Bachelor of Special Education - bhojvirtualuniversity.com · Bachelor of Special Education B.Ed....

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PAPER-II CURRICULUM DESIGNING, ADAPTATION & EVALUATION

(SES MR 02)

B.Ed. Spl. Ed

Bachelor of Special Education

Self Learning Material

Madhya Pradesh Bhoj (Open) University

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Bachelor of Special Education

B.Ed. Spl. Ed.

A Collaborative Programme of

Madhya Pradesh Bhoj (Open) University

&

Rehabilitation Council of India

MADHYA PRADESH BHOJ (OPEN) UNIVERSITY

RAJA BHOJ MARG (Kolar Road), Bhopal (M.P.) - 462 016

Ph. 0755-2492095, Fax 0755-2424640

Email:[email protected]

www.bhojvirtualuniversity.com

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© Madhya Pradesh Bhoj (Open) University All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form, by mimeograph or any other means, without permission in writing from the Madhya Pradesh Bhoj (Open) University. The views expressed in this SIM are that of the author(s) and not that of the MPBOU. Further information on the Madhya Pradesh Bhoj (Open) University Special Education courses may be obtained from the University’s office of the Department of Special Education at Raja Bhoj Marg (Kolar Raod) Bhopal - 462016. Tel: (0755) 2492095. Fax: (0755)-2424640.

email: [email protected] website : http://www.bhojvirtualuniversity.com

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CURRICULUM DESIGNING, ADAPTATION & EVALUATION (SES MR 02)

Block 1: Curriculum Designing

Unit 1: Meaning, Definition, Concept and Principles of Curriculum Unit 2: Types and Approaches of Curriculum Designing Unit 3: Curriculum Domains - Personal, Social, Academics, Recreational and Community

living Unit 4: Steps in developing curriculum, challenges of developing curriculum for inclusion Unit 5: Curriculum evaluation, Implementation in inclusion

Block 2: Curriculum at Pre-School and Primary School level

Unit 1: Significance of Early Childhood Education and School Readiness Unit 2: Early Childhood Education Curricular domains – Enhancement of domain in

Motor, Personal, Cognitive and Communication areas Unit 3: Curriculum Domains for Early Childhood Education and Sensory Mechanism Unit 4: Sensitization of family, involvement in pre-school and primary level Unit 5: Implication of preschool and primary levels for Intervention, documentation,

record maintenance and report writing Block 3: Curriculum at Secondary, Pre-vocational and Vocational level

Unit 1: Curriculum domains at Secondary level Unit 2: Curriculum domains at Pre- vocational level Unit 3: Curriculum domains at Vocational level Unit 4: Rehabilitation of PwIDs under National Skill development Scheme (NSDS by

MSJ&E) Unit 5: Implications of placement for inclusion in Community, Documentation, Record

Maintenance and Reporting Block 4: Curriculum Adaptations

Unit 1: Need for Curricular Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification Unit 2: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for Pre –academic Curriculum Unit 3: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for Academics Curriculum Unit 4: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for Co-Curriculum Unit 5: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for School Subjects

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Block5: Curriculum Evaluation Unit 1: Concept, Meaning, Definition of Curriculum Evaluation Unit 2: Types and Approaches of Evaluation Unit 3: Emerging trends in evaluation –CCE, Teacher Made Tests, Grading System Unit 4: Differential evaluation of PwID in inclusive setup Unit 5: Implications of evaluation for inclusion

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Block 1: Curriculum Designing

Unit 1: Meaning, Definition, Concept and Principles of Curriculum

Unit 2: Types and Approaches of Curriculum Designing

Unit 3: Curriculum Domains - Personal, Social, Academics, Recreational and Community

living

Unit 4: Steps in developing curriculum, challenges of developing curriculum for inclusion

Unit 5: Curriculum evaluation, Implementation in inclusion

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Unit 1: Meaning, Definition, Concept And Principles Of

Curriculum

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Causes

1.3 Identification Of Mental Retardation In India

1.4 Placement Options

1.5 Curriculum

1.6 Principles Of Special Education

1.7 What Are Special Educational Needs?

1.8 Curriculum Development For Students With Mental Disabilities

1.9 Flexibility Of Provision

1.10 Whole-School Approaches

1.11 Ncca Structures For Curriculum Development In Special Education

1.12 A Strategy For Curriculum Development

1.13 Summary

1.14 Check Your Progress

1.15 References

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1.1 Introduction

The concept of mental retardation is continually changing and these changes can be seen

as a reflection of a change in the perspective of individuals with mental retardation based both on

research and a clearer understanding of the issues involved in defining the concept. For example

the American Association on Mental Retardation (AAMR), a professional organization founded

in 1876, recently drafted a new definition of mental retardation which not only maintains a

functional perspective on retardation but also focuses on the relations among capabilities,

environments, and functioning (Luckasson, Coultier, Polloway, Reiss, Schalock, Snell, Spitalnik,

& Stark, 1992). According to this definition, mental retardation refers to substantial limitation in

present function. It is characterized by significantly subaverage intellectual functioning existing

concurrently with related limitations in two or more of the following applicable adaptive skill

areas: Communication, self-care, home living, social skills, community use, self-direction, health

and safety, functional academics, leisure and work. Mental retardation manifests before age 18

(1992). In addition to the perception ofmental retardation with respect to a person’s functioning

in daily life according to his or herpractical, social, and conceptual intelligence, the AAMR lists

four essential assumptions to becarefully considered in the application of this definition. Without

going into a lengthyelaboration of this definition, it is important to note that it has far reaching

implications whichhave not been addressed. The more widespread definition of mental

retardation is the AAMR’s sixth definition used in the American-based Individuals with

Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

Under IDEA mental retardation is defined as significantly sub-average general intellectual

functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the

developmental period (Grossman, 1983 p.11) that adversely affects a child’s

educationalperformance. Significantly sub-average intellectual functioning is defined as a score

that is atleast two standard deviations below the mean on a test of intelligence. Based on the

American

Association on Mental Retardation (Grossman, 1983) and the Diagnostic and Statistical

Manual of Mental Disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 1994) and using intelligence

(IQ) test scores, mental retardation occurs on the four levels of mild (score 50 through 55 to

approximately 70), moderate (score 35 through 40 to 50 through 55), severe (score 20 through 25

to 35 through 40), and profound (20 through 25).

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Adaptive behavior is an indication of independence and social competence. It refers to an

individual’s ability to meet the social requirements of his or her community that are appropriate

for his/her chronological age. Standardized tests such as the AAMR Adaptive Behavior Scale

(Lambert, Nihira, & Leland, 1993) and the Vineland Adaptive Scales are used to determine an

individual’s adaptive skills. Using the sub-average intellectual functioning and the adaptive

behavior skills deficits an individual would only be identified as having mental retardation if

their IQ scores and their adaptive behavior skills scores were below average.

In India a mentally handicapped child is one who has a limited level of intelligence and

deficits in adaptive behavior. This condition usually arises between conception and 18 years of

age (Ministry of Education, 1995, p.6 ). The India Ministry of Education, in its handbookon how

to handle children with special needs goes on to note that mentally handicapped children are

usually categorized according to severity of mental impairments as mildly, moderately, severely,

or profoundly handicapped; or as educable, trainable, severe, and profound in terms of their

measured intelligence scores on IQ tests. The classifications of educable and trainable are

referred to by other authors (e.g.,Bernie-Smith, et. al., 1998). Itwould appear that the definition

of mental retardation used in India has some parallels withthe IDEA definition used in the United

States.

1.2 Causes The various factors associated with incidences of mental retardation in India as well as

most other countries are pre-, peri-, and postnatal, and environmental. Although research (e.g.,

McDermott, 1994) indicates that a majority of incidences of mental retardation are attributed to

environmental factors, environmental factors need to be viewed as interacting with psychosocial

and genetic or biological factors (Office of Special education Programs, 2000 & Schettler, Stein,

Reich, Valenti, & Wallinga, 2000). Hence, such factors as lack of early exposure to intellectually

stimulating experiences, inadequate health care, adverse living conditions, and nutritional

problems when, associated with mental retardation can not be said to cause the condition but

individuals who are exposed to these factors are at a greater risk for demonstrating low cognitive

abilities.

Prenatal factors include disorders associated with chromosomes, metabolic disorders, and

infections of the mother during the period of pregnancy. An initial infection of cytomegalovirus

(CMV), for example, can be potentially very dangerous to the unborn child posing risks for brain

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damage, hearing impairments, and mental retardation. Toxoplasmosis, (Centers for Disease

Control & Prevention, 2003), another maternal infection, may be contracted through

consumption of undercooked or raw meat and eggs or exposure to cat feces. Initial infection

during pregnancy puts the unborn baby at risk for very serious complications including

blindness, jaundice, cerebral palsy, enlarged liver and spleen, microcephaly, and mental

retardation. Sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhea, syphilis, and the acquired immune

deficiency syndrome (AIDS) are other causes of mental retardation and other problems. These

viruses are able to cross the placenta and attack the fetus’s central nervous system. Along with

attacking the central nervous system of the developing fetus, the AIDS virus also damages the

fetus’s immune system leaving it at risk for opportunistic infections. Research indicates that

pediatric AIDS is both the fastest growing infectious cause of mental retardation (Baumeister,

Kupstas, & Klindworth,1990) and the single most preventable type of infectious mental

retardation (Cohen, 1991).

German Measles (Rubella) is another infection that has been linked to mental retardation

and other birth complications such as low birth weight, heart defects, and vision and hearing

problems especially if infection occurs during the first trimester of pregnancy. The Rhesus

factor, a disease caused by blood group incompatibility between a mother and her unborn child

(Beirne-Smith, Ittenbach, & Patton,1998 & March of Dimes, 1997d), often leads to serious

complications for the unborn fetus. These include mental retardation, cerebral palsy, and

epilepsy. Incidences of German measles infections have greatly decreased since the introduction

of a rubella vaccine in 1969. An injection of the Rh immune globulin within 72 hours of

delivering an Rh positive baby, greatly reduces problems in any future pregnancies.

Phenylketonuria (PKU) and galactosemia are two inborn errors of mentabolism associated with

mental retardation and whose effects may be greatly reduced by dietary restrictions (Dyer, 1999

& Koch &De la Cruz, 1999). Galactosemia is a disease that results from an infants inability to

process galactose, a form of sugar that is usually found in products such as milk.

Phenylketonuria results from an inability to process phenylalanine, a protein found in milk and

other products. An accumulation of phenylalanine in the blood stream leads to brain damage and

mental retardation which is often severe. Galactosemia is manifested by cognitive impairements,

vision problems, vomiting, retarded development, liver damage, jaundice, and greater risks for

infections (Drew, Hardman, & Logan, 1996).

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About 5 percent of all people with mental retardation have Down syndrome. While some

individuals with Down syndrome may have almost average intelligence, most have mild through

profound mental retardation and others have associated conditions such as leukemia, vision and

intestinal problems and a susceptibility to thyroid problems (March of dimes, 1997a). Distinctive

physical characteristics are also often observed in individuals with Down syndrome (March of

Dimes, 2003). These include short fingers, reduced muscle tone, an enlarged and protruding

(sometimes) tongue, flat nose, short stature, and an upper slant of the eyes. While people without

Down syndrome have parallel lines, people with Down syndrome have a single crease-called a

Simian crease- on the palms of their hands. Fragile X, one of the leading inherited causes of

mental retardation, results from a weakness or fragility in the structure of the X chromosome of

the twenty-third pair. More at risk for this condition are males because, unlike females who have

two X chromosomes, they have one X and one Y chromosome in each pair (Kozma & Stock,

1993). This condition affects 1 in 750 males and 1 in 1250 females (Kozma & Stock, 1993).

Individuals with Fragile X syndrome may have autism and they may manifest attention disorders

(Beirnie-Smith, et al., 1998 & Santos, 1992), speech and language problems, and self-stimulatory

behavior. Distinctive physical characteristics for these individuals may include prominent

forehead, large head circumference, a long narrow face and large ears, and enlarged testicles at

puberty (Rogers & Simensen, 1987).

Mental retardation may also result from unsafe behaviors of mothers during pregnancy.

Consumption of alcohol before or during pregnancy can lead to severe effects on the baby, a

condition referred to as Fetal alcohol syndrome (Bauer, 1999 & Jones, Smith, Ulleland, &

Streissguth, 1973). Infants with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), now a leading cause of mental

retardation in the United States could have a damaged central nervous system and brain damage.

These infants have mild to moderate mental retardation, attention deficits, behavior problems,

physical deformities, heart defects, low birth weight, and motor dysfunctions. Fetal alcohol

effects (FAE) are milder forms of the effects of a mother’s alcohol consumption during

pregnancy on the infant. These include mild learning disabilities and problems paying attention

(Melner, Shackelford, Hargrove, & Daulton). Some prenatal causes of mental retardation are

unknown. Conditions such as encephalocele, anencephaly, microcephaly, and hydrocephalus can

not be explained. All these conditions affect the brain in some way. Encephalocele involves an

opening in the skull from which part of the brain material protrudes. Anencephaly is a condition

in which a large portion of the brain fails to develop properly. An unusually small head and

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severe mental retardation characterize microcephaly. In hydrocephalus, a large amount of

cerebrospinal fluid accumulates in the brain area leading to an enlarged cranial cavity and

compression of the brain with dire consequences for the affected infant. A shunt inserted into the

cranial cavity removes the excess fluid from the brain area and minimizes the impact of the

consequences. Among the perinatal factors associated with mental retardation are low birth

weight, prematurity, and other neonatal complications. Low birth weight (less than 5 pounds, 8

ounces) and premature birth (birth prior to 37 weeks of gestation) are two gestational disorders

associated with mild to severe mental retardation. It is important to keep in mind that not all

infants with gestational disorders will have a disability or even have learning difficulties. Other

perinatal events include neonatal complications neonatal complications which can result from

prolonged and difficult deliveries or damaged umbilical cord. These events can result in a fetus

being completely or partially cut off from oxygen. Indeed, anoxia has been implicated in as

many as one out of every five births that result in mental retardation (McLaren & Bryson, 1987).

Breech presentation, quick deliveries (lasting less than two hours), hypoxia, and birth trauma are

all perinatal factors that may lead to various degrees of mental retardation.

In breech presentation, rather than the typical head-first birth procedure, the fetus exits the birth

canal rear first. This increases the risk of damage to the umbilical cord and a greater risk of

injury to the infant’s head resulting from the greater intensity of uterine contractions later in the

birth process. These risks also exist when a rapid short duration birth process occurs.

Drew et al 1996--notes that a rapid birth precludes the chances for the gentle molding of the head

increasing the risk for tissue damage and mental retardation. Improper use of forceps and

application of vacuum procedures during the delivery process can cause brain damage t an

infant and the possibility for mental retardation exists.

Mental retardation may also result from factors occurring postnatally. These include infections,

such as meningitis and encephalitis, intoxicants, environmental factors. Lead poisoning (Centers

for Disease Control & Prevention, 2003), which results from ingesting lead, can affect the central

nervous system and cause seizures and mental retardation. Meningitis is a viral infection that

causes damage to the meninges or tissues covering the brain. Meningitis can result from typical

childhood complications such as mumps and measles. This infection causes seizures, damages

the brain, and has a possibility of resulting in mental retardation. Encephalitis, on the other hand,

is an inflammation of the brain tissue and may also result from complications of infections

associated with childhood. This infection can cause brain damage and has the possibility of

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leading to varying degrees of mental retardation. As in other parts of the world, the above factors

are major causes of mental retardation and other developmental disabilities in India.

1.3 Identification Of Mental Retardation In India

If mental retardation is very severe, a child may be identified as having mental

retardation very early in his/her life. In some cases, determination of this condition is made at the

moment of birth. Less severe cases of mental retardation may not be that easily identified. Earlier

in this paper, it was mentioned that children with mental retardation in India are usually

categorized according to severity of mental impairments as mildly, moderately, severely, or

profoundly handicapped or as educable, trainable, severe, and profound in terms of their

measured intelligence scores on IQ tests. It would appear that intelligence tests are used in

determining the level of mental retardation of students suspected of having intellectual

disabilities in India. However, whether these tests are actually used with children who have

mental retardation in placement decisions is not clear. It is important to understand that in India,

students who are labeled as having mentalretardation are those who have such significant and

obvious limitations in their cognitive and adaptive behaviors that administration of standardized

tools may not be deemed necessary

Such students may also have other disabling conditions. Given that at least 10% of a

population have disabilities according to United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural

Organization (UNESCO,1994) it would appear that there are many more students with mental

retardation than the ones currently receiving services. A majority of students with mental

retardation are those with mild mental retardation. Identification of these students may consist of

observations for pointers of low intellectual functioning and deficits in adaptive behavior. These

characteristics may be indicated by an impaired ability to learn, acquire and generalize concepts,

process, understand and respond to information, and apply knowledge in various settings such as

school and community. It is also important to note that the learning and social behavioral

characteristics of students with mild mental retardation, learning disabilities, and those who are

unmotivated low achievers are often so similar to observers that misdiagnosis occurs often. In

any case, services for students with learning disabilities and mild mental retardation are not yet

developed in India and in many cases these children may not be recognized as having a

disability.

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The India Ministry of Education, in its guidelines on students with disabilities (1995),

notes that children with mental retardation: develop more slowly than other children, learn

moreslowly than people of the same age, have low attention abilities, lack motivation, have

poormemory, have problems with language and other social skills, experience low

academicachievement, have personality and behavioral problems, experience low

academicachievement, are withdrawn and experience difficulties in making friends, lack self-

helpskills, lack work adjustment skills, may be aggressive, may have physical defects

andassociated disabling problems such as autism, epilepsy, and cerebral palsy (p.6-7). This may

be another way in which students with mental retardation are identified.

1.4 Placement Options

Given that their condition is in most cases never identified or recognized as a

disability,children with mild mental retardation in Indian schools are educated with students

withoutdisabilities in regular schools and classrooms (Mutua & Dimitrov, 2001) with no

supports,adaptations, or modifications. Students with moderate to severe forms of mental

retardationare educated mainly in units in regular education schools and in special schools

andresidential settings for children with mental retardation (Kiarie, 2005 & Mutua &

Dimitrov,2001). Whether they are in the units, special schools, or residential settings, their

educationalservices are specialized in that they do not follow the academic curriculum. Services

for theseindividuals in specialized settings date back to 1948 when two schools, later merged

into theJacaranda Special School, were established. Programs for these students have continued

to grow as enrolment has continued to increase. In the mid 80s, students with mental retardation

were served in 52 programs which included 17 schools, 30 units, three pre-vocationalschools,

and one sheltered workshop (Ndurumo, 1993, p. 20).

As was the case in the United States before the enactment of the Education for all Handicapped

Children Act (1975), (Ryndak & Alper, 1996), it is very likely that majority of children with

profound mental and other disabilities do not receive any educational services in India. These are

the children and youth most likely to be denied access to the schools as they are deemed unlikely

to benefit from any education or be hidden away (Dorothy, 2003) by their parents. The absence

of a zero reject principle, the equivalent of the one embodied in the American-based Individuals

with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) means that even though parents may recognize education

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as a right for every child and rise above society’s negative attitudes, they can not require that

schools open their gates to all children. Schools can still decide that some children are

ineducable and therefore do not belong in the school environment.

1.5 Curriculum

In the general education settings, students curriculum is very academic oriented and all

students are exposed to the same subjects. This orientation illuminates the disadvantage at which

students with mild mental and other intellectual disabilities are placed. As Mutua and

Dimitrov further note India’s educational system is characterized by entrance examinations that

are used to predict academic success. Non-successful students are often retained in grades until

they are deemed successful, drop out, or are too old to stay in the same grade.

One of the government’s objectives in educating students with disabilities is the

acquisition of literacy and numeracy skills. However, in the separate settings, other than very

elementary basic skills, the curriculum is geared towards functional education and life skills

training (Mutua & Dimitrov, 2001). Teachers for individuals with mental retardation in separate

facilities for students with mental retardation focus on teaching their students how to

communicate their needs, employ self-care skills for basic hygiene, maintain appropriate\

behavior, employ functional academics, be safe, and employ appropriate social skills (Mwangi,

Kerre, Wabuge, & Mugo, 1989). To realize their objectives, teachers are required to use task-

analysis in which they break learning tasks into smaller sequential skills which they

systematically teach to the students until they master. These are recommended in a guidebook on

handling students with special needs published by the India Ministry of Education (India

Ministry of Education, 1995). Other instructional considerations recommended by the India

Ministry of Education for use with this population include:

Modeling, drills and practice to promote over-learning, attention to relevance and applicability to

the students’ lives, short learning activities, generous use of prompts and rewards, use of

concrete materials as much as possible, use of visuals to promote understanding of concepts, and

explicit teaching of such self-care skills as toileting, dressing, and grooming.

Teachers of students with mental retardation in India can benefit from exposure to current

literature on meeting the needs of these students. This literature emphasizes the need for teachers

to plan their materials well, have clear goals and objectives, teach to their objectives, and assess

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students directly and frequently. Since individuals with mental retardation experience difficulty

in maintaining the skills and knowledge they have acquired, they require frequent opportunities

to practice new academic and functional skills. Not only must curriculum focus on skills that

these individuals need to use frequently in school, at home, and in the community but teaching

functional skills in the natural contexts in which they are performed is necessary.

It is important to note that the curriculum in units and separate schools and residential settings

for students with mental retardation in India does not seem to be consistent. Muuya (2002) found

that rather than the more appropriate curriculum combining literacy and numeracy with

functional academics and life skills training discussed earlier, programs for these children

focused more on behavioral control and containment and moral behavior. Due to certain factors,

the curriculum orientation of a certain program, although guided by the need for the children to

acquire skills in self-reliance among others, are largely dependent on the goals and orientations

of the funding religious, private, or other organization.

1.6 Principles Of Special Education

The principles underlying education for students with special educational needs do not

differ from those that are relevant to all students. The introduction to the Primary School

Curriculum (1999) states that:

all children have a right of access to the highest-quality educationappropriate to their needs.

This includes children whose disabilitiesor circumstances inhibit their effective participation in

the educationthat is normally provided for children of their age … It is importantthat a range of

educational provision is available that is flexibleenough to cater for the special needs of

individual children at thevarious stages of their development.

The White Paper on Education (1995) defines the term “curriculum” as encompassing the

content, structure and processes of teaching and learning, whichthe school provides in

accordance with its educational objectivesand values.

This includes the knowledge, concepts and skills that students acquire as well as the factors that

inform the ethos and general environment of the school.

The broad aims of education for students with special educational needs include

• enabling the student to live a full life and to realise his or her potential as a unique individual

through access to an appropriate broad and balanced curriculum • enabling the student to

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function as independently as possible in society through the provision of such educational

supports as are necessary to realize that potential.

The student’s wider environment is, of course, a powerful factor in his or her learning. This

begins in the home; and the skills and knowledge that all students bring with them to school are

of vital importance to their future development. Close co-operation between home and school is

essential if the student is to experience the full benefit of his or her education. Curriculum, then,

encompasses the whole range of learning experiences, both within and outside of the school.

1.7 What Are Special Educational Needs?

A precise definition of special educational needs is difficult. Different sources use

different descriptions and different categorisations. Some experts believe that all students may, at

some time in their lives, have some form of special educational need. This may range from a

physical disability to exceptional or gifted ability in a particular area. Such a broad definition has

implications for practice and also for the essential resources required by individual students.

However, the general understanding of students who have special educational needs is that they

encounter barriers to learning. Their difficulties may be specific to language or mathematics or

can come from a physical impairment that affects their movement, sight, or hearing, or from a

complex combination of several disabilities. Some of these may be addressed by the provision of

alternative teaching methods, suitable materials, appropriately adapted equipment, or

personalised tutorial support. However, this approach tends to focus on the difficulties of the

student rather than on his or her individual needs. It is necessary also to look at the curricular

options available to all students. The Report of the Special Education Review Committee

(SERC) (1993) defines areas of special educational needs under four broad headings, which

embrace a wide range of special educational needs and include

• general learning disabilities

• emotional and behavioural disturbance

• language and communication difficulties and disorders

• physical and sensory disabilities.

In the SERC report, special education is defined as any educational provision which is designed

to cater for pupils withspecial educational needs, and is additional to or different from

theprovision which is generally made in ordinary classes for pupils ofthe same age. (p.18)

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In recent years attitudes to disability have changed, and the labelling of students as

“handicapped” has been replaced by broader descriptions of their learning needs. All students

have common needs, which include a sense of belonging, being respected as an individual, and

being challenged as a learner.

Some students, however, may have complex individual needs that arise from particular

characteristics that are different from all others.

The SERC Report proposed a number of principles on which the future development of special

needs education in Ireland should be based. These principles stated that

• students with special educational needs have a right to an appropriate education

• the needs of the individual student are paramount in decisions relating to their education

• parents should have an active role within the system

• a continuum of educational services should be provided and, where practicable, appropriate

education should be provided in ordinary schools for all students with special educational needs

• only in exceptional circumstances should a student have to live away from home to avail of an

appropriate education

• the state should provide adequate resources to enable students with special educational needs to

avail of an appropriate education.

The NCCA acknowledges the validity and importance of the findings of the

SERC Report and recognises that the whole area of special needs is both complex and wide-

ranging. However, since students with general learning disabilities form by far the most

numerous student cohort in special needs education, the development of curriculum guidelines

for this group will be the initial concern of the NCCA.

1.8 Curriculum Development For Students With Mental Disabilities

Teachers and other professionals involved in special education have always embraced

innovation. In recent times, the changing nature of the student population and increased

integration of students with special needs in mainstream education has demanded even greater

flexibility and creativity from teachers. Teachers in special schools and centres have also

contributed greatly to the process of curriculum development, very often with inadequate support

and resources. In devising curriculum guidelines, the NCCA proposes to draw on the wealth of

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experience and knowledge of teachers and other professionals in both mainstream and special

settings.

The Special Education Review Committee (SERC) drew attention to gaps in curriculum

development as one of the deficiencies in the system of special education in Ireland. The lack of

specific curricular guidelines for students with special educational needs in post-primary schools,

for students with mild general learning disabilities in special and mainstream schools and for

students with severe and profound general learning disabilities was identified as a significant

shortcoming by the Review Committee. The Committee stated that curriculum development and

review, for students with disabilitiesand special educational needs, should be the ongoing

responsibilityof the NCCA.

It recommended that these areas should be examined as a matter of priority. In this context and in

the light of the Education Act, 1998, the NCCA has taken the first steps in the development of

curriculum guidelines for students with special educational needs in Ireland.

Current research indicates that there is no simple answer to the provision of curriculum for

special needs. The curriculum in Irish schools encompasses subjects and methodologies, the

reasons why the subjects are taught, and the educational outcomes for the learner. It also includes

the formal programme of lessons and the hidden curriculum that is inferred by the children from

the general ethos of the school and its organisation. The White Paper (1995) further states that

“the way in which the curriculum is defined, planned, implementedand evaluated crucially

influences the quality of education provided.”

This statement gives considerable flexibility to schools in planning their own curriculum.

At school level the responsibility centres on the development of a comprehensive school plan,

and a recently published booklet by the Department of Education and Science, Developing a

School Plan, echoes the White Paper in its definition of curriculum.

The curriculum consists of all the learning experiences designed or encouraged by the school as

its programme to promote the educational aims and objectives of the school for its pupils (p. 32).

The Introduction to the Primary School Curriculum, which has recently been revised, states that

the breadth and flexibility of the curriculum, the choices it offers inthe selection and sequencing

of content and its focus on thedevelopmental needs of children ensures its adaptability to

thediversity of children’s circumstances and experiences.

In the conclusion it also states that “these goals will only be achieved if the philosophy, aims and

objectives of the curriculum are realised in its implementation.”

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One of the defining features of the curriculum is the importance of planning.

“Within the framework of the curriculum schools are afforded flexibility to plan a programme

that is appropriate to the individual school’s circumstances and to the needs, aptitudes and

interests of the children”. It clearly statesthat the curriculum assumes that schools will “adapt

and interpret the curriculum where necessary to meet their own requirements. It seescurriculum

development as a dynamic process, which is evolving rather thanestablished.

However, these worthy aims must be translated into more specific goals and practical,

manageable objectives if they are to meet the needs of individual students.

How, then, are children designated as having special educational needs any different? It is quite

clear that although students will have common needs, there will be some who have complex

additional needs and will therefore require additional goals. The difficulties they have are real

and must be addressed. In identifying individual learning needs, therefore, we must look at what

exactly those needs are.

In the past, children with special educational needs were seen as being separate from the

mainstream system of education and the responsibility of specialist teachers and medical staff. In

a study of provision for pupils with special educational needs by the European Agency for

Development in Special Needs

Education (1998) it was indicated that adaptations have been made to legislation relating to

students with a disability throughout Europe during the past decade.

This study did not include Ireland but did include England and Wales. The main areas of concern

that emerged were teacher training, teachers’ attitudes, and the less developed nature of second-

level systems in dealing with special educational needs. The role of parental choice was also seen

as significant, as was the use of individual education plans. The categorisation of special

educational needs into anything up to ten different divisions, often based on IQ scores or

categories of disability, has often led to more rather than less segregation.

All children have individual needs, not just those with disabilities, so there is a need for

variety in both curricular content and teaching approaches, as is enunciated in the Primary

School Curriculum. Realistic and flexible approaches to learning are required for all students,

and these include activity-based learning, self-directed learning, practical hands-on approaches,

thematic approaches to topics, open-ended tasks, and a greater emphasis on the development of

oral language. This will entail much more than a watered-down version of mainstream curricula.

The proposed guidelines will enable teachers and schools to establish significant and flexible

21

connections between the key skills and knowledge in the curriculum guidelines and the content

of mainstream curricula.

1.9 Flexibility Of Provision

The educational experience of students with special educational needs should reflect what

is available to their non-disabled peers. In particular, co-operative and group work that

encourages peer learning is very important. Students should increasingly begin to take control of,

and responsibility for, their own learning.

Students with special educational needs should be enabled to make choices and decisions, and

this can be achieved only through an accepting environment that celebrates diversity and

individuality while acknowledging the importance of peer learning and group interaction.

The curriculum the student experiences will allow for both age and stage of development.

However, flexibility is required if it is to be mediated in the most effective way. This must allow

for a full-time curriculum experience in mainstream education or in special education but also for

a combination of parttime experience in both where this is appropriate. It must also take account

of the practicalities involved in providing both group and individual experiences for students

who may have multiple and complex needs.

1.10 Whole-School Approaches

Instead of treating the individual student with special needs in isolation, it is necessary to

plan for the class or group as a whole and to identify the learning opportunities that exist for all

children. Whole-school approaches to planning, both in mainstream schools and in special

settings, could maximise the educational opportunities available for students. These opportunities

should be based on learning need, not learning difficulty, and the student should be involved in

identifying those needs where appropriate.

The necessary balance between mainstream curricula, developmental curricula and

additional curricular areas varies according to the strengths, needs and circumstances of the

particular student. Flexible multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches involving

22

teachers, parents and other professionals must keep the student at the centre of the educational

process.

Where all students are striving to realise their own potential, age-related and ability-

related levels of attainment become a reality, and curriculum-based assessment becomes

meaningful. What is needed both at primary and at post-primary levels are innovative approaches

to assessment. The Junior Cycle programme at post-primary level marks the end of compulsory

schooling. It is based on the curricular principles of breadth and balance, relevance, quality,

coherence, continuity, and progression. However, Ireland is the only developed country that uses

wholly external terminal examination at this stage of schooling. Many students with special

educational needs, both in special and in mainstream schools, are now seeking national

certification. In a recent review of the Junior Cycle programme (1999) the inadequacy of the

range of modes and techniques of assessment for Junior Certificate is highlighted. “There is an

ongoing mismatch between the aims and principles of the Junior Certificate programme and the

modes and techniques currently in use for the formal assessment of that programme.”

(p. 32). So while students are engaging in a broad and balanced curriculum based on eight areas

of experience they are not being assessed on some of the areas. There is an over-emphasis on the

assessment of product and little assessment of the affective development of the student.

A booklet entitled The Junior Certificate: Issues for Discussion (1999), published by the DES,

states that when the assessment leads to certification which is school-focusedand learner-centred

then the participation of teachers in theassessment of their own students can only add to the

validity of thatassessment and support the placing of assessment as part of teachingand learning,

rather than as a ritual which takes place when theteaching and learning is complete.

This will not happen automatically but will require whole-school policies and in-service training

to develop in teachers shared understandings, shared intentions and shared interpretations of

professional roles


Initially the NCCA will focus on the development of curriculum guidelines for students

with general learning disabilities at both primary and post-primary levels. Three broad groups are

23

identified for this initial phase. These groups are the largest numerically and are catered for in

the broadest range of settings. The NCCA Special Education Steering Committee proposes to

• develop curriculum guidelines for students with mild general learning disability

• review and develop the existing provision for students with moderate general learning disability

• develop curriculum guidelines for students with severe and profound general learning

disability.

The following structures have been established by the NCCA to develop curriculum guidelines

for these three groups:

• a widely representative steering committee (appendix II)

• three working groups, which will identify the essential skills and processes required to provide

broad curriculum opportunities and experiences for students in the three specified areas. Each

working group comprises teachers, parents, and a representative from the Department of

Education and Science. (appendix III). Structures have been established to ensure wide

consultation with other relevant and interested parties.

1.12 A Strategy For Curriculum Development The development by the NCCA of curriculum guidelines is part of a strategy in which curricula

for students with special educational needs will be addressed.

This strategy will

• provide an overall structure for curriculum development for students with special

educational needs

Because of the diversity and complexity of needs within schools and classes, any curriculum

development at national level must be in the form of curriculum guidelines.

• draw on best practice, national and international, in the development of the guidelines

Curricula must allow for differentiation within a school or class relative to the needs, abilities

and aptitudes of the students. This will necessitate wholeschool planning, regular review, and the

development of cross-curricular skills. If a student is operating below his or her chronological

age, he or she should be taught using age-appropriate methods, approaches, and resources.

Guidelines that offers broad descriptions of outcomes rather than a prescription of content is

therefore likely to be appropriate. The guidelines should be flexible enough to be relevant to a

wide variety of school and class types within each sector. Curriculum development should also

take account of the complex learning styles of all students.

24

• facilitate linkages to mainstream curricula where appropriate

There is a need to explore how a coherent relationship between mainstream and special curricula

can be achieved and how relevant this relationship is for students at both primary and post-

primary levels. The proposed curriculum guidelines will consider core competences, academic

achievement, and the continuing need for an emphasis on life skills and independence training.

The overall aim should be that the students acquire skills that are relevant to their lives, both as

young people and as adults. The extent to which elements of mainstream curricula can contribute

to this will be explored thoroughly.

• take account of the resource implications of any curriculum guidelines

It will provide a context and an opportunity to address the issues of the relevant human and

physical resources that will be necessary in making the strategy effective.

1.13 Summary Issues affecting other areas of special education services in India also affect the area of

services for students with mental retardation. Foremost among this is lack of vital human and

material resources (Kiarie 2005). Another is the lack of a law that mandates funds and enforces

educational and other services for all students with disabilities. In the education of students with

disabilities a law is needed to provide and enforce services for this population.

Without laws and national mandates, and ways for ensuring that schools abide by these laws,

many students with disabilities are likely to be locked out of the educational arena.

Development of a transition-based service provision model is vital especially for students with

severe mental retardation. Students with disabilities need to be taught with attention to what,

where, and how they are going to live and work as adults. This aspect is lacking in the education

of students with disabilities in India. In view of the above and other barriers quite evident in the

education of students with disabilities in India, it is safe to say that although a lot remains to be

done, India is making steps in the right direction with regard to services for students with

disabilities. With awareness of the rights of individuals with disabilities being raised by the most

recent act, the Persons with Disabilities Act passed in 2003, it is reasonable to expect that

services for children, youth, and adults with disabilities in India will continue to improve, albeit

very gradually.

25

1.14 check your progress

1. Explain Causes

2. Explain Identification Of Mental Retardation In India

3. Explain Placement Options

4. Explain Curriculum

5. Explain Principles Of Special Education

6. Explain What Are Special Educational Needs?

7. Explain Curriculum Development For Students With Mental Disabilities

8. Explain Flexibility Of Provision

9. Explain Whole-School Approaches

10. Explain Ncca Structures For Curriculum Development In Special Education

11. Explain A Strategy For Curriculum Development

1. Check Your Progress

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Points For Discussion And Clarification

After going through this Unit you might like to have further discussion on some points and

clarification on others

1.2.1. Points for discussion

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Office.











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31st – Sept 3rd.










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Unit 2: Types And Approaches Of Curriculum Designing

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Aligning The Goals Of Curriculum With The Apsn Vision

2.3 Desired Outcomes

2.4 Apsn Curriculum Development Process

2.5 Features Of Revised Syllabuses

2.6 Three Major Emphasis For The Education Of The Mildly Intellectual

Disabled

2.7 Core Subjects

2.8 Types

2.9 Some Promising Teaching Strategies And Approaches

2.10 Tips For Teachers: Mental Retardation

2.11 Designing Instruction.

2.12 Teaching Differently To Make A Difference


2.14 Summary


2.16 Reference

36

2.1 Introduction

Education is a powerful instrument of social change, and often initiates upward

movement in the social structure. Thereby, helping to bridge the gap between the different

sections of society. The educational scene in the country has undergone major change over the

years, resulting in better provision of education and better educational practices. In 1944, the

Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) published a comprehensive report called the

Sergeant Report on the post-war educational development of the country. As per the report,

provisions for the education of the handicapped2, were to form an essential part of the national

system of education, which was to be administered by the Education Department. According to

this report, handicapped children were to be sent to special schools only when the nature and

extent of their defects made this necessary. The Kothari Commission (1964–66), the first

education commission of independent India, observed: “the education of the handicapped

children should be an inseparable part of the education system.” The commission recommended

experimentation with integrated programmes in order to bring as many children as possible into

these programmes (Alur, 2002).

The government’s agenda to universalize elementary education, and its commitment to

the Directive Principles of the Constitution, are guided by the recognition that a new universal

system of education should be based on equity, the redressal of past imbalances, and the

provision of access to quality education, especially for marginalised groups. Recent educational

developments and the Seventy Third and Seventy Fourth Constitutional Amendments outline the

possibility of entrusting basic education to the local elected bodies in towns and villages. This

would allow for community participation in education at the elementary level and would

introduce radical change, leading to the empowerment of learners with Special Educational

Needs (SEN). Until the 1970s, the policy encouraged segregation.

Most educators believed that children with physical, sensory, or intellectual disabilities

were so different that they could not participate in the activities of a common school (Advani,

2002). Christian missionaries, in the 1880s, started schools for the disabled as charitable

undertakings (Mehta, 1982). The first school for the blind was established in 1887. An institute

for the deaf and mute, was set up in 1888. Services for the physically disabled were also initiated

37

in the middle of the twentieth century. Individuals with mental retardation were the last to

receive attention. The first school for the mentally challenged being established in 1934 (Mishra,

2000). Special education programmes in earlier times were, therefore, heavily dependent on

voluntary initiative.

The government’s (Department of Education) initiatives after independence were manifested in

the establishment of a few workshop units meant primarily for blind adults (Luthra, 1974). These

units later included people who were deaf, physically impaired, and mentally retarded

(Rohindekar and Usha, 1988). While some provisions existed in the States, it was considered the

best course to assist and encourage voluntary organisations already working in the field (see the

First Five Year Plan, 1951–1956 on http: www.planningcommission.hic.in/plans/planrel/five

Yr/7th/vol2/7v2ch10.html).

The welfare approach continued in government programmes. Support was provided to

voluntary organisations for the establishment of model schools for the blind, the deaf, and the

mentally retarded. The government set up the National Library for the Blind, the Central Braille

Press, and employment exchanges for the disabled. It also made provisions for scholarships, for

prevention and early identification of disabling conditions, for the development of functional

skills, and for aids and appliances for the disabled.

2.2 Aligning The Goals Of Curriculum With The Apsn Vision

Aligning with the APSN vision, the curriculum review aims to revise the curriculum to

develop students to their fullest potential so that they can lead dignified, fulfilling and

independent lives as integral members of society. APSN students are expected to demonstrate

various functional roles that an individual must assume to lead independent lives, such as:

A resident of a home;

A worker;

A participant in the community;

A consumer of goods and services and

A participant in leisure experiences.

2.3 Desired Outcomes

38

Thus, the ultimate aim of the curriculum is to prepare these students with mild intellectual

disabilities with the necessary relevant skills essential for daily living and integration into

today’s community so that they can be responsible not only to themselves and their families but

also to their community and country at large. In the process of learning, they will also incalculate

the right attitudes, skills, values and knowledge necessary for life in today’s knowledge-based

economy e.g.

discern between right from wrong;

learn to care and share;

develop resilience in times of trials;

have a positive mindset;

be responsible in what they do;

learn to develop self-control;

develop assertiveness;

cultivate good healthy habits and lifestyles;

love their country.

2.4 Apsn Curriculum Development Process

In planning, revising and organizing the curriculum, each subject committee composes of

teachers from different APSN schools with an advisor who is a subject specialist from the

National Institute of Education as well as an APSN principal who chairs the subject committee.

The subject specialists provide the current philosophy and practices in teaching the subject. The

teachers provide their knowledge of student learning capabilities as well as their perception of

the functional needs of the students. Two curriculum officers serve all the committees.

The review committees make reference to the Ministry of Education (MOE) syllabuses for

schools, MOE instructional guidelines for students with special needs and two papers submitted

by Dr Jessie Ee and Dr Soh Kay Cheng on the needs of students in APSN schools.

2.5 Features Of Revised Syllabuses All APSN schools use the same revised syllabuses.

The syllabuses except Life Skills are aligned with the syllabuses provided by the Ministry of

Education.

39

Special efforts are made to link learning activities of all subjects to Life Skills. The contexts

used are relevant to everyday living.

English Language and Mathematics are aligned to achieve P3/P4 level in MOE schools after

seven years of APSN education. Outcomes of each subject are defined and are delineated into

modules.

The secondary and senior level curriculum aims to benchmark their literacy and numeracy

programme to the mainstream EM3 standards as an alternative to the soon to be obsolete BEST*

& WISE* exams. Many

Tanglin teachers found the BEST syllabus uninteresting, limiting and nondevelopmental.

To monitor individual learning and student performance of each outcome of every subject will

be recorded in the I.E.P.

Effective instructional strategies (cognitive strategy instruction, cooperative learning

structures and multiple intelligences) are adopted to increase probability of student learning.

2.6 Three Major Emphasis For The Education Of The Mildly Intellectual

Disabled

During their early elementary years, the curriculum will emphasize more on providing

them readiness skills. In the later elementary years, the emphasis will be more on life skills and

during late adolescent to young adult life, the emphasis is on transitional skills to prepare them

for vocational and integration in society.

40

2.7 Core Subjects 2.7.1 Language

The literacy programme aims to develop listening, speaking, reading and writing skills, the

foundation and prerequisites for functional literacy which prepares them to use language in the

contexts of the home, community, at play and work.

The whole language approach where whole, meaningful texts are the instructional materials and

not isolated words or sounds will be used to develop the generic framework for the literacy

programme with Direct Reading Activity as the teaching strategy used to extend and strengthen

the students’ reading abilities. To provide this comprehensive literacy programme, the English

Language syllabus includes three areas of language use:

1. Language for Information

2. Language for Literary Response and Expression

3. Language for Social Interaction

Each of the above area is further organized into:

1. Listening & Speaking

2. Reading

3. Writing

The Language for Information and Social Interaction sections refer to life skills as contexts.

41

The Shared Book Approach and the Language Experience Approach have been recommended as

effective approaches for the teaching of listening, speaking, reading and writing skills.

Cooperative learning structures and cognitive strategy instruction e.g. mind mapping and

pictogram are some strategies used in Language for Social Interaction and Information.

For purpose of class placement, our pupils were administered an initial reading screening test.

This test is linked to the reading programme that is progressively designed for different reading

levels. Children showing further problems with reading will be referred to the psychologists and

therapists for in-depth assessment and therapy.

2.7.2 Mathematics

The framework is aimed at building basic mathematical readiness skills as well as

practical mathematical problem solving in real life situations. Besides the development of these

mathematical concepts which are broadly organized into 3 main strands: numerical concepts,

geometrical concepts and statistical concepts, pupils are taught to use mathematics skills e.g.

computational skills, estimation and mental calculation. The framework is organized in spiral

progression such that concepts taught are revised at increasing levels of difficulty.

As research has found that thinking skills should be explicitly taught to the mildly intellectually

disabled, the curriculum and resources provide exercises to teach thinking skills e.g. classifying,

comparing, sequencing etc as well as heuristics for problem solving e.g. act it out, using a

diagram or model, look for patterns etc. Pupils are also exposed to metacognitive processes e.g.

seeking alternative ways of solving the problem and checking the reasonableness of answers.

As many special needs pupils have poor motivation in learning mathematics, the curriculum also

incorporates components to develop the enjoyment in doing mathematics as well as the

perseverance in solving a problem through CD maths games, 3-minute challenge and cooperative

group work. In the teaching of mathematical concepts, teachers are advised to present materials

using the multi-sensory approach with emphasis on kinesthetic, concreteness and pictorial before

symbols. When pupils have understood mathematics at the symbolic level, teachers are advised

to consolidate the written symbols.

2.7.3 Life Skills

42

The life skills curriculum will integrate the different subject areas in tandem to achieve

the desired outcomes aim to prepare our pupils for independent living and vocational skills. The

framework for the life skills curriculum is broadly organized into four domains: Home,

Community, Work and Leisure/Recreation. The curriculum includes character education, moral

and social skills. Values such as manners, tolerance, self control are included. Real life contexts

are used so as to facilitate smooth transfer from class to real life situations. The primary life

skills curriculum includes the following main subareas : 1. Self-Help skills

2. Family Life Education

3. Value Education

4. Career Education

The secondary life skills curriculum transits from the primary skills to include

subcompetencies from the Life Centered Career Education (L.C.C.E.) curriculum

:

1. Daily Living Skills

2. Personal Social Skills

3. Occupational Guidance & Preparation

L.C.C.E. provides the prevocational foundation for our pupils whilst job-specific skills requires

the incorporation of national skills competencies e.g. National Skills Recognition System

(N.S.R.S.). More able pupils can apply to gain entrance to the Vocational School for the

Handicap (VSH) and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE).

2.7.4 Physical Education

The aim of the physical education curriculum is to develop the physical, intellectual,

social and emotional capacities of students through a variety of physical activities and games.

These skills will thus help pupils to acquire a positive attitude towards physical activities and

provide them with the basic knowledge and skills to live a healthy lifestyle.

The knowledge, skills and attitudes desired for each student were addressed in the development

of objectives across the levels under the four domains: the psychomotor, fitness, cognitive and

affective domains. The framework for physical education includes the following components:

1. Fundamental skills

2. Fitness activities

43

3. Dance movement

4. Games

5. Track & Field

Different percentages of time were delineated for each component for different age groups

guided by developmental principles of physical education. Generic outcomes and activities were

identified for each age band. Activities that teaches life skills during physical education are also

identified. As our pupils will need physical fitness as a good worker, physical fitness

programmes and test are developed to improve the fitness levels of our pupils.

2.7.5 Art

The aim of the Art curriculum is to prepare our pupils to appreciate colour and enhance

their artistic skills so that they can use their leisure effectively besides empowering them with a

good eye sense for the aesthetics.

The Art curriculum framework consists of seven core types of art forms, namely, art readiness,

drawing and design, papercraft, printmaking, collage, textiles and three-dimensional art. The

outcomes for the art curriculum outline the element and principles of art that needs to be taught.

The Art curriculum supports learning of other academic subjects and life skills.

2.7.6 Music

The music curriculum should develop the students’ aesthetic appreciation and response to music

as well as to develop their self-esteem and confidence besides aligning with APSN’s desired

outcomes.

The outcomes framework is organized in four aspects of musical experiences:

44

1. Performing – develop knowledge and skills about musical concepts through performing as a

means of self-expression, interpreting musical symbols and developing solo and ensemble

techniques.

2. Composing – develop knowledge and skills about musical concepts through composing as a

means of self-expression, musical creation and problem-solving.

3. Listening – develop knowledge and skills about musical concepts through listening as a means

of extending aural awareness and communicating ideas about music in social, cultural and

historical contexts.

4. Appreciation – value and appreciate the aesthetic value of all music and the enjoyment of

engaging in performing, composing and listening. Musical outcomes are aligned with age

appropriate activities and selected outcomes are readjusted to include life skills activities.

2.8 Types Behavioural modelsof learning focus on observable outcomes of learning as influenced

predominately by the key principles of reinforcement theory in different learning contexts. This

theory considers all behaviour is learned according to rules which shape, change or sustain it.

Cognitive-behavioural approaches take account of the capacity of individuals to understand and

reflect on their behaviour. The advantages of this model lie primarily in the positive, practical

outlook, the clear signs of success, and the ways in which the setting of specific targets allows all

those involved in teaching and learning to understand the goals and expectations for individuals

and groups of pupils. However these approaches have been criticised for an overly narrow focus

on measurable learning outcomes, when it is known that many aspects of knowledge and

understanding are not directly observable and measurable in the required form. There is also an

acknowledged danger of pupils’ coming to rely on extrinsic rewards for achieving success.

Constructivist models of learning are those in which children are seen as active participants in

the processes of seeking out knowledge, making sense of their experiences and gaining intrinsic

satisfaction from learning and solving problems. Constructivist learning is seen to be a

transformative experience which opens up opportunities for further learning as children gain

greater depth of understanding and increasingly flexible ways of representing their knowledge

and dealing with new information. Related to this approach is social constructivism or

sociocultural theory. Here children’s active role in learning is set in the context of their

45

membership of social groups and communities (such as classrooms and schools) which jointly

create knowledge through their engagement in purposeful and valued activities.

Ecological models of learning focus less on the individual learner and more on the interaction or

‘goodness-of-fit’ between the learner and his or her environment. Ecological models operate

within a concept of ‘nested systems’ or ‘levels’ often referred to as bio, micro, meso, macro exo,

chronosystems (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 1998). In such a model the learner is situated in the

centre of the system interacting at various levels each of which are part of a larger system, for

example, the level of the classroom (micro level), the level of the school not involving the child

directly (macro level) and society (macro level). Teaching strategies and approaches often focus

at a micro level but acknowledge or incorporate activity at broader levels. The mesosystem refers

to the relationships between two or more settings in which the child participates. Such an

approach allows consideration of the role of such things as school or community culture in

learning.

2.9 Some Promising Teaching Strategies And Approaches The literature highlights what seem to be some promising approaches to teaching, as well as

examples of good practice. These include:

• Early identification and intervention Early intervention is key to implementing successful

teaching strategies for pupils with ASD as well as children with language impediments (Fraser,

1998).

• Involvement of parents and families in a collaborative partnership. See, for example, the work

of Shields (2001) in relation to children with ASD, and the account of the Hanen

Programme (e.g. Manolsen 1992) for those with SLCN.

• Collaborative working with other agencies in a child centred approach. This is particularly

important since support services may have differing foci on the form and purpose of the

intervention they envisage (see Wright and Kersner 1998; Law, Lindsay, Peacey et al., 2000;

Law, Lindsay et al., 2001 for children with SLCN).

• Teaching approaches that adopt additional (visual) reinforcement strategies to supplement

verbal instruction (see Chiat, Law and Marshall, 1997 for children with SLCN; Siegel 2000for

children with ASD) and be conducted alongside typically developing peers (e.g.

McConnell 2002 for children with ASD).

46

• An emphasis on teaching language and cognitive process, and the strategies needed for

effective generalisation through varying degrees of structure designed to match the child’s needs

(see, for example, Adams and Conti-Ramsden 1995 for children with ‘SLCN’).

2.10 Tips For Teachers: Mental Retardation -Learn as much as you can about mental retardation.

-Recognize that you can make an enormous difference in this student's life! Find out what the

student's strengths and interests are, and emphasize them. Create opportunities for success.

-If you are not part of the student's Individualized Education Program (IEP) team, ask for a copy

of his or her IEP. The student's educational goals will be listed there, as well as the services and

classroom accommodations he or she is to receive. Talk to specialists in your school (e.g.,

special educators), as necessary. They can help you identify effective methods of teaching this

student, ways to adapt the curriculum, and how to address the student's IEP goals in your

classroom.

-Be as concrete as possible. Demonstrate what you mean rather than just giving verbal directions.

Rather than just relating new information verbally, show a picture.

And rather than just showing a picture, provide the student with hands-on materials and

experiences and the opportunity to try things out.

-Break longer, new tasks into small steps. Demonstrate the steps. Have the student do the steps,

one at a time. Provide assistance, as necessary.

-Give the student immediate feedback.

-Teach the student life skills such as daily living, social skills, and occupational awareness and

exploration, as appropriate. Involve the student in group activities or clubs.

-Work together with the student's parents and other school personnel to create and implement an

educational plan tailored to meet the student's needs. Regularly share information about how the

student is doing at school and at home.

2.11 Designing Instruction. For many students with disabilities, carefully designed instruction plays an integral role

in successful learning. Instructional design begins with prioritization. All 50 states now have a

set of content standards that represent what students need to learn. However, not all standards are

equal in their importance. For example, in reading and language arts, understanding that different

47

texts types (e.g., narrative, descriptive, compare-contrast) have different text structures is an idea

that is considerably more important for all students to learn than specific reading vocabulary

(e.g., the meaning of particular story-specific words).

Thus, in planning to differentiate instruction teachers need to consider which content standards

are of the highest priority and invest more time teaching those standards.

Prioritizing instruction for students with disabilities is, in part, related to learner characteristics.

To enhance learners’ capacity to retain and retrieve information, teachers should emphasize

instruction that (a) explicitly highlights connections between important content, (b) helps

learners to categorize information and (c) links new information to what they already know. In

order to assist students with disabilities to be more strategic in their learning teachers should

emphasize instruction that teaches the necessary prerequisite information for strategy use

including all of the steps of the strategy. Moreover, teachers should model how to use learning

strategies and when strategies should and should not be applied. For example, a common strategy

that many readers employ for understanding text is to predict what the text is going to be about

based on salient text features (e.g., title, overview). As proficient readers read, they constantly

revise this prediction to accommodate new information. Because we know this is an effective

strategy employed by skilled readers, teachers should emphasize the use of such a strategy by

modeling how and when to use it and giving students ample opportunities to use the strategy

across stories and expository text.

To address difficulties students often experience in vocabulary development, teachers

should strategically identify words that are critical to understanding instructional texts. These

words should be taught directly and encouraged to utilize the words in other appropriate

contexts. Teachers can also categorize and teach words as those that students need to know at a

basic level (i.e., those that may appear infrequently in texts but are important to understanding a

story or an expository passage), and those that need to be understood at a deeper level (i.e., those

that are likely to appear frequently in children’s texts and are likely to be encountered often).

Finally, teachers should capitalize on the amassing evidence that coding language phonologically

is important for successful reading development (Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998; National

Reading Panel, 2000). Being able to manipulate the phonemes or individual sounds in words

facilitates word analysis which, in turn, leads to more fluent reading. While fluent reading does

not guarantee successful comprehension, it does increase the likelihood that a learner will enjoy

48

reading, read more, and develop a richer vocabulary and more sophisticated reading strategies

(Baker, Kame’enui, & Simmons, 1998).

In addition to prioritizing instruction, several principles of instructional design and

delivery play an important role in providing curricular access. First, teachers should consider the

scaffolds that can be put in place to assist students in their learning of new materials. Generally,

scaffolds can be thought of in two forms, material or personnel. Material scaffolds are tools that

help the learner successfully employ a strategy or part of a strategy that they might not otherwise

be able to successfully use. For example, in using the writing process, many students with

disabilities are unable to plan effectively for writing. One material scaffold that assists them in

this process are “think sheets” (Englert). This tool is structured with the elements of the type of

text students are expected to generate (e.g., narrative) so that students can plan for their writing.

Personnel scaffolds, teachers and peers, provide more proficient models and prompts to less

proficient students as they develop their independence. For example, peer-assisted reading has

been used successfully to assist students to enhance their reading fluency and comprehension

(Arreaga-Meyer , Simmons). As a consequence of their persistent memory difficulties, many

students with disabilities profit from extended opportunities for practice, additional examples,

and carefully planned opportunities for review. For example, after modeling how skilled readers

summarize their reading of an expository text passage, all students need opportunities to apply

this strategy when they read in other passages. For many students with disabilities these

opportunities need to be carefully planned with ample practice soon after the strategy has been

taught.

Additionally, ongoing feedback to help learners refine their use of the strategy, and sufficient

review opportunities to ensure that the strategy eventually becomes part of the learner’s

repertoire.

2.12 Teaching Differently To Make A Difference

Many teachers believe that working with students with disabilities means making

extensive accommodations to their instruction. While a few students with disabilities present

very unique learning needs, they are by far the exception. Most students who are identified for

special education share similar learning characteristics, difficulties with memory retention and

retrieval, strategy use, vocabulary development, and language coding. As students transition to

49

the middle level, the need to address these areas of difficulty grow increasingly important. By

carefully designing instruction of priority areas supported by scaffolds and ample practice and

review we can maximize student understanding. In addition, by differentiating instruction in

terms of the pace of newly introduced material, frequent monitoring of student progress, and

flexible grouping, the majority of students with disabilities can access the general education

curriculum meaningfully and maintain their knowledge and skills. Meeting this goal will make

all the difference.



This strategy will


educational needs



• draw on best practice, national and international, in the development of the

guidelines















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2.14 Summary

The report concluded that questions about whether there is a separate special education

pedagogy are unhelpful given the current policy context, and that the more important agenda is

about how to develop a pedagogy that is inclusive of all learners. The report considers how the

strategies identified from the review as having the potential to raise achievement might be

usefully organised in a typology that could be used to create a multi-method response to teaching

pupils with special educational needs.

The report contains recommendations for further research. A second phase of this

research programme should involve systematic, long-term development work across a range of

sites and settings, which also allows for the examination of the impact of the innovations upon

achievement. Such research is necessary to advance knowledge about teaching and learning, and

to understand how combinations of teaching approaches might be used in different contexts and

for different purposes. Such a research programme should examine teaching and learning in real

settings as it will need to take account of the ways in which teachers do their work in relation to

the wide variety of situations they face.


1. Explain Aligning The Goals Of Curriculum With The Apsn Vision

2. Explain Desired Outcomes

3. Explain Apsn Curriculum Development Process

4. Explain Features Of Revised Syllabuses

5. Explain Three Major Emphasis For The Education Of The Mildly

Intellectual Disabled

6. Explain Core Subjects

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7. Explain Some Promising Teaching Strategies And Approaches

8. Explain Tips For Teachers: Mental Retardation

9. Explain Designing Instruction.


11. Explain Teaching Differently To Make A Difference


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2.16 References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.











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Unit 3: Curriculum Domains - Personal, Social, Academics, Recreational

And Community Living

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Personal Management Strand

3.3 Communication Domain

3.4 Social Domain

3.5 Communication

3.6 Independent Living Domain

3.7 Technology/ Computer Skills Strand

3.8 Summary


3.10 References

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3.1 Introduction

Career development is a lifelong, ongoing process through which learners integrate their

personal, family, school, and community learning experiences to facilitate career and lifestyle

choices (Cahill, 2001). Career entails the totality of one’s life experiences over one’s lifespan

and career development refers to the factors and influences that help shape one’s life story

(Career Development 2201 Curriculum Guide, p.1) Career education should be considered

learning for life rather than learning for school. It ought to be a planned process, designed and

delivered in a holistic rather than fragmented manner that attends to all needs of the individual

with the aim to facilitate good mental health, as well as economic well-being. The best career

exploration programs are developmental, linking learning to life.

In short, career education is viewed as the totality of life’s experiences through which an

individual learns about, prepares, and engages in work. This means that the career development

domain does not stand alone within a functional curriculum. Rather, many of the outcomes of the

career domain also appear in the domains of personal management/interpersonal skills,

independent living, functional academic development. It is vital that we look at these similar

outcomes through the lens of career if students are to be educated and supported in this domain.

Career development is divided into three strands:

Personal Management

Career Exploration and Awareness

Career Preparation and Experience

These strands, like the functional curriculum strands, are inter-related and supportive of each

other. As well, outcomes for these three strands can be found in many strands of the other

domains. For example, the functional skills identified for building relationships and those

outlined in the citizenship strand of this domain are similar to the outcomes of the social

development strand of the personal development/interpersonal skills domain. Therefore, the

outcomes listed below for all strands under the career development domain are not extensive in

nature as many of the outcomes are found in other strands in each of the other domains. As

mentioned earlier in this guide, some outcomes are not exclusive to one strand or one domain;

rather, they are imbedded across a number of domains. Offered below are just some of the

outcomes that fit within the career development domain.

63

3.2 Personal Management Strand The purpose of the personal management strand is to enable students to develop skills

conducive to keeping a job and being a productive member of society. Any career development

program designed to educate and prepare students for work has personal management skills as its

foundation. These personal management skills provide a bridge between behaviours in the

classroom, the community, and on-the-job that are conducive to being a productive member of

society.

The importance of social relationships, friendships, school community and work to a

person’s quality of life cannot be overemphasized. To deny students these essential components

is, in essence, to deny them the opportunity to live a rich, full life. It is critical that educators

address these issues as part of the curriculum. It is particularly important that educators focusing

on career education build meaningful, collaborative relationships with parents, families and

community members (Wehmyer, 2002).

Personal Management includes themes such as managing behaviour and conduct, social

skills, sensory awareness and management, self-awareness, self-esteem, personal safety, time

management, building relationships, citizenship, self-advocacy, organization and personal

hygiene.

