Professor creates modules to help education majors

A challenge of education is bridging the gap between classroom learning and the lessons of life. \nTheresa Ochoa, assistant professor of special education, has developed a learning tool to help alleviate this problem. She has designed two computer modules incorporating real-life scenarios into interactive multimedia case studies. The modules are intended to teach future educators how to effectively teach students who have special education needs such as an emotional or behavioral disorder. \nOchoa's modules are part of the special education course she teaches to general education majors. The students work in groups, carefully going through the modules step-by-step and discussing various ways to handle the difficult situations. \nOne module involves a high school student who has a behavioral disorder and is caught with marijuana at school. With just a few clicks, Ochoa's students can access visual and audio components, allowing them to watch and listen to various perspectives on the student's behavior. Comments from a counselor, principal, teacher and parent are all included, as well as a message from the student. Through the scenarios, the students learn how these different parties interact and communicate. The students can take on the different roles and come to their own conclusions about how to deal with the student's behavior. \nThe idea is for the education students to get a glimpse of situations they will probably encounter when they enter the field. \n"Students have to find the answers and discover what the consequences of their decisions might be," Ochoa said. "The problems in the modules are messy. They're real."\nOchoa said more and more general educators are teaching students with disabilities, yet they aren't always taught how to do this effectively. Her computer scenarios try to address this reality.\nHer goal is for students to develop proactive, non-punitive responses for the students in the modules. The modules essentially form a foundation from which she wants her students to learn appropriate interventions they can apply to future cases. \nAngie Bruick, a senior majoring in elementary education, said the visual component of the modules is important.\n"By seeing this student, you feel like this student is your student, and you don't want to make a wrong decision," Bruick said. \nShe said the complicated nature of the modules was helpful because it mimics real-life. The steps she went through to reach decisions have proved beneficial in other courses, she said.\nOchoa's other module focuses on multicultural issues with an elementary student. The child has yet to be identified with any disabilities. \nMelody Allen just finished studying this module a few weeks ago. A sophomore elementary education major, she said the audio and visual components were beneficial.\n"Being able to hear and see the people involved in the case helped us to understand their convictions about the student," Allen said. \nShe particularly enjoyed being able to see video clips of the student in class and on the playground. This was crucial for learning how a motor skill disability might be identified. \nAllen said the module gave her a chance to prepare for situations she is likely to encounter in the future. For Bruick, the modules helped her feel more prepared for the classroom. She said she isn't afraid to work with special education students in the future. \nOchoa hopes the modules are eventually available for use by education professors and students across the country, she said. She's conducted student evaluations of the modules to determine their effectiveness. So far the results show that students are able to transfer knowledge from the modules to new cases. She also tracks students after graduation to see if information from the modules is valuable in their classrooms. \nDrawbacks of the modules include certain technological requirements and some students may not like the non-traditional approach to learning. Bruick said at first she was intimidated by using a computer for the modules, but said they were easy to work with.\nBruick said the most important thing she learned from the modules is that each student requires different assistance. \n"You have to try different things with each student until you find the right intervention," she said. "Communication is the key"