Hi, my name is Joleen Rhoden, an aspiring special education Teacher for Elementary, grades 1-

6. I believe that to become a great educator, one must be able to connect with students on
multiple levels. Therefore, my aim is to become a role model and an influence that goes beyond
academic achievement.

Growing up on the small island of Jamaica and migrating to the Us has given me the privilege to
witness the contrasting effects of special education in schools locally and internationally. In my
country students who are deemed as “special” are thrown in an institution by themselves out of
fear of “holding back the others” this has been tradition since knowledge on special education
and accommodation is very limited.

I grew up with a lot of passion for imparting knowledge, on my peers and the people around me
because like my favorite quote says, “Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.”
With this passion, I felt as if I needed a big platform to do so. So, I completed my bachelor’s
degree in Communication and Media Production with an emphasis in television with the hope
that one day I will be able to host and produce my own Tv show. 3 years later I am completing
my master’s in special education with the hope of merging the two. My objective is to develop
and promote creativity in the classroom and utilize my dedication to foster quality education
required for a child's development and performance increase.

While in school, I worked hard to hone my lesson planning and elementary education skills from
completing several months of student teaching. I worked with students with various learning
disabilities and formulate instructions that would best suit their needs. This entails Collaborating
with co-teachers and leading small group and whole class instructions, create engaging lesson
plans, and conducting assessment of students

I consider myself as a focus individual and extremely attentive to detail when addressing high-
volume task loads to meet deadlines. I am inspired by making a positive impact by applying
group and individual instruction skills and my problem-solving abilities allow me to address
challenges to achieve results. My academic experiences have served me well in developing my
communication, collaboration, and planning skills.