Personal Management Strand

Functional Skills Outcomes

Managing Behaviour and Conduct

Student will:

recognize appropriate social and workplace boundaries

call to report absence

understand the importance of consistent attendance

consistently attend school or work

have an understanding of work expectations and responsibilities

accept constructive criticism

accept and correct errors

take responsibility for own actions

accept the consequences of own actions

64

understand what casual dress means in the workplace

Social Skills

Student will:

recognize the needs of others

exhibit empathy for others

make eye contact

initiate conversation

share with others

complete a task which involves another person

use socially appropriate greetings

use socially appropriate language

understand socially inappropriate behaviour (e.g., hands in pants, fingers in nose or mouth,

hitting, throwing, spitting)

demonstrate appropriate telephone skills

Sensory Awareness and Management

Student will:

demonstrate an awareness of sensory needs

choose strategy to address sensory needs

use strategy to address sensory needs

learn several strategies to address specific sensory needs

independently choose appropriate strategy to address sensory need when a number of choices are

presented

independently use appropriate strategies to address specific sensory needs in many environments

apply self-regulation of sensory needs

Self-awareness

Student will:

recognize his/her likes and dislikes

65

communicate his/her likes and dislikes

recognize personal strengths

communicate personal strengths

recognize personal needs

communicate personal needs

recognize emotional strengths

* refer to self- awareness/self-esteem strand in the personal development/interpersonal skills domain for

additional outcomes

Self-esteem

Student will:

identify positive characteristics of self

recognize his/her place in the family

identify how family members show that they care for him/her

identify how he/she contributes to the family

recognize friend connections

identify how friends show that they care for him/her

identify how he/she shows caring for friends

recognize ways he/she is a good friend

recognize that he/she can do things

talk about what he/she does well

recognize ways he/she is helpful to neighbours

identify ways her/she contributes to the community

identify things he/she is proud of

* refer to self- awareness/self-esteem strand in personal development/interpersonal skills domain for

additional outcomes

Personal Safety

Student will:

identify safety, survival, directional, and environmental signs (e.g., exit, wheelchair, washroom, slippery

floor, hard hats).

identify WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System) signs

66

follow safety rules specific to their work environment (e.g., safety check list)

remain in designated work zones

recognize and appropriately respond to environmental cues (e.g., fire alarms, sirens)

Time Management

Student will:

arrive on time for school or work

leave on time from school or work

be punctual for meetings, classes, etc

be punctual for activities

demonstrate an understanding of time management at school, home and work

identify tips for organization of time at home,

identify tips for organization of time at school

identify tips for organization of time at work

demonstrate knowledge of beginning and ending of a task

know when to move from one activity to another

keep a daily schedule

learn to create a ‘to-do list’

* refer to the social development strand in personal development/interpersonal skills domain for

additional outcomes

Building Relationships

Student will:

respond to a social greeting

vocalize in response to attention

reciprocate greetings and farewells

say name during introductions

engage in socially appropriate behaviours in the work place

talk about subject matter appropriate to the situation

initiate group activities and conversations

identify the qualities of a friend

identify a friend in the work place

67

identify ways to make and keep friendships

identify how one’s personal behaviours affect others

* refer to social development strand in personal development/interpersonal skills domain for additional

outcomes

Citizenship

Student will:

develop community awareness

know name of his/her community

state his/her own address

identify ways to take care of his/her community

give examples of appropriate ways to dispose of waste in his/her community

understand the importance of recycling

identify ways people can help keep the environment clean

demonstrate awareness of community services for homeless and neglected animals

give examples of poaching

identify community services to meet specific needs (e.g., health agencies, leisure and recreation

services, fire department)

* refer to the citizenship strand in personal development/interpersonal skills domain for additional

outcome

Self-advocacy

Student will:

identify activities he/she would like to do

identify activities he/she has no interest in doing

communicate his/her personal needs to another individual

express the desire to participate in making decisions about himself/herself

recognize the right to speak out and be heard about issues concerning himself/herself

identify his/her right to services

speak out about his/her right to services

68

identify people to speak with if his/her rights are being violated

demonstrate an understanding of the right to citizenship and community involvement

Organization

Student will:

recognize and care for personal belongings

recognize personal work space and the work space of others

keep an accurate record of work (e.g., punch clock, check list)

recognize task completion

recognize beginning and end of task

recognize time limits on task

recognize start and finish times

recognize when to move from one task to another

recognize a schedule

read a schedule

follow a schedule

participate in the development of a schedule

use appropriate technology to complete a task (e.g., on/off switch)

Personal Hygiene

Student will:

recognize the importance of presenting a clean appearance in the workplace

identify behaviours inappropriate to the workplace and in the presence of others (e.g., hands in

pants, fingers in nose)

use napkin to clean hands and face after eating

brush teeth after a snack or a meal

wash hands after using washroom facilitates

do not talk about body functions in the presence of co-workers

cover nose with a tissue when sneezing

clean up own work place and eating area

69

recognize appropriate social and workplace boundaries

* refer to personal care strand of personal development domain for additional outcomes

3.3 Communication Domain Today methodologies, specific to each type and degree of disability have been

developed/made available as part and parcel of an integrated educational system to aid

communication, support activities of daily living and to enhance learning. Computer-assisted

instruction can help in many areas, including word recognition, mathematics, spelling and even

social skills. Computers have also been found to promote interaction with nondisabled peers.

Staff training and service providing organizations are enabled, both in government or non-

government sectors, to develop programs beginning from early detection/intervention to adult

independent living by means of audio-visual presentations, education satellite communication

network, available freely and in local languages. Distance mode education programs have also

been made accessible through this communication system.

The distance mode of education provided by Indira Gandhi National Open University

(IGNOU), the Rehabilitation Council of India with M.P. Bhoj Open University, Centre for

Advanced Computing (C-DAC) provide quality educational material in all the local languages, a

commendable national initiative. Technology is available in local languages, though not yet, at

low cost or no cost. Based on the socio-economic need and the affordability of the persons with

disability, many more products of utility in the public domain need to be made available on large

scale.

3.4 Social Domain

The Social and Emotional Behavior Domain focuses on working in groups and developing

interpersonal relationships. Functioning effectively in formal and informal group situations

requires that individuals understand the implicit and explicit rules and expectations. Using

effective interpersonal skills is the key to success in this area.

Social Skills

Social skills can be broadly defined as any responses that are interactive with another person.

Many of the personal care, home living, community and employment skills are interactive. Some

70

social skills are more specifically related to influencing others and developing friendships. There

are four primary social interactions that should be addressed:

• social initiation

• social responsiveness to others

• turn taking

• duration of social interaction

Planning for Problem Behavior

A functional assessment is a process used to determine how problem behavior functions in the

student’s environment. A successful functional assessment will provide:

• an operational definition of the behavior

• identification of variables that will predict when the behavior will occur

• hypotheses about the consequences that are maintaining the behavior

• verification of the predictors and consequences

A functional assessment is key to behavior change. The information gathered from a functional

assessment is used to develop a positive behavioral support plan that will rely primarily on

antecedent strategies to prevent the occurrence of the problem behavior.

3.5 Communication Communication skills are among the top priorities for students with developmental

disabilities. Effective communication skills enable students to express their thoughts and needs

and respond to interactions with others. To be able to communicate with peers facilitates social

interactions in all settings. Without an effective means of communication, individuals with

moderate and severe disabilities are not able to make choices and therefore relinquish control of

their daily lives. Knowing how to participate in discussions and conversations with others will

enable students to make effective use of communication. Competencies related to

communication and language are also described in the curriculum and leaning environment and

social and emotional behavior domains of the Sunshine State Standards for Special Diploma.

3.6 Independent Living Domain Gaining independence at home, at school, in the community and/or in the workplace is central to

the development of self-reliance, confidence and daily functioning in society. Independence

71

provides opportunities to interact and participate in daily activities that would otherwise be quite

limited. Promoting independence starts in the pre-school years and continues throughout life.

The focus of curriculum in relation to independent living will change as the student matures and

reflects level of cognitive and physical functioning. It is important for students to be able to meet

their potential and not be restricted by dependence on others in whatever choices they make

throughout their lives. The transfer of independent living skills to everyday functioning is vital in

order to become a self-sufficient and contributing member of society.

The strands of the Independent Living Domain include:

Personal Care

Domestic Skills

Money Skills

Safety Skills

Personal Care Strand

Being able to take care of one’s needs not only enhances independence

but, in the process of learning these skills, it can provide many

opportunities for the person to exercise self-determination. These skills,

primarily in the areas of grooming and personal hygiene, eating and

drinking, dressing and undressing, toileting, orientation/mobility/travel

and assistive technology, are considered to be among the most important

skills for individuals with severe needs. The acquisition of these skills

enhances self-esteem, self-confidence and the development of

independence. Personal Care Strand


72

Grooming and Personal Hygiene

Student will:

turn water on

turn water off

regulate water temperature

wash hands

dry hands

soap a washcloth

wash face

dry face

brush teeth

use mouthwash

use dental floss

comb hair

brush hair

use hairstyling products

style hair

blow nose into tissue

dispose of tissue

use mirror to assure daily neatness

fill a bath tub

take a bath

shampoo and rinse hair

condition and rinse hair

take a shower

wash hair

towel dry hair

dry hair with blow dryer

demonstrate basic eye care

use (unscented) deodorant

comply with scent free environment

73

clean eyeglasses

keep nails clean

keep nails trimmed

polish nails

tweeze eyebrows

apply makeup

follow shaving routine

follow menstrual hygiene routine

recognize appropriate/inappropriate grooming

identify when to make an appointment for a hair cut, medical

check up, etc.

take necessary steps to obtain an appointment

explore hairstyles and communicate to hairdresser

Eating and Drinking

Student will:

indicate the need/want for food

request specific foods or snacks

eat finger foods

drink through a straw

drink from a cup

chew foods

keep mouth closed while chewing

identify eating utensils

use a spoon

use a fork

use a knife

use a napkin

use salt and pepper shaker

stir foods

pour a drink

74

pour solid foods

open food containers

close food containers

obtain food from serving containers

drink from a water fountain

ask for food

refuse food

indicate when full

remain at the table throughout a meal.

Dressing and Undressing

Student will:

initiate undressing activity

initiate some dressing activity

identify articles of clothing by name

identify the function of articles of clothing

75

put on hat

take off hat

put on socks

take off socks

remove footwear

put on footwear

put on mittens and gloves

remove mittens and gloves

remove coat

put on coat

hang up coat

put on a pullover shirt

put on pull-up pants

distinguish front and back of clothing

identify when clothing is inside out and correct

remove articles of clothing at appropriate times

straighten and adjust clothing items

unsnap a garment

snap a garment

unzip a garment

zip a garment

unbutton a garment

button a garment

untie clothing

tie clothing

insert a belt in loops

unfasten a belt

fasten a belt

take belt out of loops of pants

tie shoelaces

lace shoes

76

put on tights and panty hose

remove tights and panty hose

put on and remove a bra

put on a pre-tied necktie

remove a necktie

tie a necktie

choose and wear accessories

use a purse or wallet

choose clothing appropriate to given situation, weather and/or activity

select clothing that matches and/or “goes together”

select own clothing items

ensure privacy when dressing and undressing

put on clothing correctly

name own clothing size and shoe size

Toileting

Student will:

indicate the need to change wet/soiled pants

recognize the need to use the washroom

indicate the need to go to or be taken to the washroom

understand difference between needing to urinate and needing to have a bowel movement

ensure privacy when using the washroom

ensure toilet paper on roll

use a toilet for urine

use a urinal

use a toilet for bowel movements

use toilet paper

flush the toilet after every use

77

put toilet seat down after using

wash and dry hands after toileting

exhibit bladder control

exhibit bowel control

identify washroom signs (i.e. male/female)

identify where the washroom is located in school

locate the appropriate washroom in unfamiliar places

use community bathroom facilities

care for toileting needs independently

plan ahead for bathroom needs

Orientation, Mobility, and Travel

Student will:

sit in a wheelchair

move the wheelchair forward

move to the left in a wheelchair

move to the right in a wheelchair

stop the motion of a wheelchair

move the wheelchair in a backward motion

push/pull a door while in a wheelchair

open/close a door while in a wheelchair

control speed of wheelchair when moving up or down a ramp

transition in and out of wheelchair with support

stand upright using a walker

walk forward using a walker

turn to the left using a walker

turn to the right using a walker

walk around an object using a walker

walk backward using a walker

walk through a doorway using a walker

78

push/pull a door while using a walker

open/close a door while using a walker

negotiate stairs using a walker

transition from sitting to walker

demonstrate safe outdoor travel skills (i.e., using a walker, wheelchair)

demonstrate safe indoor travel skills (i.e., using a walker, wheelchair)

walk up and down a staircase

leave vehicle and enter the school

leave school and enter the vehicle

demonstrate use of a crosswalk

understand simple traffic signs (i.e., walk, don’t walk)

manoeuvre around classroom

maneuver around school grounds

use motorized wheelchair

use elevators

use escalators

use revolving doors

use automatic doors

follow directions to arrive at a destination

travel to one destination in neighbourhood

travel to more than one destination in neighbourhood

cross a street and intersection safely

plan a travel route in school and community

physically locate self in specific areas relevant to daily schedule inside/outside of the building

identify modes of transportation for moving people from place to place

locate entrances/exists/restrooms in public buildings

use public transportation

Assistive Technology

Student will:

Computer Access

79

use key guard

use arm support

use track ball/track pad/joystick with on-screen keyboard

use alternate keyboard

use pointing options

use switch with Morse code

use switch with scanning

use voice recognition software

use word prediction software

use a screen magnifier

Writing

use pencil or pen with adaptive grip

use adapted paper

use slant board

use prewritten words/phrases

use templates

use computer software

Recreation/Leisure

use toys adapted with Velcro, magnets, handles, etc. use toys for single switch operation

use adaptive sporting equipment use universal cuff or strap to hold crayons, markers, etc.

use modified utensils use arm support for drawing/painting use electronic aids to control

TV, VCR, CD player, etc.

use software to complete art activities

use computer games

Activities of Daily Living

80

use non-slip materials to hold things in place

use universal cuff/strap to hold items in hand

use color coded items for easier locating and identifying

use adaptive eating devices

use adaptive drinking devices

use adaptive dressing equipment

use adaptive devices for hygiene

use adaptive bathing devices

use adaptive equipment for cooking

use light switch extension

use interface and switch to activate battery operated devices

use interface and switch to turn on electrical appliances

Positioning, Seating and Mobility

use standard seat at correct height and depth

use non-solid surface on standard seat to prevent slipping

use bolster, rolled towel, blocks to assist in positioning

use adapted chair, sidelyer, stander

use alternate chair, sidelyer, stander, custom fitted wheelchair or insert

use walker

use grab bars and rails

use manual wheelchair

use powered mobility toy

use powered scooter or cart

use powered wheelchair with joystick or other control

Vision and Hearing

use glasses

use magnifier

use large print books

use screen magnification software

use screen color contrast

81

use enlarged or tactile labels for keyboard

use alternate keyboard with enlarged keys

use hearing aids

store leftovers properly

wash and dry dishes by hand or dishwasher

prepare a bagged lunch

identify and sort food items that are refrigerated

identify and sort food items that are non-refrigerated

identify the materials and ingredients necessary to prepare various foods

observe the function of basic kitchen appliances, tools, and utensils

illustrate why food must be properly stored and prepared

identify basic terms used in food preparation

use simple electric appliances

prepare foods using a stove top

prepare foods using an oven

prepare foods using a microwave

use an outdoor grill

identify basic liquid and solid measures

follow instructions on cans or boxes of packaged foods

follow written and/or verbal directions to prepare a recipe

Shopping

Student will:

indicate need for specific items before going shopping

indicate where to purchase item

use flyers to make a shopping list

make shopping list

shop for items

select items in store from shopping list

exhibit appropriate behaviour in stores

82

locate products in different areas of stores

identify salesperson

request assistance from a salesperson when needed

use shopping cart

use shopping basket

buy an item

pay for item prior to leaving store

keep the receipt of item purchased

understand how to return an item to the store

verbalize information about types of stores

Housekeeping

Student will:

empty garbage

change garbage bag

clean garbage can

identify recyclable materials

dispose of recyclable materials in proper place

sweep floor

83

mop floor

wash and rinse dishes

dry dishes

operate dishwasher correctly

sort and put away utensils

put away dishes

clean sink

clear and wipe counter

wipe appliance surfaces

clean refrigerator

clean freezer

clean an oven

make bed

change the bedding

hang pictures, mirrors or curtains

put dirty clothes in hamper

hang clean clothes in closet

put clean clothes in drawer

pick up personal items

put items on a shelf

clean and organize a closet

water household plants

use a vacuum cleaner

vacuum carpet/rug

use common household cleaning products

dust furniture

polish furniture

clean windows and mirrors

clean bathtub/shower

clean toilet

clean sink

84

clean windows

clean walls and woodwork

hang towel/facecloth on rack

replace bathroom supplies when needed

perform simple yard work

use yard tools

water a lawn and outdoor plants

Laundry and Clothing Care

Student will:

identify dirty clothing items

distinguish between dirty and clean clothing

put dirty clothing in a basket

collect clothing for washing

sort the clothing for washing

use the care label for simple directions

demonstrate safe and proper use of cleaning supplies for clothes

identify stains

understand stain removal methods

understand temperature of water

hand wash clothing items

set dials on a washing machine

use a washing machine

remove clothes from washer

put clothes into the dryer

operate a clothes dryer

hang clothes on line to dry

fold clothes

hang clothes on hangers

85

hang clothes on bar in closet

put clothes in drawer

iron clothes

store out of season clothing

use a sewing machine

use a needle and thread

sew on a button

do a simple mend

use a laundromat

use a commercial dry cleaner

First Aid

Student will:

recognize when first aid treatment is required

describe symptoms to an adult

ask for help

clean a simple scrape, cut, etc.

put on a band-aid

treat a burn

take temperature with thermometer

take medication with supervision

self-medicate (e.g., aspirin)

identify first aid kit and its contents

follow an emergency plan

call 911 for an emergency

Telephone Skills

Student will:

recognize components of telephone

recognize use of telephone

associate written telephone numbers with appropriate numbers on telephone pad

86

manipulate the telephone receiver

manipulate telephone dial pad

make a telephone call

hold a brief telephone conversation

answer telephone

terminate telephone conversation

use several types of telephones (i.e. cell, cordless, pay phone)

carry home a telephone number (on a card)

recite own telephone number from memory

recognize a busy signal

relay simple telephone messages

record a telephone message

use telephone for social calls

understand long distance calling

make an emergency telephone call

87

identify emergency telephone list

Home Maintenance

Student will:

define the word “maintenance”

make a list of maintenance problems which occur frequently in the home (e.g., leaking faucet,

short in electrical cord)

construct a bulletin board of common household tools used in maintenance

demonstrate the appropriate use of basic tools

decide which tools to use and how to use them to complete simple home repairs, (e.g., tightening a

screw, using a hammer)

develop a scrapbook depicting appropriate use of tools

visit a hardware store or tool center; review basic tools and how they are used

develop a “go-together” game (e.g., hammer goes with nails; screwdriver goes with screws)

identify who is responsible to perform various maintenance problems

replace light bulbs

check and replace batteries in smoke detector

hang a picture

7.3 Money Skills Strand

Money is an integral part of everyday life. Learning to use money in meeting basic needs is an

important step towards independence. Themes related to money skills include purchasing,

budgeting, planning and banking.

Money Skills Strand


88

Purchasing

Student will:

indicate desire to make a purchase

identify that a purchase needs to be made

recognize the need to have money for purchasing items

recognize that items in a store have different values

identify different coins and bills

make choices about a purchase

locate the check out

ask store clerk for assistance

use manners when making a purchase

identify cashier

place items on counter

give money to cashier

accept change and/or receipt

take purchased items

use vending machine to make a purchase

Budgeting & Planning

Student will:

save money to make a specific purchase

plan purchases for an activity

estimate the amount of money for a purchase

identify amount of money for purchase

give examples of recurring needs for a budget

set priorities to make future purchases

save money for later purchases

estimate amount of money required for purchase

participate in discussion on when to use money

keep a record of allowance or income

keep a simple record of expenditures

prepare a simple budget for a period of time (week, month, etc)

89

pay monthly bills

Banking

Student will:

describe common procedures at a bank

open a bank account

endorse a cheque

deposit cash/cheques using counter service inside a bank

write a cheque

use a debit card

withdraw cash using counter service inside a bank

use an ATM machine to deposit cash/cheques

use an ATM machine to withdraw cash

pay a bill at a bank

demonstrate skills for banking by telephone

participate in discussion of how much money is in their account

participate in discussion on what to use their money for

demonstrate privacy issues regarding banking (i.e., PIN #)

identify persons responsible for safety in the community

− follow safety practices associated with the Internet

3.7 Technology/ Computer Skills Strand Technology and computer skills can provide an individual with a sense of empowerment when

used to enhance skills in mobility, communication, learning, play, daily living, etc. This strand

focuses on skills involved in learning to use common-place and student specific devices for

90

functional or recreational purposes. Themes within this strand include computer skills,

keyboarding, using the Internet and using common technological devices.

3.8 Summary Technological advances in general education and more so in special education is of recent

occurrence. The Department of Education launched a pilot project on computer literacy in 1985

in a number of regular schools. Presently in a number of States, regular school education

includes computer literacy as part of curriculum (Dutta, 1986).

Word processor programs in Indian languages have been developed for wider reach. Production

of adapted peripherals and add-on devices with indigenously developed software are rapidly

increasing to suit the need of the persons with disabilities.

3.9 Check Your Progress 1. Explain Personal Management Strand

2. Explain Communication domain

3. Explain Social domain

4. Explain COMMUNICATION

5. Explain Independent Living Domain

6. Explain Technology/ Computer Skills Strand


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

95







6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





97


















31st – Sept 3rd.













98






















Office.











99












31st – Sept 3rd.










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101

Unit 4: Steps In Developing Curriculum, Challenges Of Developing

Curriculum For Inclusion

4.1 Introduction



4.4 Inclusive Education

4.5 Inclusive Preschool !

4.6 Curriculum Guidelines: Outline Of The Framework

4.7 Enabling Skills

4.8 Life Skills

4.9 Elaboration Of The Key Learning Areas

4.10 Communication And Language

4.11 Adapting Curriculum For Children With Retardation

4.12 Curricular Issues And Concerns

4.12.1 The Purpose

4.12.2 Early Intervention And Preschool Programme For Children

With Sen

4.12.3 Planning And Managing An Inclusive Curriculum In Schools

4.12.4 Access To An Inclusive Curriculum

4.12.5 Teaching Practices

4.12.6 Content Areas

102

4.12.7 Staff Development

4.13 Summary


4.15 References

103

4.1 Introduction

For the purpose of this document, inclusion is defined as providing specially designed

instruction and supports for students with special needs in the context of regular education

settings. It means that all students in a schoolÕs attendance area are full members of that school

community and each student participates equitably in the opportunities and responsibilities of the

general education environment. Those involved in inclusion efforts understand that classrooms

are becoming more and more diverse and that the teacherÕs job is Òto arrange instruction that

benefits all studentsÐeven though the various students may derive different benefitsÓ (Rogers,

1993, p. 4). Past assumptions about special education and general education as separate systems

are giving way to a challenge to work together (Moore, 1996). After looking extensively at the

research on placement of students with disabilities, Hocutt (1996) concludes that instruction, not

setting, is the key to achievement of success as measured by student outcomes. Further, she

reports that case-by-case approaches are the best way to make decisions about student instruction

and placement. Intensive and reasonably individualized instruction, close cooperation between

general and special education teachers, and careful, frequent monitoring of student progress are

very important (p. 97). Special education is not a place. It is specialized instruction and

supplementary aids and services provided to students with disabilities who need specialized

instruction. Some students (labeled as receiving special education or not) may need, or want, to

spend some of their time learning in a quieter place with fewer people or with additional help

from others. The vignettes that are placed throughout this booklet illustrate how special

education services are being delivered in more inclusive ways in actual schools and classrooms

in Alaska and Oregon. ÒInclusionÓ looks different in each case. The vignettes demonstrate

some of the salient features of good inclusion. At the conclusion of the document resources are

available that may help you as you work toward quality special education in Alaska.


Initially the NCCA will focus on the development of curriculum guidelines for students

with general learning disabilities at both primary and post-primary levels. Three broad groups are

identified for this initial phase. These groups are the largest numerically and are catered for in

the broadest range of settings.

104

The NCCA Special Education Steering Committee proposes to

• develop curriculum guidelines for students with mild general learning disability

• review and develop the existing provision for students with moderate general learning disability

• develop curriculum guidelines for students with severe and profound general learning

disability.

The following structures have been established by the NCCA to develop curriculum guidelines

for these three groups:

• a widely representative steering committee (appendix II)

• three working groups, which will identify the essential skills and processes required to provide

broad curriculum opportunities and experiences for students in the three specified areas. Each

working group comprises teachers, parents, and a representative from the Department of

Education and Science. (appendix III). Structures have been established to ensure wide

consultation with other relevant and interested parties.



This strategy will


educational needs



• draw on best practice, national and international, in the development of the guidelines










105











4.4 Inclusive Education

The National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE) (2000), brought out

by the NCERT, recommended inclusive schools for all without specific reference to pupils with

SEN as a way of providing quality education to all learners According to NCFSE:

Segregation or isolation is good neither for learners with disabilities nor for general learners

without disabilities. Societal requirement is that learners with special needs should be educated

along with other learners in inclusive schools, which are cost effective and have sound

pedagogical practices (NCERT, 2000)

The NCFSE also recommended definitive action at the level of curriculum makers,

teachers, writers of teaching–learning materials, and evaluation experts for the success of this

strategy. This precipitated a revision of the IEDC scheme. This revision is in progress and has, to

a certain extent, gained ground in the country. Internationally, until the end of 1980s, integration

remained the main issue whenever discussions were held regarding the rights of disabled persons

to an appropriate education. Whereas, in India, integration was a major reform of the 1970s, the

need for inclusive education became evident from the fact that despite complete financial support

under the IEDC scheme, for integrating learners with special needs into the educational system,

only 2–3% of the total population of these learners was actually integrated into the regular

schools. Dissatisfaction with the progress towards integration, consideration of costs involved,

and the advantages of an inclusive environment in bringing about increased acceptance of

learners with SEN, led to demands for more radical change. The constant use of the medical

106

model of assessment, wherein educational difficulties are explained solely in terms of defects in

the child, led to a re-conceptualisation of the special needs (SN) task as requiring school reforms

and improved pedagogy. This re-conceptualisation at the both the international and national level

helped in the emergence of an orientation towards inclusive education. In the 1990s, inclusion

captured the field after the World Conference on Special Needs Education in Salamanca in 1994,

with the adoption of the Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs

Education. This statement, which was adopted by the representatives of 92 governments and 25

international organisations in June 1994, has definitely set the policy agenda for inclusive

education on a global basis (UNESCO, 1994). To quote from the Salamanca Statement:

We the delegates of the World Conference on Special Needs Education…hereby reaffirm our

commitment to Education for All, recognising the necessity and urgency of providing education

to children, youth, and adults with SEN within the regular education system, and further hereby

endorse the Framework for Action on SNE, that governments and organisations may be guided

by the spirit of its provisions and recommendations (UNESCO, 1994: 8)

Though, in India, there is no formal or official definition of inclusion, it does not only mean the

placement of students with SEN in regular classrooms.

The Draft Scheme on Inclusive Education prepared

4.5 Inclusive Preschool !

School A is from Nursery to Class X, with two to three sections per class. It has about

800 students. It employs both English and Hindi as the medium of instruction and has a

maximum of 30 students per class.

If you visit the nursery school, you will find children playing, learning, and having fun.

You will observe children with SEN in each class. The SEN are because of intellectual, hearing,

and vision impairments and neuromuscular and attention deficits disorders. But they are so well

integrated in the group that one cannot identify them from the rest. If you talk to the teacher

about inclusion of such children in the class, you will hear her say that they are like any other

children. How has this happened?

This has happened very naturally. For example, when a teacher spotted a child not

singing along with other children, she asked the child to stand next to her and repeat the rhyme

along with her, while she prompted him. By a happy coincidence, the student trainees of the

107

Diploma in Early Childhood Education were carrying out teaching practice at that very school.

The trainees discussed the strategies that could be adopted for enhancing the participation of

children in learning process, and the teachers’ realised the relevance of these strategies in the

education of children with SEN and incorporated them in their own practice.

Thus, they began using three-dimensional teaching–learning materials, masks, and puppets for

storytelling, using classmates as a peer tutors during rhymes, games, and the like. This new

approach proved a rewarding experience and promoted close bonding among the students in each

class.

By virtue of this experience, the school has adopted an open policy for admissions to its Nursery

class.

The teachers have no hesitation in accepting children with SEN, and the peer group readily

welcomes them. by the MHRD (2003) uses the following definition:

Inclusive education means all learners, young people—with or without disabilities being able to

learn together in ordinary preschool provisions, schools, and community educational settings

with appropriate network of support services (Draft of

Inclusive Education Scheme, MHRD, 2003) .

Inclusion means the process of educating children with SEN alongside their peers in mainstream

schools.

The feasibility of inclusion of such children in schools, however, has been an issue that has been

discussed and debated extensively at various national and international fora.

Inclusion remains a complex and controversial issue which tends to generate heated debates…

there is a great deal of uncertainty about the definition of inclusion… it is difficult to find

research evidence that can provide definitive guidance as to where policy and practice should be

heading…. In this climate some schools express increasing reluctance to admit and retain pupils

whose presence could have a negative impact on their overall profile of results…there is a

growing movement in education towards differentiated provision—a trend that seems

incompatible with an inclusive philosophy

4.6 Curriculum Guidelines: Outline Of The Framework

International experience has shown that developing curricula for students with special

educational needs is particularly challenging. Curricular provision, both in content and

108

methodologies, should minimise rather than emphasise difference while at the same time

facilitating integration in mainstream education where this is appropriate.

Moreover, those involved in special education, either in mainstream or in special schools, need a

common vocabulary with which to describe the educational experiences of students and to

facilitate communication between parents, teachers, and other professionals.

The guidelines developed to cater for students with mild, moderate and severe and profound

general learning disabilities will be flexible enough to be accessed by a broad variety of school

and class types. They will allow for choice and have a practical life-skills orientation that

addresses both the present and the future needs of the student. They will also address assessment

issues with a view to providing an accurate record of the student’s cognitive and attitudinal

strengths and to identifying clearly opportunities for future learning.

The curriculum guidelines will incorporate the development of key skills within broad content

areas. Cross-curricular skills will be developed within an enabling curriculum that is oriented

towards life skills. There will be a continuum of curricular provision that recognises and

addresses students’ appropriate levels of achievement and takes due account of needs, ability and

age-appropriateness. The guidelines will be adaptable for use in different circumstances and be

capable of extension and refinement.

The structure will cover broad areas of content but take into account the fact that the child is an

individual whose age and developmental stage must be considered. The importance of early

work in language and communication, preacademic skills, life skills and enabling skills will be

emphasised. Strategies for long-term and short-term planning will be incorporated, and authentic,

performance-based assessment and review will be seen as an integral part of the teaching and

learning process.

4.5.1 Structure

The structure of the curriculum guidelines will include:

• broad principles and aims of education for students with general learning disabilities

• the identification of realistic, time-referenced targets

• the use of individualised education programmes

• the use of a variety of assessment tools

• lines of development in the skills areas, with short exemplars illustrating how they can be

developed

109

• new content and linkage points to national curricula at both primary and post-primary levels

where appropriate

• whole-school and classroom planning approaches that will facilitate schools and teachers in

developing and implementing an appropriate education policy for students with special

educational needs

• a range of multi-disciplinary approaches in the education of students with special educational

needs.

When students reach post-primary level, those capable of participating in mainstream post-

primary curricula for certification can do so. For those who require more specialised provision it

is suggested that appropriate use of the structure of the Junior Cycle areas of experience could

provide such a framework.

The proposed curriculum guidelines for students with general learning disabilities will

encompass the following:

110

*At primary level the development of a curriculum for religious education remains the

responsibility of the various church authorites.

4.6 Key Skills As Developmental Processes There are particular skills that enhance lifelong learning. For students with general

learning disabilities, these skills must be frequently reinforced. The student must be enabled to

use them in many different circumstances and to see their relevance in real-life situations.

Progress, however small, must always be recognised and valued. The skills will be developed

through age-appropriate content, methodologies and approaches. The three curriculum guidelines

will elaborate on this development, from their earliest applications to their use in education,

employment, and leisure.

111

Each area will be developed on a continuum, but individual schools and teachers will take

account of the age and ability of individual students in their own planning.

4.7 Enabling Skills These skills underlie all areas of a student’s education. For students whose interaction

with their environment is in the early stages, an appreciation of causality (cause and effect) and

means-end behaviour is essential. The ability to exert control over the environment is an

underlying aim of the curriculum guidelines.

Certain skills are essential to all learning: these include attending, responding, and interacting. At

the earliest stages they include the ability to attend and to use the senses in order to become

aware of the presence of people and objects in the immediate environment. These can be

developed to encompass

• responding to and interacting with people and objects

• social interaction with others

• taking part in group activities

• focusing on tasks

• understanding, collecting and organising information.

The main purpose of developing these skills is to enable the student to become an independent

learner who can use these skills in both leisure and work activities.

4.8 Life Skills Life skills are those that cross the boundaries of subjects and the school day.

They are essential for all facets of a person’s life and include the following:

Communication skills

These skills range from awareness of people and the environment, making eye contact and using

gesture, signs and symbols to listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

Personal and social skills

These skills range from basic personal hygiene and self-help skills, feeding and dressing,

awareness of own feelings and body, and social interaction with others, both individually and

collectively, to conflict resolution and understanding and dealing with moral issues.

Aesthetic and creative skills

112

The broadening of experience and the raising of levels of awareness to expression through the

visual arts, music and drama and expressing ideas and thoughts in a creative manner are included

in the development of aesthetic and creative skills.

Physical skills

These skills range from basic mobility and positioning and physical activation through an

understanding of spatial awareness, and fine and gross motor skills to specific skills required for

a purpose, for example writing, sports or leisure skills.

Mathematical skills

These are the skills needed to develop sensory awareness, perception of colour, pattern, shape

and position, reaching out, sorting, grouping, and classifying, through to practical problem-

solving involving a variety of mathematical skills and social mathematics, including time and

money.

The following grid elaborates on the continuum of provision in the key learning areas of the

curriculum guidelines. This is followed by a brief outline of the developmental approach that

will be taken in each key learning area.

113

*The review of the Junior Cycle being undertaken by the NCCA suggests that language and

literature may be amended to language, literature and communication and that mathematical

studies be amended to mathematical studies and applications.

114

*At primary level the development of a curriculum for religious education remains the

responsibility of the various church authorities. At post-primary level church authorities offer a

syllabus to schools, but from the year 2000 schools will have the option of a state syllabus for

assessment in the Junior Certificate examination.

4.9 Elaboration Of The Key Learning Areas The detail of the content will be developed at school level as appropriate to the particular

students, but the general vocabulary used to describe the content will be common to all. This will

make planning easier for schools, especially if they have students with complex and diverse

disabilities.

Important issues in the development of the guidelines include:

• the provision of relevant, age-appropriate content, methodologies and approaches that address

both the present and the future needs of the student

• the use of ICT as a cross-curricular tool

• the contexts in which learning takes place, both in schools and in the community

• the incorporation of appropriate, time-referenced objectives, using

individualised education plans where applicable, and the development of continuous and

cumulative forms of assessment and evaluation of progress that stress the unique strengths and

needs of students.


Communication is an essential element of the education of students with general learning

disabilities. Early learning in this area includes sensory, perceptual, physical, social, emotional

and cognitive development directed at enabling the student to make sense of and to interact with

the immediate environment. The ability to gain control over the environment opens up a world of

opportunity for the student. Central to such development is an interactive approach that

stimulates the desire to communicate and acknowledges that every effort to communicate is

valuable.

As in mainstream curricula, the importance of oral language will be pivotal, and the language

needs of children will be seen as central to the development of the oral language programme,

both at school and class levels. An emphasis on the social function of language and the

115

development of a social sight vocabulary, the ability to read for meaning and functional writing

skills will be integral to most students’ education.

Effective assessment of the strengths and needs of the student is an essential factor in developing

a functional means of communication for individual students. The contribution of more than one

discipline may be required, and parents should be involved at all stages.

The framework of the communication curriculum includes the following areas; but other areas

such as developing cognitive abilities through language and emotional and imaginative

development through language will also be included.

Receptiveness to communication

This will range from alerting the student to the immediate environment through stimulation of

the senses, to enabling him or her to understand symbols, hand signs, oral language, and written

language. Perceptual and discrimination activities will bring the students towards an

understanding of symbolic representation and lead to reading both for enjoyment and for

information. Oral language activity in response to listening to stories, to texts read aloud and to

texts read by the student will be directed at developing first the simple comprehension skills and

then some of the higher comprehension skills.

Competence and confidence in communicating

This will begin with the student’s first attempts at reaching out to people and objects and will

then develop towards competence in the use of verbal or nonverbal methods of expressive

communication. Activities for developing understanding of concepts such as object permanence,

causality, purposeful problem-solving, spatial relationships and imitation of actions and sounds

will be suggested. Fine-motor activities that lead to the development of written communication

will also be included.

Strategies for encouraging meaningful written work, which include the use of

ICTs will also be explored. As reading and comprehension skills develop, the child will be

enabled to read and write independently and to use these skills in both functional and

imaginative situations.

4.10 Mathematics (including early mathematical activities)

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Mathematics education provides all students with a wide range of knowledge and skills

that help them to develop an understanding of the physical world and social interactions. It

provides a variety of experiences and opportunities for all students to develop their sensory

awareness and their ability to reach out, to explore and to solve problems and in this way to

comprehend basic mathematical concepts. Exploration and development of the senses through

the use of a wide range of three-dimensional materials will be an important part of this area of

mathematics.

Students should have opportunities to develop the communication skills necessary for the

formation of early mathematical concepts and to use mathematical language accurately.

Play is an essential part of the student’s early mathematical development. He or she should be

given opportunities to develop and apply their early mathematical skills and understanding in

both undirected and structured play.

The social value of mathematical education is of prime importance to students with general

learning disabilities; and activities that encourage the use of social mathematics in real-life

situations and in solving real problems will be included.

For older students, managing money, reading timetables and using functional mathematics will

help their transition to the world of work and leisure.

4.11 Adapting Curriculum For Children With Retardation

A student can be defined as having a mental disability if he/she exhibits certain learning,

social and behavior patterns to a marked extent and over a prolonged period of time. Such

patterns may include:

• A consistently sub-average intellectual level

• Impaired adaptive functioning in such areas as social skills, communication and daily living

skills

• Consistently slow rate of learning and as a result their level of development resembles that of a

younger child

• Delays in most areas of development

Some common characteristics of a mild mental disability that may be observed by the teacher

over a period of time include:

• academic underachievement

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• difficulty with abstract concepts

• difficulty generalizing learned concepts to new situations

• social isolation or withdrawal

• poor social relationships

• anxious and worried, excessive fears and phobias

• easily frustrated even when confronted with a simple task

• resistance to change

• short attention span

However, students who are mildly mentally disabled learn in the same way as normal students.

However, adaptations and a variety of techniques need to be utilized. Consequently, certain

behaviors should be targeted as priorities when dealing with mentally disabled children in the

classroom. These target areas include:

• Functional academics

• General Work Habits

• Career awareness

While the mentally disabled child may exhibit many or all of these areas, the teacher should try

to focus on one area at a time. Patience, fairness, nurturance, humor and a sense of conviction in

maintaining boundaries are all aspects required by the teacher in these situations.

4.12 Curricular Issues And Concerns To make inclusive education possible, and to better accommodate students with different

learning abilities, the present education system, educational structure, and educational practices

need to become more flexible, more inclusive, and more collaborative.

4.12.1 The Purpose The purpose of inclusive education,

• Is NOT the same as for a student without

SEN—that is, it IS NOT to bring students with SEN up to the level of, or maintain their grades at

the same level as, students without SEN.

• It IS to meet the individualised goals of students with SEN, within the context of general

educational settings and activities.

The following questions need to be addressed while making adaptations to the curriculum.

Can a student with SEN participate in the classroom

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• Just like his/her classmates?

• With environmental adaptations?

• With instructional adaptations?

• With adapted materials?

• With adapted expectations?

4.12.2 Early Intervention And Preschool Programme For Children With Sen The identification of SEN of children at an early age is crucial to helping them cope with

challenges in later life. Thus, the sensitisation, orientation, and training of parents, caretakers,

and other stakeholders becomes imperative. As per the NSSO (2003), 8.4% and 6.1% of the total

estimated households in rural and urban

India, respectively, are reported to have at least one disabled person. Therefore, orienting

Anganwadi and

Balwadi workers, caregivers, and institutional authorities in early childhood education

programmes is highly desirable and needs to be built into the ICDS

programme.

The provision of resources and the involvement of the community in identification and

intervention in the child’s own milieu need emphasis and focus. The benefits of existing

knowledge and skills in conjunction with technology can be made to reach the needy through the

involvement of local bodies. For example, the Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for Hearing

Handicapped (AYJNIHH) has played the role of a catalyst at Badlapur Kulgaon Nagar Palika

where the

Town Panchayat has resolved to collect Rs 10 per property per year to help persons with

disabilities. As a result, the Town Panchayat collects about Rs 2,25,000 per year through its

22,500 properties. An Apang Samiti, consisting of Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) schools,

banks, station masters, post masters, etc. was formed which decides the priorities of the PWDs,

including Children with SEN. Empowering the Town

Panchayat through a catalyst can be critical for the success of the Early Identification and

Intervention

Programme. A strong parent/caregiver professional partnership should be developed for the

networking and strengthening of intervention programmes.

119

At the preschool level, a multisensory approach should replace oral and rote learning, facilitate

language learning, develop pre-academic skills, and provide for remedial measures in all areas of

development.

Appropriate diagnostic and remedial assessment should be made available to identify, “at risk”

children.

Already developed curriculum packages (Mohite,

1994) for preschool children in communication skills, self-help skills, social skills, and specific

motor skills may be used. Audio-visual packages for promoting skills in physical, motor,

affective, cognitive, and language development of children “at risk” and with SEN may be

utilised.

4.12.3 Planning And Managing An Inclusive Curriculum In Schools Developing inclusive schools that cater to a wide range of pupils in both urban and rural areas

requires: the articulation of a clear and forceful policy on inclusion together with adequate

financial provision; an effective public information effort to combat prejudice and create

informed and positive attitudes; an extensive

programme of orientation and staff training; and the provision of necessary support services.

Changes in all the following aspects of schooling, as well as many others, are necessary to

contribute to the success of inclusive schools: curriculum, buildings, school

organisation, pedagogy, assessment, staffing, school ethos, and extracurricular activities

[UNESCO, 1994:

21 (The Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs Education)].

An inclusive curriculum means one curriculum for all students rather than a separate curriculum

for students without SEN and another for students with SEN.

According to Quinn and Ryba (2000) an inclusive curriculum is recognition that under the

principle of social justice, participation in education should not involve discrimination on the

basis of gender, ethnicity, indigenous group, socio-economic status, and ability or disability. An

inclusive curriculum, recognises the need that schools be organised, with the individual

differences of students in mind and allow for scope and flexibility to enable all students to

achieve their goals.

Though the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE) (2000) (NCERT,

2000), does mention the education of learners with SEN under the sections “Curriculum

120

Concerns” and “Managing the System”, it does not address the SEN of learners under various

other sections, such as, “Organisation of Curriculum at Elementary and Secondary Stages”,

“Organisation of Curriculum at Higher Secondary Stage”, “Evaluation”, etc. As stated by

Loreman and Deppeler (2001),

Educators are misinformed and confused about inclusion… We believe that inclusion, by its very

nature, cannot exist in environments where some children are educated separately or

substantively differently to their peers. It is perhaps easier to provide examples of what is not

inclusion.

Educating children part time in special schools and part time in regular schools is not inclusion.

Educating children in special, mostly segregated, environments in regular schools is not

inclusion.

Educating children in regular classes, but requiring them to follow substantially different courses

of study in terms of content and learning environment to their peers, is also not inclusion (unless

all children in a class follow individual programmes).

Inclusion means full inclusion of children with diverse abilities in all aspects of schooling that

other children are able to access and enjoy. It involves regular schools and classrooms genuinely

adapting and changing to meet the needs of all children, as well as celebrating and valuing

differences. This definition of inclusion does not imply that children with diverse abilities will

not receive specialized assistance or teaching outside of the classroom when required, but rather

that this is just one of many options that are available to, and in fact required of, all children.

4.12.4 Access To An Inclusive Curriculum Booth (2000) has pointed out that access to education is only the first stage in overcoming the

exclusion of persons with disabilities from the mainstream. More challenging is the task of

bringing about a shift in public perspective and values, so that diversity is cherished.

However, it is difficult to say whether the first barrier has as yet been overcome in our country.

It is believed that the fundamental right to education will bring more pupils with SEN into

ordinary schools, and that this will provide the impetus for change. As stated this will regime a

number of innovations in teaching–learning processes, and will also provide pupils with SEN

access to a full curriculum in appropriate ways. To facilitate this access, it is important to provide

information in Braille, on tape, through sign language, and in simple and straightforward

language.

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Access to the content of the curriculum is further highlighted later in this paper.

4.12.5 Teaching Practices In India, the concept of Inclusive Education has not yet been linked to a broader discussion of

pedagogy (Anita, 2000) and quality education (Taneja, 2001). Any broad reform in education

cannot be implemented without taking the inclusion of learners with SEN into consideration.

In a study on practitioners’ perspectives in some inclusive schools carried out by Singhal and

Rouse

(2003), many teachers who were interviewed stated that:

…there have been no changes in their teaching.

Some justified this status quo by stating that the included children do not have less IQ, hence

they can fit into the existing classroom procedures.

Teachers also argued that many existing constraints did not allow them to make significant

changes in their practices. These constraints included large class sizes, task of maintaining

discipline—hallmark of a good teacher, vast amount of syllabus, and the fact that the included

student was just one of many in class.

However, there are many teachers all over the country who do make small modifications in their

teaching in accordance with the principles of inclusive education. The strategies used by them

are: group learning, peer tutoring, speaking slowly and clearly, looking at the hearing-impaired

child while speaking so that they can lip read, writing on the blackboard, etc. Most teachers are

aware of such techniques for classroom management of learners with SEN. In this connection,

they often consult the special educator for support.

An extensive review of research on learner and teacher characteristics (Cronbach and Snow,

1977), concluded that children with difficulties in learning need a mixture of teaching

approaches with a bias towards fairly structured methods. Krishnaswamy and Shankar

(2003), point towards differentiated instruction as an approach for the teacher to weave

individual goals into the classroom content and instructional strategies.

Valmiki (2003) emphasises culture specific pedagogy and culturally responsive teaching as

major initiatives in making education culturally inclusive. Mani and Mulharah (2003) have

talked about creating effective classrooms through cooperative learning. According toMalhotra

(2003) teachers should be provided flexible syllabi, which would give them more time and

freedom.

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Work over the last decade has end eavoured to identify specific sub-groups of specific learning

difficulties, and there is evidence that it may be valid to distinguish between children with

language, visualspatial, or “mixed processing deficits” (Tyler 1990).

However, even if we could make these kinds of distinctions with certainty, there remains the

question of how best one can teach these various groups of children. As yet there are no

unequivocally “best” methods. Careful monitoring of the child’s learning and the encouragement

of a broad range of learning strategies remain important characteristics of effective teaching for

all children. Lewis (1991) has stated: “In teaching, effective teachers adjust their styles to

individual learners.” She highlighted the importance of focusing on topics, which match the

child’s interest level for planning parallel tasks of similar difficulty for different interests (for

example, matching teacher’s questions with children’s cognition levels), varying the presentation

of activity, and varying children’s modes of responses (for example, oral instead of written).

Evans (1997), giving a description of the theoretical elements and assumptions related to

structuring the curriculum for pupils with learning difficulties points out that since learning is a

social process and involves the structuring of knowledge, it calls for the teacher’s mediation

between the child and the environment. He goes further to state:

The child’s education cannot be achieved through only one teacher but must reflect a whole

school approach in which all members of the staff are involved in the development of agreed

goaldirected, problem-solving strategies. In order for this to work, there needs to be a structuring

of this whole environmental system, that is, through the development of the curriculum, its

pedagogy, and its organisation. In this way children’s special learning needs can in principle be

met.

4.12.6 Content Areas The goals of education are the same for all children provided that these goals are balanced and

brought in harmony with the individual needs of each child.

Applebee (1998) stresses the importance of instituting conversational domains in planning

curricula.

According to him:

In schools these domains have been preestablished and take the form of disciplines such as

language, mathematics, social studies, and science. A more appropriate emphasis might be

123

domains that are culturally specific and imbue a natural facilitation for conversation centred

around “living traditions”. In order to accomplish this end, participation is key and students are

actually “doing” science or social studies instead of simply reading or being told about [them].

Singh (2001) reported differences in the educational needs of children with SEN. She found

that all the stakeholders, including children with SEN, opined that the curricula followed were

not relevant.

There was repetition in the content of the sciences, social sciences, and general knowledge. The

excessive textual burden and the bulk of exercises in most of the subjects were also found to be

irrelevant. The components of extra-curricular and co-curricular activities, such as, games and

sports, drawing and painting, craft and cultural activities should be an essential part of the

curriculum.

The SEN may emanate from a number of reasons.

In this paper we concentrate on SEN stemming from disability conditions. Not all children with

disabilities have SEN at the elementary level. They learn along with their peers with the help of

aids such as wheelchairs, hearing aids, optical or non-optical aids, educational aids like Taylor

frames, the abacus, etc. However, there may be students who may require the following: •

Additional time and a suitable mode for the successful completion of tests.

• Modification, substitution, and disapplication of the curriculum because it presents specific

difficulties for them.

• Provision of adapted, modified, or alternative activities in different content areas.

• Accessible texts and materials to suit their ages and levels of learning;

• Appropriate management of classrooms (for example, management of noise, glare, etc.)

• Provision of additional support by using ICT or video.

As mentioned earlier, inclusion is all about providing effective learning opportunities to all

students. Therefore, it depends on whether teachers modify the National Curriculum programmes

of study whenever necessary in order to provide relevant and challenging work to students. It

means being flexible and choosing content from a lower level or higher level if necessary. There

may be students who may perform below the expected level. For these students a greater degree

of differentiation may be necessary. On the other hand, students whose performances exceed

those of others within one or more subjects may need suitably challenging work. What is

important is that no matter how they learn or perform, they should experience success and not

failure.

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4.12.7 Staff Development The effectiveness of the curriculum depends, in the long run, on the skills and attitudes of

classroom teachers. The Open File on Inclusive Education

(UNESCO, 2001) suggests that the following demands be placed on teachers from the

perspective of inclusive curricula:

• They have to become involved in curriculum development at the local level, and they have to

be skilled in curriculum adaptation in their own classrooms.

• They have to manage a complex range of classroom activities.

• They have to know how to support their students’ learning without giving them predetermined

answers.

• They have to work outside traditional subject boundaries and in culturally sensitive ways.

Sharma (2002) analysed the attitudes of teachers towards the disabled, how these attitudes relate

to various background factors, and the ways of bringing about a change in the attitudes of

teachers. She reported that:

1. The willingness of teachers to include children with SEN in the general class depended on the

children’s disabling conditions. Teachers had positive attitudes towards some children with

specific disabilities like visual and hearing disabilities.

Attitudes were least positive towards the intellectually impaired and those with

behavioural problems.

2. The severity of problems in case of locomotor and intellectual disabilities negatively

influenced their attitudes towards the inclusion of children with disabilities in their classroom.

3. The majority of the teachers felt the need for change in the school and classroom

infrastructure.

4. The attitudes were found to be inversely related to the age and experience of the teachers

teaching ordinary children. However, experience of working with the disabled was positively

related to the attitudes of the teachers.

5. Female teachers were more positive towards the inclusion of the disabled in their classes than

their male counterparts.

6. Science teachers had a more positive attitude towards inclusion than those teaching humanities

subjects.

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7. The higher the confidence in the use of teaching strategies, the more positive the attitude of

the teacher towards the disabled.

8. All teachers reported that they needed more information on the types of disabilities,

curriculum adaptation, educational implications, and skills and strategies required for meeting

the needs of students with SEN.

Studying the teacher education curriculum of the

District Institutes of Education and Training (DIETs) from the perspective of learners with SEN,

Julka (2004) has implicated a need for all Teacher Education

Institutes to ensure inclusive education theory and practice strategies in their programmes. At

present, there are no specific provisions in the form of trained teacher educators, resource

materials, and standardized inputs on learners with SEN in the in-service

programmes of the DIETs. In the pre-service programme, only one optional paper or one unit in

a compulsory paper are the inputs provided. Training

programmes under DPEP, and now the SSA, cover this component, but it needs to be

strengthened and made more relevant to the needs of the teachers from the perspective of

inclusive education.

4.13 Summary For years the education system has provided special education and related services to

students with SEN and systematically developed a dual service delivery system comprising

different settings, different curricula, different services, and different service providers for

students with and without SEN. But now in the context of the struggle to affirm and guarantee

the rights of the disabled, the ethics of the dual system are being questioned. The common

system, which would bring “all” onto a common platform, is being thought of as a better option.

It is, therefore, important to bring about a number of reforms at various levels in order to develop

a “school for all” having an inclusive curriculum. The curriculum needs to be balanced in such a

way that it is common for all, and yet takes account of the individual needs of all learners. It is

also important to take into consideration pedagogical issues. The curriculum should be accessible

to all children and for this specialist support would be required. Care then has to be exercised to

ensure that learners with SEN are not segregated from the mainstream by providing this

specialist support. How the school organises itself to be an effective school that takes care of the

individual needs of all pupils is another issue to be considered. While being flexible in the

126

timetable and delivery of the curriculum, the school should also provide for the resource support

needed in the form of special educators, assistive devices, and teaching–learning material. The

professional development of teachers and educators is an important issue and must incorporate

attitudinal change, and the knowledge and skills necessary to lead to an inclusive society.

Finally, no initiative towards inclusive education would be complete without collaborating with

parents and without the external support of NGOs and special schools for providing inputs on

training, curriculum delivery, assessment, etc.


1. Explain Ncca Structures For Curriculum Development In Special Education


3. Explain Inclusive Education

4. Explain Inclusive Preschool !

5. Explain Curriculum Guidelines: Outline Of The Framework

6. Explain Key Skills As Developmental Processes

7. Explain Enabling Skills

8. Explain Life Skills

9. Explain Elaboration Of The Key Learning Areas

10. Explain Communication And Language

11. Explain Adapting Curriculum For Children With Retardation

12. Explain Curricular Issues And Concerns


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Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.











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Unit 5: Curriculum evaluation, Implementation in inclusion

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Inclusiveness Of Ncf, 2005

5.3 Cce In Inclusive Classrooms

5.3.1 General Tips For Planning Cce In An Inclusive Classroom

5.3.2 Identifying Prior Experience Of Children Helps The Teacher To

Select The Appropriate Teaching-Learning Method/ Approaches.

5.4 Inclusion Of Learners With Mental Disabilities

5.5 . Benefits Of Inclusion

5.6 Challenges Of Inclusion

5.7. Teachers’ Views On The Inclusion Of Learners With Mental Disabilities

5.8. Strategies To Enhance Inclusion

5.9 Planning And Managing An Inclusive Curriculum In Schools

5.10 Access To An Inclusive Curriculum

5.11 Inclusive Primary School

5.12 Evaluation

5.13 What Are Teachers’ Perceptions About The Benefits Of Inclusion Of

Learners With Mental Disabilities?

5.14 Summary

5.15 Check Your Progess

5.16 Refernces

137

5.1 Introduction

Considering that a lot of work goes in to help students learn, it is important that the

teaching as well as the classrooms are organised in a way to enable each child/student to hear

encouraging words that convey to them a sense of individualised attention, reaffirm a positive

self-image and communicate personal goals to strive for (NCF, 2005). The expectations of the

RTE Act, 2009 have already been discussed. The fundamental intent of RTE Act 2009 is to

ensure that elementary education reaches all children. Further, with a goal of improving the

teaching-learning processes, the Act also specifies certain requirements to help make the schools

and classrooms effective foundations for these processes. Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation

(CCE) is one such requirement, implemented for each child in elementary classrooms (NCERT,

2012).

As per NCF 2005, CCE is frequently cited as the only meaningful kind of evaluation.

CCE requires careful thinking about when it can effectively be employed in a system. Such

evaluation places a lot of demand on the teachers’ time and ability to maintain meticulous

records for meaningful execution and reliability as an assessment tool. If this simply increases

stress on the children by reducing all activities into subjects of assessment, or aids to make them

experience the teacher’s ‘power’, then it defeats the very purpose of education.

CCE, as the term suggests should be continuous and on-going. These are not formal tests;

rather they should be planned to help assess the student’s on-going progress towards the

teaching-learning goals. Planning and designing the evaluation should thus be an essential

component of teaching. An advantage of CCE, if planned appropriately, is that it helps to check

for student’s learning, allowing the teacher to intervene as needed and offer guidance, if

necessary. Evaluations are helpful to understand how the student is learning, to what extent and

whether the teaching and curriculum goals are reaching the students.

5.2 Inclusiveness Of Ncf, 2005

At the stages of Classes I and II, assessment must be purely qualitative judgments of

children’s activities in various domains and an assessment of the status of their health and

138

physical development, all based on observations through everyday interactions. On no account

should they be made to take any form of test, oral or written. At Classes III to VIII of the

Elementary Stage, a varietyof methods may be used, including oral and written tests, and

observations.

The previous section presented some suggestions, strategies, ideas and examples to help

you create an inclusive classroom when there is/are student/s with disabilities in the classroom.

This section presents some suggestions for implementing CCE in an inclusive setting, and

prompts you to develop new ways to engage in CCE.

5.3 Cce In Inclusive Classrooms CCE can be incorporated in the inclusive classroom while engaging teaching through a

variety of activities including the suggestions presented in the previous sections. Incorporating

strategies for attending to diverse needs in classrooms would be particularly useful in developing

CCE processes for the classroom. NCERT’s CCE guidelines, in its publication for primary

classrooms, offers indicators of assessment as follows; however, any of the approaches explained

earlier, or a combination can be utilised to develop a plan for the CCE in an inclusive classroom:

1. Observation and Recording: Reporting, narrating and drawing, picturereading, making

pictures, tables and maps;

2. Discussion: Listening, talking, expressing opinions, finding out from others;

3. Expression: Drawing, body movements, creative writing, sculpting, etc.;

4. Explanation: Reasoning, making logical connections;

5. Classification: Categorising, grouping, contrasting and comparing;

6. Questioning: Expressing curiosity, critical thinking, developing questions;

7. Analysis: Predicting, making hypotheses and inferences;

8. Experimentation: Improvising, making things and doing experiments;

9. Concern for Justice and Equality: Sensitivity towards the disadvantaged or differently-abled,

showing concern for environment; and

10. Cooperation.

Source: From NCERT (2013) CCE in Environmental Studies Classrooms, p. 66

5.3.1 General Tips For Planning Cce In An Inclusive Classroom

139

While planning your lesson and especially for CCE, it is good to remember that assessment

occurs throughout the teaching of a lesson. This allows you, the teacher, to recognise and plan

the following steps in teaching of the topic. Assessment at the end of your teaching of the lesson

helps you to understand how far your lesson and teaching objectives are realised.

Following are some suggestions for planning CCE of a student with impairments in the inclusive

classroom

◘◘ In a mixed ability group encourage varied responses for a question and give clear instructions

and pause after asking a question to give adequate time to respond. We must remember that

activities done for explaining the content can be used again for assessment. Following are some

general suggestions:

◘◘ Allow flexibility in choosing answers, for instance, recognition and identification rather than

recall, coloring the correct answer, cut and paste, matching, pointing the odd one out. For

example,

−− for responses requiring auditory processing, accept responses in monosyllables.

−− replace tracing of alphabet activities in the textbook exercises

with cut-outs of alphabets allowing the student to explore the contour and shape of an alphabet

more closely.

−− alternatively allow students with speech processing delays to demonstrate learning by use of

pictures or stamps, for example, in evaluating a student’s ability to identify key vocabulary work

discussed in a lesson – For the Class 1

English lesson Mittu and the Yellow

Mango, provide the student with stamps of parrot, crow or mango, asking them to stamp

appropriate picture in response to the teacher’s calling out the specific word/s. An illustration on

how such an activity may be conducted with matching cards and right/wrong stamps is given

here.

−− allow the student to point to picture/s as demonstration of learning.

◘◘ Use flash cards, word cards (for example, to introduce words or to construct a grammatically

correct sentence), pictures, real objects, to get response rather than only verbal or written

response. For example, ask the child to pick up the flash card when you call the name of an

animal. Activities such as matching or checking answers can be done with the help of real

objects.

140

◘◘ Objective type questions or multiple choice questions can be asked by breaking longer

questions into smaller parts.

◘◘ Assessment can be carried out individually or in small groups. Group activities can help

assessing child’s all round development, and peer support can be utilised whenever required. For

example, arrange a play based on a story and assess the child on the basis of involvement and

enactment. Ensure participation of all children or make small groups.

◘◘ Children with attention problems can be assessed in steps by breaking down the content.

5.3.2 Identifying Prior Experience Of Children Helps The Teacher To Select

The Appropriate Teaching-Learning Method/ Approaches. ◘◘ Informal discussion with children revealed that some of them could name some plants as well

as identify a few parts and uses of some plants. They are able to relate these with their

surroundings. A child could even relate plants with daily life to further work on the desired

concepts that s/he intended to take up.

◘◘ To make the students’ understanding deeper, s/he thought of providing children a hands-on

experience, as the topic was about plants which were available in plenty in their surroundings.

◘◘ S/he decided to take up this lesson through a nature walk to a nearby area rich in natural plant

diversity.

5.4 Inclusion Of Learners With Mental Disabilities Current practices in the education of learners with mental disabilities emphasize their inclusion

in ordinary schools and exposure to the regular education curriculum. Inclusion can be viewed as

the placement of a child with mental disabilities in a general education classroom with

supplemental supports and adaption that allow the child to benefit from that placement

Inclusion involves participation of learners with mental disabilities in all the activities of the

classroom or school done by non-disabled peers.

141

The inclusion of students with mental disabilities in ordinary school settings is supported by the

findings of studies that show that student achievement in regular schools depended on the

combined effects of teaching methods used for all students and those used to meet the unique

learning needs of individual students (Darling- Hammond 1996; McDonnell 1998; Du Toit and

Forlin, 2009). The need to individualise teaching to take into account the learning needs of

students with mental disabilities is a matter of best teaching practice rather than a result of

having a learner with a disability in a class (McDonnell, 1998).

Teaching strategies that accommodate learners with mental disabilities that have been proposed

by Ainscow (2003) include regular methods with no adaptations, material adaptations, multi-

level curriculum and substitute curriculum. A wide variety of teaching methods and strategies

can be employed in the teaching so as to cater for learners’ individual needs. Task analysis can

be very useful in teaching learners with mental disabilities in inclusive settings Slavin, 1996;

Mpofu, 2000; Forlin, 2006).

5.5 . Benefits Of Inclusion

Hayden and Thompson (2000) suggest that the presumed benefits of inclusive education

for students with mental disabilities include that they will achieve at a higher level due to the

higher demand and expectation of regular education programs. Students with mental disabilities

benefit from exposure to students without disabilities who would model acceptable behavior and

adaptive skills to students with mental disabilities. The social acceptance of students with mental

disabilities increases through social contacts with a greater number of classmates and school

mates without disabilities.

On the other hand, children are catered for in a continuum of skills and abilities. Hayden

and Thompson (2000) advance that an inclusive approach facilitates and encourages staff team

work, caters for individual learner’s rights, works towards eradication of stigmas and provide

opportunities for special needs children to function in the real world and to demonstrate their

strengths. Inclusion develops relationships and creativity that would not be possible in

segregated situations. Winter (2006) posits that students from inclusive schools speak warmly of

increased opportunities and learning through diversity, challenging traditional views that special

needs children in mainstream classes lower the overall standards. Forlin (2008) advances that

familiarity and associated tolerance reduces fear and rejection of those with mental disabilities

142

hence inclusive schools better prepare mainstream children for living in an inclusive society. The

society provides a wide range of learning opportunities develops emotional intelligence and

fosters empathy, respect generosity, self-confidence compassion caring and responsibility- all

necessary ingredients for the adult of the twenty first century (Ainscow, 1999; Hayden and

Thompson, 2000; Forlin, 2008). Ainscow (1999) points out that encouraging mainstream student

to face challenges and not run away from them, leads to learning outcomes for such students

which cannot be generated from a book. Vlachou (1997) found out that all teachers who

commented positively about inclusion saw major benefits for children’s social education.

