The purpose of this assignment is for you to get a better understanding of the perspectives of families of students with disabilities when collaborating with education personnel.
To complete this assignment, follow the steps listed below:
You will identify a family member of a student with a disability and ask permission to interview him or her about his or her experiences in working with education personnel to provide special education services to the student with a disability
Try to identify a family member who has been closely involved in collaborations with education personnel (e.g., they attend IEP meetings, they communicate closely with classroom teachers, they help students with homework, etc.).
You will develop a list of four to five interview questions to discuss with the family member; interview questions can include (but are not limited to):
Family’s role in collaborating with education personnel
Challenges they have experienced
Successes they have experienced
Advice to education personnel about improving the special education collaboration process
Questions they have about special education services
Supports they need or wished they had
Experiences communicating with education personnel
After discussing the questions with the family member, you will write a two-page (double-spaced) reflection paper about what you learned from the family member. Your reflection paper should include new insights you have gained, recommendations you have for improving family-school partnerships, challenges the family member noted about the collaboration process, lingering questions you have, etc.
