Post-Philosophy Statement 1

Corey Sharpe

Upon completion of this course which includes studying every chapter of the book,

composing and answering questions that my peers and I asked, observing in an actual classroom,

and rereading my pre-philosophy statement, I can say whole heartedly that my love and

appreciation of special education has grown abundantly. The first two sentence of my pre-

philosophy statement reads, “My knowledge of special education is limited at this point. I feel

that by taking this course, I am able to gain a better understanding of what special education is,

as well as what it takes to be a special education teacher.” I’m happy to say that my

understanding of what special education is, and what it takes to be a special education teacher

has helped push me to possibly looking at special education as my career choice.

I still believe what I said in my pre-philosophy paper to be true in that every child has a

right to an education. I wrote, “Just because they may have a disability that limits them, they

should still be given an opportunity to learn and grow.” After everything that I have learned

these past fifteen weeks, I still believe this to be true. The teacher needs to be someone who truly

loves what they do and can be patient with their students. There are many qualities a special

education teacher needs; however, I believe that the one key quality every teacher who works

with students with special needs is consistency. Children, especially those who have a more

difficult time learning, need a teacher who can be consistent with them and guides them and

keeps them on track, every time. I believe that students will learn best from a teacher who

possess this particular quality.

I believe that special education teachers wear many different hats. Not only do they teach

their students, but they can be looked at as someone who can comfort them when they need to be
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comforted. Special education teachers can also be looked at as a friend or an ally. Someone who

will always be there for their students when things become too difficult. Teachers owe it to their

students to be that person that they can look to and will know that they will always be there for

them. To me, the best teachers are the ones whose kids mean a lot to them, but really, the teacher

means a lot to the kids.

If I were to become a special education teacher, I want my main goal for my students to

leave my classroom at the end of the year better than when they came in. If a student has a

difficult time being social, I would want them to be able to be more open. If a student is having

difficulties with their writing, I want to them leave being able to make complete sentences. I

believe this is a goal for every teacher though. We all want our students to be able to take

something positive away from us when they leave our class, and every little victory that we can

achieve with them makes teaching worth it.

I believe every student can learn, as long as they have teachers who are willing to provide

them the resources and help, they need. There is no excuse for leaving a child behind

academically just because the work it takes is too much. If that was the case, then why even

bother getting into the profession to begin with? If I am able to make the appropriate

accommodations for my students, even if it’s just for one student, I will do it so they can have

the same opportunities as everyone else.

My pre-philosophy statement ended with three things that I wanted to learn about while

taking this course. I wanted to learn about the history of special education. I wanted to know how

special education teachers can keep evolving so they can be better equipped to help their

students. And I also wanted to know what I could do to help special education students if I chose
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to remain on course to be an elementary education teacher. I can say honestly that I learned all

three things this semester and much more. While I’m still not sure where I will end up, I can say

that perhaps special education is in my future.