How Can CTE Benefit Disabled Students and What Best That Role?
The university-statehouse-industrial complex has grown such that the traditional models of primary and secondary education have survived two or three decades beyond their practical use. With a public school system that segregates and discriminates based on, “college material or not?” (Brolin & Loyd, 1989) and a university system that places only one in five graduates in work in their field of major (cite), our educational system has passed its prime and is still training and educating for 20th century job markets that no longer exist. The way that we educate and what we educate for and why needs rethinking from the top down and needs to be more practical and pragmatic. Career and technical education (CTE) consisting of specialized, targeted, and focused vocational programs at all levels do more than just prepare a student for a real job – these programs have practical education and socialization value that conventional classrooms centered around a teacher’s monologue for many do not. Nowhere is the added value of such targeted programs more useful and valuable than in special classes, courses, and CTE training aimed at students with disabilities.
With a wealth of literature touting the benefits of CTE and some progressive schools and school districts already with successful programs with proven track records, it is not the knowledge that the rest of us lack but the will and the attitude. This paper seeks to make the case for the rapid expansion and implementation of CTE programs for students with disabilities in schools and school districts across Western Florida. As well, by exploring existing programs and courses of study, this research will outline best practices,...
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As societal pressures for higher education increase, more emphasis has been placed on the importance of a minimum of a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university. This has led to the increased enrollment of students with learning disabilities over the past decade. According to a recent survey from the National Clearinghouse on Postsecondary Education for Individuals with Disabilities, one in eleven full-time first-year students entering college in 1998 self-reported a disability. This translates to approximately 154,520 college students, or about 9% of the total number of first-year freshmen, who reported a wide range of disabilities, ranging from attention deficit disorder to writing disabilities (Horn).
Teacher Interview(s): according to Ms. Special Ed, a ten-year veteran of special education who started her career at age twenty-nine, proportionally, 35.4 percent of S.H.E. students have an Individualized Education Program, in conformity with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, herein IDEA. In Windham County, the average public school has 18.6 percent of its student population considered to be learning disabled; S.H.E. has a noticeably higher percentage of students with learning disabilities, compared not only with Windham County, but Connecticut overall, as the average public school in the state is populated by 26.4% of its elementary students with learning disabilities. Further, more males than females at S.H.E. have learning disabilities with a ratio of 10.1% of females to 25.3% of males in the special education program. For the this specific field experience study relating to Students X & Y, both six-year old males, S.H.E. “offers” seven special education teachers and 13 paraprofessional instructional assistants who “service” the special needs of exceptional students including speech services, behavior interventionists and dedicated special education
Career and technical education courses are intended to prepare high school students to enter the work force in a skilled trade. It equips the students with the experience and education necessary to succeed in an average skill level job while maintaining the student’s interest. In an article that focuses on an aviation CTE program, a “senior policy analyst at the Morrison Institute, said that Career and Technical Education provides another opportunity for students who struggle in high school.” The assumption is that students who struggle in high school presumably do not want another four years of education to attain a bachelor’s degree. Until recently, schools have been excessively geared towards college readiness. The dogma was elementary school, high school, college, without exception. With this “one size fits all” education system in place, a different education course had to evolve. CTE courses offer a break from the tedious grind by introducing career readiness as an alternative. In place of the four years in a college, CTE programs gives student...
Career and technical education (CTE) can provide significant benefits to students with disabilities. CTE teachers need to be aware of the rights of students with disabilities and of the planning process involved in meeting their needs. In addition, CTE teachers must know what role they play both in planning and in providing instruction. CTE teachers often need background information on the details of disabilities and the accommodations required. This Digest provides information on students with disabilities for secondary CTE teachers.
“I have been working with disabled students since 1974. Since much of my time is involved in resolving challenges that are difficult and plentiful, I usually don’t have much time to think about the satisfaction and rewards of the job,” said Dean Bork.
Students with learning disabilities can learn; each student has his or her own strengths and weaknesses. Educators must continue to focus on the strengths of each student and building on them, creating a stronger student and person. Identifying the weakness is at the core of getting a student help with their learning disability, but after this initial identification and placement, the focus should shift to the strengths and adjusting the student’s schoolwork to reflect these strengths. For instance, if a student is weak in reading but has wonderful group interaction skills and is good with his or her hands, the students' reading tasks should then be shifted to reflect these st...
Two years ago, I embarked on a journey that would teach me more than I had ever imagined. As a recent college graduate, I was thrilled to finally begin my teaching career in a field I have always held close to my heart. My first two years as a special education teacher presented countless challenges, however, it also brought me great fulfillment and deepened my passion for teaching students with special needs. The experiences I have had both before and after this pivotal point in my life have undoubtedly influenced my desire to further my career in the field of special education.
The main obstacle faced by students with disabilities in the attempt to achieve educational equality is the continuing debate over the In...
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In this chapter, we discussed the numerous challenges that teachers face while teaching students with different disabilities. It was found that barring a few teachers who had knowledge of the exact needs of these students, majority of the teachers deployed methods that they felt would assist learning for them. Modifications in teaching methods were undertaken based on the nature of the students’ disability and the demands of subject taught. In case of some government colleges, parents were reportedly assisting in the laboratory due the absence of support staff.
Technical education is not the same today it was years ago, “in the past vocational education was frequently seen as a placement for the students who could not make the grade in academic courses,”(1) or vocational education was thought only to be for students that are not going to college, possible dropouts, or students that have special needs. Today, this negative opinion is starting to change. Among high school students, nearly all will take some vocational courses, “80 percent take at least one occupationally specific vocational course, and one in eight academic students actually take more vocational courses than vocational students do.”(3)
To begin with, full inclusion in the education system for people with disabilities should be the first of many steps that are needed to correct the social injustices that people with disabilities currently face. Students with disabilities are far too frequently isolated and separated in the education system (Johnson). They are often provided a diluted, inferior education and denied meaningful opportunities to learn. There are many education rights for children with disabilities to p...
Education is a vital part of growing up. Everyone goes through the education system to help carve a path towards their future self and what career they want to focus on as they get older. However, what most people become confused on is the difference between “general education” and “special education.” General education is the education provided to students who physically attend school. Now, special education is the education provided by the school plus extra programs and services to help aid and guide the students through the general education. Special Education is defined as, “the means through which children who have disabilities receive an education specifically designed to help them reach their learning potential” (Friend, 4). The emotions
Education is a profession which requires a teacher to be able to communicate with a multitude of students on a variety of levels. There is not a class, or student for that matter, that is identical. Therefore, teachers must be able to identify and help educate students from all different types of backgrounds and at different levels. Teaching a singular subject presents difficulties, but teaching students with disabilities should not be one. There are three main teaching areas that need to be focused on when teaching a student with a learning disability. Teachers need to focus on the strategies that will assist students with reading comprehension skills, writing skills, and maintaining appropriate behaviors in a classroom setting.