sped 426 self-reflection journal

7/30/2019 SPED 426 Self-Reflection Journal

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Anna Demlow

SPED 426

Hedda Meadan-Kaplansky

April 23, 2013

Self-Reflection Journal

Section:

1. Reflect for at least 1 week on your collaborative skills. Write five journal

entries describing your behavior in collaborative situations.

Journal Entry 1:

I co-teach in a 3rd grade general education class for reading and language

arts. The general education teacher (Ms. W) and myself station co-teach every day

using four different stations. These four stations are: guided reading, reading

comprehension, independent reading, and Lexia. Every Thursday from 10:30-11 Ms.

W and I collaborate on how we think the groups are going. We focus on the grouping

of the students, the transitions from station to station, the progress their making on

the skills were teaching, and lesson plans for the following week. My behaviors

throughout these meetings are positive and enthusiastic. I come to the meetings

prepared and share the data I have collected on the students progress. I also am

very willing to learn from Ms. W. During the meeting, I asked for strategies on how

she has taught these comprehension skills in the past and what has been successful

for her.

Journal Entry 2:


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One day this week, my cooperating teacher (Mrs. K) had to leave early at 1:30

(a half an hour before the school day was over). She has two students with

emotional disabilities on her caseload that have a hard time adjusting when she is

not there. In order to prepare one of the students for this, she told the student (LB)

that he would be coming down to room 13 (resource room) to do a subtraction test

with me at 1:30. When I left my other lesson at 1:30 to go get LB from the general

education room, he was kicking and throwing chairs around the room. During this

situation, I had to quickly collaborate through our eye contact across the room with

the paraprofessional to escort him out of the room and get him to room 13. While

escorting him I called on the walkie-talkie to get the other EDBD teacher (Mr. P) for

more assistance because Mrs. K had already left. Mr. P quickly ran down the hall and

we got LB to room 13 safely and were able to de-escalate his behavior without

having to restrain him. During this situation, my collaborative behaviors included

clearly and effectively communicating what I needed. I used active responding skills

in order to get assistance quickly. When entering the room, I was able to interpret

the paraprofessionals nonverbal communication (eye contact, body language) that

she needed help getting LB out of the room. I also believe I demonstrated that I

could maintain being calm in a time of crisis.

Journal Entry 3:

During special education collaboration this week, we discussed how we were

going to schedule the students with special needs for ISATS. We had to determine

the location of the testing, which students would be grouped together, what

accommodations each student had for the testing, and the teacher that would be


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testing each group of students. Since I am a student teacher and dont have much

input in these decisions, I decided to volunteer to type up the schedule on the

computer for them. I feel like this helped me to establish a rapport with all of the

other members on the team who dont really know me. I think they just expected me

to sit there and listen. I demonstrated active and on-going listening throughout the

meeting in order to ensure I was making the schedule correctly. I could have spoken

up during times in the meeting when they were discussing students who I work

with on a regular basis, but I hesitated to give feedback. I could work on not being

scared to share my ideas with other staff members even if they dont use them.

Journal Entry 4:

In the afternoon, I work with two students on an SRA math intervention. One

of the students (JB) has special needs and the other student (SW) is in the general

education classroom, but is behind in math. After doing this program with these

students for two weeks, I realized that SW is a lot further behind in math than I

anticipated. JB would finish the independent part of lesson in 5 minutes before SW

had one of the problems done. I realized this intervention wasnt being effective for

SW, so I collaborated with the special education teacher (Mrs. K) and her general

education teacher (Mrs. M). The collaborative behavior I demonstrated here was

discontinuing the current intervention and discussing with them other alternatives

or redesigning the intervention to fit her needs. In order to clarify what specific

problems she was having with in math, Mrs. K suggested doing some AIMS Web

testing on her. So I printed out the second grade AIMS Web probes for math (even

though she is in 4th grade). Over two days I collected data on her. I also printed out


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subtraction worksheets for assess her because through my observations this was an

area she struggled in. Once I got the results, I relayed the information over the Mrs.

K and Mrs. M. We explored the problem areas together and then set goals and

objectives for her to reach. We decided to do this by using the same curriculum, but

adapting the lessons to fit her needs.

