Cadet Teacher Academy: Job

Shadowing 1
Job Shadowing allows Cadet Teacher Interns to further explore
other grades and subject areas they might be interested in
pursuing for the teaching career. Please do the job shadowing for
the time normally required with your mentor teacher. Clear this
with your mentor teacher and inform the high school office and
cadet instructor/coordinator of your change in schedule for that
time and period.
Prior to the Job Shadowing you will need to turn in an intake form,
and after the event, an attendance form and an employer
evaluation form along with the critique. All forms will be available
on the task stream website. Please return completed paper to
Mrs, Linderman (Job Placement Coordinator) at the Technology
Center.
Appropriate paperwork (intake form, attendance form
and employer evaluation form) must be turned in to
Mrs. Linderman in order to participate.
The Job Shadow intake form will be used to generate
a job shadow agreement that will need to be signed
by a parent/guardian and the job shadow
teacher/supervisor.
Be detailed in your observation. Compare the classroom
management, differences in the age level abilities compared with
your current placement, what activities you observed the teacher
and student doing and your conclusions from the experience. This
assignment should be typed and follow this exact format.
Cadet Teacher Interns Name: Hailie Wadley
School District: Bloomingdale
Job Shadow Observation:

For my first job shadow experience I was with Amy Tomlinson

who is a Special Education Teacher at the Bert Goens Learning
Center in Lawrence, Michigan. There are about fifteen kids in her
classroom that range from the ages of fourteen to twenty-two
(she mentioned the youngest students she has ever had was
thirteen.) Her classroom is considered a high school level
classroom and the students have one more classroom to migrate
over to before they graduate.
When I first walked into Amys classroom I noticed the walls
were very colorful and there was lots of space. There were four
computers, a bed (for the not so able students to stretch out on
before we put them in walkers), a fridge and a microwave. Each
student also had a locker to themselves to put their supplies in.
By just looking at the classroom I figured the teaching and the
activities would be very childlike. But thats definitely not what I
got from this experience.
As the students walked into the classroom they were asked
to take off their coats and jackets and put them into their lockers.
They were then asked to start on their warm-up, which was
designed for each student for their skill level. While they were
doing their warm-up I noticed that each student knew how to
raise their hand politely when they needed help or needed their
work checked when they were done, which was also something I
did not expect. If they were done with their warm-up they would
get out a book to look at and wait for everyone else. I also noticed
that there wasnt a student that had a problem doing their warm
up. I thought it would be harder for them. Amy doesnt cut her
students any slack if their question was wrong they were asked to
go back and fix. And they did!
After their warm up was completed there was an activity for
them to do as a group. Fridays it is cooking/cleaning. On Mondays
the class is split into groups and joins other classes for either
papermaking or recycling and greenhouse to learn job skills. Then
on Tuesdays they go to gym till 9:30 then are sent to stations
around the classroom, some academic based and some not.

Friday I went over to cooking with the class which was quite
interesting. That day they learned how to make a pancake roll-up.
Which is just a pancake wrapped around a sausage link. During
this mini cooking class the students were given worksheets that
had the ingredients they needed, instructions on how to make it
and questions to answer for when they were all done. Amy even
had harder questions for one student. Before they even started
cooking she went through the whole worksheet with them. This
included having the students name off all the ingredients they
needed and finding them in the kitchen so they would know
where to find them at home. She even went through step by step
instructions.
The first group was a higher level group. Those students
didnt have any trouble with any of procedures or questions. But
when the second group started I felt as if I walked into a total
different classroom. The students could barely answer the
questions at the end, if they even did answer them, and had a
hard time finding most of the food items. That showed me how
different special needs children can be and how much more work
you have to put into planning. It is as almost as if you were
teaching fifteen different grade levels.
Although I could keep talking about my job shadow I feel that
Monday and Tuesday did not show me as much as that cooking
class did. I realize now that in order to be a special education
teacher you have to be able to understand each and every single
one of your students. Its not like in math class when your teacher
gives you all the same work because he knows everybody is at
the same level. To be a special education teacher you have to be
organized and be able to multitask but it definitely hasnt
changed my mind. Special education is exactly what I want to
pursue.
Date of Job Shadowing 9/11,9/14,9/15
8:30-10:55
Signature of Teacher:
level: Special Education

Time:
Grade

School Building: Bert Goens Learning Center

Telephone Number: (269)674-8091