Running Head: Experience Interview
Experience Interview
Completed by: Alexandria Sylve-Parker
EDUC 521
October 14, 2017
Randall Dunn
Running Head: Experience Interview
Part 1: Demographics
Part 2: Questionnaire Interview
1. How did you learn that Nicole has a disability?
“I learned that Nicole has a disability when my sat me down around the age of four and
began to explain my sister’s behavior.”
2. How did you feel when you received the diagnosis?
“I felt fine, I did not view her any differently is just helped me understand why she acted
the way she did. I always knew that she was different nut did know how and did not know how
to express that.”
3. Have your feelings changed since the initial diagnosis? Describe.
Nicole Parker is now a twenty-five year old that that was diagnosed with Autism at a
younger age around 4 years old. She lives with her Aunt in a middle-class home where she leaves
daily to work a full time job. She has first cousins who have also been diagnosed with this
disability but not in her immediate family.
Name of person you are interviewing: Andre Parker
Name of individual with the disability: Nicole Parker
Describe the disability: “Nicole is considered to have high functioning Autism”
Age of the individual with the disability: “Nicole is now 25 but was first diagnosed with
Autism when she was about four years old.”
Describe the relationship between the family member and the individual with the
disability: Andre and Nicole Parker are sister and brother. Andre is 23 and Nicole is his older
sister at 25.
Running Head: Experience Interview
“My feeling towards my sister have changed throughout the years as I have to check
myself and remember that she is my sister and I need to have patience with her even when I get
frustrated with things I feel that she should be used to by now.”
4. What have been the positive aspects of having a child in the family with a disability?
“Having Nicole as my sister has helped me in a great way because not only does she
make me a better person but being related to her makes it easier to deal with other people who
are disabled.”
5. What have been the problems or challenges you have experienced having a child with a
disability?
“Well with Nicole being my sister verses my child I had the set of challenges adapting to
know that there was a reason that she acts the way that she does. I have taken on the role of being
a big little brother to her which is often times exhausting but I just keep pushing forward as I
would want someone to do the same for me. She does not mean to be the way that she is, she was
born with a disability.”
6. How did your other children react to learning their brother/sister had a disability
“Nicole and I are the only two children that my parents had but I will say that our close
cousins work very well with Nicole in accepting the way that she is and helping her get through
her daily challenges.”
7. What kinds of support have been most helpful to you (family members, parent groups,
neighbors, other)?
“The support from everyone has been amazing. My mother was able to stay home with
Nicol during her primary years of life and my dad supported the household. My aunt was then
and also continues to be a great part of her life in trying to facilitate growth in areas that she
really needs help with.”
8. What have been your experiences in working with school personnel? What have they
done that has been most helpful? What have they done that was least helpful or even
harmful?
“When it comes to our interactions with the school, for the most part I remember them
being good. The staff was friendly, sometimes I had to come up to the school with my mom to
speak with people about how Nicole was doing and they always were very nice to use. I do think
that a lot of characteristics of Nicole today comes from being enabled and somewhat babied. I
Running Head: Experience Interview
think that sometimes people treat children with a disability as a baby and that does not help them
grow at all.”
9. How could the school help your child transition to adulthood?
“I see in the school that you work in implement different programs that Nicole did not
have like independent living classes that you can actually carry out a normal day in or work
study opportunities for students with disabilities. This would have helped Nicole when she
transitioned into adulthood but she is really just doing the best that she can. She actually just got
a promotion after only being at the company for a few months.”
10. If I were to be Nicole’s teacher next year, what advice would you want to give me so that
he/she has an optimal learning experience?
“I would tell you to be very kind to her but also be very strict with her and not allow her
to use many excuses when you know that she can get the work done. Use a lot of hands on
activities and keep in close contact with her mom.”
11. What would you want me to do/not do in terms of my interactions with you if I were
Nicole’s teacher?
“Just make sure that you email or call me a few times a month to keep me in the loop. If
you are using Google Classroom or anything like that I would like access to be able to keep an
eye on what she would be doing. “
12. I am just learning about students with disabilities and how to work effectively
with them in my classroom. What other information would you like me—and my
classmates—to know about working with children with special needs?
“I think that you already know but just keep in mind that each and every student if
different even when they have a disability. Even students that have autism are different in their
own way and should be treated as such. I also think that it is important to meet students on their
level and build a rapport with them. Always let them know that you are on their side and want
them to grow.
