Gina Gonzales Whitson

I learned many different types of assessments and when it may be most appropriate to use them. 

There are many different types of assessments that can be used to measures students' comprehension of material. Active learners are integral in making coursework more compelling. Keeping students engaged is crucial.

In this section, I learned that how you construct questions is important. It is important to be asking the correct questions. I also learned of the Socrates Method of asking questions. This encourages students to ask better questions, that are based on higher level thinking. 

I learned that not all accommodations for students with disabilities are appropriate or reasonable. It is important that we not play down to a student's disability but should challenge them to do the same work as the other students in the classroom but may have additional assistance that other students don't. It is important to recognize what accommodations are appropriate and which ones are not. 

I learned that there are a number of mental disorders that can affect students. We've all had children with these types of behaviors in our classroom. I learned a number of effective tactics and approaches that I can take and use moving forward. I also learned certain strategies that I should not used that I have implemented in the past that can have the opposite affect than what I was intending them to. 

In this section, I learned a number of ways to assist students who have learning disabilities, such as dyslexia, ADD, ADHD, certain hearing and visual impairments and many others. There are a number of different resources and tactics that can be used to assist these students. 

In this section, I learned that there are a number of different disabilities, with a wide range of accommodations that can be used to effectively reach those students. I also learned that there is actually a difference between a deaf person and a Deaf person. I would have never known that, had I not read this section. It really is both humbling and empowering to know that there is so much that I don't know about certain disabilities but there is also a great deal of material that will assist me in the future, when I have students with special… >>>

In this section, I learned that teachers, support staff, parents and students themselves must work together to identify the disability, then work towards a plan to accommodate the students needs.

I learned that there are a number of different disabilities that we as teachers, need to be aware of. From physical to mental impairments, we must learn how to effectively reach these students, by being aware of how the disability affects them in the classroom and creating measures to help them in their studies. 

I found several strategies in this module to be helpful and plan to utilize them in my classroom.