Resource Manua for Teachers of Students with Exceptionaities
Tabe of Contents Executive Summary 1 Part I - The Resource Concept Introduction 2 The Resource Concept 2-4 Part II - Estabishing the Resource Room Genera Information 5-6 Steps to be Foowed 7-8 Stages of the Assessment Process 8-11 Physica Environment 11-12 Cimate of the Resource Room 13-14 In-Service Training 14 Part III - Deaing with Varying Exceptionaities Students with Behavioura Disorders 15-19 Attention Deficit Disorders 20-22 Learning Disabiities 23-28 Educating the Gifted 29-31 Recommended Strategies 32-35 Gossary of Terms 36-38 References 39 Appendices Referra Agencies Checkist for Socia & Emotiona Deveopment Individua Education Pan (IEP) format Lesson Pan format
Executive Summary This manua was deveoped as a guide and source of reference for resource teachers, schoo administrators, education officers and teachers receiving in-service training. As a consequence, the Specia Education Unit in the Ministry of Education and Youth has outined a number of procedures and practices that are in accordance with strategic objective two in the White Paper Poicy document which seeks 'To secure teaching and earning opportunities that wi optimise access, equity and reevance throughout the education system.' Currenty the concept of the Resource Room Programme is one that has gained widespread acceptance as an innovation that caters to students with sensory, earning and behavioura probems. In order to ensure quaity deivery of these services this manua seeks to: 1. Highight the concept of the resource room. 2. Deineate the process invoved in estabishing resource services. 3. Identify appropriate instructiona strategies for various individuas. 4. Provide direction for the assessment of students and monitoring/evauation of the programme. It was with these thoughts in mind that this manua was deveoped. 1
Part - The Resource Concept Introduction For a number of years, and even more recenty, the quaity and equity of the Jamaican education system has been put under the microscope. Parents, teachers, students, educators and the genera pubic have been questioning the returns from the investments in education. The resuts from state diagnostic toos and examinations (Grade 1 Inventory, Grade 3 Diagnostic Test, Grade 4 Literacy Test, Grade 6 Achievement Test) and more recenty the Grade 9 Achievement Test and the Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificate have a pointed to a downward trend in the academic achievements of our students. The Ministry of Education and Youth (MOE& Y) has over the years impemented a number of intervention programmes designed to meet the needs of students who appear to be underachieving when compared with their age and grade cohorts. These programmes incude the Primary Education Support Project (PESP) 1 & 2, New Horizon Project, Jamaica A-Age Schoos Project (JAASP), Grade 4 Competency Sheter, and more recenty the Student Empowerment Programme. Most of these programmes have focused on iteracy and numeracy. The Resource Room Concept The Specia Education Unit in the Ministry of Education and Youth, in its response to the overwheming demand to address the needs of chidren with earning difficuties, introduced the Resource Room Programme at the primary, junior high, and high schoo eves. The decision to impement the resource room programme was based on the commitment made in the 1990-1995 Five Year Education Pan (M.O.E.& Y.) to provide one Specia Educator to every 480 students in the mainstream. In addition, the 2001 White Paper (p.27) outined the provision for teachers of specia education to be appointed to primary and a-age schoos unti a students have access to the service. The Corporate Pan aso speaks to the continued provision of specia education teachers on a phased basis. It must be noted that unike other interventions initiated by the Ministry, this programme is designed to address the needs of students whose academic under-achievements are assumed to be due to a neuroogica disorder. 2
Goas of the Resource Room The operation of a resource room programme in any schoo seeks to achieve the foowing objectives: 1. To provide students with specific resource support whie remaining integrated with their peers in the mainstream. 2. To aow resource personne to serve a wider cross section of students in the reguar schoo system who require specia support. 3. To provide a system of eary intervention in order to aeviate the deveopment of secondary conditions. 4. To provide earning opportunities for students with specia needs in a fexibe manner. 5. To serve as a source of expertise in supporting teachers in the mainstream. 6. To minimise the stigma associated with student receiving specia support in a non-categorica setting. The resource room concept has its historica roots in both specia education and remedia education for students with earning difficuties. This is a puout programme, serving students with mid earning disabiities drawn from the mainstream. Once seected, these students go to the resource room on a schedued basis to receive tutoria hep from a specia education teacher. Ideay, students shoud be schedued for thirty minutes to one-hour sessions at east three times weeky. Typicay, resource room teachers teach fundamenta skis and/or tutor students in the academic subjects that were the source of the referra. (Heney, Ramsey, & Agozzine, 2006). There are different types of resource rooms and these are isted beow: Categorica Resource Room: This serves ony students who have one particuar disabiity, which is usuay a earning disabiity. Students identified as mentay retarded woud go to another resource room. Cross-Categorica Resource Room: This type of pacement serves severa students with different disabiities functioning at about the same gross achievement eves. Students who are earning disabed, mid mentay retarded, and behaviouray disturbed are often paced together in this type of resource room. This is the most common type of resource room. Non-categorica Resource Room: This serves as the resource room for a chidren with disabiities in paces where categorica distinctions are not recognised. 3
Specific-skis Resource Room: This type of resource room aims its curricuar content at one basic ski area usuay reading or mathematics. Itinerant Resource Programmes: These are programmes where student's visits to the resource room are not schedued on a daiy basis. Rura areas with very sma schoos in difficut-to-reach ocations may provide one resource teacher for severa schoos, which are visited every other day. 4
