Somebody Else's Kids

Lori Sjokheim. On the surface, Lori may seem like any other student, but deep down she is not without her own unique set of circumstances. Affected by damage to her brain from an injury when she was younger, Lori has issues that affect her ability to learn and perform academically, but it does not affect her emotionally or socially to the same extent. In a broad sense, Lori has trouble with identifying and remembering letters, words, and symbols that is coupled with hyperactivity and concentration issues (Hayden, 1981).  This poses a unique challenge in trying to teach Lori in a regular classroom. Lori needs individual attention due to her inability to read and write. In this essay, I will examine in detail the challenges Lori would face in a classroom, the accommodations and/or modifications she could receive to help, the positives and negatives of doing so, and how I would accommodate Lori into my classroom specifically. I will then end with foreseeable personal challenges handling a student like Lori would provide for me.

Lori Sjokheim may act like any other student, but there is much more to her than meets the eye. If someone were to see how Lori acts they would figure that Lori is intelligent with the stereotypical adolescent issue of lack of concentration. However, Lori’s learning disability alters that drastically. The cause of this stems from an injury she sustained when she was younger. Child abuse led to a skull fragment being lodged into her brain causing lesions. Although the fragment was removed, the lesions still remained and as with any injury involving brain cell loss, it was doubtful about how much Lori would be able to regain in cognitive function (Hayden, 1981). Decreased cognitive function at a young age can be both good and bad depending on the extent of damage. Sometimes, the brain is able to utilize its plasticity to learn new pathways or other times there is no development (Ormrod, 2011). Despite this setback, however, Lori still has a sense of goodness of the world around her and cares about everyone. Whether or not the excessive energy and trouble with concentration would be diagnosed as ADHD separately or along with her trouble with letters, words, and symbols would be up to the experts, but, regardless,

Starting with Lori’s excessive energy and trouble with concentration, she would be a handful for a teacher in a regular classroom, especially large classes of 30+ students. In those classes, a teacher is already stretched pretty thin in not only managing the class, but also trying to give each student the time and effort they deserve. If the teacher has other students who need extra attention such as IEP and 504 students, then it adds on even more to the teacher’s plate. Lori tends to be very involved in the teacher and her peers due to her embracing of everyone around her (Hayden, 1981). This can further eat up a teacher’s time dealing with Lori that could be used for other students. Dismissing Lori without upsetting her can be difficult as well as trying to make sure Lori doesn’t bother other students in the classroom. Balancing the emotional and mental health of the entire class is important for students during their developmental years as to make a positive impact (Snowman & McCown, 2012).

However, Lori’s major disability comes in the form of her inability to process and remember letters, words, and symbols. Progress is very slow and sometimes takes steps backwards. Lori tries her hardest, but her progress is difficult to differentiate from memorization and learning. For example, when Lori learns to read Dick and Jane it was hard to tell whether or not she was merely repeating the words from memory or if she was actually able to read the book (Hayden, 1981). This learning disability places a huge responsibility onto the teacher in a regular classroom. Lori would need things read out to her and lots of dedicated one-on-one time in helping her to understand assignments and prompts. This would use too much of a teacher’s time in the classroom away from teaching and helping other students.

When dealing with modifications and accommodations, it’s important to think about the long-term goals of where you want the student to be. Students are growing and changing drastically during this period of their life and the habits they pick up now and last a lifetime (Feldman, 2008). I feel as though Lori would benefit from both accommodations and modifications. Accommodations being practices to help the student while modifications change the learning expectations (Understanding the Important Difference…, 2013).

With this in mind, the accommodations and modifications I think would greatly help Lori to get both accommodations and modifications. Overall, giving Lori presentation, response, setting, and timing accommodations and assignment and curriculum modifications would be helpful. Something such as placing her into a separate classroom where she has a one-on-one to help her with her classes and assignments may be more effective than having Lori stay in a regular classroom even if she had an Instructional Assistant with her to help. I think that with Lori’s learning disability, she would need too many changes to make succeeding in a regular classroom too stressful. Accommodations Lori could receive are testing in small groups and limiting distractions by having her at the front of classes would be greatly beneficial, as it would help to control her high levels of energy and her trouble with concentrating. In addition, I could provide Lori with a set of notes (possibly audio notes and recordings), a scribe, or extra time.  Some modifications I could provide Lori include fewer problems, alternate assignments and exams, or different grading standards (Strom, 2014).

As with any decision about a child’s education, there are always going to be some positive and negatives based on your viewpoint. In my opinion, a major drawback would be the differential treatment for Lori. Lori craves the feeling of being normal and being in a regular classroom like her twin sister, Libby. Lori has a breakdown when she finds out she will be repeating a grade and that she will no longer be in the same grade as her twin sister (Hayden, 1981). With the accommodations and modifications provided, Lori may never quite feel like she fits in with her peers and could lead to negative self-perceptions. Students who view themselves as being treated differently and on a lower level than their peers can end up thinking that they are inferior even many years in the future (Feldman, 2008). On the flip side, getting the accommodations and modifications would help improve Lori to the point where she hopefully is able to reach the same level as her peers.