Journal Entry 5:

This week some behavioral problems have arose between two of my

students in an SRA Reading group. This group takes place in Ms. Ws general

education class. Two of the students in the group have special needs and the other

student is in another general education class. The problems that have been going on

are name-calling, saying shut up to each other, and threatening to fight. Not only

do these behaviors disrupt our small reading group, but they disrupt the rest of the

general education class as well. Because one of the students in the group doesnt

have special needs, I cannot pull this group out into a resource room. It is not fair to

Ms. W that she is allowing our group to take place in her classroom and the students

are disrupting her lesson with the rest of the class. I could tell that Ms. W was

frustrated with our group by here non-verbal communication such as her eye

contactand pointing to my students and mouthing shhh.

I decided to approach her after class to try and brainstorm some solutions

together. When we sat down to talk, I realized I froze up and was afraid of the

confrontation. I found myself apologizing a lot for my students behavior and saying;

Whatever you want to try, Im open to. Instead of working together, I just found

myself agreeing to whatever she wanted in the classroom. In one way I was giving


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credit to her ideas and listening, but I wasnt using any of my responding skills by

giving any of my ideas.

2. Two collaborative behaviors I wish to change through direct intervention.

Behavior 1: Give and solicit continuous feedback that is specific, immediate,

and objective.

I think this behavior is a weakness for me because I generally dont like to

give or ask for feedback. If I do give feedback to others, it is very vague such as,

Good job! I also dont like to give feedback immediately or continuously, I will

wait until the person asks for feedback before I give it to them. Another aspect of

this behavior that I struggle with is giving negative feedback. I have a hard time

telling people what I think theyre doing wrong or what isnt going well. Especially

face-to-face, I would rather give people negative feedback through an email. I think I

react this way because I dont like to make people upset or make them not like me.

So I always give positive feedback in order to avoid doing so. I also dont like to ask

for feedback because it makes me feel uncomfortable. I dont take compliments well,

but Im also afraid of receiving negative feedback.

One of the barriers to collaboration that we discussed in class was a lack of,

or insufficient communication. When Im not giving people my true feedback or

giving feedback frequently, this is insufficient communication. This creates a barrier

for effective collaboration. A condition for collaboration from the readings is having

shared accountability for the outcomes. My collaborative team and I cannot have

this unless Im giving honest, specific, and immediate feedback. My lack of feedback

can directly affect not only my collaborative outcomes, but my students outcomes


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as well. Feedback is the only way we change what isnt working well and fix the

issues to create better outcomes.

Behavior 2: Manage conflict and confrontation skillfully throughout the

collaborative process to maintain collaborative relationships.

This second behavior closely relates to my first behavior Im targeting. I have

a very hard time managing conflict and confrontation with other teachers and

professionals. Instead of attempting to handle it, I avoid conflict and confrontation

altogether. Whenever I have a difference in opinion or problem, I hold it in and keep

my thoughts/feelings to myself. This becomes an issue for me because all of the

issues I do have build up and then Ill eventually end up yelling at the person. This is

how Ive dealt with things across all areas of my life, so I understand why I act this

way.

As we discussed in class, a big barrier to collaboration are conflicts among

team members lacking skills to resolve them. I am one of these team members

because Im afraid of telling people what I think. I have a hard time standing up for

myself when a conflict arises, so Id rather ignore it than deal with it. A condition for

effective collaboration is having shared participation. Im not being an equal

participant in the collaboration process because we arent working together to solve

problems. Also, an emergent characteristic of collaboration is that the individuals

trust each other. My collaborative partners cant trust me if Im not being honest and

managing the conflicts when they arise.

3. Baseline for each behavior.


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Behavior 1: Give and solicit continuous feedback that is specific, immediate, and

objective.

Day 1 Journal Entry:

My cooperating teacher (Mrs. K) was absent one day this week and had

forgotten to leave sub-plans. She texted me to direct the substitute where to go

throughout the day and give her instructions on what to do.

I did what she asked and gave the sub instructions first thing in the morning.

I checked up on the sub throughout the day to see how things were going. If she had

any questions, I would give her feedback right away and tell her how to do

something. I would give her quick, specific, instructions to help her teach the

students because I had to leave to do my other responsibilities. The reason I dont

think I had a problem giving a sub feedback was because she needed help. She didnt

know what to do and it was my job to help her teach these kids. In this moment, I

realized I had to step up and collaborate with the substitute for the benefit of the

students.


I have started a new instructional curriculum with one of my students on

more functional skills. At her three-year reevaluation, her disability was changed

from a learning disability to an intellectual disability. That being said, we have

moved her goals to being more functional for her such as learning to tell time, count

money, days of the weeks, months, her address, phone number, etc.

