October 2016
Dear SSEPC colleagues and friends!
It’s autumn once again, and as we wind down yet another calendar year, we wind up a new academic year and look forward to TED! It will be great to reconnect with our Small Special Education Programs Caucus members and welcome new members into the fold! Lexington will be a great venue and is sure to show us a terrific time!

SSEPC members have a tradition of “paying it forward” by reaching out to other TED members who may be the sole special education faculty member in their department or may be part of a small special education program that does not confer a doctoral degree. The tradition of reaching out personally to welcome new members is a hallmark of our founder, Nasim Dil. As we meet in Lexington at TED, and then Boston at CEC, please consider who you can reach out to and build Nasim’s legacy—collaboration and support among partners and colleagues across the nation who teach in small special education programs and who promote the benefits we reap from our own “small programs.”

• The SSEPC General Business Meeting in Lexington is on Friday, November 11, from 1:00 to 2:00 in “Bluegrass 1.”
• The Nasim Dil Award Reception is on Friday, November 11, from 5:00-6:20 in “Kincaid Room.

Who will this year’s award winner be? Join us at the reception to find out! I look forward to seeing you in Lexington, and I look forward to meeting the friend you invite to come as we grow our membership and spread the good word and work of faculty in Small Programs!

Please consider joining SSEPC colleagues and friends (old and new!) for dinner on Friday, following the Nasim Dil reception, and celebrate the work we do in SSEPC all year round. Please let me know if I should reserve a seat for you at our table! See you in Lexington!
 
Patrice Hallock, Ph.D.
SSEPC Chair
Professor & Department Chair Utica College
 
 

 

Teacher Training for Digital Natives: Training Preservice Teachers to Teach Kids Who Think Differently
 

Here's what our presenters will be discussing:

Jessica Rueter and Frank Dykes, University of Texas, Tyler, will share one of the 5 presentations during our symposium at TED. The purpose of their presentation is to provide participants with information regarding best practices related to video modeling and teacher training programs. Moreover, ten steps for implementing video modeling in the classroom will be explored.  

Jennifer J. Lesh, Ph.D. and Kelly A. Burlison, Ed.D., Lynn University, will lead participants to investigate cutting edge technology in education classes.  Professors are often referred to as digital immigrants while students are typically described as digital natives.  This disconnect between pre-service teachers using technology and engaging struggling students, impact learner outcomes.  This session will assist to close that gap and expose participants to free or low-cost iPad Apps that are proven to increase student engagement and provide authentic instruction and assessments. 

In Debi Gartland’s segment Flipping for QR Codes, she will share two technology tools that have been effectively used to teach K-12 students with disabilities: the flipped classroom and QR codes. The flipped classroom approach is a pedagogical model in which the typical instructional delivery and homework elements of a class are reversed. Content is viewed by students at home, while in-school time is devoted to application of the content, emphasizing active learning and student engagement, both required to improve outcomes for student with disabilities. Also, QR codes are fun and efficient ways for students with disabilities to learn, which teachers create to introduce, reinforce or supplement content, based on the individualized needs of their students with disabilities.
 
Lydia Gerzel-Short and Theresa Dorel  will share on the three C’s of technology. Technology rapidly changes and as a result, apps and other technology-based programs become obsolete or cutting edge in quick fashion. It is virtually impossible to keep up with the fluctuating technologies that teacher candidates need in order to be relevant in a digital classroom environment. Instead of concentrating on a few applications or technologies, teacher preparation programs should focus on preparing candidates in the three C's of technology apps and programs; content access, content enhancement, and content collaboration.

Dennis Cavitt will address flipping the class, which is all about returning the learning process to the individuals that reap the greatest benefit, the learner (aka: the student). However, reviewing their products can be similar to listening to one side of a conversation. Often, we as educators wonder, “how did they come to that conclusion?!” Chalk Talk is an interactive activity where the teacher can examine their students’ thinking and help correct it. This is a simple but powerful teaching tool.