Future Career....

In my future career of Special Education, I can really see how I could use both Google Reader and Blogger. I could use Reader as a way to organize all types of blogs that keep me updated on the current issues surrounding special education, which, I’m sure, there will always be many. I could also use Reader as a way to “bookmark” blogs that could have certain teaching ideas/methods that special needs children could relate to. Blogger could be a way for me to keep connected with the parents of my special education children; I could see myself using it to post what I did with my class each day and what homework the students have. I know many schools have systems like this (most likely programs that they have bought online, i.e. Blackboard), however, if I continue to use Blogger, I will have a lot of experience in making blogs; this will be beneficial for whatever blog program I am using in the future. Blogger could also be a resource that fellow coworkers and I use to communicate with each other; it could be a way for teachers to know what is going on in other teacher’s classrooms. The only problem I could see with using Blogger, or any other blog program, in my future is the issue of privacy when it comes to students. 

Connect vs. Disconnect

This RSS content definitely connects with things I already knew about special education. When talking about autistic children and their inability to make eye contact, I realized that I knew a lot about this topic already. It also is a huge part of teaching autistic children (getting them to connect and make eye contact with others) so it definitely connects with my career field. When discussing accommodations for the common-core test, I realized that this has been a huge difficulty for teachers in the past. The article mentioned that one teacher had to make flash cards by hand for a student so the student could form the flash card words into sentences; this was just so the teacher could answer one question for the student on the test because the student could not read. These accommodations definitely connect to my career field because by the time I graduate with my special education teaching degree, I will not have to worry and fret about making the test acceptable and eligible for my special needs students.

Some of the RSS content, however, did not connect with my career field. The second article I read, about private school vs. public school cost, will not connect with my future. I want to teach in low-income schools where special needs kids really get the disadvantage; and most of the time, going to a private school is not an option for their families or school district. While most school districts special education programs are up to par, programs in lower-income areas are not, yet they do not have money to send special needs students to private schools; it is just not in the budget so these students have to suffer. So, in summary, this article does not really connect with my future career plans in lower-income school districts. 

New Information that I Learned

After read these few blog posts, I learned a lot of new information. While I have known that many people avoid eye contact when answering a question (I myself do this), I did not realize that it is considered appropriate for autistic children. I say this because I know a big part of educating autistic children is teaching them eye contact; with this new finding, it is being shown that it is perfectly normal and even beneficial for autistic students to look away when answering questions. I was also surprised to learn that private special education is cheaper than public school special education. I wonder, however, if parents know about this? I ask because I have seen and observed a private special education school and it was incredible compared to another public special education school I observed; I am sure parents would rather their children be in the better school. Finally, I was happy to read about the accommodations being made for special education students in standardized, federal tests; I know that there was a lot of debate surrounding the No Child Left Behind Act because it did not take into account the lack of accommodation for special needs students and therefore rated them poorly. 

Summary

When reading the blog post about Autistic students and their thinking abilities, I learned that, just like other students and even adults, autistic children tend to look away when thinking of an appropriate response to a question asked in conversation (Autism, 2012). In another blog post, I learned that it is actually cheaper to send a child with special needs to a private school. Because some public school districts cannot provide adequate special education, the state will send children in that district to private schools; this is no cost to the family and comes from tax payer’s money (Special Education, 2011). In yet another blog post, I saw that the common-core test is now going to have built-in accommodations for special needs students. These accommodations have been needed for years; however, with the federal Race to the Top money, it is becoming a reality. These tests should be ready by 2014 (Shah, 2011).

 References

"Autism: Don't Look Now -- I'm Trying to Think." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 07 Mar. 2012. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120307094143.htm?utm_source=feedburner.

Shah, N. "Common-Core Tests to Have Built-in Accommodations." Education Week. 3 June 2011. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/06/03/33tests_ep.h30.html?tkn=SOSFVr5HKu/nSzyddQR3pWcrcovfmqOjvQNu.

"Special Education Can Cost Less In A Private School." Tarpey Group Blog. 15 Dec. 2011. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. http://www.tarpeygroupblog.com/2011/12/15/special-education-can-cost-less-in-a-private-school/.