Mrs. K is in the room when Im teaching these skills, so I know she is listening

and observing what Im teaching. This being said, she never gives me any feedback


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on whether she likes the way Im instructing these skills or if she has any

suggestions. Even though I would like feedback, I dont ever ask for it. I have just

continued teaching the way I have been.


As a part of my full take-over responsibilities, Mrs. K asked me to take data

on all of the students Im working with. I will then use this data to update the

students progress reports for their IEPs. To do this, I made data charts for each

student and the particular skills Im working on them with. I assess them on each

skill once a week and then share my results with Mrs. K. When I showed her my

results, the only feedback I received was ok or good. These comments dont

really give me constructive feedback. For example, one of my students hasnt been

improving on his reading fluency the past two weeks, but all she said was, ok. I

reacted to this by not asking her for any feedback. Even though I did have questions,

I just assumed her comments meant she was happy with how everything was going.

Behavior 2: Manage conflict and confrontation skillfully throughout the

collaborative process to maintain collaborative relationships.


When I was co-teaching in Ms. Ws reading and language arts class, I told a

student he could go to the bathroom. When the student signed out and went to the

leave the classroom, Ms. W stopped him.

She asked, Where are you going?

The student responded, To the bathroom.

Ms. W stated, No youre not, who gave you permission?


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The student said, Ms. D did.

Ms. W responded, I dont care what Ms. D says only I give you permission to leave

the classroom.

This situation made me very angry. I made sure at the beginning of the

semester that I knew all of her classroom rules and understood when children were

allowed to go to the bathroom. I followed her rules and expectations when I gave the

student permission to go to the bathroom. It was evident from her comment that

she doesnt view me as another teacher in the room. I dont understand this because

when my cooperating teacher (Mrs. K) was the co-teacher in the room instead of me,

they shared responsibility. I knew in my mind I wanted to confront Ms. W right

away, but that wouldnt have been appropriate. Instead, I let myself calm down

throughout the rest of the class period and then decided not to confront her at all. I

think when I calm down after a situation occurs; I get scared to bring it back up

again.


Since I have taken over my cooperating teachers schedule, she is free

throughout the day. She has two students with emotional disabilities (LB and DH)

who are still very attached to her. It is in both of these students IEPs that they

receive 45 minutes of push-in support in reading and language arts every day.

Because I station co-teach with the Ms. W, I cannot fully support LB and DH while

Im teaching. When they come up during a lesson and ask for help, I tell them that

theyll have to wait until Im done with the lesson. This causes the students to get

upset and their behaviors to escalate because theyre not getting the help they need


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right away. Mrs. K (my cooperating teacher) is supposed to be in the room at this

time, but because Im in there she has stopped coming.

Instead of confronting this issue with Mrs. K, I have ignored the issue. When

the LB and DH get upset they usually leave the classroom and go down to room 13

where she is. LB and DH get consequences for leaving their assigned area, so Im

thinking Mrs. K would see this as a problem herself and push back into the

classroom. This hasnt happened yet though. I think because Mrs. K is in charge of

me, I have a hard time saying that I need her to be in the room with me for

additional support. I feel as if its not my place or right to tell her what to do.


As I mentioned earlier, every day I push into a general education classroom

to do a math intervention with two students. One of the students (JB) has special

needs and the other student (SW) is in the general education classroom, but is

behind in math. Because SW isnt receiving any special education services, I cant

pull the students out into a resource room to give instruction. This is a problem

because there are a lot of problem behaviors going on with other general education

students during this time in the classroom. This causes a lot of yelling between the

students and the teacher. The two students Im working with have a hard time

staying focused. Sometimes they cant even hear what Im saying over all of the

yelling going on in the classroom.

I decided not to mention anything to the general education teacher because I

dont know her that well and I would feel uncomfortable. But, I did mention this to

my cooperating teacher (Mrs. K) and she told me she would look into an alternate


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location that wasnt a special education resource room. It has been almost a week

now and Mrs. K still hasnt looked into an alternate setting. These students notbeing

in a different setting directly affects their learning and progress. I dont want to

seem like a pest to Mrs. K so I havent confronted her about it again.

4. Interventions and Contingency PlanDescribe 1 intervention for each behavior that you will try in attempt to change

those behaviors. Provide a rationale for why you believe each intervention will

work.

Describe a contingency planWhat will I do if the first intervention does not work?