Part - Estabishing the Resource Room Genera Information Resource Room Information The Resource Room is designed to meet the individua earning needs of students having difficuties in one or more areas of earning. In order to determine the functioning eves and/or earning needs of students, quaified personne must conduct an assessment. These incude the resource teacher, who is usuay trained to conduct educationa assessments, an assessment cinician, or educationa and cinica psychoogist. Procedures for Pacing Students in the Resource Room Whie anyone can refer a chid for assessment, the cass teacher or principa of the schoo usuay refers students for initia screening. Screening resuts determine the direction for assessment. Resource room pacement shoud be done on the advice of the psychoogist or assessment cinician. The resource room teacher must interpret the resuts and conduct his/her evauation before beginning a programme of intervention. In cases where there is no psychoogist or assessment cinician, referras can be made to the resource room teacher who conducts an assessment and may refer the chid for further assessment. Such referras shoud be made in time for the beginning of the schoo year, so that individuaised pans can be made on time. It is important that referras are made with the east disruption to the chid's programme and schedue of the resource room. Assessment Instruments Schoos estabishing resource rooms shoud be advised by the Specia Education Unit on the procurement of instruments. It is aso important that the instruments used by psychoogists and assessment cinicians, with Jamaican students, are cuturay appropriate and that teachers serving in the resource rooms be trained where necessary to interpret and administer academic instruments. Assessment resuts must be used to inform panning and instruction. Programme Design A team of persons incuding, but not restricted to, the principa, resource teacher, cass teacher, and parent shoud evauate each case, and set guideines for an individuaised 5
programme, based on the student's earning needs. In addition, teaching strategies are to be based on assessment information, teacher tests, observations, schoo records and any other reevant information. Having received assessment report, the resource teacher wi administer teacher-made tests and conduct his/her own observations on students' performance and behaviour as they affect earning. It is aso important to examine recent schoo reports and any other reevant document pertaining to earning outcome. Important points to consider It is the responsibiity of the resource teacher, after determining students' functioning eves to state in writing individua goas and objectives that shoud incude specific timeframe for accompishment. The resource teacher shoud continuousy anayse students' performance and modify instructions where necessary and decide on new instructiona objectives and goas. Parents shoud pay a part in the decisions taken by the teacher. The principa must be knowedgeabe on each case and shoud hep in decision-making where necessary. Records of students' performance must be kept for anaysis and to hep determine progress. The resource teacher must ensure that teaching strategies are geared to students' needs and for success. Instructions shoud begin at or beow students' functioning eve initiay, to ensure a measure of success and to deveop confidence. The environment must be reaxing, comfortabe and non-distracting where students can express themseves freey and work comfortaby. Lessons must be prepared ahead of time to prevent time wasting and to maximise time spent in the teaching/earning process. Students shoud be aware of their individua goas and the timeframe for accompishment. Counseing where necessary is important for students and parents to understand the impications of their earning needs. 6 Each student must be assigned individua tasks and specified earning areas. Individua student portfoios must be kept.
Steps to be foowed in estabishing the resource room In estabishing the Resource Room in schoos, the foowing steps need to be observed: A. Prepare the schoo staff B. Prepare the parents C. Outfit the Resource Room D. Secure the equipment and materias E. Assess students who have been referred F. Prepare an Individua Education Programme (IEP) G. Impement the Programme A. Preparing the Schoo Staff Discuss: The need for the resource programme. The resource mode to be used. The roes of the resource teacher. The responsibiity of the reguar teachers. Referra and pupi seection. Management practices in the programmes operation. B. Preparing the Parents Inform parents about the Resource Room programme and the benefits to the student. Inform parents whose chidren wi be part of the programme. Share goas of the programme. Encourage parenta invovement. C. Outfitting the Resource Room Seect the room. Seect equipment and materias required. Assign area for sma group. Assign area for individua work. Storage space for fies and materias. D. Securing the equipment and materias Prepare a ist of materias needed. Prioritise the items. Compare prices on materias. Evauate and compare educationa materias. Expore the possibiity of making cheaper materias. Make fina seection and purchase. NB. Materias must be cuturay appropriate. 7
E. Assessing students who have been referred Administer seected tests. Score and interpret test(s). Interview parents/guardian. Interview teacher (s) and/or students. Observe students in norma schoo situations. F. Preparing an Individua Education Programme (IEP) Pan specifics that the student wi be taught. Deineate the specific information, ski or behaviours to be taught at each step. Specify the methods and materias to be used to teach the information or ski. Specify the motivationa component of the instruction. G. Impementing the Programme Start up procedures. Schedue students seected. Monitor movement between casses. Grade, monitor students' achievements. Impement instructiona pans. Invove parents/guardians. Evauate the programme. Stages of the Assessment Process What is Assessment? Assessment is the gathering of information to make critica decisions. Methods of Assessment Observations of the chid Interview with the famiy Checkists and rating scaes Informa tests Standardised tests Use of assessment information 8 To identify the chid's eigibiity for specia services, panning instruction, and measuring progress.
