Special Education-IEPs

A few weeks ago I was asked as part of my MA course to make a presentation for my Thesis proposal. I decided to research the topic of Special Education in Ireland. I knew it was a very broad topic, so I had to research it broadly first and then focus on one particular topic. I decided after nights of research that I would focus on IEPs because I knew that I would have to write them for school and I found them very interesting.

After researching Special Education in Ireland, I was surprised to learn at the the lack of IEPs being used in schools due to the lack of legislation in Ireland.

So firstly, some people are probably asking what are IEPs? I wouldn’t blame people for not knowing because before I started working in a special school I must admit that I hadn’t even heard of an IEP. An IEP is an Individual Education Plan that every child that is diagnosed with special educational needs should possess. In Ireland the EPSEN Act advocated the development of IEPs, however this section of the Act has never been fully implemented and there is no obligation upon schools to develop IEPs as of yet. This shocked me….from my research so far, the response to IEPs has been highly positive and successful. Teachers and writers advocate that IEPs are valuable vehicles. However, due to the lack of requirement in schools to implement an IEP opinions and frameworks vary. As teachers, I think we should all be aware of what an IEP is and whether students in mainstream schools possess one. I was only made aware of IEPs because I work in a special school where IEPs are central to their learning. From my experience so far, they really appear to work and help the students to transform socially and academically. Personally, I think teachers need more training in the area of special education needs and how they can cater for them in a mainstream school setting.

I will be revising and creating new IEPs for my students soon so I will keep you updated on how to create an IEP and whether the time consuming process is worthwhile.

Wordle-Education

I really liked these wordles used to define education.

Wordle is such a powerful tool that really makes word stand out, for both students and teachers. I haven’t really used it much in the classroom but I am definitely going to try incorporate it in my lessons more. It can be used to summarise topics, generate discussion about topics and much more. There are variety of different ways that wordles can be used in the classroom. Embedded below is a link to a short entry that looks at fie ways which wordle can be used in the classroom.

Five reasons to use Wordle in the classroom

Teaching is a two way process

As teachers we must remember that teaching is a two way process. One must go in with an open mind and be willing to learn from their students, as well as teach them. Over the past few weeks, I have realised that every teaching day is a new day. Once you think you have it figured out, the day throws you a new curve ball. Teaching is a learning process. If we want to keep teaching effectively, we have to keep learning.

Social Experiment

A social experiment carried out in America has emerged throughout social media this week. It shows two men asking normal people on the street to share their food with them. However, they fail to share and one man is even quite aggressive. Then another person gives a full pizza to a homeless man on the street. Shortly afterwards, another person disguises himself as a homeless person and lets on that he is hungry. WIthout hesitation the homeless man offers him a slice of pizza. What happens next is truly amazing. To thank the homeless man, the disguised man offers the homeless man money to show his gratitude and the homeless man is overcome by his emotions that he begins to sob. It really would bring you to tears.

I think this would be a truly effective resource to use in the classroom. It really helps show how people can forget about the people that they are surrounded by. It also helps show that people who have little, often offer others that most. They do not rely on the things they possess but they can’t. They can only rely on themselves and with this they know that they need to share with others, because they will not gain anything from ignoring others.

Social Experiment

Quote of the Day

I thought this was an interesting quote that helps us to see the impression, that we as teachers can leave on a child. We must not forget that whatever we teach, however simple, it is having some sort of an effect on students. It can affect students more than we will ever know. So keep teaching because it is having a positive effect on students’ lives without us even knowing.

Controlling behaviour in the classroom

Over the past few weeks I have been looking through various blogs and websites for different ideas on controlling behaviour in the classroom. My students are still quite young so I thought a reward system could help promote good behaviour in the classroom. I created a behaviour reward chart based on a previous chart that a teacher created.

Reward Chart

It appears to be working but I also use the idea of football cards alongside it. the students get a yellow card if they convey any negative or disruptive behaviour, if they get two yellows they instantly get a red card and cannot get a smiley face on their reward chart. Every student receives a green card at the start of the day and if they feel that they need a little break or will convey inappropriate behaviour they hold the green card up and they can take a time out….whether it is go for a short walk with the SNA, take a drink or read a book. With students who have mild general learning difficulties I think it is important to give them a break as their attention span can be quite short.

Over the break, I stumbled across https://www.classdojo.com/. I have decided to test it out with my class and see whether this could help replace my reward chart. It was really easy to set up and it allows you to create a class, personalize it, reward students and tell them what they need to improve on. I have only created it so I am not sure if it will be successful or not, but it is worth a try.

http://http://www.seomraranga.com/2011/09/guest-post-class-dojo/

Stay tuned for a review on Class Dojo when I get it up and running in the classroom.

Every day begins with an act of courage

A video created by Sligo IT Student Union popped up on my newsfeed earlier. As soon as I watched it, I knew I had to share it. Mental Health is such an important issue in today’s society, and although it is talked about more I do not think it is fully understood sometimes. This video takes a simple approach to shooting a video about mental health. The simplicity of the video really aids its success in getting its message across. Although it applies particularly to Sligo IT students, I think it is a video that one could use in an SPHE class to help show students that every day begins with an act of courage. It will help them to see that it is ok to feel down sometimes, but that they are surrounded by people who they can talk to. This video helps reiterate the idea that no one is alone, life is a battle that we are all fighting and help is always at hand.

As teachers, we need to try make our students feel safe so that they can talk to us.

‘Mental health is not a destination but a process. It’s about how you drive, not where you’re going. The therapist is like a driving instuctor, not a chauffeur.”
― Noam Shpancer, The Good Psychologist

Poetic Techniques

Poetic techniques can be quite hard for students to grasp. Last year on teaching practice I used the following presentation to help discuss poetic techniques. Poetry Techniques

I went through each technique with the students, using characters they knew and could relate to and tongue twisters. I then played Katie Perry’s ‘Firework’. I handed the students out the words of the song and an envelope with the poetic techniques inside them. As they listened to and read the words of the song, they had to identify the poetic techniques that was utilize. They responded really well to this as it was a song that they were familiar with and could sing along to as they learned more about poetic techniques.

Twitter in the classroom

As part of my MA course, I joined twitter this week. I have used twitter before but not in an educational way so I am excited to get started and use it in a way to help connect with other teachers, discuss topics and share resources. Social media can get quite a bad rap in the media, but if we use it correctly it can be a great learning tool. It can help develop teacher’s Professional Development, as well as helping students connect with the outside world in a safe and educational way. I am only starting off with twitter, so it is a work in progress.Stay tuned to see my progress!! 🙂
My new twitter account

Some useful tips for educators:
1.
2. http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MCPSS/MobileCounty/Departments/Forms/Twitter%20for%20Educators.pdf
3.tips for the classroom
4. 7 ideas for using twitter in the classroom

What is education?

Is education purely about learning in a school environment? Is education sitting in a class 5 days a week teaching certain things to students so that they will be able to acquire a worthwhile job?

I think today’s climate has made us forget about the freedom of education and how we should be teaching and learning to explore the mind and let ourselves go. We have become too focused in doing well economically, that we forget how truly liberating education can be. As teachers we need to shy away from teaching for the exam and reinvigorate the students to let themselves go in their learning.

Education should not just be for the exam. Education is for life. We need to teach students life lessons, as well as academic lessons. We are preparing our students for the future and I believe that their life skills are just as important, if not more important than their success in their exams.

Let education liberate you, not restrict you! 👍