Intervention for:

Give and solicit continuous feedback that is specific, immediate, and objective.As for giving feedback to others, I will write or type out my feedback to give

to others. This can include typing up a list of feedback for a general education

teacher on how I think a co-taught lesson went or it can be a quick note on a post-it

about something I noticed. Since I think only giving written feedback is

unprofessional, once I write down my feedback, I will go over what I wrote with the

other person. When I have questions or am unsure of how I am performing, I will

make a list of questions to ask people for feedback. Then when I see the person I

would like feedback from, I will ask them the questions I have and take notes on

their feedback.

My rationale for why I believe this intervention will work is because by

writing my thoughts down it will help me organize what I want to say instead of the

pressure of saying it face-to-face right away. By going over what I wrote down with

the person, I will have specific and objective feedback instead of just generic


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comments such as Good job! This intervention will be especially helpful for me to

give negative feedback or constructive criticism. By taking the time to think about

what I want to say, I can make sure it doesnt come out sounding rude, arrogant, or

disrespectful.

Contingency Plan:

If my original intervention doesnt work, I will have to give verbal feedback

right away instead of taking the time to write it down. I eventually wanted to work

up to this, but if my first intervention isnt successful this is what I will have to do in

order to be successful in this area of collaboration. You cant get good at something

unless you practice, so practicing give specific immediate feedback will be helpful in

the future.

Intervention for:

Manage conflict and confrontation skillfully throughout the collaborative process to

maintain collaborative relationships.

When a conflict arises, I will write the conflict down and then take time to

process it. By taking the time to process it, I think my anger about the issue will

decrease and Ill become more calm and rational about the situation. Once Im

calmer, I will write out how I will address the issue with the other person. This

involves writing out how I will start the conversation and brainstorming some

possible solutions to the conflict. The next day, instead of just avoiding the conflict, I

will meet with the person at an appropriate time (i.e. lunch or plan time) to discuss.

I will discuss the conflict with the person (in a calm manner) what I previously

wrote down.


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My rationale for why I believe this intervention will work is because it gives

me time to process the situation and write down what I would like to say. By writing

down how Im going to start the conversation and having possible solutions in mind,

it will make me feel more comfortable/prepared for the confrontation. I think the

hardest part of managing conflict and confrontation for me is starting the

conversation with the person. By taking the time to process it, it will not only help

me calm down, but also give me the courage to approach the person.

Contingency Plan:

If my original intervention doesnt work, I will still take the time to process,

but I will address the issue the same day at an appropriate time (i.e. after class,

during lunch, plan time, after school) instead of waiting until the next day. I think

maybe by waiting until the next day, the person will feel like the issue is done and

over with. By bringing the issue back up after the person has forgotten about it may

create more problems.

5. Keep a journal entry for EACH BEHAVIOR for at least 8 days. Each entry will have

2 sections for EACH behavior on EACH day.

A. The opportunities to engage in the skill and how you reacted.

B. Evaluation and reflect on the effectiveness of your intervention at improving your

competence in each skill.

Behavior 1:

Give and solicit continuous feedback that is specific, immediate, and objective.

Day 1:

During ISATS, my cooperating teacher (Mrs. K) was testing in the morning so

my schedule completely changed. I spent the mornings with 2nd grade students who

werent testing and are on Mrs. K caseload. These students all have behavior plans,


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so throughout the morning I recorded their behaviors on a sheet of paper. I also

recorded the scores they earned on their behavior charts for the time I was with

them. When I met back up with Mrs. K for lunch at 11, I went over the feedback I had

written down throughout the morning. While I was going over the feedback, she also

gave me feedback about what consequences they typically receive for certain

behaviors. I took notes on her feedback so I wouldnt forget what she was telling me.

Overall in this situation, I think my intervention was very effective. I got

feedback on the students consequences, so I would be able to implement those

consequences for the rest of the days of ISATS. I also wrote them down so I wouldnt

forget what consequences applied for each student. By recording their behaviors, I

was able to provide her with documentation as well as a sheet of feedback.

Day 2:

During parent/teacher conferences, I had the opportunity to give parents

feedback based on the data I have been taking while working with their child. In

order to effectively do this, I made copies of all the data I had collected on the

students. This way, I was able to give the parents a copy to take home and explain to

them how their student has been progressing. After reviewing the information, I

asked the parents if they had any questions or concerns about their child. If they did,

I took note of their feedback on a sheet of paper for that student.

