Whoa, Yay, and Boo

The whoa: I just realized that I have done over 300 posts on this blog! Yesterday's was the 301st and this is the 302nd. I wish I had realized when it was the 300th because that seems like a milestone.

The yay!: I have 94 followers. woot! woot! Welcome to my newest followers and thanks to everyone for stopping by and checking out what is going on with Sneaker Teacher. I am So excited to be creeping closer and closer to 100 followers. That will definitely not slip by without notice and will be cause for celebration.

The (long) boo: I am having a bit of regret today with regards to the subject of learned helplessness. I think in the field of special education, there are many students who rely too much on their teachers and assistants because too much is done for them. Essentially they learn to be/act helpless because they are pretty sure that if they don't act someone else will act for them.

I am completely guilty of this sometimes and I was today. I was in a classroom where the teacher asked me to help a student get his writing binder organized. She had passed out sheets for each section that outlined which papers they were supposed to have and in which order. We had begun this organization process earlier in the week, but this particular student did not finish and still did not have his papers organized in his binder. My Thursday schedule only allows me 25 minutes in this classroom, so rather than doing the right thing and putting my friend in charge while I supported, I did way too much of his organizing for him. Now don't get me wrong, I didn't just let him sit back and take a snooze while I worked on his binder, but there was definitely a lot more effort on my part than his.

Now what lesson did I teach him? Basically that if he can't keep his things organized, his teacher will do it for him.

Whoops!

Yeah, that was me in my stellar teacher moment of the day.

At least I admit to it, right?

I think that often (too often) students learn how to get others to do things for them. This especially occurs in the world of special education and I have to say that I think time is a signifcant contributor to why it happens. Often, students with special needs, whether physical, behavioral, or mental, take a longer time to complete tasks. They might need directions explained more than once, they might not be able to physically move as fast as other kids, or they might simply be avoiders, but whatever the reason, tasks can take longer. Often, we don't have as much time as we need. We are victims to the clock, the bells, and the school schedule which prevents us from being able to see some tasks through to completion, especially if they take a long time.

Yes, I could have put my friend in charge of his own book, however I would have had to leave before it was completed and then I would not be able to monitor whether or not it was up to his teacher's standards (which is what happened the last time and which is why his binder was still not organized).

Despite my behavior in taking the reigns and managing this organization project, I really truly believe that both parents and teachers should encourage their children and their students to do as much as they can independently. The more that the adults do for the children, the less children do for themselves. They learn to rely on others too much and don't gain important skills that lead to increased independence.

When I organized my friend's binder I kind of robbed him of a learning opportunity. From this point forward are his things going to always be in the right place? Probably not....because I did not truly make him accountable for his own organization and responsibility. I did it for him.

I feel bad, but at the same time, I am glad that I was able to reflect on this and decide what I would do differently next time. Sometimes the students are not the only ones learning....