Running head: VISION STATEMENT

Vision Statement
Kimberly Escobedo
Tarleton State University

VISION STATEMENT

Vision Statement
Teaching has always been my dream. Though I never knew what I wanted to teach, I
knew I wanted to be in a classroom. I wanted to make a difference in childrens lives and in this
world. I remember moving from Huntington Park to Downey, California when I met Gloria.
Gloria was the same age as me but she was a little different. Gloria had Down syndrome. She
was the nicest person I had ever met and at the time I couldnt understand why the other children
did not want to play with her. This mad me sad and I wanted nothing but to help Gloria and to be
her friend. After many days of hanging out with Gloria, she eventually became my best friend. At
the time, she was the only person I trusted and felt comfortable talking to about anything, even
though she sometimes could understand me. Gloria touched my heart in ways and taught me
many things about life. Who knew that at age seven, someone could walk into your life and make
such a difference? For me, Gloria influenced me to want to teach Special Education.
Over the years, my beliefs regarding working with students with disabilities have
evolved. I believe that with the right training and tools, they can learn just as much as a person
without a disability. I also believe that to be able to teach children, especially children with
special needs, it takes a strong but sensitive person to do the job. Strong, because based on my
past experiences working with special needs children, you will have to make tough calls, but
sensitive because you have to be able to understand and feel what a child with a disability goes
through on a daily basis.]
In two years, I vision myself working with students with mild to severe cognitive
disabilities in a Learning in the Natural Community class (LINC). I plan on spending large
portion of my days modifying and implementing lesson materials in small groups or one-on-one
with students. I hope to make lessons engaging for my future students as well as create lesson
plans that will make my students excited about learning. As a teacher, I think that should be one
of our main goals. As teachers, our goals are to help our students become more excited about the

VISION STATEMENT

curriculum, to persist in the face of adversity, to cooperate with teammates, and to better
understand the content (Kagen, 2009). I am a big believer of using reinforcements in a
classroom; I will use them as a way to motivate my students to work or behave appropriately. It
makes me feel good that others agree with me. In classrooms, the reinforcements include
points, gold stars, and certificates to improve students discipline and raise performance (Kagen,
2009). Another main goal that I envision working on every day is maintaining a least restrictive
area for my students. Maintaining a less restrictive environment in the classroom will help my
students who are not successful in other places have a chance to get themselves together before
endangering him or herself or others. I also envision myself making a difference into my
students lives by modeling positive behavior as well as guiding them onto the right path. Lastly,
as a future teacher, I want to address Teacher Proficiency number 3, Equity in Excellence for all
Learners. I want each and every one of my students to feel included and especially want to be
able to show them that there are people who care and I am one of them.

References
Kagan, S. & Kagan, M. (2009). Kagan cooperative learning. San Clemente, CA: Kagan
Publishing.
SBEC publication. (1997). Learner-centered schools for texas, a vision of texas educators.