This was very effective and helped me to develop a relationship as well as

rapport with my students parents. They really appreciated being able to see their

childs progress and being able to take a copy home. I think a lot oftimes in

parent/teacher conferences with general education teachers; parents hear all the


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skills their child isnt meeting standards on. By presenting all the progress their

child is making, the meeting focused on the students strengths.

Day 3:

The Speech and Language Pathologist at my school started to pull my

students while I was working with them. We both realized this was an issue because

it was violating the students minutes on their IEPs. Because were both super busy

throughout the school day, I told her I would leave her a copy of my schedule in her

mailbox. The following day she left me a note on my desk that she was able to move

the times around for my students so it wouldnt interfere with my schedule. She also

gave me a copy of her schedule for future reference. Although Ms. M and I never met

face to face to give each other feedback, I still believe my intervention was

successful. We both put our students needs first and were both flexible with

changing our schedules around if we had too. This interaction made me realize that

sometimes its not necessary to meet face to face in order to exchange feedback. I

think in order to exchange feedback only through notes or technological means; you

have to have a good relationship with the other person/people involved.

Day 4:

From 11:30-12:15 every day I teach an SRA Corrective Reading group with

three 4th graders. One of the 4th graders (CB) I teach is on another special education

teachers (Mrs. B) caseload. Because of this, she wanted me to start doing CBs AIMS

Web Reading CBM and MAZE. Since I have never had experience with these Aims

Web probes, I asked Mrs. B for feedback on how to administer them. While she was

giving me instructions, I took notes so I wouldnt forgethow to do it. After I do these


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probes for CB every week, I record his scores and give Mrs. B feedback on how he

performed. This has been very effective. Whenever I forget how to administer the

probe, I can look back at my notes. I also pre-printed out all of the probes I would

need each week for the remainder of the semester. I dont have to waste any time

printing them out, theyre already ready and have the dates I need to administer

them on them. Mrs. B has been very happy with how he has been progressing and

likes that I give her the data each week.

Day 5:

On Tuesday, I had an IEP meeting for ones of my students with an emotional

disability (LB). I do an SRA Reading Intervention with LB every day, so I prepared

data/notes based on his progress for the IEP meeting. When we were going over his

reading goals in the meeting, I showed LBs mom a graph of his progress and went

over my notes. I first gave her feedback on LBs strengths and then went over the

areas where he needs some improvement. I also discussed how his goals on his IEP

were being taught using the SRA Corrective Reading Program. The majority of his

IEP was about how his behavior intervention plan isnt working and all of his violent

behaviors. I could tell Mrs. B was starting to get discouraged, so I was glad I could

highlight LBs strengths during meeting. After I presented the information I have, I

asked Mrs. B if she had any questions or concerns. I wrote down these

concerns/suggestions on a sheet of paper for Mrs. K. By preparing my feedback for

Mrs. B beforehand, my intervention was very successful. She liked being able to take

copies of LBs progress home as well as make suggestions for her son. This was my

first experience talking in an IEP meeting and I think it went very well. The situation


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improved my competency in talking with parents as well.

Day 6:

I do an SRA Expressive Writing Program with DH from 10-10:30 every day.

This is a scripted curriculum, but there are no tips for error correction within the

text. I gave DH the first mastery test on Monday and he failed 2 out of the 4 sections.

I feel like him failing may have been my fault for giving him too much support

instead of having him be more independent. I spent three days re-teaching DH the

skills he didnt master. Although he was starting to grasp the skills, he is still

dependent on my help to get the work done. I was stuck on what to do, so I asked

Mrs. K for some feedback. I asked her what she has done with students when she

has used that program before. She suggested using a progressive time delay. So first

starting out with a 0-second, then 2, then 4, and so on and so forth until DH can do

the skills independently. Ive used this approach before in my other instructional

programs and dont know why I didnt think to use it in this situation! My

intervention was very successful in this situation. I asked for feedback when I

needed it and she reminded me of a successful solution I hadnt considered. This

scenario made me realized how beneficial asking for feedback can be and how two

brains are always better than one!

