Meet the Special Education Teacher: Julie Ketterling

"Special education" encompasses a wide, complex range of teaching specialties. Special education students may have developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder, autism, or emotional or behavioral disorders. Special ed teachers understand their students' particular disabilities and come armed with an array of tools and strategies that help students learn.

Julie Ketterling, a special education teacher at Century High School in Bismarck, ND, gives an insider's view of this challenging yet rewarding profession.

A: When I was earning my bachelor's degree in elementary ed, I worked for an organization that provided services for people with developmental disabilities. My mentor was very behavior-oriented, so I started to see things from that perspective as well.

After I got my bachelor's degree, I had trouble finding a teaching job and began working as an aide in a classroom of students with emotional disorders. The assistant special education director asked if I'd consider getting my master's in special education. I decided to go for it, and graduated in 1997.

A: I teach or case-manage about 15 students with emotional and behavioral disorders in grades 10 through 12, and also co-teach one sophomore English class. In that class, I modify some materials for students who need different levels of help. It's been so successful that we're working to introduce the concept in 11th and 12th grade, too.

A: To be an effective special ed teacher, you need to be able to break down tasks into small, achievable parts. You also need lots of patience, flexibility, and creativity. You can write the best lesson plan in the world, but interacting and meeting the needs of the students is priority number one. It's important to learn as many strategies as possible for dealing with the unexpected.

Also, new special ed teachers tend to think they can solve everyone's problems. I gave my personal phone number to a lot of families when I started out, and had parents calling me late at night. It's important to set firm professional and personal boundaries early on in your career.

A: Teaching students with emotional disorders is event-oriented and fast-paced. My students tend to live from one monumental event to another, making all transitions--weekends, big holidays, the end of the school year--hard for them. I spend a lot of time helping them deal with these events, both with others and on their own. It can be quite a challenge, but it's definitely worth it.

A: For me, the reward is seeing anxious, distraught kids develop emotional awareness and social skills so that other people enjoy being with them and they enjoy being with other people. I love seeing the change in students between their sophomore and senior years. We've helped them learn how to be comfortable in their own skin. We're really preparing them for success in everyday life.