Steps in Assessment 1. Chid-find/Case Finding 2. Deveopmenta Screening 3. Diagnosis 4. Individuaised Panning of Programmes and Interventions 5. Performance Monitoring 6. Programme Evauation Stage 1. Chid-Find/Case Finding This refers to procedures designed to ocate those young chidren who might need eary intervention services and programmes. This stage is required because many parents do not know that services are avaiabe for young chidren. Some parents may not reaise that the chid has a deveopmenta probem, or the famiy may deny that a probem exists because of strong cutura beiefs and traditions. Strategies for finding young chidren Buiding community awareness through pubic agencies and organisations. Setting up a system for referras. Canvassing the community for the young chidren who need screening. Maintaining contracts with sources of referra. Stage 2. Deveopmenta Screening This is a cursory method for obtaining genera information about a chid's deveopment and detecting any potentia probems. The screening is not intended to be a comprehensive diagnosis, but rather provides a first quick ook at a chid. Screening procedures are typicay used with arge groups of chidren. Screening tests shoud be brief, inexpensive, have objective scoring systems that are vaid and reiabe. When the screening indicates that a young chid has potentia probems, it is critica that the chid receives more comprehensive diagnoses. Stage 3. Diagnoses This is a more intensive evauation than screening. Methodoogy Observation Interviews Case history Informa tests Standardised tests 9
Information Gathered The nature of the chid's difficuties. The severity of the probem. The chid's strengths and weaknesses. The above information is used to determine eigibiity for specia education services. Members of a mutidiscipinary team conduct the diagnosis. For exampe, if the screening indicated that the chid has anguage difficuties, members of the mutidiscipinary team coud incude a speech/anguage pathoogist; a speciaist in hearing, such as an audioogist or otoogist, to evauate hearing oss; and a psychoogist to determine how the chid's deveopment is reated to anguage acquisition. A famiy interview woud provide additiona information about the case history, anguage performance at home, and the primary anguage of the famiy. Information coected through the diagnosis eads to decisions about the nature and severity of the probem and assists in panning intervention. Stage 4. Individua Panning of Programmes and Interventions If the diagnosis indicates there is a need for eary intervention, the next stages invove assessment for the panning of programmes and intervention. To cosey ink this stage of the assessment to the actua curricua of the chid's eary intervention programme, curricuum-based or criterion-referenced instruments and procedures are used. The areas considered in the panning process for eary preschoo chidren incude: Sensory/physica deveopment. Language and communication abiities. Fine and gross motor deveopment. Cognitive abiities. Adaptive or sef-hep skis. Socia-emotiona deveopment. Stage 5. Programme Monitoring After the chid is paced in an intervention programme, it is important that the chid's progress is monitored frequenty. Mutipe checks incude: 10 Observations Deveopmenta checkists Rating scaes Data coection on a reguar basis and anaysis to determine mastery of target skis. Progress recorded in meeting goas and objectives on the chid's Individuaised Education Programme (I.E.P) Determining the effectiveness of the intervention and changes that are needed in the intervention pan.
Stage 6. Programme Evauation It is important to evauate the intervention programme itsef. Programme evauation is an objective, systematic procedure for determining progress of chidren and the effectiveness of the tota intervention programme. It may be necessary to make needed changes and modifications in the intervention programme (Lerner, 1998). The Physica Environment For resource programmes physica environmenta issues are important. It has been suggested that the room shoud never be ess than haf the size of a reguar cassroom. However, size needs shoud be determined ony after considering the foowing: The predominant activities that wi take pace in the resource room (e.g. instruction, assessment, consutation). The nature of resource room activities and whether they wi occur simutaneousy (e.g. socia skis training woud interfere with teaching cognitive strategies for reading comprehension). The number of students and aduts who wi be in the resource room at the same time. The needs of teachers for storage of equipment and materia and for materia preparation. The needs of students with physicay disabing conditions that require wheechairs or wakers. Generay the resource room shoud be abe to comfortaby accommodate a maximum of ten (10) students. There must be provisions for Learning Centres within the room, as we as space for individua work by students. Study carres A study carre is essentiay a pace for independent, individua work. Carres or cubices have two main purposes: to imit outside stimui and to provide a specific pace for concentrated study. A study carre shoud be designed to minimise the distraction of various cassroom activities hence it shoud be paced in a quiet area. 11
Cubices may be eaborate, commerciay made frames or others are cardboard refrigerator cartons; sti others are itte more than a sma tabe and chair paced in the back corner of the cassroom, where the chid sits facing the corner. Use of carres shoud emphasize the positive features of cubices rather than their association with punishment or inappropriate behaviour. Learning Centres Learning centres are basicay an outgrowth of independent seatwork activities and are an attempt to take the monotony out of seatwork and put more variety into cassroom instruction. Learning centres can be used for: 1. Instruction in which a student works at the centre to review something previousy earned. 2. Promotion of socia interaction for two or three students who are working together. 3. Deveopment of independent work skis and sef-direction. When erecting centres, teachers shoud consider severa key components of earning centres: the user the objectives rues for use directions, and materias or equipment needed. Learning Centres shoud not be compicated or intricate so that students are abe to use them effectivey without the teacher's hep. Some easy centres to estabish incude a magazine corner where chidren can ounge, ooking at or cutting out pictures; a number centre for matching numeras with pictures counting the correct number of objects; a istening centre equipped with headphones so that students can isten to recordings; an area with a Language Master accessibe for reviewing previousy earned vocabuary and a ibrary. A computer centre is aso another important option. 12
