Alexa D'Auria

Final Growth Statement

5/4/15
EDUG 789

The course entitled, Methods of Teaching the At-Risk and Disabled Students, has
taught me the requirements of a special education teacher. I learned how to identify a
disability, write an IEP and differentiate instruction. I also learned about the referral process
for special education.
In the beginning of the semester, the class explored the NYS education website to
learn about the parts of an IEP. Without realizing it, we did a task analysis! Although this
website is a beneficial tool for learning the facts and structure of an IEP, I believe that
physically looking at real examples of an IEP is more informative.
I think that the course was structured very well. I liked how we learned how to write
SMART goals using the psycho-educational analysis prior to writing the full IEP. I was able
to receive feedback from my classmates and professor. The notes that I took on the student
during the assessment, and the facts that I knew about him from babysitting him, allowed me
to accurately portray the student by stating his strengths and needs. I think that the most
important thing I learned about writing an IEP is to make sure that the students present level
of performance reflects his/her goals and services. I used the two IEPs that were given to us
in class to help write my students IEP. Even though these IEPs were for an Autistic student
and Intellectually disabled student, I was able to take the language and apply it to my
students IEP.
Teachers are responsible to meet the needs of every student. In order to do this, it is
important to build a differentiated classroom rather than a traditional classroom. I learned

that differentiated instruction is based on four elements: content, process, products, and
learning environment. Teachers differentiate instruction by connecting the content to the
students interests. Each student also has specific multiple intelligences that they excel in.
Therefore, the teacher must connect content to these intelligences to motivate students and
make learning more engaging. It is important that the teacher acts as the facilitator and that
the students work cooperatively in order to learn from each other. Due to the fact that
students work at different paces, time should be flexible.
One of the ways to differentiate lessons is to modify materials to meet individual
needs. For example, some students need graphic organizers, word banks, enlarged text,
sentence starters, sentence strips, visuals, or assistive technology.
The lesson plans and task analysis that we had to write and present with a partner
emphasized the importance of working cooperatively and collaborating with a colleague. We
all have different experiences working with various age groups and students with disabilities
so it was interesting and beneficial to see and receive the differentiated lesson plans. The
task analysis assignment made me realize the simplicity of how young students, especially
with disabilities, break down and process a task. I think we sometimes take it for granted
that we just know how to do things. All the steps are crucial to understand the big
picture. If you miss a step, it will have an effect on the product.
Overall, I really enjoyed the depth of knowledge I gained from this course. The
assignments were related to the material covered in class, and allowed me to establish a
better transition into the field of special education. I loved having experienced
classmates/teachers and a professor who is clearly well educated. They are people I look up
to and whom I have learned from to enhance my teaching skills.