Some final thoughts on special education as a part of today's school system - reflections captured after completing my first special education course at William and Mary.
Like many other educators before, I entered EPPL 640
with only a brief understanding of special education issues. The few concepts I
could grasp came from being thrust into the position of special educator by
necessity. Examples of this would be looking at my class homeroom list and
seeing seven students with a one letter mark under the disability category, which
meant they had been labeled with some sort of learning disability and that I
would need to go to the main office and read the IEP. Another example would
occur when the assistant principal would come in my classroom during a break
and ask me to attend an IEP meeting for one of my students, as a core subject
teacher.
In
instances such as these, my learning curve only developed to the point of
realizing two things. First, the special education community shared a lot of
acronyms as part of its jargon. To me, it was like learning a foreign language,
and being unwilling to do so, I chose to pick up any information that was
necessary to know, and leave the rest for others. Second, I learned that the
IEP document had to be followed, so it was important to read the file, and ask
for its whereabouts when being unable to find the file for one of my chosen
students. Particularly in my three years as an alternative school teacher, I
learned that in many cases, the file lagged behind the student, or was not
immediately updated in my school. This happened because many of our students
were transient, arriving and departing in a fashion which was not orderly.
Therefore, as a teacher, it was important to make sure that I was aware of a
student’s status by our special education coordinator.
The
special education experiences of many teachers mirror my own. We teach general
education students, but must work within the parameters of the individual education
plan (IEP) set forth for the special education students who are included in our
classes. We do not necessarily choose our students, but are required to learn
about their unique situations, and some of the rules regarding special
education, in the process. It is my belief that all teacher induction programs
should include a required course in special education law, because most of us
are affected by them.
Reflecting,
after a condensed ten session introduction to deeper issues within the special
education community, one thing is apparently clear. Each student and situation
has to be reviewed from a number of lenses. There is not always a “one size
fits all” type of answer to solve each problem. During my master’s degree
program at the University of Virginia, I recall a professor who addressed each
case study by saying…”it depends.” At the time, it was humorous, because the
initial implication was that the professor was unsure, However, after weighing
every factor and nuance of a case, it becomes obvious that they are not all
handled in the same manner, and it really does depend. To me, this made our
case studies the most meaningful aspect of the course, and a focal point of my
reflections.
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