<p>EDSP 6644 Fall Quarter 2009 The Exceptional Learner Instructor: Catherine Hawes Final Exam</p><p>Name: Heidi Riehl</p><p>Answer the questions with concise answers from the Exceptional Learner text. Each question is worth 5 points.</p><p>1. What is the educational definition of exceptional learner? Exceptional learners are persons who have a diversity of characteristics, includ- ing a disability and/or special talent, that requires special education, differing instruction, and related services that will aid them in realizing their full potential in life.</p><p>2. What distinguishes special educators from general educators? All educators work to individualize instruction so that all students can take on the information. However, special educators provide a highly individualized instruction for students with learning or behavioral problems. The learning environment is more pre- cisely controlled by the special educator through pace, intensity, structure, reinforce- ment, curriculum, and assessment. They also look at technological advances that may benefit an individual learner and know special education law thoroughly.</p><p>3. Identify and describe major laws and policies that support students with disabilities. In 1975, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, later amended in 1990 to Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), guarantees that all children and youths with disabilities have the right to a free, appropriate public education. A focus of this has been the needs of individual students through an individualized education pro- gram (IEP). In 1990, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ensures the right of individuals with disabilities to nondiscriminatory treatment in other aspects of their lives, including employment, transportation, public accommodations, state and local government, and telecommunications.</p><p>4. Describe at least two ways to enhance the integration of students with disabili- ties into your general education classrooms. Students with disabilities should have access to a learning environment that re- sembles what students without disabilities have access to. Teachers can provide ac- commodations, such as individualized instruction to aid students with adjusting to the pace and curriculum within the general education setting. Teachers can also make mod- ifications to materials and/or assignments to help learners understand, build strategies for success, and complete activities.</p><p>5. Describe ways in which teachers can collaborate with each other, with other professionals, and with families to ensure that students with disabilities achieve success at school. The most obvious collaboration is meetings, where the student’s strengths, areas of need, strategies for success, and progress are discussed. The special educator can observe and offer suggestions, model strategies, or co-teach with the general educator. They can discuss curricula and instructional strategies, accommodations and adapta- tions, and any special training or information the teacher might need. Parents can be in- cluded on what strategies or modifications to use at home when the student is studying or engaging in tasks. Open and consistent communication between all involved with the student is necessary and should begin as soon as possible.</p><p>6. Why are members of minority groups more apt to be identified as disabled? Ethnicity can be confused with exceptionality, especially when one ethnic group is viewed as setting the standard. Students must not be labeled with a disability or gifted just because they are different. Many educational assessments are not necessarily fair or accurate when testing minority groups. Misinterpretations can result in inaccurate la- bels.</p><p>7. Describe six components of effective teaching. The six components of effective teaching are: 1. Scaffolding and strategies – assistance in learning a task using a strategy, eventually phasing out help so the student can work independently. 2. Challenge – students need challenging tasks. 3. Involvement – students engaged in extended conversations, in which they use com- plex linguistic structures. 4. Success – students need to experience frequent success. 5. Mediation and feedback – providing frequent, comprehensible feedback on perfor- mance. 6. Responsiveness to cultural and individual diversity – content of instruction must be related to students’ experiences and interests.</p><p>8. How might teachers encourage parents who have a child with a disability main- tain an active role in their child’s education? Communication with the school is a key component to success. Be sure to attend parent-teacher conferences, as well as, IEP meetings if necessary. Parents can be ad- vocates for their child. Be involved with their homework and incorporate accommoda- tions. Read and talk about books with your child. Volunteer in the classroom or be in- volved in a way that works with your schedule. </p><p>9. How would you respond to parents who approach you expressing concern about the future of their high school student with intellectual disability (a mentally retarded disability)? This is difficult as I am not a high school teacher. We would discuss the strengths of their student and look at areas where he/she will continue to improve. I would want to hear from the student and what they want or have goals for. We could look at the stu- dent’s level of self-determination and set a goal for the end of high school, depending on the age. Of importance, would be to discuss transition programming, both community adjustment, including living arrangements and employment. 