            In the context of my own class, there are a few specific ideas of how I would accommodate Lori in my class to help her succeed. One idea is to audio record all of my notes and lessons to provide Lori access to. This is something that can benefit both Lori and myself. By recording the audio beforehand, it gives me practice in delivering the content so that when I teach the class in person I am able to better present the information. Lori benefits because she still gets the information of the class without having the read or write any of the notes and lessons. Lori is able to process information in an auditory manner even if she has trouble with letters, words, and symbols (Hayden, 1981).  Another specific accommodation I could do is something that I’ve done before with low performing students in the past. I made what I call “foldables” with my students that had all of the information students needed. The part the students liked was that we did mostly diagrams, pictures, and charts rather than words because they preferred the visual learning.  With Lori I could verbally describe the information with her and then together we could come up with a foldable that had all the information in a visual manner.

            There are so many possibilities of how I could alter my class and activities to help Lori succeed, but dealing with students with learning disabilities like Lori’s can put a toll on the teacher without them even realizing it. Personally, I would feel stressed about whether or not I was doing the best I could do by Lori. With all my students the questions that run through my mind are things like “Am I giving him/her enough attention?”, “Am I getting through to them?”,  and  “Could I be doing something different?” With a student such as Lori, these feelings are amplified because of the amount of attention I would be spending on Lori in trying to help her. With any of my students with IEPs or 504s for whatever reason, I am always worried about having them leave my class worse off than where they started.

            My other main personal challenge when it comes to teaching students like Lori is whether or not my teaching methods are effective. Each teacher has their own style of teaching and opinions of what the best way to teach students. I inadvertently tend to stick with what I feel comfortable with, which may or may not always be the best match for my students. This is one of my issues that I have been working on addressing by going outside of my comfort zone when teaching.

            Lori herself most likely has similar anxieties about succeeding in school with all of the obstacles she encounters. Lori is a bright student who was dealt an unfortunate hand, but with the right accommodations and modifications as well as the right teachers to help guide her she can really blossom and grow. Lori was able to somewhat read Dick and Jane at the end of the story to anyone who would listen despite having previously had a breakdown when she had to read in front of her class. This growth is something that can occur if her learning disability is taken into account and not looked past as something she just needs to get over.

References

Feldman, R. (2008). Adolescence. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

Hayden, T. (1981). Somebody Else's Kids. New York, New York: Putnam.

Ormrod, J. (2011). Educational psychology: Developing learners (7th ed.). Boston: Pearson/Allyn & Bacon.

Snowman, J. & McCown, J. (2012). Psychology applied to teaching, 13^th Ed. New York: Cengage Learning.

Strom, E. (2014, January 3). Common Modifications and Accommodations. Retrieved August 5, 2015.

Understanding the Important Difference between "Accommodations" & "Modifications" - Howard County Autism Society. (2013, July 3). Retrieved August 5, 2015, from http://specialed.howard-autism.org/accommodations-vs-modifications/

IEP vs. 504

IEP vs. 504

IEP		504
·      This plan focuses on a child’s special education plan. ·      Provided by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). ·      Child must have one of 13 specific disabilities and the disability must affect the education of the child. ·      IEP plan includes the following individuals: parents, at least one general education teacher, at least one special education teacher, school psychologist, and one district representative for special education. ·      IEP should include present academic ability of the student, annual goals, services provided, timing of services provided, accommodations and modifications, and more. ·      Parents are notified before any changes are implemented. ·      States receive extra funding.	·      Provided at no extra cost to families. ·      Plans to allow child to receive the best education that is parallel to non-disabled peers. ·      Requires parent consent. ·      Parents are notified of any changes to the plan.	·      A 504 is a plan dictating how a child will get access to equal education. ·      Provided by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. ·      Child must have any disability and the disability affects the child’s ability to learn in the general classroom. ·      504 team includes: parents, general and special education teachers, and the principal. ·      504 plan includes specific accommodations, names of who will provide the accommodations, and name of person who makes sure the plan is followed. ·      Parents notified that changes have been made to the plan. ·      States receive no extra funding.

IEPs and 504s are both incredibly useful for students with disabilities. Both plans are specific for the student and outline a plan to help the student get access to the most appropriate education for the student. However, these plans are only as effective as the people who implement it and how responsive the student is to the plans. For example, I have had some students who were given many accommodations such as copies of notes and more who did not take advantage of their accommodations. If the students do not utilize the accommodations then it doesn't matter how well teachers and administrators implement the plans. 

