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Summary of Interview B

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Summary of Interview

B. SUMMARY OF EXPERIENCES (~.75 - 1 page): Summarize the experiences of the interviewee to help the reader have an overview of the Interviewee's experiences working with families. Start with basics like gender(female), education pathway to the profession, where reside, work/profession, families that they support– in other words include basic information relevant to the topic. Again, avoid too much detail.

• Regardless of your topic, this section should emphasize the type of support your interviewee provides but will need to include some information on the experiences and adjustment of the families that are supported. Do not give a great deal of detail – just summarize, avoiding lots of details of specific events, etc. Your goal is to summarize, although you can provide highlights and a brief example or a couple of the situations if they help the reader understand your interviewees’ personal experiences.
• Topic: Family Interactions and CommunicationINTRODUCTION: Hello, my name is Mary, and I am conducting this interview for a research paper that has to do with family interactions and communications. From this interview I want to gain knowledge on how teachers who make an effort to interact with students and parents make a positive impact on the child’s academic development. BEFORE ENTERING THEIR CAREER: 1. When was it when you knew and/or decided you wanted to become a K-12 educator? My commitment to education began with my academic struggles in the second grade. I was too embarrassed to speak up and so I never did. My parents lacked the English proficiency and familiarity with the American education curriculum to tutor me. I felt stupid and allowed my insecurities to falsely confirm that I was incapable of grasping new material. This was doubly damaging as I allowed my struggles to validate my cultural insecurities stemming from being the only Lebanese girl in class. As a struggling second-grader, I compartmentalized school and family; I assumed that everyone’s father worked 14-hour days and that everyone’s mother could not speak English and that everyone suffered financially. During undergrad college, however, I began to understand the interplay between school and external social factors. It became clear that students are often not just different, but disadvantaged. One of the deepest injustices of our education system is the failure to recognize this, which lead me to believe that I was the right person to facilitate this change. I understand first-hand dangers of struggling at a young age, and I did not want students to feel the way I did, therefore, that’s when I realized teaching is what I wanted to do. 2. What expectations did you have before selecting your career? Before selecting my career, my expectations of teaching were fun, rewarding, and hard work. 3. What was your impression/assumptions of what teachers did/do BEFORE you actually became one? I assumed that teachers were hard workers and dedicated to education. I assumed that they lesson planned and worked collaboratively with their colleagues. 4. What were some characteristics you believed teachers should have before you became one? I believed teachers should be organized, dedicated, a role model, and creative. 5. Did you work with children before entering your career? Yes, I first started working at Kumon Learning Center from the age of 16-21 years old. At Kumon Learning Center, I constructed children in pairs or in groups of three when they are working in math or in English. Then I moved to UCSB to complete my undergraduate studies and even though I was a sociology major, I minored in educational studies, which opened many opportunities for me. Some of the educational courses required volunteer hours at Elementary schools nearby. I had the opportunity to work with large groups of students in a traditional classroom environment. I spent over 60 hours leading students through math, history, and English lessons. Similarly, I tutored local elementary students as a student assistant in the reading Clinique at UCSB Gervirtz School of Education. I also spent over 100 hours providing private tutoring lessons throughout Los Angeles. 6. Can you think about a teacher that helped you with a problem? Yes, I’ve had issues with learning how to schedule students and parents’ conflicts, therefore, I reached out to Elizabeth who is also a sped teacher at Edison who helped me come up with solutions. For example, my first year I was overwhelmed and did not know how to schedule all my students since we have to pull out students from their gen Ed classroom. She taught me how/ when to pull out kids at appropriate times. 7. How long did it take you to finish your education? It took me a total of about 5.5 years. It took me 4 years to complete my undergraduate and 15 months to complete my master program at USC. 8. Why did you decide on this career path? I wanted to make a different in students’ educational studies. I wanted to fill the many gaps we had in education. 9. Who/What inspired you to want to become a teacher? Me feeling the way I did in second grade. See above. 10. What is your first memory of your school years? My first memory of my school years would be preschool. I remember school was filled with art projects, singing songs, playing outside. I absolutely loved it. 11. Did you have a good experience with your teachers growing up? Yes, I did. 12. Did you have a different career plan before you took on teaching? No. a. If yes, what was it and what made you change/want to move teaching? n/a 13. What problems did you come across when trying to pursue teaching? I did not have problems. HOW DID THEY GET THERE? 14. Where did you complete your undergrad? University of California, Santa Barbara. 15. Where did you get your masters/credentials? University of Southern California. 