professornotes.docx
WEEK FOUR INSTRUCTOR GUIDANCE
Welcome to Week Four! In the first half of this class, you have learned about the legal and historical foundations of the current assessment and evaluation process in Special Education, different kinds of assessments, including formal and informal assessments, the assessment and evaluation process in Special Education, Response to Intervention (RTI), the purpose and role of the Child Study Team (CST), and the need to take cultural and social factors into account.
This week, as we move into the last half of the class, we focus on the role of the special educator in the assessment and evaluation process, the role of the Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team, and the importance of parental and student participation in the assessment process. By the end of this week you will be able to explain the Special Educator’s role in the use of assessment and evaluation results to develop an appropriate Individualized Education Program (IEP) for a student and describe how participants of the multidisciplinary evaluation team contribute to the development of the IEP.
Week Four Journal Guidance
One of the characteristics of outstanding educators is their ability to reflect on their practice. As we reach the half-way point of the course we will take a moment to pause and reflect on the journey so far. As described in the blog, The Reflective Practitioner, the best teaching is constructed from events that are "…puzzling, troubling and uncertain" (Merickel, 1998). You may be puzzling over aspects of this case, or troubled and uncertain as to how you might proceed if you were Manuel's teacher. You may recognize that there are some dilemmas inherent in this case (as with all cases involving real students and lives) and may be wondering what kind of response is the most effective. The emotional awareness you bring to your teaching…and learning…will set you apart and allow you to serve your students deeply and with purpose. Some key questions to ask in this reflective process include the following:
As you write in your journal this week you will be reflecting on some strategies for talking to both Manuel and his parents about the need for a formal assessment and evaluation that puts the special education process in motion. A resource you might find helpful is the "All Kinds of Minds" website. A link to the site can be found below the picture here.
And finally, one way to enhance your ability to reflect is to know yourself as a learner. Check out the interactive website below to find out what kind of learner YOU are! It might be a great way to start your reflective journal this week and may help you in thinking about the kinds of activities and strategies that might help you to talk with Manuel and his family.
Make sure to use the Grading Rubric as a self-checklist before submitting the final copy of your assignment to confirm you have met or exceeded each required expectation. The highest level of achievement on the rubric is “distinguished”, which is only earned through exceeding posted expectations at the proficiency level. Please remember you are in a masters-level program. Therefore, your writing, research, and content are held to graduate-level expectations.
Recommendation
The MASE program provides the opportunity for you to create an online portfolio that can be used in your career development and professional practice. Throughout the program you will have various assessments that can be included in this e-portfolio and these will be finalized in the last course of the MASE program, Capstone coure, ESE699. You may select this assignment and subsequent coursework to include as artifacts. Therefore, it is strongly encouraged you save your coursework on a flash-drive (e.g., a USB removable drive) or store in a cloud-based option such as Dropbox, GoogleDrive, or other similar applications.
REFERENCES
Great Schools Staff (n.d.).
Special education evaluation: An overview (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from
http://www.greatschools.org/special-education/legal-rights/666-special-education-evaluation-an-overview.gs
Merkial, D. (1998). The Reflective Practitioner (Links to an external site.). [Blog Post] Retrieved from http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/pte/module2/rp.htm
National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities (n.d.).
What is a multidisciplinary evaluation and assessment? (Links to an external site.)
Retrieved from http://www.mychildwithoutlimits.org/plan/early-intervention/multidisciplinary-evaluation-and-assessment/
Pierangelo, R., & Giuliani, G. A. (2012). Assessment in special education: A practical approach. Boston: Pearson.
Stump, C. (n.d.)
Before special ed: How pre-referral works. (Links to an external site.) Retrieved from http://www.greatschools.org/special-education/LD-ADHD/517-pre-referral.gs?page=all
Sources for visuals
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