10. What does it mean to be a teacher of students with learning disabilities? A teacher evaluates every student in their class and looks at tailoring instruction to meet their needs; this would include students with learning disabilities. The teacher needs to be aware of the disabilities and seek information to understand the disability and how to best provide individualized instruction, accommodations, and/or modifica- tions. Understanding the disability and how the student learns will help the teacher to assess them more accurately as well. Teachers will collaborate with the special educator to develop and implement in- dividualized programs, assistive technology, instructional strategies and materials, use performance data to develop modifications, and design, implement, and evaluate in- structional programs that enhance social participation. </p><p>11. The parents of a second grader with a learning disability approach you to dis- cuss their son’s difficulties in reading. “My son doesn’t seem to understand that words are made up of sounds. What approaches would work with him?” How would you respond? I would acknowledge their concerns immediately and either meet at that time or set up a meeting. I would ask questions so that I may understand why the parents feel this way and what they notice at home. If this matches what I notice in class, then I would discuss strategies relating to phonemic awareness and decoding that they could incorporate at home when they are reading together. I would also send home games and activities that the parents could use to increase his skills. Finally, I would setup a follow up meeting to check in with the parents. If I had not already done so, because this problem is significant for a second grade reader, I would start the referral process. </p><p>12. How should teachers determine what instructional methods to use with stu- dents with ADHD? The age of the student is relevant to which instructional method to use, as well as, evaluating the outcomes of the functional behavioral assessment and observations in the classroom. A contingency-based self-management approach can work with older students. There are stages that help teachers with instruction that include pre-planning: dividing instruction into meaningful chunks, introduction, instruction and modeling, guid- ed practice, independent practice and closure and review. Ultimately, every student is different and various instructional methods, such as, chunking, alerting to transitions, additional resources and materials, and organizers, should be tested for success with learning. </p><p>13. What are some functional classroom designs for students with emotional/be- havioral disorders? The learning environment should encourage positive social interaction. This can be done by positioning desks in groups or having tables for groups of students to sit at. Because it is unreasonable to expect a student with an emotional/behavioral disorder to be on track 100% of the time, a place in the room should be setup for them to retreat to or have a safe space. A separate desk or beanbag placed in the room away from the other students can be helpful. Schedules and transitions should be posted in the class- room for students to refer to or in the case of younger students, picture cues or oral alerts. Active engagement in learning is also important. Making sure the classroom li- brary contains books of interest to the student, having the student’s seat located close to teaching, and tools and resources out and available will help with engagement. An- other key point is making sure the furniture and supplies are arranged for easy transi- tions and flow of students. Knowing what may trigger the student can help the teacher to eliminate problems, such as, noise level, lighting, and walls filled with distracting ma- terial.</p><p>14. How would you develop a plan to address your student’s continual defiant acting out, willfully disobeying your requests, blaming others and disrupting your class? I would begin with documenting behavior and strategies that did or did not work. I would talk with the student and try to ascertain what might be setting him or her off, as well as, what I can do to help. Does the student have a solution? I would also contact parents and ask for observations at home and advice on what has worked for them. I would then fill out a Family Support Team referral to request a meeting for additional help and support from other professionals. Together we could develop a plan for posi- tives, but also consequences for actions. If the disruption was consistent, I would docu- ment the loss of learning time for the other students and talk about a plan for removal from the class during outbursts. Finally, I would request specific professionals come and observe the behavior to have additional documentation, but also, to see if I could im- prove with how I interact with the student. </p><p>15. What can teachers do to help students overcome speech and language disor- ders? First, teachers should read the IEP if there is one and look at the goals. Next, they should meet with the SLP about the specifics of the disorder, what the SLP is work- ing on and how this can translate to the classroom. Teachers should also listen atten- tively and empathetically when children speak and provide appropriate models of speech and language for students to mimic. For example, a student struggling to use he/she and his/her correctly, will benefit from hearing the correct usage and enunciating he/she and his/her in speech. Opportunities for social language should be in place in the classroom for students, as well as, incorporating relevant question-asking strate- gies. Collaboration between the SLP and general education teacher are critical in pro- viding the student with explicit and systematic interventions for reading and writing.