The interview with a certified special education teacher was successful, informative and characterized with memorable experiences. In this respect, valuable information was acquired concerning the role played by a special education teacher in the IEP process. It became clear that the teacher has a responsibility to offer assistance to every child among the students towards achieving his or her academic goals. The setting of educational goals by students and their teachers by way of developing an Individualized Education Program (IEP) forms a fundamental role for educators working with students having special needs children. Moreover, a special education teacher operating from a PK-12 setting helps the students in covering the syllabus and understanding the content therein as well as addressing their challenges and concerns.
From the interview, I understood the steps that ought to be followed before the creation of an Individualized Education Program for individuals having exceptionalities. To this extent, the interview explained that the first one of these steps is Pre-Referral which comprises of the implementation of different interventions as a way of initiating the IEP process in line with the nature of disability that a student exhibits. The second step is Referral which involves directing and guiding the student to special educations services upon undergoing a successful Pre-referral phase. Subsequent steps include Identification, Eligibility, Development if the Individualized Education Program, Implementation as well as Evaluation and Reviews.
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On the issue of involvement of parents in the process of special education, the response by the interviewee demonstrated that parents have a vital role to play in the process of making decisions. The reason for parents’ involvement is because the IEP team, including the special education teachers, is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that educational decisions are made in the best interest of students. Besides, special education teachers would largely depend on the view of parents of individuals with exceptionalities in the process of program development and effective implementation of various academic tasks and measures. The interviewing process was crucial in the broadening and development of knowledge regarding the manner in which special education teachers collaborate and work together with general teachers with the sole objective of meeting various needs of their students. It is through such collaborative efforts that the implementation of Individualized Education Programs often becomes more successful in a PK-12 setting.
It is worth mentioning that this interview provided information that will be critical and beneficial in the future of professional practice in the field of education. One of such benefits includes streamlining and enhancing the role played by a special education teacher in ensuring effective planning and implementation of the Individualized Education Programs for students with exceptionalities and different forms of disabilities. Furthermore, the future of the professional practice in the field of education would be marked with a collaborative teaching and learning environment where various stakeholders such as students, parents, teachers as well as school psychologists would be working towards the success of special education.
