Bridging the Gap Between Decoding and Special Education
O
ver the years there has been a tremendous amount of research dedicated to identifying the most effective methods for teaching reading and literacy skills to young students. As you are scanning the pages in this magazine you are using those skills, which were likely taught to you in the earliest years of your education that have been tucked quietly in your subconscious, and now run in your brain like a program in the background of the computer. For some this is a very natural skill to acquire, while others, for a variety of reasons, can struggle to piece together letters and words to express their
Julia Catherine Dean Special Education, M.Ed. Dr. Pamela Mims, Faculty Advisor
Written by Hannah Warren
needs and wants: Such is the case with children who are nonvocal. Catie’s birth name is Julia Catherine just as her grandmother and her great, great grandmother before her, both of whom were teachers. Though Catie’s grandmother always said she was destined to follow in her footsteps, Catie thought she would be anything except a teacher. Today, she recalls feeling drawn to education from the time she began elementary school. Catie chose to come to ETSU for her undergraduate degree over schools in
Left, Dr. Pamela Mims, Right, Julia Catherine Dean Holliday
32