Partner Interview with
Maria Earman Stetter
The Basics
Q: What population do you work with?
A: I currently teach at Roosevelt High School. It is my first year there. I have taught previously at Orr High School, and Ames Middle School. I don’t yet know what subject area or grade level I will be teaching this year. They tell me that I will be team teaching students with learning disabilities.
Q: Wow, that is interesting that you don’t know what you are teaching. How do you feel about the situation?
A: Well, at first I was a little frustrated, but then I thought about it, and I thought, "I am a teacher, I am going to be teaching, does it really matter who?" A few years ago, I think it was my second year at the middle school and my fifth year of teaching, my principal made me change classrooms three times in the first week of school. So just as I was starting to be situated in a room, I had to move again. It taught me to be flexible.
Q: How important do you feel that is?
A: Flexibility is crucial for all teaching but especially for special educators. I know that my flexibility will come in handy when I meet the teacher I will be working with as team teacher. I must work creatively with whoever it is, because this first year I do not have say about who I am working with. I must remember that I am there for the students -- to help them -- and to be flexible with this new teaching partner. In fact, creativity is just as important as flexibility in the job description of a special educator.
Q: How are you preparing, not knowing anything about the new job?
A: Well, I am thinking a lot about my high school teaching experiences, and trying to remember the differences between middle and high schools in terms of the kids’ social development and school structures. I am also trying to be ready mentally to do a lot of preparing the two workdays we have before school starts. I am trying to formulate questions, and be ready to listen and try to fit in at this new school. I will have a lot to do in a few days!
Looking Back
Q: How do you feel your university courses prepared you for teaching?
A: I was an unusual case because I was alternatively certified as a Teacher for Chicago. I had two university classes and was thrown into the classroom. So I took classes as I was teaching for the first time. I found it to be a good way to learn, but also hard because there was so much I did not know.
Q: What was the most helpful thing about university course work?
A: One teacher taught us how to use token economies to manage behavior. This was very helpful to me. It gave me a behavior modification system.
Q: What about student teaching?
A: I did not have traditional student teaching. My first teaching assignment was at Orr High School, which was a very rough school. I had a mentor that would come in and observe, help, and model teaching several times a week. It was difficult, but I got through it. The hardest part was behavior management, a problem for many children with special needs. I called a lot of parents. I put in a lot of extra hours to try and prove myself.
Legacy
Q: What is the message you would like to give to those preparing to teach?
A: Teaching and learning go hand in hand. We are reflective practitioners. As educators, we too will never stop learning. We must be student centered and see that not everything works with every child. We must keep trying. We must know that we are often only the sowers of seeds and do not often get to see the growth we have instilled in our students.
