Environmental supports

Environmental supports

What kind of Environmental support is required for the students with Autism? How can we create them?

Environmental supports help organize students physical space in ways that facilitate there ability to predict events and activities, anticipate change, understand expectations, and, in general, make sense of the world.

Environmental supports include the use of

1. Labels: label the classroom with matching pictures / symbols. If you give the child a picture of the sand tray, and there is a matching picture on or by the sand tray, they are more likely to know where to go. (Simpson.R.L & Myles 2007)

2. Boundary settings: provide structure at home or at school. This structure helps children make appropriate choices about their behavior, resulting in a safer environment for them and others. The purpose of boundary setting is to provide a safe environment, create structure and provide clear, concise, and consistent guidelines for behavior. To teach children how to set their own boundaries in different settings. (Simpson.R.L & Myles 2007)

3. Visual supports that provide information: These allow students to anticipate upcoming events and activities, develop an understanding of time, and facilitate the ability to predict change (Brown, 1991). Visual supports assists students organize and predict daily events, they also help students in knowing what will happen next. It assists student’s transition from one activity to the next. (Simpson.R.L & Myles 2007)

Perspectives on the Duties and Responsibility of paraprofessional Support

 The first duty of the para educator is to get some general information about the disability of the student manifests, and the particular way in which symptoms affect him or her. 

 The second important duty the para educators is about obtaining some general information about the students learning style, preferences, and needs so that tasks and activities can be presented in a manner that facilities learning. Example: if careful observation reveals that particular students learns best visually (as is usually the case with ASD), then a heavy input on the student s auditory would be inimical to his or her best learning interest. 

 Another very important duty of a para educator is to, first and foremost maintain confidentiality. It is not just using names, rather of maintaining silence. Confidentiality should also extend to others at school.

 Further, if you are to perform the important job you have to do the best of your ability, you need to know the expectations of the teacher with whom you work. In the perfect world, the teacher would clearly delineate them so that you know; this is not a perfect world, so some of the responsibility for obtaining this responsibility falls on the para educator. Be proactive! Find out what the teacher expects of you by asking direct questions. After all, the quality of your performance is directly related to the quality of the information you receive regarding what is expected and what is not. 

Expectations from a special education teacher.

When special educators face undesirable working conditions day after day, their commitment to teaching, satisfaction with the job and stress are likely to change for the worse, increasing the chances that would prefer changing of job. Conversely, when teachers feel that principals communicate openly, demonstrate their leadership, establish trust, and show appreciation for their efforts; teachers are more satisfied with their jobs On the one hand, excessive paperwork, high caseloads, and frequent meetings cause many special educators to feel stressed and less committed to their workplace and often question whether the content on the students IEP is implemented. A lot depends on how many para educators are provided to the special education teacher in particular classrooms. On the other hand, the longer teachers work, the more able they are to handle the organizational demands of their job. Indeed, classroom experience is linked to higher levels of professional commitment.

Teaching is one of the few professions where novices are expected to meet the same demands as their more seasoned colleagues. "Similar to their more experienced colleagues, beginning teachers must plan lessons, teach content subjects, manage student behavior, collaborate with peers, communicate effectively with parents, and complete paperwork" These challenges are enormous when one considers that beginning teachers have not yet developed basic classroom routines and are just starting to operationally their knowledge of instruction.

In my opinion beginning special education teachers like me face the same challenges as all beginning teachers-and then some paperwork requirements, development of instructional and testing accommodations, IEP development and implementation, and collaboration fall within the purview of special educators, novices and veterans alike. Some beginning special educators do not have the basic knowledge or skills to overcome the challenges they face. Inexperienced professionals like myself go through a lot of difficulties when have to meet up with challenging roles of a special educator along with planning, interactions with students, interactions with other teachers, and implementation of content. We not only have to make a classroom environment that prepares the students to face challenges of life but all keep with numerous expectations from the bureaucrats involved in the field.

Special education teachers often have role ambiguities.

Over the last 20 years special education teachers have emerged as a distinct but heterogeneous occupational group. It is very interesting to research on how special education teachers perceive their job and their role. I tried to explore within myself how I as a teacher am giving meaning to the experiences and how these experiences influence our practice. The different discourses and ambiguities over inclusion, integration and special education indicate the complexity of this area and of teachers' roles. The uncertainty over their role, the tensions with other professionals and the changing policy context and policy shifts create significant inconsistencies. Moreover, changing student demographics and movement toward no categorical services have resulted in more diverse caseloads for special educators. Special educators seem capable of handling more students, but increasing numbers combined with increasing diversity becomes less manageable.

Increasing pressure to include students with disabilities adds to special educators' sense of role conflict and ambiguity. Some special educators are frustrated by general educators' resistance to inclusion Others experience conflict when placed in roles where their primary responsibility is to collaborate with general educators rather than to provide direct services to students In this case, special educators may feel deprived of the opportunity to do what they prepared themselves to do-teach. Moreover, special educators experience heightened anxiety and conflict when colleagues and principals do not make the education of students with disabilities an important focus in the school or do not provide sufficient professional growth opportunities. Support and professional development undoubtedly help special educators feel better able to handle the challenges of their jobs.