</p><p>16. Your new student has a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. What instruc- tional methods would you use to meet your students needs? I would use direct instruction of skills and break them down into smaller manage- able units for the student. Reinforcing skills in small groups and providing frequent op- portunities for practice with feedback would aid the student as well. I would incorporate behavior management using functional behavioral assessment and positive behavioral support. It would be important to provide opportunities for the student to have natural interactions for social skills, such as, buddy reading or centers. I would incorporate vis- ual strategies to help the student with the schedule or how to move through a task, such as independent writing. Finally, I would keep routines and rules consistent. </p><p>17. What are the benefits of functional behavioral assessment and behavior inter- vention plans? The benefit is insight into the student, their behaviors, and how to help them inte- grate into the general education setting. An FBA helps a team to determine the conse- quences, antecedents, and setting events. This information is valuable in helping the student to be successful in the classroom. Every student has triggers or antecedents and knowing what they are, is crucial to avoiding disruptions and anger or frustration in the student. Behavioral intervention plans are wonderful in that they focus on desirable behaviors and positive reinforcement rather than punishing undesirable behaviors. Who wants to be punished all the time? </p><p>18. What is the general education teacher’s role in the IEP process? First and foremost, general education teachers should READ the IEP and under- stand the goals and purposes as related to the student. Teachers should know what they are responsible for and how to document the progress. They are to be proactive in making sure the proper supports are implemented in the classroom and understand what accommodations or modifications are necessary. General education teachers need to attend meetings about the student and his/her IEP and keep open communica- tion with the parent. Go the extra mile, and give the parents a reminder call about an up- coming meeting. Teachers spend quite a bit of time with students on an IEP in the class- room and can be the voice of the student in meetings.</p><p>19. After taking this Exceptional Learners class do you feel better equipped to handle your students with disabilities? Comments? Yes, I feel I definitely have a better understanding of my responsibilities to my students both legally and ethically. I have become lax about certain things, such as, leaving an IEP (turned over) in my “to file” basket. I need to put it straight into the stu- dent’s file and refer to it often. I also need to document better, so that when I am faced with commenting on the IEP goals in terms of percentages, I feel confident in my an- swers. I also am looking out for my colleagues and making sure they understand the law as well. </p><p>20. Develop an intervention plan to address your student’s problem. This student has done a complete turn around and no longer has outbursts in class. I do still keep an eye on him. In terms of the disappointment, I would wait for him to calm down and then discuss with what happened. For example, he had a hard time when he didn’t get a turn at something. I displayed patience and continually explained that not everyone gets a turn everyday, but that does not mean never. He would get a turn later in the day or the next day. The students took on a role of trying to explain this to him as well. Another example, he would outburst because he could not close his backpack. Again, I would take time to help him, but also explain how he just needs to ask for help. I would model with other students and now he will ask for help. I also al- ways take the time to explain the why. “P your backpack won’t close because you have a heavy binder in there that holds the flap open.” It took a couple of times explaining this, but eventually he came to school without the binder. He is still working on friendships. One strategy I am using is to try and get him to say the name of students instead of just my friend, the one with the long name. This is interesting as he knows all of the students’ numbers, but has difficulty naming a friend. I also have him play Kindergartener memory with other students. I still use consistent praise, especially when he comes in smiling and happy. I am making more of an effort to understand his one interest, Sonic. I want to strengthen our student-teacher bond through listening, caring, and one-on-one time. His mother said that he does not care for or bond with adults, but tells her he loves me. My plan for the rest of the year is to continue the strategies that work and set small goals for him that he is aware of. His current goal is to improve his coloring and control of the crayon. His parents are trying hard to make sure he isn’t hungry or tired, but there has been unavoidable change in the home environment. I watch P for signs that it might be a difficult day. I was communicating regularly with mom about P’s progress; however, an unpleasant altercation with the father has stressed school-home communication. The principal is evaluating whether or not P will be able to stay in the school based on this and the home move. I am advocating for P as I think it would be a huge mistake to up- root him at this point. </p>