Current Issues Summary and Response Matt 12/12/2010 Intro As a future special education teacher one of my jobs will be to keep up-to-date on current issues in the education field and let my parents know about any helpful development on these current issues. It is important for teachers to keep tabs on new developments that could be useful to better their understanding of education as a whole. There are a plethora of current issues involving special education. These issues range from more controversial to less controversial. Some of the more controversial issues are the use of tests to place students into special education, how should we grade students with special needs and how to discipline a student who is in special education.
The rigorous standards are continuous from school to school and are defined with essential skills students should know (MSDE,2012). The Common Core Curriculum assumes the position of the conservation view in the context of school processes. According to Astuto, Clark, McGree, Pelton Fernandez, and Read (1994), the curriculum is developed around a shared set of knowledge that represents a common cultural heritage. The concern with this new curriculum is that students with special needs are going to become frustrated and left behind. The skills and knowledge embedded into the standards constitutes a one-size fits all mentality and do not allow for enough flexibility for those students who learn
Keeping records is a very important reflexive tool for both teachers and learners in the educational setting. Accurate records taken throughout a course enables both teacher and students to continually reassess the effectiveness of the teaching/learning relationship by giving an ongoing measure against which to view learning objectives. Records indicate whether pupils have learnt what has been taught and are making sufficient progress with the course; who needs more help or is ready for more extensive work by assessing better or worse progress than expected; and whether teachers need to refine any aspects of their teaching by assessing successes or shortcomings where teaching needs to be strengthened. Attendance data taken on a close protection course gives an idea of where students may fall behind with learning outcomes through non attendance. Identifying non attendance could indicate a problem external to the teaching setting which may benefit from referral to other professionals or could point to students’ dissatisfaction with the teaching style which could be addressed by reassessing the teaching methods used in order to promote more inclusive practice.
As educators all over the country we are faced with having to embrace and implement technology into our schools and for teachers their lessons. We have students who are very skilled with technology and in order to keep they engage and involved in the lessons we have to incorporate technology into our lessons and move away from the lecture style of teaching and create more interactive lessons that will keep students motivated in the classrooms. Special needs students require more funding and services to provide them with the tools and materials that they need to be successful in school. The special education has really changed over the years because we now have districts moving from the out of district placements and now have more of the special education students in inclusion classrooms and of course we still have the resource rooms and the self contained classrooms. Many districts because of costs are not seeking out of district placements but instead are creating programs within the various school districts that mirror the out of district programs.
I believe that teaching reading and writing begins with helping children want the life of a reader and writer. In order to accomplish this goal of developing lifelong readers and writers, I believe it is my responsibility to keep learning about proven research-based literacy programs. I believe that even in Tier I literacy instruction the teacher has the responsibility to differentiate instruction so that the vast array of learning styles and abilities present in the classroom will be nurtured. I believe that the most important part of literacy instruction, whether it be reading or writing, is communication. In reading, the communication is accomplished with strong comprehension skills that involve active participation of the reader as he interacts with the author to create meaning for himself.
Promoting Literacy and Comprehension The ways of traditional teaching are a thing of the past. In today’s classrooms teachers are working hard to find new and exciting ways to engage the students, promote learning, comprehension and writing. However, even with the stimulating activities and lessons students will continue to ask the same question, “Why do I have to learn this? When will this ever be a part of real life?” Teachers must be prepared to explain to their students exactly how math, reading, science, and history will all be a used outside of a classroom setting and in the real world. For example, teachers should shine light on how studying algebra actually develops stronger problem solving skills and leads students into a deeper level of thinking.
We have age limits and restriction on many things, but why does are education system expect these young kids to make the right choices, ask for help and develop good study habits on their own. Our education system needs a new approach to resolve these issues. Teachers and parents need to be held responsible, for how well these kids do in school. We need come up with a new plan so these students aren’t left lost and helpless. Flunking students can be used as a positive tool by our education system.
Alignment of Academic Standards with ELL Proficiency Standards Standards-based instruction or SBI is a very important part of the education reform today. The reason it is so important has to do with the fact that it shows a way to ensure that every student is exposed to curiculum that is both challenging and made to contribute to today’s complex world. SBI contains content standards witch tell what all students should know and be able to do at different levels of education. SBI gets teachers to raise expectations for all students and promotes the use of multiple assessment strategies in return this helps students to reach levels at different times and in different ways. SBI also requires a teacher to really differentiate her
Teachers need to help students understand the implicit cultural assumptions and perspectives of the discipline they’re teaching. Multicultural education also involves changing the methods of teaching and using a wide range of strategies and teaching techniques such as cooperative groups, simulations, role-playing, and discovery. Doing so, the learning process will be more effective and address the needs of students
An educator should constantly be revising lesson plans and expanding their own knowledge in order to deliver an optimal learning experience for the students. Incorporating guidelines to educate students without bias into a code of ethics ensures that students receive equal treatment in the classroom. An educator’s primary concern should be the physical and mental well being of the student. This being said, it is the responsibility of the educator to be vigilant of a student’s physical and emotional behavior while in the classroom. Child abuse is a dilemma that may be encountered when working as a professional educator in the school system.