Educational Placement

 

Educational placement for students with hearing loss has been a long debate. What are your thoughts about educating students within the “mainstream” versus in a centralized program/school?

I feel this question does not just have one correct answer. There can be multiple correct answers depending on the child and their background or situation. For one example, if a child was born deaf to parents who are also deaf. The child is then raised with ASL as their first language that child would most likely fit better in an all deaf school. On the opposite is a child born deaf to parents who are hearing. This child is put in speech therapy and is given a CI. The parents wish for this child to be in the public school district along with their siblings. In this case, the child may be better suited in a ‘mainstream’ classroom. These are just two simple examples on a child with a hearing loss and where they may fit better. Other thing’s to take into account are the degree of hearing loss, mode of communication, use of amplification, other syndromes or disabilities,  where the parents see the child, and many others. These all are factors that must be taken into consideration when deciding where a child should be placed. As a Deaf Educator I want to be able to help parents through this process and make them aware of all the options that can be possible for their student. I personally feel that either choice, mainstream or all deaf school, are both great paths. It really just depends on all the factors I listed above. I also feel it is extremely important for the regular education teacher be well educated and prepared to have a deaf student in their classroom.

Thoughts on “push in/pull out” method?

Until class this week I had never heard of this terminology. In my previous courses we had talked slighting about this topic but not very in-depth. I honestly don’t know what to teach a student in they are ‘push in’. I feel that is something that must really be thought out and discussed with the general education classroom teacher. It’s important to find time to clarify any material that the student may have missed or re-teach any information that the student did not understand. I feel this would be tricky when the general education classroom teacher is teaching all day and may not be taking many breaks.   I feel I would benefit from shadowing a teacher who has students who are ‘push in’ to see how they handle these situations.

I feel the pull out method would be easier and more beneficial for the student because they would be more one on one time with the deaf educator. It could go at their pace and really work through some struggle areas. The downside would be; they may fall behind compared to their peers and will not be in the regular classroom as much.

Thoughts on addressing attention span and problem solving with in pushing method or when there is an interrupter?

 If my student was ‘push in’ and they had an interrupter I would sit down with them before school begins and work out a plan of action. This would allow for both of us to do our jobs without overstepping our bounds or making the other fell inadequate.

If my student is having attention span issues in the general education classroom then maybe we need to assess their placement in this classroom all day. It may mean they need more time as a ‘pull out’ student. By pulling them out this would allow me to give them more breaks when it is just me and them. If pulling them is not an option maybe talking with the general education teacher about breaking up the teaching and adding more activities for the student. This would allow them to do be doing something and not just sitting and listening all the time.

Introduction to Instructional Strategies

 

1.)   What have you learned about instructional strategies?

I am very excited to be a part of this course. I feel so far I’ve felt that there has been something missing from my education and I feel what I am missing will be taught during this course. During the first class period I have learned a lot. I learned that a lot of things that I was doing during my practicum course were all apart of instructional strategies and I just wasn’t aware that’s what they were labeled as. There are many different type so instructional strategies that one educator can use. With this some of the strategies may work and others may not. One will not know this till they try the strategy then grow from it. During class, I was taught the five different categories that fall under instructional strategies. The five categories are direct instruction, indirect instruction, experiential learning, independent study, and interactive instruction. Most the time in our field we will be using direct instruction; this is when the teacher is teaching a lesson to the students. Usually there is a step by step producer that is used somehow during the lesson. Each of the five categories are different teaching techniques that change depending on the activity, who leads, and the environment. Again, there isn’t just one right one but all have positives in different settings,

2.)    What would you like to learn during this class

As mentioned above, I’ve been feeling like there has been something missing. Part of this major is gaining a teaching certificate. With this, you have to take a small number of the general education classes that are offered to all teaching majors. Although I did learn some things from these course for the most part the material was directed to ‘regular classroom teachers’. During this class I hope to learn how to run and have an all deaf classroom. During my career as a deaf educator I do want to work up to having my own all deaf classroom. I hope this course can prepare me for that. I feel it would be beneficial to hear from you about all of your experiences both good and bad. I feel that it can help prepare me for student teaching. This will help prepare me to deal with situations that may not have come up in my practicum.

3.)    Research has shown students with HL often times do not achieve higher than a 3^rd grade reading level. What are your thoughts about this and how do you plan to face this?

This area has always been hard for me to understand and deal with in our profession. It is part of the reason why I push myself to be the best I can in all areas but especially in the area of reading. I hope that when I am a teacher I can help my students overcome this statistic and help them reach their appropriate reading level. Being aware of all the resources and tools that are out there in the area of reading is important. Being proactive is key with this statistic. I hope to convey that to my student’s parents and other professional’s on my student’s team to help that student achieve a higher reading level.  

4.)    In looking at the first 3 chapters what are some ways you can provide feedback and reinforce effort? Do you plan to use verbal, tangible, or both?

I personally feel that feedback and reinforcement is very important for any teacher’s students. It provides a positive learning environment for the students and encourages them to keep working even when it is difficult. It is not just enough to say “that’s incorrect” instead respond by telling them something along the lines of “nice try but actually _____ is correct”. Then provide information on why this was a better respond. This gives the students the information they may need to get the answer correct next time. All of this helps a student understand that when they work hard they do well then can receive positive feedback for that hard work. Some examples of these would be modeling what high achievement looks like or having a reward system.

I plan to use both verbal and tangible. I feel they are both beneficial to the student and can provide the best outcomes. I always want to set my students up for success.