The Cimate of the Resource Room There shoud be no stigma attached to students attending the resource room, but rather that they are in an environment in which they can achieve most successfuy without frustration. The resource room shoud be attractive, stimuating, comfortabe, non-distracting, and conducive to earning. Instruction shoud NOT be a repeat of what obtains in the reguar cassroom. Where possibe the teacher shoud endeavour to acquire a teevision, VCR, tape-recorder and computers to enhance the teaching/earning process. The use of drama, music and other aesthetic modes shoud be empoyed as much as possibe. Students shoud: fee a sense of beonging; be made to fee specia; be active participants in their earning. The cassroom must be made 'psychoogicay' safe by: Staffing Using objectives that are chaenging but achievabe. Aowing opportunities for error anaysis. Being enthusiastic about students' earning. The resource room shoud ideay have a teacher with at east one teacher's aide. The resource teacher shoud ideay be: A specia educator with a focus on earning difficuties. A teacher with skis in the teaching of Literacy and Numeracy or speciaisation in Corrective Reading in the Content Area. Support Personne Persons to assist with the resource room programme are the Principa, the Specia Needs Coordinator, a reguar cassroom teacher, the guidance counseor and a parent. Budget The Budget for the Resource Room shoud incude funds for: Interactive Software Books Games Computer 13
Tape Recorder Video Standardised Tests In-service Training Other Equipment and Materias In-Service Training Persons working in resource rooms sha participate in in-service training activities to support the various tasks, duties and responsibiities undertaken in such faciities. Resource room training wi be organized to incude individua and custer training, done on request or on the recommendation of a supervising officer. Training wi be schedued for convenient times and during the summer break. Resource Room Teachers wi be evauated by supervising officers to determine the quaity of the returns on the training investment as they impact on teacher effectiveness in the teaching earning situation. Areas to be covered wi be determined by need and may incude: Resource Room Management Record Management Assessment Behaviour Management Cassroom Management Individua Education Pans (IEP) Grouping Materia Deveopment and teaching strategies among others. Equipment and Materia Resource Rooms shoud be organised and equipped to create a conducive, stimuating earning environment. They shoud be equipped with instructiona technoogies and other materias incusive of tape recorders, computers with appropriate software, assessment toos, reading abs or substitutes, cassettes, audio taped programmes, CDs, support materias for mathematics, educationa games, portfoios, student fies, text materias, centers of interest, teevision and video equipment where possibe. Teachers are expected to utiize avaiabe materias in innovative ways to enhance the teaching earning process (Weiderhot, Hammi, & Brown, 1978). 14
Part - Deaing with Varying Exceptionaities Students with Behavioura Disorders Behavioura disorders aso known as conduct disorders are the most common forms of psychopathoogy among chidren and young aduts. In our cassrooms, they have severey constrained the abiity of the schoo systems to educate students effectivey. Behavioura disorders are repetitive persistent patterns of behaviour that resut in significant disruption to other students. These disturbances may cause significant impairments in academic, socia, and or occupationa functioning, and is consistent throughout the individua's ife. Characteristics Initiation of aggressive behaviour and reacting aggressivey towards others. A dispay of buying, threatening, or intimidating behaviour. Physicay abusive of others. Deiberate destruction of other's property. Litte empathy and concern for the feeings, wishes, and we being of others. Caous behaviour towards others and ack of feeings of guit or remorse. A tendency to inform on their companions and to bame others for their own misdeeds. Strategies for Teaching Students with Behavioura Disorders Coaborate with teachers about interactive techniques that have been effective with the student in the past. Expose students with behavioura disorders to other students who demonstrate the appropriate behaviours. Use direct instruction to teach the target behaviour. Have pre-estabished consequences for misbehaviour. 15
Determine whether the student is on medication, what the schedue is, and what the medication effects may be on his or her in cass demeanor with and without medication. Then adjust teaching strategies accordingy. Use time-out sessions to coo off disruptive behaviour and as a break if student needs one for a disabiity-reated reason. In group activities, acknowedge the contributions of the student with a behavioura disorder. Devise a contingency pan with the student in which inappropriate forms of response are repaced by appropriate ones. Treat the student with the behavioura disorder as an individua who is deserving of respect and consideration. Seek input from the student about their strengths, weakness, and goas. Use this information to pan appropriate academic, socia, and or occupationa experiences. Be consistent in the enforcement of cassroom rues. Ensure the discipine fits the 'crime' without harshness. Provide encouragement. Reward more than you punish, in order to buid sef-esteem. Praise immediatey at a good behaviour and performance. Change rewards if they are not effective for motivating behavioura change. Deveop a schedue for appying positive reinforcement in a educationa environments. Encourage others to be friendy with students who have emotiona disorders. Monitor the student's sef-esteem. Assist in modification, as needed. Buid sef-esteem and deveop interpersona skis for a students with emotiona disorders. As a teacher, you shoud be patient, sensitive, a good istener, fair and consistent in your treatment of students with behavioura disorders. 16 Promote a sense of positiveness in the cassroom environment.
