The EESP supervisor-mentors
recommend the below conferencing schedule for the special needs classroom:
Several
initial conferences should be held within the first few days of student
teaching in the Special Education classroom. The first conference should be
held within a few days prior to or on the first day of student teaching. Topics
that are crucial for the first conference include:
¨
Classroom management system
¨
Behavior Intervention Plans for individual students
¨
Relationship with instructional assistants
¨
Emergency Plans for health and mobility
¨
School policies and how they impact special needs students
¨
Dynamics of working with general education teachers in the building
¨
Documentation procedures
¨
Parent/Guardian contact guidelines
¨
Confidentiality issues around who to discuss student information with
A second
conference during the first few days can help relieve tensions caused by the
new experience and establish a comfortable working relationship. A variety of
topics for the second conference could cover:
¨
Orientation to the school
¨
Philosophy of the teacher
and school program
¨
Goals of student teacher
¨
Teacher expectations
¨
University documentation
requirements
¨
Information about supplies
and equipment
¨
Familiarity with resource
people such as nurse and counselor
¨
General plan for assuming
teaching responsibilities that include work with assistants and other classroom
teachers
¨
Procedures for absences of
teacher or student teacher
¨
Specific lesson plan format
and guidelines for turning plans in
On-going conferences should
be held regularly during the student teaching experience. These conferences in
a special education setting are usually held daily or several times a week.
They should be held at a time when there is the least possibility of
interruptions in a location that affords privacy. Co-teachers and/or
instructional assistants may or may not be involved in these conferences,
depending on university/school policies. The conferences should focus on
various aspects of teaching:
¨
Analysis of teaching skills
¨
Evaluation of student
teaching performance
¨
Information about progress
of individual students
¨
Classroom management reviews
¨
Review of lesson plans
¨
Long-range planning of the
IEP, ITP, and/or IFSP
¨
Progress of relationships
with other colleagues/classrooms in the building
¨
Observations in other
classrooms with students such as speech or PE
¨
Observations in other
classrooms without students such as another SPED class
¨
Extra class activities such
as sports, clubs, or dramatics that involve special needs students
A good conference should:
involve the free flow of
ideas that will foster an objective analysis of the student teacher’s ability.
be problem centered instead
of person centered.
be constructive with the
student teacher feeling that it has been helpful.
be private.
lead to concrete plans of
action that are useful in guiding future activities.
be frequent.
be concerned with matters
considered to be important by both participants.
allow each participant to
make contribution.
be thought out and well
prepared for.
include a reflective
component.
ask the student to
clarify/restate/summarize the highlights of the conference.
be clear about what is most
important in the discussion.
be held as soon as several
topics are identified for discussion.
should not be used as a
sounding board or confident.
may need to include a
“replacement” strategy for student teacher.
include a plan of action.
EESP Adapted. From
Henry, M., & Beasley, W. (1996). Supervising Student Teachers. Sycamore
Press.
A final conference should be
held with the student teacher to provide opportunities to review the student
teaching experience. This conference should be held close to the last days of
student teaching. Topics for discussion should include:
¨
Review of the final
evaluation form
¨
Review of goals established
for student teaching
¨
Discussion of areas needing
improvement
¨
Future plans