Special Education Teacher and General Education Teacher Interviews
Review Details
Take a moment to review the details of this assignment below and gather any necessary files. Once you're ready to submit your assignment, move on to Step 2.
Assessment Traits
Requires Lopeswrite
Assessment Description
The role of the special education teacher is collaborative and requires a specific skill set and understanding of the laws and regulations related to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the IEP process, and implementation of the IEP. Additionally, special education teachers frequently collaborate, communicate, and co-teach with general education teachers to provide educational services for students with exceptionalities. Developing understanding of the roles and responsibilities of special and general education teachers in the IEP process and delivery of services to students with exceptionalities is of primary importance in professional practice.
Allocte at least 3 hours in the field to support this field experience.
Because this course does not require you to have a fingerprint clearance card, if you are not a current teacher your field experience must be completed before or after school, or during another designated time when students are not present.
In person or via phone, interview a certified special education teacher and a general education teacher specific to a grade range relevant to your program of study. Your interview notes will be submitted as part of the assignment deliverable.
In the interviews, address the following:
Describe your role in the IEP process
Summarize the steps that should be followed prior to creating an IEP for an individual with disabilities.
Desribe how you involve parents/guardians and students in the special education process.
Describe strategies that can be used to ensure confidentiality of information and instill trust with parents/guardians. Discuss other legal, ethical, and policy responsibilities teachers have related to the educational, developmental, and medical services for individuals with disabilities and their parents/guardians.
Explan how you offer support to parents/guardians of individuals with disabilities. Include discussion of specific types of support and resources you typically provide.
Describe how you collaborate with the school psychologist and administration as team members in the special education process.
Describe the special education resources and training provided by your district.
Explain how you collect data for IEP progress monitoring.
Describe the collaboration between special education and general education teachers to meet the needs of students.
In a 750-1,000 word reflection, identify the school settings for the teachers you interviewed and discuss the following:
All team members are accountable for understanding the procedures and guidelines for the special education process. Discuss how you plan to comply with this requirement and explain how you will ensure that other team members understand their roles.
Describe strategies you could employ for ensuring confidentiality of information and instilling trust with parents/guardians. Discuss the legal, ethical, and policy responsibilities teachers have related to the educational, developmental, and medical services for individuals with disabilities and their parents/guardians.
Describe how you will encourage the involvement of parents/guardians and students in the IEP process. Include discussion about how you will document all efforts to involve parents/guardians and tudents in the process.
Describe the major differences in roles between the special education teacher and the general education teacher. Discuss whether your frame of reference about the roles of educators in the special education process has changed, and if so, explain how.
Describe strategies that could be used for effective collaboration between the special education teacher and general education teacher to support learning for students with disabilities.
Data collection should be completed by both special education and general education teachers. Describe specific strategies you can employ in your future professional practice to streamline the data collection process and support team members in the process of data collection.
Submit your interview notes and reflection.
APA format is not required, but solid academic writing is expected.
This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. A link to the LopesWrite technical support articles is located in Class Resources if you need assistance.
Docuent the locations and hours you spend in the field on your Clinical Field Experience Verification Form.
Submit the Clinical Field Experience Verification Form to the learning management system in the last topic. Directions for submitting can be found on the College of Education site in the Student Success Center.
Field Experience
Student Name
Institutional Affiliation
Date
Field Experience
Interview 1
Interviewer: Thank you for finding time for the interview. As a special education instructor, I look forward to learning much from you.
Emily Peter: Thank you for having me.
Interviewer: Describe your role in the IEP process
Emily Peter: As a special education teacher, I provide goals that learners need to meet each year. Here, I define what learners need to attain at the start of the year and evaluate whether or not the goals were achieved. Additionally, I also provide information about the child's academic performance.
Interviewer: Summarize the steps that should be followed prior to creating an IEP for an individual with disabilities
Emily Peter: There are several stages involved. Firstly, a child is identified as possibly requiring special education. A parent or a professional can request evaluation verbally or through writing. Once such a request is made, a child is evaluated to determine the child's suspected disability. Thirdly, the evaluation results are evaluated to determine the results. Here, parents are allowed to challenge the eligibility decision. Children determined to have learning disabilities are termed eligible and start receiving IEPs.
Interviewer: Describe how you involve parents/guardians and students in the special education process
Emily Peter: Indeed, parents know their children better and must be involved in the process. We involve parents by listening to them. Educators must recognize that parents are critical in providing information on a child's strengths and weaknesses at home.
Interviewer: Describe strategies that can be used to ensure confidentiality of the information and instill trust with parents/guardians. Discuss other legal, ethical, and policy responsibilities teachers have related to the educational, developmental, and medical services for individuals with disabilities and their parents/guardians.
Emily Peter: Parents/guardians are meant to understand that all information related to their children remains confidential. Any information is considered confidential and is managed according to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
Interviewer: Explain how you offer support to parents/guardians of individuals with disabilities. Include a discussion of specific types of support and resources you typically provide.
Emily Peter: The first step is communicating regularly with them. Here, we allow them to express their issues regarding the child's progress. We make calls, write emails, and organize one-on-one meetings with parents. Here, we allow them to bring out matters of concern to them.
Interviewer: Describe how you collaborate with the school psychologist and administration as team members in the special education process.
Emily Peter: I collaborate with the school psychologist and administrative team by involving them in the entire process. I ensure that both understand the importance of ensuring that the school caters to the needs of learners with disabilities.
Interviewer: Describe the special education resources and training provided by your district.
Emily Peter: My district organizes seminars and training for educators. The aim is to equip them with the required skills and knowledge to deal with children living with disabilities and parents/guardians.
Interviewer: Explain how you collect data for IEP progress monitoring. Describe the collaboration between special education and general education teachers to meet the needs of students.
Emily Peter: I use the IEP goal data sheet to record data, which I can later analyze to get critical information.
Interview 2
Interviewer: Thank you for accepting the interview. As a general education instructor, I know you have much to say about learners with special needs.
John Kelly: Thank you for the opportunity.
Interviewer: Describe your role in the IEP process
John Kelly: While I am not a special education instructor, I am instrumental in developing IEP by suggesting appropriate modifications to accommodate children with disabilities.
Interviewer: Summarize the steps that should be followed prior to creating an IEP for an individual with disabilities
John Kelly: Normally, parents or professionals recommend children they deem to have special needs for assessment. During the assessment, once a child is found eligible for services, an IEP meeting is scheduled and held. Here, the IEP is written. Additionally, the school ensures that the IEP services are offered by measuring progress and reporting to parents. Lastly, IEP is reviewed yearly, with the child reevaluated at least three times a year.
Interviewer: Describe how you involve parents/guardians and students in the special education process
John Kelly: We invite parents and allow them to suggest goals for their children. The parents are also involved in the evaluation process to determine whether or not the goals are met.
Interviewer: Describe strategies that can be used to ensure confidentiality of the information and instill trust with parents/guardians. Discuss other legal, ethical, and policy responsibilities teachers have related to the educational, developmental, and medical services for individuals with disabilities and their parents/guardians.
John Kelly: Teachers have the ethical responsibility of ensuring that information regarding children with special needs does not reach unauthorized third parties.
Interviewer: Explain how you offer support to parents/guardians of individuals with disabilities. Include a discussion of specific types of support and resources you typically provide.
John Kelly: we assist families in identifying high-quality resources. We list legitimate websites and other useful resources online and present them to the parents/guardians. Further, we point families to support...