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8. Are there any comments you wish to add to close this interview?

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8. Are there any comments you wish to add to close this interview?

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The advice Mrs. Locke gave me was to be extremely patient. She said that I should try lots of different ideas with my future students. I should brainstorm constantly in order to find what will work for each student per their needs. I should try all kinds of things to get my students to stay engaged, follow their schedules, work on their academics, and other issues on their IEP's or ILP's.

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7. If you could choose another career field, would you? Please explain your answer in detail.

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7. If you could choose another career field, would you? Please explain your answer in detail.

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Mrs. Locke feels strongly about education. She said her alternative career paths would be mentor programs, a professor, or a coach. However, she did say working at a candle shop or garden center would be nice. She just wants it to be peaceful and possibly something where she could work outside.

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 6. What changes, if any, would you make to the educational system with regard to special needs children? Consider such aspects as inclusion, funding, state assessments, etc…

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 6. What changes, if any, would you make to the educational system with regard to special needs children? Consider such aspects as inclusion, funding, state assessments, etc…

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Mrs. Locke spoke out about the way state assessments do not reflect the actual progression of SPED students. The alternative assessments allow for personal needs to be entered into the computer per the level that the student is at. The technology then computes the data into an appropriate presentation per student. She feels that this method of testing does not truly capture what these kids are capable of. She feels that they are too strict on state rules for the 1% of children that need alternative assessments. Also, there is no in-between. It's either the state testing or the alternative assessments. For some students, the alternative assessments are too low, but the state assessment is too high. She wishes there were more options or better ones for SPED students.

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5. What advice can you give me for teaching children with special needs in the regular education classroom?

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5. What advice can you give me for teaching children with special needs in the regular education classroom?

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Mrs. Locke gave me some great advice. She said that based upon the needs of the students, let them blend in as much as possible. She said for me to be patient with the students while they are learning social expectations. I also need to have a tool belt of modifications ready and available for when activities need to be modified for the students. Pictures need to be readily available to show the students what the expectations are and what tasks are being asked of them.

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4. How does teaching children with special needs differ from teaching other children? What are some challenges you face in teaching special needs children? What are some rewards in teaching special needs children?

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4. How does teaching children with special needs differ from teaching other children? What are some challenges you face in teaching special needs children? What are some rewards in teaching special needs children?

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Teaching students with special needs are much different from teaching other children. Teaching SPED is more time-consuming. It is also demanding on a mental, physical, and emotional level. Generally, SPED teacher have their students for longer periods of time. Instead of having a student for one year, she will have a student for all of elementary school. With having these students longer, teachers and paras get more attached. The SPED staff has a hand in raising these kids. What is taught to them can have a profound effect on them in school, at home, or even in life. Some challenges that SPED teachers are met with are the brainstorming aspects to individualize each student's needs; not just academically, but physically, mentally, and emotionally as well. There are no quick fixes in SPED. Each idea/concept needs to be taught or modeled. The students need time to acclimate to new things. It takes lots of time to make sure these kids get a chance in life. One reward that Mrs. Locke felt strong about was seeing her students hit milestones that other people didn't think they would.

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3. How have your ideas toward teaching changed with each passing year of experience? Can you recall your ideas about teaching when you were a teacher education student like me? What were they? What are they now?

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3. How have your ideas toward teaching changed with each passing year of experience? Can you recall your ideas about teaching when you were a teacher education student like me? What were they? What are they now?

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Since the beginning of her teaching career, Mrs. Locke has always had a big heart. With each passing year of teaching, Mrs. Locke's ideas have changed. She believes that there is never too much positivity towards the children. She tries to give more love and attention to each student. After she became a mom and watched her children grow, she learned how to be more patient and persistent. That is something she has tried to implement into her own teachings. Patience, persistence, attention, and love.

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For my project I interviewed Shelli Locke. She is the Structured Leaning teacher at Maize South Elementary School. She is also my supervising teacher. I work in her classroom with our five amazing SPED students.

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1. How long have you been teaching special needs children? 

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1. How long have you been teaching special needs children? 

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Mrs. Locke has been teaching Special Education for 16 years.

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2. What made you choose the teaching profession and, in particular, teaching special needs children?

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2. What made you choose the teaching profession and, in particular, teaching special needs children?

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At the beginning of her teaching career, she was a Kindergarten teacher. She wanted to give her students a great start to their academic careers. Towards the end of her first pregnancy, her husband's schooling transferred them to Connecticut. She was not comfortable leaving her baby in daycare so she became a stay-at-home mom. Once her children were older, she began working again. She got jobs in pre-k and head start programs. However, she was having trouble finding a teaching job in Connecticut. All the jobs she kept seeing applied to SPED positions. After her nephew was diagnosed with Autism, she became extremely interested in the disorder. She began working towards her Master's in Special Education. It was her love of teaching, certain circumstances, interests, and her family that made her choose SPED.