16. What type of jobs can you get with your degree? I have a master’s in teaching with a special education credential (Mild/moderate), Multiple subject credentials, and GATE certification. I can either become a multiple subject k-8 teacher, a sped teacher for mild/moderate, and a GATE teacher. 17. Where did you find the opening for your job? I completed my student teaching at Edison Elementary School in Glendale Unified school district and where there was an opening as a SAI Core Special Education teacher. I took advantage of this opportunity and applied for the job. 18. How did you prepare for your job interview? I watched YouTube videos, researched hours online for possible interview questions, and I also talked to my guiding teachers for advice and feedback. I would practice mock interviews by recording myself to view myself from a third person point of view. From there, I would critique myself and have others critique me to improve my interview skills. 19. Did you take on any jobs in the education field before your teaching position? Yes, as mentioned before I was, I was a student assistant at Kumon Learning Center, Private Tutor in Los Angeles, and a student assistant at Girvetz School of Education at UCSB. 20. Where did you gain information about this field? I read a lot online, volunteered in multiple classrooms, and learned a lot from my guiding teacher when I was student teaching. 21. Was there anyone influential in helping to decide to pursue this route? I originally wanted to be a gen ed teacher, however, my masters program had a sped credential add on. It required two extra classes, therefore, I was told myself, “why not”. After student teaching in a sped classroom, my mentor, Elizabeth, motivated me to peruse the sped route. Although, I can always choose to be a K-8 gen ed teacher because I hold both credentials’, I do not think I would. I believe my heart belongs in sped teaching. 22. Did you have support going into this field? From family members and friends? Yes, my guiding teacher Elizabeth supported going into this field. I learned so much during my student teaching. I believe it is extremely important to build a positive relationship with your guiding teacher as I learned so much from her. As I was debating between choosing either the gen ed route and special ed route, she laid out the pros and cons of both fields, which geared me to where I am today: a special education teacher. 23. Did you ever have doubts in making this career choice? No, I did not. I knew I wanted to be a teacher. 24. What were you most worried about pursuing this career? I was mostly worried about dealing with parent conflicts, especially in IEP meetings. IEP meetings can turn very serious, especially when an attorney is involved. 25. What made you decide which grade level you wanted to teach? I have students from K-6th on my caseload since I am a special education teacher. I do not have a specific grade level choice. 26. What courses in college did you take? Since I was a sociology major, I took many sociology courses, however, I majored in Educational Studies, and took many education courses during my undergrad. Some of my classes I took were: Environmental sociology, Climate justice, Sociology of Education, CAT 1- Math for Elementary teaching, Educational Independent studies, Introduction to helping skills: Theory, Research, and Practice. In my Master program some of the courses I took were: Gate and gifted courses, special education courses, English Learner Course, Rica Course. 27. Did you join any programs/clubs that helped you achieve this career goal? I volunteered at multiple schools and I was in USC MAT program, which helped me achieve my teaching dreams. 28. Did you have a mentor that helped you? Yes, when I student taught at USC, I had 3 mentors. I student taught for Kinder, 4th grade, and special ed SAI core. They all helped me tremendously because I learned a lot of techniques and teaching strategies that I implement in my teaching. 29. Did you need any additional certificates to enter the field? I needed a sped credential to enter the special education field and autism certification. 30. How would you describe the hiring process of a teacher? First, you need to see if there are any jobs opening. Edjoin.com is usually the best site for educational related job opportunities. If there is an opening, you apply. The application usually consists of cover letter, resume, CSET & Rica test documentation, letter of recommendation, and transcripts from all institutions. Then you wait for email/call for an interview. After the interview is completed, you will wait for a call to see if you were offered the job. After you have been offered the job, you will be required to go to district to fill out paper work and sign your contract. After you have been officially hired, usually you will attend new teacher academy training to better understand your district. 31. What advice would you give to someone that wants to join the field? My advice is to not take things personally. You will always have a parent/student/colleague who may say something that might be offending or harsh, but you must understand that people’s perspective on things is different and it is okay to agree to disagree. 32. What was the hardest thing about getting in the field? The hardest thing about getting in the field is completing my master’s program. It is rigorous and time consuming, but it was worth it. 33. Is there anything you wish you could have done to better your path to reaching your career? If I known that I wanted to be a teacher in the beginning of my 4-year college, I would have majored in Education or child development for my bachelors instead of sociology. However, by the time I decided to become a teacher, it was too late to switch, which is why I minored in educational studies and continued as a sociology major. CULMINATING QUESTIONS: 34. Is there anything that you wish you had known before entering the field? I wish I had better understand of IEPS. IEPs are huge part of a sped teacher’s job and a teacher must always be careful especially because everything is documented and legal based. 