Inclusion was perceived as mechanism for promoting socialisation between disabled and non-

disabled students (Forlin, 2008).

5.6 Challenges Of Inclusion

Despite, the good things about the inclusive education Bradley (1998) cited by Hayden

and Thompson (2000) posit that it needs to be pointed out that there are many difficulties in

implementing inclusion. It is time consuming and requires a high level of human resources.

Inclusive education has to be carefully monitored and well planned in order to cater for the needs

and not just the rights of special needs children. In this situation, it may not be economically

viable. Ainscow (2003) advances that most importantly; the introduction of an inclusive

education requires input and support from those who are committed to its ideology and values.

Badza and Tafangombe (2010) cited challenges to inclusion as funding, policy issues, large class

numbers and negative attitudes towards learners with mental disabilities. Lack of qualified

personnel and lack of supervision, monitoring and evaluation of the system cause problems in

the inclusion of learners with mental disabilities.

Teachers with special education qualification are still insufficient to make an impact in

the country. This affects the proper implementation of inclusive education. Teachers trained for

the regular school find it difficult to teach the child with mental disabilities to use the toilet as a

lesson (Chimedza & Peters, 2001). He or she would consider reading or writing as the lesson

rather than teaching self- help skills. Thus regular school teachers may not consider or value the

teaching of self-help skills to learners with mental disabilities which in turn should lead them to

acceptance, independence and functionality in their lives.

143

5.7. Teachers’ Views On The Inclusion Of Learners With Mental Disabilities

A study by Santoli, Sachs, Romey, and McClurg (2008) found that despite the fact that

almost all teachers interviewed were willing to make necessary accommodations for students

with disabilities, the majority of those teachers felt that students with disabilities should not be

educated in general classrooms no matter what the simplicity or severity of the disability,

especially students with behavioural disorders and/or mental retardation. However, the majority

of the teachers had a positive attitude toward inclusion which could only be successful with

enough training and administrative support.

On the other hand, Vlachou (1997) found out that regular school teachers feel that they

have nothing much to offer students with mental disabilities in inclusion setting as compared to

specialist teachers. In agreement, Avramidis and Norwich (2002) established that some teachers

have the conviction that special schools have more to offer and that they can relieve students

from the stress of continuous performance pressure of failure and under achievement in regular

schools.

As such these teachers have negative unsupportive attitudes towards inclusion.

Ainscow (2003) points out that the majority of teachers feel they have got a difficult enough job

without having to think about learners with mental disabilities who are viewed as an extra

burden.

These teachers are not comfortable with the large numbers, poor working conditions and

remuneration; hence their resistance against the inclusion of learners with mental disabilities in

ordinary classes. The same arguments are provided by Avramidis and Norwich (2002) teachers

cannot promote inclusion while they experience conflicting constraints and expectations,

insecurity and a general lack of encouragement.

5.8. Strategies To Enhance Inclusion

Studies have advocated for clear policies that specifically cater for the Special Needs

Education. In Zimbabwe, for example, there is no specific policy on Special Education

(Nziramasanga, 1999; Chiswanda in Chimedza and Peters, 2001). There is also need for

144

improvement in funding of Special Needs Education to make inclusive education a success

(Badza and Tafangombe, 2010). This would enable motivate teachers, uplift the standards in

regular schools, minimise attrition of professionals and make inclusive education a success.

Training of teachers in preparation for inclusion is recognized as a crucial factor in addressing

attitudes and in promoting a greater commitment to inclusion, hence there is need for training

teachers to handle learners with special needs in inclusive settings (Forlin, 2008; Mavhundure in

Chimedza and Peters, 2001; Badza and Tafangombe, 2010). Avramidis and Norwich (2002)

assert that some teachers resist inclusion less when teachers have obtained special education

training/qualifications. However, Winter (2006) noted that some newly qualified teachers in

many jurisdictions still suggest that they are unprepared for working in inclusive schools, and

many enter the profession with little understanding of inclusion.

There is also need for providing innovative programs that encourage and support pre-service

teachers working with students with disabilities and providing opportunities for them to engage

with self- advocates within the community are approaches that have been adopted successfully

(Ainscow 2003; Engelbrecht, Green, Naicker and Engelbrecht, 1999). Teachers must also be

skilled in a variety of teaching approaches to accommodate all children in inclusive settings

(Kisanji 1997). Badza and Tafangombe (2010) found out that- government has put efforts

towards training of teachers. Ainscow (2003) advocates for forms of training such as school-

based development workshops and seminars that may assist teachers to gain additional

knowledge and skills, clarity about individual strengths, vulnerability and needs.

Collaborative approaches to teaching are also critical in equipping teachers for inclusion. Badza

and Tafangombe (2010) suggest that there is definitely a need for each school to take up

responsibility for the professional development of its own staff rather than relying on pre-service

training. Some studies have advocated for collaborative relationships among teachers and

stakeholders for the success of inclusion as this would encourage empowerment of individuals

and teams for the success of inclusion (Sharma et al, 2008; Roffrey, 2001; Welch, 2000). Other

researchers agree that collaboration is needed to support students with disabilities in general

education settings (Wehmeyer et al., 2003). Team work and collaboration between teachers,

administrators, parents and other stakeholders is crucial for the success of inclusive education

(Smith and Hilton, 1997). Forlin (2006) advocates for a highly individualized education

plan/program for learners with mental disabilities. There is need for teachers to draw up the

Individualized Education Plan (IEP) for each learner to cater for individual learner’s needs. The

145

goal of education in inclusion is to enhance the child’s successful functioning in society. The

social component of the curriculum emphasizes this aspect.

However, some studies carried out elsewhere report frustration of respondents over the

lack of time to collaborate with special education teachers regarding appropriate interventions

and modifications that could grant further exposure to the general education curriculum. Some

respondents felt they had little to no input on the instructional activities and content meant for

students with disabilities (Downing & Peckham-Hardin, 2007; Matzen et al., 2010).

5.9 Planning And Managing An Inclusive Curriculum In Schools

Developing inclusive schools that cater to a wide range of pupils in both urban and rural

areas requires: the articulation of a clear and forceful policy on inclusion together with adequate

financial provision; an effective public information effort to combat prejudice and create

informed and positive attitudes; an extensive programme of orientation and staff training; and the

provision of necessary support services. Changes in all the following aspects of schooling, as

well as many others, are necessary to contribute to the success of inclusive schools: curriculum,

buildings, school organisation, pedagogy, assessment, staffing, school ethos, and extracurricular

activities [UNESCO, 1994: 21 (The Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special

Needs Education)].

An inclusive curriculum means one curriculum for all students rather than a separate curriculum

for students without SEN and another for students with SEN.

According to Quinn and Ryba (2000) an inclusive curriculum is recognition that under the

principle of social justice, participation in education should not involve discrimination on the

basis of gender, ethnicity, indigenous group, socio-economic status, and ability or disability. An

inclusive curriculum, recognises the need that schools be organised, with the individual

differences of students in mind and allow for scope and flexibility to enable all students to

achieve their goals.

Though the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE) (2000) (NCERT,

2000), does mention the education of learners with SEN under the sections “Curriculum

Concerns” and “Managing the System”, it does not address the SEN of learners under various

other sections, such as, “Organisation of Curriculum at Elementary and Secondary Stages”,

146

“Organisation of Curriculum at Higher Secondary Stage”, “Evaluation”, etc. As stated by

Loreman and Deppeler (2001),

Educators are misinformed and confused about inclusion… We believe that inclusion, by

its very nature, cannot exist in environments where some children are educated separately or

substantively differently to their peers. It is perhaps easier to provide examples of what is not

inclusion. Educating children part time in special schools and part time in regular schools is not

inclusion. Educating children in special, mostly segregated, environments in regular schools is

not inclusion.

Educating children in regular classes, but requiring them to follow substantially different

courses of study in terms of content and learning environment to their peers, is also not inclusion

(unless all children in a class follow individual programmes).

Inclusion means full inclusion of children with diverse abilities in all aspects of schooling

that other children are able to access and enjoy. It involves regular schools and classrooms

genuinely adapting and changing to meet the needs of all children, as well as celebrating and

valuing differences. This definition of inclusion does not imply that children with diverse

abilities will not receive specialized assistance or teaching outside of the classroom when

required, but rather that this is just one of many options that are available to, and in fact required

of, all children.

5.10 Access To An Inclusive Curriculum

Booth (2000) has pointed out that access to education is only the first stage in

overcoming the exclusion of persons with disabilities from the mainstream. More challenging is

the task of bringing about a shift in public perspective and values, so that diversity is cherished.

However, it is difficult to say whether the first barrier has as yet been overcome in our country.

It is believed that the fundamental right to education will bring more pupils with SEN into

ordinary schools, and that this will provide the impetus for change. As stated this will regime a

number of innovations in teaching–learning processes, and will also provide pupils with SEN

access to a full curriculum in appropriate ways. To facilitate this access, it is important to provide

147

information in Braille, on tape, through sign language, and in simple and straightforward

language. Access to the content of the curriculum is further highlighted later in this paper.

5.11 Inclusive Primary School

School B, is a neighbourhood school, serving children of daily-wage employees residing

in the slum areas of a city. The school was established by a well-wisher, who is a teacher living

in the same neighbourhood. This teacher wanted to achieve the goal of “education for all”. She

believed that no child should be excluded from school. When challenges were seen in

accommodating children with SEN because of large class enrollments and limited resources, she

sought support from special education specialists. Technical support was extended for

assessment, educational programming, adapting teaching methods, and Teaching–Learning

Materials (TLM), for including children appropriately [from Upper Kindergarten (UKG) to Class

III]. It was necessary to interact with parents on a weekly basis in the school, and ensure support

for transferring learning to home conditions. Worksheets, teaching materials, and simplified

techniques using practical methods were introduced. After providing constant support for six

months through teacher trainees placed in the school, it was rewarding to see parents start to

attend meetings regularly and ask for clarifications about helping the child at home and actively

supporting the child in completing home tasks. Simultaneously, teachers expressed satisfaction at

the children’s performance at school and found parents motivated in reporting children’s

progress at home tasks such as completing homework. This exercise enabled parents and

teachers to realise the importance of closer collaboration and its benefits in monitoring the

child’s performance in academics by using simple teaching materials and practical methods for

teaching functional academics in primary classes, thus leading to the inclusion of children with

SN. The teachers reported that the literature and manuals developed by experts, such as, the

resource book for teachers on educating children with learning problems in primary schools,

functional academics for students with mental retardation, the inclusive preschool package, and

the school’s readiness to accept children with SN, were very useful in gaining the knowledge and

skills to teach these children.

5.12 Evaluation

148

The NCFSE (2000) was critical of the present evaluation system. Singhal (2004),

studying the existing practices at the school level has stated that teachers regard the mainstream

as curriculum-oriented and examinationdriven, with pressures of “high achievement”. She noted

“teaching in India stands subordinated to examination and not examination to teaching.” Thus,

the focus is on the completion of a rigid and vast curriculum.

Quinn and Ryba (2000) have suggested collaborative forms of assessment for inclusive

classrooms. According to them collaboration between, and consultation with, the student,

parents, caregivers, and other relevant people enable educators to gain a good understanding of

the students’ strengths and needs. They summarise the difference between traditional assessment

methods and collaborative forms of assessment as shown in the table on the left.

Flexible strategies for assessment and accreditation have been recommended by the Open File on

Inclusive Education (UNESCO, 2001). Appropriate assessment enables,

• Students who are talented and gifted to move at their natural learning pace.

• Students who progress more slowly than their peers to move at their own pace whilst still being

part of the content of themes and lessons.

• Students experiencing specific learning problems to receive creative and effective support to

maximise their success.

The open file gives examples from various countries with the following strategies:

• They break or weaken the link between assessment and progression.

• They relate assessment to broad objectives on which the curriculum is based rather than to the

making of specified content.

• They develop flexible forms of accreditation.

5.13 What Are Teachers’ Perceptions About The Benefits Of Inclusion Of

Learners With Mental Disabilities?

Respondents were asked whether they thought inclusion of learners with mental

disabilities was beneficial. Figure 3 shows that 32(64%) respondents supported the idea that

learners with mental disabilities benefit from inclusion. The other 18(36%) disagreed with the

idea that such children benefit from inclusion. In support of the majority of the respondents,

several research studies have revealed that most teachers in inclusive classrooms recognise the

positive social benefits for both special and general education students can be attained through

149

inclusion (Downing & Peckham-Hardin, 2007; Fisher & Meyer, 2002; Matzen et al., 2010). This

is in light of the more benefits accruing to inclusion as presented in the data in Table 1 below.

Table 1 shows that 30(60%) respondents indicated that inclusion paved way for modelling of

acceptable behaviour while only 2(4%) stated that learners had high achievement at a higher

level. Contrary to the views of the of many, Hayden and Thompson (2000) state that learners in

inclusive classes will achieve at a higher level due to the higher demand and expectation of

regular education programmes. Six (12%) indicated that there was improvement in school work

while 32(64%) stated that there was improved socialisation and social acceptance of the included

learners. According to Vlachou (1997) and Forlin, 2008) teachers commented positively about

inclusion as it benefited in children’s social education. According to them, inclusion promoted

socialisation between disabled and non-disabled students.

Twenty-five (50%) respondents stated that inclusion made way for the eradication of stigma and

some 25(50%) indicated that functioned normally in the real world as a result of inclusion. The

findings are in support of those by Hayden and Thompson (2000) both in terms inclusivity

having to eradicate stigma and providing opportunities for special needs children to function in

the real world. Development of creativity and relationships and development of emotional

intelligence accounted for 11(22%) and 20(40%) respectively. Twenty-eight (56%) perceived

150

inclusion as fostering personal daily life and self care skills and this is in line with previous

findings

(Ainscow, 1999, Hayden and Thompson, 2000, Forlin, 2008). The findings also support those by

Hardman et al (1999) who established that children with mental retardation were equipped with

daily living or self-care skills for them to function independently in their lives.

5.14 Summary

In light of the analysis and discussion of the research findings presented above the

following conclusion can be deduced. While teachers can define the concept of inclusion, they

have scanty knowledge of the issues obtaining in special needs education more so in inclusion of

learners with mental disabilities. In spite of the scanty knowledge, most teachers agree with the

idea that inclusive education is the ideal placement for learners with mental disabilities.

Respondents feet that students with mental disabilities do not have learner support they need for

learning in inclusive settings due to unavailability of resources. Learners with mental disabilities

benefit in a number of ways from inclusion. Teachers feel that learners with mental disabilities

benefit educationally and socially from inclusion.

Respondents perceive that learners with mental disabilities are not readily accepted by

their peers in inclusive settings while teachers are very forthcoming.

In spite of the fact that teachers readily accept learners with mental disabilities, they feel they

have nothing much to offer these students in light of the conflicting constraints and expectations

they face. There is no inclusive education policy to fully cater for the educational needs of

learners with mental disabilities in inclusive settings. There are many challenges that influence

teachers’ perceptions towards the inclusion of learners with mental disabilities in the regular

classrooms which include lack of expertise, inadequate resources, lack of policy direction and

lack of supervision. Teachers perceive pre-service training at college, in-service training as well

as staff development at school level as important for them to successfully implement inclusive

education.

5.15 Check Your Progess

1. Explain Inclusiveness Of Ncf, 2005

151

2. Explain Cce In Inclusive Classrooms

3. Explain General Tips For Planning Cce In An Inclusive Classroom

4. Explain Identifying Prior Experience Of Children Helps The Teacher To

Select The Appropriate Teaching-Learning Method/ Approaches.

5. Explain Inclusion Of Learners With Mental Disabilities

6. Explain Benefits Of Inclusion

7. Explain Challenges Of Inclusion

8. Explain Teachers’ Views On The Inclusion Of Learners With Mental

Disabilities

9. Explain Strategies To Enhance Inclusion

10. Explain Planning And Managing An Inclusive Curriculum In Schools

11. Explain Access To An Inclusive Curriculum

12. Explain Inclusive Primary School

13. Explain Evaluation

14. Explain What Are Teachers’ Perceptions About The Benefits Of Inclusion

Of Learners With Mental Disabilities?


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Inc.






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Thornes.


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Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























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161

Block 2: Curriculum at Pre-School and Primary School level

Unit 1: Significance of Early Childhood Education and School Readiness

Unit 2: Early Childhood Education Curricular domains – Enhancement of domain in

Motor, Personal, Cognitive and Communication areas

Unit 3: Curriculum Domains for Early Childhood Education and Sensory Mechanism

Unit 4: Sensitization of family, involvement in pre-school and primary level

Unit 5: Implication of preschool and primary levels for Intervention, documentation,

record maintenance and report writing

162

Unit 1: Significance of Early Childhood Education and School

Readiness

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Section 1: What Is School Readiness?

1.3 School Readiness Defined

1.4 1a. Children’s Readiness For School

1.5 1b. Schools’ Readiness For Children

1.6 1c. Families’ Readiness For School

1.7 Section 2: Significance Of Early Childhood Education

1.8 2a. Intrinsic Benefits Of School Education

1.9 2b. Instrumental Advantages Of School Readiness

1.10 Summary


1.12 References

163

1.1 Introduction

Through a combination of national social policies and international articulations

including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the Education for All (EFA) goals and

the World Fit for Children (WFFC) targets, countries are working to ensure universal access to

quality basic education. However, worldwide evidence highlights the persistence of inequity in

enrolment, attendance, learning outcomes and achievement based on gender, poverty,

geographical location, ethnicity, health status, conflict and natural disasters which all play a role

in defining which children attend what kind of school and for how long. Most early dropouts and

repeaters at school are disadvantaged students. In addition, the intersection of poverty, location,

disability, the lack of a formal identity and HIV/AIDS have created multiple and complex

barriers to school entry and learning. Growing concerns at the crux of these alarming issues

centre around three fundamental questions: Are all children entering school with the social and

cognitive skills and competencies needed to achieve in school? Are schools equipped and ready

to provide optimal learning environments for all children? Are families and communities ready

to help their children make a smooth transition into school?

Globally, school readiness is gaining currency as a viable strategy to close the learning

gap and improve equity in achieving lifelong learning and full developmental potential among

young children. It does so by considering all children, especially the vulnerable and

disadvantaged, including girls, children with disabilities, ethnic minorities and those living in

rural areas. School readiness supports the adoption of policies and standards for early learning,

expanding the provision of opportunities beyond formal centre-based services to target those

who are excluded. School readiness has been linked with positive social and behavioural

competencies in adulthood as well as improved academic outcomes in primary and secondary

school, both in terms of equity and performance. In addition, school readiness has been garnering

attention as a strategy for economic development. Approaches to economic growth and

development consider human capital as a key conduit for sustained and viable development, the

inception of which begins in the early years. The simplicity of the term ‘school readiness’ belies

the complexity of the concept and its relevance for development. In part, the challenge of

understanding school readiness lies in the exponential expansion of the science and knowledge

on the topic. But this growth in information has not been disseminated equitably or widely, and

164

many regions of the world do not have access to the latest information. The lack of equitable

access to new information has led to multiple understandings of school readiness, and at times, to

practices based on outdated models. Efforts are required to cull the latest knowledge and

circulate it widely in an equitable, timely and effective manner to influence practice and policy

around school readiness.

The global audience needs a clear, comprehensive explanation of school readiness that

considers its increased importance for individual and societal development, the burgeoning of

knowledge on the topic and the current inequitable distribution of this knowledge. The quality of

school readiness programmes is also an equity issue. There are profound benefits to future

employment prospects but without attention to quality school readiness in marginalized settings,

it will be difficult to close the gap in access and learning achievements within countries. Quality

does not have to be massively unaffordable and can be cost-effective. It depends on the

interaction between facilitators, parents and particular dynamics within the organized learning

centers. Poverty may undermine the ability of a family to support an early childhood

development (ECD) programme but socio-economic status needs to be seen in context. The aim

of this paper is to provide the latest evidence and knowledge on school readiness within an easily

understandable framework that has relevance to the lives of young children in the majority of the

world. To that end, this paper focuses on three basic yet critical questions: What is school

readiness? Why is school readiness important? And what are the consequences of inaction?

Section 1 provides a definition and description of the multifaceted nature of school readiness.

Section 2 lays out the evidence and arguments in favour of school readiness, especially its

benefits for marginalized children. Section 3 presents a series of scenarios and potential

outcomes, at individual and societal levels, that have been linked with inaction or neglect of

school readiness. These questions are answered at an aggregate or population level, as opposed

to an individual level. The primary difference is that an individual perspective on school

readiness is useful for understanding how to promote and support preparedness of school for a

single child. A population-level perspective addresses children collectively and cannot be used to

make individual-level decisions. There are different implications for the programmes and

policies that serve children.

This paper does not cover the interventions, practices and measurements of school

readiness. These important issues merit individual focused attention. Therefore, a subsequent

165

series of papers should be forthcoming on the topics of school readiness practice and assessment.

The focus of the current paper is to present a clear and comprehensive model of school readiness

built on the latest knowledge, with the aim of ensuring relevance in the majority of the world.

1.2 Section 1: What Is School Readiness?

Historically, participants in the field of early childhood development have been reluctant

to define school readiness (Saluja, Scott-Little and Clifford 2000). The trend has changed

considerably, and there are close to 150 definitions of school readiness suggested by the

‘Google Scholar’ search application. The definition of children’s readiness for school has

undergone major shifts during the past four decades. It has changed from a primarily

maturational definition to a more socially constructed concept. Former approaches stressed the

maturity level of the child that would allow for quiet, focused work as the primary indicator of

school preparedness (Gesell, Ilg and Ames 1974; Pandis 2001). More recent approaches stress

the bi-directionality between the child and her or his environment (Murphy and Burns 2002). As

per these newer perspectives, it is the ‘goodness-of-fit’ between the child and the environment

that supports and promotes optimal development (Graue 1992; Meisels 1995). In other words,

school readiness is a product of the interaction between the child and the range of environmental

and cultural experiences that maximize the development outcomes for children.

Similarly, the educational approaches in defining school readiness have also undergone a

shift during recent years. Some systems use a narrow ‘pre-primary’ educational approach that

stresses literacy and numeracy skills that would align with a primary school curriculum. Other

approaches use a ‘social pedagogic’ approach that stresses a broader preparation for life beyond

a school-based curriculum (OECD 2006). The second tradition, found in some Nordic and

Central European countries, promotes broader development of children while simultaneously

supporting families.

The United Nations World Fit for Children (WFFC) mission statement of 2002 is an

excellent example of more current concepts of school readiness, namely, a good start in life, in a

nurturing and safe environment that enables children to survive and be physically healthy,

mentally alert, emotionally secure, socially competent and able to learn. The WFFC goals

166

highlight the importance of a caring, safe and stimulating environment for the holistic

development of young children.

1.3 School Readiness Defined In this paper, school readiness is defined by two characteristic features on three dimensions.

The characteristic features are ‘transition’ and ‘gaining competencies’, and the dimensions are

children’s readiness for school, schools’ readiness for children, and families’ and communities’

readiness for school (see Figure 1, page 7).

The three dimensions of school readiness are:

(1) Ready children, focusing on children’s learning and development.

(2) Ready schools, focusing on the school environment along with practices that foster and

support a smooth transition for children into primary school and advance and promote the

learning of all children.

(3) Ready families, focusing on parental and caregiver attitudes and involvement in their

children’s early learning and development and transition to school.

All three dimensions are important and must work in tandem, because school readiness is a time

of transition that requires the interface between individuals, families and systems.

The term ‘transition’ has several meanings, depending on the setting, the nature of the cultural

and psychosocial adjustments involved, and the role of the actors in shaping their transition

(Fabian and Dunlop 2006; Vogler, Crivello and Woodhead 2008). With respect to school

readiness, transition is defined as children moving into and adjusting to new learning

167

environments, families learning to work with a sociocultural system (i.e. education), and schools

making provisions for admitting new children into the system, representing individual and

societal diversity. In school readiness, the three dimensions are interlinked, building

competencies and preparedness in children, schools and families.

Prior to presenting a detailed description of the three dimensions, this paper will address two

considerations – culture and public policy – to enhance understanding of the interrelationships

between the dimensions. Children, families and schools exist in a larger ecological system

(Bronfenbrenner 1979 and 1989) that needs to be considered in the conceptualization of school

readiness because of its strong influence on these three dimensions.

This paper’s definition of school readiness understands the child, family and school as

embedded within social, cultural and historic influences (Rogoff 2003). Rather than seeing

culture as a correlate of school readiness, this definition takes a more cultural perspective in

which school readiness is understood within the broader, more dynamic sociocultural context

(Gardiner and Kosmitzki 2002). By acknowledging the diversity in defining childhood as well as

in child contexts, the role of culture is seen as a powerful influence on the school readiness

paradigm. Without going into critiques of cultural constructions of children, which would be

beyond the scope of this report, the description of school readiness presented here is sensitive to

culture, context and diversity (Bornstein, in press; Pence and Nsamenang 2008).

A second influence on the three dimensions of school readiness is a country’s public

policy landscape. National social policies guide government decisions and actions around a

particular set of social issues or problems pertaining to human welfare, public access and social

programmes (Alcon, Erskine and May 2002). Typically, health and education systems, as guided

by sector policies, have the most direct link to early child development and education (UNESCO

2007). These policies guide provisions for access and quality of programmes, standards,

certification and training of staff, and resource allocation to education systems.

A range of social policies also has an indirect impact on the lives of young children.

Employment, parental leave, labour, immigration and welfare policies, for example, have all

been linked to child outcomes (Kamerman et al. 2003; McCartney, 1990; Minujin, Delamonica

and Komarecki, 2006). These policies – at a more central or decentralized level depending on the

country’s governance system – directly or indirectly influence access to education services for

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families; determine school curricula and resources; and ensure the quality of services by

establishing and promoting credentials. Consequently, school readiness is a product of both the

immediate interaction of the three dimensions, and the cultural and policy influences.

1.4 1a. Children’s Readiness For School

What does being ready for school imply? The response varies by the respondent. Parents

typically stress pre-academic skills and knowledge (Diamond, Reagan and Bandyk 2000;

UNICEF 2004), while primary school teachers tend to stress social and emotional aspects

(Docket and Perry 2003). This variation in emphasis suggests that a broad range of

developmental skills and abilities encompass ‘ready for school’.

Children’s readiness for school in this section refers to all children, especially the vulnerable and

disadvantaged, including girls, children with disabilities, ethnic

minorities and those living in rural areas. In addition, readiness for school is different from

readiness to learn.1 While readiness for school implies being prepared to succeed in a structured

learning setting, readiness to learn is a characteristic from birth. All children are born ready to

learn

(Kagan 1999). This learning occurs prior to entering school and extends beyond the walls of a

classroom to daily life.

The three levels of definitions for children’s readiness for school are: the basic minimum

skills, holistic conceptualization and the latest research. By the simplest definition, a child who is

ready for school has the basic minimum skills and knowledge in a variety of domains that will

enable the child to be successful in school. These minimum standards set the bar for what

children should know and be able to do, so they enter school ready and eager to learn, thereby

enabling a successful transition into a primary school learning environment (Lara-Cinisomo and

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others 2004). Success in school is determined by a range of basic behaviours and abilities,

including literacy, numeracy, ability to follow directions, working well with other children and

engaging in learning activities (Rouse, Brooks-Gunn and Mclanahan 2005).

Broader definitions of school readiness are holistic and include five domains linked with

later school performance and behaviour: physical well-being and motor development; social and

emotional development; approaches to learning; language development; and cognition and

general knowledge, including mathematics (Kagan, Moore and Bredenkamp 1993).

Aspects of the social and emotional domain include sustained attention, emotional

regulation, following directions, social relationships and social cognition (McCabe et al. 2004;

Raver 2004).

Language and literacy take oral language and emerging literacy into account (Britto,

Fuligni and Brooks-Gunn 2003; Snow, Burns and Griffin 1998; Whitehurst and Lonigan 1998).

And math skills include early understanding of mathematical concepts, measurement logic and

prenumeracy skills (Ginsburg, Lee and Boyd 2008; Sophian 2004).

Attitudes towards learning, such as task persistence, attention, creativity, initiative,

curiosity and problem solving, are also known to be important for school readiness. Based on

these concepts, school readiness is a holistic way of looking at children’s preparedness for

school. Not limited to one area of development or functioning, readiness embraces the

interrelationships between skills and behaviours across domains of development and learning

(Denton 2000; Schoen and Nagle 2004).

More recent data on school readiness stress the importance of understanding the

interrelationships between the domains and not just the domains themselves. This evidence

emphasizes the time-sensitive relationship of the development of these skills to a child’s later

school achievement (Snow 2007) and underscores the importance of taking into consideration

more global perspectives on readiness. It should be noted, however, that the data upon which

these recent conceptualizations are based primarily comes from the United States of America

(Kammerman 2008), except for the global perspectives trend.

Contemporaneous associations between domains of school readiness, based on

correlational data, suggest either a high degree of association between domains, for example,

reading and mathematics, for which r=0.732 (Denton and Geremino-Hausken 2000) or mediated

association, in which a third factor contributes to competence in two areas (Snow 2007). For

example, neurophysiological maturation plays an important role in young children’s adjustment

170

to school due to its influence on executive functions such as being able to regulate behaviour and

control emotions (Blair 2002). As per these data, school readiness is a combination of three

domains: learned behaviours such as knowing colours and shapes, counting numbers and saying

letters of the alphabet; attitude and emotional competence, as in listening to directions, being

interested in learning and behaving in a socially acceptable manner; and developmental

maturation, including fine and gross motor development and sitting still for an appropriate period

of time.

A second aspect of the newer concepts of school readiness is temporality, or

understanding of the developmental trajectory of the foundational skills described above. School

readiness skills are considered to be cumulative in that there exists a hierarchy of achievement

based on mastering earlier goals, i.e., they build on earlier learned skills and behaviours. In this

sense, readiness combines learning and development because achieving simpler skills allows for

the acquisition of higher and more complex skills (Bowman, Donovan and Burns 2001).

Children entering primary school, for example, need to have a working vocabulary in order to

master reading skills. In other words, learning achievement in school is the product of a process

of acquiring skills from birth. Advanced skills build upon the mastery of former skills.

A third aspect of the newer concepts is the inclusion of global considerations. In a preliminary

analysis of school readiness standards conducted through the Going Global project on the Early

Learning and Development Standards (ELDS) on data from N= 5 countries, new domains of

development and learning in addition to the traditional set of domains were noted. In particular,

moral development, national pride and appreciation of diversity are included as important

aspects of children’s readiness for school (Kagan and Britto 2007) that have not been seen in

traditional models of school readiness. It is important that these global contributions to the

conceptualization of children’s readiness for school are recognized, because they indicate a

broader preparation for school and highlight the unique characteristics that cultures and countries

deem important for children to adapt and succeed in larger education contexts.

1.5 1b. Schools’ Readiness For Children

The second component of the school readiness paradigm is schools’ readiness for

children, also known as ‘ready schools’. Schools’ readiness for children is defined in terms of the

aspects of the school environment that support a smooth transition for children (and their

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families) into primary school and advance learning for all children (Pianta and Kraft-Sayre

2003). Although this component is the most recent addition to the school readiness model, it is

gaining rapid importance for the reasons listed below.

Education experiences prior to primary school are varied and disparate across the globe

(UNESCO 2007). But they do have one characteristic in common: Most early childhood care and

education programmes differ greatly compared to the education philosophy, teaching style and

structure of primary school. Creating continuity and maintaining learning expectations for

children between early learning and primary school environments is a defining characteristic of

ready schools (Lombardi 1992). The greater the gap between the early childhood care and

education system and the primary school system, the greater the challenge for young children to

transition from an early learning to a primary school environment.

Overall, it is the quality of the school environment3 that has been linked with higher rates of

student retention and lower drop-out rates from primary school, especially for girls (Lloyd,

Mensch, Clark, 2000). Quality is defined by several characteristics linked with ready schools,

including sufficient time devoted to learning in the classroom, adequate supply of learning

materials such as books and teaching aids, and effective teaching, pedagogic practices and

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teachers’ competence. Research studies have demonstrated that the most positive perceptions of

classroom structure and overall school environment by children in Grade 1 have been linked with

greater academic engagement, a mediator of preventing dropout (Valeski and Stipek 2001). In

the least developed countries where a majority of the world’s children reside, it is estimatedthat

only 65 per cent of students who enrol in Grade 1 reach Grade 5 (UNICEF 2006). In part, this

consequence has been linked to poor-quality primary school environments. Poorly trained

teachers, poor facilities and the oldest classrooms have been linked with drop-out rates in Grades

1 and 2. Improving the quality of ready schools is an important aspect in maintaining school

enrolment.

Other important characteristics of quality include the practices schools use to bridge the

cultural divide between home and school cultures (Shore 1998). This divide is the greatest for

children whose first language is not the same as the language of instruction at the school.

Research from several countries has demonstrated the importance of the medium of instruction

in determining a child's education attainment; most societies are multilingual, and the education

system uses the official government language as the medium of instruction (UNESCO 2003 and

2005). In environments characterized by poverty, the problems of learning are compounded

when the language used in school is not a child’s first language, and the chances of dropout

increase correspondingly – particularly affecting, for example, low-income, minority and

vulnerable children (Auerbach 1989; Ladd 1996). In countries with higher rates of illiteracy, if

the medium of instruction in school is a language that is not spoken at home, the chances of

dropping out increase substantially. These children may be most at risk for poor education

outcomes because of the poor connections between home and school cultures (Jencks and Philips

1998; Lapointe, Ford and Zumbo 2007). Schools can bridge this gap by working with parents

and incorporating culturally responsive practices, including using the first language of the child

(Villegas and Lucas 2002).

Ready schools share several characteristics with UNICEF’s child-friendly schools (CFS)

(UNICEF 2009). Common to both is the mission of providing all children with a high-quality

learning environment that offers appropriate levels of instruction and is safe, secure and

inclusive. In an approach similar to CFS, ready schools promote a social learning environment

where the relationship between teachers and children is critical for the development of social,

173

ethical, emotional, intellectual and physical competencies (Shore 1998). The specific aspects of

the teacher-child relationship might vary across cultures, but it has been proposed that

responsive, mutually respectful and reflective teaching is always a central element for enhancing

child learning outcomes.

Finally, child-friendly schools are child-centred and focus on characteristics that are most

beneficial for children’s holistic development and comprehensive learning. CFS environments

are child-centred in teaching and learning; healthy (incorporating nutrition, deworming and

vaccination programmes); hygienic (providing clean water and environments and sanitation);

safe (regulating school construction and playgrounds); protective (banning punishment, abuse, or

violence) and particularly gender-sensitive. Child-friendly schools are inclusive, stemming from

the principle that all children have the right to education, thereby ensuring school practices are

fair, transparent and non-discriminatory in order to reach the most marginalized children.

These schools seek to involve the child’s environment – family and community – thereby linking

the three dimensions of school readiness.

1.6 1c. Families’ Readiness For School

The third dimension of the school readiness paradigm is families’ readiness for school.

Prior to entering school, the family is the most important context for development. The family, as

an institution, has been broadly defined as a co-residing social unit. With reference to school

readiness, family is understood as those members who co-reside with the young children,

including biological and non-biological caregivers, siblings and extended family members. In

understanding the issues of families’ readiness for school, the most studied factors have been

parenting practices, attitudes and knowledge, which are summarized below.

Supportive parenting and stimulating home environments have been shown to be among

the strongest predictors of school performance during primary school and beyond (Bradley and

Corwyn 2005; Burchinal et al. 2002; Morrison and Cooney 2002; Richter 2004; Rogoff 2003;

Werner and Smith 2001; Whiting and Edwards 1988). Although the school readiness literature

typically focuses on a couple of years prior to primary school entry, families prepare their

children for school right from birth4 (Brazelton and Greenspan 2000). The care provided for

development through antenatal visits, breastfeeding and early stimulation behaviours for

174

newborns and infants are early indicators of parenting practices that promote the learning and

development of children (WHO 1999).

In this section, the most prominent characteristics of families linked with school

readiness are presented. Poverty, a strong co-factor of parenting practices, is discussed in its

relationship to school readiness. Other family characteristics are described in terms of parenting

beliefs, attitudes and practices. Also discussed is the importance of acknowledging the role of

fathers in the transition to schooling.

Poverty’s effect on a young child’s development is strongest during the earliest years and

when impoverished conditions persist. Some evaluations suggest that at school entry, children

from disadvantaged backgrounds could already be years behind their more economically

advantaged peers (Brooks-Gunn, Britto and Brady 1999). But such effects on school readiness

are mediated through several factors, including the home environment (Duncan and Brooks-

Gunn 1997).

Given the strong influence of the home on young children’s learning and development, a

breakdown in the abilities of low-income families to modify the effects of poverty may inhibit

school readiness. Children may not receive the stimulation they need or learn the social skills

that prepare them for school (Hart and Risely 1995; UNICEF 2009a). Problems may appear

when consistent daily routines, supervision and care for siblings are absent (Hyman 2006;

McLoyd 1998). The parents of these children may also lack support.

Parents’ education goals for their children and their beliefs, attitudes and commitment to

education are considered to be crucial for school success (Alexander, Entwisle and Bedinger

1994). Children of mothers with higher education do better at school. Parental beliefs and

expectations are often cited as two explanations for the link between maternal education

achievement and child learning outcomes (Bornstein and others 2003; Haveman and Wolfe

1995). Parents’ perceptions of what their child should be able to do at the age of school entry are

frequently oriented towards academic accomplishments such as counting and knowing the letters

of the alphabet. Parental commitment to ensuring on-time enrolment for their young children is

being recognized as an important aspect of successful school transition (Perez and

Gauvian 2009).

The learning environment provided in the home – as indicated by parents’ engagement

with their children in learning activities such as singing, reading books, telling stories and

playing games – is considered to be one of the characteristics of ready families (Britto, Fuligni

175

and Brooks-Gunn 2002; Forget-Dubois et al. 2009; Bradley, Corwyn and Whiteside-Mansell

1996).

In the United States, children who live in homes with greater verbal engagement,

interaction, stimulation and support do better in school than those lacking the same degree of

interaction (Hart and Risley 1995; Pianta, Smith and Reeve 1991).

Another aspect of family readiness is how responsive parents are to children’s needs and

requests for attention. Data from several developing countries indicate that young children whose

mothers are more responsive to their developing needs have a larger vocabulary and better

cognitive skills, enthusiasm and persistence for learning compared to children whose mothers do

not demonstrate the same degree of responsiveness

(Eshel et al. 2006). Supportive and responsive relationships within the family are the

building blocks of children’s social and emotional development required for success in school.

As described above, direct interactions between key caregiving adults in the family and young

children have been studied extensively. But less is known about the links to school readiness and

the psychological adjustment of individual family members, transmission patterns across

generations and children’s relationships with older siblings (Cowan et al. 2005). Most studies

have focused on children’s adaptation to school with less complex family-functioning models,

where associations between school readiness and single dimensions such as parenting or

maternal mental health are examined (for exceptions, see Werner and Smith 1992). The

associations, however, are far more complex and involve several domains of functioning within

the family, stressors and supports outside the family, and relationships among family members

and community.

176

Although primary caregiving roles throughout the world are usually assumed by the

female head of the household, most typically the mother, the father’s involvement in early

childhood is increasingly being acknowledged (Britto, Engle and Alderman 2007; Cabrera et al.

2000).

Fathers of today are seen on a continuum from cohabitating biological fathers to social

fathers or father figures (Hernandez and Brandon 2002; Palm and Fagan 2008; Roopnarine

2003). The father’s involvement in the young child’s development ranges from traditional roles

such as primary provider of income for the child’s education, to more contemporary roles in

direct caregiving such as bathing, feeding and consistent interactions (Pruett 2000). Patterns of

greater father involvement in early childhood development have been linked with children’s

language skills, cognition, academic achievement, and social and emotional competence

(Cabrera et al. 2007; Downer 2007; Flouri and Buchanan 2004; Lamb 2003). These trends

suggest the need not only for more investigation into this association (Cabrera and Garcia Coll

2003), but also the imperative of acknowledging the importance of fathers when considering

family readiness for schools.

1.7 Section 2: Significance Of Early Childhood Education

School readiness is a powerful framework for improving equity in access to education

and in learning outcomes, especially for marginalized children. Evidence from UNICEF Multiple

Indicator Cluster Surveys 3 shows that the threats to early development are greatest among

children living in the poorest households (UNICEF 2012). Such children are less likely to

receive support for early learning at home and up to 10 times less likely to attend early childhood

education programmes. The importance of such improvement in equity is evident at the

individual and global levels. At the individual level, evidence from multiple perspectives

(developmental, economic, social constructivist) implicates school readiness5 as an important

factor in education achievement; children’s development and learning; school completion

including primary school; and ultimate success in adulthood. At a global level, another claim that

can be implied from the school readiness and education research is its instrumental value in

sustaining and promoting the social and economic development of a country.

177

Therefore, evidence in this report on the significance of school readiness is presented in

two sections: intrinsic benefits and instrumental benefits. Intrinsic benefits address the direct

gains to the recipients, i.e., children, families and schools. Instrumental benefits address gains

towards the broader development goals of social equity and economic development, mediated by

school readiness.

1.8 2a. Intrinsic Benefits Of School Education

The largest body of work on the intrinsic benefits of school readiness has focused on

children’s readiness for school, as opposed to ready schools or ready families. Consequently, that

is the most detailed information presented in this paper.

Research6 has indicated that school readiness is linked to learning, school completion, later skill

development, and acquisition of academic competencies and non-academic success (Arnold

2004; Jaramillo and Tietjen 2001; Kagitcibasi, Sunar and Bekman 2001; Pianta and McCoy

1997; Reynolds 2000; Rouse, Brooks-Gunn and Mclanahan 2005). Children who enter school

‘ready to learn’ are more likely to succeed at school, stay in school and achieve learning

(Consultative Group on Early Childhood Care and Development 2008). As indicated in the

definition of school readiness, learning is a result of a sequential process of skill acquisition.

Therefore, academic achievement is based on building on existing skills and mastering new ones.

The benefits of school readiness are described at three developmental time points: when the

transition to primary school is considered complete, typically around Grade 3, or 8 years of age;

in high school or adolescence; and during adulthood.

With respect to primary school outcomes, two sets of results are examined: reduction in

dropout rates, and increased academic achievement and engagement. Initial test results from

school readiness interventions in several developing countries demonstrate reduction in primary

school drop-out rates. For example, the Government of Cambodia piloted a school readiness

programme in the first two months of Grade 1 of primary school that demonstrated positive

results for student learning and a reduction in drop-out rates (Nonoyama-Tarumi and

Bredenberg 2009). The programme resulted in improved learning, measured by a standardized

test. In Myanmar, primary school enrolment was 13 per cent higher for children who had

attended early childhood programmes compared to those who had not participated (Save the

178

Children 2004). In Nepal, participation in school readiness programmes was linked with a

substantially lower repetition rate in first grade for children compared to the national average

(Save the Children 2003).

Data from several studies in developing countries, including Guatemala and South

Africa, have demonstrated a positive association between school entry ability and academic

performance in primary school and later academic achievement (Liddle and Rae 2001; Stith,

Gorman and Choudhury 2003). The multi-site international study uses large longitudinal data

sets and examines the association among various aspects of children’s readiness for school:

academicskills; ability to pay attention; social and emotional development; and reading and

mathematics achievements from Grade 3 and/or 8 years of age and beyond. Across the six

studies, the strongest predictors of later achievement were reading and mathematics skills and the

ability to pay attention.

These results make a compelling case for promoting school readiness, not only because

the associations between school entry and later achievement are so strong in particular for

disadvantaged students, but also because the statistical models were controlled for family

background and socioeconomic variables typically associated with later achievement.

Therefore, the study demonstrated that above and beyond factors known to link to later academic

achievement, mathematics, reading and attention skills are a significant correlate of academic

achievement (Duncan et al. 2007).

179

School readiness programs have a great impact on primary school equity outcomes in

particular. Evidence abounds that disadvantaged students are those making the most dramatic

gains from ECD programmes and in turn from school readiness programs (Arnold et al. 2007).

In Brazil, girls from low-income families who attend community-based preschool programmes

are twice as likely to reach Grade 5 and three times more likely to reach Grade 8, as compared to

girls who don’t attend preschool. In Nepal, the implementation of Early Childhood and Care

Education (ECCE) increased the girls to boys school ratio from 0.6 to 1 in Grade 1 (Arnold et al.

2007).

With respect to high school outcomes and academic achievement, the links to school

readiness have also been established (Rouse, Brooks-Gunn and Mclanahan 2007). Data from

several developing countries, including Brazil, Jamaica and the Philippines, indicate a strong

association between early skills and later high school completion, controlling for a host of

influencing factors such as family income and education (Grantham-McGregor et al. 2007).

These results implicate early childhood and school readiness interventions in sustained positive

school achievement outcomes. High-quality preschool experiences have been linked with

improved high school graduation rates (Reynolds et al. 2001). These results are reported from a

longitudinal study of close to 1,000 low-income African-American families and children who

took part in the Chicago Child-Parent Centers. The results indicate that children who participated

in this early education programme stayed in school slightly longer and were more likely to

graduate from high school.

The links to later primary school and high school with school readiness can be

understood based on the conceptualization of school readiness, i.e., the high degree of

interrelatedness between domains of development and the temporality of their convergence. With

respect to academic achievement, children who do poorly in kindergarten and primary grades are

more likely to do poorly in high school, which influences high school graduation (Nagin and

Tremblay 2001; Brooks-Gunn, Rouse and Mclanahan 2007). Poor academic functioning in

school has been associated with such behaviour problems as class disruption and difficulty in

socializing with peers, which in turn affects students’ ability to benefit from the learning

environment.

With respect to adulthood, similar research has been clear in demonstrating that children

who enter school ready to learn and transition smoothly into a primary school learning

environment are more likely to be employed as adults (Rouse, Brooks-Gunn and Mclanahan

180

2005). This longitudinal evidence has been generated from early childhood and pre-primary

programmes that have shown long-term effects of economic productivity and good health in

adulthood linked to school readiness (Schweinhart et al. 2004). These results are made even

stronger when we take into consideration the population that participated in this pre-primary

programme: low income African-American children who were assessed to be at high risk of

school failure and longer-term poor education and employment outcomes. The pre-primary

intervention demonstrated the power of school readiness by improving education and economic

performance for a population at risk. Giving children a good start not only counters the worst

effects of poverty, but may also be the most effective means of halting cross-generational

poverty (Arnold et al. 2007).

1.9 2b. Instrumental Advantages Of School Readiness Thus far, this section has focused on the significance of school readiness for children

through their academic careers and adulthood. We now turn our focus to discerning the

significance of school readiness for economic development and social equity in society. By way

of introduction, the arguments in favour of school readiness are prefaced by a brief introduction

to the human capital approach to economic growth theory.

As the central mechanism for sustained growth and national economic development,

economic theories that grew out of the Great Depression and World War II have focused on the

role of production and the stock of human capital rather than physical or structural capital

(Azariadis and Drazen 1990; Lucas 1988; Nelson and Phelps 1966; Mankiw, Romer and Weil

1992).

Human capital is expressed primarily in the combination of two factors: health and

education,7 which are closely linked (UNDP 2004). For example, greater health capital improves

education outcomes – as child health is one of the main predictors of school readiness

(Grantham- McGregor 1995; Pascoe et al. 2007) – and returns on investment – as a result of an

educated workforce. By the same argument, greater educational capital improves health

outcomes because education is needed for the development of basic health skills and for the

training of health personnel. In addition, demographic trends show countries with lowered health

and education capital also are among the least developed in the world. Therefore, the

interrelationship between health, education and development is intimate and linked at several

181

levels. This interrelationship begs the question of how a country builds human capital. School

readiness is proposed as one such strategy, as described by the evidence-based logic model.

Return on investment can be estimated for such factors as reduction in education costs, increase

in human productivity and income, and benefits to society. Investment in school readiness has

been linked with internal efficiency of primacy school education costs (Consultative Group

2008). Given that children who attend preschool are more likely to succeed in school and less

likely to repeat grades, drop out or require special education, cost reductions in education

budgets are realized. With newer costing models, investment in school readiness has been linked

with less waste of resources in primary school.

With respect to earning profiles, productivity and participation in active citizenship, the

school readiness return on investment in human capital has been quite substantial in developing

countries. For example, the earnings profiles by levels of education increase on a linear

trajectory, after taking into consideration the direct and indirect costs.8 Income gains from higher

levels of education have been established in the developing world (Psacharopoulos 1994).

Studies from 51 countries demonstrate on average a 9.7 per cent increase in wages with each

year of schooling (Grantham-McGregor et al. 2007). This data is supported by the evidence

presented in the previous section that school readiness is one of the main predictors of later

school achievement and learning. School readiness clearly demarcates the path for individuals to

higher education, leading to earnings benefits. A greater earning citizenry contributes to the

economic growth of a country.

Societal benefits, in general, have also been calculated based on school readiness. Data

from three of the largest developing regions of the world, sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin

America, demonstrate high rates of return on investment in education. These social returns on

investment for primary school education, i.e., benefits to society accounting for public costs of

education, are 24 per cent for sub-Saharan Africa, 20 per cent for Asia and 18 per cent for Latin

America compared to 14 per cent for the developed world (Psacharopoulos 1994).In summary,

when equity in access to early education and learning is improved, greater economic benefits

accrue to individuals themselves and collectively to society. Societal benefits of school readiness

include promotion of the universal right of all individuals to education, a greater social justice

and social cohesion, a better efficiency of education systems, better health outcomes, poverty

reduction and higher growth. Those societal benefits can only be partially economically valued;

therefore, we would expect the actual social returns on investment to be even higher.

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School readiness lays the foundation for educational success and achievement. Consequently, the

significance of school readiness is noted both as an intrinsic benefit in improving education

outcomes for children by completing primary school, staying in high school and productivity in

later adulthood. In addition, instrumental benefits are noted for society as the result of human

capital created through a strong foundational start.

1.10 Summary

In summary, school readiness encompasses children, schools and families as they acquire

the competencies required for a smooth transition and interaction with the other dimensions of

the paradigm. Of the three dimensions, children’s readiness for school is probably the most

studied.

The focus of ‘ready children’ has been broadly on holistically defining skills, abilities and

attitudes that children require to succeed at school, and the greatest benefits of such interventions

accrue to the most disadvantaged children. In terms of ‘ready schools’, the focus has been on

quality and practices that support a smooth transition for children and their families.

It should be noted, however, that these practices are primarily derived from and based on school

systems in Western and high-resource countries. Little is presently known about the

characteristics of ready schools in low-resource and developing countries where the issues of

schooling are dissimilar to developed countries. Families’ readiness for schools is part of

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parenting beliefs, attitudes and practices, from birth, that need to be understood within a

socioeconomic and cultural context as having implications for children’s school success.


1. What Is School Readiness?

2. School Readiness Defined

3. Explain Children’s Readiness For School

4. Explain Schools’ Readiness For Children

5. Explain. Families’ Readiness For School

6. Explain Significance Of Early Childhood Education

7. Explain Intrinsic Benefits Of School Education

8. Explain Instrumental Advantages Of School Readiness


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.











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31st – Sept 3rd.










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Unit 2: Early Childhood Education Curricular Domains –

Enhancement Of Domain In Motor, Personal, Cognitive And

Communication Areas

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Early Learning And Development

2.3 Motor Skills

2.4 Opportunities To Use Motor Skills

2.5 Motor Skill Functions

2.6 Cognitive Development

2.7 Personal


2.8.1 Language As A Cultural Tool

2.8.2 Learning And Developing Using Communication And Language

2.8.3 Holistic Development In Curricula

2.8.4 Holistic Development In The Framework For Early Learning

2.9 Summary


194

2.11 References

195

2.1 Introduction

Ireland has enjoyed profound economic, demographic, cultural and social change since

the 1980s. An improvement in public finances, lower inflation, economic growth, manufacturing

output and export growth have become hallmarks of life in Ireland at the beginning of the

twenty-first century. The Central Statistics Office (CSO, 2005) observes that the population in

Ireland has increased by over twelve per cent to more than four million in the period 1995-2004.

The Office noted the employment rate in Ireland rose from fifty-four per cent in 1995 to sixty-

five and a half per cent in 2004 with a reversal of the trend of emigration toward immigration

contributing to an increasingly diverse and multicultural society. However, as the National

Economic and Social Forum (NESF, 2005) report highlighted, in spite of our healthy economy,

social deficits - including educational disadvantage, limited childcare and barriers to full

engagement in society for people with a disability – require more attention. With increased

participation in employment by women - from thirty-five per cent in 1990 to over forty-nine per

cent in 2004 (CSO, 2005) there is a growing demand for childcare places. In addition, according

to the Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education (CECDE, 2005, p. 6), parents are

increasingly interested and concerned with their children’s holistic development, including their

cognitive, emotional and social development.

The changing nature of childhood itself in the 21st Century has become a persistent

public concern. In response to a debate which emerged in the United Kingdom (UK) regarding

the escalating incidences of childhood depression and children’s behavioural and developmental

conditions Murray (The Irish Times, September 2006) reported that there was cause for real

concern. Responsible parents and professionals in Ireland have also issued warnings about the

stresses on children, the erosion of innocence, the sexualisation of children and the influence of

inappropriate media images on the heart and mind of the child (Daly, 2004; Murray, September

2006). Furthermore there is anxiety regarding the rise of obesity, diabetes, anorexia and bulimia

among children, the emergence of the child consumer with a disposable income, and the increase

in substance and alcohol abuse, violence, and self-harm amongst young people. These problems

are complex, and without a ready solution. While the forthcoming National Longitudinal Study

of Children in Ireland launched in January 2007 (Growing Up in Ireland, led by the Economic

and Social Research Institute and Trinity College, Dublin) will give some insights into children’s

lives, we need to engage in authentic debate about how we are going to improve children’s well-

196

being. Rather than bemoaning the demise of childhood it is vital that we celebrate the benefits

we have gained regarding educational opportunities, dental and health improvements, greater

gender and social equality which are greatly superior to those experienced by children in the

past.

Murray (The Irish Times, September 16, 2006) advised that we can challenge what is

inappropriate to their developmental needs. Children have a need for play, for space to initiate

their own creative, imaginative, symbolic worlds, not just be passive recipients of prefabricated

fantasy. Children need time and limits. Children also have a human right to be protected from the

mental violence of age-inappropriate media exposure, uncensored chat rooms and internet

marketing. The Children’s Rights Alliance (2007) advocated that the expected referendum on

children’s rights within the Irish Constitution should result in an amendment whereby the

Constitution includes a statement highlighting that the State values and respects childhood and

will facilitate children to reach their full potential and be protected from all forms of physical,

emotional, sexual abuse and from exploitation. As a society we must ensure that children’s

developmental needs are met and their rights protected.

This research paper Children’s early learning and development responds to the question -

how should we understand the child as a young learner? Informed by traditional and

contemporary literature on education, health sciences, sociology of childhood, anthropology,

cultural studies, and philosophy, a range of perspectives on how children learn and develop are

explored. The paper situates the discussion on how children learn and develop in early

childhood, in Ireland. In doing this, it draws particular attention to relevant legislative and policy

developments. The paper then explores key features of the processes through which children

learn and develop. As part of the preparatory work for the Framework for Early Learning1,

theNational Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) developed a document entitled,

Early Childhood Framework, Background Paper (2001). This document presented a review of

literature concerning how children learn and develop, and a review of early childhood curriculum

materials used nationally and internationally. During the development of the paper and later the

consultative document, Towards a Framework for Early Learning (2004), the NCCA identified

common principles of early childhood care and education. These principles are reflected in the

headings used to organise this research paper on how children learn and develop. The paper

looks at how we should conceptualise the child before going on to discuss equality and diversity,

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active learning and meaning making, relationships, language and communication, the learning

environment and play. The paper then looks at the whole child in context and at early childhood

curriculum. The concluding comments clarify and summarise the key messages from across the

paper.

2.2 Early Learning And Development

As outlined earlier, in the document Early Childhood Framework, Background Paper (2001),

the NCCA highlighted common principles which underpinned the curriculum materials shaping

early childhood practice in Ireland. These principles emerged from a review of the literature in

the field of early childhood research, and from curriculum guidelines including the Infant

Curriculum as part of the Primary School Curriculum (Department of Education and Science,

1999b). This paper provides a more detailed review of the research literature and uses the

principles as lenses to highlight important messages which inform contemporary thinking about

how children learn and develop. The headings used to guide the discussion are:

equality and diversity ■■

active learning and meaning making■■

relationships■■

communication and language■■

the environment■■

play■■

the whole child in context■■

early childhood curriculum.■■

One of the oldest and most central theoretical debates within psychology and philosophy

concerns whether children’s learning and development is as a result of their genetic inheritance

(nature) or the influence of the environment in which they find themselves (nurture). What is

clear is that both genetic and environmental factors play vital roles in a child’s life chances

(French and Murphy, 2005). Children’s experiences in their early years have a profound impact

on their later social, emotional and cognitive development (Home-Start International, 2002).

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2.3 Motor Skills

It is hard to imagine any functional routine that does not involve some motor activity.

Whether playing a game at home with friends, dining in a restaurant, or stapling newsletters in an

office, participation involves numerous motor skills. Although motor skills traditionally have

been viewed in relation to the normal motor development of a young child, it is useful to

consider the functions that motor skills serve. For example, in the routines we just listed, people

use motor skills to travel from one geographic location to another. This may involve walking,

climbing the steps of a bus, or driving a car. Once at the home, restaurant, or office, the

participants use mobility skills to walk between rooms and between areas within rooms. Then

they assume and maintain positions that are functional for the activity.

They probably sit to eat, but might sit or stand to staple. The functional positioning for

the game depends upon whether they are playing cards, croquet, or Twister. Finally, they

participate in the core of the activity, which requires motor skills to visually scan and gaze at

materials, to manipulate materials, and to eat. Even performing the simplest of the embedded

social and communication skills involves some type of motor kills (e.g., smiling when greeted,

pointing to a choice).

When we think about the ways we typically perform these functional routines, it seems

that participation requires an extensive repertoire of sophisticated motor skills. If we concentrate

on the functions that motor skills serve in the activities, however, we can see many more

possibilities. We know that the mobility function of walking can be fulfilled by crawling or

driving a wheelchair. We know that positioning can be assisted through a variety of adapted

equipment. And we know that participation can be elicited through systematic prompts, partial

participation, and adaptations. Focusing on the functions of motor skills allows us to see how

students with even the most severe physical disabilities can participate in activities. This does not

suggest that students do not need to learn or improve motor skills. Generally, walking is faster

and more versatile than crawling or driving a wheelchair. Assuming, maintaining, and changing

positions independently, and as personal comfort or preference dictate, are preferable to having

another person expend time and energy lifting and positioning in costly adapted equipment

according to a schedule. And performing at least parts of a routine independently reduces

reliance upon personal assistance and adaptations, which are not always available. Therefore,

individualized education programs (1BPs) need to achieve a balance between assisting students

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to fulfill the motor functions that will maximize participation today, and teaching students the

motor skills that will increase their independence in the future.

Many children with moderate and severe disabilities achieve the typical "motor

milestones" at a slower rate, but follow the normal sequences. It is fairly common for these

children to receive motor skills instruction incidentally and in functional contexts. Other children

have more severe or multiple physical disabilities, including cerebral palsy, in which motor

development is disorganized as well as delayed. Spasticity, hypotonia, and primitive reflex

patterns interfere with experiencing and practicing normal movement, and hinder motor skill

development. Unfortunately, therapists and teachers tend to exclude children with severe and

multiple physical disabilities from activities in which they could develop motor skills, because

the children do not already perform the motor skills that constitute the activity. Such circular

reasoning can produce three outcomes. First, children and adults with severe and multiple

physical disabilities receive instruction in "prerequisite" movements and motor skills in isolated

and nonfunctional contexts where there is no clear purpose for performing the tasks. Second,

instruction is episodic, so they do not have enough practice to learn the motor skills. Third, they

rarely reach the criterion skill levels, so they never "earn" the right to participate actively in

integrated community environments. There is evidence that children with physical disabilities

become more interested in activities when they are given a means to participate actively, and

when they achieve some control over their environment (Hulme, Poor, Schulein, & Pezzino,

1983). Therefore, whether a student has moderate motor skill deficits or severe and multiple

physical disabilities, it is essential that teachers and therapists provide frequent opportunities for

him or her to learn and practice functional motor skills through meaningful activities in normal

environments.

2.4 Opportunities To Use Motor Skills

While motor sequences help determine which motor skills the student can realistically

achieve, and in what order, natural routines and the functions of motor skills help to define the

scope of the curriculum. The routines that occur in the home, for example, present endless

opportunities to teach motor skills. When arising in the morning, a person rolls out of bed,

assumes an upright position, travels to the bathroom, assumes some functional position in front

of the sink, and manipulates faucets, washcloth, soap, toothbrush, toothpaste tube, and other

implements. The person travels back to the bedroom, opens and closes drawers and closet doors,

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removes sleep eat, and puts on clothing for the day. Breakfast may entail cooking, setting the

table, and cleaning up, as well as eating. The motor functions of positioning, mobility,

manipulation, vision, and eating are clear in these routines.

Family members are important in defining the motor curriculum, since they can describe

how motor functions are fulfilled at home, which ways are satisfactory, and whether proposed

alternatives will be acceptable. The means used to fulfill motor functions at home may be

different from those used in the community. For example, York (1987) found that adults with

physical disabilities typically walked (if they could) when in or near their home, but used a

wheelchair to travel in the community. The same people often crawled on the floor in their home,

especially in the bedroom and bathroom, because crawling was safer and more functional.

Parents remind us that adapted mobility and positioning equipment sometimes does not fit the

space or atmosphere of a home. Parents also can identify the routines where teaching the child

functional motor skills would be most beneficial, and when family members have time to teach.

Keeping a log of 2 or 3 days' activities is an effective way for a family to identify their priorities

and time constraints (Rainforth & Salisbury, 1988). As the child grows older, the family can

provide important information about the motor skills the child has used in the past, and about the

methods and adaptations that have been tried.

In community environments and activities, every routine should be examined for

opportunities to use or teach motor functions. How does the child travel to the school, workplace,

or other community environment? How does the child travel through the building, and within

rooms in the building? Is the child encouraged to use or develop independent mobility? What

positions does the child use when participating in the activities? Is the child encouraged to use

and improve postural control? Would other positions improve the quality of participation? How

does the child participate in the activity itself, and in the set up and clean up? Is the child

encouraged to use or improve manipulation, eating, and vision skills? Could/should the activity

or materials be adapted to increase participation?

