The Journey into SPED

When I tell people that I am a special education teacher, the first thing out of their mouth is usually something along the lines of "Wow, that must be a really hard job!" or "Hmm, that must take a lot of patience." And while it can be a difficult job and it does take an insane amount of patience at times, it  is something I absolutely love doing.

The next question that is usually is asked is how I got into special education. I'm told all the time that it takes a very special kind of person to teach someone with exceptional needs...and while I think that's true (not to toot my own horn, of course), I also think it goes much deeper. 

I was exposed to special education services at a young age. As an elementary student at a private, Catholic school, special education was not something that was readily offered or even talked about (students with special needs were often held back a grade and then ended up leaving the school to try the public education system). However, my younger sister ended up with a speech and language teacher, whose services my mother had to pay out of pocket for. This was my first encounter with the special education spectrum. 

Later on as a teenager working for a local market, I befriended an older, single mother whom I shared work space with. She told me that she had a young son who was diagnosed as autistic and whom she was having trouble finding a babysitter for who understood his unique needs and wasn't frightened away by his tantrums. The mother was frustrated because his pre-school had no idea what to do with him, and she was stressing out over how he would ever be able to go into a "normal" classroom. Not knowing a thing about autism at the time, I offered my services as a babysitter. And so began my trek into special education...

Without a doubt, this child was different from every other child I had previously babysat or tutored. He was three-years-old and could barely speak. He often threw tantrums when he was frustrated. He was fascinated with trains to the point of obsession. And yet, every one of those things drew me in. I watched as his speech and language teacher and occupational therapist came in and worked with him. I watched as they introduced him to the PECS program. I was delighted to see that with hard work and diligence - and several tantrums in between - he began using the pictures to communicate his needs. 

Playing Conductor

Say Cheese

I worked for his family for three years and over the course of those three years, fell in love with helping a child with special needs. When I realized that I wanted to teach rather than pursue a career in journalism (although I had already taken most of the coursework needed to transfer to the journalism program at the university level), I switched majors then and there, and haven't looked back since. This child was the catalyst for that change. 

Not once have I regretted going into teaching or getting involved with special education. Working in the special education environment has given me the opportunity to teach and learn with children who would often get overlooked in other classrooms and programs. The accomplishments in a special education classroom are celebrated more frequently and fervently than they might be in a general education classroom...only because as a special education teacher, I recognize exactly how hard a child has had to work to reach a specific goal or accomplish a certain skill. I feel incredibly blessed that I get to get up every morning and go to a job that I love and have put my whole heart into. 

It does take a special kind of person to teach special education...but I also think it takes a very special kind of student. 

And, in case you're wondering, the little boy that I used to babysit for ended up in a general education classroom, where I'm told he excels in. If that's not a special education success story, I don't know what it.