Teaching Creatively
 

I believe the purpose of education is to prepare oneself for the future; academically, socially, and behaviorally. As we get older we acquire more responsibilities. We must deal with change and are expected to be adaptable.  We must develop the social skills to survive within our culture. 

A successful teacher is expected to not only instruct the general curriculum but also to teach the social and behavioral skills that will prepare students for adulthood. 

The theoretical model, which structures my preferred methods for teaching students with emotional and behavioral disorders, is a cognitive-behavioral approach.  How this theoretical perspective translates into classroom practice is through different forms of therapy and types of intervention. 
 

A behavioral model emphasizes that behaviors are learned and can be controlled by stimuli.  A cognitive model recognizes that cognition, behaviors and environmental stimuli interact with and control each other. 

When a student performs a behavior that is regarded as inappropriate; that behavior gives us information about the purpose and function of that behavior. An inappropriate behavior reveals a deficit and can help educators focus what needs to be taught.

 In preparing to teach in the field of emotional and behavioral disorders, it is important to remember that children with these problems are of average to above-average intelligence. They are exceptional children due to a behavioral or emotional disorder, which significantly interferes with learning and/or social functioning. These students present a continuum of behaviors that range from externalized explosions to internalized silence.  The kind of teacher who chooses to work with them must be able to make decisions without feeling personally threatened

Educating adolescents who have emotional or behavioral disorders can be an area of special challenge for general and special educators alike.  Even teachers, who establish effective rules and routines, explain their expectations and make their teaching exciting and interesting fall short in reaching these students. Identifying and understanding the special learning needs of a student who has such a disorder plays a critical part in designing an appropriate educational program for that student and in providing needed emotional and behavioral supports. In order to help these adolescents recapture their possibility for success; learning environments must be supportive among teachers, peers, and families. 

I plan to address student’s specific areas of disability by evaluating those problems though functional behavioral analysis; to observe, gain an understanding of, and influence student behavior to the benefit of all those in the classroom. This evaluation leads to curriculum and instructional strategies. Individually designed education programs based on student’s specific needs are essential to student learning. I plan to utilize cognitive-behavioral teaching strategies such as modeling, self-instruction and planning. 

I think behaviors can be shaped through interventions, such as self-regulation, positive reinforcement and behavior modification. A teacher of adolescents with emotional and behavioral disorders should be responsive to the needs and strengths of the students.  A teacher must approach classroom management with the intent to instill a joy for learning and teach the needed skills for these students to succeed instead of focusing merely on control and management of behavior. 

A competent special educators with effective teaching strategies and a systematic way of thinking about intervening in the education of adolescents with emotional and behavioral disorders is required to meet the needs of this complex population.  The instructional practices and accommodations, for students with emotional disturbances or behavioral disorders, are critical in maximizing these students' academic, social, and behavioral success. 

The goal of any effective teacher is to provide the opportunity for the development of a successful academic career and to aid in the growth of the whole person.  By whole person I include the development of social skills required to survive within our culture, support provided in the burgeoning identity of youth, and the opportunity to learn the behaviors which prepare us for adulthood, such as responsibly, adaptability, and tolerance.
 

As an educator of persons with exceptionalities my intent is to help students recapture a joy for learning, instill a sense of pride and recover the feeling of accomplishment. An educator of students with emotional and behavioral disorders should be responsive to the needs and strengths of their students.  It is important to teach your students to see their capability.
 

Setting goals and succeeding are essential to growth and measurement when a student is working towards their potential. I plan to address student’s specific areas of disability by evaluating those problems though functional behavioral analysis; to observe, gain an understanding of, and influence student behavior to the benefit of all those in the classroom. This evaluation leads to curriculum and instructional strategies within the state and federal standards and policies. Individually designed education programs based on student’s specific needs are essential to student learning.  I plan to utilize cognitive-behavioral teaching strategies such as modeling, self-instruction and planning. 
 