2.5 Motor Skill Functions

Development of motor skills is considered to follow certain sequences. There are specific

skill sequences that delineate the many steps from developing head control to learning to walk,

and from grasping objects with a fisted hand to writing with a pencil. These sequences are often

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analyzed or described in terms of more general patterns of development, which are thought to

follow certain progressions: head to foot, gross to fine, weight bearing to non weight bearing,

and proximal to distal (near the body to farther from the body). The "head to foot" pattern

reflects the progression of control from the head, to the trunk, and finally to the legs. The "gross

to fine" pattern reflects the development of large body movements, such as walking, before

refined movements, such as buttoning and writing.

The "weightbearing to nonweightbearing" pattern describes that children learn to prop up

on their arms before they become skilled at reach and grasp. The "proximal to distal" pattern

reflects development of control at the shoulders and hips before control at the hands and feet, as

illustrated in the other examples above.

Because the skill sequences in motor development have been studied so extensively,

many therapists and teachers now consider the sequences to be prescriptive. with earlier skills in

the sequences viewed as prerequisites for teaching later skills. For typical children, however,

great variations in the rate and sequence of motor development are considered normal (e.g.,

learning to walk without ever crawling). Furthermore, motor development does not always

follow even the general patterns described above (Horowitz & Sharby, 1988; Loria, 1980). Loria

found that children simultaneously worked on proximal and distal, weightbearing and

nonweightbearing, and gross and fine motor development in the arm and hand. She also found

that children achieved the corresponding motor skills in varying sequences. Although the

sequences and patterns that typically occur still provide useful guidelines, such research findings

of variations in motor development support motor skills instruction for children with physical

disabilities that can and should focus on many areas and levels of development simultaneously.

Although we caution against letting "normal" motor development sequences dictate prerequisites

for teaching other motor skills, there are other types of prerequisites to which therapists and

teachers need to attend. For example, locomotion, eating, looking, and handling objects all

require stabilization of some body parts while coordinating movement of other body parts. If

there is insufficient stabilization of body parts or coordination of movement, the student will be

unsuccessful in performing the motor components of the task.

In this sense, stabilization and coordination are prerequisites to the task. One way to view

motor development sequences is that they reflect progressive improvements in stabilization and

coordinated movement, which tend to follow the patterns described above. Positioning, handling,

and prompting augment the child's internal motor control, and are faded as the child learns to

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stabilize and coordinate various body parts. The motor skill functions chart (Chart 12.1) reflects

a combination of this stabilization-coordination orientation and the "normal" sequences of motor

development. It is organized into these major functions: positioning, mobility, manipulation, oral

motor functions, and visual functions.

The motor skill functions chart includes only basic information about motor skill

development. Other considerations, such as strength, speed, rate, power, and stamina, are not

covered here. Factors such as range of motion, muscle tone, and primitive reflexes, which may

limit acquisition of motor skills, have been discussed only briefly. For more extensive

information and methods, consult with the physical or occupational therapist assigned to your

team or school district.

2.6 Cognitive Development

I. Thematic Lessons from Cognitive Development

The core notion of cognitive development is that children develop skills and abilities in

more or less predictable sequences. While not all children develop at the same rate, they do all

pass through common phases of cognitive, physical, and social development. Although we will

not explore here all of the many well-known theorists who have contributed to our understanding

of this idea, we can boil down all of those theories to a series of thematic findings that are most

relevant to teachers in the classroom. The following five themes (adapted from Jeanne Ormrod’s

Educational Psychology: Developing Learners) serve as founding tenets of cognitive

development and provide important background for teachers:

(1) At different ages, children think in different ways. Cognitive psychologists study students’

perceptions and analyses of the world around them. Generally speaking, children become

increasingly capable of handling more complex and abstract ideas. For example, younger

children may have difficulty interpreting figurative language. And, over the course of

adolescence, students generally can handle more and more sophisticated problem solving. As

teachers, we should encourage students to think about and describe the strategies they are using

to access knowledge.

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(2) Children actively construct meaning. Cognitive development theorists generally agree that

children are not passive receivers of knowledge, but instead are active meaning-makers. That is,

information does not simply seep into a child’s brain; children are immediately processing new

ideas—putting them into categories, making connections to other pieces of information they

already know, and asking questions to develop an interpretation of the world around them. This

theory of “constructivism” further states that students need first-hand experience, rather than

simply a teacher’s explanation, to abandon preconceived notions they have. As a result, rather

than always being a “sage on the stage,” an effective teacher should consider when it is

appropriate to be a “guide on the side,” crafting activities and openended questions that allow

students to explore their world first-hand. On a cold day, younger students might believe their

sweaters and hats produce heat; for some students, only through testing this notion with

thermometers will the misconception be debunked. The act of watching students explore their

own approaches for solving a problem—rather than simply telling them “the” way to do it, or

letting them “discover” without any supervision or guidance whatsoever—gives a teacher

insights into how the child thinks and how then to clarify any misunderstandings.

(3) A child’s cognitive development builds on prior knowledge. Another theme

runningthrough all cognitive development theoriesis that very little, if any, knowledge isactually

written on a “blank slate.” Newknowledge must be built on prior knowledgefor students to

achieve understanding. Thatis, no new idea can be explained forsomeone unless that person has

somestarting place for the explanation. Asteachers, this concept reminds us to do allwe can to

build that prior knowledge. Again,we must expose our students to a vast arrayof experiences and

ideas, as they will serveas foundations for more experiences andideas.

(4) Challenging student thought promotes cognitive development. While there are

disagreements among theorists as to the relative influences of natural, internal development and

externally-driven cognitive “exercise,” cognitive development does tell us that pushing the rigor

of students’ cognitive experiences does affect students’ general cognitive development. This idea

encourages us as teachers to know our students’ cognitive comfort zones and to teach just

beyond those comfort zones. Easier said than done, since each child comes to the classroom with

different prior knowledge and readiness levels.

204

It becomes the educators’ mission to structure lessons so that everyone is challenged. One way to

do so is by scaffolding assignments so that all students receive the amount of assistance they

need to complete a task.

(5) Social interactions enable cognitive growth. There is an entire branch of cognitive theory

devoted to social learning. These scholars focus on the ways in which people learn through

observation. By seeing someone model a task, succeed or fail during an attempt, and get

rewarded or punished for a behavior, learners make decisions about what they will do—and how

to do it. Teachers should then provide modeling in both academic and social situations. One

effective strategy is “thinking aloud,” where the teacher talks about his or her thought-processes

when demonstrating a skill requiring decision-making.

This allows students a window into the types of questions they should ask themselves when

pursuing the same task. From the constructivist perspective, students should also have many

opportunities to share their ideas, perspectives, beliefs and thought-processes with peers and

adults. Students who share and debate ideas will gain skills in seeing multiple perspectives and

different ways of thinking, as well as help them discover flaws and gaps in their understanding.

II. Grade-Specific Lessons from Cognitive Development

Having outlined the most general lessons of cognitive development for teachers, we will

now turn to specific insights that cognitive development has for teachers. We must begin with

the obvious disclaimer that these lists of characteristics are merely generalizations. It is

impossible to say with any certainty that all ten-year olds have any particular characteristic, other

than being ten years old. A whole range of factors including developmental differences,

environmental differences, and children’s personalities can have a significant effect on whether a

student meets the generic list of characteristics describing children of that age. A teacher should

expect exceptions to the generalizations posed in this chapter:

No matter how children are grouped chronologically or by grade, there will also always

be a wide spread in normal developmental differences. A two-year span in development is

205

normal in any area of a child’s development—physical, social, language or cognitive growth.

Thus, a child who is ten years old chronologically may still be exhibiting social behaviors more

typical of a nine-year old. A five-year old may display the physical prowess of a six-year old. A

seven-year old child may be reading at a fifth-grade level, but have trouble making friends like

other seven-year olds.7

Thus, it is difficult if not impossible to say that there is some “average” or “normal” eight-year

old. And yet, knowing what is “typical” is helpful to a teacher who is designing a classroom for

academic achievement.

A. Primary Grades (Pre-K–3)

Children in the first several years of school are experiencing rapid conceptual and language

development as they learn to read and write. In terms of their cognitive development, they tend

to be literalists, still developing the ability to think abstractly. As a result, concrete ideas and

objects are most appreciated and understood.

In terms of physical development, students in this age range show a wide variation in physical

development, even within the same grade. They are rapidly refining gross motor skills and more

slowly refining their fine motor skills. (In younger grades, girls are often ahead of boys in fine

motor skills and language.) Children between the ages of 4-9 may have high amounts of energy

(relative to most of the rest of us) and have difficulty concentrating on things that do not interest

or make sense to them (again, even more than us, because they haven’t developed self-

regulation), which may translate into a short attention span.

B. Upper Elementary (Grades 3–6)

The transition to upper elementary school (which some might say occurs at third grade) is

marked by the enhanced ability to perform logical operations with concrete materials, like math

manipulatives. In the later elementary grades, children begin using abstract concepts more often

and adeptly but still do so rarely (through rudimentary algebra, for example). Meanwhile,

children’s communication skills, both verbal and written, are rapidly improving. During the

third, fourth, and fifth grade, teachers report that differences in cognitive styles (including

learning disabilities) become more pronounced and recognizable.

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Upper elementary students experience slow and steady physical growth and become

increasingly concerned with physical looks, coinciding with their social inclinations to start

looking to peers as the key locus of influence instead of adults. Sometime toward the end of

intermediate grades, some students (more often girls at this age) experience “growth spurts” with

the onset of puberty. Female students may begin to menstruate, a concept that some may not

understand (or have heard of) until they actually experience it. Physical fitness is also a key issue

at this age.

The social lives of upper elementary students are increasingly dominated by issues of status

within groups (both socially and academically). And research tells us that students are

developing a sense of academic self-worth that will usually stick with the child through later

schooling.

C. Junior High School (Grades 7–9)

During the junior high years, students’ cognitive skills are experiencing qualitative

changes as they become fully able to think abstractly, systematically, hypothetically, and

deductively. They are experiencing significant growth spurts and showing dramatic differences

in physical maturation during puberty. Both female and male students will begin to smell

differently and may not realize they need to start wearing deodorant, and you may need to relax

your “no bathroom” policy for female students who are menstruating.

Seventh, eighth, and ninth graders are also experiencing deepening social relationships as they

form, and experiment with, personal identity and preferences in dress and appearance. This new

interest in appearance, fueled by physical changes, can lead students at this egocentric phase to

think that all eyes in a room are on them—what psychologists call “the imaginary audience.”

Adolescents continue to look to peers as the key influence in their lives, and mutuality and

loyalty of friendships increase. Students group themselves in same-sex friend groups, and some

more intimate one-on-one relationships begin to form. Above all, students are concerned with

“fitting in.

Not coincidentally, this is also the stage in which students develop a generalized “self-

concept.” Adolescents begin to see themselves as having certain characteristics (“popular,”

“sporty,” “different”), based on their previous performance and behavior, their position relative

to others around them, and the ways in which they are treated by adults and peers. These

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definitions tend to fuel future behavior, so be conscious of how you are reinforcing a student’s

negative self-image. Communicate how much you like your students as human beings, even

when you express disapproval of their choices.

Deem poor behavior as “not like you,” and seize opportunities to help children see themselves as

capable and successful in school.

Males and females experience challenges during adolescence. National studies have indicated

that the academic performance of female students begins to slip as these students enter

adolescence, particularly in math and science; they may begin to internalize societal stereotypes

about women and suppress their ability to express their point of view or assert themselves.8 Male

students are likely to have more self-confidence and higher career aspirations, but they are also

less likely to graduate from high school.

D. High School (Grades 10–12)

During the last few years of high school, students are generally demonstrating full, adult,

abstract reasoning. Most students have reached full physical maturity as well (although some

males may continue to grow taller). Students continue to focus on the importance of peer

relationships, with male and female cliques interacting with each other, and students show an

increasing interest in individual, intimate relationships. Adolescent peer groups during these

years tend to be highly correlated with socio-economic status and plans for the future. Sadly,

adolescence can be an emotional and psychological roller coaster for some, and psychiatric

disorders, while rare, become more prominent

(i.e., eating disorders, schizophrenia, depression).

2.7 Personal

Piaget (cited in Wood, 1998) believed that all children pass through a series of

developmental stages before they construct the ability to perceive, reason and understand in

mature rational terms. Piaget and Inhelder (1969) claimed that the essential nature of human

beings was their power to construct knowledge through adaptation to the environment. Thus,

through assimilation and accommodation the child is in a continual process of cognitive self-

correction. The goal of this activity is a better sense of equilibrium. Equilibration is fundamental

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to learning (Krogh and Slentz, 2001). Piaget’s key contribution to child development is his

teaching that learning is a continual process of meaning making. It is not a linear input/output

process as favoured by behavioural theorists (Pavlov, Skinner). Information is not simply

absorbed into a memory bank but must be worked on by the child in order for it to make sense in

terms of the learner’s existing frame of reference. For example, deliver us from evil becomes

deliver us from eagles which makes sense to the listener (Robson and Smedley, 1996). This

example highlights the negative impact of learning experiences which are abstract and removed

from the child’s everyday experience (Donaldson, 1993). Children’s thinking is embedded in a

context which has some meaning to them whereas much school activity …is ‘disembedded’

(Moyles, 2001, p. 14). Activities such as ‘filling in the blanks’, worksheets and ‘colouring in’ are

often removed from meaning and purpose for the child and therefore make the process of

learning more difficult (Moyles, 2001, p. 14).

In contrast, first hand learning experiences fuel children’s imagination and unquenchable

thirst for understanding. This type of learning occurs in everyday contexts when children engage

in activities which matter to them (Rich and Drummond, 2006). In designing an involvement

scale for assessing children’s learning and development, Laevers (1997) identified signs of

individual active engagement such as concentration, energy, complexity and creativity, facial

expression and composure, persistence, precision, reaction time, verbal expression, and

satisfaction. Children need to be involved in their learning and it has to be real and meaningful to

them.

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Most children are naturally disposed to communicate. This enables them to establish and

maintain social relationships with others, to express and share their thoughts and feelings, to

represent and to understand the world around them (NCCA, 2004, p. 29). As the Primary

School Curriculum (Department of Education and Science, 1999b) notes, language has a vital

role to play in children’s development. Much learning takes place through the interaction of

language and experience (Introduction, Department of Education and Science, 1999b, p. 15).

This section explores the importance of supporting children’s language and communication as

part of their learning and development in early childhood. Significantly, Egan (1997, p. 67), re-

conceives education as our learning to use particular intellectual tools such as language and

literacy, which shape how we make sense of the world as ours is a peculiar languaged

understanding of the world (author’s emphasis).

2.8.1 Language As A Cultural Tool

Children’s development of both receptive and expressive language impacts on other

domains of development (MacWhinney and Bornstein, 2003) particularly intellectual functioning

and later literacy. According to Wood (1998), Vygotsky emphasised activity in learning but

placed language and communication (and hence instruction) at the heart of personal and

intellectual development. A key principle in Vygotsky’s view was the individual’s internalisation

or appropriation of culture. Especially important to this process is language, which both encodes

culture and is a tool for participating in culture. Vygotsky argued that language and other sign

systems (for example, writing, film, and so on), like tool systems (for example, material objects

like machines) are created by societies over the course of history and change with cultural

development. Thus, argued Vygotsky, children, through their acquisition and use of language,

come to reproduce a culture that contains the knowledge of generations.

Bruner (1990), like Piaget, emphasised the importance of biological and evolutionary

constraints on human development. However, in keeping with Vygotsky he also stressed the way

culture forms and transforms the child’s development. Social interaction, language and

instruction are central in forming the mind. He used the language of information processing in

formulating his ideas grounded in a theory of culture and growth. Through language, the child

reflects on his or her actions, integrates new experiences into an existing knowledge base, and

seeks the co-operation of others in his/her activities (Hohmann, Banet and Weikart, 1979).

210

2.8.2 Learning And Developing Using Communication And Language

In order to provide appropriate scaffolding for the child in learning and developing, a

shared context of meaning and experience must be established. This is especially important in

the first years of life, and is particularly relevant to children who do not speak Gaeilge or English

as their first language or who have a specific language delay. In the early years the child’s ability

to communicate is not fully developed and the adult often needs to interpret or expand on the

child’s utterances or gestures. Through shared experiences, the child gradually makes sense of

the world and of adult meaning. The adult provides the bridge between the familiar and known to

the unfamiliar and yet to be known, and responsibility is gradually transferred to the child

(Smith, 1999, p. 96). This process requires a close and nurturing relationship between adult and

child.

Egan (1997) offers a summary of the human formation of language and the kind of

understanding of the world and experience that stimulation and development of language

capacities entail. Some level of language development occurs naturally by children being

brought up in a language-using environment, but fuller development of language and its

associated intellectual capacities requires deliberate teaching. Egan (1997, p. 68) has suggested

that the most important, dramatic, and vivid stories of our world and of human experience can

provide an appropriate curriculum for the earliest years. The issue of language development is

critically linked to important educational questions of teaching (how much adult direction versus

child initiation) and the consequences of literacy for participation in society (Wood, 1998). As

advocated by the Primary School Curriculum (Department of Education and Science, 1999b),

Wood (1998) suggests that, oracy (verbal expression by children) should be an important part of

the curriculum.

2.8.3 Holistic Development In Curricula

That children learn and develop holistically is acknowledged by many educationalists

(Froebel, Steiner, Malaguzzi, Montessori, Weikart). Steiner in particular exemplified the ‘whole

child’ approach. Like Piaget he developed stages for human development which had cognitive

211

implications for teaching and learning. However, this is only one part of the Steiner focus;

through his philosophy of anthroposophy, the journey for the soul and spirit was equally if not

more important (Krogh and Slentz, 2001, p. 89). Steiner placed great emphasis on cultivating a

sense of aesthetics, empathising with fellow human beings, thinking and developing observation

skills (a view shared with Montessori) and promoted children’s engagement in rhythm, language,

music, and movement. This emphasis on physical development is an important message (Penn,

2005). Blenkin and Kelly (1994) advocated experiential learning and sensory-based activities as

opposed to pre-determined school knowledge to be taught to young children.

Some curricula emphasise the use of domains of development and correspondingly

present the learning for young children as the physical self, the psycho-social self and the

thinking self (South Australian Curriculum and Standards and Accountability Framework,

2001). The Primary School Curriculum (Department of Education and Science, 1999b) presents

learning through curriculum areas such as language, mathematics, social, environmental and

scientific education and so on, and recommends the use of topics and areas of interest

particularly in infant classes to present learning in an integrated way. For the young child, the

distinctions between subjects are not relevant: what is more important is that he or she

experiences a coherent learning process that accommodates a variety of elements (Department

of Education and Science, Introduction, 1999b, p. 16). A thematic approach to understanding and

supporting children’s learning and development as presented in the Framework for Early

Learning developed by the NCCA, bridges the gap between the developmental domains and a

more holistic and integrated approach.

2.8.4 Holistic Development In The Framework For Early Learning

The Framework for Early Learning’s thematic approach to presenting children’s learning

and development conveys successfully the integrated and holistic development of the young

learner, and the totality of his/her learning needs (NCCA, 2004, p. 22). Bruce (1997) suggested

that subjects such as mathematics and art cannot be separated; young children learn in an

integrated way and not in neat, tidy compartments. Katz and Chard (1989) proposed project work

(an in-depth study of a particular topic that one or more children undertake) as an ideal way of

supporting learning in an integrated way. Projects can be ‘going to the hospital’ or ‘building a

house’. The thematic approach such as the NCCA’s (2004) proposed themes of Well-being,

Identity and Belonging, Communicating, and Exploring and Thinking bridges the developmental

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domains and moves towards a more integrated way of thinking about how children learn and

develop. This new way of thinking continues to support children to grow and develop socially,

linguistically, physically, cognitively, creatively, and so on but in a way which is more natural,

more meaningful and enjoyable for children. Children’s interests and needs are at the centre of

what and how they learn. An effective curriculum acknowledges that children learn and develop

holistically.

2.9 Summary

This section has looked at how different theorists consider children’s understanding and

construction of language. Research paints a positive picture in relation to young children’s

language acquisition as a foundation for learning and development. Children do not think in

isolation; thinking is an everyday social activity and is culturally determined (Rogoff, 1990).

Experiences with others play a formative role in the development of communication skills and a

rich physical environment provides numerous language opportunities.


1. Explain Early Learning And Development

2. Explain Motor Skills

3. Explain Opportunities To Use Motor Skills

4. Explain Motor Skill Functions

5. Explain Cognitive Development

6. Explain Personal

7. Explain Communication And Language

8. Explain Language As A Cultural Tool

9. Explain Learning And Developing Using Communication And Language

10. Explain Holistic Development In Curricula

11. Explain Holistic Development In The Framework For Early Learning


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120. Daly M. (2004). Developing the Whole Child: The importance of the Emotional,

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128. Department of Health and Children. (1999). Children First: National Guidelines

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139. Evans, B. (2002). You can’t come to my birthday party; Conflict resolution with

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145. Curtis, A and O’Hagan. M. (2003). Care and education in early childhood: A

student’s guide to theory and practice. London: Routledge Falmer.



147. Daly M. (2004). Developing the Whole Child: The importance of the Emotional,

Social, Moral and Spiritual in Early Years Education and Care. Wales: Edwin Mellen

Press

148. Department of Education and Science. (1998). Report on the national forum for

early childhood education. Dublin, Ireland: National Forum Secretariat.

149. Department of Education and Science. (1999a). Ready to learn: White paper on

early childhood education. Dublin, Ireland: The Stationary Office.

150. Department of Education and Science. (1999b). The Primary School Curriculum.

Dublin, Ireland: The Stationary Office.

151. Department of Education and Science. (2004). The education for persons with

special educational needs act. Dublin: The Stationary Office.

152. Department of Education, Training and Employment and Catholic Education,

South Australia (2001). South Australian Curriculum, Standards and Accountability


153. Department of Health and Children. (1991). The child care act. Dublin: The

Stationary Office.



155. Department of Health and Children. (1999). Children First: National Guidelines

for the Protection and Welfare of Children. Dublin: Government Publications Office.



157. Derman-Sparks, L. and the ABC Taskforce. (1989). Anti-bias curriculum.

Washington DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

222

158. Dewey, J. (1959). My pedagogic creed. In M. S. Dorkin (ed.) Dewey on

education. New York: Teacher’s College Press.



161. Douglas, F. (2004). Gaia – young children and their relationship to the outside

world. In Horgan, M. and Douglas, F. (eds) the Proceedings of the Children of the Global

Village (pp. 234-252). Conference held by l’Organisation Mondiale pour l’Education

Préscolaire (OMEP) in the Dublin Institute of Technology in April 2004.

162. Dowling, M. (2001). Young children’s personal social and emotional

development. London: Paul Chapman.

163. Dunne, J. (2005). Children and citizens: a crossed conversation. Keynote address

at the European Early Childhood Education Research Association’s 15th Annual

Conference Young children as citizens: identity, belonging, participation, Dublin,

Ireland, from Aug 31st – Sept 3rd.

164. Egan, K. (1997). The educated mind: how cognitive tools shape our

understanding. Chicago: Chicago University Press.


166. Evans, B. (2002). You can’t come to my birthday party; Conflict resolution with

young children. Ypsilanti, MI: High/Scope Educational Research Foundation.






223

Unit 3: Curriculum Domains for Early Childhood Education and Sensory

Mechanism

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Four Developmental Domains For Curriculum Planning

3.3 Essential Curriculum Planning Components

3.4 Performance Standards

3.5 Learning Context

3.6 How Play Contributes To Development

3.6.1 Play Also Has An Important Role In Learning

3.7 Independence And Movement

3.8 Outdoor Environment

3.9 Cognitive Development.

3.10 Assessment Embraces All Domains Of Development

3.11 Aesthetic And Physical Domains

3.12 Sensory Mechanism

3.13 Summary


3.15 References

224

3.1 Introduction

Early childhood educators have always relied upon their knowledge of child development

and maturational heories. More recently, it has become equally important to understand the vital

roles that experience, culture and responsive adults play in the emergence in children of skills

and abilities in each developmental domain. In the last 30 years numerous studies have

demonstrated that children are more able to learn and develop lasting relationships when they

have learning experiences with individuals who are knowledgeable and responsive to their

individual capacities. Vygotsky (1978) describes how children’s problem-solving abilities can be

strengthened when they are guided through tasks under adult supervision. Gobbo and Chi (1986)

demonstrate that when teachers provide children with knowledge in a content area or about a

specific topic, the children are better able to use this new information, act on it and continue in

the learning process. Such research shows how capable children are of learning a great deal when

they are in environments that provide stimulating experiences and responsive adults to support

their development.

Responsive adults influence not only cognitive learning, but also children’s social-

emotional competence (peer relations and teacher/child relations). Howe and Smith (1995) have

written about how children who are emotionally secure in their relationships with their teachers

will use this base to explore the classroom, engage in pretend play, anticipate learning and

promote their own self-regulation behaviors and peer relations.

The importance of children’s cultural knowledge has become a major theme in the study

of children’s learning. Because culture supports children’s thinking, the activities, toys, materials

and social events introduced to children in their home environments shape their thought

processes and performances.

Culturally competent teachers can better prepare environments for learning, choose

materials, and plan experiences that are respectful, stimulating and valuable for all.

Developmental continuums and profiles are excellent tools for planning curriculum and

experiences that fit children’s developmental strengths and abilities. Numerous profiles are

available to early childhood professionals. Each program should use the tool preferred by

teachers and staff members. Presenting characteristics of children’s growth, development and

learning profiles suggest some predictable ways that young children interact with and make

sense of their world. Although children follow predictable patterns of development, the rate, pace

225

and actual manifestation are unique to each child. Ages and stages information are guidelines,

not fixed facts. Research continues to reveal new information regarding children’s

responsiveness to environments and adult behaviors.

This guide serves as a reminder of the importance of individual differences. Gender,

temperament, learning styles, native languages, special needs and culturally diverse backgrounds

contribute to variability in the attainment of developmental milestones. The theory of

differentiated instruction is an important educational strategy for young children. When teachers

use information from developmental profiles, observations and information obtained from the

family, they are able to:

• create environments that meet individual needs;

• provide varied materials for different skill levels so all learners can achieve success;

• plan so time is flexible, and individual children’s needs are a priority;

• offer learning experiences in a variety of group settings, large, small and individual;

• screen and assess learning in multiple ways over time;

• identify when there is an exception to the normal pattern of development; and

• foster active, two-way communication with parents that develops partnerships and shared

goals.

The complexity of teaching preschool children requires the ability to be reflective, active

and enthusiastic in providing a setting that is cognitively challenging, engaging and appropriate.

This guide is the third of three tools the Connecticut State Department of Education has created

to support the work of early childhood professionals in Connecticut. Released earlier were:

• Connecticut’s Preschool Curriculum Framework, which provides information on appropriate

curricular goals and performance standards for the range of skills and knowledge of 3- or 4-

year-old children; and

• Connecticut’s Preschool Assessment Framework, which provides a curriculum-embedded tool

for assessing children’s performance in order to inform teaching.

Connecticut’s Preschool Curriculum Framework should be used as an important guidepost when

planning for children’s learning. It incorporates information and perspectives from a wide array

of resources, including:

• national reports and consultation with experts;

• federal standards, e.g., Head Start program performance standards, British Columbia standards,

and standards from other states, including Minnesota and Maryland;

226

• nationally recognized assessment protocols, e.g., work-sampling system, child observation

record; and

• Connecticut Department of Education curriculum frameworks.

Planned intentional curriculum and appropriate teaching strategies can lead children to

achievement of the performance standards identified in Connecticut’s Preschool Curriculum

Framework. Consonant with principles promoted by the National Research Council, its teaching

implications include the following:

• Early learning and development are multidimensional.

• Developmental domains are interrelated.

• Young children are capable and competent.

• There are individual differences in rates of development among children.

• Children will exhibit a range of skills and competencies in any domain of development.

• Knowledge of child growth and development, and consistent expectations are essential to

maximizing educational experiences for children, and to developing and implementing programs.

• Families are the primary caregivers and educators of their young children.

• Young children learn through active exploration of their environments, through child-initiated

and teacher-selected activities.

The performance standards are organized within four domains:

• personal and social development;

• physical development;

• cognitive development; and

• creative expression and aesthetic development.

This Guide to Early Childhood Program Development provides direction and support for

using the performance standards. Connecticut’s Preschool Curriculum Framework provides

examples to assist in interpreting each performance standard. And Connecticut’s Preschool

Assessment Framework provides methods for monitoring progress and improving practice.

Together, these three resources will support early childhood professionals in the continual

process of planning and implementing challenging and engaging programs that build strong

foundations for Connecticut’s children.

3.2 Four Developmental Domains For Curriculum Planning

227

Teachers use curriculum to intentionally plan ways for children to construct knowledge in

order to make sense of their experiences. Appropriate curriculum content focuses on all four

developmental domains: cognitive (language and literacy, mathematical, and scientific thinking);

physical; social and emotional; and creativeaesthetic expression.

A meaningful curriculum is integrated so that learning experiences encompass many content

areas.

It must be based on children’s interests and presented in a context that stimulates children

to invest in their work. Learning takes time. Children need to interact with the curriculum – to

explore it, utilize it, question it and evaluate it in their own way of learning. Children’s

engagement ensures purposeful and sustained learning.

Curriculum also must provide opportunities for children to see and explore who they are within

the context of their family life and culture (Curtis and Carter, 2006).

Family involvement must be promoted and encouraged, with respect and appreciation for the

value of the home culture. This enhances children’s self-esteem.

3.3 Essential Curriculum Planning Components 1. Performance standards or objectives for children

2. Ongoing assessment of children’s skills, development and abilities

3. Content in language and literacy, mathematical concepts, and scientific inquiry

4. Processes and experiences in a learning context that capture the energy of thechildren’s

curiosity

5. Teacher interaction that balances teacherdirected and child-initiated behaviors and strategies

6. Organization of the environment, schedule and materials

There are four aspects of curriculum when it is created to be challenging and achievable:

• content worth knowing;

• specific indicators for children’s performance;

• attention to developmental characteristics; and

• meaningful experiences built on children’s natural curiosity (Katz and Chard, 1989).

In addition, ongoing daily interactions where teachers observe and assess children’s thinking and

progress help teachers set learning goals and plan instruction. Observation, reflection and

228

assessment provide information for adjusting the teaching environment to individual as well as

group needs.

When assessment focuses on performance standards the teacher can provide a scaffold within

each learning experience appropriate to the child’s emerging abilities.

Educators define curriculum as “an organized framework that delineates the content that children

are to learn, the processes through which children achieve the identified curricular goals, what

teachers do to achieve these goals, and the contexts in which teaching and learning occur”

(Bredekamp and Rosegrant, eds.,1995).

A report from the National Research Council (2001) describes three principles of learning that

are directly applicable to teaching:

• Children develop ideas and concepts early on. Therefore, teaching strategies mustfoster

connections between new learningand existing ideas.

• The learning environment must foster both skills and conceptual understanding to make

knowledge usable. Therefore,planning must take performance standardsinto account, providing

both contentknowledge and experiences that use theinformation gained in meaningful ways.

• Children need guidance to learn how to monitor their thinking, to be able to understand

what it means to learn and how to do it. Planning must include strategiesthat promote the

development of thinkingskills, attitudes and dispositions (NationalResearch Council, 2001).

Early childhoodteachers know that young children needenvironments that are active and social,

andinclude caring teachers. Time for explorationand play is not enough. Teachers also

mustsupport children’s growth and learning tohelp them reach new levels of competence

(Bredekamp and Rosegrant, 1995). Keeping in mind Vygotsky’s theory on teaching and

learning, the teacher plays an integral role in scaffolding a child’s learning by using varied

teaching behaviors and strategies to nudge the child toward discovery and understanding. No one

teacher behavior or strategy is best or used all the time. Piaget points out that the context of the

experience and an environment with many opportunities to explore materials is fundamental to

the learning process. These considerations are interrelated. All are essential in creating a

curriculum plan that is dynamic, engaging and successful.

Although there are many possible learning contexts, this guide focuses on play-based learning

center environments and the thematic/project approach. This section will discuiss the decisions

teachers make in planning curriculum. It will:

229

• highlight how children’s performance standards are used as the framework fordeveloping

curriculum;

• point out the value of assessment in driving teaching and learning goals;

• discuss the primary choices for the learning context: play-based learning centers or the

thematic/project approach;

• explore the decisions teachers make with regard to their degree of involvement in the learning

experience, and possible strategies to use with individual children and experiences;

• present a step-by-step curriculum planning process;

• examine how to create well-organized environments by choosing appropriate materials and

carefully considering scheduling and timing of experiences and routines; and

• discuss how the influences of a positive classroom climate can provide a base for all teaching

and learning.

3.4 Performance Standards

Preschool curriculum is integrated when the content and experiences cut across

developmental domains. Individual performance standards are not considered in isolation. A

single learning experience will be built with knowledge of the child’s abilities and interests

across several domains, and often involves more than one performance standard.

Each child arrives at his or her desired level of understanding, knowledge or skill as a result of

carefully selected and planned curriculum experiences. Children engage in learning in ways

appropriate to their individual levels of development. In planning curriculum, the full range of

abilities, including those of children with disabilities, must be considered. Performance standards

are the same for all children; however, a child with a disability may need specific teaching

strategies and additional support to achieve the same level of success.

3.5 Learning Context

Play is the first and most important defining behavior of a young child. Research shows

that play cannot be replaced by any other activity (Bodrova & Leong, 1996).

Play contributes to and enhances all areas of development in young children. When children are

working in playbased learning centers they play with materials and ideas and interact with peers.

230

Through play, children construct their understanding of the world, re-create their knowledge,

employ their own rules, make ideas part of their reality, and discover solutions to complex

problems. Children learn cooperation, problem solving, language, mathematic and scientific

concepts, and to express and control emotions. Children need opportunities for extended, self-

directed, uninterrupted play, both indoors and outdoors, where the environment has been

intentionally prepared by a teacher who is able to guide and support each child’s learning.

As we watch a 3-year-old climb a jungle gym, or use a magnifying glass to see a pollywog, or

observe a 4- year-old count out the number of crackers for a snack, or create a sign for the latest

block building, we understand the value of the time, energy and skill involved in each activity.

Vygotsky pointed out that children develop through play (Berk & Winsler, 1995), thus teachers

must be prepared to follow each child’s lead.

The ability of children to construct meaning from their play should not be underestimated. How

excited they become when they first discover how to make purple by mixing other colors, or sing

a song that plays with words and sounds. Whether building a home for the guinea pig, or

participating in a game with others, playing alone and with others contributes to the development

of self, and provides a forum for the development of independence, self-confidence and problem

solving (Wassermann, 1990).

3.6 How Play Contributes To Development Play is vital in cognitive development. Children who play freely with designated

materials exhibit more thinking skills and problem-solving abilities than those not given

opportunities to play. They are also more goal-directed and persistent (Sylva, Bruner, et al.,

1976).

Children who have opportunities to “re-create stories among themselves” during play have

greater abilities to understand and retell stories.

Play also fosters creativity and imaginative thinking. As children mature, their thinking and

actions grow in flexibility. Materials and objects are used in many ways. The symbolic play of

children lays the foundation for their understanding of the written symbols of language and

mathematics. Play lays a foundation for reading success (Gentile and Hoot,

1983). In play, children use visual perception, eye-hand coordination and symbolic

representation. Additionally, play develops the power to analyze, make judgments, synthesize,

formulate and see causal relationships.

231

3.6.1 Play Also Has An Important Role In Learning physical and perceptual skills (Sponseller, 1974).

Complex learning tasks depend upon well-integrated neurological development, which is

supported by playful activity. Sensory motor skills must be developed before the activities of

reading, writing and arithmetic can be mastered.

Play is the principal activity through which social interaction is facilitated in the early childhood

classroom (Gullo, 1992). Erikson (1964) suggests that play is of prime importance in the mastery

of emotionalneeds. Through play, children gain confidence and learn to trust others. They learn

to give, receive, share, express ideas and feelings, make choices, express friendship, see the

perspectives of others, and include others. Through dramatic play, children plan cooperatively

with others, use language to shape their interactions, solve problems and identify with a variety

of societal roles.

Children who play are more flexible and versatile (Sutton-Smith, 1974). Versatile people

are easier to work with and make more competent leaders. Teachers and parents who provide

plenty of opportunity for children to play are cultivating adults who are more likely to respect

themselves and make positive contributions to the lives of others.

The influences of Dewey are evident in playbased learning centers, especially when they provide

opportunities for problem solving with materials and peers in an integrated curriculum. Most

early childhood environments use learning centers as vehicles for prompting play on various

levels. Centers are generally of two types.

• Curriculum centers include manipulatives and materials to foster development in the cognitive

areas of mathematics, language and literacy, and science.

• Interactive learning centers provide materials and experiences that focus on children’s

dispositions to explore and investigate by using drama, blocks, sensory integration (sand/water)

and creative arts. Centers are typically prepared in advance by the classroom teacher or

assembled in reaction to children’s interests, questions and abilities. Effective centers:

• provoke interest;

• encourage exploration and inquiry;

• change throughout the year depending on interests; and

• provide for independent thought and activity.

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3.7 Independence And Movement Space should be adaptable, welcoming and organized.

It must allow children to make choices and easily access materials. This allows children to feel

some control over their learning.

• For each center, plan the best number of children to comfortably work in the space.

• Create areas that can serve more than one purpose at different times of the day.

• Eliminate visual clutter. Plan carefully what will be placed on boards and wall space.

• Use clear containers for storage, so items are visible and easily organized.

• Use shelves, dividers, carpet and tables to create discrete yet flexible work areas that allow

children to work alone or in small groups, without concern that their work will be disturbed.

• Find opportunities to place mirrors and natural elements in different locations to spark interest

or a “new use.”

• Give each child a defined and labeled place for personal belongings.

• Ease transitions by guiding children when changes to the environment are made.

3.8 Outdoor Environment The outdoor environment is essential to accomplishing learning outcomes and fulfilling

the need of children to be active. Outside, children have the advantage of fresh air, sunshine,

room to move about and be loud.

233

Outdoor activities can foster the development of gross motor skills, stimulate

spontaneous play with friends, and strengthen emerging abilities in all developmental domains.

These outdoor learning experiences also present natural opportunities for scientific inquiry.

Suggestions for outdoor experiences that promote physical growth, contribute to

social/emotional growth, and promote cognitive development follow. Physical Growth.

Encourage children to dig and explore. Even the smallest area of grass offers a wide array of

possibilities for discovery and collecting. Helping children to realize that living things are

everywhere is a way to spark discussion about care and respect for our environment. Bring balls,

buckets, hoops and ribbon outside. Engage children in creating, throwing, catching and other

cooperative games to challenge upper and lower muscles. Social/Emotional Growth. Create a

box of props for the outdoors. Include hoses, hard hats, vehicles, boxes and fabric to stimulate

dramatic play possibilities.

From time to time suggest a favorite story as a possible theme for outdoor play. Bring a

tape player, sticks, cymbals, class-made instruments, balloons, streamers, etc. Children love to

make music and to march.

3.9 Cognitive Development. Bring reading and writing materials outdoors. Take advantage of what is happening near

the school to link literature, drawing and research. For example, children who love construction

vehicles might eagerly draw a bulldozer or find the exact piece of equipment in a resource book.

Use outdoor space for movement experiences. Create cooperative games in which children can

experiment with speed, directionality and other large-muscle movement, such as skipping, leap-

frogging or crawling.

3.10 Assessment Embraces

All Domains Of Development To gain information on the whole child, educators must consider a tool that assesses all aspects

of development: physical, social, emotional and cognitive. Such tools may help to uncover and

document information on how children think and learn, as well as their dispositions toward

learning.

Assessment Is Carried Out

234

With As Little Disruption As Possible

Most young children do not have the ability to understand rules of formal testing. Therefore, they

should have an opportunity to share their ideas and talents in a natural and comfortable setting.

The teacher observes within a child’s usual context, gathering information in varied situations in

order to discover patterns and understand each child’s behaviors and processes of learning.

“The very young are, by definition, less familiar with the whole notion of and the materials used

for assessment, so that creating a more flexible and responsive environment that promotes the

physical and emotional comfort of the child is likely to produce a more accurate picture of the

child’s knowledge, skills, achievement or personality” (Meisels, with Atkins-Burrett, 1994).

Assessment Is Conducted

By Familiar Adults

Children who are evaluated by an unfamiliar adult are likely to be tense and anxious, and often

are not able to respond in ways that accurately demonstrate their strengths and skills. It is

important that the teachers with whom the child is most familiar carry out the assessment or

screening. Teachers need training on the specific tools they will be expected to use, as well as

ongoing information related to assessment in general.

Teachers also need to be provided with the time to reflect and interpret information collected

alone and with colleagues.

Assessment Is Conducted

Regularly And Periodically

Learning and development occur rapidly in young children. Interval assessments used only

yearly are unlikely to accurately represent a child’s growth patterns. Furthermore, an assessment

limited to a onetime observation may not accurately reflect the child’s abilities because a child’s

performance at a particular time depends on a variety of factors, including how he or she feels at

that moment. The goal in assessment is to use a variety of settings and times so that findings are

representative of progress over time. The resulting evidence of growth provides “moments in

time” which children, parents and teachers should celebrate.

3.11 Aesthetic And Physical Domains

235

Young children learn through active exploration of their environments. Curriculum must

include both handson and minds-on experiences. In early childhood curriculum planning art,

music, movement and drama are woven together throughout projects, themes and centers in the

classroom. Engaging children’s senses, using more than one avenue for learning, and physical

involvement allow young learners to make connections with previous experiences and build

bridges to new learning. Whether performance standards are tied to dance, music, movement,

visual arts or physical skills, the child is making decisions, solving problems, communicating

and representing. When early childhood curriculum plans provide varied experiences that

acknowledge the aesthetic and physical developmental domains, each child (with his or her

learning style, intelligence, culture, language and ability) is given an opportunity to understand

and represent his or her learning.

“We know people truly understand something when they can represent the knowledge in more

than one way”

(Checkley, 1997). Early childhood educators in Reggio Emilia observe and reflect on the

“languages” of the child. “Languages are the multiple ways in which the child understands,

interprets and represents his or her learning. Each provides the child with an opportunity to

express him or her self. They are, in fact, drawing, dancing, speaking, moving, singing and many

more.

Active use of these forms also paves the way for the child to use verbal language, to read and to

write”

(Edwards, Gandini and Forman, 1998). Teachers must guide children in understanding their

strengths and the many avenues available for representing their learning.

Each of these disciplines (art, music, movement and drama) offer children opportunities to

express their thoughts and abilities in ways that are unique to who they are as learners. When

teachers plan with aesthetic and physical performance standards in mind children are provided

with:

• language to represent their thinking;

• opportunities to use more than one avenue for learning;

• chances to collaborate and problem-solve with peers;

• avenues for integrating their experiences;

• ways to communicate, in addition to their verbal responses; and

• opportunities to think about their learning, make decisions and connect information.

236

Although there are many connections, this guide presents the aesthetic and physical domains as

separate disciplines, each with its own body of knowledge and skills. The following chart

outlines preschool development in these domains and their connections with Connecticut’s

K-12 curriculum frameworks.

3.12 Sensory Mechanism

Discussion of current practice and theory in early childhood education would not be

complete without recognizing the foundation built from the outstanding work of those who came

before us. A tremendous debt of gratitude is owed to pioneers in the field of early childhood

237

education, who with dedication and passion contributed ideas that are still influential today. Four

of these educators have been particularly significant in their influence on early childhood settings

and practices in Connecticut.

Maria Montessori (1870-1952) created one of the earliest curriculums for early childhood

education.

Her work has stood the test of time and is still used in many early childhood settings. Her

theory focused on the relationship between the child and the environment as a framework when

developing her materials and teaching strategies. She believed that teachers should carefully

observe children at work and play to determine what teaching and materials are appropriate for

their next phase of learning. Montessori materials were designed to be didactic, self-correcting

and appealing to the senses as the basis for intellectual development.

She considered children’s needs with regard to furniture and materials, even constructing tables

and chairs to better accommodate young children (Goffin and Wilson, 2001).

John Dewey (1859-1952) believed that education should contribute to children’s

personal, social and intellectual growth, and that learning occurs by creating an environment

based on shared experiences. Dewey viewed children as active beings, eager to interact and

explore their world. This type of learning, according to

Dewey, occurs best in the context of problem solving and investigation within experiences that

are meaningful to children. He saw knowledge and growth as ongoing

– as one question is answered another springs forward

– and identified three levels of activity:

• developing sensory abilities and physical coordination;

• using materials that stimulate creative and constructive interests; and

• discovering new ideas.

Dewey believed the ideal school to be one where administrators, teachers and children planned

the curriculum together (Ornstein, 2000). His contributions can be witnessed in early childhood

settings which focus on providing direct experience with materials and peers, and encouraging

the pursuit of individual interests and questions.

Jean Piaget (1896-1980) also believed in the need of children to explore their

environments. Piaget organized growth and intelligence into four stages of sequential

development. Each of these stages depends and builds on the preceding. His work guides the

practice of providing stimulating, informal learning experiences with multiple opportunities for

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children to grow and develop. Piaget believed that appropriately planned learning experiences

encourage children to explore and experiment at their own levels in environments where they can

use objects to construct relationships and understandings. According to Piaget, the major impact

of carefully chosen materials and a well-prepared environment is to enable the child to gather

physical and logico-mathematical knowledge.

Although Piaget emphasized that children must make discoveries independently, he did not

suggest that children can be left on their own in a carefully planned environment. According to

Piaget, the teacher plays an integral role in modeling, providing examples and carefully

developing questions that engage and support the learning process (Kamii and DeVries, 1993).

He also recognized that social interaction, like the environment and materials, provide impetus to

learn (Sowers, 2000).

Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934) emphasized the power of social interaction and the value of

authentic cultural experiences for children. According to his theory of development, children’s

growth is influenced by biological growth patterns, culture and important individuals within their

experiences. Vygotsky theorized that cognitive development does not occur in isolation for the

child. He described three levels of learning:

• Level 1: unable to do the task without an adult or mature learner;

• Level 2: able to do the task but needs assistance from an adult or mature learner; and

• Level 3: able to complete the task independently.

Vygotsky’s “Zone of Proximal Development” theory suggests that teachers observe and are

prepared to assist the child’s learning experience at Levels 1 and 2, so he or she can become

independent at that particular task or learning experience (Sowers, 2000; Berk and Winsler,

1997).

Quality early childhood programs are “highly organized and structured environments that

teachers have carefully prepared and in which teachers are in control” (Bredekamp & Rosegrant,

1995). Teachers do teach in early childhood environments. They employ a variety of teaching

strategies, modifying and adjusting tasks, setting expectations, demonstrating, assisting and

facilitating (Berk and Winsler, 1997). Sometimes all of these teacher behaviors occur within the

same learning experience (Bredekamp and Rosegrant, 1995).

Stressing that educators should focus on the strengths and capabilities of children,

Vygotsky suggested that all children be educated in group settings. Social interaction and

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discourse with peers has a powerful effect on a child’s development, and mixed age groups

provide learners with additional resources beside the teacher and environment.

These educational pioneers shared a belief that the child constructs knowledge through

interactions with the physical and social environments. This model of interaction and

construction provides a solid framework for decisions about teaching strategies, content,

performance standards, environment and materials.

Based on a foundation built by these educators, this guide serves to support

knowledgeable teachers who seek to create early childhood settings where playbased learning is

viewed as paramount in children’s experiences; problem-solving opportunities occur within the

context of genuine questions and investigations; interactions are cultivated; and appropriate and

rich materials are selected and provided according to the individual interests of children.

3.13 Summary

To bring the investigation to a conclusion, the children and teacher debrief on what has

been learned and accomplished. Children organize information gathered and present reports,

including exhibits, to their classmates, children from other classes, families and other interested

persons. This process clarifies and consolidates the knowledge children gained from their study,

and enables the children and their teacher to evaluate the project work (Katz & Chard, 2000).

3.14 Check Your Progress The following questions should be asked when creating centers for themes or projects:

• Will centers be offered all day, every day, part of the day?

• Will the number of children involved in each center be limited at any point in time?

• How will children access each center?

• What type of management system will allow for independent use in each area?

• What type of arrangement will provide movement from one center to another?

• Will the children’s choice of centers and frequency of use be recorded?

• What evidence will be collected on learning outcomes?

• How many centers can be open at one time to assure order and allow teacher interaction when

necessary? • How will varying abilities and interests be accommodated?


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.




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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.









The Belknap Press.



246























Office.









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31st – Sept 3rd.


















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Office.















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Unit 4: Sensitization of family, involvement in pre-school and

primary level

4.1 Introduction

4.2 Types Of Homework Assistance Children Get From Parents

4.3 Extent Of Parental Involvement In Homework

4.4 Descriptive Statistics And Linear Regression Models On The Effect Of

Parental Involvement In Homework On Academic Performance

4.5 The Child And Family

4.6 The Child And Practitioner/Childminder Relationships

4.7 Family Relations

4.8 A Role For Early Care And Education Programs

4.9 The Six Partnership Standards And Sample Activities

4.10 Families In Need Of Special Services

4.11 Communicating

4.12 Parent Conferences

4.13 Summary


4.15 References

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4.1 Introduction

Mental retardation is a condition characterized by low general intellectual functioning

and deficits in adaptive behavior Ndurumo (1993). The American Association on Mental

Retardation definition state that mental retardation is a disability characterized by significant

limitations both in intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior as expressed in conceptual,

social and practical adaptive skills. This disability originate before age 10 (Luckasson et al.,

2002,p.1). All children are unique individuals and stereotypes or suggestions certain children are

a “type” must be avoided. Deborah(1992) notes that, children with intellectual challenges exist in

our communities and we should accept the challenges of living and working with them.

Special education has evolved over the years through many stages or ages. Before 17th century,

people with disabilities all over the world were considered less socially and physically less

capable. Children born with disabilities were not easily accepted and then were regarded as a

burden to the family and to the society at large Randiki (2002). For instance, the Greek and

Roman societies were highly advanced and civilized, but the treatment of children with

disabilities by today’s standard would be considered cruel and barbaric. Serchreenbergs (1983)

detailed account of the history of mental retardation reveals that in the city square of Sparta

which placed a premium on physical strength and intellectual ability, eugenics and infanticide

were common, everyday occurrences. Only the brightest and strongest

Of citizen were encouraged to have children. Newborns were examined by a council of

inspectors, and babies thought to be defective or inferior were thrown out from a cliff to die on

the rocks below. The fall of Roman Empire in A.D 476 herald in a period of the Renaissance in

the 1300s, religion became a dominant social force which brought in more humane treatment of

individuals with disabilities. Churches established monasteries and asylums as sanctuaries for

persons with intellectual disabilities. Infanticide was rarely practiced because the agrarian

societies required many workers in the field. In some instances, individuals thought to be

mentally retarded found their way into castles where, though protected and shown favor, they

served as buffoons and court jesters entertaining the nobility (Gargiulo, 1985). At the same time,

it was an era in which fear and superstition ran rampant. People with mental retardation were

frequently thought to be filled with Satan and were possessed with demonic power, which often

led to torture and death for practicing witchcraft. The beginning of the modern period in the

252

history of mental retardation started in the early 19th century. Jean- Marc Itard (1774- 1838) and

Edouard Seguin (1812-1880) attempted at educating learners with intellectual challenges. They

established first school for learners with mental retardation in Paris. Later, Seguin established

residential facilities in United States of America. Early 20th century witnessed the development

of large institutions for learners with mental retardation. However, due to overcrowding and

understaffing of personnel, disillusionment, fear and pessimism set in (Morrison and Polloway,

1995). There was sifting of mission from institutional based practice which tended to protect

victims from the society to a new custodial role with an aim of normalization of the person living

conditions. This in effect means that making available to the mentally retarded patterns and

conditions of everyday life which are as close as possible to the norms and patterns of the

mainstream of the society. Normalization was the time where learning and social environment

were normalized to suit the interest of all learners (knoblock, 2006).

Inclusion period is the last stage of historical development of special education. The

concept of inclusion education enjoys a high profile around the world by virtue of its

incorporation into the policy documents of the numerous international organizations, most

notably the United Nations. Standards of UN policies such as those embodied in the UN

Convection on the Rights of the Child (1989), the UN Standard Rules on the Equalization of

Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities(1993) and the UNESCO (1994) Report on the

education of children with disabilities (Salamanca statement) all affirm the right of all children to

equal education without discrimination within the mainstream education system. Inclusion

means recognizing individual differences thereby enabling them obtain a good quality life in

their environment. Inclusion describes the process by which a school attempt to respond to all

pupils as individuals by reconsidering its curricula organization and provision (sebba, 1996).

Giangreco (1997) identified common features of schools where inclusive education is reported to

be thriving. These features are; Collaborative team work, a shared framework, family

involvement, general education ownership, clear role relationship among professionals, effective

use of support staff, meaningful individual education plans (IEPs) and procedures for evaluating

effectiveness.

Educational assessment refers to the gathering of information about the learners learning

levels, styles and skills in order to make instructional decisions about meeting their needs

(Alberto,2010). Assessing learners with mental retardation not only depends on intelligence tests,

253

but also on measures of personality, educational achievement, social interactions, aptitudes as

well as educational development measures and information supplied by parents, teachers, social

workers and professionals. Payne and Mercer (1975) listed the following signs as possible

indicators of mental retardation in the early childhood: Delayed speech, delayed motor

development, delayed psychomotor development, delayed development of common sense and

delayed academic development. Educational assessment should be conducted by multi-

disciplinary team comprising a group of professionals such as audiologist, physiotherapist,

parents, social worker, special education teachers and psychologist (Deborah, 1992). The

educational assessment can serve the following purposes; to ascertain individual development

pattern, to determine whether a child needs special attention, to identify learners who needs

additional assessment, for curriculum planning, for proper placement and to monitor the progress

of the learner. The family members of the retarded learners undergo a big trauma both

psychologically and socially.

The period immediately following the diagnosis, is extremely crucial and may have

deciding influence on the parents handling of the child and therefore family counseling is

necessary for creating the necessary acceptance of the child ((Biswas, 1980). A parent is the

primary helper, monitor, co-coordinator, observer and decision maker for the child (Hobbs,

1998). The provision of special education must give strong consideration to the parents to: Give

equal opportunities to education to exceptional children, teach their mentally retarded children

adaptive skills, advocate for the rights of their children, promote social interactions among the

peers and friends, take their children for excursion to improve their self esteems among many

others. Educationally, mentally retarded children are classified into three categories; namely,

educable mentally retarded, trainable mentally retarded and severely or profoundly retarded.

Klein et al (1979) state that educable mentally retarded fall under mildly retarded and trainable

mentally is under moderately and severely retarded. The children who were once known as

dependent retarded fall under severely whereas life supported falls under profoundly mentally

retarded.

Robinson and Robison (1976) state that children with the lowest IQs were once known as

custodial mentally retarded. The government has a role to play in the management of mental

retardation. The government of Kenya has established assessment centre across the country with

a view of coordinating all the activities related to learners with disabilities including mental

retardation. These centers are staffed with qualified personnels to assess, sensitize the public and

254

make referrals for placement. Government also trains and post special needs educators to all

public schools. For profound and severe cases the government has established special schools

with special educational facilities to cater for learners special needs which are not available in

general education classrooms.

There has been a marked increase in with the number of people with disabilities in

Kenya. This has been associated with various factors as the increase in fatal accidents in our

roads, congenital disorders, diseases and poverty leading to malnutrition. The problem caused by

disabilities affects the performance of an individual (Kombo, 2006). Various efforts have been

made to address the issue of disabilities especially in managing accidents rate however, very

little is being done to manage mental retardation among learners in Kenya public schools.

Madaraka zone is made up of ten primary schools. The enrolment of learners with mental

retardation in these schools is very low. The factors that contribute to this trend have not been

established. Most of the schools are found within the slums and/or within coffee and flowers

plantations. The area is riddled with all sort of social vices including high rate of crime,

drunkenness and poverty. The performance of schools was dismally low. For instance, report

form zonal education office showed that in 2013, class seven district exam for the end of the year

indicate that almost all schools mean scores was below average. In addition, K.C.P.E national

examination result showed that none of the schools within the zone scored above average. The

results pattern over the year in schools under study shows that almost a quarter of the candidates

from each school on average scored less than 100mark in national exam. This is an indicator that

there could be experiencing learning difficulties and/ or retardation. This gloomy statistic led the

researcher to seek to establish the role parents play in education of learners with mental

retardation in Madaraka zone in Thika sub-county. The purpose of the study was to establish the

role parents play in enrolling learners with mental retardation in schools and their academic

performance.

4.2 Types Of Homework Assistance Children Get From Parents

One of the objectives of this study was to establish the type of assistance children get

from their parents while doing homework. Parental assistance in homework creates a school like

environment that allow a child to complete the task at hand as well as gain better understanding

therefore complimenting the teacher’s effort. The respondents were asked what type of

255

assistance they get. The percentages calculated and presented in figure 1 indicate that popular

homework assistance children get was reading (66%). Only 4% were assisted in writing parents

compared to 30% assisted in solving difficult problems. Additional data on this aspect was

collected by asking the children to state who actually was involved in his or her homework.

The findings presented in table 2 show that children were mainly assisted in doing homework by

female mothers, 189 (87.5%). Fathers seem to be less concerned with children’s home since only

2.7% were involved

256

This is consistent with research findings. Ogoye-Ndegwa (2007) says that active homework help

was primarily a ‘mother’s responsibility. However, there is a contradiction with Lamb et al.

(1987) who reported that in

Kenyan homes, mothers and female guardians were primarily concerned with children’ s hygiene

and talking to their children about transition stage rather than assisting them in school work.

4.3 Extent Of Parental Involvement In Homework

The other objective of this study was to establish the extent to which parents were

involved in children’s homework. This would determine whether the assistance was meaningful.

Thirty head teachers and 192 teachers were asked to rate the extent of parental involvement in

homework in their schools. Their rating was measured on a scale of 1 to 10 where; 1=Not

involved at all and 10=fully involved. Each head teacher’s rating was then matched with an

individual teacher’s rating in a sampled school. This procedure yielded 192 pairs of scores that

were used to run the t-tests for related measures to test the significance of the difference between

head teachers and teachers rating of the extent of parental involvement in homework. The head

teachers rated parental involvement in homework at 5.875 higher than the teachers’ rating of

3.797. With t=10.2759, degrees of freedom=191 and p<0.0001, the researcher rejected the null

hypothesis and concluded that there was a statistically significant difference of 2.078 between

the two means. The argument that could be advanced for this is that since teachers dealt with

pupils’ homework on a daily basis, it was highly probable that the teachers’ rating was more

genuine compared with that of the head teachers. Despite there being a difference in the rating,

the results suggest that parental involvement in homework was fairly low. This is supported by

some parents interviewed. One parent blatantly said; “I don’t see why children should carry

school work home. I feel that after school children should assist us! After all they go to school all

days including weekends so when will they help us? This is shared by a parent in another school

who said; “I really don’t have time to assist my son in homework, what I know is that a child can

perform well with or without my assistance. Both of these parents express views implying that

they are least involved in their children’s homework. Another finding of this study of serious

concern is that parents give them domestic chores most of the time thereby having to time to do

homework. This conforms to findings by Atieno and Ayodo(2011). Finally the study sought to

examine the association between parental involvement in their children’s homework and school

257

academic performance. The analysis incorporated both descriptive and inferential statistics

involving both bivariate and multivariate techniques. The hypothesis being tested was; H0: There

is no statistically significant relationship between parental involvement in their children’s

homework and school academic performance. The results of the correlation indicated that school

academic performance has a weak correlation with the involvement of parents in children’s

homework, r (n=30) = .3444, p=.0623. The results were however significant at 10%. Despite the

result, the relationship was pursued further in a robust linear regression to account for effect sizes

when other covariates are accounted for.

4.4 Descriptive Statistics And Linear Regression Models On The Effect Of

Parental Involvement In Homework On Academic Performance

The mean for the outcome variable was 234.47 with a standard error of the mean and

standard deviation of 4.83 and 26.45 respectively. The mean for Parental involvement in

homework was 5.875, std. err 0.44, standard deviation 2.41. One of the assumptions of linear

regression requires that the dependent variable be normally distributed. Figure 1 presents a

Kernel density estimate for the dependent variable q25.

Figure 3 indicates that the average KCPE mean-score (q25) as estimated is very close to a

normal distribution.

258

The regression results are presented in table 1. As can be seen in table 1, model 1 indicates that

parental involvement in the homework has a positive effect on school academic performance.

That on a 10-point scale where 1=not involved at all and 10=deeply involved, a one-point

increase in parental involvement in the homework predicts a 3.78-point increase in school mean-

score although the result is only significant at α=.10 (p=.093). In perspective, this result suggests

that if parents do not participate in the homework of their children at all, their school would have

a mean-score of 212.91.But a one unit increase on a 10-point scale in the level of parental

participation in homework predicts a mean-score of 216.69 (212.91[constant] +3.78[coefficient]

= 216.69). This result implies that Parental involvement in homework explains 8.7% of the

variation in school KCPE mean-scores (adjusted R2). While the R2 squared shows the amount of

variance of Y (dependent variable) explained by X (predictor), the adjusted R2 is a function of

the number of cases and the number of variables. When the number of variables is small and the

number of cases very large, then the adjusted R2 is closer to R2.

As a result the adjusted R2 is a more honest association between X and Y. The positive

effect of parental involvement in homework was expected since previous studies have

established the same outcome. Epstein’s model upon which this study is anchored also predicts

that children’s academic achievement is enhanced when parents get involved in their homework.

Table 1 also shows that the significant effect of q9 on q25 disappears when parental payment of

PTA levies (q26) and mean percentage of parents attending meetings (2010-2012) (q49) are

introduced in the model(see model 2). Both variables have a positive effect on school mean

scores of 0.32 (p=.074) and 0.63 (p=.018) respectively. For instance, if all the parents invited for

schools meetings attended, KCPE mean score for that school would increase by 63 points

holding other predictors in the model constant. This result means that a one-percentage increase

in attendance predicts a 0.63 increase in school KCPE scores. With model 2, the

R2 improves to 22.5%.

4.5 The Child And Family

The crucial role of the family as the natural and primary educator of the child (Article 42.1

of the Constitution [1937]) with rights and duties to active participation in the child’s education,

is reflected in legislation and policy in Ireland. This role necessitates the development of strong

working relationships between parents/family and practitioners/childminders based on a shared

259

sense of purpose and mutual respect in order to create environments for children to support their

optimal learning and development. The evidence strongly suggests that participation of parents

in their child’s care and education improves children’s cognitive and social development and

motivation and leads to higher adult expectations and increased parental confidence and

aspirations (Schweinhart, Montie, Xiang, Barnett, Belfield and Nores, 2004; Taggart, 2007). The

National Early Years Network’s (1997) research in the US revealed that greater involvement by

parents in their children’s care and education leads to:

more sharing of information between parents and practitioners/childminders ■■

parents spending more time in the setting■■

parents improving their knowledge of parenting and child development generally ■■

family values and beliefs being understood and taken account of by the

practitioner/childminder■■

a more emotionally secure environment for the child■■

parents being viewed as valuable resources bringing added value to the setting ■■

parents feeling more confident about engaging in dialogue regarding their children’s later

education. ■■

Guided by the collective purpose of supporting the child, parents and

practitioners/childminders bring different but important and complementary skills to caring for

and educating children. Supportive and trusting relationships between parents and

practitioners/childminders are therefore critical in supporting children’s learning and

development.