Teacher Responsibiities After a week, or so, of observation, try to anticipate cassroom situations where the student's emotiona state wi be vunerabe and be prepared to appy the appropriate mitigating strategies. Use a wide variety of instructiona equipment that can be dispayed for the students to ook at and hande. Instructions shoud be simpe and very structured. Group participation in activities is highy desirabe because it makes socia contacts possibe. Monitor the student carefuy to ensure that students without disabiities do not dominate the activity or detract in any way from the successfu performance of the student with the behavioura disorder. Reward students for good behaviour and withhod reinforcement for inappropriate behaviour. Have the individua with the behavioura disorder be in charge of an activity that can often reduce the aggressiveness. Make specia effort to encourage and easiy faciitate students with behavioura disorders to interact. Structure the environment so that it is sensitive to the needs of these youth with behavioura disorders. Expose students with behavioura disorders to other students who demonstrate the appropriate behaviours. Direct instruction on target behaviours are often required to hep students master them. Keep an organised cassroom-earning environment. Devise a structured behavioura management programme. Mode appropriate behaviour for the students experiencing behaviour disorders. Be consistent, mature, and controed. Behavioura outburst/or angry shouting at students inhibits rather than enhance a cassroom. Provide a carefuy structured earning environment with regard to physica features of the room, scheduing, routines, and rues of conduct. If unstructured activities must occur, you must ceary distinguish them from structured activities in terms of time, pace, and expectations. 17
Let your students know the expectations you have, the objectives that have been estabished for the activity, and the hep you wi give them in achieving objectives. When appropriate, seek input from the students about their strengths, weaknesses and goas. Do not expect students with behavioura disorders to have immediate success; work for improvement on an overa basis. Be fair and consistent, but temper your consistency with fexibiity. Refer the students to visua aids and reading materias that may be used to earn more about the techniques of ski performance. Present a sense of positive ness in the earning environment. Remain cam, state the infraction of the rue, and avoid debating or arguing with the student with a behavioura disorder. Have pre-estabished consequences immediatey, then monitor proper behaviour frequenty. Administer consequences immediatey, and then monitor proper behaviour frequenty. Enforce cassroom rues consistenty. Make sure the discipine fits the 'crime,' without harshness. Praise immediatey for a good behaviour and performance. Change rewards if they are not effective for motivating behavioura change. Deveop a schedue for appying positive reinforcement in a educationa environments. Group Interaction and Discussion Acknowedge the contributions of the student with an emotiona disorder. Ca for responses and participation commensurate with the student's sociaisation skis. As the student's comfort eves rise and when a safe topic is avaiabe, encourage the student to be a group spokesperson. 18 Aong with the student, devise a contingency pan in which inappropriate forms of response are repaced by appropriate ones.
Reading It is necessary to target specific prosocia behaviour for appropriate instruction and assessment to occur such as: a) Taking turns, working with partner, foowing directions. b) Reading in groups or with others. c) Increasing positive reationships by means of awards when they read appropriatey. d) Demonstrating appropriate reading. Instructiona strategies invoving sef-contro, sef-reinforcement, sef-monitoring, sef-management, probem soving, cognitive behaviour modification, and metacognitive skis shoud be focused on teaching students reading skis. Testing Be sensitive to the student's reactions to the various aspects of assessment. Accumuate in each students portfoio severa exampes of work (quizzes, assignments, projects) that demonstrate knowedge of the subject matter or the unit of study. Make specia arrangement for the students with emotiona disorders according to their specia needs so that the integrity of the testing situation is not compromised. Source: Strategies for Teaching Students with Behaviora Disorders. Retrieved Juy 20, 2007 from http://www.as.wvu.edu/~scidis/behavior.htm. 19
Attention Deficit Disorders Attention deficit disorders are characterised by serious and persistent difficuties in attention span, impuse contro, and hyperactivity. Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is a chronic disorder that can begin in infancy and extend through aduthood. It can have significanty negative effect on an individua's ife at home, in schoo, or in the community. Types of Attention Deficit Disorders 1. Undifferentiated Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) 2. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) 3. Subtypes Undifferentiated Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) Principe Characteristics Inattentiveness without hyperactivity. Difficuties with organisation and distractibiity. Quiet and passive. May be overooked in the cassroom. At higher risk for academic faiure than those with ADHD. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Principe Characteristics Inattentiveness Hyperactivity Impusivity Subtypes Predominanty hyperactive/impusive type (that does not show significant inattention). Predominanty inattentive type (that does not show significant hyperactiveimpusive behaviour) aso caed ADD. Combined type (that dispays both inattentive and hyperactive-impusive symptoms). To be diagnosed as having ADHD a student must dispay for six months or more, at east eight of the foowing characteristics prior to the age of seven: 20 1. Fidgets, squirms, or is restess. 2. Has difficuty remaining seated. 3. Is easiy distracted. 4. Has difficuty waiting for his/her turn.
