Special Education Teacher

I cannot dismiss teachers as a whole for what they do.

There have been some remarkable teachers in my life, one of who was a lady from Sacramento. I did not attend her class, though in a sense I was a student of hers. More precisely, I was an employee who subbed in her class from time to time.

This woman ran a tight ship, but she also maintained tight relationships with all of her students. She was calm, cool, and collected. She never lost her temper, but she knew how to keep kids in line.

She was a special education teacher, working primarily with autistic students. Thirteen were assigned to her. She diligently cared for all of them. Some of them were high functioning individuals, verbal, one of whom could read other languages. Very impressive. Other students were barely self-sufficient. Then there were those students who needed a lot of extra assistance. One young man was severely autistic, unable to speak, engaging in repetitive behaviors, prone to taking of his shoes or flipping through a phone book during his free time. Most of the activities set aside for that student involved basic living activities.

On some occasions, though, that young man could prove to be very challenging. When he took his shoes and socks off, he could not go outside. He was not even permitted to go on the bus. This proved a very difficult issue for the class. His one-on-one assistant could barely handle the young man, especially when he would flip off his shoes as soon as someone had forced them on.

The teacher knew to handle this situation slowly and carefully. She sat him down in the corner, sat down with the young man cautiously and carefully. She plead with the young man gently, assisting him little by little to put his feet in his socks, then work his way to putting his shoes on. It took a day or two to get the young student to put his shoes on and keep them on, but this teacher -- she helped him to do it.

She prepared reading lessons every day. She had a candy store, a rewards system which taught them how to use money, how to save what they earned so that they could get something better. This little trick taught them the importance of delayed gratification.

Thirteen students could be a handful, especially with the paraeducators, or teacher's assistants, assigned to her. Sometimes, these staff members betrayed the same infantile behaviors that they were supposed to be training the teachers to avoid. On some days, a teacher's aid would show up late, struggling with all kinds of health issues. Two staff members would get into arguments. Another person would get really bossy. It could be a very trying environment for a teacher, but this lady was willing to get through it all with grace.

One summer, the host school district that rented out the classroom informed her that she would have to move to another classroom, in another high school on the other side of the city. The room that she was staying in was large enough for the thirteen students, but she initially had no idea what was in store for her, having to uproot her entire class and staff, then move to another site.

She rallied her staff as best as she could. She could not pay them, but she offered them something to eat if they would help her move out. The rest of the staff offered to pitch in and help.

This woman directed a busy class, one that demanded a lot of attention to detail. She was working a very challening population, one that deserves the best care possible. She had to supervise staff, who on any day could be very helpful or frustrating to her efforts with the students. She connected with parents, she connected with staff, she connected with the best interests of others. She was a class act all the way, calm, cool, and collected. Organized, but with heart, she wanted the best for her students.

A few years later, she ended up leaving the county to work in another transition program. Special Ed youth who graduate from the K-12 still need assistance to transition into adult living. These programs tend to be very laid back. Most of the time, staff members prepare and do very little with the students. I am sure that wherever she is working, the lady who led thirteen students is accomplishing great things with a different population.