4.6 The Child And Practitioner/Childminder Relationships

Adults’ development of supportive relationships with babies, toddlers and young children

is especially significant for children’s emotional and social development. The importance of

babies’ attachment to their parents (mothers and fathers) has long been acknowledged (Bowlby,

1988). The part of the brain that deals with memories and coincides with the child’s growing

awareness of and attachment to caregivers, develops between the age of six and eight months.

260

The experience young babies have of forming relationships at this time influences all future

relationships (Perry, 1995; Karr-Morse and Wiley, 1997). Attachments between children and

adults are critical in assuring the baby he/she will be taken care of, building in him/her a basic

trust in others and giving the baby the sense that s/he is worth caring for. As articulated by

Goldschmied and Jackson (1994, p. 37)

The young children with whom we work, and who do not yet have language to express

what they are experiencing, need to have these special relationships too, and deeply need

to have them in a very immediate and concrete way. … We can never remind ourselves

too often that a child, particularly a very young and almost totally dependent one, is the

only person in the nursery who cannot understand why he is there. He can only explain it

as abandonment, and unless he is helped in a positive and affectionate way, this will

mean levels of anxiety greater than he can tolerate.

In general, babies depend on adults to meet their needs, and cope with little discomfort or

distress. Toddlers rapidly acquire physical, social, reasoning, and language skills, but these skills

still need a lot of practice. Through the development of positive relationships and problem-

solving skills, young children begin to understand how to respect the needs/rights of others while

meeting their own needs/rights (Gartrell and King, 2004). They also begin to see that there is not

always a right side to the argument, that the feelings of others are important and that it is

possible to solve conflicts in such a way that both parties can be satisfied. Corsaro (1997) noted

that developmental psychologists have long stressed the importance of conflict and challenges

for creating new cognitive structures and skills. When adults facilitate problem-solving children

learn to collaborate, discuss details of problems (number; space; time) and discover there are

many possible solutions to problems (Evans, 2002).

4.6 Social-Emotional Development In The Family

While children are developing as individuals and as members of a group, they are

immersed in learning the social rules and values of their cultures and families.

Ethnicity, race, religion, region, social class, gender, sexual orientation and physical abilities

make up some of the dimensions of the human experience that we know as culture.

The customs, traditions and values of children’s families and cultures shape and influence their

classroom experiences. Culture affects how we communicate with each other. We interpret all

261

we see or hear through the lens of our own beliefs, values and experiences. It is common to

misinterpret or misunderstand the communication style of someone from another culture. Each

culture has its own defined communication system, including actions, gestures, words, postures,

facial expressions, tones of voice, and ways of handling time, space, materials, work and play.

Children learn the rules and norms for communicating and interacting from their families.

Cultivating a deeper understanding of children in the context of their family cultures may prevent

misunderstandings.

Teachers must take into account family values regarding behaviors and rules, and

develop an understanding of how relationships with adults in authority are perceived in various

cultures. These expectations affect the child’s responses within the classroom, and

misunderstandings can create confusion and discomfort. For example, certain cultures frown

upon children looking directly at an adult during a conversation.

Others encourage dependence on adults, for example, in feeding or decision making, beyond

Western expectations.

Teachers who understand children’s home cultures are able to more fully understand their

learning needs, and are better able to make all children feel safe and supported in the classroom.

The importance of family relations is addressed in the next section.

4.7 Family Relations

Early childhood teachers play an especially important family support role. By building

relationships with parents and other significant adults in their students’ lives, teachers contribute

to the creation of safe and healthy learning environments for children. The ultimate goal is for

the significant adults in each child’s life to work together more effectively as partners to promote

the child’s development and learning.

This type of partnership must reflect the different roles, attitudes and needs in multiracial

and socioeconomically diverse populations. In a partnership, all partners share rights and

responsibilities, power and decision making, and mutual trust and respect. Schools have long

sought parental involvement. Using the term partnership rather than involvement captures the

idea of shared responsibility for children across the three contexts of home, school and

community.

262

In recognition of the importance of partnerships that support early learning the

Connecticut State Board of Education adopted a Position Statement On School-

Family-Community Partnerships in August 1997. A

“Guide to Using the Position Statement” explains the role of early care and education in

fostering socialemotional development as follows:

4.8 A Role For Early Care And Education Programs

Every early care and education program can develop effective strategies to involve all

families in the education of their children. Partnerships with parents have been a primary focus

of the early care and education field since its inception. However, based on national surveys,

families indicate that they would like more information and opportunities to be actively engaged

in their child’s education. Early care and education programs can offer

a comprehensive school-familycommunity partnership program that makes some connection

with all families.

Not all families can take advantage of all partnership activities, but every family can be involved

in some way.

Early care and education programs can provide training and support to staff and

administrators in the areas of setting partnership goals and effective practices as well as

strategies for monitoring progress to learn which practices are most successful.

Because early childhood educators have a holistic view of young children, they are uniquely

positioned to assist families in connecting to resources in the community. To make these

connections, early childhood educators can become knowledgeable about community resources

by contacting local organizations and state information sources such as Infoline (available by

dialing 211). Finding out about community resources that are available to families is the first

step. Bringing the needs of young children and families to the attention of the wider community

is the next step. Early childhood educators can be a pivotal force for encouraging community

collaborations that support a unified vision of positive development for children.

4.9 The Six Partnership Standards And Sample Activities 1. Parenting – Programs promote and support parenting skills and the family’s primary role in

encouraging children’s learning at each age and stage of development.

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Activities may include: providing parent education programs, transportation, family social

activities, parent rooms and spaces, on-site Internet access for family use, social service referrals,

and parent resource libraries; developing parent leadership training and parent support groups;

and accompanying parents to the school district’s

Planning and Placement Team meetings.

2. Communicating – Staff and families participate in ongoing, clear, two-way communication

about the program and children’s progress.

Activities may include: preparing parent handbooks and newsletters; providing audio/ video

tapes; maintaining regular communication through phone calls, home visits, daily

communication sheets, homeschool notebooks, or e-mail; translating all information into parents’

languages (if parents speak a language other than

English); and conducting parent meetings and conferences.

3. Volunteering – programs provide opportunities and appropriate training to involve families in

activities both in the program and at home.

Activities may include: encouraging and supporting parents to volunteer to telephone other

parents when needed, construct playground equipment, assist in the classroom or library,

coordinate other volunteers, assist in planning activities, act as “buddies” for new parents, raise

funds, lobby, and share talents, hobbies and interests with children and other parents.

4. Learning at home – programs help families engage in learning activities at home that are

coordinated with the goals and objectives of the educational program.

Activities may include: providing book and activity bags to use at home; gathering information

about educational activities in the community, including ideas in the newsletter for extending

classroom learning at home; loaning parent resource and informational materials; making home

visits; creating opportunities for parents to share ideas with other parents; and encouraging

parents to be role models for lifelong learning.

5. Decision making – programs provide opportunities for all families to develop and strengthen

their leadership role in program decisions through participation in parent organizations, advisory

councils, school boards, or other decision- making committees or groups.

Activities may include: involving parents in curriculum development; inviting parents to staff

meetings; including parent participation in staff interviewing committees; supporting parents to

advocate for the program with funders or policy-makers; asking parents others on advisory

boards; and providing opportunities for parents to train other parents in leadership skills.

264

6. Collaborating with the community

– programs provide coordinated access to community resources for children and families and

serve as a resource to the community.

Activities may include: helping parents identify resources and support for child and family

needs; collaborating with other health and human service providers; engaging in joint activities

with other community organizations such as senior citizen centers; developing a resource

directory; linking parents with adult education programs (for high school completion, English for

speakers of other languages or job training); providing service to the community for the benefit

of others; and working together with community members to create greater access, availability

and quality of early childhood programs. The six standards for school-familycommunity

partnerships are not exclusive or distinct categories. One practice can activate several standards

simultaneously.

For example, assisting a family and child with the transition to kindergarten can involve giving

parents information about their child’s developmental characteristics and appropriate

expectations for kindergarten (parenting and communication). The early childhood program can

arrange a meeting between the family and kindergarten teacher to assist them in developing a

relationship to support the child’s transition into a new environment (collaboration and

communication). A parent may help gather together other families whose children are also

transitioning to kindergarten to talk with kindergarten teachers about activities families can do at

home (volunteering and learning at home). Families who develop leadership skills by serving on

committees at the preschool level may be interested in continuing that type of involvement in the

public school and may become advocates for education in the community (decision making and

collaborating with community). The six standards for partnerships can guide the development of

a balanced, comprehensive program that includes opportunities for involvement at school, at

home and in the community.

The results will depend on theparticular types of involvement that are implemented as well as the

quality of the implementation.

Note: Throughout this document the words parent(s) and family(ies) are used in the broadest

sense to mean those adults with primary responsibility for children.

From A Guide to Using the Position

Statement on School-Family-Community

Partnerships, Connecticut State Board Of Education, 2000.

265

4.10 Families In Need Of Special Services

Children have diverse abilities and needs with individual rates of development, often

exhibiting a wide range of skills and abilities. There are also some children who have special

needs that warrant the individual attention of early childhood programs in different ways. Key to

addressing a child’s special needs is the ongoing communication and partnership with families.

Families know their children best. Most often, families have acquired the expertise, knowledge

and skills to address their child’s special needs. Early childhood programs can benefit from the

information that families have to share.

A child’s special needs can be defined as any need that requires special attention from an

early childhood program. For example, it could be a child’s special health care need, such as

asthma, diabetes or a life-threatening allergy. A special need also could be a delay in the child’s

development which may be caused by lack of experience or opportunities. A special need also

could be that the child has a diagnosed or undiagnosed disability.

Early childhood staff members who have questions or concerns about a child should first

share their concerns with the child’s family. Families and program staff members can benefit and

learn from each other. For example, a program concerned about a child’sv allergy to nuts can

jointly think of ways to modify the program to ensure that the child is safe, and plan for an

unanticipated emergency.

Early childhood staff members who have concerns about a child’s developmental and

functional progress should discuss their concerns with the child’s family. Initial strategies can

focus on what needs to be done differently in the classroom that can support the child’s learning

and success. This might mean an environmental change, a change to the curriculum and

instruction, a change in child grouping or the implementation of a behavior plan for the program.

Programs also may wish to pursue obtaining special outside expertise. This expertise could come

from the program’s educational consultant or from an expert with special skills and knowledge.

When program concerns have been identified and shared with families, and, despite

modifications or adaptations in the classroom the child continues to appear to be challenged by

the teaching and learning environment, it is time to look for more formal expertise.

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Help Me Grow, at Infoline United Way of Connecticut, is a statewide system available to parents

and early childhood programs. Help Me Grow is designed to identify children who are at risk for

developmental or behavioral problems and is able to connect children and their families to

existing community resources.

Examples include the Connecticut Birth to Three System, special education provided by school

districts, a child development monitoring program, and referral to health and medical services.

Families and early childhood programs can contact Help Me Grow by dialing 211.

4.11 Communicating

Effective communication skills and strategies serve as the basis for building all other

relationships. When young children observe positive and genuine communication between their

parents and teachers, they feel that their two worlds are connected. Formal communication is

needed when everyone must receive the same information and when accuracy is required.

Suggestions include a parent bulletin board, weekly messages, journals and a parent handbook.

Informal communication with parents should happen every day. It occurs naturally when

children are brought to the program and/or when they are picked up. Although most exchanges

are casual, planning can help to maximize such opportunities. Jotting down something a child

has done so it can be shared with parents at the end of the day is one way to make these brief

moments more meaningful and establish ongoing relationships.

4.12 Parent Conferences

While a great deal of valuable information can be shared in daily, informal

communication, parent conferences provide time for more in-depth exchanges of ideas and for

problem solving when needed. Conferences are excellent times for teachers to ask parents to

share information that will help them meet individual needs. Conferences also provide good

opportunities to help parents better understand a program’s goals and objectives, and how their

child is progressing. Helpful guidelines for conducting parent conferences include the following:

• Prepare parents in advance. Share the purpose of the meeting, its anticipated length and who

will be present. Solicit parental input on topics for discussion.

267

• Organize your thoughts and be prepared with examples and work to help parents understand

your perspective.

• Establish a relaxed and open tone for the meeting. It is important that all participants know that

their contributions are valued.

• Solicit parent perceptions, hopes and goals.

Be sure to provide time to address their concerns and questions.

• Be descriptive. Celebrate the child’s growth and avoid labeling or judging.

• Share the curriculum and performance indicators with parents and provide examples of their

child’s performance in the various domains.

• Approach the conference as an opportunity to problem-solve with parents. Prepare, in advance,

some possible strategies but remain open and willing to search together for answers.

• Seek opportunities to agree on goals. Use the conference to work together on an action plan of

steps for home and school in order to achieve these goals.

• Set a time to talk again, even if by phone, and take responsibility for keeping parents informed.

4.13 Summary The authors firmly believe that the approach to teacher development outlined in this paper will

help create reflective teachers who adopt problem-s o l v i n g approaches in the classroom. It

will also develop l e a r n e r-centred teaching. Ultimately, through teacher education and

curriculum reform, this approach will facilitate the meeting of special needs within the general

school system and ensure that this is accepted practice. The authors hope that this approach,

including the materials, will be absorbed into the teacher education system in India with support

from the Ministry of Human Resource Development and state governments during the current

Five Year Plan.

It is the only way to realise the goal of education for all, including those children who have

special educational needs.


1. Explain Types Of Homework Assistance Children Get From Parents

2. Explain Extent Of Parental Involvement In Homework

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3. Explain Descriptive Statistics And Linear Regression Models On The Effect

Of Parental Involvement In Homework On Academic Performance

4. Explain The Child And Family

5. Explain The Child And Practitioner/Childminder Relationships

6. Explain Family Relations

7. Explain A Role For Early Care And Education Programs

8. Explain The Six Partnership Standards And Sample Activities

9. Explain Families In Need Of Special Services

10. Explain Communicating

11. Explain Parent Conferences


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Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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Unit 5: Implication of preschool and primary levels for Intervention,

documentation, record maintenance and report writing

5.1 Introduction

5.2 In General, IDEA Requires Occupational Therapists (Ots) To:

5.3. Iep Documentation

5.4. Service Process

5.5. Confidentiality Laws And Student Records

5.6 Rationale

5.7 Structure Of The Primary School English Curriculum

5.8 Research On Curriculum Implementation

5.9 Report Writing

5.10 Summary

5.11 Check You Progress

5.12 References

279

5.1 Introduction

This chapter seeks to establish a context for the current paper by examining a number of

significant documents with implications for children’s oral language development, including: the

1999 Primary School English Curriculum (PSEC) (DES/NCCA, 1999a, b); studies on the

implementation of PSEC in subsequent years (2000-2001 in English-medium schools and 2001-

2002 in Irish-medium schools) (NCCA, 2005; DES, 2005a, b). Aistear (NCCA, 2009a, b), a

curriculum framework for early childhood (birth to 6 years of age); SÍOLTA, the national quality

framework for early childhood education (Centre for Early Childhood Development and

Education, 2006); and the National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children

and Young People 2011-2020 (DES, 2011). Implications of national assessments of English

reading for language development are also considered as are implications of recent technological

developments for children’s oral language development.

In addition to meeting federal and state requirements, documentation is an important

communication tool between schools and families. All professionals involved should collaborate

to document at least quarterly, and provide reports as often as is done for students without

disabilities. Therapists should keep current on documentation guidelines for the profession, as

well as special school-based requirements.

5.2 In General, IDEA Requires Occupational Therapists (Ots) To:

• write a report of the evaluation the OT conducted;

• provide information and recommendations for students’ IEPs;

• write service plans for students, considering: disability, medical diagnosis,

contraindications to therapy;

• help develop IEP goals and determine equipment and personnel/assistance needed to

meet therapy goals;

• prepare periodic status reports; and

• write a report when students discontinue therapy.

The law does not specify how long therapists must keep documentation. Connecticut has a

retention schedule (available from LEAs) for public records which covers education records

280

LEAs maintain. Medicaid requires documentation be retained for at least six (6) years. See

Medicaid regulations.

5.3. Iep Documentation

Based on IDEA and Regulations Concerning State Agencies (RCSA) Sec.10-76d-11(d)

regulations, the Individualized Education Program (IEP) should contain:

1. measurable annual goals and measurable short-term objectives/benchmarks for

students. Annual educational goals describe what students with disabilities “can

reasonably be expected to accomplish within a 12-month period in the child’s special

education program”. Short-term instructional objectives are “measurable,

intermediate steps” between the present levels of educational performance and the

annual goals. They should be written in behavioral terms to describe what the

students are expected to accomplish, in a defined period of time, but not as detailed as

lesson plans [CGS Sec.10-76d-11(c)(3)].

2. the specific special education and related services to be provided, including assistive

technology services or devices.

3. the amount, frequency, and duration of services.

4. the extent to which the students will participate in regular educational programs.

5. statement of the present level of educational performance, including how the students’

disabilities affect involvement and progress in the general curriculum.

6. extent to which the students will be able to participate in regular educational programs,

including an explanation of the extent to which the students will not be participating

with non-disabled students in the general education class, and in extracurricular and

non-academic activities.

7. statement of transition services needed for students, beginning no later than age 14 and

annually thereafter. Before students leave the school setting, include, when

appropriate, a statement of interagency responsibilities for linkages (C.G.S. 10-

76d(a)(6).

Transition services must be based on students’ needs and include instruction,

community experiences, employment and other postschool adult-living objectives

development, and if appropriate, acquisition of daily living skills and functional

vocational evaluation.

281

8. projected date to begin services, and anticipated duration.

9. appropriate objective criteria and evaluation procedures and schedules for determining,

on at least an annual basis, whether objectives are being achieved.

10. notes on annual review and revisions if needed for the students’ IEPs.

5.4. Service Process

In traditional hospital/clinic settings, a unit of service typically lasts fifteen minutes. In school

settings with transdisciplinary or interdisciplinary programs, some OT interventions may be very

modest, such as a few minutes daily. School policies for record keeping should reasonably reflect

the OT scope of service, and cost/benefits of extensive documentation.

Documentation in the following areas is recommended:

1. referral: initial referral including reason, options considered, regular education

interventions, why options rejected. RCSA (Sec. 10-76d-7) requires that referral to

PPTs for special education evaluation be noted on the school district’s standard

referral form.

2. permissions: parents’ or guardians’ written permission for assessment and evaluation,

reevaluation, and special education services; also, notice to parents concerning

reevaluation.

3. test protocol data and summary report: screenings, evaluations, reassessments,

IEPs, annual (periodic) reviews and exit results.

4. intervention: regular occupational therapy interventions. In addition to evaluation

reports and intervention plans, documentation for school occupational therapy

typically includes:

• attendance records: the amount and frequency of service provided students;

• progress notes on services plan and data collection on IEP objectives;

• contacts with vendors and recommendations;

• contacts with parents;

282

• contacts with physicians and recommendations;

• contacts with teachers and recommendations;

• discontinuance reports;

• any additional records Medicaid or other third party payers require.

5.5. Confidentiality Laws And Student Records

These limit disclosure of personal information on health or education records such as IDEA, the

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and state statutes. Also, therapists in

school settings should comply with confidentiality standards required by their profession, and by

school district policy. Each local educational agency typically requires certain documentation

procedures relevant to consent for sharing information.

A comprehensive system for consistent organization and management of records

throughout the school district will facilitate case management, program development,

coordination, evaluation, and administrative and legal accountability. The system should include

records on individual students receiving occupational therapy, and on the overall program.

Federal and state laws and regulations which address classification, accessibility, review,

challenges, amendments, transfer, maintenance and destruction of student records include:

• Family Educational Rights And Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) - all students;

• FERPA incorporated into IDEA at legislation for children with disabilities: 20 U.S.C

Sec 1415(b)(1)(A) 34 CFR, 300.500, 300.560, 300.562-300.574

• RCSA Sec 10-76d-18;

• Connecticut Public Records Administrator - retention/disposition schedule.

• Regulations concerning confidentiality of education records.

FERPA defines records, files, documents and other materials containing information directly

related to students and maintained by an educational agency or institution, or by individuals

acting for that agency or institution, as “education records” (20 U.S.C., Sec 1232g(4)(A). This

includes therapy evaluation reports, progress and conference reports, treatment plans, test

283

protocols and therapy materials and any additional records school districts maintain to support

Medicaid payments for services provided under IDEA - whether stored on paper,

audio/videotape or computer. Some third-party records (i.e. from outside agencies or service

providers) are not relevant in their entirety; a summary may be transferred to students’

educational records.

5.6 Rationale

A positive atmosphere of cooperation and trust between parents and local school districts

is contingent upon protecting parents’ rights to privacy, limiting access to personally identifiable

information and fully implementing policies and procedures related to confidentiality. Parents

must be confident that they have control over decisions and information regarding their child.

Required Practices

1. Each board of education shall maintain records concerning children requiring special

education and related services and shall provide for the filing, protection, confidentiality,

classification, review, and when appropriate, destruction of such records (Sec. 10-76d-18).

2. Each board of education shall have policies and procedures to ensure the confidentiality of

education records. All such policies and procedures shall be consistent with the requirements

of pertinent state and federal law and regulation (Sec. 10-76d-18(a)) and (Sec. 10-76d-

18(a)(1)).

3. All such policies and procedures shall be in writing and shall be made known at least annually

to parents of children requiring special education and related services and shall be available

to the public (Sec. 10-76d-18(a)(2)).

4. Policies and procedures shall include those relating to securing parental consent (Sec. 10-76d-

18(a)(3)).

5. Policies and procedures shall include those relating to amendment of information in education

records at a parent’s request, where the board of education agrees to amend such information

(Sec. 10-76d-18(a)(4)).

6. Policies and procedures shall include those relating to the opportunity for a hearing at which

parents may challenge the information in education records (Sec. 10-76d-18(a)(5)).

284

7. Policies and procedures shall include those relating to safeguards to protect the confidentiality

of personally identifiable information at collection, storage, disclosure and destruction stages.

This shall also include a record of access to all education records. (Sec. 10-76d-18(a)(6)).

8. Parents shall have the right to inspect and review any education records relating to their child

which are collected, maintained or used by the board of education (Sec. 10-76d-18(b)).

Source: State of Connecticut Board of Education, “Requirements and Guidelines for Special

Education and Related Services for Children (Ages 3-5) With Disabilities”, 1991. page 30. These

requirements also apply to children 5 through 21 as cited in IDEA.

5.7 Structure Of The Primary School English Curriculum

The 1999 Primary School English Curriculum (PSEC) (DES/NCCA, 1999a) places a

much stronger emphasis on oral language than its predecessors. This is apparent in the

curriculum framework, where each of the original Strands is framed in terms of language, and

each includes oral language as a Strand unit (substrand) (table 1.1).

According to the introduction to the PSEC (DES/NCCA, 1999a), the following ideas underpin

oral language development:

285

• The process of language learning is linked with a growing knowledge of the world; language is

therefore a central factor in the expansion of the child’s conceptual framework and body of

knowledge.

• A large part of the child’s learning experience is verbal, and it is through oral language activity

that much of the child’s learning takes place both in and out of school.

• Language learning is an integrated process in which it is difficult to separate the functions of

oral language, reading and writing. All three are intimately related and each interacts with the

others in a myriad of ways.

• Because of its pervasive influence, English is not just concerned with language learning but

also with learning through language.

• In the process of acquiring language skills and in developing the ability to use language, other

crucial elements of the child’s personality and potential are cultivated.

5.8 Research On Curriculum Implementation

In a review of implementation of the PSEC (NCCA, 2005), teachers were generally

positively disposed towards the oral language component. However, some teachers involved in

focus group discussions expressed confusion with the terminology used to describe strands

(receptiveness to language etc.). Although a majority of teachers across all class levels surveyed

in the review felt that the oral language component of PSEC had the strongest impact on

children’s learning, just 30% felt that the teaching of oral language represented their greatest

success in implementing the PSEC (62% chose children’s literacy). Also in 2005, a document,

English Curriculum: Additional Support Material (DES/NCCA, 2005), was released, in which

the main strands in the PSEC were presented as oral language, reading and writing, and the

original strands (receptiveness to language etc.) were presented as strand units. It is unclear to

what extent the restructuring of the PSEC in this way facilitated teachers’ understanding and

implementation of oral language and other aspects of the PSEC.

286

In 2005, the inspectorate of the (then) Department of Education and Science (DES, 2005a)

published their own evaluation of the implementation of the PSEC. The evaluation was based on

focused inspections of the teaching of English in 59 classrooms in 26 schools, as well as focus

group interviews with the teachers in those schools. Key findings of the evaluation for oral

language across all class levels include the following:

• In two-thirds of schools, whole-school plans were deemed to be in need of further development,

as they were general in nature, not specific to the particular school and its environment, not

linked to the structure and focus of the English curriculum (as it was at the time), and lacking

detail regarding the methodologies adopted in the school.

• Four-fifths of teachers used the (then) strand units of oral language, reading and writing as

opposed to the strands as their starting points for classroom planning.

More than half the teachers did not link their individual planning with the school plan, with some

teachers indicating that they used textbooks or commercially-produced materials as a basis for

planning, rather than the content objectives in the curriculum.

• In a quarter of classrooms no reference was made in long-term or short-term planning to the

allocation of discrete time for the development of oral language objectives.

• Oral language was taught effectively in a little over three-quarters of classrooms.

• Receptiveness to language was emphasised in three-quarters of classrooms, with pupils in the

junior classes afforded opportunities to observe simple commands, to play with language, and

to develop an awareness of sounds.

• Three-quarters of teachers made effective use of a variety of approaches for oral language

development including talk and discussion, play and games, story, improvisational drama,

poetry, and rhyme.

• Practice in relation to assessment (of English in general) was good in three-fifths of classrooms

as teachers used assessment information to inform teaching and learning. Records of pupils’

progress were maintained in two-thirds of classrooms.

It is also of interest to note the effects of curriculum implementation in schools with particular

characteristics. In a report on teaching literacy and numeracy in 12 schools designated as

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disadvantaged (DES, 2005b), the inspectorate noted the following in relation to teaching oral

language in such schools:

• Teachers made frequent reference to the fact that children come to school with a significant oral

language deficit, and that the necessary oral skills and competencies that are a prerequisite for

the development of literacy skills had not been established (p. 25).

• In a few schools, attention was given to the development of assessment profiles to monitor

children’s progress in reading and oral language (p. 36).

• Teachers commented that oral language development received much attention, and this

improved classroom learning experiences for the children (p. 45).

The report also noted that lessons gleaned from the Early Start programme should support the

teaching of oral language in community-based pre-school provision in areas designated as

disadvantaged.

Finally, a report on the teaching of English based on incidental visits to primary schools

by members of the inspectorate (DES, 2010) noted that, despite the importance accorded to oral

language in the English curriculum teachers did not facilitate talk and discussion to support

children’s learning in one-sixth of the English lessons observed (p. 5).

In general, the picture is one in which overall implementation of the oral language

component of the English curriculum is deemed to be appropriate, though a sizeable minority of

schools and teachers are viewed as struggling with aspects of teaching, assessment or planning.

The importance of providing a more intensive approach to oral language development in schools

with large numbers of children living in disadvantaged circumstances is also suggested.

5.9 Report Writing

As a necessary condition to determining special education eligibility for a student with an

emotional disability, the PPT must determine that educational performance is adversely affected

as a result of dysfunctional school-related behaviors and/or affective reactions. Evidence must

exist that supports a relationship between the student's school-related behaviors and/or affective

relations and decreased educational performance. While adverse effect on educational

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performance may imply a marked difference between the student's academic performance and

reasonable (not optimal) expectations of performance, the definition of education performance

cannot be limited to academics. This position is clarified by the Office of Special Education

Programs (OSEP) in a March 8, 2007, Letter to Clark, 48

IDELR 77 where "educational performance" as used in the IDEA and its implementing

regulations is defined as not limited to academic performance. Furthermore, based upon the

IDEA definitions of a child with a disability in 34 C.F.R. Section 300.8(a)(1) and specifically the

definition of a child with an emotional disturbance, along with the definition of special education

found in 34 C.F.R. Section 300.39, it is clear that special education and specialized instruction

encompass more than only academic instruction. Adverse effect on educational performance

cannot, therefore, be based solely on discrepancies in age or grade level performance in

academic subject areas. Rather, when determining if a student's emotional disturbance has an

adverse effect on educational performance, PPTs must consider all aspects of the child's

functioning at school, including academic, social/emotional, cognitive, communication,

vocational and independent living skills. An adverse effect can be manifested through behavioral

difficulties at school; impaired or inappropriate social relations; impaired work skills, such as

being disorganized, tardy; having trouble getting to school on time; and difficulty with following

the rules.

Indicators of educational performance can include present and past grades, report cards

and reports of progress (social emotional and/or academic), achievement test scores and

measures of ongoing classroom performance such as curriculum-based assessment (formative

and summative assessments), work samples and data relative to responses to tiered and targeted

interventions. The appropriateness ofthe school district's educational goals, as reflected in the

curriculum and in the formal grading reports,should also be considered. Various types of

standards must be applied when making judgments aboutstudent progress to determine what

constitutes adverse effect on educational performance. The student'soverall performance should

demonstrate a marked difference between actual and expected schoolperformance. While

determining a student's cognitive abilities and level of academic achievement may beuseful, the

focus should be placed on the student's overall performance in school and his or her responseto

interventions as illustrated in the data resulting from progress monitoring activities. Some

students attainadequate achievement test scores, but do not demonstrate appropriate academic

progress; for example,when a severe and chronic pattern of failing to persevere with tasks and

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complete classroom assignmentsleads to repeated failure in subject matter courses. In this case,

the student's resulting failure in subjectmatter courses can be considered an adverse effect.

However, it must also be noted, that 34 C.F.R.

Section 300.101(c) states that a free and appropriate public education (FAPE), must be

available to any child with a disability who needs special education and related services, even if

the child has not failed or been retained in a course or grade and is advancing from grade to

grade. Therefore, as is the case for any student with a disability, the determination of whether a

student's emotional status "adversely affects educational performance" must be made on a case

by case basis and is dependent on the unique needs of the particular child (March 8, 2007, Letter

to Clark, 48 IDELR 77).

The documentation of adversely affected educational performance must also substantiate

that the educational deficiencies persist over time in spite of specific alternative strategies that

have been provided within the general education setting. The PPT should have evidence that

tiered interventions, such as positive behavioral supports, home/school collaboration,

attendance/counseling/academic supports, behavioral and emotional supports, contracts and/or

established behavior interventions and approaches, have been implemented with fidelity. (See

section 6, Empirically Supported Prevention and Intervention

Strategies, for suggested tiered interventions.) Evidence of these efforts and their impact should

be considered by the PPT in determining adverse educational performance.

5.10 Summary Current work on understanding language development in young children has been

focused on providing a conceptual framework which can account for interactions between

biological and environmental processes (MacWhinney, 1999). It recognises the role of the

child’s physiological status, cognitive skills and social precocity in language learning, and how

these elements interact, while also recognising caregiver input. The emergentist view is

compatible with socio-constructivist views of knowledge acquisition, in which the contribution

of a knowledgeable adult is considered to be part of the language construction process.

Within an emergentist view it is possible to provide a framework for a language curriculum

which can support the development of a diverse population of young children including children

of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds, children whose development may be inhibited by

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social/environmental circumstances and children with biological and/or environmental

conditions, resulting in special educational needs.

Recent research has highlighted very large individual differences, among typically

developing children, in onset time, and in rate of growth, for all of the critical components of the

language system: word comprehension, word production, word combinations and sentence

complexity. This challenges the view that language develops in the same way for all children.

Variations observed in children with atypical development represent extensions of the variations

that are also observed in children with typical development (Bates, Dale & Thal, 1995).

In recent years, there has been considerable development in our understanding of the

specific language profiles of children with particular syndromes such as Down syndrome, Fragile

X syndrome and Williams syndrome, as well as autism. Along with stressing the need for

syndrome specific knowledge, this literature points to the importance of adopting a

developmental perspective on the communication and language strengths and needs of children

with disabilities so that, in addition to the child’s overall diagnosis, intervention takes the child’s

developmental level into account.

An emergentist/developmental position is also consistent with accounts of second

language acquisition (e.g. Cummins, 1979,1991,2000). The developmental aspect of second

language acquisition has been demonstrated by research on the stage of acquisition described as

interlanguage. This is the period between when the second language learner starts to use the

language productively and he/she achieves levels of competence characteristic of a native

speaker.

5.11 Check You Progress

1. Explain In General, IDEA Requires Occupational Therapists (Ots) To:

2. Explain. Iep Documentation

3. Explain Service Process

4. Explain Confidentiality Laws And Student Records

5. Explain Rationale

6. Explain Structure Of The Primary School English Curriculum

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7. Explain Research On Curriculum Implementation

8. Explain Report Writing


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References







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Press.





Routledge.

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Press.




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and Education.








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Block 3: Curriculum at Secondary, Pre-vocational and Vocational level

Unit 1: Curriculum domains at Secondary level

Unit 2: Curriculum domains at Pre- vocational level

Unit 3: Curriculum domains at Vocational level

Unit 4: Rehabilitation of PwIDs under National Skill development Scheme (NSDS by

MSJ&E)

Unit 5: Implications of placement for inclusion in Community, Documentation, Record

Maintenance and Reporting

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Unit 1: Curriculum Domains At Secondary Level

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Definition Of Children With Mild Intellectual Disabilities

1.3 Some Characteristics Of Mental Retarded Students

1.4. Disability Characteristics.

1.5 Functioning.

1.6 Household Characteristics

1.7 School Programs And Experiences

1.8 How Much Is Explained?

1.9 Looking Back To Nlts

1.10 Forms Of Understanding

1.11 Factors Associated With Academic Performance

1.12 Disability Differences In Students’ Academic Performance Teachers’

Perceptions Of Students’ Academic Performance

1.13 Summary


1.15 References

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1.1 INTRODUCTION

As the learning outcomes of our school curriculum play an important role in the learning

of our APSN children, we need to have higher expectations of our children and recognize that

they can learn. These learning outcomes must not only stay relevant in today’s society but equip

our children with the right attitudes, skills and knowledge relevant to today’s knowledge-based

economy.

There is no question that much is expected from our education system in terms of

preparing future citizens, workers, and leaders. To that end, schools are expected to influence

students’ learning, socialization, and even vocational preparedness. This agenda is perhaps even

more keenly applied for students with disabilities than for those in the general population.

Indeed, NLTS2’s conceptual framework reflects this comprehensive view of educationally

relevant inputs and achievements both in and outside of school.

Despite the attention paid to a broad definition of outcomes, however, academic

performance remains central. Academic instruction is arguably the primary business of

education, and it was poor performance that spawned the recent era of reform after the

publication of A Nation at Risk two decades ago (U. S. Department of Education, 1983). Further,

it is academic performance that is central to the efforts of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001

to make schools and school districts accountable for assessing and improving student

performance annually (Linn, Baker, & Betebenner, 2002). Further, limitations in academic

achievement represent the primary implication of disability for most students receiving special

education services, and those limitations, if left unaddressed, constrain their ability to pursue

postsecondary education and well-paid employment after high school.

Although the importance of academic achievement is rarely questioned, reaching

unanimity regarding its measurement has been elusive. The measurement of academic

performance, particularly for students with disabilities, continues to be a controversial topic

among policymakers, measurement experts, and educators (Ahearn, 2000; Elliott, 1998; Johnson,

2000; Koretz & Hamilton, 1999; McGrew, Vanderwood, Thurlow, & Ysseldyke, 1995).

Measuring academic performance can occur at multiple levels and serves multiple purposes. For

304

example, classroom teachers often conduct formative and summative tests to evaluate student

mastery of course content and provide grades for students and parents. State tests are designed

primarily to measure progress at the school or school district level. In particular, graduation tests

are used to determine whether a student has mastered the minimum content and competencies

required to receive a high school diploma. Each of these kinds of assessments engenders

significant questions related to test design, types of decisions supported by the results, alternative

assessments, and accommodations (Heubert & Hauser, 1999; Minnema, Thurlow, Bielinski, &

Scott, 2001).

Although this is a time of change in the educational arena, within this evolving

accountability environment, it is crucial to understand the progress of all students, including

those with disabilities, and the factors that contribute to their positive academic performance.

NLTS2 is in a unique position to provide a national perspective on these issues. This chapter

presents both descriptive findings and multivariate analyses of multiple measures of academic

performance. It also compares results of the multivariate analyses with those achieved in similar

analyses as part of the original NLTS.

1.2 Definition of Children with Mild Intellectual Disabilities According to the American Association of Mental Retardation (AAMR, 1992), mental

retardation refers to “substantial limitations in present functioning. It is characterized

bysignificantly sub-average intellectual functioning, existing concurrently withrelated limitations

in two or more of the following applicable adaptive skillareas: Communication, self-care, home

living, social skills, communityuse, self-direction, health and safety, functional academics,

leisure andwork. Mental retardation manifests before the age of 18.”

This revised definition emphasized the importance of contextual supports to addressing the

limitations in various areas of adaptive functioning. It furthers highlights a three-step system of

diagnosis, classification and systems of support.

Step 1 is the diagnosis of mental retardation which is based on an IQ score of approximately 70-

75 or below with concurrent limitations in two or more adaptive skill areas that is manifested

before age 18.

Step 2 is the analysis of the individual in the four dimensions of

305

1) intellectual functioning and adaptive skills,

2) psychological and emotional considerations,

3) physical health and etiology, and

4) environmental considerations.

Step 3 describes the profile and intensities of needed supports for each of the dimensions, which

may be intermittent, limited, extensive, or pervasive (Luckasson & Spitalnik, 1994).

Therefore, the intellectually disabled (ID) students in the Association for Persons with Special

Needs (APSN) maybe defined as persons with mild mental retardation who possess learning

difficulties and have an IQ range of 50-70 with varying degrees of deficits in adaptive skills (e.g.

communication, self-care, home living, social skills, community use, self-direction, health and

safety, functional academics, leisure and work) which may require intermittent support within

the mainstream whether it may be in regular homes, schools, work places or other community

settings. The level and intensity of supports varies according to need over time. For example, a

special education teacher who is working with an ID child may need to offer extensive

involvement initially on a daily basis but gradually reduce the assistance to an intermittent “as

needed basis”.

1.3 Some Characteristics of mental retarded Students

Understanding the characteristics of ID students can have potentially crucial impact on

treatment and management programmes for these students. ID students usually learn more

slowly in school and encounter greater difficulties with academic work than other children. Some

common characteristics of ID students include:

Poor Attention / Concentration Span i.e. deficient in selective attention or sustained attention.

By deficient in selective attention, the child is unable to focus on the central stimuli as he/she is

distracted by other extraneous distracting variables in the environment. By deficient in sustained

attention, the child may not be able to attend for an extended period of time on what he/she is

attending.

Poor Memory Skills e.g. poor recall of what was learnt.

Difficulty in Processing Information e.g. tendency to perceive only one attribute at a time.

306

Metacognitive Deficits e.g. lack awareness of own strengths and weaknesses and being

unaware of the demands of the task in relation to their capabilities and the strategies that they

have etc.

Poor Communication Skills e.g. poor receptive and expressive communication skills.

Transfer and Generalization of Learning e.g. the need for concrete and relevant teaching of

life skills in order that the learning can be transferred and generalized to other situations.

Poor Social / Adaptive Skills e.g. difficulty in making or keeping friends

Poor Self-Esteem e.g. the frequent academic failure may result in low self-concept resulting in

the lack of confidence etc.

Poor Attributional Beliefs e.g. tendency to attribute success to factors not within their

personal control e.g. luck; and tendency to attribute failure to external factors e.g. ability, task,

teacher rather than accepting personal responsibility for them.

Furthermore, these ID students are often quite able to take care of their own basic self-care and

daily living needs, and are quite capable of being independent in the community, such as

traveling by themselves and living on their own. However, as with all individuals, providing

them the opportunity, skill instruction and practice to perform daily and community living skills

is an important step towards a more independent life. ID students are likely also to have deficits

in cognitive functioning and adaptive behaviors. However, it is important to remember that there

are large within-group differences among them in terms of diverse and unique personalities,

abilities, interests, and needs.

1.4. Disability characteristics. As the descriptive results suggest, disability category is a significant factor in explaining

variations in both grades and skill discrepancies. Controlling for other factors, students with

mental retardation, autism, traumatic brain injury, or multiple disabilities all have significantly

higher grades than peers with learning disabilities (Exhibit 4-9).

The fact that students with mental retardation also have significantly greater academic deficits

than students with learning disabilities reinforces the notion that factors other than academic

performance are taken into account when teachers give grades. In addition, students with these

disabilities also spend a greater part of their school day in special education classes, in which

grading standards can differ from those in general education classes. Although this difference in

students’ school programs is controlled for in the analysis, other program differences may still

307

come into play in accounting for variation in grades. Independent of primary disability category,

students who are reported to have attention deficit or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder

(ADD/ADHD) receive lower grades than do students whose disability profiles do not contain

that disorder.

The analysis of the number of grade levels that students are behind in reading shows a

different set of disability characteristics to be most relevant. Students with emotional

disturbances or visual or orthopedic impairments are between 1 and 2.4 years closer to grade

level than students with learning disabilities. Students with other health impairments and autism

also are less behind in reading than their peers with learning disabilities but by less than 1 grade

level. There are fewer disability-related differences with respect to mathematics than for reading

performance. Only students with hearing or visual impairments out perform students with

learning disabilities, the comparison group. Students with visual or hearing impairments are 1.5

and .4 years closer to grade level in mathematics than students with learning disabilities, other

factors held constant. With the exception of students with mental retardation, most of the other

groups’ performance is similar to that of students with learning disabilities.

Independent of the nature of a youth’s disability, youth whose disabilities are detected at an

earlier age are more likely to receive lower grades, but this proxy for the severity of disability is

unrelated to actual academic skills. With respect to the number of domains in which youth

experience limitations, youth whose disabilities result in limitations in more areas of functioning

are more likely to be below grade level in reading than those with fewer limitations, although a

similar relationship is not noted for mathematics skills or grades.

1.5 Functioning. All of the aspects of functioning included in the analyses are associated with some

indicator of academic performance—most consistently with grades. Functional cognitive skills

have the widest impact on academic performance of the measures of functioning examined in

NLTS2. Somewhat surprisingly, youth with higher cognitive skills receive somewhat lower

grades, even when differences in school programs and placements are accounted for. However,

more in keeping with expectations, compared with youth with low levels of functional cognitive

308

skills, youth with high functional cognitive skills levels are 1.6 and 1.8 years closer to grade

level in reading and mathematics, respectively.

Ratings of social skills also are related strongly to both grades and academic skills, but

the direction of relationships is opposite that for cognitive skills. Youth rated with high social

skills receive significantly higher grades than their socially less adept peers, but they perform at a

lower grade level in reading. Both self-care skills and persistence are related to students’ grades,

but not to their actual academic skills; however, the relationships go in opposite directions.

Youth who are reported to have greater persistence in completing tasks (perhaps including

homework) receive higher grades than less persistent youth do, as expected. However, higher

self-care skills are associated with lower grades, independent of other differences among youth.

Demographics.

Many studies have demonstrated a strong and consistent relationship between students’

demographic characteristics and academic success. For example, African-American students in

the general population tend to receive lower scores in reading and mathematics than white

students (National Center for Education Statistics, 2002). In NLTS2 multivariate analyses, age,

gender, race/ethnicity, and using a language other than English at home all are related

significantly to students’ academic performance.

Older youth are significantly behind grade level in both reading and mathematics,

compared with younger peers, suggesting that students with disabilities continue to lose ground

relative to grade-level expectations as they progress through school. With regard to gender,

young women with disabilities receive higher grades than their male peers, independent of other

factors, but perform at a slightly lower grade level in mathematics—a pattern also noted in the

general population (National Center for Education Statistics, 2002). All racial/ethnic groups are

more behind in reading and mathematics than white students. African-American students with

disabilities also receive lower grades than white students, independent of other differences

between groups. Finally, using a language other than English at home is related to a somewhat

lower grade level performance in reading, although no relationship is noted with either

mathematics abilities or grades.

309

1.6 Household Characteristics

NLTS2 multivariate analyses show that household income and parental support and

expectations are related to student performance. Coming from a household with a higher income

is associated both with receiving higher grades from teachers and being closer to grade level in

reading and mathematics abilities (Exhibit 4-8). Parents’ expectations for the academic futures of

their adolescent children with disabilities also are consistently related to academic performance.

Students with disabilities whose parents have higher expectations for postsecondary education

receive higher grades and have reading and mathematics test scores that are a year closer to

grade level than those for youth whose parents have lower postsecondary education expectations,

independent of other disability, demographic, or school program factors included in the analyses.

Two scales of family involvement show different patterns of relationships with the indicators of

academic performance. Greater family involvement at home is related to youth’s receiving lower

grades, perhaps reflecting the tendency of parents to provide homework help to lower-

performing students—an important aspect of parents’ involvement at home. In contrast, youth

whose families are involved more at school receive higher grades and are significantly closer to

their measured grade level in reading.

1.7 School Programs and Experiences

The final set of variables included in these analyses relate to school programs and other

school experiences. It is arguably most important to understand the relationships of this set of

factors to academic performance because it includes factors that are amenable to change in

schools and classrooms and that can have direct effects on students.

School programs.

Participation in general academic education classes by students with disabilities has

increased over the past decades, but research conclusions regarding the instructional efficacy of

that participation are mixed. Although participation in general academic education classes can

relate to greater learning, it also has been shown to carry with it a greater risk for course failure

310

because of the potential for higher academic expectations in general education relative to special

education classes. NLTS2 analyses confirm this tension between learning and grades (Exhibit 4-

9). Students with disabilities who take more of their classes in general academic education

settings receive somewhat lower grades overall, but also are closer to grade level in both reading

and mathematics than peers who take fewer classes in those settings. Comparing youth who take

three-fourths of their courses in general academic education with those who take only one-fourth

of their courses there, reading and mathematics scores for the former are more than a full year

closer to grade level. These relationships for general academic education participation are

present even when the analyses control for disability, functioning, demographics, and family

support—all factors that correlate with placement (Wagner, 1991c).

NLTS2 analyses indicate that students’ performance gaps in reading and math are smaller

in larger classes. This relationship may result from factors that are not controlled in the model.

For example, as mentioned regarding the finding that students with mental retardation receive

better grades than those with learning disabilities, despite being much farther behind in actual

academic ability, the analyses may not adequately control for differences in general education

and special education settings. General education classes are significantly larger than special

education classes (Newman, Marder, & Wagner, 2003; Levine & Wagner, 2003) and also tend to

include students with stronger academic skills. Alternatively, students in larger classes may have

had smaller classes and/or more intensive support of other types in the past, so that they became

able to be in larger classes and do well. Future NLTS2 longitudinal analyses will be able to

examine the impact of current class size on later performance to help illuminate this issue.

Other NLTS2 findings further illustrate the challenge of identifying the impacts of services,

accommodations, and supports for students with disabilities by using data gathered at a single

point in time. Students who receive some kinds of instructional accommodations often do so

because they have lower levels of achievement. Therefore, although the accommodation may

assist a student in raising performance over time, it may not lift his or her performance in a given

year to the level of a student who did not need it. This situation would result in analyses showing

a negative relationship between receiving accommodations and academic performance, as is

found in NLTS2 analyses. For example, youth who receive a total of five instructional or testing

accommodations (e.g., more time for assignments or tests, shorter assignments, modified grading

311

standards) are nearly 1 year farther behind in both reading and mathematics than peers who

receive (and presumably need) no accommodations, other factors held constant.

However, this principle does not appear to apply equally to all types of accommodations

or supports. In contrast to findings for instructional and testing accommodations, youth receiving

presentation or communication accommodations (e.g., help from a reader or interpreter, books on

tape, communication aids) do not achieve at significantly different reading or mathematics grade

levels than students who do not receive such accommodations, other things being equal. The

receipt of tutoring also has no significant relationship to grades or reading and mathematics

grade levels. Perhaps the effect of tutoring is not so much to help youth receiving it outperform

their peers but to keep them from falling behind.

School experiences.

When students miss class, they also miss the opportunity to access new curriculum

content, ask questions, or generally participate in class activities, and those missed opportunities

adversely affect learning. NLTS2 multivariate models support this perspective. Students who are

absent for 5 days or more in a month both receive lower grades and are farther behind in

mathematics (but not in reading) than those who have perfect attendance, other things being

equal. It is logical that absenteeism has a direct effect on grades and only an indirect and modest

effect on grade-level discrepancies in reading and mathematics, in part because teachers

frequently consider attendance and participation in grading students.

Youth who have been declassified from special education receive better grades than those who

continue to receive special education. On the other hand, the gaps between performance on

standardized tests and actual grade level do not differ between students who have been

declassified and those who have not. Contrary to expectations, student mobility is not directly

related to any of the measures of academic performance. However, it may indirectly contribute to

poorer performance through its relationship to higher absenteeism, as noted in Chapter 3.

1.8 How Much Is Explained?

312

The amount of variation in grade-level discrepancies (r2) explained by the factors

discussed in this section increases substantially as each set of factors is considered. Disability

and functioning alone account for 22% of the variation in grade-level discrepancies, whereas all

factors combined account for 51% of the variation. In contrast, the individual characteristics

associated with disability and functioning explain approximately 20% of the variation in student

grades; other factors add very little explanatory power to the model.

1.9 Looking Back to NLTS

Although the aspects of academic performance that are assessed in this chapter—grades

and discrepancies between tested and actual reading and mathematics grade levels—were not

subject to multivariate analyses in NLTS, that study did examine the relationships of aspects of

students’ individual, household, and school program characteristics with whether students failed

courses— the ultimate outcome of poor grades. The NLTS2 analysis of students’ grades and the

NLTS analysis of course failure show several similarities in the factors found to relate to those

aspects of academic performance. In both cases, students with visual, orthopedic, or other health

impairments outperform those with learning disabilities. Patterns of relationships for

demographic factors also are similar across the studies: gender relates to performance, favoring

girls, as does minority status, favoring white students. Higher household income also

consistently relates to better academic performance across the studies. NLTS and NLTS2

considered a substantially different set of school program factors in addressing academic

performance, yet the relationship of the extent of inclusion in general education classrooms

remains the same; other factors being equal, students with disabilities who spend more of their

school day in general academic education classes receive lower grades and/or are more likely to

fail courses than those who spend more time in special education settings.

1.10 Forms of Understanding

Knowledge can be categorised based on distinct kinds of concepts and meanings involved

and processes of validation and justification. Each involves its own kind of ‘critical thinking’, its

own way of verifying and authenticating knowledge, and its own kind of ‘creativity’.

313

Mathematics has its own distinctive concepts, such as prime number, square root, fraction,

integer and function. It also has its own validation procedure, namely, a step-by-step

demonstration of the necessity of what is to be established. The validation procedures of

mathematics are never empirical, never based on observation of the world or on experiment, but

are demonstrations internal to the system specified by an appropriate set of axioms and

definitions.

The Sciences, like the systems of mathematics, have their own concepts, often

interconnected through theories, and are attempts to describe and explain the natural world.

Concepts include atom, magnetic field, cell, and neuron. Scientif ic inquiry involves observation

and experimentation to validate predictions made by theory (hypotheses), which may be aided by

instruments and controls. Formalisation into theory and model building can sometimes involve

mathematics, but it is only with reference to obser vations and not to mathematical accuracy that

truth is tested. The attempt is to furnish a narrative that in some way ‘corresponds’ to reality.

The Social Sciences and Humanities have their own concepts, for example, community,

modernisation, culture, identity, and polity. The Social Sciences aim at developing a generalised

and critical understanding of human beings and human groups in society. The Social Sciences

concern themselves with description, explanation and prediction in the social world. The Social

Sciences deal with hypotheses that are about human behaviour in collective living, and their

validation finally depends on the observations made in the society.

With regard to the process of knowledge formation, Science and the Social Sciences are

almost identical. But there are two differences that are of great relevance in curriculum planning.

First, the Social Sciences study human behaviour which is governed by ‘reasons’, while nature is

governed by ‘cause and effect’. Second, the findings of the Social Sciences often raise issues of

ethics and desirability while natural phenomena can be understood, raising ethical questions only

when they enter into the domain of human action.

Art and aesthetics have many words in common, such as rhythm, harmony, expression

and balance, though giving them new senses or new ranges of application. Art productions

cannot be judged against reality or investigated for ‘truth’. Although there is ample scope for

314

subjective judgement in art, it is also possible to educate the artistic imagination to critically

assess what is good and what is not.

Ethics is concerned with all human values, and with the rules, principles, standards and

ideals which give them expression. In relation to action and choice, therefore, ethics must be

conceded primacy over each of the forms of understanding. Ethical understanding involves

understanding reasons for judgements—for what makes some things and some acts right and

others wrong—regardless of the authority of the persons involved. Furthermore, such reasons

will be reasons for anyone; reason, equality and personal autonomy are therefore very intimately

connected concepts.

Philosophy involves a concern, on the one hand, with analytical clarification, evaluation

and synthetic coordination of the aforementioned forms of understanding in relation to life, and,

on the other hand, with the whole, the ultimate meaning and the transcendent.

The basic capabilities, the knowledge of practice and the forms of understanding are the

core ways in which human experience has been elaborated in the course of history. All but the

simplest kinds of human activity draw upon them—the liberal professions, technology, industry

and commerce. They are central to human culture. Imagination and critical thinking are linked in

obvious ways with the development of understanding and reason, and so are the emotions.

Each of these knowledge areas involves a special vocabular y, concepts, theories, descriptions

and methodologies. Each provides a ‘lens’ through which to view the world, to understand, to

engage, and to act in it. These areas have developed, and continue to grow, through the

contributions of people in the past.

They have also changed in their structure and emphasis.

A variety of intelligence and forms of knowing come into play while learning these areas:

‘formal modes’ of explicit reasoning and articulation; looking for and evaluating evidence;

‘experiential’ and tacit knowing through doing and undergoing the experience; coordinating and

observing; and ‘practical’ engagement, either by oneself or in coordination with others in

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making or accomplishing something, in addressing problems and issues while charting a course

of action.

Creativity and excellence are integral to all these forms of knowledge and knowing.

This accumulation of human culture and knowledge, and ways of knowing and doing

things, is a valuable part of the inheritance of human society. All our children have a right to

access this knowledge, to educate and enrich their common sense, to develop and discover

themselves and the world of nature and people, through these lenses and tools.

1.11 Factors Associated with Academic Performance

To explore the independent associations between academic performance and disability

and other individual and family characteristics, as well as school programs and experiences,

three multivariate models of academic performance were estimated. Dependent variables

include:

• Grades—a 9-point scale ranging from “mostly As” and “mostly As and Bs” to “mostly Ds and

Fs” and “mostly Fs.”

• Tested reading performance compared with grade level—positive values indicate higher test

scores relative to actual grade level; negative values indicate lower test scores relative to actual

grade level.

• Tested mathematics performance compared with grade level—positive values indicate higher

test scores relative to actual grade level; negative values indicate lower test scores relative to

actual grade level.

1.12 Disability Differences in Students’ Academic Performance Teachers’

Perceptions of Students’ Academic Performance

High grades are common for youth in many disability categories. About half or more of

students with hearing, visual, or orthopedic impairments, autism, or multiple disabilities receive

“mostly As and Bs” (Exhibit 4-4). However, at least 25% of students in all other disability

categories also receive these high grades, including students whose disabilities are clearly

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cognitive. For example, both learning disabilities and mental retardation involve cognitive

learning challenges, with mental retardation commonly considered a more pervasive disability.

Yet significantly more students with mental retardation receive high grades than students with

learning disabilities (41% vs. 27%, p<.01). These simple bivariate findings illustrate the

comingling of disability and instructional setting. For example, youth with mental retardation not

only arguably have a more pervasive cognitive impairment than youth with learning disabilities,

but that impairment results in their spending much less of their school day in general education

academic classes compared with students with learning disabilities (i.e., 31% of students with

learning disabilities take all classes in a general education setting, as do 7% of students with

mental retardation, p<.001). The general education academic classes frequented more often by

students with learning disabilities also may have different standards for grading than special

education classes do. Multivariate analyses are needed to disentangle these kinds of complex

relationships.

1.13 Summary

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Student academic performance is a more important outcome for education reform than

ever before, and the move to improve that performance now specifically includes students with

disabilities. The national look at academic performance of secondary school students with

disabilities enabled by NLTS2 suggests that different indicators of performance offer divergent

perspectives on the progress that students are making. Most students with disabilities receive

passing or even exemplary grades, which might indicate successful accomplishment of

curriculum goals. In addition, teachers of general education academic classes report that about

three-fourths of students with disabilities keep up in those classes. However, significant numbers

of students in all disability categories function sufficiently below grade level in reading and math

to raise the question of their ability to complete high school work successfully. And the

correlation between grades and academic functioning is nearly zero, indicating that the two are

largely unrelated. This finding is consistent with the perspective that grades may reflect

engagement and social factors in addition to classroom performance.

Individual, household, and school program factors all contribute significantly to students’

academic performance, with the amount of variation explained in multivariate analyses

increasing substantially with the addition of each set of factors. Although individual and

household characteristics all bear on how well students do, choices made at the school level

regarding programs, services, and supports also are strongly related to student performance.

What schools do can make a difference in the academic performance of students with

disabilities.

Different sets of individual and demographic characteristics are related to grades than to

performance in reading and math. Although students’ primary disability category and severity

play an important role in analyses of both kinds of indicators, different disabilities come into

play. Controlling for other factors, students with sensory or orthopedic impairments or emotional

disturbances are closer to grade level in reading or math than students with learning disabilities,

but do not differ from those with learning disabilities in grades. In contrast, students with mental

retardation, autism, traumatic brain injury, or multiple disabilities all of whom have higher

grades than peers with learning disabilities. Further, students with higher cognitive skills perform

closer to grade level in reading and math than do peers who have lower functional cognitive

skills. Demographic and family background factors also are significantly related.

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African-American and Hispanic students, as well as those from low-income families, score

significantly below white and higher-income peers, respectively, on most measures of academic

performance.

NLTS2 multivariate analyses also show that the involvement and expectations of parents

are consistently related to the academic outcomes that students achieve. Students whose parents

expect their sons or daughters with disabilities to attend postsecondary education receive

significantly higher grades and are closer to grade level in reading and math than peers whose

parents do not hold those expectations. Similarly, students whose families are involved in school

activities also have better performance as indicated by both types of performance measures.

School program factors, too, contribute importantly to understanding variations in student

performance. For example, controlling for other factors, students who take three-quarters of their

classes in general education settings and those who are in larger classes perform closer to grade

level than do peers who spend just a quarter of their time in general education settings or in

smaller classes. However, students who require and receive accommodations in instruction or

testing are farther behind grade level in reading and math than peers who do not require or

receive the accommodations, other factors held constant. This finding suggests that choices

regarding settings, groupings, and supports sometimes relate to performance, but that

determining the effectiveness of specific supports requires longitudinal analysis of the

experiences of individual students, rather than analyses that compare the performance of those

who receive supports at a given time with the performance of others without need of the service.

Future NLTS2 analyses will be able to address these issues.

1.14 check your progress

1. Explain Definition Of Children With Mild Intellectual Disabilities

2. Explain Some Characteristics Of Mental Retarded Students

3. Explain Disability Characteristics.

4. Explain Functioning.

5. Explain Household Characteristics

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6. Explain School Programs And Experiences

7. Explain How Much Is Explained?

8. Explain Looking Back To Nlts

9. Explain Forms Of Understanding

10. Explain Factors Associated With Academic Performance

11. Explain Disability Differences In Students’ Academic Performance

Teachers’ Perceptions Of Students’ Academic Performance


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References







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Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




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and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























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Unit 2: Curriculum Domains At Pre- Vocational Level

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Historical Evolution Of Prevocational Education

2.3. Current Status 3.1. Current Organisation Of Prevocational Education

2.3.1. Enrolment

2.3.2. Teaching Staff

2.4. Critical Analysis Of The System

2.4.1. Negative Perception Of The Prevocational Stream

2.4.2. Student Drop Out Rate

2.4.3. Curriculum

2.4.4. Untrained Teachers

2.4.6. Infrastructure

2.4.7. Absence Of A Formal Certification

2.5. Need For Review

2.6. New Strategy For Prevocational Education

2.7 Domains Of Learning- Prevocational Level

2.7.1 Introduction

2.7.2 Languages (English, French And Other Languages)

2.7.3 Mathematics:

2.7.4 Sciences

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2.7.5 Technology: Ict, Design And Technology, Home Economics,

Design, Clothing And Textiles:

2.7.6 Health (Home Economics- Food And Nutrition And Human

Development) And Physical Education

2.7.7 The Arts: (Visual Arts, Music And Drama & Dance)

2.7.8 Social Studies: (History, Geography, Sociology)

2.7.9 Cross Curricular Domains Of Learning

2.8 New Strategy For Prevocational Education

2.9 Summary


2.11 References

331

2.1 Introduction

In line with the State s spelt-out guiding principles for curricular reform in Mauritius, as

embodied in the policy document, „Empowering the Nation s Children – Towards a Quality

Curriculum (MOE&HR:2006), this document, the National Curriculum Framework-

Secondary (NCFS), establishes a comprehensive overview of the operationalisation of a new

secondary school curriculum package.

The NCFS aims at taking every single lower secondary school student in Mauritius,

Rodrigues and the Outer Islands on board and providing the optimal conditions for his/her full-

fledged development. To this effect, a survey has been conducted as a prior exercise in some

secondary schools to assess the needs, and to include the expectations and aspirations of the

upcoming generation of lower secondary school students.

The NCFS addresses a category of learners, the adolescents, who are undergoing a

critical phase of transformation in their development. The focus is first on the lower secondary

curriculum (Forms I- III) which has to smoothly take the primary school leaver through an

incremental process of development with regard to knowledge, skills, values and attitudes and

achieve a qualitative entitlement to the upper secondary level. There is also an indication of the

way forward for upper secondary level, Forms IV and V, in each of the different domains of

learning so as to cover the full range of the compulsory school age. This section, covering Forms

IV and V, is provided as an indication so as to facilitate a review and further consolidation of the

upper secondary curriculum.

2.2 Historical Evolution Of Prevocational Education

Prevocational Education has witnessed significant changes since its inception way back

in the nineties, although some action had been initiated to cater for CPE failures in the seventies.

First implemented by the ex-Industrial and Vocational Training Board (IVTB) from 1990 to

1996, its management was transferred to the Technical School Management Trust Fund in 1997,

in the context of the implementation of the 9-year schooling reform in the educational system.

332

On 14 March 2001, the Prevocational Education (PVE) project under the control of the Ministry

of Education was officially launched with the collaboration of other stakeholders, mainly the

Bureau d’Education Catholique (BEC) and the Federation of Managers of PrivateSecondary

Schools, in the then existing 10 State Secondary Schools Vocational, 2 State Secondary Schools

and 38 Private Secondary schools.