5. Burts out answers. 6. Has difficuty foowing instructions. 7. Has difficuty sustaining attention. 8. Shifts from one uncompeted task to another. 9. Has difficuty paying quiety. 10. Taks excessivey. 11. Interrupts or is rude to others. 12. Does not appear to isten. 13. Often oses things necessary for tasks. 14. Frequenty engages in dangerous actions. Other disorders that may accompany ADHD Tourette Syndrome (affects a very sma proportion of peope with ADHD). Oppositiona defiant disorder (affecting as many as one-third to one haf of a chidren with ADHD. Conduct disorder (about 20 to 40% of ADHD chidren). Anxiety and depression. Bipoar disorder. Strategies Aow a chid to change work sites frequenty whie competing homework or studying. Assign tasks invoving movement such as passing out papers, running errands, watering pants. Use music as a too for transitioning, song or task. Vary tone of voice: oud, soft, whisper. Stage assignments and divide work into smaer chunks with frequent breaks. Teach students to verbaise a pan before soving probems or undertaking a task. Permit a chid to do something with hands whie engaged in sustained istening: stress ba, worry stone, paper foding, cay. Use inconspicuous methods such as a physica cue to signa a chid when she or he tunes out. 21
Provide opportunities for student to show divergent, creative, imaginary thinking and get peer recognition for originaity. Empoy muti-sensory strategies when directions are given and essons presented. Sef-monitoring, sef-management, discipine, and encouragement can be a very important aspect for academic success. Sef-monitoring techniques can be very effective in the schoo setting. Sef-monitoring of attention invoves cueing the student so that he/she can determine how we he/she is attending to the task at hand. Cueing is often done by providing an audio tone such as a random beep, timer, or the teacher can give the cue. The student then notes whether he/she was on or off task on a simpe recording sheet. Sef-monitoring techniques are more ikey to be effective when tied to rewards and accuracy checks. Behaviour Management Techniques These must often be used in the earning environment. By examining a student's specific probem behaviour, understanding its antecedents and consequences, teachers can hep students with ADHD to deveop behaviours that ead to academic and socia successes. Provide supervision and discipine Monitor proper behaviour frequenty and immediatey direct the student to an appropriate behaviour. Enforce cassroom rues consistenty. Avoid ridicue and criticism. Remember that students with AD/HD have difficuty staying in contro. Provide encouragement Reward more than punish. Immediatey praise any and a good behaviour and performance. Change rewards if they are not effective in motivating behavioura change. Find aternate ways to encourage the AD/HD students. Teach the student to reward himsef or hersef. Encourage positive seftak. This encourages the student to think positivey about him or hersef. 22 Reduce the amount of materias present during activities by having the student put away unnecessary items. Have a specia pace for toos, materias, and books.
Seat students with AD/HD in the front near the teacher with their backs to the rest of the cass. Be sure to incude them as part of the reguar cass seating. Avoid transitions, physica reocation, changes in schedue, and disruptions. Maintain eye contact during verba instructions. Make directions cear and concise. Be consistent with a daiy instructions. When you ask an AD/HD student a question, first say the student's name and then pause for a few seconds as a signa for him/her to pay attention. Repeat instructions in a cam, positive manner. Learning Disabiities Most peope know, or are taught, at an eary age, how to process information and deveop an organised pan or strategy when confronted with a probem, whether that probem is socia, academic, or job reated. Others find such cognitive processes quite difficut. This neuroogica disorder causes difficuty in organising information received, remembering them, and expressing information and therefore affects a person's basic function such as reading, writing, comprehension, and reasoning. However, these students with earning disabiities can be taught effective earning strategies that wi hep them approach tasks more effectivey. Types of Learning Disabiities Dysexia (inabiity to read). Dyscacua (inabiity in math reasoning). Dysgraphia (difficuty with syntax that is arrangement of words in sentences). Visua and audio difficuties. Peope with earning disabiities wi generay experiences difficuties, in study skis, writing skis, ora skis, reading skis, math skis, and socia skis. When studying, these students may have difficuties organising their time and hence are unabe to finish assignments on time, taking notes and foowing instructions. They often have difficuty speing correcty and have frequent grammaticay errors, which resuts in 23
poor sentence structure and poor penmanship. If the teacher speaks too fast, they wi have difficuty understanding the esson and recaing the words. They are usuay sow readers and sometimes have incorrect comprehension and poor retention. They sometimes confuse math symbos, as we as, have difficuty with concepts of time and money. Reaising their inabiities resut in ow sef-esteem, which greaty affects their socia skis. Impusive behaviour and disorientation in time may aso accompany this disabiity. Strategies The foowing suggestions are given for working with students with earning disabiities: Aways ask questions in a carifying manner, and then have the students with earning disabiities describe his or her understanding of the questions. Use an overhead projector with an outine of the esson or unit of the day. Reduce course oad for student with earning disabiities. Provide cear photocopies of your notes and overhead transparencies, if the student benefits from such strategies. Provide students with chapter outines or study guides that cue them to key points in their readings. Provide a detaied course syabus before cass begins. Ask questions in a way that heps the student gain confidence. Keep ora instructions ogica and concise. Reinforce them with brief cue words. Repeat or re-word compicated directions. Frequenty verbaise what is being written on the chakboard. Eiminate cassroom distractions such as, excessive noise, fickering ights, etc. Outine cass presentations on the chakboard or on an overhead transparency. Outine materia to be covered during each cass period. (At the end of cass, summarise the important segments of each presentation.) Estabish the carity of understanding that the student has about cass assignments. 24 Give assignments both in written and ora forms.