Not all students with disabilities get an IEP though. IEP plans are much more specific about details and involve a greater number of participants in both designing and implementing a plan. Between the two and in my experience, an IEP has much more support provided for the teacher to implement and to make the most of for the student. I've attended IEP meetings during the year where the team has been able to evaluate the student's progress or issues the student has been having and then making plans for adjustments to the IEP. 

Bennett, A., & Frank, L. (2009). Special Education Process: IEP vs. 504 Plan. Retrieved July 14, 2015, from http://www.davidsongifted.org/db/Articles_id_10671.aspx

Conners, S. (n.d.). IEP VS 504. Retrieved July 14, 2015, from http://www.nldline.com/iep_vs_504.htm 

History of Special Education

Timeline: http://timeglider.com/timeline/b2dec170294b218b


The current status of Special Education.

I believe that the current status of Special Education is one that is put on the back burner too often. In some of my experiences as a daily substitute, long-term substitute, or just an observer, I have seen both good and bad situations with students with disabilities. I think that mostly the issue comes down to funding. In a perfect world, each student that has a disability, whether it is physical, mental, or social, would have an IEP and would have an Individual Assistant (IA) in all of their classes that would help them if needed. However, schools do not have it in their budget to hire IAs for each of their students. I understand that not every student with an IEP will need an IA, but it seems most of the time there is a need for more IAs rather than less. These IAs play an integral role in helping students with IEPs or 504s because their focus is on those few students. Teachers have classes ranging in size and with an already diverse group of students to teach it can stretch any teacher to the limit to also provide the level of close watch students with disabilities need.

In addition to the lack of funds to hire more people, there is also the issue of delegating responsibility, which is linked to the lack of personnel. During my last long-term substitute position at a high school, one of my co-workers who is an IA always seemed to be running around doing something helping a teacher or helping a student. When I asked her why she did so much stretching her limits, she told me that she has to otherwise the quality of education her students with IEPs get. Her workload is simply too much between her case load, responsibilities, and what she can do because there were so few of them in the building. The staff hired who are expected to help students with IEPs and to get a quality education that is parallel to their peers lack the support. Whether it is delegating responsibility to the IAs that could be better suited for someone else, not giving IAs access to all the same resources teachers have, or just giving IAs too much to handle, it is ultimately the students who suffer. Making sure that the people in the school have the responsibilities they should have will make sure the quality of education doesn't suffer.

Although I focused a lot on the negatives of the status of Special Education on a local level, the status of Special Education as a whole in the big picture sense is doing well. There are policies in place to give these students the best education they can get and the stigma has been getting better, in my opinion, of children with disabilities. There is hope for these students to graduate and lead successful lives. However, without proper action, these ideas and hopes just become wishes. To sum up, the status of Special Education in the United States is that it is a work in progress.


Citations:

Archived: 25 Year History of the IDEA. (2007, July 19). Retrieved July 8, 2015, from http://www2.ed.gov/policy/speced/leg/idea/history.html

History of Special Education. (2015). Retrieved July 8, 2015, from http://www.learningrx.com/history-of-special-education.htm

Section 504 - Civil Rights Law, Protection from Discrimination - Wrightslaw. (2014, August 1). Retrieved July 8, 2015, from http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/sec504.index.htm

The History of Special Education. (n.d.). Retrieved July 8, 2015, from http://teach.com/the-history-of-special-education

The History of Special Education in the United States. (2009). Retrieved July 8, 2015, from http://www.specialednews.com/the-history-of-special-education-in-the-united-states.htm

Understanding Section 504: The American with Disabilities Act. (2009). Retrieved July 8, 2015, from http://www.understandingspecialeducation.com/section-504.html

Understanding Special Education Law (IDEA). (2009). Retrieved July 8, 2015, from http://www.understandingspecialeducation.com/special-education-law.html

Sacred Geometry Presentation

Sacred Geometry

The above link is a presentation created by Jess Biemiller, Bobby Jackson, and myself on the book Sacred Geometry by Stephen Skinner. We examine the contents of the book and look at possible applications in a STEM classroom.

Mind Maps

Website: https://www.text2mindmap.com/

This website is an easy tool to use to create mind maps. It's very intuitive to use in my opinion for students. An example is below I created for the cardiovascular system from a previous assignment.

The benefits of using this tool is that it is easy to use like I mentioned earlier. Students just have to type in their ideas in a box indenting if they wish to go to the next branch.

i.e.
Cardiovascular system
     Blood
          Platelets
               Clotting

Students can also manually adjust where the boxes are placed by clicking and dragging on the actual visual itself so that it can be arranged how the wish. Students can also change the color of the boxes, the text, and save the mind map. This allows the students to make changes and add on more as a unit progresses and the students learn more. I would say that there are definitely more pros to cons in using this tool.