The move also meant a shift from the trade-oriented courses in Metalwork, Woodwork,

Home Economics and Bicycle Repairs to more academic ones with the provision of textbooks to

students In 2011, the programme was being run in 50 State-owned institutions (including the 6

State Secondary Schools Vocational) and in 76 Private Secondary Schools.

2.3. Current Status 3.1. Current Organisation Of Prevocational Education

Prevocational Education is provided in secondary schools to those who have failed the

CPE examinations twice. Children who have failed the CPE at their first attempt but who, by

virtue of their age, are not able to remain in a primary school, are channelled to the prevocational

stream of the secondary schools. The aim is to provide three years of additional schooling to

these children to make up for the academic deficit built up during the years of primary schooling

and to enable skills development for further vocational training.

Since 2004, a one-year NTC Foundation Course is being run by the ex-Industrial and

Vocational Training Board (IVTB) to prepare the prevocational year III students to join the first

level of vocational programme (NTC level 3) at the IVTB.

The provision of prevocational education in secondary schools alongside the academic

mainstream is based on the philosophy of an inclusive education with all students going to the

same secondary schools and enjoying the same facilities. This approach which brings the

students to live, learn and share experiences together, allows the children in the prevocational

stream to gain self-esteem and self-confidence without any negative branding.

2.3.1. Enrolment

333

Currently, some 7270 students are following Prevocational classes which represent about 12.5%

of the Form I to III student population of the secondary sector. The enrolment of students in the

prevocational stream of our secondary schools for the past four years stands as follows:

The enrolment has been continuously declining over the recent years, due to the decreasing

population in primary schools as well as a slightly higher pass rate at the CPE. Again, it is

evident that the decrease in enrolment of prevocational students in the SSS has been additionally

influenced by the non-availability of classrooms due to the running of Form VI classes.

2.3.2. Teaching Staff

The teaching force for the prevocational stream in the SSS comes from the TSMTF

where they were employed as Basic Secondary School and then SSSV teachers. They have been

absorbed by the Ministry of Education through a recruitment exercise carried out by the PSC.

Those holding a degree were recruited as EO (Prevoc) and the others as Teacher (Prevoc).

Additionally, some redundant teachers from Private Secondary Schools have been re-deployed in

state schools as prevocational teachers. Some Supply Teachers have been recruited on a

contractual basis to fill in the shortages in state schools. Posting of teachers is done on the basis

on the established teacher-class ratio of 1.5:1. The same ratio is observed by the PSSA for

private secondary schools

334

In 2011 there were some 634 teachers for prevocational education, with 197 working in

the State Secondary Schools that were offering prevocational classes and 437 in the Private

Sector. A more detailed picture is given below:

It is noted that for some subjects like Visual Arts, Physical Education or ICT, it is the same

teachers who work with the children of both streams (academic mainstream and prevocational).

2.4. Critical Analysis Of The System

An objective analysis of the situation in the Prevocational education sector reveals clear systemic

and process-related weaknesses:

2.4.1. Negative Perception Of The Prevocational Stream

The introduction of Prevocational Education (PVE) in 2005 at lower secondary school level to

provide ‘refuge’ for students who had failed the CPE twice, and who by law were obliged to stay

in school till the age of 16, has had a predictable outcome – namely the negative ‘branding’ of

vocational education. It has not been seen as a sector which today is vitally important to the

realignment of the education system to develop the human capital that will enable the country to

335

meet its future economic targets. This has on the contrary reflected on the students who showed a

lack of self esteem and self confidence leading to dissatisfaction.

2.4.2. Student Drop Out Rate

One cause of major concern is the high dropout rate prevailing among students of the

prevocational stream, as indicated by the table below:

2.4.3. Curriculum The learning experiences provided do not really cater for the individual needs and

learning styles of the students while there is a dire lack of support materials in terms of audio-

visual aids to assist the learning process. A curriculum that matches the needs of the students

336

rather than a one-size-fits-all one would be welcome as would the in-built mechanism for a

proper evaluation mechanism to monitor the efficiency of the learning experiences. Nor has the

issue of inculcating “soft” skills been adequately addressed, especially for this group of learners

whose social, communication and behavioural skills, among others, need to be sharpened.

Further, the non-alignment of the curriculum with the New Curriculum Framework (Secondary)

is another point of concern that needs to be addressed.

2.4.4. Untrained Teachers

Many of the teachers ( except for the category called ‘Prevocational Teachers), have no

skills in handling students with behaviour problems nor having the requisite pedagogical skills

needed to teach students with major learning difficulties in literacy and numeracy. This is further

exacerbated by the demotivation of teachers who find themselves with no well-defined career

path and accordingly no promotional prospects.

Inadequate/ insufficient resources

The workbooks provided since 2007 are basically trial materials and in some private secondary

schools, the non-availability of resources for the preparation of support materials is being

strongly felt. In these schools as well access to specialist rooms is limited, if available at all. On

the other hand, there is a scarcity of tools and equipment for trade subjects like Agriculture,

Electricity, Woodwork, Sewing and Cookery while school libraries have no books matching the

needs of PVE students.

2.4.6. Infrastructure

The accommodation in secondary schools caters more for a formal setup than one that is

functionally applicable for the implementation of activity-based teaching. Again, in quite a few

schools, the classrooms for the prevocational stream are far too small or mere outstations with no

access to specialist rooms for practical work.

2.4.7. Absence Of A Formal Certification

337

In the course of the three years of prevocational education, there is no proper recording of

the student’s performance to highlight his/her progression (or regression as the case may be).

Nor is there any portfolio, which, among others, could have served as a means to analyse the

students’ performance and to highlight strengths and weaknesses.

The certificate awarded poses a multi-pronged problem in that it is neither recognised as

depicting a certain level of achievement nor does it have any equivalence that would situate it on

the National Qualifications Framework and accordingly facilitate the transition from

prevocational to further education. Finally, the absence of a formal certification impacts

negatively on the chances for employability and entry into the labour market for this category of

learners.

2.5. Need For Review

The vision of Government to transform the education and training system to make it more

responsive to the present and future needs of society has been adequately captured in the

Education and Human Resource Strategy Plan (2008-2020) that, inter alia, laid down the

foundations for the reform of the Secondary subsector and highlighted the need to revisit the

Prevocational education to make it an integral part of the secondary schooling.

In the context of these reforms, the programme for prevocational education has to be

reviewed to ensure its alignment with the new National Secondary Curriculum Framework

currently being implemented.

More importantly, an in-depth review of Prevocational Education has become an

imperative to address its inherent challenges, improve on its outcomes and make it more

responsive to the needs of our economy which is becoming more skills-driven. As importantly,

such a review will help ensure equity in the distribution of education outcomes while equally

reducing the number of unqualified and unskilled people entering the skills-intensive market.

2.6. New Strategy For Prevocational Education

The new strategy for the prevocational education is based on the following pillars:

338

Pillar 1: Extension of programme duration

In line with the objective to provide for both flexibility of access between programs and

institutions and facilitate transition for a larger number to vocational education and/or the labour

market , the project now makes for provision of 4 years of prevocational education with a

gradual integration of trade skills and entrepreneurial skills right from Year 1. This would enable

students to obtain access directly to the NC1- the first year of vocational education of the MITD.

The 4 year span will hence also cover the whole of the compulsory education period, that is, till

age 16. The proposed new organizational arrangement will be as follows:

Years 1&2: Pre-Voc Education in secondary schools (Public and Private)

Year 3: 3 days in Pre-Voc Education in Secondary schools and 2 days at MITD

Year 4: 2 days in Pre-Voc Education in Secondary schools and 3 days at MITD

Pillar 2: New Curriculum

The National Curriculum Framework- Secondary (2008) has aligned the key competencies of

mainstream as well as the Prevocational sector to a common set of Overarching Learning

Competencies and proposed a Curriculum based on 4 key domains of learning for the

prevocational stream, namely,

i). Communication Skills,

ii). Numeracy and Problem-Solving Skills,

iii).Life Skills and

iv). Livelihood and Trade Skills.

This alignment also keeps in view the demand of knowledge-driven societies to foster the

development of ‘soft’ skills within the learners, right form an early age. It is noteworthy that,

while emphasis will be placed on working in teams, active learner involvement in his/ her own

learning will also be emphasized.

Syllabi for Years 1 to 4 have now been updated and are being developed. The introduction of

new materials in all schools will be effective in a phased manner in 2012 (for Years 1 & 2) and

2013 (for Years 3 & 4).

This new curriculum seeks to do away with gender discrimination that exists at present in

prevocational education, as all learners will be exposed to the same trade skills.

339

Pillar 3: Adapted Pedagogy

With a view to engaging fully the students and enriching their learning experiences, a new

pedagogy with emphasis on the following is being proposed:

i). Activity based teaching and learning,

ii). Social skills

iii).Communication skills

iv).Team work

v). Critical thinking and problem solving skills

vi). Independent working and thinking

vii). Personal organisation

viii). Self study

Modern ICT based pedagogical tools will be used to enhance teaching and learning in

class and make it more attractive to the students.

Students will also visit industries, work organisations, hotels, etc to gain insightful knowledge

into potential areas of future employment.

Moreover, exposure to English and French will continue and Kreol Morisien will also be used as

a support language.

Pillar 4: Bridging the Gap Programme

In the past, many children were not attracted to the Pre-Voc stream because the same approach

and teaching methods based on rote learning and drilling exercises, as in the CPE class, were

used. To enable the child to develop confidence and find schooling meaningful, a Bridging the

Gap Programme will be introduced in Year I.

As per this programme, a new pedagogy based on practical activities such as drawing and

observation, playing, art, computer skills etc will be used for the first two months of Year I. A

student profiling through Bridging the Gap will also be carried out to gauge the level of

competencies attained and the exact needs of the child.

Pillar 5: Capacity Building for teachers and Heads of Schools

340

The Educators of the new programme will be subject to further training where activity- based

learning will be promoted. This new training will be built on the Enhancement Programme

model itself a hands-on pedagogical model that encourages creativity and the practice of

classroom innovation.

A Certificate of Attendance will be awarded to the trainees and some credits will

ultimately be earned and added on to such that these may ultimately lead to the fulfillment of the

requirements for a B.Ed. Possibilities will also be explored for the enlistment of specialists as

resource persons for the promotion of communication and problem-solving skills as well as life

skills. Focussed workshops for Heads of schools will as well be mounted for them to buy-in the

programme and to develop ownership thereof.

Pillar 6: Quality Assurance

It is important to set up a strong Quality Assurance system within this sector to secure internal

efficiency and quality of teaching and learning. Support will be provided to every school for self-

empowerment and ownership and hence enabling it to reflect on its performance and set

measurable goals for improvements to happen.

This element will have to be fully incorporated into the School Improvement Plan (SIP) of every

institution.

Pillar 7: Assessment & Certification

Contrary to the existing situation where Prevocational students do not receive any formal

qualification, the 4th year of Prevocational will lead to a formal certification. Those successfully

completing the 4 years of Prevocational education will be considered as holding a qualification at

par with the CPE (MQA, Level 1 qualification). This is of utmost importance so as to give this

stream an added value, thus motivating students to complete their education and leave school

with a formal qualification.

For this to materialize, the following are proposed:

• Build in a system of continuous evaluation of knowledge & skills throughout the whole cycle.

As such, strong emphasis will be placed on developing strategies for remediation through

appropriate teaching and learning materials and strategies right from Year 1. The continuous

assessment will also be based on portfolios, personal developmental plans as well as oral,

341

practical and written tests. To curb absenteeism and late arrivals, some weighting will also be

given to attendance and punctuality.

• A modular approach, with due attention to practical and applied skills, will be envisaged so as

to cater for the different range of abilities, and to allow for more flexibility, especially for those

who have failed with the traditional examination structure.

This approach will also facilitate identification of competencies developed by each learner. It

will help to devise a system of certification that will provide a record of achievement more in

line with the philosophy of Prevocational education.

The Certificate of PVE would also be recognized by MQA and pitched at a specific level in the

National Qualifications Framework thus allowing for pathways for lifelong learning

The Certificate of Prevocational Education should enable the learner to opt for either:

i). Vocational Education; or

ii). Reintegrate an academic stream; or

iii).Become functional and employable in any sector

As the certification will be designed to provide a statement of achievement in each domain, it

should also allow employers to identify key desirable skills in the future employee. Thus, the

system of certification should make it easier for the holder to testify to her/his knowledge and

skills on the job market.

Pillar 8: Tracking and Monitoring Mechanism to prevent drop-out

Given that the rate of drop-out is generally higher here than in the mainstream, a permanent

tracking mechanism will be established so as to identify students who keep away from the

classes and the school. This mechanism will help towards reinforcing the current statistical

database on drop-outs and will also facilitate the formulation and implementation of concrete

measures to bring them back into the system.

342

The student tracking mechanism coupled with an intervention unit which is being set up, will

follow every student who enters the prevocational stream, identify early dropout and take prompt

action for reintegration of dropouts in the schooling system.

Pillar 9: Reinforced psychological back up and support

Psychological back up and support will be provided all throughout the 4 year programme. An

outreach exercise for parents will be conducted with a view to partnering with them to promote

the development of their children.

2.7 Stepping Into The Domains Of Learning

The Curriculum goals, as outlined in the Policy Document “Empowering the Nation s

Children- Towards a Quality Curriculum” (MoEHR: 2006), constitute the government s vision

of the type of general educational outputs of the system, the dimensions of the educated person

and future citizen that are being promoted through the education system. These goals drive the

model.

The general Overarching Learning Outcomes(OLOs) have been worked out to translate

these goals into desirable competencies, knowledge, skills and attitudes that cut across all

learning activities and curriculum areas and experiences in schools. The next stage outlines

specific domains of learning that form part of the Lower Secondary School Curriculum. The

learning areas are grouped according to their inter-relatedness, and general outcomes are

identified for each group, e.g. Languages, Social Sciences, Arts, Science, Technology etc. Each

outcome is further elaborated to ensure clear understanding among curriculum developers and

subject educators.

Thereupon, specific learning outcomes for each subject area/discipline within each domain are

developed, and their relations to the general learning outcomes are specified. They form the basis

on which the level descriptors and competencies will eventually be worked out for each level of

the Lower Secondary Curriculum (Forms I-III), and on which curricular materials will be

designed. An indication of the teaching strategies deemed appropriate for each subject area is

also provided.

343

The model adopted is designed to ensure that the subject educators recognizes that her/his

discipline is not to be taught as a separate isolated entity, but as a body of knowledge that is

related to a domain of learning and to the Overarching Learning Outcomes that will contribute to

the achievement of the national goals of education. The outcomes are shown to be mutually

reinforced across different subjects.

The document also includes a general overview of teaching/learning strategies and modes

of assessment that should accompany the new vision of the curriculum.

This document also addresses the Pre-Vocational curriculum reform. Government vision is

translated into general learning outcomes, then into outcomes for domains, and specific areas of

learning, which are further detailed into level descriptors for each year of the Pre-Vocational

cycle.

Furthermore, an indication is provided for the direction that the Upper Secondary (Forms

IV-V) will be taking, thus covering the whole range of compulsory education, that is, till age 16.

However, the way forward for the Forms IV and V should be considered in view of providing

access to alternative examinations/ boards of examiners. This will have considerable implications

for the different domains of learning, especially at the upper secondary level; it will also demand

gradual readjustment of teaching and learning at all levels, including the lower secondary.

Learning and Teaching Strategies as well as modes of assessment are suggested for the specific

learners. The chapter on Teaching and Learning addresses a wide range of issues that will help

us engage in a thorough review of teaching and learning in our schools.

2.7 Domains Of Learning- Prevocational Level

2.7.1 Introduction As enunciated in other parts of the document, the major innovations brought by the NCFS are in

terms of emphasis on process rather than content, on learning outcomes, and on the need to

engage students in meaningful and integrated learning experiences. The core domains of learning

present in the primary curriculum will be extended, taking into account the requirements to

provide adequate scope for learners to make meaning of their world while building incrementally

on skills acquired at the primary level. Some of the elements like sustainable development,

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citizenship, developing and maintaining a culture of peace and coping with stress will cut across

all domains.

The domains of learning will be as follows:

(i) Languages: (English, French and Other Languages)

(ii) Mathematics

(iii) Sciences.

(iv) Technology

(v) Health and Physical Education

(vi) Social sciences

(vii) The Arts

2.7.2 Languages (English, French And Other Languages) Mauritian students have to be prepared to face the literacy demands characteristic of a world

driven by new forms of communication. Added to this, the specificity of Mauritius in terms of its

multilingualism and the growing importance of tourism make the study and use of modern

international languages a cornerstone of the lower secondary curriculum. Notwithstanding their

instrumental value in enabling the acquisition of other forms of knowledge, languages are also

tools for thinking and a means of contributing to the cultural development of a society.

Apart from English and French which are core languages, other languages such as Oriental

Languages, Arabic, and ultimately Modern European Languages, will be offered to foster the

multilingual capacities of students and enhance their communication skills, especially in a

context where countries such as China and India are becoming key actors in the world economic

field.

2.7.3 Mathematics: Mathematics is and will remain a core subject at the lower secondary level. In a science driven

world, the power of mathematics education to facilitate the acquisition of generic thinking skills

and to develop the adolescent s cognitive resources should be given due recognition. However,

to intelligently harness the potential of the discipline, the curriculum must offer an added

opportunity for students to move progressively from using mathematics to understanding the

principles and processes on which mathematics thinking is based. While the learning of

345

Mathematics at the primary level focuses on developing mathematical literacy, the aim at the

secondary level is to help them acquire problem solving skills and the ability to reason logically.

They will learn the key mathematical concepts and make connections with other domains of

learning.

2.7.4 Sciences As has been proposed in the national document on reform (MOE&HR: 2006), General Science

will become compulsory till Form V for students not opting for a pure science subject. This is in

recognition of the increasingly important role of science in contributing to our understanding of

the natural and man-made world and in sustaining and improving the quality of life. However,

apart from promoting scientific literacy, the lower secondary science curriculum seeks to help

students develop cognitive and ethical perspectives needed to deal effectively with the mass of

scientific knowledge produced by modern societies and concomitant issues raised. It is proposed

that the approach be thematic rather than discipline oriented to allow problem solving and

practical skills to be explored and acquired by grounding learning in the real life experiences of

the learner. Disciplinary boundaries must be temporarily dismantled to make the curriculum

meaningful to each and every learner. Science education must enable our students to appreciate

and value the processes that support life on our planet and become useful contributors in the

building of a more ecologically sustainable environment.

2.7.5 Technology: ICT, Design And Technology, Home Economics, Design,

Clothing And Textiles: One significant change that is being proposed in the NCFS is the introduction of

technology as a compulsory learning domain for both boys and girls. This domain includes

Design and Technology, Information and Communications Technology, and the Design,

Clothing and Textiles section of Home Economics. All these components will be compulsory for

all students, removing thus the gender bias which has worked against both girls and boys. The

specificity of this learning area resides in its integrative scope with almost all the other domains

of learning across the curriculum. Requiring students to pull together cognitive and manipulative

skills as well as values from a diversity of perspectives to solve problems and design solutions in

practical situations will no doubt make a significant contribution towards the attainment of

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educational aims. ICT will be used both as a tool for learning and teaching as well as a discipline

on its own, in view of its increasing importance.

At the lower secondary level, the teaching and learning of these components will not require

provision of full fledged specialist rooms but only additional equipment to be used in the existing

classroom set up.

2.7.6 Health (Home Economics- Food And Nutrition And Human

Development) And Physical Education

One of the most important aims of education is to enable adolescents to lead healthy and

active lives. Given the Mauritian track record in terms of non transmissible diseases and obesity,

and the current concern regarding the consequences of sedentary lifestyles, the curriculum must

provide explicit opportunities for students to engage in healthy and sustainable physical activity,

develop knowledge about issues regarding life choices and quality of life. Similar to the Arts,

Health and Physical Education has not, so far, figured as legitimate domains of learning enabling

the attainment of specific skills, attitudes, values and dispositions. The current framework

proposes that more transparency be given to health and physical education to integrate it where

possible with other core domains of learning in contrast with the more conservative approach

which focuses on integrating it with co-curricular activities only. The Health and Physical

Education domain also incorporates a substantial element of sex education and values education.

In line with the recognition that the curriculum should, in a concrete way, attend to the socio-

emotional needs of adolescents and afford them ample „moments for enjoyment, socialisation

and co-operation and effectively prepare them for their role as citizens, Health and Physical

Education must be given equal weight as any other core domain.

2.7.7 The Arts: (Visual Arts, Music And Drama & Dance) The Arts not only constitute an important part of our cultural heritage but also stimulate

creativity and provide a means for communicating feelings and emotions. For too long the

educative value of arts in terms of intellectual, sensorial, interpersonal and kinaesthetic

development has been discounted. The Arts play an important role in contributing to self

knowledge and providing an avenue for developing core values. It is proposed that the Arts be

fully re-instated as an equally relevant and necessary pursuit in the curriculum at par with other

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academic subjects and the interdisciplinary potential of the domain in furthering knowledge and

skills in other domains be fully explored. Given the current emphasis on tourism, developing the

artistic skills of our adolescents by giving them the opportunity to experiment with the Arts and

investigate the domain will prove to be crucial in the near future

2.7.8 Social Studies: (History, Geography, Sociology)

Adaptability is a key characteristic of successful individuals in a world that is constantly

changing. Given the improvements in transport and communication, the changes brought about

by globalisation and the growing interdependence of people, future adults must be prepared to

participate effectively in those rapidly evolving contexts. Social Studies is crucially relevant in

building the adolescent s sense of personal, economic, political, cultural and social identity by

developing a critical understanding of how human beings, groups and institutions function. As a

learning domain, Social Studies is essential to help secure a commitment to active citizenship

and collective responsibility towards the betterment of society by ensuring the respect of

democratic rights and commitment to sustainable development and infusion of a culture of peace.

The Social Sciences will be an integral part of the philosophy of a broad based education that

will continue at the Upper Secondary level (Forms IV & V). Thus, students opting for Sciences

will be required to opt for one of the Social Sciences (History, Geography, Sociology as well as

Economics) depending on the subject/s on offer at school.

2.7.9 Cross Curricular Domains Of Learning Government policy, embodied in the policy document on curriculum framework,

stipulates that, apart from the distinct discipline-based curricular elements, other essential

knowledge, skills, values and attitudes are to be integrated across the curriculum. These are as

follows: Environmental Education, Values, Anti-drug Education, Humanitarian Law, Cultural

Understanding, Human Rights, Occupational Safety & Health, Sex Education, HIV/AIDS

.Awareness, Peace Education and Sustainable Development.

The NCFS reiterates the importance of those areas in contributing to life skills, promoting

civic awareness and enhancing pro-social behaviour. Thus, each domain of learning must offer

adequate learning opportunities to enable students to address them. For example, while

environmental education will be predominantly dealt with in science, pertinent issues in

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environmental education can be equally studied through a writing or comprehension exercise in

languages or when discussing factors of production or resources in Social Sciences. Similarly

intercultural issues can be addressed in Social Sciences, Languages or even Home Economics

classes. Sustainable Development and Peace Education will cut across a number of domains and

will be integrated through the content as well as the process of teaching and learning.

Such an approach has important implications for the development of curriculum materials, which

have to explore opportunities for creating bridges among the domains and bring forth explicitly

these essential knowledge, skills and attitudes.

2.8 New Strategy For Prevocational Education

The main strategic pillars for the reform are as follows:

- Extension of programme duration from 3 to 4 years with a gradual integration of trade skills

and entrepreneurial skills right from year 1. This will enable students to obtain access directly to

the NTC3 – the first year of vocational education of the MITD.

- New Curriculum based on 4 key domains of learning namely, Communication skills,

Numeracy and Problem – Solving skills, Life Skills and Livelihood and Trade Skills.

- Adapted Pedagogy with emphasis on activity based teaching and learning and social skills and

the use of modern ICT based pedagogical tools to enhance teaching and learning. French and

English will continue to be used as a medium of instruction and Kreol Morisien will be utilised

as a support language.

- Bridging the Gap Programme based on drawing and observing, playing, computer skills etc.

so that children develop a liking for the Prevocational Education.

- New Tracking mechanism to address the issue of high drop-out rate

- Quality Assurance System to secure a sound internal efficiency and high quality of teaching

and learning.

- Assessment and Certification so that the qualification obtained at the end of the PVE enables

the student to opt for either a Vocational Education or reintegrate an academic stream. A system

of continuous evaluation of knowledge and skills will be embedded throughout the whole cycle.

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The continuous assessment will be based on portfolios, personal developmental plans as well as

on oral, practical and written tests.

- Building up self-confidence and self-esteem with psychological back up and support so that

the PVE becomes attractive to the students.

2.9 Summary

The existing Prevocational Education programme has to be revamped such that a

prevocational student should acquire sufficient skills and competencies to at least attain CPE

level and even pass this examination as a private candidate while still enrolled in the

prevocational sector.

The current policy of admitting to the Prevocational stream children who have failed CPE

exposes them to branding. Consideration may also be given to the opening of Pre-voc classes to

children who have failed CPE only once or who have passed the CPE only marginally. Pathways

will be created between the academic and the prevocational streams and parents will have the

option to register their children for the prevocational classes in the secondary schools. This

measure may be implemented only in the medium term.


Explain Historical Evolution Of Prevocational Education

1. Explain. Current Status 3.1. Current Organisation Of Prevocational

Education

2. Explain. Enrolment

3. Explain. Teaching Staff

4. Explain Critical Analysis Of The System

5. Explain Negative Perception Of The Prevocational Stream

6. Explain Student Drop Out Rate

7. Explain Curriculum

8. Explain. Untrained Teachers

9. Explain. Infrastructure

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10. Explain. Absence Of A Formal Certification

11. Explain Need For Review

12. Explain New Strategy For Prevocational Education

13. Explain Stepping Into The Domains Of Learning

14. Explain Domains Of Learning- Prevocational Level

15. Explain Introduction

16. Explain Languages (English, French And Other Languages)

17. Explain Mathematics:


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





357


















31st – Sept 3rd.













358






















Office.











359












31st – Sept 3rd.











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Unit 3: Curriculum Domains At Vocational Level

3.1 Introduction

3.2 The Background

3.3 Statement Of The Problem

3.4 School-Based Curriculum

3.4.1 The Curriculum Goals And Objectives

3.4.2 The Frameworks Of The Curriculum – Seven Domains

3.4.3 Assessment - The Base-Line Checklist

3.4.4 The Implementation Of Individualized Education Plan (Iep)

3.5 School-Based Vocational Curriculum In Caritas Lok Jun School

3.5.1 The Career Education Curriculum – The Four Sub-Domains

3.5.2 Implementation Of School-Based Vocational Curriculum

3.5.3 Vocational Training Program And Teaching Strategies

3.6 Discussion

3.7. Summary


3.9 References

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3.1 Introduction

With the high overall unemployment rate in Hongkong and the general prejudice on the

working capabilities of peoples with mental retardation, it is difficult for them, especially those

who are with more severe level of cognitive impairments, to get a job after graduation from

secondary school. Hence, students with moderate level mental handicaps would most likely join

sheltered workshops or day activity centers after they have graduated from special schools.

Some of them might have been recommended to work in sheltered workshops after taking

vocational assessment tests held by the Vocational Training Council (VTC).

Most of them would have problems and difficulties in adapting to their new working

environment. To design and implement proper training plans in order to improve the working

abilities and habits of these students have always been the major concerns and tasks of their

teachers. Schalock,

McGaughey, and Kiernan (1989) asserted that designing a pre-vocational training

program that match individual ability and need is the key factor in determining if a student with

moderate level mental handicap would eventually get a job offer, or otherwise. Thus, through

properly designed pre-vocational training, students with mental handicaps could expect to join

the work force as well. Further it is imperative to have appropriate vocational training strategies,

goals, and content within the program to equip the secondary students not just to be successfully

employed by the sheltered workshops, but also to successfully adapt into their working lives. In

fact, this is consistent with the whole-round development goal of the education and curriculum

reform in Hongkong (the Curriculum Development Council, 2001).

In Hongkong, young peoples usually start their working lives after graduation from high

schools, i.e., completion of eleven years of education. Some of them, however, may have the

opportunities to further their studies for two to six more years in tertiary institutes locally or

abroad. Ironically, most students with mental handicaps, who are perhaps 15, 16 years old, have

to face the challenges of the adult world and the adaptations into the working environment right

after their nine years of education.

These changes and difficulties found in such transitions are hard even for normal

adolescents. In average, students with mental handicaps have to leave their schools and join the

362

work force, usually at the blue-collar level, at least two to three years earlier than their normal

secondary school counterparts. These peoples with mental handicaps, who supposedly need more

trainings and supports than the normal, unfortunately receive lesser education, both academically

and vocationally, than others.

According to Report No.33 of the Director of Audit issued by the Audit Commission in

1999, the Director of Audit concerned the effectiveness of pre-vocational training curriculum in

special schools and suggested to improve the outcomes. The Education

Manpower Bureau (EMB) yet argued that there already are many school-based vocational

programs developed by various special schools, and such programs could be grouped together as

a pool to benefit all needed students. Such response from the Education Manpower Bureau

(EMB) reflected both its inadequacy and lack of longerterm planning in providing and ensuring

the quality and quantity of pre-vocational and vocational educations for students with mental

handicaps. Since there is no mandate central curriculum enforced by the EMB, the school-based

vocational programs, voluntarily developed by individual special schools, play very important

roles in equipping students with mental handicaps as competent workers in the work force at

large. The outcomes and effectiveness of such are still waiting for proper evaluations and

monitoring by the authority, nonetheless.

3.2 The Background

By the end of the 20th century, trend of education reforms has gradually emerged into the

education system of Hongkong, including special education. Curriculum is one of the key

mechanisms within the education system in which the Hongkong Special

Administration Region (HKSAR) government intended to have a comprehensive review and if

required, reform (Curriculum Development Council 1999; Education Commission, 2000). After

a series of discussions and consultations, a new curriculum framework has evolved and was

published in the document, namely “Learning to learn – The Way Forward in Curriculum

Development” by the Curriculum

Development Council (CDC) in June 2001. The curriculum framework includes three key

components: (1) Key Learning Areas, (2) Generic Skills, and (3) Values and Attitudes.

According to CDC, the contents and strategies in the curriculum framework would suit any

363

individual needs (CDC 2001). That implied the curriculum framework is to be applicable to the

special educational needs (SEN) pupils, and the special educational professionals need to follow

the framework and contents accordingly.

In Hongkong, the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (DDO) of 1996 provides

protection for peoples with disabilities to be employed on an equal basis. However, there is no

law and regulation in the DDO to ensure the provision of transition education and services in

helping these people to adapt into working and even adult lives. Special schools in Hongkong are

simply encouraged by the EMB to design their own school-based curriculum (SBC) or the

Individual Educational Plan (IEP) in helping their students to transit from schooling to working

and adult lives.

The Caritas Lok Jun School (CLJS) is a special school for students with moderate level

of mental handicaps. In responding to the curricular trend and education reform in Hongkong,

CLJS started developing a school-based curriculum (SBC) in academic year 2003-2004. The

curriculum have seven domains:

(1) Independent Living Skills;

(2) Everyday Knowledge;

(3) Functional Mathematics;

(4) Functional Literacy;

(5) Community Living Skills;

(6) Recreation and Leisure Skills; and

(7) Career Education.

Among all these, Career Education is the key and major teaching area for the students.

Each secondary class at CLJS has two chief teachers who are responsible for the planning and

implementation of the Individual Educational Plans (IEPs) of 8 to 10 students. Based on the

abilities and the needs of the students, the responsible teachers choose the goals and materials

from these seven domains to design the respective IEPs. Furthermore, the teachers also have to

decide the most effective teaching strategies, i.e., at what time and for how long, etc. The

improvement in the vocational competencies and the adaptabilities to working and adult lives of

the students are the sole concern and responsibilities of the secondary classes teachers.

364

3.3 Statement Of The Problem

The development of SBC in Hongkong has been encouraged by the Education

Department (now, the Education and Manpower Bureau, or EMB) since the 1980s and has since

become a dominant part of the curriculum development. Teachers’ close involvement in

curriculum development in order to meet the special and diverse needs of students has been

emphasized. In response to this curricular trend, many special schools in Hongkong have

developed their own SBC, including the SBCs in both vocational and pre-vocational training.

However, the major problems of them are their unproven outcomes and effectiveness since most

of them have not been evaluated officially or publicly, because this is no mandate by law to do

so. Besides, most of these SBC are small scale projects, for instance, a short period of on-the-job

training in a sheltered workshop. Thus, there is no guarantee on both the quality and quantity of

these SCBs because no compulsory evaluation standard is available.

Some of them may have internal evaluation or inspection, but external and official evaluation

that opens to the public is rare.

Teachers in CLJS have started to use their own SBC for over a year. Great autonomy in

educational decision-making has been granted to the teachers. Teachers design the

IEPs for the students based on the context of the seven domains, and enhance them with

transitional training programs and plans for students who are to transit from schooling to

sheltered workshops. Similar to the other SBCs, there is neither official evaluation, standard,

guidelines, nor study on the effectiveness of the SBC in CLJS. Thus, if its SBC could cater for

the needs of its students in improving their vocational competencies is still questionable,

unfortunately.

3.4 School-Based Curriculum In traditional educational approach, students are taught through many subjects, e.g.,

languages, general studies, mathematics, computer learning, self-cares, perceptual motor

training, physical education, music, art and craft, home economics, design and technology,

independent living skills, and others, the SBC of CLJS however focuses on skills, knowledge,

365

and attitudes that students with moderate level mental handicaps must know in their lives. The

objectives, framework, contents, activities, strategies, and assessments of the SBC of CLJS are

presented to provide a completed picture of the curriculum.

3.4.1 The Curriculum Goals And Objectives CLJS started developing a school-based curriculum (SBC) in the academic year of 2003 -

2004. The goals of this SBC are basically similar to those mentioned in the “Learning To Learn –

the Way Forward in Curriculum Development (CDC, 2001)”, and the EYE programme in 2002.

However, methods and achievement degrees would be different from the mainstream

counterparts. The general goals and objectives of the SBC in CLJS are:

To develop in children with moderate level of mental handicaps, their personal potentials and

interests in various aspects to the fullness;

To help children with moderate level of mental handicaps to understand their ecological

environment and to live and function well in their homes, the school, the community, and the

world;

To help children with moderate level of mental handicaps to understand their vocational

potentials and to develop working skills, positive working attitudes, and good working habits for

future vocational trainings or for works;

To help children with moderate level of mental handicaps to master self-care, self-help, and

self-control skills, and to become independent and contributing citizens of society. As planned

by the Curriculum Development Committee of CLJS, the SBC should preferably be applicable to

be used as an upward extension of curriculum for students with mild level of mental handicaps,

and a downward extension of curriculum for students with severe level of mental handicaps.

3.4.2 The Frameworks Of The Curriculum – Seven Domains The SBC of CLJS also consists of seven domains:

(1) Independent Living Skills;

(2)Everyday Knowledge;

(3) Functional Mathematics;

(4) Functional Literacy;

(5)Community Living Skills;

(6) Recreation and Leisure Skills; and

366

(7) Career Education.

This curricular framework is developed based on: (i) the contents and framework of the eight

Key Learning Areas (KLA) proposed by Learning to Learn: Life-long

Learning and Whole-person Development (CDC, 2002); and (ii) the needs of students with

moderate level of mental handicaps in reference to themselves, families, social, works, and

communities (acceptance and leisure) within the Hongkong context in light of similar overseas

programmes.

Similar to the central curriculum developed by CDC, this SBC helps students with

moderate level of mental handicaps to develop their knowledge, skills, values andattitudes

through study of the above-mentioned seven domains. These seven domains consist of core

learning elements, which every student with moderate level of mental handicap is expected to

learn, with extended or enriched elements, which are to be provided to help the more capable

students. The curriculum emphasizes the learning of the contexts of these seven domains at four

different learning stages:-

Key Learning Stage 1 for students aged 6 to 8;



Key Learning Stage 4 for students aged over 16.

The Curriculum Development Committee of CLJS plans to categorize the learning

contexts or items of every domain according to the above key learning stages in next academic

year. Although contents of each domain have not been categorized by learning stages at the

moment, teachers could still select contexts and items from these seven domains, which they

think would match the ages and needs of their students. Table 1 comprises the seven domains

and a set of interlocking components, and provides a clear picture to indicate the structure and

framework of the SBC of CLJS.

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3.4.3 Assessment - The Base-Line Checklist

Members of the Curriculum Development Committee of CLJS has selected and designed

assessment items, which are supposed to be the core and competence items of each domain for

every key learning stage, as base-line assessment/checklist. There are four base-line checklists

according to the four key learning stages: stage 1, stage 2, stage 3, and stage 4. Each key learning

stage’s base-line checklist contains the assessed items that represent the expected skills or

abilities that should be acquired by students at that stage. The performances of students are

graded by three-point scale:

3 means fully master the content/skill;

2 means partially master;

1 means unable to master.

The base-line checklist is used to identify the current level or stage of individual student.

Each student in CLJS takes the base-line checklist at the beginning of an academic year. Each

teacher assesses their responsible students according to the guidelines, instructions, and criteria

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written on the base-line checklist handbooks (Appendix 2 – sample). The results enable teachers

to know whether the students have acquired the core skills as expected in a particular key

learning stage.

Further, the base-line checklist would help to chart the progress made by individual

student.

The Career Education base-line checklist is used in this study as one of the tools to measure the

effectiveness of the school-based vocational curriculum. As the original

Career Education base-line checklist mainly focuses on vocational skills, the researcher has

modified the checklist and added a few assessed items related to vocational knowledge, and

attitudes.

3.4.4 The Implementation Of Individualized Education Plan (IEP) Individualized Education Plan is a written document that summarizes the educational

program for a student. In the United State of America, the law (Education for All

Handicapped Children Act, P.L. 94 - 142) requires every child with disability to have his or her

own IEP . An IEP must include certain information about the child and the educational

programme designed to meet his or her unique needs. Taiwanese government, who always

closely follows the educational trends and developments in the USA, has also required such

implementation of IEP for peoples with disabilities. Article No. 27 of the Enforcement Rules of

the Act of Special Education 1999 enacts every school to provide IEP for every student with

physical or mental handicaps. Detail contents, e.g., background information of the student,

objectives and goals, persons participating in the IEP, and schedules, must be written on the IEP.

Vocational education and transition services must also be included in the IEP, according to the

needs of the student.

Although such special education’s IEP is currently not a compulsory in Hongkong, the

Curriculum Development Committee of CLJS believes that the implementation of SBC together

with IEP can more fully achieve the goals and objectives of the SBC and thus provide a more

tailor-made curriculum for each student in CLJS. Based on the abilities, backgrounds, and needs

of the students, each teacher in CLJS is responsible for planning and implementing the

Individual Educational Plans (IEPs) of 3 to 5 students. Teachers are to act as case managers in

coordinating training activities, relating services, and resources that suit the needs, abilities, and

369

benefits of the students. Firstly, teachers are to collect relevant data and information of their

students, including, personal data, family backgrounds, previous assessments, medical reports,

base-line checklist results, etc. Secondly, based on the needs and abilities of the students,

teachers are to design the IEPs, including, learning objectives, necessary services, and training

programmes. Learning objectives are to be selected from the seven domains’ guidelines. Details

of the individual learning plan, such as, shortterm objectives, teaching strategies and materials,

teaching periods, and whom to teach, are written in the teaching plan. To improve the vocational

competencies of the students and their adaptabilities to working and adult lives are the major

concerns and responsibilities of their secondary class teachers, hence, they need to include

vocational, and transitional trainings in order to equip and prepare their students to adapt into

adult lives and working places. Eventually, teachers need to inspect the learning progresses and

outcomes of their students and modify the IEPs accordingly after each semester. Table 2

illustrates the process of implementation of IEP in CLJS.

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371

3.5 School-Based Vocational Curriculum In Caritas Lok Jun School

The school-based vocational curriculum is an important integrated part of the SBC in

CLJS. One of the major goals and objectives of the SBC in CLJS is to equip and prepare the

children with moderate level of mental handicaps for future vocational trainings or works. In the

context of Career Education (CE), one of the seven core domains of the SBC in CLJS, working

knowledge, working skills, proper working attitudes, and good habits are things that students

with moderate level of mental handicaps need to learn throughout their four key learning stages –

from 6 to 16 years old or above. Through CE, students with moderate level of mental handicaps

are enabled:

to develop their basic working skills;

to explore, understand, and develop working skills in specific working fields;

to explore and identify their potentials, abilities and interests in relation to the occupations;

to understand the environments, knowledge, and skills needed in specific occupations;

to develop positive and proper working values and attitudes;

to aware of safety in workplace.

3.5.1 The Career Education Curriculum – The Four Sub-Domains

Career Education curriculum has four sub-domains: working skills, working attitudes and

habits, seeking and maintaining employment, and workplace safety. Curriculum framework of

CE, shown in Table 3, comprises four sub-domains, and main learning items. Knowledge, skills,

values, and attitudes relating to work and occupation are promulgated in these four sub-domains.

Each sub-domain, according to its uniqueness, focuses more in certain specific area, for instance,

sub-domain of working attitudes and habits obviously emphasizes more on values and attitudes,

etc.

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3.5.2 Implementation Of School-Based Vocational Curriculum

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In CLJS, IEPs are prepared for all students and are used as the bases of students’

educational progress. IEPs of secondary students have usually been infused with career

emphases, and are thus more occupational oriented than those of primary students. Annual goals

and short-term objectives are more often selected from the domain of Career Education.

Students’ long-range goals, needs for employment, and other community living objectives are

written in their IEPs.

Upon identifying student’s goals and needs for future employment, teachers are to design

vocational training activities, as well as materials and duration of trainings. In

CLJS, each class has fifteen sessions a week for implementing IEP .

Teachers have autonomy to determine the followings:

contents of school-based vocational curriculum to be provided for students in order to assist in

meeting the stated goals in IEPs. Usually basic working skills, and working attitudes are taught

at elementary level so that students could function at much higher degrees in secondary level. At

secondary level, teachers concentrate on more extensive career explorations, specific working

skills and preparations of experiences, such as internships at shelter workshops;

length and date of CE, for instance, two sessions of CE per week for primary students and

eight sessions of CE for secondary students, who are transiting to shelter workshops soon;

teaching strategies, and vocational training materials to be used, for example, assigning students

to variety of work tasks, such as cleaning up and putting away materials, posting bulletin boards,

etc.

3.5.3 Vocational Training Program And Teaching Strategies

Providing proper vocational training programme and using appropriate teaching

strategies are the important factors that determine the future success of school-based vocational

curriculum. The researcher, as a secondary class teacher in CLJS, planed and used the following

vocational training programme and variety of methods in improving the working competences of

ones students.

Modeling – teacher to demonstrate the skills and behaviors to be learnt or point out the target

skills and behaviors performed by other peoples and encourage the students to imitate. Students

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can also learn through watching demonstrations or informational technology means, such as

videos or computer soft ware (CDI, 1997).

Task Analysis – teacher to break down skills into smaller steps according to the students’

abilities and learning needs, and then teach the steps in planned sequences. If students have

difficulties in learning the planned steps, teacher is to block the steps and further break them

down into even smaller steps for easier learning (CDI, 1997). This technique is often used to

teach a job that combines a series of steps, such as packaging or cleaning.

Chaining – similar to task analysis, teacher is to break down a target skill according to the

sequence of actions to be performed, into a series of steps. Teacher could then teach the students

the sequence of steps in forward or backward order, depending on the nature of the target skills

and the abilities of the students. For example, students with less confidence or low self-esteem

could learn target skills in backward order since the achievements in the beginning would

encourage them to keep on learning.

Prompting – teacher is to give prompts, including physical guidance, physical prompts,

gestures, and verbal prompts, when teaching target skills. Once students can master the target

skills in certain degrees, prompts should be gradually faded out. This method could be used in

different kinds of learning programmes and activities.

Work Tasks and Projects – teacher is to assign students certain work tasks or projects, include

collecting homework from classmates, keeping classrooms clean, and placing chairs and

stationeries in proper order. Brolin (1995) stated that these work tasks and projects conducted in

school for students should be emphasized even more for students with disabilities and planned in

purposeful manners. Further, students will feel and understand values and importance of

working, if teacher is to emphasize the relationships between these activities, and the working

world.

Job-site Vocational Training Programme – students are to attain work experiences and

trainings in shelter workshops through job-site vocational training programmes. Emergence of

the training

programme was collaboration and partnership between CLJS and shelter workshops.

Unfortunately, only ten secondary students could participate in the programme, because of the

limited resources. Secondary classes teachers are to recommend students, who have potential or

are expected to work in shelter workshops, to join the programme in order to help them to

smoothly transit from schools to shelter workshops. Teachers of participating students need to

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prepare, supervise, and follow-up the learning progresses of their students during and after the

trainings. In light of Wisniewski, Alper, and Schloss (1991), the job-site vocational training

programme in CLJS is the “train-and-place model”, which requires students to possess most of

the competencies necessary for eventual career success.

Apprenticeship – this is an unofficial placement training arranged by teachers. Students are

apprenticed to school janitors once a week to do specific jobs, e.g., cleaning cups, etc. They are

required to do and perform the jobs like other janitors. During the apprenticeship trainings, they

could learn the required skills, knowledge and attitudes in workplace. The training could help

students not only to adapt to the real working world, but also enhance their competencies in

eventually obtaining employments.

3.6 Discussion

Results obtained in this study favor on the effectiveness of school-based vocational

curriculum in improving working competencies of moderate level mentally handicapped

students. Obviously, the results of this research are promising. Nevertheless, some factors must

be addressed and discussed because they will possibly affect the effectiveness of school-based

vocational curriculum. School-based vocational curriculum has impacts on both subjects on

working skills, working knowledge, and working attitude and habits. One of the possible reasons

was the continuing practices and exercises of skill in the three months long trainings.

Hence, the long-duration training period, but not the implementation of scho ol-based vocational

curriculum has caused the improvement. Even if the school-based vocational curriculum has

affected the improvement; duration of the training period might also have played an important

role as well.

Overall impacts of the curriculum on working knowledge, and working attitudes and

habits of both subjects were noted. However, it is important to indicate that there were different

responses to the programme, in respect of working attitudes and habits.

Hong has worked more willingly than before, but still has not improved much in his efficiency in

working. On the other hand, although Bi has shown light improvement in persistent workings

during the observation period, her working attitude has not changed in other lessons,

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unfortunately. In conclusion, her improvement in working attitude and habits was still

questionable, and subject to confirmation.

Having said the above, Bi’s inconsistent performance in working attitude could further be

explained. According to the field notes of daily observation, it is noted that Bi could work harder

and would be more concentrated, if the researcher praised and reinforced her when she has

completed or achieved the tasks. She wanted teacher’s attention very much, and would try to get

the researcher’s attention by doing negative behaviors or not doing the assigned tasks. The

researcher has ignored her when she was crying or moody, and encouraged her when she felt

difficulties and tried to give up. Those might be the reasons why she has different performance in

front of different teachers. Actually, it has never been a simple matter to change ones attitude and

habits, particularly under a short duration. It has always been a challenge for any teacher to

attempt in changing student’s attitude and habits. The intervention period took only three

months, the period was considered too short for any teacher to correct ones wrong habits or

attitude and to build up new values and behaviors. Teacher needs to select not only the proper

learning objectives and contents from the core domains, but also to wisely use appropriate

teaching methods, such as, token system, reinforcement, or self-monitoring in changing ones

attitude and habits (Cole & Chan 1990). Hence, longer training period could provide teachers

with more time and space in trying and carrying out various kinds of teaching methods.

No doubt, teacher plays an important role when implementing school-based vocational

curriculum. Professional qualification and enthusiasm of teachers will definitely affect ones

educational decisions in planning and executing IEPs for students. If a teacher makes wrong

decisions, such as inappropriate annual goals - which could not match the ability of students or

could not coordinate in transition trainings or services for students, would easily affect the

effectiveness of school-based vocational curriculum. As teachers have at least 15 IEP lessons per

week in teaching their students, relationship between the IEP teachers and the students will also

influence effectiveness of the curriculum. In essence, teacher is the key person in influencing the

learning outcomes. It is imperative to establish a mechanism in order to ensure the quality of IEP

for every student in school and the implementation of school-based curriculum.

Size of the samples affects reliability of the study. Both subjects were from the same class and

with similar level of abilities. Could the results of this study apply to students of other classes,

377

those who have higher, or lower abilities? Also, there was only one teacher, i.e., the researcher,

to study and observe the outcomes in the study.

The effectiveness of SBC implemented by other teachers in CLJS has not been studied and

examined, this unfortunately has weaken the reliability and the generalization of this study.

3.7. Summary

The chapter presented objectives, frameworks, and components of the school-based

curriculum in CLJS, specifically the design of IEP, and the implementation of school-based

vocational curriculum. The SBC in CLJS incorporates the basic tenets in “Learning to Learn:

Life-long Learning and Whole-person Development” (CDC, 2001) and “the Extension of Years

of Education (EYE) Programme” launched by the EMB in 2002 for MH students. Besides, the

implementation of IEP is the key feature of this curriculum model, tailor-made programme is

provided in order to meet the diversified needs of students in CLJS.

CE, one of the seven core domains, provides students with essential contexts related to

the improvement of vocational skills, knowledge, and attitudes throughout the four key learning

stages. The four sub-domains of CE, the IEP that takes care of individual needs, vocational

training programmes, and teaching strategies used, are critical for the students to learn so that by

the time they graduate, they are to success as competent workers, and adults in the community.


1. Explain The Background

2. Explain Statement Of The Problem

3. Explain School-Based Curriculum

4. Explain The Curriculum Goals And Objectives

5. Explain The Frameworks Of The Curriculum – Seven Domains

6. Explain Assessment - The Base-Line Checklist

7. Explain The Implementation Of Individualized Education Plan (IEP)

8. Explain School-Based Vocational Curriculum In Caritas Lok Jun School

9. Explain The Career Education Curriculum – The Four Sub-Domains

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10. Explain Implementation Of School-Based Vocational Curriculum

11. Explain Vocational Training Program And Teaching Strategies


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Press.




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Unit 4: Rehabilitation of PwIDs under National Skill development Scheme (NSDS by MSJ&E)

4.1 Introduction

4.2 What We Already Have: The Existing Skill Training Landscape For Pwds

4.3 The Big Gap

4.4 There Is An Imminent Need For:

4.5 . The National Action Plan For Skill Training Of Pwds

4.6 Targets Of The National Action Plan:

4.7 . Objective & Coverage Of The Scheme

4.8 Title Of The Scheme And Date Of Commencement

4.9 . Procedure Of Application And Selection

4.10 . Training Curriculum

4.11 . Source Of Funding For The Skill Training

4.12 . Funding Norms

4.13 Quality Monitoring Of The Training:

4.14 . Other Conditions

4.15. Furnishing Of False Information

4.16. Litigations

4.17 Summary


389

4.19 References

390

4.1 Introduction

Persons with disability in India face many challenges when looking to

develop employable skills and in gaining meaningful employment. While India has

ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with disability

(UNCRPD), persons with disability continue to face many difficulties in the labour

market.

According to census 2011, there are 2.68 Crore Persons with Disabilities

(PwDs) in India (1.50 crore male and 1.18 crore female PwDs). Even though,

disabled people constitute a significant percentage of the population of India, their

need for meaningful employment largely remains unmet, in spite of

implementation of “The Persons with Disability Act, 1995”. In the overall

population, the number of disabled is proportionately higher in rural areas,

accentuated by general poverty considerations and poor access to health services.

The rural disabled are significantly disconnected from skills and markets.

Improving vocational training and employment opportunities for people with

disability is a critical element for enhancing the quality of life for individual with

disability, their families, but there are also substantial gains for the broader

economy. There are substantial costs to individuals and to society associated with

these poor employment outcomes for people with disability. The World Bank

considers that leaving people with disability, outside the economy, translates into a

391

foregone GDP of about 5% to 7%. In addition to the individual and family

benefits, there is also a strong economic imperative to increased labour force

participation which will help to address country’s shortage of skilled labour force,

while at the same time reducing fiscal pressures associated with welfare

dependency.

4.2 What We Already Have: The Existing Skill Training Landscape For Pwds

· National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).

· Vocational training courses offered by National Institutes of Department of

Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities and its affiliate organisations like

National Handicapped Finance and Development Corporation (NHFDC),

National Trust etc.

· Ministry of Labour and Employment supervising more than 20 Vocational

Rehabilitation Centres for Handicapped(VRCHs), more than 10,000 ITIs and

more than 1000 Employment Exchanges.

· Technical and Vocational courses, being offered through Community colleges, IITs and

Universities, affiliated with Ministry of Human Resources Development.

· NGOs focusing on vocational training and skill development.

· Private sector training organizations: Under the CSR initiative, many organizations have done

exemplary work.

· Public Sector Undertakings have also contributed substantially to vocational training of persons

with disability.

392

· National Rural Livelihood Mission of Ministry of Rural Development.

· National Urban Livelihood Mission of Ministry of Urban Development.

· Vocational training / livelihood programs of other Central Govt. Ministries and State

Governments.

4.3 The Big Gap · According to the Census 2011, about 1.34 crores persons with disabilities are in the employable

age of 15 to 59 years. About 99 lakh persons with disabilities in the employable age group were

non-workers or are marginal workers.

· Persons with disabilities are among the poorest in the population.

· Urgent need to scale up the skill training infrastructure in view of the huge demand- supply gap.

· The training, being offered through various institutions / mechanisms is nonhomogenous, lacks

quality and is low on employability.

· Very low access of the present training infrastructure to the PwDs in rural areas.

· Low level of involvement of private sector in the skill training of PwDs

· The skill training offered by various ministries/departments to the PwDs is fragmented or

overlapping

4.4 There Is An Imminent Need For: · Quality Vocational Training with high employability.

· Homogenous training curriculum & methodology · Use of latest technology in training, content

generation and monitoring of training.

· Synergistic participation of the Private Sector and NGOs in the training and placement process.

· Targeted optimal use of CSR funds.

4.5 . The National Action Plan For Skill Training Of Pwds

A National Action Plan for Skilling the Persons with Disabilities has been prepared by

the Department of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) with the following main components:-

A Project Monitoring Unit (PMU) to be set up in the Department of Empowerment of Persons

with Disabilities. The PMU would have the following components :

393

· Training need assessment unit

· Content Generation unit

· Training Monitoring and Certification unit

· Employer Connect unit

· IT Unit to provide support for creation of E-learning modules, monitoring of training, E-

certification and training centres / creation and maintenance of a job portal.

The vocational / skill training would be provided by a network of skill training providers led by

NGOs, private training institutions and Public Sector/Govt. Sector training institutions like

VRCs. The vocational training would be provided by a cluster of training providers scattered

over the country, having an established track record of providing skill training with high

employability ratio. These training partners would be provided outcome based financial support

by Deptt. Of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) and Ministry of Skill

Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE). Synergistic support would be provided to these

training providers by the National Institutes of DEPwD, training institutions of Ministry of

Human Resource Development, Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, other Central

Ministries and State Governments.

A separate cross cutting Sector Skill Council for PwDs is being created in collaboration with

Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and the private sector. Rehabilitation Council

of India (RCI), in consultation with the Sector skill council and various National Institutes of the

DEPwD would help generate a homogenous course curriculum and certification mechanism for

the training providers.

DEPwD would help these training providers by connecting them with various private sector

organizations and PSUs for providing employment connect as well as for obtaining CSR support.

DEPwD will coordinate with State Governments to support proactively by offering infrastructure

and resource support to these clusters of Vocational Training Providers.

4.6 Targets Of The National Action Plan:

The DEPwD, in collaboration with NSDC, has set a target of skilling 5 lakh persons with

disability in next 3 years (1 lakh in first year, 1.5 lakh in second year and 2.5 lakh in third year).

After achieving the target for three years, we would have achieved a momentum and would have

394

created a robust online-skill training platform enabling us to skill 5 lakh PwDs every year, thus

skilling 2 Million more PwDs during 2018-2022.

Thus, till the year 2022, the National Action Plan will lead to skilling of Million PwDs (with

70% target employment). This would be a major contribution to “Skill India” initiative of

Hon’ble Prime Minister.

The skill training will be provided by a network of more than 200 clusters of ‘Training Partners

‘, thus setting a target of skilling about 500 PwDs in the first year for each of the cluster. The

lead NGO may empower and take the help of small NGOs in the rural areas for the skill training

but every such training centre will be monitored by the PMU. The network of training providers

and capacity thereof will keep increasing every year.

4.7 . Objective & Coverage Of The Scheme

The Scheme aims at providing financial assistance for skill training for persons with disabilities.

The scheme will cover Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) with not less than 40% disability and

having a disability certificate to this effect issued by a competent medical authority.

30% reservation for women candidates: As an endeavour to encourage women, 30% of the total

intake of each training program shall be earmarked for women candidates.

The scheme will operate through training institutions recognised by this Department as per the

eligibility conditions contained in this scheme.

4.8 Title Of The Scheme And Date Of Commencement

The title of the scheme is “Financial Assistance for Skill Training of Persons with Disabilities”.

The scheme is effective from the date of notification of the scheme or from 1st

May, 2015 whichever is later.

5. Conditions of Eligibility

a. Eligibility of the Trainees

(a) A citizen of India,

(b) A person with disability with not less than 40% disability and having a disability certificate to

this effect issued by any competent medical authority.

395

The disability being - (a) blindness (b) low vision (c) leprosy cured (d) hearing impairment (e)

loco-motor disability (f) mental retardation (h) autism (i) cerebral palsy or (j) a combination of

any two or more of g), h) and i) (Section 2(i) of the

PwD Act, 1995 read along with Section 2(j) of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with

Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999).

(c) Age: Not less than 15 years and not more than 59 years of age on the last date of receipt of

application for the course.

(d) The applicant should not have undergone any other skill training course sponsored by Govt.

of India during the period of two years prior to the last date of receipt of application for the

course applied for.

b. Eligibility of the implementing agencies (training providers)

(a) The scheme will be implemented through the implementing organizations/ institutions,

hereinafter referred to as “training partners”. Financial assistance will be provided by way of

Grant-in-Aid for organizing training programs to the following categories of organizations:

i) Departments of the States Governments/Union Territories, or

ii) Autonomous Bodies/ Statutory Bodies/ Public Sector Undertakings set up by

Central/State Governments/UT Administrations including Central/State

Universities, or

iii) National Institutes/ CRCs/DDRCs/RCs/Outreach Centres under MSJ&E, or

iv) Organizations registered under Societies Registration Act, 1860, or Indian

Trusts Act, 1882 or Companies Act, 1956 who are recognized for skill training by Central/State

Government Departments or subordinate bodies there-under.

(b) The organization shall have not less than three years experience of organizing skill training

programs.

4.9 . Procedure Of Application And Selection

STAGE - I

Expression of Interest will be invited from eligible organizations to get registered as “training

partner” to provide skill training to PwDs under the scheme by issuing an advertisement in the

leading newspapers and through the websites and other media outfits.

396

The pro-forma for application and list of documents to be attached are given in ANNEXURE-I

and ANNEXURE-II respectively. Applications received for empanelment as training partners

will be scrutinised and placed before a Selection Committee who will make selection based on

the criteria of previous experience, expertise, infrastructure and manpower available and other

similar relevant considerations. The selection of training partners will be a continuous process.

(a) Composition of the Selection Committee: The Committee to select the training partners

would constitute the following:

(b) The Committee may invite an expert, as a special invitee, as and when it deems necessary.

(c) The Committee will hold periodic meetings (at least one in each Quarter) to select amongst

the organizations, who have sent proposals, to be designated as training partners.

(d) Till the formation of the Sector Skill Council and its full operationalisation, the

Committee will also decide / approve the proposed curriculum of various skill training courses

being offered and will monitor the quality of training provided through personal visits and other

kinds of feedback.

(e) The non-official members of the Selection Committee shall be entitled to TA/DA at the rates

admissible to an officer equivalent to Director of the Govt. of India.

397

(f) The organizations found suitable by the Selection Committee shall be empanelled as

“Training partners” for a period of three years for organizing training programs for

PwDs under this scheme.

The organisations who are empanelled as training partners shall submit fresh project specific

applications in respect of the training programs proposed to be conducted by them. The

applications will be scrutinised and if found suitable by the Selection Committee shall be

sanctioned financial assistance in the form of grant-in-aid.

4.10 . Training Curriculum

NSDC has already granted a provisional approval for creation of a Sector Skill

Council for PwDs. Staffing and fully operationalising the Sector Skill Council is likely to take 5

to 6 months.

Once, the Sector Skill Council is fully operational, it will through interactions with industry and

other Sector Skill Councils, devise the job roles and occupational standards for PwDs, which will

become a basis for deciding the training curricula for various skill training courses. Till the

Sector Skill Council is fully operational, the Committee referred to above, will, while approving

the training partners, also decide on the curriculum to be adopted by the training provider for the

skill training of PwDs. Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) and National Institutes (NIs),

associated with DEPwD will be associated by the Committee in creating a homogenous training

curriculum for various jobs.

4.11 . Source Of Funding For The Skill Training

The target of providing skill training to 2.5 million PwDs by the year 2022 would require

a separate Budget Head, to be created after the Cabinet approval. Till such an approval is

obtained, the skill training would be funded by the flagship scheme of the DEPwD, ‘Scheme for

Implementation of PwD Act (SIPDA)’. The existing scheme of SIPDA explicitly provides for

extending Grant-in-Aid for skill training of PwDs.

4.12 . Funding Norms

398

a. Training Cost: An all inclusive training cost of Rs.5,000/- per trainee per month shall be

provided for the entire duration of the training. For example, if a training program of three

months duration is undertaken, the training cost payable would be Rs.15,000/- per trainee.

Training cost of a part of the month will be calculated proportionately.

b. Stipend for trainees: The trainees will be entitled to a stipend of Rs.2000/- per month for

hostellers and Rs.1000/- per month for non-hostellers.

c. Normally the term 'Hostel' is applicable to a common residential building and common messes

for the trainees run under the supervision of the training partners. In case the training partners are

unable to provide accommodation in their Hostel, an approved place of residence can also be

treated as Hostel for the purpose of this scheme. The place will be approved by the Head of the

Institute after due inspection and keeping in view the rules and regulations laid down by the local

authorities, if any. In such case, a certificate to the effect that the trainee is residing in an

approved place of residence, as he/she is unable to get accommodation in the institute hostel

should be furnished by the Head of the Institute. It is further clarified that such deemed hostels

should consist of such accommodation as is hired at least by a group of 5(five) trainees living

together, usually with common mess arrangements.

d. Cost of Transport: The trainees will be entitled to a transport allowance of Rs.500/- per month

for hostellers and Rs.1500/- per month for nonhostellers.

e. Incentives: Suitable incentives shall be payable to the training partners for achieving higher

placement rate. The rate of incentives shall be in percentage of the total training cost sanctioned

which is provided in para 10.3 below.