Have more compex essons recorded and avaiabe to the students with earning disabiities. Have practice exercises avaiabe for essons, in case the student has probems. Have students with earning disabiities underine key words or directions on activity sheets (then review the sheets with them). Have compex homework assignments due in two or three days rather than on the next day. Pace instruction carefuy to ensure carity. Present new and or technica vocabuary on the chakboard or overhead. Provide and teach memory associations (mnemonic strategies). Support one modaity of presentation by foowing it with instruction and then use another modaity. Tak distincty and at a rate that the student with a earning disabiity can foow. Technica content shoud be presented in sma incrementa steps. Use penty of exampes, ora or otherwise, in order to make topics more reevant. Use straightforward instructions with step-by-step unambiguous terms. (Preferaby, presented one at a time). Write egiby, use arge type; do not cutter the chakboard with non-current/non-reevant information. Use props to make narrative situations more vivid and cear. Assist the student, if necessary, in borrowing cassmates' notes. Consider cross-age or peer tutoring if the student appears unabe to keep up with the cass pace or with compex subject matter. The more capabe reader can hep in summarising the essentia points of the reading or in estabishing the main idea of the reading. Laboratory Ceary abe equipment, toos, and materias. Coour code them for enhanced visua recognition. 25
Consider aternate activities/exercises that can be utiised with ess difficuty for the student, but has the same or simiar earning objectives. Make avaiabe cue cards or abes designating the steps of a procedure to expedite the mastering. Aow extended time for responses and the preparation and deivery of reports. In deaing with abstract concepts, use visua toos such as charts and graphs. Aso, paraphrase and present them in specific terms, and sequence and iustrate them with concrete exampes, persona experiences, or hands-on exercises. To minimise student anxiety, provide an individua orientation to the aboratory and equipment and give extra practice with tasks and equipment. Find areas of strength in the student's ab experiences and emphasize those as much as possibe. Aow the students with earning disabiities the use of computers and spe checking programmes on assignments. Reading Announce reading as we as assignments we in advance. Find materias paraeing the textbook, but written at a ower reading eve. (Aso, incude activities that make the reading assignment more reevant.) Introduce simuations to make abstract content more concrete. Make ists of required readings avaiabe eary and arrange to obtain texts on tape. Offer to read written materia aoud, when necessary. Read aoud materia that is written on the chakboard and on the overhead transparencies. Review reevant materia, preview the materia to be presented, present the new materia then summarise the materia just presented. 26 Suggest that the students use both visua and auditory senses when reading the text.
