cognitive development, but I like how this chapter talks about the implications this has on teaching. Many of the strategies shown to be most beneficial are just good teaching practices. I find this interesting especially after taking many classes at Trinity that teach strategies for many types of learners and students with disabilities. Most of these strategies that I have been taught can be used in classrooms to benefit all learners- not just ones with specific disabilities. I believe it is the same for supporting cognitive development-as well as all other modes of development- if you are using best practices and good teaching strategies, you will not have to worry as much about differentiating, because everyone can benefit from these practices.
One concept I read about in this week's reading from chapter three that stuck with me was the concept of identity and adolescents searching for their identity (pg. 90). The adolescent search for identity is something fresh in my mind because I just took the middle grades course at Trinity and identity is something we talked about a lot. We talked about the characteristics of middle grade students and how they are in a stage of self-discovery and they are on a journey that requires a lot of questioning, critical thinking, and identity construction. Students can find their identity in many places; their race, ethnicity, religion, birth order, socio-economic status, gifts and talents, etc. Many students are given labels as soon as they walk into schools. Some are labels given by the school; such as, ESL, SPED, ADHD, etc. Some are labels given by peers, such as; geek, teacher's pet, goody-two-shoes, jock, etc. Adolescence is a time of self-discovery and deciding who they really are and what those labels really mean for them. In my student observation of this special education classroom, I can already see that these students are getting to an age where they want to fit in with their peers. One of the students hates going to special music and refuses to participate because he would rather just go to music with his normal homeroom class. He doesn't participate much in that one either though so they keep him in the special music class. I can see that this student already knows some of his differences and labels. After reading this chapter and reflecting, I can say that I will be more aware of the developmental stages my students are going through and I will be sensitive to them as they are figuring things out for themselves. I will also be sure to shy away from using labels to describe my students. They are people first and foremost, not their labels.
I agree that it really is an advantage in most cases to have students for more than one year to really get to know them and to avoid having to go through that get acquainted period every year. Unfortunately there aren't that many schools where this happens. In my first several years of teaching in special ed, I had a couple classes that carried over from one year to the next. I found that already knowing the parents was a big plus in most cases. Don't you wonder why teachers don't keep students for more than one school year more often?
ReplyDeleteJessica I love the connection that you made between your placement and ch. 3. I agree it is vital to actually observe our students closely. I've also noticed in placements sometimes teacher's take on a "what's best for the majority" mentality. I assume it's going to be hard balance our time between individual student attention and class time. I wonder why a student would be made to attend a special music class? From your post it sounds as if they are using it as some form of punishment, which if that is the case I think that would be really damaging to the students development. As well as hurting the way he views special students.
ReplyDeleteHi Jessica, its great that you were able to make some great connections with your observation and the first weeks readings. I think its reamazing the connections and progress a student can make when they have been with a teacher for more than one year. One a student is diagnosed with something specific accomadations can be made, for example if a child has autism and isnt verbal accomadations can be made but as flashcards for sign laguage along with other symbols that will be useful for cummunication.
ReplyDeleteJess, first of all, I really like the emphasis that you put on building relationships with our students. It is so important to build those relationships in order to better connect with our students, help them learn and desire to learn better, and to create a safe environment where they are comfortable asking questions and participating in class discussions and activities. Second, I really liked when you talked about the importance of using good teaching strategies. We do often put so much emphasis on differentiation that we forget that sometimes instead of always differentiating, we can simply use good teaching strategies that will benefit not just one or a few students, but the entire class. The things that we teach and the way that we teach should be in a way that will benefit the entire class, not just to differentiate for the students who need it. Great insight, Jess!
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