4.11 Funds Flow Mechanism

The payments to the training partners shall be based on the outcomes achieved, and shall be

released in a manner as given below to implement the programmes effectively:

399

4.13 Quality Monitoring Of The Training:

The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities will evolve a mechanism

for monitoring the quality of training being provided by the training providers which shall be

binding on all the training providers.

4.14 . Other Conditions The Implementing Agency i.e. the training providers in receipt of grant-in –aid is required to

follow the General Financial Rules, 2005 /Codal Procedure/CVC Guidelines in the matters of

contract/financial transactions.

The Implementing Agency will be open to inspection by DEPwD or by an officer/third party

agency authorized by it.

When the Government of India has reasons to believe that grant-in-aid is not being utilized for

the approved purpose, the amount shall be liable to be recovered from the

Implementing Agency with penal interest and no further assistance would be given to the

Agency. DEPwD will be at liberty to blacklist such organizations and to take legal action.

The Implementing Agency will maintain a website and prominently display details of grant-in-

aid received, purpose thereof, events organized and list of beneficiaries.

The Implementing Agency shall submit the final Utilization Certificate for the entire grant along

with a project completion report within three months after completion of the work/project as

stipulated in the proposal.. Unutilized money, if any, is to be refunded to

400

DEPwD. In case the work/project is not completed within the stipulated timeframe and further

time is sought to complete the same, the organization concerned has to intimate DEPwD and also

to explain the reason for the delay. If the project is not completed within the timeframe/extended

timeframe, the organization concerned has to refund the grant forthwith.

Govt. organizations like Autonomous Organizations/Statutory Organizations etc. shall maintain

subsidiary accounts of Grant-in-aid as per GFR provisions. They will also maintain a separate

bank account in respect of Grant-in-aid received under this scheme.

The indicative list of trades and their suitability for various categories of disabilities is at

Annexure IV-A and IV-B.

4.14. Jurisdiction of the Scheme

The jurisdiction of the Scheme is up to providing prescribed financial support to the

training partners for providing skill training to PwDs. The Scheme does not cover employment

aspects of the trainees and also does not provide for any kind of assistance to the awardees in

seeking employment anywhere, after his/her having availed of the training.

4.15. Furnishing Of False Information

If any trainee or training partner has furnished any false information/document and is

established as false, he/she/it will be debarred from the benefit and an action will be initiated for

recovery of the amount spent with 15% compound interest thereon. Such trainee or training

organization will also be black- listed for future and appropriate legal action can be taken against

them.

4.16. Litigations

Any litigation on matters arising out of this scheme will be subject to sole jurisdiction of

the courts situated in National Capital Territory of Delhi.

The progress of implementation of the scheme will be reviewed by a Selection Committee as

indicated in previous para 6 of the scheme.

401

4.17 Summary

The intent of the U.S. Congress in enacting Part C was to maximize children‘s potential

through early intervention. As Congress noted, failure to intervene early, means a loss of time

that can never be made up. We therefore request that DDS expedite its investigation, despite the

60-day timeline, so that [consumer‘s] Speech and Language services may begin as soon as

possible.


1. Explain What We Already Have: The Existing Skill Training Landscape

For Pwds

2. Explain The Big Gap

3. Explain There Is An Imminent Need For:

4. Explain The National Action Plan For Skill Training Of Pwds

5. Explain Targets Of The National Action Plan:

6. Explain Objective & Coverage Of The Scheme

7. Explain Title Of The Scheme And Date Of Commencement

8. Explain. Procedure Of Application And Selection

9. Explain Training Curriculum

10. Explain Source Of Funding For The Skill Training

11. Explain Funding Norms

12. Explain Quality Monitoring Of The Training:

13. Explain. Other Conditions

14. Explain Furnishing Of False Information

15. Explain Litigations


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.




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Routledge.







6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.






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The Belknap Press.

























Office.



408




















31st – Sept 3rd.













409






















Office.











410












31st – Sept 3rd.










411

Unit 5: Implications Of Placement For Inclusion In Community,

Documentation, Record Maintenance And Reporting

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Implementing Idea Authorization

5.2.1 Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (Idea).

5.3 Process And Procedures For Implementing Idea

5.4 Implementation Process

5.4 .1. Transition Phase

5.5 Record Retention And Disposition

5.6 Provider Responsibility

5.7 Records Management Requirements

5.8 Dhhs Records Retention And Disposition Schedule For Grants

5.9 Records Retention And Disposition Schedule For State And Area Facilities

5.10 Incident And Death Reporting Documentation

5.11 The Importance Of Clinical Documentation

5.12 Mh/Dd/Sa Service Array And Documentation Requirements

5.13 Mental Health/Substance Abuse Co-Occurring Disorders

5.14 Closure Of Clinical Service Records

5.15 Privacy And Security Of Service Records

5.16 Summary


412

5.18 References

413

5.1 Introduction

Parents play a central role in their children’s developmental and educative activities.

Parents are the driving force behind many of the services provided to their children

(Guralnick,1994)., parents are potential initiators and advocates of reform(Gibh et al.,1997).

Russell et al. (1999) conducted a study on the efficacy of interactive group psycho-education on

measures of parental attitude towards mental retardation. Fifty-seven parents randomized to 10

weeks of experimental and control therapies were assessed using the parental attitude scale

towards the management of mental retardation. The pre and post intervention measurements

were done by a single blinded rater and compared. Results revealed that the intervention group

had a statistically significant increase in the outcome scores and clinical improvement in the total

parental attitude score. The researcher concluded that interactive group psycho education is

effective for changing the attitude of parents with children of mental retardation and is a viable

option to be developed in situations where resources are limited.

Slayton et al. (2001) conducted studies to determine the parental perception of oral health

needs of children with disabilities and whether or not they had difficulty in obtaining dental care.

A survey of parents of children enrolled in the supplemental security income health plan in Lowa

showed that 68% of children had dental needs during the previous year. Of these children parents

reported that 9.4% had a big problem getting that care, 8.1% had a small problem getting care

and 82.5% stated that getting dental care was not a problem. There were significantly more

dental needs reported in children in the older age groups.

Faulks and Hennequin (2000) conducted a study on oral health program in three French

Centers for persons with special needs. The program aimed to educate the carers about dental

disease, to motivate them with regard to prevention and to improve the oral hygiene and oral

health of the individuals with special needs. The study evaluated the impact of the program in

terms of change in attitudes and behaviour expressed by the carers by means of a questionnaire.

Following demonstration of oral hygiene techniques on an individual basis, the number of

residents who had their teeth cleaned more than once a day rose from 24% to 52% (p<0.05). The

percentage of carers able to clean both posterior and anterior teeth of their key residents

414

increased from 24% to 60% (p<0.05). The intervention was successful to improve the oral health

of persons with intellectual disabilities and change the attitude of carers.

Katoda (1993) in his study in Japan on parents and teachers praxes of and attitudes to the

health and sex education of young people with handicaps found that parents and teachers gave

more information about health and sex to their 15- 16 years old young people with mental

handicaps than to other ages.

Liewellyn et al. (1998) conducted a study to find out the perception of service needs by

parents with intellectual disability. 52 parents in metropolitan and rural areas were interviewed.

The most common need perceived by parents was help with childcare and child development.

Their reported greatest unmet needs was in the community participation area; exploring work

options, knowing what community services are available and how to access them and being

assertive, meeting people and making friends.

Wong et al. (2006) conducted a study in China to find out the effect of an education

programme on parental knowledge, competency and attitude towards children with mental

retardation. Forty parents were included in the study. The findings revealed that family focused

approach is crucial for enhancing parenting competency and attitude in caring children with

mental retardation.

Walker et al. (1989) conducted a study to find out the perceived needs of parents with

children who have chronic health conditions. 910 subjects were surveyed to find out the use of

health services. Findings revealed that the expenses perceived by the parents for the utilization of

health services are beyond their capabilities. Researchers suggested the need for Governmental

support for utilizing important services to meet the special health care needs of children with

mental retardation.

Yuker (2005) conducted a study to find out mothers’ perception of their mentally

retarded children. Results of the study revealed that mothers’ perception on their mentally

retarded children are different from those of special education teachers. Researcher suggested

that maternal perceptions are important since it influence their behaviour towards these children.

Even though the studies related to perception of parents and teachers regarding the health

education needs of children with mental retardation are limited, the above review clearly reveals

that both parents and teachers perceived the need for educating health aspects to individuals with

mental retardation to make them more self -dependent.

415

5.2 Implementing Idea Authorization

5.2.1 Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (Idea).

The IDEA (formerly called Public Law 94-142 or the Education for All Handicapped

Children Act of 1975) requires public schools to make available to all eligible children with

disabilities a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment, appropriate to

their individual needs. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997

(Public Law 105-17) were signed into law on June 4, 1997.

Note. The Virginia regulations were under revision to comply with IDEA regulations at the time

this manual was being developed.

Code of Virginia § 22.1-214, Board to Prepare Special Education Program for

Children With Disabilities. The Code of Virginia requires the Board of Education to ensure that

each school division in Virginia has a special education program to educate and train children

with disabilities. Virginia requires that all children with disabilities between the ages of 2 and 21,

inclusive (i.e., ages 2 through 21), be identified, evaluated, and have made available to them a

free and appropriate public education (FAPE). School divisions are mandated to comply with

these regulations under Article VIII, Section I of the Constitution of Virginia, Title 22.1 of the

Code of Virginia, and the federal

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400-1485).

Regulations. The Board of Education has established regulations governing the implementation

of special education and related services for students with disabilities in

Virginia. After the federal regulations are finalized, the Virginia Board of Education will update

its special education regulations to comply with those at the federal level. Until this is completed,

information regarding special education regulations in Virginia is taken from: Virginia

Department of Education (Effective January 1994). RegulationsGoverning Special Education

Programs for Children with Disabilities in Virginia.

Richmond, Va.: Author. Definitions. Key general definitions from Regulations Governing

Special Education

Programs in Handicapped Children and Youth in Virginia, Virginia Department of Education,

effective January 1994, are included in the following chart.

416

Special Education Programs in Handicapped Children and Youth in Virginia, Virginia

Department of Education, effective January 1994, are provided in the Appendix A.

5.3 Process And Procedures For Implementing IDEA Note. The following information reflects the IDEA Amendments of 1997 and aspects of the

Virginia Special Education Regulations (1994). 85

Child Find. Public awareness responsibilities of local school divisions include:

♦ Conducting a public awareness campaign annually that involves parents and community

members in child find and community awareness campaign.

♦ Maintaining an active and continuing child find program to locate children birth through 21, in

need of special education.

Screening. Each local school division is responsible for establishing and maintaining screening.

Screening is to include the following within 60 days of initial enrollment:

417

(Please refer to the section on “Population-Based Screening” within this chapter, for specific

screening information.)

1. Speech, voice, and language.

2. Vision and hearing.

3. Fine and gross motor function (through grade three).

Child Study. Formal committee established in each school to review records and performance of

students referred through a screening process or by another source and to decide what course of

action is indicated. The committee may be termed “Instructional Support Team,” “Teacher

Assistance Team,” or other similar terminology. The school nurse may be a part of this

committee.

Evaluation. Procedures used to determine whether a child has a disability under IDEA.

Each local school division shall have established policies and procedures related to the

evaluation of referred students. Policies and procedures include parental consent, confidentiality,

written notification, nondiscriminatory testing, qualified personnel, and notification of parental

rights. A team of individuals, including the parents, determines what will be assessed. These may

include health, vision, hearing, social and emotional status, general intelligence, academic

performance, communicative status, and motor abilities. Virginia law requires hearing screening

for all students evaluated for special education. This is typically accomplished through the

assessment of components that are contained in the following chart.

5.4 Implementation Process

The project will be implemented in two phases- Year 1 & 2 in 2012 and Year 3 & 4 in

2013. It will involve preparing the syllabus, holding workshops with all stakeholders, writing,

piloting and finalizing the teaching and learning materials, teacher training and working on the

new end of programme assessment and certification.

5.4 .1. Transition Phase

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The new model will be phased in gradually into the system as from January 2012 with full

implementation achieved by 2015:

• Students entering in Year I in 2012 will follow the new programme right from the start and

through to 2015.

• For those who will be in Year II in 2012, the new programme will be gradually phased in with

the introduction of new pedagogical materials during the year and in 2013. While Year 2 will be

spent in school, they will, in 2013, follow the new Year III programme 3 days per week at their

secondary school and the remaining 2 days in an MITD training centre. The year after, for Year

IV, they will spend 2 days in their secondary school and 3 days in MITD.

• Interim arrangements will be made for those who will be in Year 3 in 2012. Those in Year 3 in

2011 are to be housed in MITD for the whole of the 4th Year in 2012.

• As regards the final assessment for Year 4, this will introduced on a pilot basis in 2013 and

fully implemented as from the end of 2014.

5.5 Record Retention And Disposition

419

Each entity, including the LME and service providers, owns the records that they

generate and bears an inherent responsibility for the maintenance and retention of those records

per prescribed guidelines. The two schedules which address the retention and disposition

requirements for publicly-funded MH/DD/SA services are the DHHS Records Retention and

Disposition Schedule for Grants and the Records Retention and Disposition Schedule for State

and Area Facilities, Division Publication, APSM 10-3. LMEs and community providers are

subject to the applicable standards outlined in both schedules.

APSM 10-3 is currently under revision and in some cases, has been superseded by more

recent requirements, some of which are discussed below. This section is intended to give the

reader some basic information about record retention and disposition requirements. Entities

should refer to the appropriate schedule to determine the specific retention standards for the type

record of interest. There are occasions when more than one schedule pertains to a given record.

When that occurs, the more stringent retention period must be applied.

LME Responsibility

The “Record Retention” section of the performance contract between the Department of

Health and Human Services [DHHS] and each LME states that “in order to protect documents

and public records that may be involved in litigation, the Department will notify the LME when

documents may be destroyed, disposed of, or otherwise purged.” LMEs should use the

information discussed below about funding source requirements to give providers guidance

regarding the retention and disposition of their records. When funding for individuals includes a

combination of local, state, or federal funds, then the longest applicable retention period must be

applied. The LME shall facilitate and monitor the compliance of its providers with applicable

record retention and disposition requirements.

5.6 Provider Responsibility

Service provider agencies have responsibility for fulfilling the record retention and

disposition requirements for all the records generated within their agency. Record retention is

addressed in the provider MOA/contract with the LME as well as in the Community Intervention

420

Service Agency contract with DMA for direct enrollment to provide Medicaid services.

Providers must manage their records in accordance with the requirements discussed below.

When an individual changes providers, relevant clinical and person-specific information should

be copied and sent to the new provider in a timely manner [with the appropriate written consent

when such consent is required] to ensure continuity of care. Custody of the original record

generated by the provider shall be retained by the provider agency. For additional details on

releasing person-specific information,

In the event that a provider agency ends services in a given region, or dissolves for any

reason, the provider is required to make arrangements to continue the safeguarding of both the

clinical and fiscal records per the record retention guidelines described in this section. If the

service record is classified as an historic record [i.e., the original service record created by the

Area Program when the Area Program was still a service provider in the pre-LME world] and

was “transferred” to the provider, as was the practice in some situations, upon provider agency

dissolution, the provider must return the historic record to the LME that created the record.

5.7 Records Management Requirements

The original service record remains the property and responsibility of the provider and

should not be relinquished to another provider or disposed of outside the parameters of record

retention requirements. This section outlines the retention and disposition requirements of the

two schedules, along with the Medicaid record retention requirements, and discusses how the

guidelines apply in certain situations. The references cited must be consulted directly when

determining the disposition of specific records. When making such determinations, community

provider agencies and LMEs should remember two fundamental principles and standards that

apply across the board to record retention:

All records must be retained if there is a reason to believe that they may be subject to an audit,

investigation, or litigation.

When records are subject to two or more sets of standards, records management must follow

the strictest standard.

For the purposes of record retention, service records are viewed as having two distinct

components: the clinical record and the financial record, the latter of which contains financial,

billing, and reimbursement information for the services provided. [For these purposes

421

"reimbursement information" includes any administrative records that document that the staff

providing billed services held the proper credentials to do so.]

5.8 DHHS Records Retention And Disposition Schedule For Grants

The DHHS Records Retention and Disposition Schedule for Grants from the Department

of Health and Human Services [DHHS] Office of the Controller incorporates records

management requirements for federal funds disbursed by the Department of Health and Human

Services. All financial and programmatic records, supporting documents, statistical records, and

all other records pertinent to a federal award must be retained in accordance with this schedule.

When applicable, the DHHS Records Retention and Disposition Schedule for Grants provides

permission from DHHS to dispose of records as described in the performance contract between

DHHS and the LMEs, which currently states, “In order to protect documents and public records

that may be involved in DHHS litigation, the Department will notify the LME when documents

may be destroyed, disposed of, or otherwise purged through the biannual Records Retention and

Disposition Memorandum from the DHHS Controller’s Office.”

LMEs and service providers are subject to this retention schedule and must adhere to the

requirements of this document, published by the DHHS Office of the Controller on a biannual

basis. The schedule and related record retention documents [a memorandum and a background

document] are found on the DHHS Office of the Controller’s website [scroll down to the

Records Retention and Disposition Schedule links]:

http://www.dhhs.state.nc.us/control/.

The DHHS Records Retention and Disposition Schedule for Grants applies to all records

supporting expenditure of specific federal funding.

5.9 Records Retention And Disposition Schedule For State And Area Facilities

LMEs and providers of services as specified in this manual shall comply with the

Records Retention and Disposition Schedule for State and Area Facilities, Division Publication,

APSM 10-3, found here:

http://www.ncdhhs.gov/mhddsas/statspublications/manualsforms/aps/apsm10

3retentionupdated5-05.pdf.

422

A copy may be obtained by contacting the Communications and Training Team at 919/715-2780.

This schedule determines the procedures for the management, retention, and destruction of

records by the Division of MH/DD/SAS facilities, the LMEs, and service provider agencies.

General principles and procedures related to records retention are outlined in this document.

Specific guidance related to the following areas is also provided:

Administrative and management records

Budget and fiscal records

Client records

Disaster assistance

Legal records

Machine readable public records

Microfilm

Office administration records

Personnel records

Public relations records

Student records

Clinical service records have longer retention requirements than most fiscal or organizational

records. If not subject to other retention requirements, clinical service records of adults may be

destroyed 11 years after the date of the last encounter, and the clinical service records of minor

children and youth who are no longer receiving services may be destroyed 12 years after the

minor has reached the age of majority [18 years of age]. [See pages 18-19 in the schedule].

For records supporting expenditures for state appropriations and federal funds, the four-year

retention period outlined in the Standard 2: Budget and Fiscal Records section of the Records

Retention and Disposition Schedule for State and Area Facilities, has been superseded by the

implementation of more recent state and federal regulations, e.g., the DHHS Records Retention

and Disposition Schedule for Grants, which requires a five-year retention period for those

records, as previously discussed in this chapter. Since these regulations were written subsequent

to the publication of the Records Retention and Disposition Schedule for State and Area

Facilities, all references to a four-year retention period in the schedule should be read as five

years for all records supporting the expenditure of state and federal funds.

423

5.10 Incident And Death Reporting Documentation

Each service provider shall comply with the death reporting requirements specified in

10A 27G .0200, incident response, reporting, and documentation requirements specified in 10A

27G .0600, restricted intervention documentation specified in 10A NCAC 27E.0104, and Client

Rights rules as specified in Client Rights in Community Mental Health, Developmental

Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Services [APSM 95-2] and General Statute.

Reports on incidents, including deaths and the use of restrictive interventions shall be

submitted as required above, using the standardized forms [QM02, QM04, and QM11] and

procedures required by the Secretary of DHHS. The Incident and Death Response System

Manual [Guidelines for Providers], as well as the required forms and other information, are

available electronically in the Forms section at the following link:

http://www.ncdhhs.gov/mhddsas/statspublications/manualsforms/index.htm#forms.

Each provider shall develop an administrative system for maintaining information on incidents.

Please note that the occurrence of an incident shall be recorded in the service notes. However,

the completed incident report shall not be referenced or filed in the service record, but filed in the

administrative files.

5.11 The Importance Of Clinical Documentation

Rigorous documentation standards are necessary in assuring that all pertinent information

is contained in the service record and that the information entered in the service record is clear,

concise, and correct. Complete and accurate documentation is vital for the continuity of

optimum, high quality care. Practitioners must be complete and consistent in their approach to

record documentation, and include in the record everything that is significant to the individual’s

condition. By following these standards, the practitioner can ensure that the documentation

entered in the record:

Serves as a basis for planning services and supports and ensuring continuity in the evaluation

of the individual’s condition and treatment;

Provides a record of the provision and continuity of services;

424

Furnishes documentary evidence about the individual’s evaluation, treatment and supports,

change in condition during the treatment encounter, as well as during follow-up care and services

that ultimately should enhance the individual’s quality of life;

Provides a full accounting of the provision of services;

Provides a mechanism for communication among all providers contributing to the individual’s

care;

Provides essential information that is used in examining and reviewing the quality of services

provided and in promoting recommended practice;

Provides justification of medical necessity for services;

Substantiates treatment and services for the reimbursement of services provided;

Documents involvement of the individual to whom the plan belongs and, when appropriate,

the involvement of family members in the individual’s treatment/services/supports;

Assists in protecting the legal interests of the individual, the facility or provider agency, and

the individual provider;

Promotes compliance with existing rules, regulations, and service delivery requirements;

Provides data for research; and

Provides data for use in internal training, continuing education, quality assurance, and

utilization review.

5.12 MH/DD/SA Service Array And Documentation Requirements

A complete listing of the MH/DD/SA services can be found in Appendix C. This listing

contains the procedure codes, categorizes the services by service type, delineates the minimum

frequency requirements for documentation, indicates whether a service order is required for the

service, and denotes if the service is covered by Medicaid.

Many service definitions contain documentation requirements that are specific to those services.

For this reason, each service definition should be consulted to ensure compliance with the

documentation requirements specific to that definition. The links listed below should be used to

obtain detailed implementation information regarding the DMH/DD/SA service definitions. The

array of MH/DD/SA service definitions can be accessed on the Service Definitions page of the

DMH/DD/SAS web site, found here:

425

http://www.ncdhhs.gov/mhddsas/servicedefinitions/index.htm.

Some longstanding State-defined service definitions also contain certain documentation

requirements. These definitions can be found at the same Service Definitions page above or at

the following link:

http://www.ncdhhs.gov/mhddsas/statspublications/manualsforms/aps/apsm1026servicedef1-

03.pdf

The official posting of many of the MH/DD/SA service definitions is found within the various

clinical coverage policies published by DMA. These definitions are located on the Clinical

Coverage Policy page of the DMA web site, which includes, but is not limited to, the following

clinical coverage policies:

A4 Services for Individuals with Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities, and

5.13 Mental Health/Substance Abuse Co-Occurring Disorders 8A Enhanced Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services

8C Outpatient Behavioral Health Services Provided by Direct-Enrolled Providers

8D-1 Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities for Children Under the Age of 21

8D-2 Residential Treatment Services

These policies and service definitions are posted at the following link:

http://www.ncdhhs.gov/dma/mp/mpindex.htm.

In general, the elements for documenting a particular service are defined by the service type

[e.g., periodic, day/night, twenty-four hour] or within the service definition itself. While in most

cases, there are no specific formats for documentation, there are some standard forms for certain

activities [i.e., the LME Consumer Admission and Discharge Form, the Introductory and

Complete Person-Centered Plan (PCP) Forms, and the CAP-MR/DD Residential Support and

Home Support Grid], which can be found in Appendix A. In addition, Appendix D includes an

assortment of sample forms which may be used as a guide or prototype for meeting the service

documentation requirements.

In addition, there are other forms which are administrative in nature that are required in certain

situations [e.g., authorization request forms, incident and death reporting forms, etc.]. When

these are addressed throughout this manual, a link is provided to facilitate access to such forms.

426

Other required forms, such as programmatic and fiscal reporting forms, etc., are beyond the

scope of this manual.

5.14 Closure Of Clinical Service Records

There is no state requirement that stipulates when or under what conditions a clinical

service record must be closed or terminated. Closure of the service record is not the same as

discharge reporting to CDW. An individual’s service record may remain open even though an

individual may have stopped receiving services; however, discharge reporting must be sent to the

LME for updates in the CDW whenever the consumer completes an episode of care.

The Division of MH/DD/SA Services recognizes the need to separate clinical service record

requirements from statistical reporting requirements. For individuals who will likely return for

services at some point, providers and LMEs may prefer to leave the service record open.

DMH/DD/SAS, on the other hand, needs detailed information about service completion to be

able to respond to the federal requirements for National Outcome Measures, which tracks an

individual’s outcomes from the beginning to the end of each service provided.

For the last few years, CDW has not required that the service record be closed; CDW only

requires that the LME terminate or discharge the individual from CDW after 60 days of no

billable services and report this to the data system. One exception to this rule is the Adult Mental

Health Stable Recovery population, which may be sustained without billable services for 365

days before a statistical termination is required. In either situation, the clinical service record

may remain open.

When an individual returns for services after being discharged from CDW, a new

admission must be sent to the LME for CDW reporting. Although the individual’s service record

may have been kept “open,” because this is considered a “new admission,” there are certain

procedures that must accompany the process, which includes a new STR, updating demographic

and contact information, and any expired consents, notices, etc. There are other requirements

associated with new admissions that may not apply if the individual’s service record has not been

closed. A new admission assessment is not required; however, a note in the service record that

summarizes the presenting problems and reason[s] for re-admission, clearly indicating the

circumstances surrounding the return for services, is required in lieu of an admission assessment.

Additionally, consent forms and release of information forms, client rights, and privacy notices

427

are not required unless they have expired in the current service record. If the individual’s PCP

[or other service plan as applicable] has not expired, a new plan is not required, but the current

plan must be updated and revised according to the individual’s current needs, Decisions related

to the circumstances under which the closure of an individual’s clinical service record is required

are determined locally by the service provider agency or by the LME.

When a clinical service record is terminated or closed, all the treatment documents

contained in the closed record, including Person-Centered Plans, are also considered closed. If an

individual returns to resume services and his or her service record has been closed, he or she

should be re-admitted, and a new Person-Centered Plan/service plan should be developed. Along

with this process, the re-admission information, as a new episode of care, would also be reported

to the LME to meet the statistical reporting requirements of CDW.

5.15 Privacy And Security Of Service Records

Providers must adhere to all federal and state laws, rules, regulations, and policies that

protect and ensure the confidentiality, privacy, and security of service records. Where there are

multiple sources of requirements, it is the provider’s responsibility to follow the most stringent

requirements, including the code of ethics of professional licensure. It is the provider’s

responsibility to stay abreast of all such laws, rules, regulations, policies, and procedures in order

to fully protect the privacy and confidentiality rights of the individual. For further guidance

regarding the release of confidential information

Providers shall develop policies and procedures to ensure the privacy and security of

service records. Such policies and procedures should address various aspects of health

information management including, but not limited to, how information will be recorded, stored,

retrieved, and disseminated, as well as to how such information will be protected against loss,

theft, destruction, unauthorized access, and natural disasters. Prior to the development of policies

and procedures, it is recommended that a risk assessment be done to assess the vulnerability of

the environment in which the records are stored. The ensuing policies and procedures shall

identify the safeguards that have been implemented to ameliorate any potential loss or

compromise of the integrity of pertinent clinical/service and non-clinical information [e.g.,

financial data and personnel records] necessary to document and support service delivery.

428

All agencies subject to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act [HIPAA]

regulations are responsible for developing policies and procedures to comply with HIPAA.

These regulations are designed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the healthcare

system by standardizing the interchange of electronic data for specified administrative and

financial transactions.

For additional information about HIPAA, please see the North Carolina Department of Health

and Human Services [DHHS] HIPAA web site, using the following link:

http://hipaa.dhhs.state.nc.us/index.html

5.16 Safeguards

Policies/procedures regarding the following assurances shall be developed:

1. Provider agencies shall ensure the safeguarding of service records against loss, tampering,

defacement, use, or disclosure by unauthorized persons and shall ensure that service records are

readily accessible to authorized users at all times.

2. If confidential information is stored in portable computers, the provider agency shall develop a

policy that assures the protection of such information. Recommended areas that the policy should

address are as follows:

a. Loaning and using portable computers;

b. Purging confidential data from returned computer prior to assigning the same computer to

the next user;

c. Avoid the maintenance of confidential information on portable computers by storing

confidential information on the facility network so that the information can be backed up and

maintained more securely. If network storage is not possible, maintaining the information on

disk(s) and transporting the disks separately from the computer case is preferred.

d. Encrypting the information that is stored on a portable device, as well as password protecting

the device.

3. If the faxing of confidential information is allowed, the provider agency’s policies and

procedures must reflect how the information being faxed will be protected. At a minimum, the

policy shall include procedures that are required if confidential information is to be faxed,

429

including verifying the fax number with the receiving party and checking to ensure that the fax

was received;

4. If email is used to communicate confidential information, a policy regarding how the

confidential information will be secured and protected shall be developed by the agency. Unless

the provider agency has the capability to encrypt email, the emailing of confidential information

should be the least preferred method of transmitting information and be used only when the

information is password-protected as outlined below. In this situation, the USPS or courier is the

preferred method for sending confidential information. If the confidential information needs to

be sent immediately, facsimile is the second preferred method. If facsimile is unavailable or the

document is too large to be faxed, email may be used to transmit confidential information if the

information is stored in a file that is password protected [i.e., in a Word document with a

password] and no Protected Health Information [PHI] or identifying information is included in

the body or subject line of the email, including the password. The individual should contact the

recipient via telephone to give them the password for the document. Again, the practice of

communicating PHI via unencrypted email is only to be followed as a last resort.

If an electronic medical record is utilized, the following policies, at a minimum, shall be

developed:

1. A policy, which defines the classifications of information [data sets] to which different users,

may have access.

2. A policy, which specifies that only authorized users have access to service recipient

information, based on the minimum necessary principles defined in the HIPAA regulation. The

policy shall identify measures such as passwords, audit trails [a detailed record of who viewed,

modified, entered, or deleted data, and when, etc.], to help ensure that only identified users have

access to the minimum amount of service recipient information necessary to complete their job

function.

5.16 Summary

These “Record Keeping Guidelines” provide a framework for keeping, maintaining, and

providing for the disposition of records and what is contained in them. They discuss special

situations: electronic records, organizational settings, and multiple clients. They are intended to

benefit both the psychologist and the client by facilitating continuity and evaluation of services,

430

preserving the client’s privacy, and protecting the psychologist and client in legal and ethical

proceedings.

These guidelines do not establish rules for practice, but rather provide an overall

conceptual model and strategies for resolving divergent considerations. The demands of

professional settings are varied and complex. It would not be feasible to establish detailed

guidelines for record creation, maintenance, and disposition that would be relevant for each

setting. The current document may provide useful guidance for various professional applications.

Where standards and legal and regulatory codes exist, they take precedence over these

guidelines.


1. Explain Implementing Idea Authorization

2. Explain Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (Idea).

3. Explain Process And Procedures For Implementing IDEA

4. Explain Implementation Process

5. Explain Transition Phase

6. Explain Record Retention And Disposition

7. Explain Provider Responsibility

8. Explain Records Management Requirements

9. Explain DHHS Records Retention And Disposition Schedule For Grants

10. Explain Records Retention And Disposition Schedule For State And Area

Facilities

11. Explain Incident And Death Reporting Documentation

12. Explain The Importance Of Clinical Documentation

13. Explain MH/DD/SA Service Array And Documentation Requirements

14. 5.15 Explain 5.15 Privacy And Security Of Service Records

15. Explain Mental Health/Substance Abuse Co-Occurring Disorders


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.











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Block 4: Curriculum Adaptations

Unit 1: Need for Curricular Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification

Unit 2: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for Pre –academic Curriculum

Unit 3: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for Academics Curriculum

Unit 4: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for Co-Curriculum

Unit 5: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for School Subjects

442

Unit 1: Need For Curricular Adaptation, Accommodation And

Modification

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Understanding The Needs Of Individuals With Disabilities

1.3 Learning Styles

1.4 Prime Background Knowledge

1.5 Accommodation

1.6 Adaptations

1.7 Parallel Curriculum Outcomes (Parallel Instruction)

1.8 Overlapping Curricula (Overlapping Instruction)

1.9 Changes In Assessment: Towards Enhancing Quality Education For

Special Needs Learners

1.10 Career Education

1.11 Adult General Education

1.12 Decisions About Accommodations And Modifications

1.13 Student Responsibilities

1.14 Summary


1.16 References

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1.1 Introduction

There is no one accepted definition of curriculum modifications as researchers are still

grappling with the exact meaning of the concept. Nevertheless, there are some definitions which

tend to shed some light into the concept. Curriculum modification involves change to a range of

educational components in a curriculum, such as content knowledge, the method of instruction,

and student's learning outcomes, through the alteration of materials and programs (Comfort,

1990; King-Sears, 2001; MacMackin & Elaine, 1997; Reisberg, 1990). Koga & Hall (2004)

define curriculum modification as modified contents, instructions, and/or learning outcomes for

diverse student needs. In other words, curriculum modification is not limited to instructional

modification or content modification but includes a continuum of a wide range of modified

educational components. However, the way that we interpret curriculum influences our

understanding of curriculum modification. Reisburg (1990) lists examples of the modifications

of content, such as teaching learning strategies, simplifying concepts or reading levels, teaching

different sets of knowledge and skills needed by students, and setting up specific objectives and

examples of modifications to instructional methods, including reducing distractions, altering the

pace of lessons, presenting smaller amounts of work, clarifying directions, and changing input

and response modes. To this end, all of these teaching events should be considered as examples

of curriculum modification.

All students in career education and adult general education programs benefit from the

use of effective instructional practices. This chapter describes general techniques and strategies

for instruction that reflect a broad base of research. These techniques have been proven to be

effective with diverse groups of learners, including students with disabilities, students with

limited English proficiency, and others. This chapter also describes assessment practices required

in career education and adult general education. Accommodations, alternative assessment

procedures, and exemptions are discussed.

After reading this chapter, you may want to examine your own teaching and assessment

practices. You may find that you are overlooking some of these techniques. You may feel there

444

is not enough time to use all of these strategies. However, the opposite is true. When you

incorporate these techniques into your daily teaching activities, you will find that more students

are able to succeed. You will spend less time reteaching.

1.2 Understanding The Needs Of Individuals With Disabilities

While much attention is paid to the unique characteristics of students with disabilities, it is

also important to remember that students with disabilities have the same basic needs and desires

as students without disabilities. They need to be challenged, to be accepted, and to be successful.

They do not want to be stereotyped or singled out because they have a disability. If you have not

had much experience with individuals with disabilities, here are some tips from a handbook from

the Erwin Technical Center in Hillsborough County Schools (2000).

• Many people feel awkward or uncomfortable when they interact with persons with a

disability. The best way to handle these fears is to accept people for who they are and

use common sense and courtesy.

• It’s a good idea to avoid calling unnecessary attention to the disability. Some students with

disabilities are uncomfortable being identified and labeled as being different. Offer help

when asked or when the need seems obvious, but don’t insist. Do not promote

helplessness. Support the student’s use of critical thinking skills and self-initiative.

• Use “person first” language. Avoid saying things such as “a learning disabled student.”

Instead say, “a student with learning disabilities.” Using terms such as the blind, the

deaf, or the retarded to refer to a person or a group of persons is considered to devalue

the person or group and may be offensive.

• Speak directly to someone who is deaf or hard-of-hearing or visually impaired. Don’t

shout. Speak clearly.

• Give all students in your classes an opportunity to discuss any special needs privately at the

beginning of the term. As the class progresses, monitor their progress and address

concerns individually.

1.3 Learning Styles

445

Many instructors find it helpful to use learning style inventories to identify individual

preferences of all students. These inventories can help both instructors and students to

understand why certain kinds of learning experiences are more difficult than others. A wide

variety of instruments are available commercially. Some have been specifically designed for

adolescent and adult learners. In general, the assessments help to identify preferences for sensory

input (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic), mode of expression (oral or written), social and

environmental characteristics (alone or in a group), room and workspace design, lighting and

sound, time of day, and temperature. Many teachers have found success using instructional

practices that address a variety of learning styles. A list of instruments is included in appendix B

of this manual.

Managing Time and Classroom Activities

Many teachers feel that having students with disabilities increases their workload. You

may worry that you don’t have enough time to attend to individual needs and provide one-on-one

assistance. You will find that employing the following classroom management techniques can

help students assume more responsibility for their own learning.

Routines and Structure

Use regular instructional routines and structure to provide a predictable learning

environment and increase independence of students. For example, consistent beginning and

ending procedures help students know what to expect and how to proceed. Give students a voice

in making class rules and setting routines to increase ownership and cooperation.

Some career education classes are run like a business, with a chief executive officer (CEO) and

support staff who have identified job requirements and descriptions. Students switch leadership

positions so they have an opportunity to learn and practice all essential skills.

Individualized Responsibilities and Schedules

446

Individualized learning allows teachers to provide some students challenging activities

for advanced learning as well as remedial activities for others. Students can work on their own

when class assignments are provided on an individual basis. Students will need to be able to

access learning materials and supplies independently. Computer-assisted learning programs may

supplement instruction and practice opportunities.

Students will need opportunities for individual feedback and progress reports. You may want to

provide students with a checklist of curriculum framework competencies for the specific

occupational program or a list of skills, concepts, and requirements for an academic course.

Students can keep track of their own accomplishments.

Cooperative Learning and Teaming

Allowing students to work in pairs, small groups, or teams is an effective way of

managing a class with diverse learners. Students can contact each other for support or reinforce

what has been taught. Volunteers may also be used to provide tutoring and additional practice.

Physical Layout

Flexible use of classroom space helps to provide individuals with quiet areas or special corners

for group cooperative learning. Arranging independent work areas so that materials and

equipment are readily available can facilitate the flow of instruction and practice activities.

Safety issues are critical in programs where the use of power equipment and tools or chemicals is

required. Students must be taught the proper procedures for the use, maintenance, and storage of

these materials. Individual accommodations may be needed for certain tasks. Warning lights may

need to be supplemented with auditory or vibrating signals. Poison signs may need to be color

coded or provided in braille. Storage areas with clearly marked containers or outlines showing

where particular tools should be hung on the wall are easier for students to manage.

Teaching Techniques

You can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of instruction by using the teaching

techniques described in this chapter. These descriptions generally follow the categories described

by Kaméenui and Carnine in their book, Effective Teaching Strategies That Accommodate

447

Diverse Learners (1998). A variety of specific instructional techniques are described for each

category. These techniques continue to be supported by research that shows how they increase

the likelihood that all students, including those with disabilities and those who are at risk for

failure, will have a more successful learning experience.

Focus on the Essentials

The terms “key concepts” or “essential skills” are sometimes used by educators to convey

the importance of helping students to learn concepts and skills that will generalize and serve as

links to future learning. You can use the concept of essential skills to plan instruction more

efficiently.

Once you have identified the essential skills, you can plan learning activities that will

help all students meet these expectations. In Florida, the Next Generation Sunshine State

Standards describe what students must learn and be able to do in the K–12 program. Curriculum

frameworks with student performance standards based on the Next Generation Occupational

Standards for Career and Technical Education are provided for career education and adult

general education programs.

Focusing on the essentials of learning begins with the planning process used by the

teacher. The University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning has developed three planning

routines that use a combination of graphic organizers and specific implementation strategies

(Lenz, 1997). These help teachers lay out the key concepts and critical skills as they plan a whole

course (Course Organizer™), a unit of instruction (Unit Organizer™), or a single lesson (Lesson

Organizer™). Teachers and students use the graphic organizers to guide learning and monitor

understanding of the instructional content. The example of a Unit Organizer shown on the next

page illustrates how this can be used in a career education course. This diagram is part of a Unit

Organizer for learning about trusses and rafters.

By laying out the important ideas and critical details graphically, you can help students

see how the ideas are connected to each other. Don’t forget to label the lines between the ideas to

show how the ideas link together.

Use Explicit Strategies

448

You can help students learn a new concept or skill more easily by teaching them to

follow a set of procedures or steps. The steps should reflect an efficient and effective way to

complete a task or apply a concept, much as an expert would do. For example, if you want

students to learn how to enter data into an accounting system or how to develop plans for

constructing a roof, teach a set of steps or procedures to follow using vocabulary students

understand. As appropriate, start with a concrete model and demonstrate and describe how each

step is accomplished.

When a new concept or procedure is introduced, the steps should be modeled using a

think-aloud technique in which the teacher describes the

mental processes and physical actions. As students are expected to apply the new learning, the

steps can be prompted by using a cue card, a verbal reminder, or job aid.

Some steps and strategies are too broad. Telling students to “brainstorm before writing”

does not provide enough guidance. A more useful strategy provides students specific direction in

determining the purpose of the communication, using different ways to generate ideas, applying

techniques for elaboration, and evaluating the writing plan.

449

You will need to look at your own instructional materials and evaluate the use of explicit

steps and strategies. If explicit strategies are included, are they clearly described? Do they have

narrow or broad applications? Think of the needs of new students. Would they be able to use the

strategies that are included? Would they need more assistance? You may need to modify the

instructional materials and add steps and strategies, or you may need to change the ones that are

included. Finding strategies that are just right is not an easy task. Try them out with students and

revise them if they don’t work.

University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning has also developed the Strategic

Instruction Model with Content Enhancement Routines and Learning Strategies to help teachers

and students. Several routines center around the learning of concepts (e.g., Concept Mastery,

Concept Comparison, Framing Routine), while others help teachers learn how to make

information easier to remember (e.g., Recall Enhancement). Students can also be taught

strategies to help them with writing assignments (e.g., Sentence Writing, Paragraph Writing,

Error Monitoring), reading comprehension (e.g., Paraphrasing, Self-Questioning), and tests (Test

Taking). These routines and strategies work well in both career education and adult general

education programs. Contact your local Florida Diagnostic and Learning Resources System

(FDLRS) Associate Center for more information about obtaining professional development in

this model (FDLRS website: http://www.paec.org/fdlrsweb/).

Provide Temporary Support

The term “scaffolding” is used by educators to describe the types of support needed when

students are first acquiring new knowledge and skills. In the same way scaffolding is used in the

building industry, scaffolding in learning provides temporary structure and support for the

learner until the concept or competency is completely mastered. Scaffolding for learning may be

provided through verbal prompts and cues, visual highlighting and diagrams, or other types of

assistance to help students to build their knowledge and proficiency. Students need support until

they are able to use the knowledge and skills on their own. The key to the use of scaffolding in

teaching is recognizing that it is temporary. Prompting and guidance needed at the beginning of

learning must be removed for students to become independent.

450

Use a continuum of maximum/minimum to think about scaffolding and support. A

maximum amount of support is provided when students are given total physical assistance or

completed copies of assignments. For motor skills, this is quite often the case. You might

position a student’s hand and arm and guide them through the correct movements for hammering

a nail. New computer users may need physical assistance in getting the mouse to move the cursor

in the desired direction. Giving the students copies of the lecture notes that they can highlight

instead of requiring students to take notes is another example of maximum support.

As students gain more proficiency, the amount of support can and should be reduced.

Providing outlines for notetaking or study guides, identifying the page numbers for the answers

to textbook questions, or showing students examples of expected responses offer minimum

support.

Modeling provides minimum support. You may frequently use examples in your

instructions to model the expected responses for students. Students can make effective use of a

model when they are able to identify the key features or critical processes used to perform the

skill and understand the concept exemplified in the model. Modeling can be used, for example,

to teach students how to call an employer if they are not coming to work or how to participate in

a job interview.

Here are additional examples of scaffolding techniques:

• Provide starters or incomplete statements and have the students add the rest.

• Give students an outline, diagram, or study guide.

• Use structured patterns or plans to help students learn.

• Use oral reading and embedded questions to help students process material in textbooks.

• Identify page numbers where topics are discussed or answers to questions can be found.

• Use color coding or underlining to highlight important ideas or key steps.

• Use peer tutoring or cooperative learning to provide support for students.

• Incorporate activities that provide guided practice before expecting students to perform

skills or use knowledge independently.

1.4 Prime Background Knowledge

451

The ability to learn new information often depends on how easily and effectively students

are able to relate it to what they already know. Helping students to see how the new knowledge

or skills fit with what they have previously learned makes it easier to learn. These techniques

help students make associations with what they already know.

• Use a synonym or antonym to make comparisons. This is the same as . . . This is the

opposite of . . .

• Use simple or extended comparisons. A life cycle is just like the . . .

• Give symbolic examples to help form a mental image. The Food Guide Pyramid represents

one way to plan what we eat.

• Use a personal example or story to make associations. I first began to understand the value

of savings when . . .

• Relate the topic to a current or past event that the students already know about. People

from different cultures in our school sometimes face the same types of rejection felt

during the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.

• Relate the concept to a fictional story or scenario. The story of Romeo and Juliet helps us

understand how family conflicts can . . .

Relating their prior knowledge is sometimes difficult for students. They may have difficulty

remembering what they have learned. They may not understand how to connect their new

learning with what they already know. If students lack the necessary background knowledge,

then you must provide instruction and experiences so that students have the critical prerequisites.

Review for Fluency and Generalization

The need for review is very critical for students with disabilities. Students need a variety

of opportunities to practice what they have learned. Many students may have difficulty

generalizing newly acquired knowledge and skills in subsequent classroom situations and in

situations outside the classroom. Guidelines about the importance of review follow.

452

1.5 Accommodation

The term refers to the delivery of instructional materials or the methods of learner’s

performance which does not change the content or conceptual difficulty of the curriculum (King-

Sears 2001). Teachers as well as the learners play a major role in the changes of instructional

strategies in order to achieve the same intended instructional outcomes suggested in the overall

or general curriculum. These can include incorporating different types of teaching and learning

methods and techniques, such as audio-visual materials, projectors, and pictorial representation

among others and modifying the amount of input, changing or modifying the time frame for

learning and teaching, and the amount time devoted to the support for individual learners needs.

These techniques can benefit learners in the inclusive settings in Botswana and can target special

needs learners who are, for example, visually impaired, learning disabled, and hearing impaired.

453

For example, the use of a Brailler in writing and spelling competitions, enlarged test copies, the

use of closed circuit television (CCTV) or use of a magnifying glass may be made for a visually

impaired student. The intention is that the content and difficulties of tasks remain the same as the

tasks in which other learners in the regular class would embark on. Switlick (1997) listed other

examples of accommodations, such as requiring completion of every other word problem on a

math worksheet, and providing for oral performance instead of written. It is therefore important

to note that accommodation is not a change of educational input crafted for overall or general

curriculum, but it is a modification of instructional methods and strategies which are targeted to

meet individual learner’s needs.

1.6 Adaptations

According to King-Sears (2001), adaptation is a modification to the delivery of

instructional methods and intended goals of student performance that does not change the

content but does slightly change the conceptual difficulty of the curriculum. Adaptations of

curriculum is a concept that usually require more teacher effort and time rather than simply

changing instructional methods and strategies or access as in an accommodation, but it is a goal-

driven process whereby teachers usually first need to state specifically the intended goals for

individual learners, like providing individual learner activities, individual homework and

assessments or evaluations, and further using adapted or different instructional materials and

strategies and activities for individual learners needs. Adaptations may be practices in inclusive

classrooms often occur when teachers differentiate instruction especially when teachers decide to

conduct lessons, mathematics or writing, which meet individual learner’s unique needs by having

work on adapted assignments. Under these conditions, learners with special needs may work on

their assignment in small groups with the support of the teacher. King-Sears (2001) suggests that

a variation of this type of lesson can be providing learners with special needs fewer or less work

and points out that reducing the amount of tasks seen in an accommodated instruction should be

differentiated from that provided in adapted instruction. In Botswana, learners who are visually

impaired, mentally retarded can benefit from this arrangement whereby they may be asked to

work in groups in problem solution and as they work in groups the teacher monitoring and

support may also be maximized. Hence, the adaptation of curriculum may also include a slight

454

change in conceptual difficulties that is later introduced to the learners. It is important to note

that adaptation must take place within the same learning contents and must be put in place when

teachers have come to a conclusion that a special needs learner is able to learn the same content

knowledge as others.

1.7 Parallel Curriculum Outcomes (Parallel Instruction)

The other category of curriculum modification proposed by King-Sears is known as

parallel curriculum outcomes which are modifications to the delivery of instruction and intended

goals of learner performance. They (parallel curriculum outcomes) do not change the content

knowledge and the underlying principle of the educational goals for individual learners just like

adaptations. However, their differentiation lies in the extent of change in conceptual difficulty,

that is, in adaptation changes are slightly made in the conceptual difficulty of curriculum,

whereas in parallel curriculum outcomes there is a significant or very tangible change of

conceptual difficulty. The application and practice of parallel curriculum outcomes is contingent

upon the educational contexts and individual learner’s needs which are similar to

accommodation and adaptation. There is a range of application to this type of modification and

students with varying learner characteristics and abilities benefit from parallel curriculum

outcomes. This type of modification can be used with learners who are gifted and talented as

they usually require more advanced and or challenging conceptual difficulties in instruction and

application. This is sometimes referred to as enrichment. In a nutshell parallel curriculum

outcomes do not change the general content knowledge but only changes the conceptual

difficulties for these kinds of learners which eventually create a learning environment conducive

to broaden the idea of inclusion.

1.8 Overlapping Curricula (Overlapping Instruction)

455

This is the last category of curriculum modification suggested by King-Sears. The

modification of curriculum in this case creates overlapping or common goals for learning

outcomes of learners from diverse backgrounds and which involves incorporation of specific

individual goals and expectations for learners with special needs enabling them to be involved in

regular or general education curriculum activities by promoting the idea of partial participation.

In most cases, the components of curriculum, such as background knowledge, conceptual

difficulties, and methods of instruction, for special needs students are designed very differently

from those for general education backgrounds. Practicing overlapping curricula sometimes

requires teachers to creatively design and provide shared educational activities, such as

cooperative learning and peer-mediated interventions. In such shared activities, the educational

goals and expectations for the students with diverse needs overlap with those for general

education students (King-Sears 2001). This curriculum can best be used by learners with

emotional disturbances and behaviour difficulties, among others, in which an Individualized

Education Programme (IEP) may be developed to make them have appropriate interactions with

peers in a small group setting.

1.9 Changes In Assessment: Towards Enhancing Quality Education For


Curriculum on its own cannot tell anyone what has been achieved in the education

system. What is needed is to translate the curriculum into manageable entities that can be used in

the classroom for instruction and for assessment. Curriculum and assessment though not always

seen as such are key areas in the promotion of effective teaching and learning. The modified

curriculum for learners with special needs, just like curriculum for any other learner, should have

appropriate instruction plan and assessment plan.

The reliability and validity of the test scores can be compromised with some special needs

learners. The difficulties can be in the form of communication styles (for example, the need for

sign language interpreter for deaf learners), the length of the assessment, and also intentional

problems. In order to overcome these and other problems associated with assessing special needs

learners, accommodations and modifications in the testing procedure is important. These

modifications should include but not limited to the following:

456

• Extending time limits – learners with learning difficulties e.g. reading comprehension can

benefit from this arrangement.

• Individual administration - this allows for interaction with the examiner who is in a position to

assess the learner’s strengths and weaknesses.

• Simplification of the language used – this is especially useful with hearing impaired and

mentally retarded learners

• Provision for audiotape, large prints or Braille materials

• Changing the setting, e.g. moving to smaller and distraction-free settings

• Use of type written rather than handwritten tests

• Definitions of terms if its meaning is not being tested

• Give more tests with fewer items as opposed to fewer, but longer items e.g. while using

multiple-choice tests, reduce the number of choices to simplify the tests

1.10 Career Education

Curriculum-based vocational assessment (CBVA) is one approach that has been successfully

implemented in Florida’s high school career education programs for students with disabilities.

CBVA is a process for determining career development and career education instructional needs

of students based on their performance in existing courses and curriculum. CBVA identifies the

student’s skills and preferences and provides information about work-related behaviors,

generalized instructional outcomes, and specific skill outcomes. The information gathered

through CBVA can be used for evaluation and planning purposes. CBVA data can also be used

in conjunction with other assessment information in the development of an IEP for high school

students or for individual plans in career education or adult education programs. CBVA also

serves as a performance-based method to assess a student’s need for MOCPs and to document

mastery.

Students enrolled in a postsecondary career certificate program must complete a basic skills

examination within the first six weeks after admission. According to Rule 6A-10.040(1),

F.A.C., and s. 1004.91(3), F.S., the Florida College Entry-Level Placement Test or Multiple

Assessment Placement Service (MAPS), where authorized, and the Wonderlic Basic Skills

Test (1993) may be used for this assessment in addition to the Tests of Adult Basic Education

457

(TABE) used for adult general education. Accommodations for students with disabilities are

permitted. Alternative assessment instruments may be used if the above testing instruments

are not appropriate for an individual adult student.

The basic skills requirement for career certificate programs are exit requirements. A student

may enter the program before reaching minimum basic skill levels. Students enrolled in

programs of 450 hours or longer must be tested. The student must meet the basic skill

requirements when exiting at the final OCP of the program and earning a career certificate of

completion. Adult students with disabilities may be exempted from this requirement in

accordance with local testing policies (Rule 6A-10.040, F.A.C.).

Some career education programs require certification and/or licensure examinations to meet

state or national regulations for employment (e.g., nursing, cosmetology, real estate). The

specific agency responsible for administering the examinations authorizes the provision of

reasonable and appropriate accommodations for individuals with documented disabilities who

self-identify and demonstrate a need.

1.11 Adult General Education

Every newly enrolled adult student is assessed for placement into the appropriate literacy

level according to the requirements of Rule 6A- 6.014(4), F.A.C. Possible assessments include

the TABE—Complete Battery or Survey Forms and the Comprehensive Adult Student

Assessment System (CASAS). Accommodations for students with disabilities are permitted for

these assessments. Alternative assessment instruments may be used if these testing instruments

are not appropriate for an individual adult student. An adult student with a disability may also

use one of the following assessments for placement: Brigance Employability Skills, Brigance

Life Skills, Comprehensive Test of Adaptive Behaviors (CTAB), the CASAS, or the Kaufman

Functional Adult Student Assessment System (K-FAST). If an adult student has a documented

disability and the instruments listed in the rule are not an accurate measure of the student ability,

documentation must be kept showing an attempt was made to assess the student and results

should be kept in the student’s record for audit purposes (Rule 6A-6.014(4) and Rule 6A-

10.040, F.A.C.). Student progress on an LCP is documented using the following:

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• Grade level/scale score improvements measured by an approved test

• Successful completion of curriculum frameworks and/or course performance standards

(for applicable programs reporting outcomes for state reporting and funding purposes

only) according to Rule 6A-6.014(5), F.A.C.

• Attainment of GED or Adult High School Diploma

1.12 Decisions About Accommodations And Modifications

Students with disabilities who have IEPs are eligible for accommodations and

modifications in their education programs. Students with Section 504 plans are eligible for

accommodations, only. In K–12 programs, a team of professionals, family members, and the

student develop an IEP or a 504 plan. If you are a teacher responsible for instructing a student

with a disability, you may be a member of the team. Your knowledge of the requirements of the

career education program is very important. The team decides what accommodations or

modifications the student needs for his or her educational program and for the state and district

testing programs. In elementary and secondary programs, teachers or other school specialists

provide the support services for students.

If adults with disabilities meet the admissions standards of a postsecondary education

program, they must be ensured equal for participation in the program, including program

accessibility, use of auxiliary aids and services, and academic accommodations. Adults with

disabilities must self-identify, provide documentation of their need for services based on their

disability, and assist in identifying needed accommodations. The educational institution may

request additional documentation of the disabling condition, including diagnostic test results and

professional prescriptions for auxiliary aids. The adult student must give permission to request

confidential records. Adult students must directly notify the coordinator of student services for

students with disabilities or the 504/ADA coordinator that they have a need for certain

accommodations. In addition, the institution may obtain its own professional determination of

whether the requested aids or services are necessary.

Ideally, a student’s need for accommodations is addressed shortly after admission and

before enrollment so the student can be directed to sources of aids and assistance. However,

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adult students are not required to reveal their disability. They may want to see if they are able to

succeed without any special assistance. They may later self-identify and request services

(National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth, 2005).

Adult individual education plans are required for adult students with disabilities who

participate in specialized vocational instruction, specialized adult general education, or supported

employment. AIEPs are also required for adults with disabilities who participate in specially

funded programs for adults who do not have work as their goal. Other postsecondary programs

incorporate a planning process similar to the AIEP. Whether a formal document exists or not, it’s

a good idea to discuss the need for accommodations with all students. Then, in a private

conference with a student who self-identifies, you may discuss the student’s personal goals,

strengths, and accommodations. Students will need to learn about the particular course or

program requirements and the typical methods used for instruction and assessment. All

information about the individual needs of a student with disabilities must remain confidential.

Here are some questions that may be discussed:

• What prerequisite skills and background are necessary for this course or program? Which

skills are critical for success? In what areas will the student need additional preparation

or support?

• Will the student need specialized or adapted equipment and tools?

• What assistance will the student need to obtain resources and complete assignments?

• How well can the student stay on track and adapt to routines and changes?

• What accommodations have been successful in the past?

• Can the student use the same kind of books, tools, and instructional resources as other

students?

• Will the instructional management system require adaptations to support the student’s need

for structure and limits?

Decisions about accommodations for an individual student should be based on the following

guidelines:

• Accommodations must be necessary for the student to be able to participate in and benefit

from the educational programs, services, and activities.

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• Accommodations are based on documented individual needs.

• Accommodations do not compromise the essential requirements of a course or program.

• Accommodations must not provide the student with an unfair advantage or interfere with the

validity of tests. Accommodations for standardized test procedure must only include those

explicitly allowed in the test manual (Beech, 2010; Office of Assessment, 2010).

1.13 Student Responsibilities

All students need to be able to stand up for themselves, to express their needs and desires,

and to function independently as adults. Students with disabilities, just as their peers without

disabilities, need to understand their own strengths and weaknesses and learn how to apply their

strengths to learning and performance on the job. Students with disabilities must become aware

of effective coping mechanisms and accommodations that can help them succeed. Most

important, they must know when and how to communicate their needs when making decisions

and when functioning in the learning or employment environment. These self-advocacy skills are

critical for all students.

High school students with disabilities have the opportunity to participate in their own IEP

meetings. The IEP team develops an annual plan that documents the decisions about the

student’s progress and need for special education and related services that are made at the

meeting. In Florida, beginning with the IEP that will be in effect on or before the student’s

fourteenth birthday, and then annually, a student must be invited to participate in his or her IEP

meeting. Students should have a voice in all IEP meetings.(Rule 6A-6.03028(c)(7), F.A.C.). The

right to make educational decisions on their own behalf are transferred to students with

disabilities who have reached the age of 18, unless a guardian or educational surrogate is

appointed.

Adult students have greater responsibilities. They must advocate for their own needs. Some adult

students may be reluctant to talk about their own learning needs. They may not even be aware

that accommodations can be provided in postsecondary programs. Admissions counselors,

coordinators of services for students with disabilities, and instructors need to make all students

aware of the availability of services. They must also assure students that personal information

will remain confidential.

461

After admission to the institution, adults are responsible for maintaining their own records that

document their disability and allowing access to information that is maintained by other

agencies.

1.14 Summary

Teachers can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of instruction by using the

instructional techniques described in this chapter. These techniques have been proven to increase

the likelihood that all students can achieve their goals. Using appropriate assessment procedures

can help to ensure that the progress of students with disabilities is accurately and adequately

documented.

Curriculum modification is necessary for learners with special needs even when an

inclusive curriculum is being followed. The suggestions posed by Sear are applicable in the case

of Botswana. Botswana has an enabling environment for such modifications to be done given

that government policies do recognise the need to educate equally all citizens. Accommodation,

adaptation, parallel curriculum outcomes and overlapping curriculum as modification strategies

would require that teachers have training in handling learners of diverse abilities and be

committed to teaching. Special education teachers and the regular teachers would need to work

together and this will be facilitated by having regular teachers also having some training on

handling special needs learners. The support structures need to be strengthened to facilitate this

cooperation. The assessment of such a modified curriculum will also benefit from the

preparedness of teachers and the schools as well as the national curriculum unit. The suggested

modifications of assessment procedures and materials need coordinated efforts on both the

government side and that of service providers(teachers). Parents also have to be brought on

board even more than for regular learners as they need to play a role to ensure that the special

need child does not fall behind with their school work.


1. Explain Understanding The Needs Of Individuals With Disabilities

2. Explain Learning Styles

3. Explain Prime Background Knowledge

462

4. Explain Accommodation

5. Explain Adaptations

6. Explain Parallel Curriculum Outcomes (Parallel Instruction)

7. Explain Overlapping Curricula (Overlapping Instruction)

8. Explain Changes In Assessment: Towards Enhancing Quality Education For


9. Explain Career Education

10. Explain Adult General Education

11. Explain Decisions About Accommodations And Modifications


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REFERENCES

1. Beech, M. (2010). Accommodations: Assisting students with disabilities (3rd ed.).

Tallahassee, FL: Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services, Florida

Department of Education.

2. Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services. (2010). Portal to exceptional

education resources. Tallahassee, FL: Florida Department of Education.

3. Erwin Technical Center. (2000). A faculty guide to reasonable accommodations for

students with disabilities. Tampa, FL: Hillsborough County School District.

4. Florida Department of Education. (2010, March 12). Waiver of Florida Comprehensive

Assessment Test® (FCAT) graduation requirement for students with disabilities

[Technical Assistance Paper, DPS 2010-24]. Tallahassee, FL: Author.

5. Florida Department of Education. (2009, June 30). The family educational rights and

privacy act (FERPA). [Technical Assistance Paper, DPS 2009-103]. Tallahassee, FL:

Author.

6. Florida Department of Education. (2009). Florida’s state plan for adult education and

family literacy, 2009–2010 extension. Tallahassee, FL: Division of Career and Adult

Education.

7. Job Accommodations Network (JAN). (2005a). Job accommodations come in groups of

one. Retrieved from http://jan.wvu.edu

8. Job Accommodations Network (JAN). (2005b). Job and task analysis. Retrieved from

http://jan.wvu.edu

9. Kaméenui, E. J., & Carnine, D. J. (1998). Effective teaching strategies that accommodate

diverse learners. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

10. Lenz, B. K. (1997, August). Routines to strengthen learning—An in-depth look at content

enhancement. Strategram, 9(5),1–7.

11. National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth (NCWD-Youth). (2005).

The 411 on disability disclosure: A workbook for youth with disabilities. Washington,

DC: Institute for Educational Leadership.

12. Office of Assessment. (2010). 2010 FCAT reading, mathematics, and science test

administration manual. Tallahassee, FL: Florida Department of Education.

467

Unit 2: Adaptation, Accommodation And Modification For Pre –

Academic Curriculum

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Adaptation

2.3 Accommodation

2.4 Modifications

2.5 Summary


2.7 References

468

2.1 Introduction

As teachers, we know the best ways students with special needs learn is by having

adaptations and accommodations that can be used for that specific child, to meet their needs, so

they can be successful in the classroom.