However there are still some downsides. A downside to this tool is that it can get crowded easily if you have lots of items to put on the mind map or if you have long sentences to put in. You can zoom in and out, but it gets hard to read still.

Standards

In today's day and age technology has become such a huge cornerstone of a student's life yet, as surprising as it may sound, many are not able to use the expected technology in school or in the real world. As an example, I personally had many experiences with computers and Microsoft Office during high school and so I knew a good bit. However, many of my students currently can barely navigate their way around the computer. Technology standards are more important than ever in my own classroom with my current demographic.

In trying to address the standards in my teaching I try to expose them as much as possible to technology either through demonstrations or through activities. For example, for a week I tried using Edmodo with my students to expose them to using technology for communication. The purpose was to mostly show my students what is out there and to see if it would be a viable option for use in class. We spent half a class period just exploring the site together and learning how to use it. I could have done a webquest to show them how to use it and all the features available, but I wanted to do it with them so it feels as though all of us are exploring this together for the first time. We ended up scrapping Edmodo because it was difficult to grasp for many of them.

This is an example of how I would address the standards. I would introduce a little more technology a little bit at a time to not overwhelm them and to allow them ample time to get used to the technology for a fair assessment. Afterwards, if it is generally positive, I would keep using it for multiple assignments throughout the class to keep it fresh in their mind and to allow them practice.

Other technology, such as the Internet itself, is much easier to integrate. I have done WebQuests and other Internet research activities with students to get them used to the computer and navigating the Internet. The most difficult part was making the instructions match all levels of students of mine. If a student does not understand the technology literacy needed such as "web browser" or "Excel spreadsheet" then it becomes a barrier between the student and the technology. While the goal of the activity may be simple enough with technology standards, there are other standards that may need to be met before even approaching the idea of meeting the technology standards. For example, in trying to address the legal, social, and ethical issues with technology I would first need to go over with my students what each of those terms mean. Until the students have a firm understanding of what legal, social, and ethical issues really mean, they won't be able to apply that to other areas such as technology use.

Webquest

Webquest: http://www.biologyjunction.com/cell_exploration_webquest.htm

I would use this webquest in a Regular Biology class where the students need it very simplified with illustrations.

I completed this webquest on cells myself and found some positives and negatives about this webquest. One negative I found was that instructions could be more clearer so that there is no confusion. For example, when the webquest asks the students to look at a plant cell, it doesn't specify where to go specifically. I had to look around the linked website myself to figure out where to go. If I could make edits I would specifically write out where to go. By making things easier for the students they can focus more on the learning rather than just trying to find the information. Also it will help students who get distracted easily who may get lost in the abundance of information as they try to find out where to go. I was able to figure it out after thinking about where the webquest wanted me to go, but students may not.

A positive thing about this webquest that students will find helpful is the animation and graphics accompanying the information. It really grabs their attention, which can help keep them focused on the information. Also providing the tables already for students to just fill in helps organize the information for them. All the information the students will need will then be in one place for them to study from. The quiz at the end of the webquest is also great because it checks the understanding of the students.

Overall I like this webquest, but before I use it myself for a class I would change some of the links that aren't linking correctly and to also add more specific instructions to clear up any confusion. I would also make sure to include a rubric or point breakdown so that students know how they are being graded on the webquest.

Student Groups

Grouping students is a very important and challenging task in the classroom. There are many different aspects as to influence how you group together students. For the unit plan created in ED 605, a majority of the activities planned require students to work with others ranging from partners up to groups of three or four.

There are a few factors I would take into account when deciding if it is a good choice to group students together and which student groupings work well. To decide if grouping students together is best, I would need to look at the purpose of the activity and what I want them to accomplish. If I want students to be exposed to different viewpoints or opinions, group work would be best for that, but if I want students to develop their own unique ideas then individual work would be best in that situation.

Besides what purpose the activity is, deciding which students work together best is another factor. Some students do not work well with each and so it’s important to make sure those students are not grouped together. Another thing to consider is student level and which students may complement one another. For example, you could pair a strong student with a weaker student so that the stronger student gets practice explaining the concepts and the weaker student gets a little individual help from a peer so both parties benefit.

The skills of the students also play a part. You should try to either group students with similar skill levels in reading and writing unless you are purposefully putting students who are not on the same level for the purpose of helping each student out as mentioned above. If the students are of similar reading and writing skills then more emphasis can be placed on using those skills in the context of a STEM classroom.

If a teacher doesn’t take these factors into account then problems can occur. For example, I once had a group where two students absolutely hated working with each other to the point where they would argue the entire class instead of working. Both students were incredibly smart, but just did not like working with each other. I had to rework groups after that, but that goes to show the effect of bad groups. With bad groups, you lose productivity and lose the effectiveness of the lesson plan. It gets in the way of the learning and so even though it seems like such a simple thing, choosing groups plays a big impact in a classroom.