I am so thankful to attend a college that gets students out in the field early. During the fall of my sophomore year, I had the incredible opportunity to spend 25 hours in an autistic and emotional support classroom at Hillview Elementary School in Grove City Area School District. This classroom had 15 students circulating throughout the day. All of the students go to their regular education classrooms for science/social studies and lunch. The classroom is extremely welcoming and individualized. There are two special education teachers in the classroom, and many students have support staff that work with them all day. The classroom includes students from 2nd-5th grade who are diagnosed with either autism or an emotional disturbance.
Going into this field experience, I did not know what to expect. I had never really been exposed to students with behavioral needs before, and I was honestly very nervous. Throughout my time getting to know these students though, I developed a love and passion for students who are not seen for who they truly are. As I worked with students in the special education classroom, regular education classroom, and specials, it became very clear to me that many of the students' peers and teachers are blind to their strengths and see only the negative behaviors. I could observe the same student in two different classrooms and see two totally different children, based on the reactions of people around them. It became so clear that most of the students were not comfortable in their regular education classrooms and this caused them to act out and show the behaviors that their teachers and peers expected from them. For example, on my first day of the field, one student came up to me and introduced herself. She wanted to have a relationship with me, but she did not know how to start it. We were able to guide her through an appropriate conversation, and we were soon friends. I learned right away that she loves Disney movies and will talk about them endlessly if you let her. Every time she enters the special education classroom, she greets everyone by name. When I observed her in her regular education class, I was the only person she said hello to when she arrived. Then, when asked to write a paragraph about a biome, she refused and threw a fit. The teacher fought with her until she finally agreed to just draw a picture of The Lion King, because that was a Savanna. Knowing this student, I know that she can only read and write very simple sentences, and since the term "biome" was just explained, she did not feel comfortable writing about it. But, this simple experience became a big deal and all of the students and teachers saw her acting negatively and missed all of the positives. It broke my heart.
During my time in this field, I saw many different behaviors. I learned how to calmly deal with the behaviors while making sure that the behaviors did not fulfill their intended functions. For example, one student would make obnoxious sounds to gain attention. When he did this, I learned to remind him that he could chew gum to control the sounds, but then to ignore the sounds until they stopped. It was honestly like magic to see how just not fulfilling the function of a behavior or having the student fulfill the function in a positive manner stopped the behaviors. Additionally, I was able to see how powerful individualized teaching can be. I had the opportunity to teach two individualized lessons. It was so fun to plan lessons for students that were focused on their exact strengths and needs. For example, one of the students that I worked with struggles to answer questions abstractly. Typically, when he is asked an abstract question, he will just repeat the question back. When I asked him comprehension questions, I gave him picture choices. This was extremely effective, and he was able to answer questions that he would not have been able to answer if I had just asked him the question. It was really awesome to have the opportunity to focus on his specific needs in my lesson.
I learned countless individualized teaching strategies and behavior management strategies throughout this field, but the biggest takeaway that I had was to get to know the students, which is why I placed this summary under Danielson Element 1b: Demonstrating Knowledge of Students. After getting to know the students in this class, I could understand the function of their behaviors and respond appropriately. I knew what would work for them and what wouldn't. I knew rewards that each student would respond to. Most importantly, I could see the students for who they are, and not for just their behaviors, and that is something that will stick with me forever. I hope that wherever I am, and whoever I talk to, I can advocate for the strengths of each and every student.
Going into this field experience, I did not know what to expect. I had never really been exposed to students with behavioral needs before, and I was honestly very nervous. Throughout my time getting to know these students though, I developed a love and passion for students who are not seen for who they truly are. As I worked with students in the special education classroom, regular education classroom, and specials, it became very clear to me that many of the students' peers and teachers are blind to their strengths and see only the negative behaviors. I could observe the same student in two different classrooms and see two totally different children, based on the reactions of people around them. It became so clear that most of the students were not comfortable in their regular education classrooms and this caused them to act out and show the behaviors that their teachers and peers expected from them. For example, on my first day of the field, one student came up to me and introduced herself. She wanted to have a relationship with me, but she did not know how to start it. We were able to guide her through an appropriate conversation, and we were soon friends. I learned right away that she loves Disney movies and will talk about them endlessly if you let her. Every time she enters the special education classroom, she greets everyone by name. When I observed her in her regular education class, I was the only person she said hello to when she arrived. Then, when asked to write a paragraph about a biome, she refused and threw a fit. The teacher fought with her until she finally agreed to just draw a picture of The Lion King, because that was a Savanna. Knowing this student, I know that she can only read and write very simple sentences, and since the term "biome" was just explained, she did not feel comfortable writing about it. But, this simple experience became a big deal and all of the students and teachers saw her acting negatively and missed all of the positives. It broke my heart.
During my time in this field, I saw many different behaviors. I learned how to calmly deal with the behaviors while making sure that the behaviors did not fulfill their intended functions. For example, one student would make obnoxious sounds to gain attention. When he did this, I learned to remind him that he could chew gum to control the sounds, but then to ignore the sounds until they stopped. It was honestly like magic to see how just not fulfilling the function of a behavior or having the student fulfill the function in a positive manner stopped the behaviors. Additionally, I was able to see how powerful individualized teaching can be. I had the opportunity to teach two individualized lessons. It was so fun to plan lessons for students that were focused on their exact strengths and needs. For example, one of the students that I worked with struggles to answer questions abstractly. Typically, when he is asked an abstract question, he will just repeat the question back. When I asked him comprehension questions, I gave him picture choices. This was extremely effective, and he was able to answer questions that he would not have been able to answer if I had just asked him the question. It was really awesome to have the opportunity to focus on his specific needs in my lesson.
I learned countless individualized teaching strategies and behavior management strategies throughout this field, but the biggest takeaway that I had was to get to know the students, which is why I placed this summary under Danielson Element 1b: Demonstrating Knowledge of Students. After getting to know the students in this class, I could understand the function of their behaviors and respond appropriately. I knew what would work for them and what wouldn't. I knew rewards that each student would respond to. Most importantly, I could see the students for who they are, and not for just their behaviors, and that is something that will stick with me forever. I hope that wherever I am, and whoever I talk to, I can advocate for the strengths of each and every student.