Field Observation – Special Education 1

Special Education Field Observation

Amber Parker

Education 203 Field Observation

March 15, 2019

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Special Education Field Observation

Comparing and Contrasting Between the Textbook Material and my Field Experience

I was surprised at how much the content from the textbook differs from the special

education classroom in reality. This semester I was assigned to read the textbook Special

Education in Contemporary Society: Sixth Edition by Richard M. Gargiulo and Emily C Bouk.

Throughout the course of reading this textbook, as well as from my peers, I was able to learn

about many different disorders, disabilities, and behavior issues that are often seen in the special

education classroom. Not only was I able to learn about different disorders and disabilities, but I

was also able to increase my knowledge about the field of special education. Regardless of how

much I learned from the textbook, I was unable to compare most of what I learned from the

textbook to what I observed in my assigned class.

There is a vast amount of information about different disorders and aspects of special

education that can be found within the textbook. There were not a lot of subjects from the

textbook that I was able to use during my observation. The class to which I was assigned to only

consisted of eight students in it, half of which participate in resource for the majority of the day.

As a result, there were usually no more than four students in the room at one time. The students

that stayed in the classroom did not show any signs of apparent behavior issues, and for the most

part, respected their teachers and fellow classmates. Thus, it was quite difficult for me to

compare the textbook material to the reality of my observation. However, I was able to observe

two students who had down syndrome and one who was an English learner, which related to the

material in the textbook.

On March 7, 2019, I observed a student named Jessica, an English learner, for an

extended period of time. A student who is classified as an English learner means that English is
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the student’s second language. Jessica primarily speaks Spanish and struggles to understand

English when reading or writing with the language. She is, however, able to speak English quite

fluently and successfully communicate with those around her. On page 86 of the textbook, the

term English learners (Els) is defined as, “students whose primary language is not English and

who have yet to achieve proficiency in English.” With Jessica being comfortable and fluent when

speaking English, I suspect that she has had a few years to learn and practice the language prior

to the time of my observation.

Page 86 of the textbook reports that because an English learner’s primary language is not

English, “they are unable to profit fully from instruction provided in English.” I think that this

statement is partially untrue in Jessica’s case. During the ten hours that I observed the class, I

noticed that Jessica had little to no problems understanding the oral instructions that she was

given. When given instructions, Jessica is able to comprehend what she is being told and carry

out the instructions almost to the letter. On the other hand, however, Jessica does struggle with

comprehending and following written instructions that are in English. Based on what I observed

and comparing it to the textbook, Jessica is able to fully benefit from English instruction if given

orally but not when the instruction is written down. For example, on March 7, 2019, Ms. Taylor

played word bingo with Jessica by telling her a word and tasking her with finding that word on

the bingo board. Jessica was able to understand the word she was being told and repeat it back to

Ms. Taylor, but she was unable to correctly match the word she heard to its proper spelling on the

bingo board.

While Jessica had a hard time matching a spoken word to its correct spelling, she does

know the words she was being told and is able to understand Ms. Taylor when she talks to her.

Jessica is a wonderful student and I had a fun time observing her because it gave me insight to
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what it is like teaching an English learner. Jessica has a lot of potential and I believe that with

more help, practice, and more one-on-one time with her teachers, that she will be able to more

fully learn English and be successful in her education as she grows up.

During my last two hours of observation on March 15, 2019, I took the time to carefully

observe both Addie and Jose, both of which have Down syndrome, for an extended period of

time. The textbook defines Down syndrome on page 174 as “a chromosomal abnormality

frequently resulting in intellectual disabilities with accompanying distinctive physical features.” I

was immediately able to determine that both Addie and Jose had Down syndrome because of

their facial features. Both Addie and Jose had a short stature, their faces appeared more flat than

normal, and short fingers, all of which are common physical characteristics of individuals with

Down syndrome.

