WebLog 2

WebLog 2                                                                                                                    January 27, 2011

Michael Apple had some solid and poignant points in the first chapter of his book, Markets, Standards, God, and Inequality.  While I did not agree entirely with all of his ideologies, he seemed to have a very strong handle on the big issues of today’s educational system and the history which got it there.  With that said, he chose in what my opinion, is a very “touchy” title for his book.  Educating the “right” way.   What is right?  And who is right?  There are so many political battles over education, so many laws passed and changes made to “better” the system.  But is it better?   

Being in a college of education program at the time that President Bush passed the No Child Left Behind Act, I found myself re-thinking what my focus was on going into this field and what my personal career goals were going to be.  On the one hand, I was seeing streams of seasoned teachers who were many times some of the best in their fields, have to go back to school to become “highly qualified”, and were most certainly not happy about this new law.  One woman who had been teaching for 35 years actually turned to me and said “get out while you still can.  Our government missed the boat again!”  I was shocked.  At the time, I wasn’t sure how I felt about all this political hoopla.  After all, our roles as teachers hasn’t changed, was this law really going to affect us in the classroom?  And on the other hand, I was becoming a professional in the field of special education.  I was very passionate about advocating for children who have special needs and the concept of “no child left behind” sounded like it was truly about those children.  But was it?  Is it fair to expect our children with cognitive delays to have to take the same tests as students who are able to learn typically?  The more I thought about it, the more I started to understand what that seasoned teacher meant. 

In Apple’s anecdote about his student Joseph, he brought up a very strong point that we’re told to focus on “standards”, and “raising the educational bar” but the truth is that Apple is right when he says that “the educational reforms may sound good, but often work in exactly the opposite way when they reach the classroom level. “

If our government set up our educational system to be successful, then why are so many students falling through the cracks?  Why is there so much failure?  Where are all these gaps and what is being done to fill them? 

I am sure that Apple has explored these questions at many levels, and I’m sure he will attempt to address some of them in following chapters.  However, even Apple may not have all the answers to educating the “right” way.  At the end of the day, I have to be able to tell myself that I did the best job that I could with the materials and knowledge that I have, and hope that my students will be successful regardless of the fallacies in the “system”.

WebLog 1: CLASS SURVEY

WebLog 1: CLASS SURVEY

Personal information
1. Heidi Levine-Shtern, University Heights, DassiShtern@gmail.com

2. Dassi     
       
3.  I have my BA in Moderate to Intensive Special Education from Cleveland State University.  I've been working in the field of Special Education for 9 years. 
    I am a teacher for the ETGAR program - a special needs Hebrew school program of the Jewish Education Center of Cleveland. I teach a self contained class of children with severe behavioral disabilities as well as learning difficulties.  I create curriculum and make all necessary modifications to meet the specific needs of each of my students. 
    I am also an Educational Coordinator for the SEGULA program.  An inclusion program that is also a program of the Jewish Education Center of Cleveland.  There my role is to supervise classroom aides,work with the teachers and any other service providers to modify curriculum and all other aspects of the classroom environment that will better enable the student to be successful in an inclusion setting. 
   I recently resigned as Program Director of The Friendship Circle where I worked for 7 years to create and implement social programming for children with special needs and their families, and trained teen volunteers to work with children's specific needs. 

4. I am married and a mom of 3 girls.  I enjoy crafting, baking, and spending time with my family. 

Learning Style and more:
5. I am a very organized and detail oriented learner.  Being that I juggle a lot of things, it is important to me to have clarification on assignments and any information taught.  The more organized I feel, the more confident I am with my ability to take creative risks and ultimately be a successful student in the classroom.

6. I do enjoy the educational environment and learning from other professionals in the field.  While I do have some strong opinions on education and curriculum (especially when it comes to catering to students with special learning needs), and I like to voice those opinions, I do try to be an open minded learner when it comes to hearing and learning from other's experiences as well as their approach to teaching and working with various curriculum. 

7.  As I mentioned above, I do juggle a lot, and therefore I don't always have as much time to study/read as I would like to, but I do take school seriously and make it a priority. I will always work hard to get the assignments done well and on time.  

Education Past and Present

9. I am very passionate about teaching children with special needs, and see myself as an advocate for these children in my community.  While being creative and constantly thinking out of the box is something that I do daily to try and create opportunities where my students can be successful, I do wish there was more support for me as a teacher of different learners, as well as more access to various life skill and social curriculum that can work hand in hand with the typical classroom curriculum that we are asked to cover. This is an area where my students need constant attention, and of course the earlier the intervention, the more likely the child is to succeed.  

10.  I would like opportunities to collaborate with other teachers in order to learn from their experiences, as well as brainstorm additional ideas that I may find helpful and useful in my day to day teaching.  I appreciate being encouraged to think out of the box.  

About Dr. Shutkin:
11. What other classes do you currently teach, and what will you be teaching this summer/fall semester?