Bridging the Gap Between Then and Now is an ethnography written by Katheryne Lucia Gomez, an Education Specialist currently living and teaching in Southern California, in her hometown of La Verne. Gomez is a student in Claremont Graduate University’s Teacher Education Program providing first-hand perspective as a first-year special education teacher and the experiences leading up to this point. Having prior experience in applied behavior analysis and working with multiple grade levels, the following document details personal experiences (philosophies on education, social justice, reasons that led Gomez into education), a community breakdown including its history, demographics, socioeconomic status, and three student case studies. Each case study student has an IEP and two students have experienced a significant life experience. There is a breakdown for each student of their family history, culture, parent(s)/student point of view on academic status, aspects of IEP, strengths and weaknesses. Areas of struggle were identified for each student and teaching strategies were implemented and tracked for progress. Ultimately, Gomez reflects on her teaching practices, belief systems, social justice practices and how to continue creating a classroom environment that builds on and fosters the strengths of students, academic and otherwise.
special education, assessments, community, Special Education and Teaching
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