35. What is the hardest part of teaching? The hardest part of teaching in special education is dealing with litigious parents. 36. What is the best part of teaching? The best part of teaching is the satisfaction you achieve when a student makes progress and master an academic goal. 37. What challenges have you faced? Some challenges I have faced was dealing with litigious parents. Also, when parents are not in agreement with what you are recommending for their child, it can become frustrating. 38. What is your favorite age grade? My favorite grade to teach is third grade. 39. What type of communication do you have with the students' parents? I have very strong communication with students’ parents. I communicate with them daily either through email, the remind app, and phone calls. 40. Have your teaching skills changed since you started teaching? Yes, definitely I identify myself as a long-life learner. I am constantly learning new techniques from either trainings, new curriculum, and colleagues. 41. How do you create a sense of class community? I create a sense of class community by making everyone feel included, accepted, and creating a safe space to optimize learning. 42. How do you keep students engaged and motivated? I set up incentives in my classroom. For example, reading is a subject my students try to avoid. Therefore, I set up motivational charts in my classroom where if they read a certain amount by the end of the month they earn a prize. I am constantly using positive reinforcement in my teaching instruction. I keep students engaged by creating lessons that are interactive, collaborative, and involve hands on learning. For example, if I am a teaching a lesson about plants, instead of having the students read the textbook, I would have the students plant their own flower as a class activity and teach the flower parts through demonstrating. Students retain information when lessons are interactive and engaging. 43. What’s your teaching style or philosophy? I do not have a teaching style because every student is unique. I am a special education teacher; therefore, I have a wide range of students. I strongly believe that differentiated instruction is crucial for to cater to students’ needs. For example, I might have a student who is an auditor learning or a visual learner, therefore, based on their learning style I develop lesson plans that will meet my students’ needs. 44. How do you build relationships with parents? I build relationships by keeping ongoing communication with parents. I email/call parents to share any positive feedbacks, area of needs, or something specific that occurred that weeks. I believe in order to build strong effective relationship with parents. 45. What at type of classroom environment do you think you provide? Safe, engaging, interactive, respective. 46. What is one thing you have learned from your students that you didn't know before becoming a teacher? I learned that students are very unique from one another and have different learning styles, therefore, my lesson plans need to target all types of learners. 47. Do you feel your school gives you the necessary resources to help students meet their learning goals? Yes, I am proud to be a part of strong school district. My principal works very hard to make sure we have the resources we need. 48. What type of teaching tools do you think have been helpful to provide a successful learning environment? Manipulatives, sensory learning tools, Key word charts, multiplication charts, number charts. 49. Do you believe you receive the adequate training to fulfil the student’s needs? Yes, I believe I am apart of a strong district that provide support when needed. 50. What does your daily lesson plan look like? Since I am a special education SAI core teacher, I service students individually or in small group. My lessons differ from student to student based on their academic goals, which are written in their IEP. For example, if my student has a reading deficit, I will be doing a specific reading intervention using a program that targets students with dyslexia. 51. What are some skills you learned by experience rather than what you learned at school? Working collaboratively, being a team member, communication skills. 52. How do you solve teacher-parent conflict? I personally request a in person or zoom meeting. When there is a conflict, I do not like to go back and forth in emails or texts, I believe discussing the issue in a verbal matter is a better approach. When I meet with the parent who has an issue, I stay calm at all times. Parents can be defensive and sometimes verbally aggressive, but no matter what I am always calm and collective. I listen to the parents’ concerns and then state mine, from there I will come up with a solution that aid both sides. If the solution is not resolved, then I request admin to get involved. 53. What is your favorite subject to teach? Math. 54. What’s the best advice you’ve been given about teaching? The best advice I have been given is to not take negative things to heart. You will always have a handful of parents who will disagree with you, and you will always have a handful of students who does not behave well in class. However, instead of taking it to heart, try to figure out what’s causing the issue. For example, I had a student who would constantly talk back to me, say disrespectful things, and lash out in class, however, instead of taking it personally, I tried to understand what was triggering his behavior. It turned out that his mom passed away, and he has been traumatized from this incident. 55. Have your overall career goals changed? Yes, in the long run I would want to become principal. I love working with children, but I do want to move up in the district. 