Recognizing the opportunity for something to be learned that will impact that child’s life is a role of the teacher. When a student performs a behavior that is regarded as inappropriate; that behavior gives us information about the purpose and function of that behavior. An inappropriate behavior reveals a deficit and can help educators focus what needs to be taught.

As a professional I must be an expert in my field. I am an institution in myself.  I must abide by the policies governing the delivery of special education.  And where they fall short I will seek to improve the regulations of the profession.
 

In order to promote and maintain a high level of competence and integrity in practice I engage in professional activities such as membership to CEC.  I am currently increasing my skills and knowledge of teaching individuals with exceptionalities by pursuing further education.
 

As a professional educator I want to exercise objective professional judgment in dealing with students. In preparing to teach in the field of Special Education, it is important to remember that your role is to support and teach.

The kind of teacher who chooses to work with this population must be able to make decisions without feeling personally threatened.  In order to teach sensible decision-making effectively I must model appropriate behaviors and not condone or participate in unethical or illegal acts, nor violate professional standards. 

A competent special educators with effective teaching strategies and a systematic way of thinking about intervening in the education of Persons with Exceptionalities is required to meet the needs of this complex population.  The instructional practices and accommodations, of these students are critical in maximizing these students' academic, social, and behavioral success. 

8/5- 8/30/01 "123abc" John Waldron Arts Center, Bloomington, IN

12/00- 12/01 "excerpts" Old Style Inn, Valparaiso, IN

4/10-4/14 /01 "surfacing" BFA thesis show SoFA Gallery, Bloomington, IN

1/1-1/15/01 "Winter Photo", SoFA Gallery, Bloomington, IN

11/6- 11/26/00 "BFA photo presents Studio 101" Studio 101 Bloomington, IN

1/25-2/5/00 "Photo Area" SoFA Gallery, Bloomington IN

11/10-11/25/99 "BFA Photo" Alternative Space Gallery, Bloomington IN

9/29- 10/30/99 "Computer Art & Photography Exhibit" Bellevue Gallery, Bloomington, IN

10/29-11/8/97 undergraduate literary magazine presents "Quarry" Bloomington, IN

11/2- 12/31/96 "Three Eves" Monon Depot Gallery Lafayette, IN

1996 Scholastics national portfolio exhibit New York, NY

1996 Lafayette Historical Society sponsored Group Show Lafayette, IN

1995 Scholastics regional exhibit Indianapolis, IN

1995, 1996 WLHS Student Exhibit West Lafayette, IN

At first I was just going mad, cataloging the world, fascinated with my black box, mesmerized every time an image appeared out of the chemical bath. 

Putting my camera between the world and myself.  Every experience became a souvenir, an image.  Every person became an object of display.  My world broke down into fragments on my contact sheet.  I gradually began calling moments photographic rather than beautiful. 
 I felt detached.  My machine for demystifying the world leaves me emotionally vacant, hopelessly isolated.

And so, I turn the camera on myself, bored with beautification and truth telling and cataloging.  I decide to tell of a personal journey, display a private world.  Look at myself, my mechanical identity.
And so I began selfportriature, seeing  myself as I never could, representing my thoughts, emotions, my being- with my image, the image of a woman. 

 Images of women imply a larger politics. Female representation 
is often the subject of question, beyond the subject of the photograph.  Gender and sexuality are always under question in images of women especially when the artist is female. 

Social and cultural structure and values are expected of images of women-speechless and beautiful. Rarely is a woman’s voice a personal one, rather she speaks for her gender. 

  I want a subject, active, not passive. Vulnerable yet, confrontational and strong. Feminine but not submissive. 

My images are contained within a domestic environment, a private space- implying a sense of the hidden, the secretive on display.  I try for this interplay of the spectacle, the stereotype and the individual.  I try to create an uneasy feeling, an emotional discomfort, a restraint, a partial revealing of the human condition.