Trying to Keep Ahead (while being behind) February 25, 2007
Posted by Daniel Dage in Alternate Assessment, Regular Ed, Services, Special Education, Teachers.comments closed
Sorry to leave you all hanging like that, if there was anyone who felt that way. I wasn’t even intending to post today except that I was catching up with Reflective Teacher who graced me with the title of “The hardest working guy in the business” or something like that. Funnily enough, this hardest working guy was on vacation!
One of the benefits of starting school in July is getting a week-long winter break in February and I’ve used it catch up tree pruning, gardening and some family time. And blog reading, as I’m so woefully behind. I really really needed the break but it is not without cost. We have one week until the GAA is due. Yeah, that thing. I’ll just be glad to have it finished.
Every year, almost without exception, I always wonder if I will be back next year. I never take my position for granted and am always looking around for whatever. Last year it was the behaviorist position. I’m actually glad that one didn’t work out as the person who got it is that good and it is that big of a job.
This year I’m having thoughts about a different sort of move. I like what I do, at least as far as the kids. But the extra work of the alternate assessment has totally sucked all the time away from what I would and should normally be doing with them. Between that and LEAing IEP meetings I rarely get to see them at all!
It was while LEAing IEP meetings that I realized there is an opportunity out there that I just might be able to take advantage of, if I so desired. The students who were having IEPs last week were higher functioning and were in almost all regular education classes. Some of these students were in serious need of extra help and were not getting it. Many of them were in a resource class where the teacher just left two weeks ago and all that’s there is the para. There are collaborative classes, especially for history, computers and some English. But there are virtually no special education collaborative teachers available for math or science.
Again, this is a bit of fall-out from NCLB. According to NCLB, students are to be taught be teachers who are Highly Qualified (HQ). If a student is in a regular education class, they will have a regular education teacher who is HQ. No problems, right? However, at least the way the HQ provision is being applied at our high school the collaborative Sp. Ed. teachers also have to be HQ in the subject they are collaborating. IOW, the collab history teacher needs to be HQ in special education and history. History is no problem at all, since many special educators are old social studies majors. However, how many old math or science majors are out there who also have degrees in special education? I do know of one science teacher who did special education but he is now doing science full-time.
That is the way this wind is going to blow, folks. There is a lot of talk about requiring teachers to get dual certification. The problem is that anyone with the certificate in math or science will teach those subjects instead of staying in special education. This is one reason we have such a shortage of HQ special educators is because the pipeline flows in such a way as they leave to teach something else as soon as they can. And this field is not getting any easier.
So what does this have to do with me and those IEPs? So many students need to be in collaborative classes in biology and science and the school doesn’t offer it because they don’t have a teacher HQ in both science and sp. ed. Sometimes they’ll staff a para in there, but that’s really not a substantial help especially since the newest teachers are often the ones who are saddled with all the special ed. kids.
And do we need to talk about NCLB and AYP? There is a dire need here.
It just so happens I might be able to get HQ in science fairly quickly. At least biology plus I’m also HQ in Vo-Ag. And those folks get creamed with gobs of special ed. kids!
I’m just thinking about it and looking into it. There are a lot of factors to look at. I’m looking at the fact I’m getting older and less able to lift these kids who need tons of lifting and who are weighing tons. I’m looking at the wearing affects of being the undertaker year after year.
One benefit of special education is the ability to try some different things which I think is important to avoid getting stale or just burned out. I would rather fade out than burn out any day and if things stay on the present trajectory there will be more sp. ed. teachers being carried out on stretchers. I’m just trying to stay ahead of the game for the next 20 years.
D.
GAPSC Survey February 8, 2007
Posted by Daniel Dage in Alternate Assessment, Ed Policy Discussion, NCLB, Teachers.comments closed
The Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GAPSC) is sponsoring a survey for teachers in the state of Georgia. It takes a few minutes to fill out and covers many aspects of working and teaching within a school district in the state of Georgia. Basically, they seemed to be interested in what sort of factors influence a teacher as far as staying within the field of teaching. They covered items such as salary, supplements, working conditions, training, opportunities for advancement, extra duties, planning time and many more factors that may or may not make teaching an attractive profession.
