Teaching special needs is her specialty
Music can be heard coming out of E-5, as students in the classroom dance around to songs like “Cha Cha Slide.” Jillian Ackerman, a student teacher for Anne Alvarez’s special day class, smiles and laughs as she watches from the sidelines. Soon, she gets pulled into the dancing, and spins around with her students.
Through a credential teaching program at California University University, Ackerman started student-teaching at Newbury at the beginning of the year.
Alvarez explained the difficulties that student-teachers in her classroom face.
“My students aren’t real friendly at first because they don’t know what to expect, so (Ackerman is) learning how with each student you have to interact a little bit differently with,” Alvarez said. “Even though some of the kids can’t talk, you can see attention they need, and she’s learning what they like, and what they don’t like. She’s learning when to step in and when to let kids struggle a little bit so they can learn.”
Despite all of these challenges, Ackerman is teaching the math, reading and communication portion of the class, and will soon also teach the life skills class as well. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without her at the beginning of the school year,” Alvarez said. “She’s done a great job.”
Paula Gomez, a sophomore in Alvarez’s class, describes a usual day in class. They learn “math, english and stuff like that.” Gomez visits the school garden at least once a day. On Tuesdays and Fridays, the class dances. Gomez says that Ackerman is always happy and makes the class more interesting.
Ackerman wanted to go into this profession from a young age, starting in elementary school. “A lot of the deaf and hard of hearing were mainstreamed into our classrooms, and it kind of peaked my interest. I actually have a background in American Sign Language,” Ackerman said. “I knew I always wanted to be a teacher, so I think having that sign language background is good for some of our students who have limited language.”
After she completes her program in mid-December, Ackerman plans to “explore the various school districts and programs. I know that there is a lot out there, so I know I can learn a lot from many different environments.”
Ackerman’s favorite part of student teaching is “actually being in the classroom, building that rapport with the students, and that relationship, and seeing different strategies… and figuring out how to make them work.”
Ackerman enjoys teaching and cannot wait to be able to spread her passion and learnings onto others. “This whole process has affirmed that my passion has really confirmed that this is where I’m supposed to be, and it’s really exciting to think that I’ll eventually get my classroom, soon, and get to actually implement these strategies and practices that I’ve learned,” Ackerman said.