Part 3: Summary of Research-Based Strategies
When working as a classroom teacher, there are many skills that are needed in order to be
most effective. This section include three strategies that have been researched and suggest
success for a culturally diverse classroom setting. The three strategies include:
Running Head: Experience Interview
Students with Autism have a very unique ability in learning and general educators,
special education teachers and other professionals have to have a unique learning environment to
not only educate students with autism but enhance their learning. One way to enhance learning
with autistic students is to use comprehensive visual learning. Many children with autism are
visual learners (Grandin, T.). Visual learning is more stimulating to students with autism because
it affords them a more finite idea of the instructions given to complete the assignments. Mostly
all students learn better with visual, however it could more conducive with autistic students
because it excites their unique brain activity. And example of visual learning is to take everyday
items such as popsicle sticks to teach basic math skills. Giving a visual representation of
numbers allows autistic children to grasp the concepts efficiently.
Another strategy would be to allow autistic students to use laptops and tablets during
their learning periods. The use of laptops and tablets enhance the learning capabilities and as
educator Beth Sagger states, “Help students on the spectrum overcome many of the motor skill
difficulties that make handwriting difficult” (Sagger, B.). Students with autism can experience
times in the learning periods, where they are overwhelmed and frustrated with handwriting
information. Once a student feels overwhelmed, it is sometime very hard to bring them back in
and keep them focused. Tablets and laptops offer an alternative by providing one click options to
answer questions and e-learning functions that could read information to the student and help
with the pacing of completing assignments.
Students with autism require and prefer structure that is calm and predictable (Boser, K et
al.). To enhance the learning of a child with autism always have a structured classroom in which
Running Head: Experience Interview
the students knows what to expect and that there are little to no surprises in the objective for the
day. Their work station should be organized to where their work to be competed is on one side of
their working stations and completed work in on the other (Boser, K. et al.). This type of
structure encourages work to be completed while maintaining proper classroom behavior and
etiquette.
These methods of implementing visual, technological, and structural learning will help
enhance the learning of students with autism. Providing visuals in class will help with learning
concepts. Not only was this idea supported in the interview above, but it also is something that
is seen in many classrooms that have been observed. Tablets and laptops will help with
overcoming handwriting frustration. And structure will provide a solid learning environment for
the student. Not only will these methods enhance the learning of students with autism but will
also help them to remain calm in the learning environment and promote good behavior in their
classrooms.
Part 4: Conclusion – Reflection and Discussion
This assignment tied in the elements of personal connection to a person who has a
disability, insight that an educator will need in order to be successful and instructional strategies
that will contribute to the success of both the student and the teacher.
From the aspect of the interview I learned the first hand perspective of a close family
member of mine and how they dealt with being raised with an older sibling that had a disability.
You never know what someone’s life is like or what they go through until you take the time to sit
down with them and learn the perspective from their eyes. There were a few take-aways from
Running Head: Experience Interview
the interview that were noted one of which is the amount of support that that is required in order
to get through the daily tasks and process. Family members are a key component to helping a
child that is autistic but sometimes it can be frustrating and hard to deal with. One thing that I
have seen is that you have to be willing as a sibling to take the back seat often times and allow
the sibling that is disabled to be in the forefront and that causes emptiness sometimes. The
support from school staff is imperative but what I noticed most is that Nicole’s mother wanted to
have very good communication with the school staff and being in the loop of major changes and
not so major changes. The advice that was given was to be patient with Nicole and push her to
her limit and I feel that this should be the case for all students that have a disability.
With respect to the instructional strategies that are described which are implementing
visual learning, utilizing technology and have a structured setting are all methods that seem to
have applied well both in Nicole’s situation as well as many students with autism. Visual
learning gives students something that is tangible and helps them make ties and connections that
reading a book in black and white would not be able to provide. In 2017, technology is a key
component to helping every student and teacher be successful. Being able to allow students to
use a laptop or a table instead of a notebook and a pencil provide an alternative that will help
them transition into adulthood, especially in the workplace. Finally, classroom management is
vital to any classroom but children with disabilities look to having a structured environment at
home and in the school setting. Change is not easy for anyone, children who are autistic need a
routine in order to remain calm and learn at their best. Think about being on the road that you are
used to traveling and come up on a detour and it takes down a two mile road in order for you to
get home? This is what it feels like to a autistic child that may walk in the classroom to see the
desks rearranged or having a substitute teacher for the day.
Running Head: Experience Interview
References
Boser, Ph.D., Katharina I., Goodwin, Ph.D., Matthew S., Wayland, Ph. D., Sarah C.
(2014).Teaching tools for students with autism. Innovations that enhance
independenceand learning. Retrieved from
archive.brookespublishing.com/documents/boser-technology-tools.pdf.
Grandin, Ph.D., Temple. (December 2002). “Teaching tips for children and adults with
Autism”. Retrieved from https://www.iidc.indiana.edu/pages/Teaching-Tips-for-
Children-and-Adults-with-Autism.
Saggers, Beth. (September 7, 2016). “Supporting students with autism in the classroom:
What teachers need to know”. Retrieved from theconverstation.com/supporting
-students-with-autism-in-the-classroom-what-teachers-need-to-know-64814.