The director of the GAPSC is enjoining all educators in the state to fill out this survey and to encourage others in the state to do so. I‘m going to assume that all teachers in Georgia will be given the proper URL that is supposed to keep participants secure and anonymous. When you get it, go ahead and fill it out.
My biggest complaint about teaching and the reason for the exodus from the teaching profession is the fact that we have gone from an orientation of student learning and achievement to one of school/teacher compliance and accountability. I totally get why compliance to the laws and accountability are important, but the orientation of our country towards those things as a national movement disenfranchises the students themselves. Student learning and student achievement places the burden of the outcome upon those who have the most power to make it happen; the student. Modern reformists like to call this “blaming the victim” but how is labeling students “victims” empowering? It’s so baffling to hear conservatives using this sort of language. No wonder they are so off-message from the optimistic outlook offered up by their fellows from 10 and 20 years ago.
More to the point, the major thrust of my day-to-day teaching is increasingly devoted towards satisfying the requirements of the state bureaucracy rather than those of the individual students. Meeting the needs of any individual student is subordinated in favor of meeting the needs of some subgroup; namely the cause of meeting AYP. Yes, you can bet that my objections to the extra paperwork generated by Georgia’s alternate assessment figured prominently in the responses I gave in this survey. But I also mentioned the lack of training and the lack of opportunities for discussions amongst fellow teachers as major shortcomings.
As far as benefits and pay, I deemed these okay or adequate. I would like to see more money going towards some supplies and updating some of the aging technology, which amounts to quite a lot for my classroom.
It will be interesting if we will ever see the results of this survey. At the very end, they tell you to write any last and final words you might want to include, in case it wasn’t covered in the survey. I basically said that I doubted anyone would ever read what it is that I took the time to write. When it came to NCLB, IDEA 2004, the alternate assessment or any of these other reform movements, no one bothered to ask the teachers what they thought, and if they did, they didn’t listen. I think that is the most depressing thing about the entire reform movement culture. No one seems to care much about those who might actually have to do the work, take the tests, give the tests, abide by the rules, follow all the guidelines and otherwise toe the line. Sorry if I sound cynical but I can’t help but be suspicious of anything coming from people who work in a building with Greek columns and/or a domed rotunda.
Okay, I’m curious: are there any things that have made any of you consider leaving the profession? What keeps you in?
Alright, what the heck….here’s a link to the survey for those who didn’t get it and should have.
dick
Bullying and Autism February 7, 2007
Posted by Daniel Dage in Autism/Asperger's, Parent Support, Parents and parenting, Special Education.comments closed
I have no special reason why I’m posting about this topic other than I think it’s kind of important. Many people wouldn’t believe that I used to get bullied occasionally as I was not always the big, ornery beast that I am today. But I thought I’d share an idea or two about the subject from some of my experiences.
First off, the most commonly cited cause of someone becoming a bully is their own low self esteem. They try to compensate for this lowness and smallness by picking on others. While this may be a true analysis it gives little comfort to the person being bullied to know the person victimizing them has low self esteem. Being a victim doesn’t exactly raise a person’s esteem, you know? And there is a slim likelihood that one can administer sufficient psychoanalysis to the bully in order for him to uncover his subconscious conflicts while he is pounding you.
Individuals with autism are frequently targeted by bullies because they are simply easy targets. They may already have difficulty making friends which makes them vulnerable as being outsiders. Anyone who grazes outside the herd is vulnerable to being attacked by predators, and people with autism are not known for blending into the herd. While I personally see this as a positive attribute, this becomes a social liability especially when there is a bully about who is looking for trouble.
As a parent who has been on the blunt side of the bully-victim equation, I can say that this dynamic is the stuff of nightmares. It’s difficult enough for someone who is neurotypical (if I really ever was) but for people with disabilities and their caregivers, it is simply petrifying. So how do we deal with this possibility?