Day 7:

Every day I push into a general education classroom to do a math

intervention with two students. One of the students (JB) has special needs and the

other student (SW) is in the general education classroom, but is behind in math. As I

mentioned in an earlier journal, SW is a lot further behind than JB. When I first


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realized this, I collaborated with Mrs. K (special education teacher) and Ms. M (the

general education teacher) and we decided to stick with the same SRA program, but

modify the amount of work. I tried this for about a week and realized the program in

general was too hard for her. I collaborated with Ms. M and we decided to take more

assessment data for both students on addition/subtraction skills. We determined

that JB struggles with addition/subtraction with regrouping and SH struggles with

single digit addition/subtraction. Once I had this information, I showed my results

to Mrs. K and ask what intervention she would suggest. She suggested Touch Math

for both students, but only using the worksheets where one number in the problem

has dots. I looked through the addition/subtraction books and decided this would

be a great fit for both SH and JB. My intervention was successful in this situation. I

collaborated with both of JB and SWs teacher in order to get a curriculum that

would be beneficial for them. I decided to collaborate with Mrs. K and Ms. M

separately so I could get their individual opinions. Also, Ms. M observes them in

math every day, so she had a better idea of their abilities.

Day 8:

As I mentioned in a previous journal, I have started a new instructional

curriculum with one of my students on more functional skills. At her three-year

reevaluation, her disability was changed from a learning disability to an intellectual

disability. That being said, we have moved her goals to being more functional for her

such as learning to tell time, count money, days of the week, months, her address,

phone number, etc. I have been working with this student on these skills now for

about two months. She has recently mastered the days of the week, the months, her


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address, phone number, and counting coins of the same denomination. These were

goals that we had for her to accomplish within a year, but she did in two months! I

asked Mrs. K for feedback for what skills to work on next. She instructed me to

modify some of his goals on his IEP as well as work on counting coins of mixed

denominations, spelling the days of the week/months, and telling time to the

nearest minute. Not hesitating to ask Mrs. K for feedback was very successful. By

doing this, I didnt waste any time teaching skills XC had already mastered. I could

start working with her on new skills the next day. By asking for feedback, I also got

the opportunity to modify her goals on her IEP. This made me realize how important

feedback is because it can create new opportunities that I wouldnt have had before.

Behavior 2:

Manage conflict and confrontation skillfully throughout the collaborative process to

maintain collaborative relationships.

Day 1:Mrs. K left early at 10 in the morning and didnt have a substitute, so I had to

take over her responsibilities. This included push-in support for two students with

emotional disabilities. One of the students with an emotional disability (LB) gets

frustrated when he thinks his work is too hard. On this day, Ms. W (general

education teacher) asked the class to do their math boxes. LB got his math boxes out

and when he looked at the problems, he decided they were too hard and tipped over

his desk. At this point, he was escorted out of the classroom by the paraprofessional

(Ms. P). While they were walking down the hall, LB slapped Ms. P and bit her on the

hand. Once we got down to Room 13 (resource room), I used de-escalation


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strategies to calm him and talk about what happened. I went down to Ms. Ws room

to get his math boxes and we did them together in Room 13. In this situation, my

intervention was very effective. While he was working, I documented on a sheet of

paper everything that happened for Mrs. K. In a conflict situation like this where it

involves a student, it is vital to act quickly on the spot. That is what I did and then

took the time later to document what happened for Mrs. K. This way, I could focus

on the student and discuss with Mrs. K the next day.

Day 2:

As Ive previously mentioned, I work with a student (LB) with an emotional

disorder in Ms. Ws class. Recently, LBs violent behaviors in the general education

classroom have been escalating. He has had to be removed from class in order to

keep himself and the other students safe. Because of this, Ms. W went to the

principal and told her that she wants the student to be self-contained. Instead of

saying this to me, she went behind my back to get my student removed from the

classroom. This made me very mad because being self-contained isnt LBs least

restrictive environment. I wanted to go confront her right away, but I came back to

my classroom and wrote down all the reasons self-containing him wouldnt be

beneficial. I stayed calm for the remainder of the school day and processed the

situation when I got home. I wrote down possible solutions and behavior

interventions I could try.

The next day, during Mrs. W and Is plan time, I went to discuss the issue with

her by going over the solutions I had written down. She listened to them and then

stated her concerns. After talking for about a half an hour, she agreed to try some of


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the solutions we had mentioned. We agreed that after two weeks if we hadnt seen

any improvements I would start self-containing him for parts of the school day. I

believe my intervention was very effective in this situation. Instead of just avoiding

the confrontation and holding a grudge against Mrs. W, I discussed the issue with

her the following day. It was rewarding for me that we were able to reach and

agreement by working together.