On page 176 of the textbook it states, “Down syndrome most often results in mild to

moderate intellectual disability. In some instances, however, individuals may have a severe

intellectual disability, and in other situations, near normal intelligences is possible.” As far as

intellectual disabilities go, Addie seems to have a near normal intelligence and is much more

functional than Jose. Jose has a more severe intellectual disability and struggles to effectively

interact with his peers. During my observation, I noticed that Addie knows a good amount of

words, and for the most part, can effectively converse her feelings, wants, and needs. Jose, on the

other hand, seemed to only know enough words needed to communicate basic responses. While

observing Jose, I noticed that he has a hard time learning and retaining new information. Ms.

Taylor has to repeat herself multiple times when giving instructions to Addie and Jose before

either of them are able to understand what is being said. Despite both having to be told what to
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do multiple times, Addie is able to grasp the concept she is being told much quicker than Jose

can.

What I Learned

My knowledge of special education increased ten-fold throughout my observation.

Through observing, I learned that special education is a whole other reality compared to what I

had imagined. Before beginning my observation, I was under the impression that the special

education classroom would have a ton of students with behavior issues, or kids throwing

tantrums when they don’t get their way. While this may be true for many special education

classes, it was not at all true for the class that I was assigned. The students that I observed were

always respectful to each other and there were no serious tantrums or behavior issues present.

I was surprised by the fact that the class was so well behaved and so I talked to Ms.

Taylor about what her classes were like in previous years. Ms. Taylor has been teaching special

education for five years and was a special education teacher’s aid for two years before she

became a teacher. When I asked her about groups she taught in previous years, she told me that

no two groups of students are the same and every year is different. Last year she had a student

who would yell, scream, and rebel against everyone and everything. Ms. Taylor told me that this

student did not like changes, and as a result, had a hard time adjusting to his new aid. Ms. Taylor

teaches kindergarten through second grade and she told me that by the time the student was in

second grade, he had adjusted to his new aid and became both respectful and comfortable to

those around him. This story taught me that every child is different and comes with their own

issues, and that we as teachers have to persevere through these situations the best we can until we

find a way to resolve them.

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How my Observation Affected my Decision to Become a Teacher.

Prior to completing my observation hours, I had no intention of becoming a special

education teacher. It only took five hours of observation for that intention to change. Before

observing, I thought that teaching special education would be way too difficult for me to teach

and quite miserable. After observing I now know that special education is a very important

profession. Being inside the classroom and seeing what special education was about changed my

views of the profession. Special educators are responsible for making sure those with disabilities

have an equal opportunity to learn as those who are not disabled. I have a deeper understanding

and greater appreciation for the profession. Special education teachers volunteer to teach gifted

and talented children who would, more likely than not, be quickly turned away from general

education. It takes a special kind of person to be able to be successful in a special education

career.

There are a few key reasons that influenced my decision to not only to become a teacher,

but to go the extra mile and become a special education teacher. A main factor for my decision, is

the size of the class. According to Ms. Taylor, there are typically only a maximum of sixteen

students in a single special education class, and most of the time the class size doesn’t reach

above eleven students. The class size is reduced even more since a lot of the students will most

likely have resource for the majority of the day. I think having a smaller class size would be

beneficial for me because I think that it will be easier for me to get to know my students better,

and if I know my students, I will be able to better help them succeed. Another reason I want to

major in special education is because there is typically at least one teacher aid in the classroom

ready to help when needed. Having another adult in the classroom would be helpful when there

are behavior problems that occur. A teacher’s aid would also be handy during group work. As the
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teacher, I would be able to wok with a small group of students one-on-one while the rest of the

class works on their assignments. If the students get distracted and stop working, or if they are

being loud, the teacher’s aid can help calm them down and get them back on task. The last thing

that helped me decide to be a special education teacher, is the fact that I can relate to the

student’s hardships and disabilities on a personal level. I have a lot of cousins in my extended

family and there are some with different disorders and disabilities. I can draw upon what I have

learned from these particular cousins, as well as what I have seen them go through, to relate to

my students. I can also rely on my own hardships and learning disabilities to understand the

children and what they might be going through.

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References

Bouck, Emily C., Gargiulo, Richard M. (2017). Special Education in Contemporary Society: an

Introduction to Exceptionality - Sixth Edition. Los Angeles, California: SAGE

Publications.