First, there’s a couple of ways NOT to deal with it, or approaches that are likely to result more trouble. Many people will counsel their kids to tell the teacher if there is bullying going on. And it is true enough that it is up to that teacher to have sufficient control over the classroom that any sort of abuse, assault or victimizing within should be verboten and met with a swift and decisive response. However bullying does not usually take place within the well-ordered and structured classrooms as much as in hallways, restrooms and other areas of the building where there is less supervision. So the person who reports being bullied will be reporting it after the fact to a teacher who was not there. Any confrontation with the bully will result in result in one word against the other. Any subsequent investigation will take time and in the meantime, there may be swift retribution from the bully plus the victim becomes even more isolated for being a squealer.
And then there is the time-tested response of confronting the bully. Bullies do feed off the fear of the person who they prey upon and becoming nonfearful or at least turning on the tormenter can sometimes effectively end the bullying. But it can also escalate it. Basically, in many cases we’re talking about being willing and able to physically fight. We’re talking fists to noses at the very least. And now days, there may be weapons involved. The confrontation approach needs to be considered with caution. Individuals with autism may not have the skills to successfully use a confrontational approach without escalating the situation and it may result in more harm.
Bullying can be a serious problem because bullies not only go after the person’s body and personal self esteem (and this is the highest cost) but frequently go after their property and possessions, using intimidation to steal. There’s a very real cost, personally and monetarily to this. As teachers, we need to be alert and proactive. But as parents we need to be even more so. Do NOT leave it up to the school system to do anything about it. A lawsuit aimed at the school might move them into being less complacent but it’s not going to help your son or daughter in the short term.
The most effective method of dealing with a bully who is preying on individuals with autism may be the hardest one. It involves educating people about the condition and making them aware that they are attacking someone with a disability. It also involves doing some footwork on your own. From my experience, the most effective method involved seeking out and having a conversation with the bullying youngster’s parents. If the parents are the least bit responsible, they do not want their precious offspring to be labeled a bully. They may deny and defend their little perpetrator. But giving that parent a heads up still puts them on notice that you are watching and are prepared to deal with any situation. Often, just the fact that the bully sees the victim’s parent in his own home changes the whole dynamic of the situation. The key is to not necessarily make the other parents feel guilty but to make them aware and to close the distance relationship-wise between the bully and the victim. People who victimize others the way bullies do have to keep some distance in order to dehumanize their victims. Closing that gap can even turn the situation around but often it may take some intervention in order to do so.
When our children are involved it is difficult not to respond emotionally when they are being hurt by others. But the key to bridging the gap that exists between people of differing races, cultures and abilities is to promote understanding. Education is our single best tool and as parents we are often much better agents of education and change than the school system, sad as that is to consider.
So my idea for dealing with bullying:
1. Get as many facts as you can from your child. I know all about the “code of the schoolyard” but in an age of weapons in schools, one can ill afford to be passive. However…
2. Be sensitive to fears of the youngster of being further isolated and sanctioned socially. Especially in adolescence they will be massively sensitive to social pressures. Making a huge, emotional scene will alarm them and may be as threatening as actions by a bully!
3. Let the school know you know what’s going on and are willing to work with them. The school may indeed be negligent, but don’t start off with that approach. The goal is to resolve this instance so your son or daughter can learn in relative peace. 4. Call the bully’s parent. This might be very hard to do, but it might be the most effective thing you can possibly do. Making another parent aware and educating them can do more to change the life of the bully than anything a school system can do.
5. Know the parents of your son/daughter’s classmates. I just thought of this, and these contacts can be a good source of more information and support. Often a bully works over more than one victim and even students who are not being bullied will be afraid. Dealing with the fear and its source can only enhance learning for everyone.
It would be a mistake to rely on a school to totally resolve bullying without community support and involvement. As a teacher, I can’t be everywhere all the time. I do what I can where I am, but as a parent I recognize the mistake other parents make of relying on the school to do it all. Parents have much more clout and power to make a school system move than its employees and especially the teachers. They also can make a difference by talking to other parents and informing them and educating them about children with disabilities or children who are “different” for any reason at all. I’m hopeful that we can move beyond being afraid of people simply because they look, act or talk differently from us. And the key to improving the perceptions of the kids is to educate their parents. And the most effective educating agent for those parents is other parents.
D.