56. Have you ever had a student whose parents were going through a divorce? If so, how did you help them? Yes. I helped him by referring counseling at my school site. I also would try to make him feel comfortable in my classroom by checking in. I always checked in with mom and dad and helped them create a schedule where they are able to co-parent when it came to his educational studies. 57. How has virtual learning affected your teaching style? It affected it tremendously. I had to plan lessons to keep students engaged through zoom. It was extremely challenging at first because everything changed overnight and we did not have any trainings. However, now I can say that it helped me become a better teacher and has improved my teaching skills. 58. How has virtual learning improved your teaching style? It’s allowed me to use new curriculum and explore new online curriculum that I implement in my teaching. I plan on continuing using the digital resources I have used during virtual learning. 59. How has virtual learning challenged your students? It was challenging to keep students engaged on a screen all day. Some would turn off their cameras, not show up to class, and not complete assignments. It felt like often there was no accountability at home. They had to learn how to adapt to online curriculum, but after practice and parents help, they got the hang of it. 60. How do you cultivate positive relationships with your students? Constantly checking in with them, providing positive feedback, providing constructive criticism. 61. How do you handle a student who is constantly disruptive? The way I handle a student who is constantly disruptive is figuring out if there are outside factors that are triggering his disruptive behavior. For example, I had a student who would talk back constantly and instead of punishing him right away, I tried to understand where it was stemming from. It turned out his mom passed away and he was dealing with post death trauma. From there, I was able to work with the psychologist to come up with a plan to mitigate his behavior. 62. How do you keep your students motivated and engaged? I set up incentives in my classroom. For example, reading is a subject my students try to avoid. Therefore, I set up motivational charts in my classroom where if they read a certain amount by the end of the month they earn a prize. I am constantly using positive reinforcement in my teaching instruction. I keep students engaged by creating lessons that are interactive, collaborative, and involve hands on learning. For example, if I am a teaching a lesson about plants, instead of having the students read the textbook, I would have the students plant their own flower as a class activity and teach the flower parts through demonstrating. Students retain information when lessons are interactive and engaging. 63. How do you include parents and guardians in their child's education? Providing feedback on a weekly basis, keeping on going communication on google classroom, remind app, and emails. I am constantly informing parents any updates that is going on in the classroom. I also hold IEP meetings every year for every student, which is mandatory. During the meetings, we have the entire team there and we go over student academic progress, needs, and any issues we need to combat. 64. How do you maintain your own professional development? I am constantly attending PD trainings that inform me of any new curriculum, strategies, techniques that I am able to implement in my classroom. 65. How do you help your students become self-directed learners? Teach them responsibility and independent skills, hold them accountable, assign “job roles” in class, teach them to advocate for themselves. 66. How do you support literacy for all students, including English language learners? Differentiating instructions by defining vocabulary, providing reading support that targets their literacy skills. 67. How do you support students with specific learning disabilities? Since I am a sped teacher, all my students have learning mild disability which range from: dyslexia, autism, adhd, emotional disturbance, a specific learning disability. I support each student by developing an IEP with the team which includes all service providers, parents, and admin. As a team, we discuss needs, supports, and based on this information I write measurable goals that should be met in a year. I also provide accommodations/modifications to help my students access the general ed curriculum. 68. What is the best way to support a student who is unmotivated, especially during these different times, to do work? Set up incentives, set up a reward system, create lesson plans that are fun, interactive, and engaging. 69. How do you take care of yourself, so you don’t burn out? In all honesty, my first year of my teaching I never did. I was new and I was working constantly off hours. When a parent would email me at 11pm, I would instantly reply. I did not know how to “stop” working. This caused me to burn out, which is the biggest mistake a teacher can make. Through time and experience, I learned that “self-care” days are extremely important. I exercise, spend time with my family and family, and take my dog on walks. I have learned to not over work myself anymore because it caused a lot of stress, which reflected on my teaching. 70. What are your strengths and weaknesses as a teacher? I am punctual, dedicated, go above and beyond for my student’s needs, creative, and a positive role model. My weakness is sometimes I over work myself, which can cause me to burn out. 71. Describe a challenge that you managed to overcome? Writing IEPs was the biggest challenge of my job. An IEP is roughly around a 20page document, and you must be extremely careful with what you write because it is a legal document. Parents have sued the district many times for simple mistakes on IEP, however, I have overcome this challenging by practicing, asking my colleagues when I was unsure about information.