Day 3:

Ms. W and I co-teach 3rd grade reading and language arts together. She

teaches a guided reading group, I teach a comprehension group, there is a group on

computers, and another group at their seats reading independently. We have been

teaching these groups together for 13 weeks and the past two weeks she has been

changing the schedule, but doesnt inform me of the changes. The first or second

time it happened, I thought to myself okay, no big deal. But then I noticed that for

two weeks in a row it was happening 2-3 times a week. This really irritated me

because were co-teachers, which means we share responsibility for the students

outcomes. I have content that Im responsible for teaching the students; so missing

group 2-3 times a week is detrimental to their progress. After the 4th time this had

happened, I approached Ms. W and scheduled a time to meet with her the next day

during our plan time. That night, I went home and wrote out my concerns/possible

solutions. I also made a list of the material that Im supposed to cover within the

next few weeks. By writing my thoughts out, not only did it calm me down, but also

helped to prepare me for the conversation.

The next day, I went over my concerns with Ms. W and just let her know that


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I would like to be informed the days were not going to do groups. She apologized

and didnt realize it was an inconvenience for me. She said, From now on, I will let

you know at least a day before if I plan on not doing reading groups. We also

modified the material I was supposed to cover during my 14 weeks of co-teaching.

She told me not to worry if I dont cover it all because whatwe dont cover, she will

work on with the kids after I leave. This made me feel a lot better. In this situation, I

believe my intervention was very successful. It also made me realize that sometimes

the other person involved in a conflict may not even know its an issue. In other

words, her not telling me when we werent doing group really bothered me, but she

didnt even realize it was an issue. By not being quick to make conclusions and

taking the time to think about it, we resolved the issue very quickly.

Day 4:

The first two days coming back from spring break Mrs. K was gone and it was

the first days of my full take over. Because I was unsure of sub plans, I collaborated

with the paraprofessionals and general education teachers to make sure the

students on Mrs. Ks caseload needs were being met. I decided to stay with LB and

DH to make sure their routine stayed the same. I realized in this situation that I had

to handle the issue at hand. I couldnt take time to process the issue because it was

affecting the students directly. Since theyre used to working with me and had the

same schedule, we had no behaviors at all those two days. Because of this, I believe

my intervention was very successful. I think by being clear communicating

directions and the expectations for LB and DH; they knew what was expected of

them. They also were aware that I implement theyre behavior plans the same way


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as Mrs. K and they would receive the same consequences with me. Also, by

communicating with other staff I was able to make sure other students needs were

being met in other classrooms.

Day 5:

Since I have taken over my cooperating teachers schedule, she is free

throughout the day. She has two students with emotional disabilities (LB and DH)

who are still very attached to her. It is in both of these students IEPs that they

receive 45 minutes of push-in support in reading and language arts every day.

Because I station co-teach with the Ms. W, I cannot fully support LB and DH while

Im teaching. When they come up during a lesson and ask for help, I tell them that

theyll have to wait until Im done with the lesson. This causes the students to get

upset and their behaviors to escalate because theyre not getting the help they need

right away. Mrs. K (my cooperating teacher) is supposed to be in the room at this

time, but because Im in there she has stopped coming.

In order for my intervention to be successful, before confronting her, I took

time to process what I was going to say to her. I made a list of the behaviors Ive

been seeing in the classroom since shes been gone. I decided to approach the

conversation during our plan time by saying I think the students are having a hard

time in reading without you. They approach me for support, but since Im working

with other students I cant help them right away. Is there any way could push back

in for support? She responded very well to this and apologized for not being there.

She said, I will make sure Im in the room from 8:30-9:15 every day from now on.

Day 6:


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Overall, LB and DH work best with the teachers that theyre most

comfortable and familiar with. Since they work with Mrs. Knight and I the most, they

dont view other paraprofessionals or Ms. Whitehouse as their teachers. This has

gotten worse as time has gone on because they dont want Ms. Whitehouses help in

the classroom. Every time they have a question or need assistance, they ask for Mrs.

Knight or myself. When Ms. Whitehouse goes to help them, they get frustrated and

yell out that they dont want her.

In order to fix this situation, I brainstormed possible solutions and decided

that me not giving LB and DH as much support in the classroom would be helpful. I

can show them that Im there to help other students in the classroom as well, so

when Im with another student theyre only option is to receive help from Ms.