Rey ess on textbooks. Reading for students with earning disabiities may be sow and deiberate, and comprehension may be impaired for the student, particuary when deaing with arge quaities of materia. Comprehension and speed usuay dramaticay increase with the addition of auditory input. Spend more time on buiding background for the reading seections and creating a menta scheme for the organization of the text. Encourage students to practice using technica words in exchanges among peers. Choose books with a reduced number of difficut words, direct non-convouted syntax, and passages that deiver cear meaning. Aso, seect readings that are organised by subheadings because this aids in the fow of ideas. Group Interaction and Discussion Aways ask questions in a carifying manner, and then have the students with earning disabiities describe his or her understanding of the questions. Encourage questions during or after cass to ensure that students with earning disabiities understand materias. Give individua conference to guide students with earning disabiities, to monitor progress and understanding of the assignment and of the course content. Give penty of reinforcement when it is evident that the student with a earning disabiity is trying things that are made difficut by the disabiity. Have frequent question-and-answer sessions for students with earning disabiities. Testing Avoid overy compicated anguage in examination questions and ceary separate items when spacing them on the exam sheet. Consider other forms of testing (ora, hands-on demonstration, open book etc). Some students with earning disabiities find that arge print heps their processing abiity. Consider the use of iustrations by the students with earning disabiities as an acceptabe form of response to questions in ieu of written responses. Eiminate distractions whie students are taking examinations. 27
For students with perceptua probem, for whom transferring answers is especiay difficut, avoid answer sheets, especiay computer forms. Aow them to write answers (check or circe) on the test (or try to have them dictate their responses on a tape recorder). For students who have reading difficuties, have a proctor read the test to the student. For students with writing difficuties, have someone write the answers for them or use a tape recorder to take down the answers. Grant time extensions on examinations and written assignments when there are significant demands on reading and writing skis. If distractions are excessive, permit the students with earning disabiities to take examinations in a separate quiet room with a proctor. Provide study questions for exams that demonstrate the format aong with the content of the exam. Review with the student how to proof read assignments and tests. Do not test materia just presented or outcomes just produced, since for the student with earning disabiities, additiona time is generay required to assimiate new knowedge and concepts. Permit the students with earning disabiities the use of a dictionary, thesaurus, or a cacuator during tests. Provide computer with spe check/grammar/cut and paste features. Source: Strategies for Teaching Students with Learning Disabiities. Retrieved Juy 20, 2007 from http://www.as.wvu.edu/~scidis/earning.htm. 28
Educating the Gifted Definition Giftedness in young chidren refers to "precocity" a rapid rate of deveopment in one or more reams. To some peope, giftedness is purey academic and means earning a A's on report cards. But giftedness is more than deveoping skis faster or going through the deveopmenta miestones earier. Young gifted chidren are intensey curious, produce a constant stream of questions, earn quicky and remember easiy, and think about the word differenty than their age mates. Heward and Oransky (2000) defines Giftedness as cognitive (inteectua) superiority, creativity and motivation of sufficient magnitude to set the chid apart from the vast majority of age-mates and make it possibe for him or her to contribute something of particuar vaue to society. It appears to invove both quantitative and quaitative differences in thinking. Other terms used: Precocity: Insight: Genius: Creativity: Remarkabe eary deveopment in specific areas, such as anguage, music or mathematica abiity. The abiity to separate and or combine various pieces of information in new, creative and usefu ways. A word sometimes used to indicate a particuar aptitude or capacity in any area; rare inteectua powers. The abiity to express nove and usefu ideas, to sense and eucidate new and important reationships, and to ask previousy unthought of but crucia questions. Methods of identifying the gifted 1. Consuting with parents - Often parents are the first to notice their chid's giftedness as they spend most time observing and interacting with them in a variety of contexts. 2. Portfoios - represent a coection of products (e.g. assignments, paintings, drawings, stories, observations) from home, schoo or community. 3. I.Q. testing - Administering inteigence test to determine a chid's superior inteigence is one way of determining if a chid is gifted. 29
Identifying Giftedness Recognising giftedness is important because to persist, giftedness needs nurturing. One way of identifying gifted chidren is to focus on a range of behaviours that occur in daiy conversation, activities and responses to earning opportunities in and around the cassroom. Characteristics common in gifted 4-6 year ods Express curiosity about many things. Ask thoughtfu questions. Have extensive vocabuaries and use compex sentence structure. Are abe to express themseves we. Sove probems in unique ways. Have good memories. Exhibit unusua taent in art, music, or creative dramatics. Exhibit especiay origina imaginations. Use previousy earned things in new contexts. Are usuay abe to order things in ogica sequence. Discuss and eaborate on ideas. Are fast earners. Desire to work independenty and take initiative. Exhibit wit and humour. Have sustained attention spans and are wiing to persist on chaenging tasks. Are very observant. Show taent in making up stories and teing them. Are interested in reading. Educationa Considerations I. Enrichment Enrichment is an approach in which additiona earning experiences are provided for students with specia gifts or taents whie they remain in the grade eves appropriate for their chronoogica ages. Administrative pans to modify the curricuum incude: Enrichment in the cassroom Use of consutant teachers Resource rooms Community mentors Independent study Specia casses Specia schoos 30
II. Acceeration Acceeration is an approach in which students with specia gifts or taents are paced in grade eves ahead of their age peers in one or more academic subjects. Strategies I. Creating a Learning Environment II. Create a room that invites inquiry (pictures, books, areas for music, art, and a variety of materias). Use thematic instruction to connect content areas. Make a wide range of materias avaiabe. Arrange for activity centres for sef-initiated projects. Have fexibe seating arrangements. Offer attractive, esson-reated activity options for students who finish work eary. Vary the atmosphere of the cassroom through music, movement, mime, dance and singing. Aow for fexibe grouping. For gifted students, custer groups where four or five gifted chidren work together, provide the most productive situation for earning. Guideines for organising sma groups: Provide variety in grouping (interests, compexity eve of assignments, motivation). Offer choices of mates, topics and format of presentation. Create ground rues for operation of the group. Evauate students individuay, focus shoud be on individua earning rather than contribution to the group. Compact the curricuum, aow the students to choose activities or design activities reated to current esson that chaenges their taents. Incorporate creative thinking and activities into daiy essons. Source Heward & Oransky (2000) and Smutny (2000) 31