Blog Post Reflection 8

On the organizational website, www.cec.sped.org, there was a blog that discussed International Day of Persons with Disabilities. December 3 is the annual observance of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities that was established by the International Year for Disabled Persons 1981. In recognition of this important day, President Obama issued a proclamation that officially makes December 3 as the International Day of Persons with Disabilities in the United States. The goal and purpose for this day is to promote a better understanding of disability issues, the rights of persons with disabilities, and the advantages of incorporating people with disabilities into the political, economic, social, and cultural life of their community. International Day of Persons with Disabilities also recognized the millions of individuals who work daily with children and youth with disabilities. I am going to continue to visit this website regularly to keep up with the policies that effect children with disabilities.

Blog Post Reflection 7

There was an interesting newspaper article from the NY Times I found on http://www.ncte.org/ that questions the correlation between report cards, semester grades and state subject exams with knowing who the smart students are in school. The superintendent, David Krenz, and the principal, Katie Berglund, at Ellis Middle School in Austin, Minnesota investigated the large discrepancy between semester grades and end-of-the year exam grades. They came to the conclusion that many teachers were grading students for compliance and not only mastery of course material. According to Ms. Burgland, A and B students were not gaining the most knowledge but had learned how to do school the best. Over parent protests, teachers at Ellis, tried out a new standards-based grading system. Reports cards will have a “knowledge grade” for subject mastery and a “life skills” grade for work habits, attitude, and citizenship. Some parents welcomed the new grading system because it discourages and minimizes favoritism. After reading this article, I plan to educate myself more on the debate between grading for being prepared and a good school citizen versus grading exclusively for subject mastery.

Blog Post Reflection 6

At www.fno.org, I found an article in the educational technology journal that discusses why we still need libraries and librarians. According to the article, libraries and librarians are needed now more than ever due to the literacy challenges facing schools today. Many reports have declared a national crisis in reading comprehension. Unfortunately, many schools have diverted from working on comprehension and thinking skills to focus on laptops, whiteboards, and social networking which the article refers to as “edutainment”. Due to the new information landscape and technology, teacher librarians need to embrace these new challenges. Since many schools are pressured to go digital, a librarian can help balance that by collecting and displaying resources that appeal to the students, such as historical artifacts. During this decade of NCLB, librarians can help teachers with student performance on comprehension questions that rely on inference and synthesis. As a result of reading this article, I am interested in investigating the current status of librarians in Valley schools.

Blog Post Reflection 5

According to the organizational website, www.cec.sped.org, the U.S. Department of Education will award $19.9 million in grants to higher education institutions to help prepare special education professionals to improve services for children with disabilities. $13.5 million will be aimed at improving the quality and number of people who are fully credentialed to serve children with disabilities. It will assist current and future special education professionals to complete degrees, certifications, and professional licenses in early intervention or a related services field. The funds will also help with special education paraprofessionals, assistants in related services, or educational interpreters. More than $6 million will be dedicated to grants that support doctoral, post-doctoral and special education administration degrees. These grants are funded by IDEA – Part D Support Programs that facilitate in the delivery of special education services. After discovering this website, I have been able to learn a lot about what is happening in my field. I plan to visit this website regularly and investigate any new information.

Blog Post Reflection 4

At the organizational website, www.cec.sped.org, I found a blog about Rosa’s Law (S.2781). On September 22, the House of Representatives passed Rosa’s Law (S.2781) which removes the term “mental retardation” from Federal law and replaces it with “intellectuals with disabilities” and on October 5, 2010, President Obama signed the law. Therefore, the American Psychiatric Association, the Federal Department of Health and Human Services, the Office of the President of the United States, and the health division of the United Nations now use the term “intellectual disability”. This will align the Federal law with the field and eliminate a term that has become demeaning to individuals. According to CEC’s Executive Director, Bruce A. Ramirez, Congress has passed a law that will generate significant change for individuals with disabilities, promote healthy school environments, and give respect and dignity to ALL people. After reading this blog, I realized that I should keep abreast on any new bills or laws being passed because they can affect me as a teacher and my students.

Blog Post Reflection 3

This week I visited www.edutopia.com and found an article on project-based learning. According to the article, project-based learning is designed to put students in settings where they learn critical thinking, collaboration, work ethic, technology literacy skills, written and oral communication while meeting state and national standards. There are four fundamental elements to project-based learning: 1. Create team of three or more to work on a project for three to eight weeks, 2. Introduce a complex question that students need to know, scaffold the project with activities and information that deepens the work, 3. Calendar the project with drafts and benchmarks, finally the team presents to parents and people from the community, 4. Provide timely assessments of content, critical thinking, teamwork, oral and written communication and other important skills. I think it is a great strategy to involve students in real-world projects that capture their interests yet tackle complex realistic problems. After reading this article, I would like to investigate whether  project-based learning can be used with pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students.

Blog Post Reflection 2

I chose a journal article from http://www.thejournal.com/ for this professional reflection blog. This article discusses the controversy over RTI (Response To Intervention), the three-tiered triangle instructional model. Some educators are taking a more holistic approach to intervention, favoring strategies that may prevent intervention by using more inclusive procedures for academic deficiencies .For example, one woman has developed a research program called R&R, recognition and response, it detects and addresses learning deficits through early childhood intervention. It is derived from the RTI model but is adapted for very young children and benefits all children regardless of their developmental level. The key difference between R&R and RTI is the interventions in Tier 2. R&R opposes explicit, segregated tutoring in favor of integrating what is learned in small target groups into whole-classroom lessons. I agree with this idea because the focus in Tier 2 of an RTI is on how long and how often the tutoring sessions are going to be. In R&R, the students are given the opportunity to practice the skills they learned in their small groups with the rest of the classroom. As a special education minor, after reading this article, I plan to do more research on the R&R approach.

Blog Post Reflection 1

The resource I chose for this professional development blog was an online journal from www.thejournal.com.  This journal addresses merging assistive technology with mainstream consumer technology. Students with special needs are now able to have access to the same technologies as mainstream students. According to the article, part of the reason the two technologies are being combined is due to the aging baby boomers. An advantage of blending mainstream devices with assistive technologies is lower prices for schools to invest in technology. Some researchers are working on a project to develop applications with Apple’s iPad, iPhone, and iPod to help students with communication impairments. As a special education teacher, this information is very useful for me and the students I plan to work with. This article has made me even more aware of how little I am familiar with the newest technologies. I plan to educate myself as often as I can on emerging technology programs.