Whitehouse. By doing this, theyll get more accustomed to working with her and see

her as their teacher. In order to implement this, I wrote out a plan of action to

discuss with Ms. W. We met during our collaboration time on Thursday and I told

her that Im going to take some of my focus off of LB and DH. I discussed the

possibility of their behaviors escalating due to not receiving support from me. She

discussed her concerns about that issue as well. I told her, I will always be close by

to intervene if their behaviors do escalate. Were going to move into them working

with you just a little bit at a time. They need to learn generalize skills across

different people and become more independent. She agreed to make an effort as

long as they didnt act out more in the classroom. My intervention was very

successful in this situation. I noticed there was an issue and was pro-active by

coming up with solutions on my own. LB and DH shouldnt treat Ms. W


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disrespectfully and I could tell it bothered her, but she never said anything. I think it

made her happy that I supported her by letting LB and DH know that its not

acceptable to treat her that way.

Day 7:

Ms. W was gone on Thursday and had a substitute. Ms. W had left lesson

plans and materials, but the sub didnt know where a majority of the materials were.

Since the students could pick up that the sub wasnt sure what to do the kids

decided to do what they wanted by talking out, running around the classroom,

refusing to do work, etc. The sub was very overwhelmed and ended up yelling Shut

up! to the entire class. When this happened, I took control over the class. I told

them, I know the expectations in this classroom and I know all of you do too. Just

because there is a substitute in here, doesnt mean you can be disrespectful and not

follow the rules. I am going to implement the reset system just like Ms. W does and

write names down of the people that arent following expectations. After this, the

students were quiet and got to work. I explained to the substitute what the rules,

expectations, and consequences are in the classroom. Once she was clear on this, we

worked as a team to control the classroom environment. If any students acted out, I

wrote down on a sheet of paper their name and how they werent following

expectations. I then gave Ms. W the sheet the next day and explained to her face-to-

face what happened. When school started, she had a talk with the class about their

behavior and all of the students lost their recess. In this situation, my intervention

was definitely effective. I stepped up in the classroom when I needed to in order to

extinguish the conflict. I also documented everything that was going on in order to


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let Ms. W know. Since she is the general education teacher, I thought it was her

decision to decide what consequence the students should receive for their behavior.

I realized through this interaction how much my competency in handling conflicts

has improved.

Day 8:

Mrs. K and I decided to change LBs behavior plan because he was recently

diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. We went over the new behavior plan with the

principal, assistant principal, social worker, and Ms. W (the general education

teacher). The first couple days of implementing the plan started off well, but then

things started to go downhill fast. LB was flipping his desk over, screaming,

throwing things, hitting people, etc. All of these behaviors were occurring in the

general education classroom. I decided to observe LB in Ms. Ws during a time when

he is typically safe in the classroom. Through my observations, I noticed that Ms. W

was implementing his behavior plan incorrectly. This would make LB frustrated and

he would tell Ms. W she was doing it wrong. Since LB has a track record of lying,

when he would tell her she was wrong, she wouldnt believe him. After my

observation, I collaborated with Mrs. K and told her what was going on. We

scheduled a meeting with Ms. W after school and Mrs. K told me she wanted to

handle the situation. I gave Mrs. K the notes from my observations and just sat in on

their meeting. Although I didnt speak with Ms. W during the meeting, I still think

my intervention was effective.


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Personal reaction Write a summary of what you have observed in yourself,

and give a personal reaction to the assignment.

Through this assignment, I have observed myself growing a lot as a

collaborator. I've observed that whenever a conflict or confrontation comes in

between me and meeting my students needs, I step in and act on the spot. I clearly

and actively communicate what I need in order to get assistance quickly. Before, I

would just agree with veteran teachers because I didn't want to step on their toes.

Also, instead of attempting to handle conflicts and confrontations before, I would

avoid them. Whenever I would have a difference in opinion or problem, I would hold

it in and keep my thoughts/feelings to myself. By having an intervention in place

and taking time to process information/write things down, I was more confident in

addressing conflicts. I also learned how to ask for feedback when I need help or

advice. I learned how vital asking for feedback of my own performance is as well. I

may think I'm teaching using the best teaching technique, but by having another

teacher observe me and offer suggestions I can better reach my students. Im no

longer afraid of hurting other peoples feelings by giving them my honest feedback. I

have worked on my wording and tone in order to come off the right way.By doing this assignment and having an intervention in mind, it helped me to

come out of my comfort zone. I needed to learn how to handle conflicts and

confrontation at some point in my career, so Im glad I got a head start now during

student teaching. By writing out the journals, it helped me to monitor my own

performance as well. I could ensure I was following my interventions and

implementing them during naturally occurring opportunities. Next year (as a first


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year teacher), I will definitely use the strategies I have learned from this assignment

and 426 in general to be a successful collaborator.

sped 426 self-reflection journal

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