TPE Portfolio Letter of Introduction

This year, I have been working on my Teacher Performance Expectations as an Educational

Specialist Intern at El Modena High School in Orange Unified School District. This internship
gave me the wonderful opportunity to enable my case-load and the students I work with to access
the Common Core Curriculum in an inclusive environment by collaborating with my fellow
educators on creating evidenced-based lessons and instructional activities that are universally
designed for all learners to succeed. It further allowed me to pull out students for individualized
or small group instruction to both pre-teach and re-teach difficult academic content. I also had
the chance to help my students succeed by developing adaptations and modifications specifically
needed for my caseload and students in addition to implementing programs and lessons designed
to explicitly teach this population of students the skills and strategies needed to succeed
academically (i.e., skills needed for studying, reading comprehension, writing, mathematics,
finding the answers, taking assessments, and staying organized).

During this internship I had four major responsibilities: Case Manager, Conceptual Physics Co-
teacher, Specialized Academic Instruction of Conceptual Physics teacher, and Study Skills Co-
teacher.

My first responsibility consisted of being a case manager to 20 students, two of which ended up
moving after their annual IEPs. Currently I manage 18 Students. As a case manager it was my
responsibility to look out for these students and make sure their high school careers went
smoothly. My caseload had students with various disabilities and needs. Students ranged from
being in all special education classes to in all general education classes on a consult only model.
I was responsible for assessing my caseloads present levels of performance at various times
throughout the year for annual Individual Education Plans as well as progress reports three times
a year. I was also in charge of running IEP meetings. I used the Woodcock Johnson to assess
students for their triennials to see if they still qualified for special education. Throughout the year
I would call my students in to discuss their grades, ask how school is going, and work on both
their academic and transition goals.

My second responsibility this year was teaching two conceptual physics specialized academic
instruction (SAI) classes to students with mild to moderate disabilities. It was extremely
important to modify curriculum to the individual needs of my students as the curriculum is very
difficult. Conceptual Physics requires strong reading skills, writing skills and math skills. I spent
a lot of time ensuring my students were able to access the curriculum through adaptations and
modifications of the curriculum. I also spent a lot of time conducting formative assessments to
figure out what needed to be retaught in order for my students to be successful and master the
content. In addition, it was very important to teach my students the academic skills needed to be
successful. I spent a lot of time using the content to teach my students reading, writing, note-
taking, and math skills that were not only needed in my class, but in life. Teaching these SAI
classes also gave me the opportunity to include students with moderate to severe disabilities in
my class during labs and fun activities. Not only was this a fun opportunity for them, but it
allowed my students to become peer tutors and really shine with what they knew about physics.
My third responsibility consisted of co-teaching am inclusive general education conceptual
physics class. This enabled many different students, such as English language learners, students
with disabilities and at risk students, to be involved in general education population for this
difficult class. It was imperative for me and my co-teacher to plan lessons together in order to
ensure that all students would be successful through universal design for learning. In this class it
was my job to modify assignments and give extra support to any students that needed it.

My fourth responsibility was co-teaching a study skills class. Typically, study skills classes
consist of your own caseload, but at El Modena this is not case. In this class me and my co-
teacher worked to help students with their homework and ensure that their grades stayed up
staying on top of missing assignments, projects and homework.

This internship cemented the fact that I absolutely love working with all student populations, and
believe that all children are capable of learning. I am extremely passionate about making
inclusion and Universal Design for Learning the best model it can possibly be for students to
truly access the curriculum through collaboration, hard work, and an open line of communication
with all my co-educators and parents. I have a growth mindset and intend to continue to further
my education, so I can continue to grow as an educator and be the best teacher possible. As I
continue my path as an educator I aspire to do much more than teach; I aim to make a difference
in any and every way I can in the life of every child that I work with.