SPED 608 (Number Two)

The issues at Gold Beach remind me of the mythic hydra (Chop off one head and two grow back). As the educational staff in an Adaptive Life Skills (ALS) classroom, we need to build a learning community for our students. ALS staff can be the most important factor in a student's education.

The learning communities at Riley Creek and Gold Beach High School extend beyond the ALS classroom, but we need to build a community within our classroom. As the teacher, I need to take the lead and construct a foundation to work within and upon.

Communication is the first brick in the wall (I know - I jumped from the foundation to Pink Floyd's educational wall 8). If the instructional assistants don't understand what I'm trying to do, then I am not communicating. In all honesty, I thought that I was communicating with my staff last year, but it's easier to blame others when things go wrong than to look at your own mistakes. That's not to say that there weren't issues on their side of the wall as well.

In order to foster more communication, I created a Communication Book (One for each school). Messages were supposed to be written in a notebook and then initialled after being read. This met with mixed results, but I think that it is a valuable tool for the classroom (On the staff side of the wall). This is something that I will continue next year as well.

Staff Meetings are a necessary evil as well. I had certain difficulties with scheduling meetings last year. I was between three different schools. I had two IAs that were riders with two different students so arranging for before and after school meetings were an issue as well. I feel that I solved this problem for the most part, but complaints that I heard from other staff (There was an Autism Specialist that my staff chose to complain to repeatedly -- she was great about it and always asked if the instructional assistants had talked to me first -- which they usually had not). Anyway, I usually met with my staff at Gold Beach High School during my visit to the classroom. I tried to meet weekly with my Riley Creek classroom (Usually Friday morning). I won't have Port Orford next year so I'll leave them out of the mix... Regular staff meetings will be part of my schedule next year.

Student schedules, work, and activities were carried over from last year. Again, these were my responsibilities. Something else to throw into the mix for next year. I've got specific ideas that I need to communicate and implement. Another issue to tackle for next year.

Building a team is going to be my biggest hurdle for next year. I need to lead by example and direction. These are two skills that I don't use very efficiently. I've got to get better about that. I've got to address complaints about other staff in a positive manner. I've got to correct mistakes and teach skills. I've got to get beyond my own likes and dislikes and work with people that have really pushed my buttons and do better.

Small towns have a culture all their own. Most people don't realize that, but they do. Port Orford, Gold Beach, and Bandon are very different entities (As are the schools within each community). I feel that I can become a part of the Gold Beach community even though I do not live in Gold Beach. Last year gave me a glimpse into that community and I relied heavily upon my instructional assistants (Perhaps too much) for further views of Gold Beach. Next year, I've got to build my own windows into the walls of my learning community (More mixed metaphors -- sorry). I have to become a bigger part of the each school.

When I was an instructional assistant in Port Orford, I arranged to supervise dodgeball games during two different recesses. This had many positive benefits (Staff were relieved of some of their responsibility because most of the kids played dodgeball; I met more of the kids in the school, learning about kids outside of the classrooms that I worked within; we had fun). I also taught an art class to second and third graders on Fridays (The general education teacher worked with my student and I worked with the classroom; it was a Win-Win situation). I need to do something like this at Gold Beach. These activities can also pull my Adaptive Life Skills into activities with their peers as well.

If I'm able to build a team (Where none has really existed before), I will create a supportive learning community. This will benefit my staff and my students. It will make my job (And their jobs) easier, too. I just have to step up the plate and take a swing. I need to put more effort into putting bricks into this educational wall. I need to put my nose to the grindstone.

That's enough cliches...

I also need to be in Gold Beach next year.

SPED 608 (My First Blog)

I'm going to assume (For this assignment) that I will be in Gold Beach next year. I'll have six students (Three at Riley Creek and three at Gold Beach High School). I'm not sure how many Instructional Assistants I'll get next year.

At Riley Creek, I'll have two seventh graders and one eighth grader. At the high school, I'll have a freshman, a junior, and a senior. Five of these students are Adaptive Life Skills students. The sixth student was a life skills last year, but was pulled out of life skills for next year, but readmitted.

The school districts in Coos and Curry counties changed the Adaptive Life Skills classrooms and the higher functioning students were removed from the program. My freshman student was officially removed from the program, but then added to the Life Skills program by the district. I don't understand how this worked out officially, but it had a lot to do with budgeting and less to do with academics

Last year was difficult. I had three classrooms (Two in Gold Beach and one in Port Orford), nine students, and eight instructional assistants. Communication was an issue with my instructional assistants (At least in Gold Beach). With three classrooms (In two different cities), I was more case manager than teacher. That didn't sit very well with my instructional assistants. Add a weekly trip to Eugene on Tuesdays (For class) and a difficult situation become much more difficult.

Next year will be different (At least in regards to this assignment 8). I'll be in Gold Beach and a presence within my classrooms. I'll be there every day and I'll be able to teach rather than manage (I hope). While I don't know who my instructional assistants will be next year, I'm sure that some (If not all) of them will be returning next year. I have several STRONG personalities among my instructional assistants. Communication was an issue last year (Communication among staff, to parents, to me as the teacher, etc.). Each one of these instructional assistants has strengths, but sometimes these strengths collide.

My primary concern for next year is managing my instructional assistants. I feel like I know my students, understand their needs, and have several good ideas for reaching their instructional goals. In order to do that, I'm going to need to create a team. There wasn't a team last year (And I suspect that this has been an issue for quite some time).

I feel that my Classroom Improvement Plan has to be centered on my staff rather than my students. If we can't present meaningful instruction, we are doing a disservice to our students. I feel that this was an issue last year and I hope to change that this year. Data collection, consistant instruction, and concrete schedules need to be implimented. Programs have been developed (And used), but the communication issues have weakened by that staff deficit.

I hope that I do get Gold Beach next year. Part of it is the "Devil you know", but a larger part of the placement is that I like the school, the students, and the community. I want to correct my mistakes from last year. I feel that the potential in Gold Beach has not been utilized and I want to reach that potential.