How to Assess the Needs of a Student

This week I learned about all of the different kinds of assessments that are a part of the public school system. These assessments are used to measure certain levels of performance in different school subjects. All students are required to take these assessments but there are certain accommodations for students with disabilities. These accommodations include: extended time, frequent breaks, take the test in the special education room instead of the general education classroom, change the response and presentation format of the test so the student can understand.  *please see the image below for more details about assessments.

Through these different assessments and tests teachers are able to determine the needs of a student. They will be able to know how to adapt the curriculum to help the student learn. They will know what the learning style and preference is for that student so they can change and adapt their lesson plans to benefit the student.

This reminds me of FAPE, which stands for Free Appropriate Public Education. I think this is a great example of how to make the curriculum appropriate for all students.

The Power of Teamwork

This week in my Exceptional Students class I learned about collaboration and teamwork. There are a lot of people that have to work together to provide services to just one student. To help me connect the dots of what collaboration is I created a concept map, which I have included down below, for your reference.

I was able to put what I had learned from the lesson this week as I worked on two different group projects. It was really interesting to see how teamwork and collaboration fit and work together in this setting. Communication, as always, is extremely important! This is key for everyone to realize and be able to put into practice.

Procedures and Services in Special Education

Do you know how many people are involved in making special education happen in the school?  Some of the people involved include:

• general education teacher
• special education teacher
• school psychologists
• speech/language therapists
• social workers
• paraprofessionals
• physical therapists
• occupational therapists
• sign language interpreter

All of these professionals and more are involved in making sure that special education is available for all students attending the school.

When I was attending high school I had no idea that all of these professionals worked at my school. I had some interaction with a few of these professionals so I thought that was all that was provided.

I also learned about the process of how students can obtain special services/education. It can be a long process but very rewarding for those students. I think that this is important because it shows that teachers and administrators are concerned about the students in the school and they want the very best for them.

Here is a concept map of everything that I learned this week to help you to connect the dots.

Communication

What a crazy week this has been! It has been full of school, which includes homework and unexpected group assignments, work, and family. But the one thing that has been constant throughout this week has been communication. There has been some good communication and some miscommunication.

This week I was able to learn about the process of creating an IEP (Individualized Education Plan). This is a very complex process because you are trying to meet the needs of the student with disabilities, in regards to their education, while making sure that you are meeting the needs of the parents that they request for their son or daughter. The key to making this process go as smoothly as possible is having good communication between all of the parties involved.