We also know, as teachers, that we do not have an endless budget that allows us to buy

every adaptation and accommodation that we know would benefit our students. This article will

outline specific research-based adaptations and accommodations to help students be successful in

the early childhood classroom environment; and, will also outline which type of student would

most benefit from them. Areas researched include: autism, behavior disorders, learning

disabilities, sensory needs, communication disorders, developmental disorders, attention deficit

disorder (ADD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Finally, the article will

present how you could make the adaptations and accommodations instead of purchasing them.

One of the most effective ways to get students to process language is through the use of visual

supports. A visual support is a visually perceived stimulus that can assist an individual in

comprehending information or demands. In a classroom setting this support could be for

direction following, schedules, rules, and understanding instruction. Students who would best be

supported through the use of visuals are: children with autism, ADD/ ADHD, developmental

disabilities, or students with a learning disability. Visual supports can also be used to help

decrease behaviors. In one study, a picture schedule was used, as well as, a reward of giving a

pretzel upon completion of the task on the schedule. The results showed a decrease in behaviors

and an increase in compliance. After six days of giving the pretzel reinforcer, this was removed,

and the schedule was used without rewards (Dooley, Wilczenski, & Torem, 2001).

According to Tissot and Evans (2003), visual supports as photographs, hand-drawn

pictures, graphics, or computer-generated icons actually benefit all students especially those who

have difficulty reading. Quill (1995) discusses students who need extra assistance with

organization, academic and life skills, communication, social interaction, and behavior

management could benefit from using visual cues. Students with autism, ADD/ADHD,

developmental disabilities, and students with a learning disability all have difficulty with the

previously stated tasks. These students can display behavioral issues due to an inability to

understand and process verbal language. By placing visual supports in an early childhood

469

classroom setting as part of the instructional program, students who have difficulty with verbal

language (students who have autism, ADD/ADHD, developmental disabilities, learning

disability behavioral disability) can have: eased transitions, feeling of empowerment by having

visual choices, clearly defined expectations through the use of pictures, longer attention span,

reduced anxiety, concepts become more concrete, and the ability to help express his or her

thoughts.

Children with autism are visual rather than auditory learners and they prefer picture

communication verses written words (Cohen, 1998). When a teacher gives a direction and it is

not followed, they may follow up with another verbal direction on top of another. According to

Hodgdon (2000), the addition of verbal communications does not change the fact that the student

just doesn’t understand it. In fact, when used correctly, visual supports allow students with

autism freedom to engage in life, regardless of his or her impairment of communication

(Hodgdon, 2000).

Most students need structure in their environment in order to be successful. As teachers,

it is our job to do what is best for students and one way to help ensure success is by

implementing visuals to structure their environment. One of the first visuals to set up is a daily

schedule. This schedule should only include the largest transitions of their day.

When the student is at the activity, minischedules can then be used to add even more

structure. One study completed showed progress in the performance of four students who used a

picture schedule to help with independence during playtime. The participants in this study

demonstrated an increase in on-task behavior and a decrease in prompting (Morrison Morrison et

al., 2002). Another study also looked at students’ participation during free play sessions. These

students were given picture cues as well. The results of this study found two students needed less

intrusive procedures to engage the child in play sessions and two students needed the entire

intervention to reach the goal of engagement in play sessions (Bevill et al., 2001).

2.2 Adaptation Many students who have issues with behavior need schedules in place so they have a

clear beginning and ending to the task at hand. Without having a sense of time, students do not

470

know if they will be sitting at circle time for the whole day or can sit only a minute and then can

leave. Setting up schedules as well as mini-schedules give students a sense of time as well as

predictability. The use of visuals progress students toward the goal of independence. Below you

can see a schedule of a student’s day and then a minischedule of a student’s circle tim

2.3 Accommodation

471

The large daily schedule includes the activities (from top to bottom): playground, centers,

work time, circle, snack, music, and home. The mini circle time schedule includes (from left to

right): the more we get together, leader, weather bear, three songs, home and school, story,

journal, and check schedule.

In order to make a schedule you will first need cardboard or matte board. It may be

beneficial to purchase a picture program. If you do not have the budget for this, then you can use

a digital camera and take pictures – or you can always draw them. A great size for pictures is 2”x

2”. Laminate the pictures and then add Velcro to the back. The pictures to include on the large

daily schedule are the large transition times throughout your day. On mini schedules you should

include pictures of the small transitions throughout the large activity.

Add the opposite Velcro to the tag board. You can hang the schedule horizontally or

vertically. If you have a student that is a reader, you could have written words instead of pictures.

In this case, you should also hang the schedule horizontally, so they follow from left to right. To

make the circle time board, just use a square piece of matte board and attach pictures to represent

each activity (in order) of your circle time.

One type of mini-schedule that can be made for students is song cards for circle time.

This allows for the students to be able to know which song will be sung. The visual cue is used

so they are able to visually process the name of the song instead of processing it auditorally.

Here is an example of song cards that have been used:

To make song cards you can draw pictures that represent the songs on white paper.

If you are unable to draw, you can use a program such as Boardmaker to make your pictures.

472

You could also use clipart from the internet. Next, color them and write the title of the song on

top. To keep them sturdy, use card stock, tag board, or just simply glue white paper onto

construction paper. After this laminate them or put contact paper on them. You may add Velcro

so you can hang them up.

Many teachers have a leader of the day. It is very difficult for some students with

disabilities to have the element of surprise of who will be the leader or they might want to be the

leader everyday. This is especially true when you think of students with behavioral issues. One

way to alleviate this is to set up the whole week of leaders and post the list in the classroom so

the students can visually see it. You can even color coordinate the leader board with your Days-

of-the-Week board.

Here is an example:

To make these two boards, glue five different colored pieces of construction paper

(or you can use colored index cards) to poster board. Write the days of the week across the top of

them. Make a second board that looks identical to the first. Cut a smaller piece of the five colors

to write the days of the week on them again. Take all of this and laminate it. Place little Velcro

squares on one of the weekly boards and use the opposite side to be placed on the back of the

smaller days of the week. To make your leader tags, on the computer make a design that says

you’re the leader. Make multiple copies on card stock.

Write your students names on them and then cut them up. For your leader board, just tape up

your tags weekly so you can easily remove them and put them on the student.

473

Another nice visual for circle time is having the same manipulatives the teacher uses at circle but

in a smaller version so the student can use them right at circle. The first picture below shows a

teacher’s circle time board and the second picture shows a student’s smaller version of

manipulatives. All you need to do for these visuals is make them exactly as above, just in smaller

versions.

Copy machines work great for shrinking pictures, especially the song cards!

The teacher’s circle time board includes a weather bear, the days of the week, the leader board,

the weather options, and the three song choices the leader had picked. The student circle time

manipulatives includes the weather bear, the days of the week, the songs picked by the leader,

and a home and school chart. The teacher does not hang up her home and school chart on the

circle time board. Instead, the teacher lays it out on the floor.

474

In an early childhood education class where a calendar approach is used, visuals can be

shrunk down and used the same way as the circle time approach. A calendar can be copied as

well as weather graphs. Students can complete the same activities as the teacher by using smaller

versions. This can be very helpful for students with ADD/ADHD and behavior issues because

their attention span will be maintained much longer than just auditorally processing what is

happening during calendar time. adaptation

A work system can be used for children with autism, developmental disability, or a

learning disability. The point of a work system is for students to work productively and complete

assignments independently. Hume’s (2004) work has noted:

A work system provides all of the required information without adult prompting and teaches the

student to attend to visual cues (rather than verbal directives) when completing a task. A work

system assists in organizing a student with ASD by providing a systematic work routine—

working from left-to-right or top-to-bottom. Students do not have to plan where to begin or how

to proceed. Work systems can be used with any type of task or activity (e.g., academic, self-help,

leisure), across settings (e.g., independent work area, cafeteria, place of employment), and for

individuals at all functioning levels (e.g., systems can range from concrete to abstract). (p.5)

The following is a work system for centers.

475

The picture has a tub of center cards under the word “go” and a tub of finished cards

under the word “stop.” To make these cards, you need half of a manila file folder.

You can either draw right on the folder or glue another piece of paper to it. Establish what child

you are making the work system for and their level of abilities. Then draw out directions with the

words indicating what can be completed at each center. You can then laminate the center work

system folder. Here is a picture of the same center for two different students with varying

abilities.

The center work card on the left has a student only completing three steps at the center.

Pictures are matched with print because this student is not a reader. The adult reads the directions

476

and the student performs the actions. After a number of trials, the student is able to successfully

complete this center work card independently. The center work card on the right is for a student

that is able to read. This student has four, more complex steps to complete. The first steps are as

follows:

1. Put Mom and Dad in the red van to go to a grocery store.

2. Tell Leisa what they will buy at a grocery store.

3. Ask a friend, “What should I cook for dinner?”

4. Give the baby a bath and put her to bed.

The idea of work systems came from training in Treatment and Education of Autistic and related

Communication and handicapped Children (TEACCH). Massey and Wheeler (2000) completed

one study on the use of activity schedules. They found that a child with autism can independently

follow activity schedules with success; and, minimal training is needed for them to generalize

these skills to other settings (Massey & Wheeler, 2000).

Essentially, if a teacher has a goal for a student to work independently, then setting up a

work system is a wonderful choice. A work system is defined by Division TEACCH as a

systematic and organized presentation of tasks and materials that visually communicates at least

four pieces of information to the student (Schopler, Mesibox, & Hearsey, 1995). The first being

the steps the student is supposed to do. Examples: sorting materials, hanging or folding clothes,

completing addition problems, etc. The second piece of information is how many steps are there

for the student to complete. A visual representation should be given to show how much work is

to be done. If a student is to fold or hang 4 articles of clothing, then only provide four articles of

clothing. If you would like a student to complete three tasks then have them in three separate

trays. The next piece of information in the work system is how the student will know when he or

she is finished. The teacher can show this by using a finished box, timer, or other visual cue such

as a stop sign. The fourth and final piece of information to be given to the student so they are

able to complete work systems independently is what they are to do once they are finished. If a

student is using a visual schedule then you can include a check schedule at the end of the task.

The teacher could have a picture of the next activity, or a motivator could be given to the student

for completing the work system. One way a teacher can think about it is this: a schedule shows

the student where to go and a work system shows the student what to do.

477

A second type of adaptation and accommodation is a behavior modification chart. Students who

have difficulty with behaviors can use behavior modification charts to help them understand the

desired behavior and the reinforcer they can obtain from completing the behavior asked of them.

Behavior modification replaces undesirable behaviors with more desirable ones through positive

or negative reinforcement. Behavior modification has been used to successfully treat obsessive-

compulsive disorder, ADD/ADHD, and other disorders (Martin, 1988). You can also use

behavior modification charts for students with autism. When using the following suggestions

keep in mind that you need to teach the child how to use these first. To do this, you need to make

the request simple and short, so the reinforcer can be received often.

Once the student understands the concept, then more wait time can be given.

2.4 Modifications

We all have students that request one item or activity; but you, as the teacher, want them

to complete something else first. The use of a First/Then chart can be very helpful.

To make this chart, you need green and red construction paper. Cut one 3”x 5” green piece and

one 3” x 5” red piece. Attach them together at the back with scotch tape, so that the green side

will be on the left. With a black marker, write “First” on the green side and

“Then” on the red side. The green symbolizes go, meaning do this first. The red symbolizes you

are done and now are able to receive the preferred activity or the reinforcer. Also, draw a black

line straight down where the green and red pieces meet. This helps establishes stopping one

activity before beginning the next. Add one small Velcro piece on the front of both the green and

red sides. Velcro on pictures of what you are requesting on the green side and the reinforcer or

preferred activity on the red side. Here is an example of what one looks like:

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When you would like to teach a student a replacement behavior, the following behavior

modification chart is beneficial. Instead of completing one simple task, this chart helps to change

a particular behavior.

On it, you have a picture of the behavior you want and a picture of the reinforcer. The

boxes are the number of times the student needs to complete the correct behavior before they

obtain the reinforcement. Each time they complete the desired behavior than can receive a smiley

face in a box. When all of the boxes have smiley faces, then the reinforcer is given. If the student

performs the undesired task, then tap the picture to show the desired behavior but refrain from

using verbal cueing.

An example of behavior changes could be standing up at circle time to sitting on their

carpet square or hitting peers to giving a high five. Here is an example of what one of these

charts looks like:

479

To make this, use a placemat as the background. Attach Velcro in two opposite corners. On the

left piece of Velcro, you will attach a picture of the desired behavior. On the right piece of

Velcro you will attach a picture of the reinforcer. Draw an arrow from the picture of the behavior

that is wanted to the picture of the reinforcer. At the bottom, attach three pieces of Velcro. Three

small circles can be cut out of construction paper.

Draw smiley faces on them. Next, laminate them and attach Velcro.

Each time the student completes the desired behavior, they receive a smiley face. Once they have

earned all three smiley faces, they can receive the reinforcer.

Take the smiley faces off and start it all over again.

At the beginning, you may be giving out a smiley face every 10-15 seconds. As time goes on,

you can give a smiley out less frequently.

Some students with disabilities have difficulty communicating their wants and needs. This can be

due to the inability to talk, poor articulation that is not understandable, or inability to word find.

The students who most commonly have these problems are children with autism or

developmental disorders. One way to help them to communicate with the world around them is

by using a Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS). Training in how to run PECS is

highly recommended when working with students who are unable to communicate (Frost &

Bondy, 2002).

The idea behind PECS is for the students to have a book of their own that they are able to access

independently.

This book has visuals in it of items the student may need or want to request.

Examples are of food items or toy items.

480

The student is able to open the book and find the item to request.

Once they find it then they put it on the front of the book where the sentence strip is. They are

then able to make a sentence. An example is, “I want crackers.” After they formulate their

sentence, they remove the whole sentence strip and then hand it to an adult. As stated before, it is

highly recommended toreceive training in PECS in order to facilitatethe teaching properly.

One research study on PECS “demonstrated the efficacy of the PECS protocol with

3 children with autism, the emergence of speech, and the collateral gains in socialcommunicative

behaviors and concomitant decreases in problem behavior” (Charlop- Christy et al., 2002). This

study showed that PECS can be taught in a short amount of time to children with autism. These

children can improve their use of communication by using pictures to express their wants and

needs to others. This also resulted in decreased challenging behaviors because they were able to

communicate more effectively.

The PECS CD of pictures can be purchased from their website at www.pecs.com for only

$35. These pictures can be used for not only their PECS books but for all of the other picture

visuals that have been discussed throughout this article. PECS books can also be purchased

commercially. In addition,

Mayer Johnson sells a number of software and resources for visuals.

To make a PECS book, all you need to do is find inexpensive plastic binders. Cut the

front of the binder smaller to allow for the sentence strip on the back page. Attach Velcro strips

on the front of the book. Pages can be placed inside the book for the student to obtain the visual

they need independently. As for the pages in the PECS book, use inexpensive vinyl placemats

that can be found at a dollar store. They are very durable and Velcro can easily be removed from

them to add new strips if needed. Add Velcro to a rectangular cut placemat for the sentence strip,

on the front and the back. Place the opposite Velcro on the back inside cover, where the sentence

strip will go. Here is a picture of a PECS book made for around five dollars.

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2.5 Summary

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Individuals with disabilities are entitled to full participation in all aspects of society, including

career education, adult general education, and employment. They have the right to reasonable

accommodations to assist them to work and learn successfully. The IEP, AIEP, or Section 504

plan addresses accommodations or modifications needed by an individual student. Students

should participate in the decision-making and planning processes and advocate for their own

special needs.

2.6 Check Your Progress 1. Explain Adaptation

2. Explain Accommodation

3. Explain Modifications


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.











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Unit 3: Adaptation, Accommodation And Modification For Academics

Curriculum

3.1 Introduction

3.2 A Multi-Level Model

Step 1: Curriculum Planning And Design

Step 2: Individualized Educational Planning

Step 3: School-Wide Materials And Instruction

Step 4: Partial School Or Group Instruction

Step 5: Individualized Interventions

3.3 School-Wide Implementation Of High Quality Instructional Strategies.

1. Curriculum Provides Multiple Means Of Representation.

2. Curriculum Provides Multiple Means Of Expression.

3. Curriculum Provides Multiple Means Of Engagement.

3.4 Universal Desing For Curriculum For Mental Retarded Students

1. Principle One: Equitable Use.

2. Principle Two: Flexibility In Use.

3. Principle Three: Simple And Intuitive Use.

4. Principle Four: Perceptible Information.

5. Principle Five: Tolerance For Error.

6. Principle Six: Low Physical Effort.

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3.5 Summary


3.7 References

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3.1 Introduction

Ensuring that students with disabilities have access to the general curriculum was a key

feature of the 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Those

amendments included statutory and regulatory language pertaining to providing such access.

Section 300.347(a)(3) in the IDEA requires that the IEP of students with disabilities include:

A statement of the special education and related services and supplementary aids and services to

be provided to the child, or on behalf of the child, and a statement of the program modifications

or supports for school personnel that will be provided for the child

(i) to advance appropriate toward attaining the annual goals; These efforts have been supported

by U.S. Depart-ment of Education, Office of Special Education Programs grants #H324D990065

and #H324D000025, although the opinions and conclusions expressed here do not necessarily

represent the views of the U.S. Department of Education.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Michael L. Wehmeyer, Beach

Center on Disability, The University of Kansas, 3136 Haworth Hall, Lawrence, KS 66045.

(ii) to be involved and progress in the general curriculum;

(iii) to be educated and participate with disabled and non-disabled children.

While there are a growing number of efforts to conceptualize how to gain access to the general

curriculum for students with disabilities, few of these have addressed the needs of learners with

mental retardation and other cognitive disabilities.

Wehmeyer, Lattin, and Agran (2001) introduced a decision-making model to enable IEP teams

to make curriculum decisions pertaining to the educational program of students with mental

retardation that takes into account both the general curriculum and a student’s unique learning

needs. However, making a decision about the student’s formal curriculum is only one step in

achieving the outcome that students with mental retardation both have access to and progress in

the general curriculum. This article presents a multistep process and multi-level model to gain

access to and promote progress in the general curriculum for students with mental retardation

and intensive support needs.

3.2 A Multi-Level Model

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Wehmeyer, Sands, Knowlton, and Kozleski (2002) identified five action steps to ensure

that students with mental retardation progress in the general curriculum, listed in Table 1.

Figure 1 summarizes the key elements of this approach, which involves 3 levels of action

(planning, curriculum, and instruction), 3 levels of the scope of instruction (whole school, partial

school, and individualized), and 3 levels of curriculum modifications (adaptation, augmentation,

and alteration). A brief description of each of the five steps to access indicated in Table 1

follows.

Step 1: Curriculum Planning And Design

The standards-based reform movement emphasizes the establishment of high standards

and the alignment of curriculum and assessment with those standards. Thus, ensuring access to

the general curriculum for students with mental retardation must begin with the curriculum

planning and design process and the development of state and local standards. If students with

widely varying skills, backgrounds, knowledge and customs are to progress in the general

curriculum, the standards upon which the curriculum is based, as well as the curriculum itself,

must embody the principles of universal design, discussed in greater detail subsequently, and be

written to be open- ended and inclusive, not close-ended. The terms open- and closeended refer

to “the amount of specificity and direction provided by curriculum standards, benchmarks, goals

or objectives at both the building and classroom levels” (Wehmeyer, Sands, et al., 2002). Close-

ended standards are specific and require narrowly defined outcomes or performance indicators,

like “writing a 5 page paper on the history of the United States.”

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Obviously, students who cannot write will be unable to meet this standard even if they

could provide evidence the knowledge being assessed (e.g., history of the United States) through

alternative means. If, on the other hand, the standard was written such that students could

demonstrate knowledge of the history of the United States using other means of expression, it

would be an open-ended curriculum target. Open-ended standards do not restrict the ways in

which students exhibit knowledge or skills and focus more on the expectations that students will

interact with the content, ask questions, manipulate materials, make observations, and then

communicate their knowledge in a variety of ways (orally, through video tape, writing and

directing a play, etc.). Research suggests that open-ended designs allow for greater flexibility as

to what, when, and how topics will be addressed in the classroom (Stainback, Stainback,

Stefanich, & Alper, 1996) and are more consistent with universally designed curriculum,

ensuring that more students, including students with mental retardation, can show progress in the

curriculum (Wehmeyer, Sands, et al, 2002). We will return to the issue of universal design in

discussing curricular materials.

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Step 2: Individualized Educational Planning The education of students with disabilities has always emphasized the importance of

individualized planning, a value that should not be abandoned when focusing on the general

curriculum. Figure 2 (Wehmeyer, Lattin, et al., 2001) presents a decision-making model to

ensure that IEP teams begin educational planning with both knowledge of the general curriculum

(standards and curriculum) for students who are the same age and grade level as the student for

whom the IEP is being designed, as well as with information about unique student learning needs

(based on input from multiple stakeholders and assessment sources). This model is detailed in

Wehmeyer, Lattin, et al. (2001), so will only be summarized in this article. When considering a

student’s formal curriculum, it may be that some students can progress on portions of the general

curriculum without accommodations or curriculum modifications and as such that portion of the

general curriculum will be the “most appropriate” formal curriculum. It is likely, however, that

most students with mental retardation or developmental disabilities will need some

accommodations or modifications. To achieve that, the IEP team is first encouraged to consider

how assistive technology can accommodate for student limitations and can enable the student to

progress without curriculum modifications. Once assistive technology has been considered,

teams consider three levels of curriculum modifications. The first is curriculum adaptation,

which refers to efforts to adapt the curriculum’s presentation and representation or the student’s

engagement with the curriculum (as discussed subsequently). A second level of modification is

curriculum augmentation, where additional content is added to the curriculum to enable students

to progress. Such efforts typically include teaching students additional ‘learning-to-learn’ or

selfregulation strategies that, in turn, enable students to progress more effectively in the

curriculum. Neither of these levels of curriculum modification changes the general curriculum

content. The third level, curriculum alteration, does change the general curriculum to add content

specific to students needs, which might include traditional functional skills or other needed skills

not in the general curriculum. This also, presumably, necessitates the elimination of content in

the general curriculum. For many students with mental retardation, the third level of curriculum

modification (e.g., alternative curriculum) is where planning currently begins, but if students are

to maximally benefit from and progress in the general curriculum,

IEP teams need to consider accommodations and curriculum adaptations and augmentations

before considering alternative curricula. It is also evident that if the general curriculum is broad

enough to cover functional areas, that will limit the need to move to an alternative curriculum.

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Step 3: School-Wide Materials And Instruction The 1997 amendments to the IDEA emphasized school-wide interventions to provide greater

access for all students. School-wide interventions are, quite simply, those that are implemented

throughout the school campus and which benefit all students. With regard to students with

mental retardation gaining access to the general curriculum, there are three schoolwide

interventions that warrant consideration.

3.3 School-Wide Implementation Of High Quality Instructional Strategies.

The implementation of highquality,empirically validated instructional strategiescampus-

wide is a critical feature of providing accessfor students with mental retardation. Too

often,instructional strategies that benefit other students arenot attempted with students who have

mentalretardation. Sometimes, the implementation of suchstrategies is simply, inadvertently, not

considered. Ofgreater concern are those instances in which such anomission is erroneously based

on the assumption that,because of the cognitive demands inherent in aparticular strategy, it is not

deemed “appropriate” forstudents who have mental retardation.

Generally, it is important to remember that just as alignment of curriculum, instruction, and

assessment practices is central to a high quality educational program for students who do not

have a disability (English, 1992), the same is true for students who do have a disability—

including mental retardation.

Instructional strategies that nurture the development of problem solving and critical

thinking skills, as well as those that provide for active learning opportunities are important for all

students. Conversely, the fact that many instructional strategies developed for the purpose of

individualizing instruction for students who have a disability, including mental retardation, might

well be of benefit to all students should not be overlooked. For example, schools would be well

advised to consider the implementation of data-based decision making—the deliberate revision

of daily instruction in accordance with student performance data collected on an ongoing basis

(Farlow & Snell, 1995), throughout their campuses.

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During the course of any given school day, a teacher will utilize a variety of instructional

groupings or arrangements (e.g., whole class instruction, teacherdirected small group instruction,

cooperative learning groups, peer-directed instructional activities, independent seat work)

through which to present lesson content. For students with mental retardation (indeed students

with disabilities in general), “whole-class and independent seat work arrangements often pose

the most problems” (Udvari-Solner, 1993, p.4). Large group instruction and independent

seatwork require all students to maintain attention over extended periods of time, interact only

passively with the information to be learned, and to self-reliantly receive and process information

that is presented in the same manner. To increase the likelihood that students who have mental

retardation will truly have access to the general curriculum, teachers should be encouraged to

diversify their selection of instructional arrangements and not rely solely on these two strategies.

Inherent in the idea of designing instruction that allows opportunities for all students to be

actively involved in assigned work tasks to the greatest meaningful extent possible is the practice

of differentiated instruction. Differentiated instruction involves a teacher implementing a wider

range of learning methodologies, increasing students’ accessibility to instructional materials in a

variety of formats, expanding test-taking parameters, and varying the complexity and nature of

content presented during the course of a unit of study. “(T)he curriculum does not always need to

be modified—even when considering students with more significant

disabilities….Differentiating instruction allows the students a variety of ways to demonstrate

knowledge while continuing to meet the standards and requirements of the class” (Castagnera,

Fisher,Rodifer, & Sax, 1998, p. 21)—that is, while continuing to access the general education

curriculum.

Research has demonstrated that teachers can effectively differentiate curricular content,

the instructional process, product requirements, and/or assessment practices to facilitate students’

access to, and success within, the general curriculum (Kronberg,

1999). Curricular content differentiation might involve applications as straightforward as

reducing the number of math problems assigned to certain students in an elementary class, or

affording students the choice of taking a weekly spelling pre-test to opt out of spelling for a

particular week. Individualized differentiations of content can, also, be achieved by restructured

conceptbased teaching; in partnership with hierarchical questioning techniques, this approach

can result in a larger number of students meaningfully participating in a lesson drawn from the

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general curriculum. Kronberg (1999) refers to the utilization of “fat” and “skinny” questioning

techniques (i.e., “skinny” questions are those that require a one-word or yes or no answer; “fat”

questions require expanded answers, such as synthesis or evaluation of information presented) as

an effective vehicle for involving a class of students of diverse abilities in class discussion.

Differentiating the instructional process can be accomplished through a myriad of techniques

that, themselves, should be implemented school-wide to the benefit of all students, including

providing visual or graphic organizers to accompany oral presentations; incorporating the use of

models, demonstrations, or role play; utilizing teacher presentation cues (e.g., gestural, visual, or

verbal) to emphasize key points; scaffolding key concepts to be learned; and getting students

more actively involved in the learning process, through the implementation of every pupil

response techniques (e.g., lecture response cards, thumbs up / thumbs down) or the incorporation

of manipulatives for student use (Janney & Snell, 2000; Kronberg, 1999; Udvari-Solner, 1993).

In addition to the efficacy of these more direct instructional strategies, research has demonstrated

empirical validation of a number of ecological or environmental adaptations to the physical

conditions in which learning is to take place that can be applied in order to facilitate the access of

students with mental retardation to the general curriculum.

It is commonly accepted that the environmental context of the school and classroom

affects students’ abilities to acquire information and demonstrate what they have learned.

Adaptation of environmental conditions for students with mental retardation enables them to

better attend to and cope with the multitude of demands that typify an ongoing stream of

instruction in the classroom (Ault, Guy, Guess, Bashinski, & Roberts, 1995; Janney & Snell,

2000; Siegel-Causey & Bashinski, 1997; Udvari-Solner, 1993). The most obvious ecological

modifications are those made with students who have sensory impairments in mind. The sensory

characteristics of a learning environment (e.g., lighting, glare, noise level, movement

requirements), just as the modalities of instructional materials, affect other students as well,

however, including non-disabled students.

Positive behavior supports. A second school-wide emphasis is the implementation of positive

behavior supports. Carr et al. (2000) overviewed the literature pertaining to positive behavior

interventions and supports. These authors, noting that problem behaviors like aggression, self-

injury or tantrums have been barriers to the successful integration and inclusion of some people

with cognitive and developmental disabilities, stated that the “goal of positive behavior support

503

is to apply behavioral principles in the community in order to reduce problem behaviors and

build appropriate behaviors that result in durable change and a rich lifestyle” (p. 3). The

foundations of positive behavior supports (PBS), these authors noted, were in early efforts to

apply behavioral principles to improve the lives of children with severe problem behaviors, with

particular focus on the role of the functional assessment process to guide the development of

behavioral interventions. Positive behavior supports focus on two primary modes of intervention,

altering the environment before a problem behavior occurs and teaching appropriate behaviors as

a strategy for eliminating the need for problem behaviors to be exhibited (Carr et al., 2000).

Significantly for educators, positive behavior supports have focused considerable attention on

addressing problem behaviors in school settings and in addressing school violence (Horner,

Albin, Sprague, & Todd, 2000; Sugai & Horner, 1994; Turnbull & Turnbull, 2001; Warren,

Edmonson, Turnbull, Sailor, Wickham, & Griggs, 2000) by providing interventions at an

individual, classroom or whole school level. Positive behavior support has been demonstrated to

reduce office referrals in schools, create classroom environments more conducive to learning,

and assist students with behavior problems to improve their behavior. Positive behavior support

involves application of behaviorally based approaches to enhance the capacity of schools,

families, and communities to design environments that improve the fit or link between students

and the environments in which teaching and learning occurs. Attention is focused on creating

and sustaining school environments that improve lifestyle results (personal, health, social,

family, work, recreation, etc.) for all children and youth by making problem behavior less

effective, efficient, and relevant, and desired behavior more functional (Wehmeyer, Wickham, &

Sailor, 2000). Additionally, we would suggest, such schoolwide efforts create a learning climate

in which all children have the opportunity to learn. Universal design. The third school-wide

focus is that of ensuring that educational materials used in school incorporate the principles of

universal design.

Since this has become a focal point for attention in the area of gaining access to the general

curriculum, it is worth examining this issue in greater detail.

Orkwis and McLane (1998) defined ‘universal design for learning’ as “the design of

instructional materials and activities that allows the learning goals to be achievable by

individuals with wide differences in their abilities to see, hear, speak, move, read, write,

understand English, attend, organize, engage, and remember” (p. 9). The onus is on curriculum

504

planners and designers to employ principles of universal design to ensure that students with a

wide range of capacities can access, advance, and succeed in the curriculum. Researchers at the

Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST; 1998 - 1999) suggested three essential qualities

of universal design for learning.

These qualities are that the curriculum is designed to:

(1) provide multiple representations of content;

(2) provide multiple options for expression and control; and

(3) provide multiple options for engagement and motivation.

2. Curriculum Provides Multiple Means Of Representation. Researchers at CAST suggested that“universally designed materials accommodate thisdiversity

through alternative representations of keyinformation. Students with different preferences

andneeds can either select the representational mediummost suitable for them, or gather

information from avariety of representational media simultaneously.”

World Wide Web pages designed to be accessible present an example of using multiple

means of representation. One of the benefits of the WWW over traditional mediums is the

capacity to use graphic images in a variety of ways, from icons to hyperlinked pictures to

streamed video. However, for a person who is blind or visually impaired who is using a text –

reader to access the site, graphic depictions may make the site and the information contained

therein inaccessible. As an alternative, accessible web sites include text descriptions of images

and pictures. Similarly, the design of curricular materials should include multiple representations

of important topics, features, or points.

Such multiple representations include a variety of methods of presentation of the material based

on learner needs and characteristics. Students with mental retardation, for example, need print-

based information presented with graphic depictions, free from unnecessary clutter and with key

information repeated or highlighted.

2. Curriculum Provides Multiple Means Of Expression. CAST researchers noted that the dominant means of expression used in schools has been written

expression. However, there are a variety of ways of student responding that could indicate

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progress, including “artwork, photography, drama, music, animation, and video,” (CAST, 1998 –

1999) that would enable students to express their ideas and their knowledge.

Once again, technology promises to provide avenues for expression that have, heretofore, been

unavailable.


Student engagement in learning has long been an indicator of motivation in the

classroom. By the utilization of multiple representation and presentation modes, particularly

those that involve digital representation of knowledge which are graphicallybased and

incorporate video, audio and other multimedia components, student engagement, and as such

student motivation, can be enhanced. Universally designed curriculum takes into account

individual student interests and preferences and individualizes representation, presentation and

response aspects of the curriculum delivery accordingly. Current technologies allow that level of

individualization and, thus, provide greater flexibility in ways for the student to engage in

learning (CAST, 1998 – 1999).

3.4 Universal Desing For Curriculum For Mental Retarded Students

Universal design should be distinguished from simply using assistive technology to

provide access to the general curriculum for students with mental retardation. The use of

assistive technology comes after curriculum materials have been made and, in most cases, after

teachers have planned instruction. The major advantage to universal design for learning is that it

takes place before materials are made and teachers decide how to teach. Access is built-in from

the beginning, thus eliminating the need for many timeconsuming adaptations or purchase of

expensive

506

assistive technology devices (Bowe, 2000; CAST, 1998-1999).

Examining some of the seemingly neglected principles of universal design is critical to a

discussion of the applicability of universal design to the education of students with mental

retardation. Most people think of universal design only as captioning videos, offering documents

so that students can change the font face, size and color, or providing texts on computer disks so

that students can listen to them through screen reading software. Providing flexible materials is

certainly an important part of universal design for learning.

However, for students with mental retardation to succeed in accessing the general

curriculum, educators must apply the principles of universal design to other aspects of the

learning experience, including their teaching routines. Based on Bowe’s (2000) examination of

the principles of universal design (which emerged from architecture and technology design) as

they applied to education, Lance and Wehmeyer (2001) developed a list of principles (Table 2)

for use in evaluating the degree to which instructional materials incorporate principles of

universal design. Our purpose here is to expand the discussion about universal design by

examining how teachers might incorporate these principles to increase access to the curriculum

for students with mental retardation.


507

The equitable use principle in universal design proposes that the “design” (traditionally referring

to the design of a building or the design of assistive technology) be useful and marketable to

people with a diverse array of needs. In the context of educating students with mental

retardation, this principal proposes that standards, curriculum, instructional interventions and

educational materials be “designed” so that they can be used by students with diverse abilities.

One feature of equitable use is that to the largest degree possible designs should incorporate

features that are necessary for people with disabilities, but which benefit everyone. Thus, as

adapted materials are made available to students with disabilities, there is a need to ensure that

they appear as similar as possible to materials that their peers are using as possible. One reason

that there is an emphasis on designs that benefit everyone is to avoid stigmatizing or segregating

people who need the universal design feature (Bowe, 2000). If students feel singled-out or

stigmatized, they may not be motivated to use the materials, independent of whether those

materials are effective or not. As such, if a student needs a text in electronic form, on audio tape,

or one that is written at a lower reading level, it might be wise to let students have the standard

book to carry and refer to during class discussions. A better solution, more consistent with

school-wide interventions, would be to let all students choose the version of the text with which

they are most comfortable or have access to all versions.


The principle of flexible use suggests that the design should appeal to a wide range of user

preferences and abilities.In relation to education, this principle refers to the need to

accommodate for a wide range of individual learning preferences and abilities. This principle

generally receives the primary focus in discussions of universal design for learning, probably

because it is compatible with other student-centered approaches education, including emphasis in

issues of self-determination and student-directed learning (Wehmeyer, Agran, & Hughes, 1998;

Wehmeyer & Sands, 1998). In their explorations of universally designed learning,

Researchers at CAST (1998–1999) emphasized the need for students to have access to materials

in various modalities and levels of complexity, engage in different learning activities, and be

allowed to demonstrate knowledge through multiple means.

Considering the “flexibility in use” principle in material design and instructional planning will

contribute to providing access to the general curriculum for students with mental retardation.

508

However, most of the research demonstrating the effectiveness of such flexibility has not

included students with mental retardation and, as such, there is a need to examine these issues

with that population.

3. Principle Three: Simple And Intuitive Use.

This principle refers to the need to design buildings or technology for easy use, independent of a

user’s previous experience, knowledge and ability, language skills or other factors. With regard

to it’s application to the education of students with mental retardation, materials and

interventions should be designed so that directions are explicit and easily understood, with steps

for success clearly communicated in discrete, manageable steps. For example, to facilitate the

success of students with mental retardation in tasks related to the general curriculum in line with

the “simple and intuitive use” principle, teachers should pair written instructions for materials

completion with an oral overview of the task, should model the task or work through sample

problems, and provide picture cues for the steps in a task if possible. Advance organizers, for

example, are an instructional strategy that can be implemented school-wide that provide the type

of information needed to succeed and contribute to ‘simple and intuitive use. Bowe (2000)

identified the strategy of giving students study guides so that they know what information they

should focus on when reading and providing study guides for exams as means to simplify use.

7. Principle Four: Perceptible Information. This principle refers to the need to design features so that information needed for use is available

and perceptible, independent of environmental conditions or the user’s sensory abilities. Most

people probably have, at one time or another, struggled to turn off an unfamiliar alarm clock

(e.g., at a hotel) in the dark and, in the process, come to a fuller understanding of how often

technology in our daily lives violate both the simple and intuitive use and perceptible

information principles! As it applies to the education of students with mental retardation,

curriculum and instructional design should incorporate different modes of presentation and

representation, including graphic, audio, or tactile presentation and representation, as discussed

by the CAST features of universal design, to ensure that student perceptual limitations, whether

they result from in sensory, cognitive or attention deficits or impairments. For example, Bowe

509

(2000) noted, instruction must be presented in “digestible” chunks with the most important

information repeated throughout the lesson in as many modes as possible.


One focus of universal design is to minimize the negative consequences resulting from errors.

That is, the design tolerates errors or misuse. In education, this means that students can make

mistakes and still complete the activity and achieve success. Error can be a function of the

student’s capacity to complete the exercise or task successfully, certainly, but also may be related

to temporal or other issues. For example, a computer software program intended to teach reading

that has timed intervals in which students must respond may unintentionally limit learning

opportunities for students who need more time to respond. This feature of universal design is not

often highlighted in discussions around it’s application to education, but may be particularly

important to students with mental retardation and cognitive disabilities.


In universal design as applied to assistive technology, this principle refers to ensuring that

designs “can be used efficiently and comfortably and with a minimum of fatigue” (Bowe, 2000,

p. 40). Universally designed technology devices are those that can be used by people who have

limits to physical stamina or capacity.

One of the reasons that the angles at which ramps leading into buildings are specified by

federal law is to ensure that they are navigable by people who use wheelchairs (or a

walker/stroller or cane) who have limits to their physical strength and endurance.

Certainly physical stamina is less of an issue in education, but curriculum designers do need to

keep in mind that some students, with and without mental retardation, who also have physical

disabilities or poor visual-spatial skills may need to have these features considered if they are to

succeed. We might also recommend that these issues of fatigues be extended to cognitive and

psychological fatigue as well, making sure that instructional sessions fit the attention capacities

of students, and alternating between easy and difficult tasks.

510

10. Principle Seven: Size And Space For Approach And Use

The final principle in universal designemphasizes that there is appropriate space and thatspaces

are accessible so that students can physicallyaccess materials and learning activities.

These principles of universal design can (and most likely should) be applied to standard-setting,

curriculum design and planning, and instruction to ensure that all students are better able to

access the curriculum and, we suggest, benefit from that curriculum.

Step 4: Partial School Or Group Instruction Even when school-wide efforts are in place, there will be students who do not progress without

additional supports. The next level of intervention is at the group level, where more targeted

interventions are designed and implemented for smaller groups of students. This includes

classroom-level instructional decisions that focus on lesson and unit design so that all students in

the class will progress, as well as specific learning experiences for groups of students. In order to

adhere to school behavior rules, for example, 9th grade students who recently transitioned to

high school might need specific opportunities to learn what is expected of them when going from

class to class.

Step 5: Individualized Interventions For a small group of students, including many students with mental retardation, there will be a

need to design highly individualized and intensive interventions to enable them to succeed. This

is also the group that will likely need alternative curriculum options. However, these students

should also be involved in school-wide interventions and engaged in learning activities driven by

the general curriculum.

3.5 Summary

The intent of the IDEA access to the general curriculum mandates was to ensure that all

students with disabilities have access to and benefit from a challenging curriculum and are held

to high standards and expectations. If this is to be an outcome achieved by students with mental

retardation, educators and other stakeholders in the education process need to focus on every

aspect of the education process, from the planning and design of curriculum and standards, the

511

implementation of such curriculum and standards at the building and campus level, the

educational decision-making process, and the design and implementation of instruction.

Materials will need to take into account all aspects of universal design, and there will need to be

school-wide and partial-school interventions and instructional activities. In the end, it is likely

that such efforts will not only ensure that students with mental retardation gain access to the

general curriculum, but that all students benefit.


1. Explain A Multi-Level Model

2. Explain: Curriculum Planning And Design

3. Explain Individualized Educational Planning

4. Explain: School-Wide Materials And Instruction

5. Explain School-Wide Implementation Of High Quality Instructional

Strategies.

6. Curriculum Provides Multiple Means Of Representation.

3. Curriculum Provides Multiple Means Of Expression.


7. Explain Universal Desing For Curriculum For Mental Retarded Students



10. Explain Principle Three: Simple And Intuitive Use.

11. Principle Four: Perceptible Information.



14. Explain: Partial School Or Group Instruction

15. Explain: Individualized Interventions


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.











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31st – Sept 3rd.










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Unit 4: Adaptation, Accommodation And Modification For Co-Curriculum

4.1 Introduction

4.2 Accommodations

4.2.1 Instruction And Assessment

4.2.2 Reading

4.2.3 Listening

4.3 Modifications

4.3.1 Impact Of Modifications

4.3.2 Secondary Programs

4.3.3 Postsecondary Programs

4.3.4 Modified Occupational Completion Points

4.3.5 Planning For Individual Students

4.4 Reporting

4.5 Getting Started

4.5.1 Start With The Individual

4.5.2 Anticipate Student Needs

4.5.3 Plan For Each Activity

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4.6 Are Modifications Needed?

4.7 Collaborate With Others

4.8 Summary


4.10 references

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4.1 Introduction

Students with disabilities must be provided the support and services they need to fully

participate in career education and adult general education programs. Students with disabilities

frequently require only small changes in the way their work is accomplished to be successful in

their instruction or training program. Accommodations can help to “level the playing field” and

remove barriers to successful adult living and employment. Modifications in program outcomes

may enable a student with a disability to reach his or her full potential.

Accommodations

Accommodations involve a wide range of techniques and support systems that help

individuals with disabilities work around their limitations that result from a disability. Persons

who are blind may need braille, large print, or recorded books. Persons who use wheelchairs may

need a ramp or elevator to move independently around the community or in buildings.

Individuals who are deaf or hard-of-hearing may need a sign language interpreter.

Accommodations remove barriers so that individuals with disabilities have the opportunity to

participate fully in career education and adult general education programs and ultimately

complete requirements for a specific occupation, diploma, or certificate.

Accommodations provide individuals with disabilities with access to educational and

training programs and opportunities for successful employment. Expectations and performance

standards are not lowered when accommodations are provided. For example, a student with a

disability may only need more time to complete course requirements for a specific occupational

training program. Individuals with disabilities often require accommodations in three general

areas:

• Instruction and assessment

• Learning and work environment

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• Job and task requirements

Modifications

Modifications are not the same as accommodations. Modifications involve changes to

program outcomes that relate to the specific content, level of skill, or number of skills required

by the program.

Requirements for academic or basic education high school courses may not be modified

for students with disabilities if the courses are used to meet graduation requirements for a

standard diploma. Rule 6A- 6.0312(1), F.A.C., states: “Modifications to basic courses shall not

include modifications to the curriculum frameworks or student performance standards.”

However, if a student is working toward a special diploma, modified academic courses are

acceptable under Rule 6A-1.09961, F.A.C.

Career education courses are different at the high school level. Rule 6A- 6.0312(1),

F.A.C., authorizes the use of modifications for career education (vocational) programs. Modified

occupational completion points may be developed for students in conjunction with their IEP.

Each district must develop an approach to MOCPs that meets the needs of their local

communities and students. Secondary students may use modified career education courses to

meet requirements of a standard diploma.

Course outcomes may be modified through the IEP process for secondary students with

disabilities who are enrolled in a postsecondary program if the student is earning secondary (high

school) credit for the program. This is commonly known as “shared enrollment.”

Course outcomes and student performance standards may not be modified for adult students

enrolled in postsecondary career education or adult general education. When students are

enrolled in programs in vocational education for students with disabilities, supported competitive

employment for adults with disabilities, or adult general education for adults with disabilities, the

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particular outcomes and student performance standards that the student must master for an LCP

or OCP must be identified throughout the student’s AIEP process.

Legal Basis

Educational institutions and communities have opened their doors to individuals with

disabilities in many ways. Federal and state laws and regulations, such as the following, have

been enacted to ensure that individuals with disabilities have access to an appropriate educational

program and are able to participate fully in all aspects of society:

• The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act provides a clear mandate for identifying,

assessing, and serving all students with disabilities, ages 3–21. Students who meet

eligibility criteria for one or more of the disabilities defined in the act must be provided

special education and related services and supplementary aids and program

modifications at no cost to the parents or student.

• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act guarantees that a person with a disability will not be

discriminated against in any program, educational service, or activity receiving federal

funds. The institution must provide supplementary aids and services needed by the

person with a disability. These rights extend to students with disabilities as defined by

Section 504.

• The Americans with Disabilities Act supports individuals with disabilities so that they are

able to participate fully in all aspects of society. This act prohibits discrimination in

employment and requires reasonable accommodations in hiring practices, access to

training and programs, and promotion policies that apply to individuals with

disabilities. Auxiliary aids and services must be provided when necessary. The ADA

also addresses the accessibility of services, commercial buildings and operations, and

telecommunications.

• Florida’s state laws and regulations support the mandates of the federal laws. Rule 6A-6.0312,

F.A.C., Course Modifications;

Rule 6A-1.0943, F.A.C., Statewide Assessment for Students with Disabilities; and Rule 6A-

1.09431, F.A.C., Procedures for Special Exemption from Graduation Test Requirement

for Students with Disabilities, specify allowable accommodations and modifications in

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public school programs. Section 1003.428(8), F.S., provide criteria for determining if a

student with a disability who has an IEP is eligible for a waiver from graduation test

result requirements.

• Rule 6A-10.040, F.A.C., Basic Skill Requirements for Postsecondary Career Certificate

Education, provides for appropriate accommodations and the use of alternative assessment

instruments for students with disabilities. The Florida Educational Equity Act and Rule 6A-

19.001, F.A.C., prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, sex, handicap, or

marital status against a student or an employee in the state system of public education and

support equal access to programs (See appendix A).

Managing Time and Classroom Activities

Many teachers feel that having students with disabilities increases their workload. You

may worry that you don’t have enough time to attend to individual needs and provide one-on-one

assistance. You will find that employing the following classroom management techniques can

help students assume more responsibility for their own learning.

Routines and Structure

Use regular instructional routines and structure to provide a predictable learning environment

and increase independence of students. For example, consistent beginning and ending procedures

help students know what to expect and how to proceed. Give students a voice in making class

rules and setting routines to increase ownership and cooperation.

Some career education classes are run like a business, with a chief executive officer (CEO) and

support staff who have identified job requirements and descriptions. Students switch leadership

positions so they have an opportunity to learn and practice all essential skills.

Individualized Responsibilities and Schedules

Individualized learning allows teachers to provide some students challenging activities for

advanced learning as well as remedial activities for others. Students can work on their own when

class assignments are provided on an individual basis. Students will need to be able to access

learning materials and supplies independently. Computer-assisted learning programs may

supplement instruction and practice opportunities.

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Students will need opportunities for individual feedback and progress reports. You may want to

provide students with a checklist of curriculum framework competencies for the specific

occupational program or a list of skills, concepts, and requirements for an academic course.

Students can keep track of their own accomplishments.

Cooperative Learning and Teaming

Allowing students to work in pairs, small groups, or teams is an effective way of managing a

class with diverse learners. Students can contact each other for support or reinforce what has

been taught. Volunteers may also be used to provide tutoring and additional practice.

Physical Layout

Flexible use of classroom space helps to provide individuals with quiet areas or special corners

for group cooperative learning. Arranging independent work areas so that materials and

equipment are readily available can facilitate the flow of instruction and practice activities.

Safety issues are critical in programs where the use of power equipment and tools or chemicals is

required. Students must be taught the proper procedures for the use, maintenance, and storage of

these materials. Individual accommodations may be needed for certain tasks. Warning lights may

need to be supplemented with auditory or vibrating signals. Poison signs may need to be color

coded or provided in braille. Storage areas with clearly marked containers or outlines showing

where particular tools should be hung on the wall are easier for students to manage.

Teaching Techniques

You can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of instruction by using the teaching techniques

described in this chapter. These descriptions generally follow the categories described by

Kaméenui and Carnine in their book, Effective Teaching Strategies That Accommodate Diverse

Learners (1998). A variety of specific instructional techniques are described for each category.

These techniques continue to be supported by research that shows how they increase the

likelihood that all students, including those with disabilities and those who are at risk for failure,

will have a more successful learning experience.

Focus on the Essentials

The terms “key concepts” or “essential skills” are sometimes used by educators to convey the

importance of helping students to learn concepts and skills that will generalize and serve as links

to future learning. You can use the concept of essential skills to plan instruction more efficiently.

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Once you have identified the essential skills, you can plan learning activities that will help all

students meet these expectations. In Florida, the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards

describe what students must learn and be able to do in the K–12 program. Curriculum

frameworks with student performance standards based on the Next Generation Occupational

Standards for Career and Technical Education are provided for career education and adult

general education programs.

Focusing on the essentials of learning begins with the planning process used by the teacher. The

University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning has developed three planning routines that

use a combination of graphic organizers and specific implementation strategies (Lenz, 1997).

These help teachers lay out the key concepts and critical skills as they plan a whole course

(Course Organizer™), a unit of instruction (Unit Organizer™), or a single lesson (Lesson

Organizer™). Teachers and students use the graphic organizers to guide learning and monitor

understanding of the instructional content. The example of a Unit Organizer shown on the next

page illustrates how this can be used in a career education course. This diagram is part of a Unit

Organizer for learning about trusses and rafters.

By laying out the important ideas and critical details graphically, you can help students see how

the ideas are connected to each other. Don’t forget to label the lines between the ideas to show

how the ideas link together.

Use Explicit Strategies

You can help students learn a new concept or skill more easily by teaching them to follow a set

of procedures or steps. The steps should reflect an efficient and effective way to complete a task

or apply a concept, much as an expert would do. For example, if you want students to learn how

to enter data into an accounting system or how to develop plans for constructing a roof, teach a

set of steps or procedures to follow using vocabulary students understand. As appropriate, start

with a concrete model and demonstrate and describe how each step is accomplished.

When a new concept or procedure is introduced, the steps should be modeled using a think-aloud

technique in which the teacher describes the mental processes and physical actions. As students

are expected to apply the new learning, the steps can be prompted by using a cue card, a verbal

reminder, or job aid.

Some steps and strategies are too broad. Telling students to “brainstorm before writing” does not

provide enough guidance. A more useful strategy provides students specific direction in

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determining the purpose of the communication, using different ways to generate ideas, applying

techniques for elaboration, and evaluating the writing plan.

You will need to look at your own instructional materials and evaluate the use of explicit steps

and strategies. If explicit strategies are included, are they clearly described? Do they have narrow

or broad applications? Think of the needs of new students. Would they be able to use the

strategies that are included? Would they need more assistance? You may need to modify the

instructional materials and add steps and strategies, or you may need to change the ones that are

included. Finding strategies that are just right is not an easy task. Try them out with students and

revise them if they don’t work.

4.2 Accommodations

Implementing accommodations involves anticipating problems students with disabilities

may have with instruction or assessment activities. Students may need to use some type of

assistive technology to overcome or mitigate the effects of their disability. Assistive technology

encompasses a wide range of tools and techniques. Some low-tech tools include pencil and tool

grips, color-coding, and picture diagrams. High-tech tools include electronic equipment, such as

a talking calculator, computer with word prediction software, and variable speech control audio

recorder for playback. The need for specific types of assistive technology is determined through

an evaluation process. There are many ideas for using assistive technology included in the

examples of accommodations in this chapter.

In K–12 programs, the need for assistive technology is addressed in the IEP or Section

504 plan. Specially trained personnel are available in the school district, FDLRS Associate

Centers, and the Technology State Loan Library (FDLRS-TSLL). In postsecondary programs,

the student may assist in identifying needed technology with help from the institution. The

Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology (FAAST) is a private, not-for-profit

corporation that provides a statewide system of technology-related assistance for individuals of

all ages. Descriptions of these resources and their websites are included in Appendix B:

Resources.

It is important to remember that accommodations and assistive technology only change the way

the student practices or demonstrates what has been learned. The expectations and criteria for

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evaluation of the final product or performance should be similar to what is used to evaluate the

performance of individuals without disabilities.

4.2.1 Instruction And Assessment

The first step when considering accommodations for a student with disabilities is to think

of how the student will be expected to learn and demonstrate new knowledge and skills.

Frequently, small changes in the way instruction is delivered can have a powerful impact on

student learning.

Suggestions for accommodations in specific areas of instruction and assessment are found on the

following pages:

• Reading (pp. 39–40)

• Listening (pp. 40–42)

• Writing (pp. 42–43)

• Mathematics (pp. 43–44)

• Completing assignments (pp. 45–46)

• Test preparation (pp. 46–47)

• Taking tests (pp. 47–50)

4.2.2 Reading

Many students with disabilities do not read well. Some may still struggle with word

identification or reading comprehension. Others may be able to understand information when

they listen to it but cannot read materials required for class assignments. Some students have

difficulty deciding what is important to remember in passages or textbooks they are reading.

Students with sensory impairments have special needs related to reading.

Students who have difficulty with reading may need:

√ Audio books or someone to record or read the text aloud

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√ A card or frame to focus on the words and block out other parts of the text

√ Assistive devices that translate text to speech (reading pen, Kurzweil reader, scanner with

character recognition software)

√ Videotapes or movies that present the same information

√ Interactive CDs or computer-assisted training with auditory and visual cues rather than written

descriptions Students who have difficulties understanding important ideas may need:

√ Sticky notes, removable highlighter tape, or highlighter pen to mark key points in the

textbook or manual

√ A list of important vocabulary with definitions

√ A demonstration of steps and procedures

√ A study guide to follow for independent reading

√ Complex information divided into chunks or sections

√ Hands-on activities, visual aids, pictures, or diagrams to provide alternate ways of learning

abstract concepts or complex information

Students who are blind or visually impaired may need:

√ Audio versions of text

√ Speaking computers with auditory output

√ Books and instructional materials in braille

√ Large print versions of materials

√ Class handouts and materials in an embossed format

√ A special tilt-top desk or book stand to hold materials for reading

√ Specialized equipment (optical enhancer, video magnifier, audio recorder)

4.2.3 Listening

In many classrooms, teachers present instruction by lecturing or through facilitating

discussion among students. Some students with disabilities may need accommodations due to

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difficulties with maintaining attention, following ideas, and interpreting information presented

orally.

Students who have difficulty listening may need:

√ New vocabulary introduced prior to a lesson and a glossary of terms

√ Overview of lessons or advance organizers

√ Material presented in a logical manner and with explicit cues to shift from one aspect to

the next

√ Information broken down into steps or key components

√ Important ideas written on the board or overhead transparencies with different colors for

emphasis or coding

√ Active involvement through discussion, small group interaction, or problem-solving

activities

√ Repetition and summarization of important points, particularly at the conclusion of the

lecture or discussion

√ Structured organizers for notetaking, such as a copy of presentation slides, outline of

lecture, or graphic organizer

√ Copies of notes taken by other students in the class

√ Use of an audio recorder to record class lectures

√ Time to meet with the instructor after class for clarification

Students who are blind or visually impaired may need:

√ Descriptions of demonstrations

√ Real-life examples and concrete materials

√ Use of an audio recorder to record class lectures and discussions

√ Copies of class notes taken by other students in the class

4.3 Modifications

4.3.1 Impact Of Modifications

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Modified Occupational Completion Points

Modifications to the expectations or outcomes of the curriculum may be necessary for a student

with a disability. Modifications may include modified program or course requirements, concepts

or skills significantly below the targeted grade level, or alternate curriculum goals. Modifications

to curriculum outcomes should be considered only after all appropriate accommodations have

been tried. In K–12 programs, only students with disabilities who have IEPs may be allowed to

have modified program outcomes.

Impact of Modifications

When considering modifications, it is important to evaluate the long-range impact of changing

expectations. Students with disabilities who are not challenged to reach the same level of

achievement as their nondisabled peers may not be able to earn a standard diploma in high

school or a career certificate or degree from a postsecondary institution. Modifications may also

limit the types of careers and occupations in which students can find work.

4.3.2 Secondary Programs

In high school programs, academic or basic education course requirements may not be

modified if the course is required for a standard diploma. Requirements for a traditional 24-credit

standard diploma include passing a set of required courses, having at least a 2.0 grade point

average, and passing the state’s required tests. Some students with disabilities may be granted a

waiver from the requirement for a passing score on the FCAT 2.0 Grade 10 Reading test and the

EOC Assessments. Under special circumstances, a student with disability may be exempt from

taking the test. (See chapter one for more information). If the student is not working toward a

standard diploma and the IEP team determines that the student will benefit from participating in

the regular course, then requirements may be modified on an individual basis. However, a

modified basic education course will not meet graduation requirements for a standard diploma.

If a high school student with disabilities requires significant modifications in the

curriculum, a special diploma may be a good choice. For a special diploma, the local school

district specifies the required courses. Students may use ESE or modified courses based on the

benchmarks or access points of the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards to meet special

diploma requirements.

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4.3.3 Postsecondary Programs

In general, requirements in postsecondary programs can not be modified. School districts

and Florida’s colleges may vary up to ten percent of the intended outcomes for the curriculum

frameworks for job preparatory programs, although this does not apply to frameworks for

regulated programs requiring federal or state licensure or certification, such as nursing and

cosmetology. Adult general education program course standards may also vary up to ten percent

of the intended outcomes. These changes apply to all students, not just students with disabilities.

As described in the first chapter, there are a variety of programs for adults designed to

address their learning needs. In specialized programs for adults with disabilities, student

performance standards are selected on an individual basis for the customized program. The

student’s individual needs are identified, and individualized goals and objectives are determined

through the AIEP process.

4.3.4 Modified Occupational Completion Points

Career education programs are different at the high school level. The student

performance standards may be modified as long as they are aimed at fulfilling the requirements

of the specific job selected by the individual student. Teams may modify the curriculum and

identify a completion point that falls between established completion points, known as modified

occupational completion points. These selected standards will enable the student to develop

marketable skills leading to competitive employment.

Secondary students with disabilities pursuing a standard or special diploma are eligible

for MOCPs, which must be determined on an individual basis through the IEP in support of the

student’s postsecondary goals. The intended outcomes and student performance standards for the

student must be specified on an individual basis and maintained in the student’s file. MOCPs

536

provide an opportunity to match the interests, abilities, and special needs of the student to a job

in the community.

Districts have the option of developing MOCPs. Career education and exceptional

student educators first establish a commitment of the district administration to implement

MOCPs. They must develop district policy, procedures, and technical assistance materials related

to the specific needs of students and the local community. District job charts/ competency lists

are also developed by a team with representation from career education, exceptional student

education, business/industry, guidance, and vocational rehabilitation, as well as vocational

evaluators, parents, and others to reflect local job market needs. Licensure/ certification career

and technical programs—such as cosmetology, licensed practical nursing, and child care—do not

allow modified occupational completion points.

Course outcomes may be modified for secondary students who are enrolled in a

postsecondary program if the student is earning high school credit. This is known as shared

enrollment.

4.3.5 Planning For Individual Students

Deciding whether to modify the outcomes of a student’s career education job preparatory

program must be based on a review of the student’s strengths, experiences, and needs. It’s

important to review vocational evaluation information including academic levels, student

progress in prevocational experiences, exploratory courses, practical arts courses, and work

experiences. If prior vocational experiences are limited, students may need to have opportunities

to experience several different training programs. Short-term career shadowing may be used, or

students may complete sample assignments and activities in different areas within each program.

The student’s program should be selected based on the results of the evaluations.

Accommodations, such as extended time, alternate instructional strategies, or other options,

should be explored before identifying MOCPs on the IEP.

537

The decision to use MOCPs is usually made after the student is enrolled, based on

evaluation of progress. The IEP may first address generic competencies. MOCPs may enable the

student to participate in a regular career education course rather than in a specialized course.

When MOCPs are considered, it is important to obtain the expertise of career and technical

instructors.

A list of specific student performance standards to be mastered by the student each year

is developed, along with a plan for evaluating and documenting student progress. Documentation

may include performance standards checklists, progress charts, district checklists, and

curriculum-based vocational assessment rating forms.

4.4 Reporting

Students with disabilities may be reported as a “completer” of an OCP or MOCP.

Students who demonstrate mastery of all of the intended outcomes and student performance

standards identified in the curriculum frameworks for a particular OCP may be reported as a

completer of that OCP. Students who demonstrate mastery of all of the intended outcomes and

student performance standards identified through the IEP process for that MOCP may be

reported as a completer of that MOCP.

The district determines the type of certificate that is issued to students with disabilities who

complete MOCPs. You may find that completed CBVA rating forms are very useful in

communicating an individual student’s skills to a prospective employer.

4.5 Getting Started

4.5.1 Start With The Individual

For K–12 students with disabilities, the IEP includes a description of accommodations

and modifications needed by the student. Forms used for IEPs in individual school districts vary

in the way the information is documented. The classroom accommodations may be listed

separately, or they may be included in statements that describe annual goals, program or course

modifications, supplementary aids and services, and test accommodations. All teachers who have

538

responsibility for educating the student can get a copy of the IEP and use the information to

guide their plans. A Section 504 plan incudes a description of the student’s accommodations.

Postsecondary and adult students with disabilities who request accommodations can be

assisted through personnel from student services or the office of services for students with

disabilities. Obtaining assistance does not follow the formal IEP process required for high school

students because the student must self-identify, provide documentation, and request the

accommodations. Reasonable accommodations must be provided. An AIEP, a career plan, a

Section 504 accommodations plan, or a list of needed accommodations document the student’s

needs.

The excerpt from a sample IEP for a high school student on this page shows how

accommodations may be documented. The student has specific learning disabilities and requires

assignments and tests to be presented orally, instructions to be repeated, and the use of text-to-

speech software.

4.5.2 Anticipate Student Needs

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Once you have read the individual plan and pertinent information in the student record or

interviewed the student, you can use the information when you are planning instruction for your

classroom. If more than one student with disabilities is enrolled in the same class, it is a good

idea to make a chart for your plan book with the names of students and their accommodations.

This will serve as an easy reference.

When planning individual lessons, projects, or large units of instruction, think about what

students are expected to learn and the kinds of activities that will be used. Also think about the

types of tests or performance assessments to be used to measure student progress. As you make

these decisions, you can check the accommodations chart to see what students will need to be

successful. It makes sense to make a note in your plans so you will have sufficient time to gather

or prepare any special materials or equipment. If Suzanne, Cindy, and Zeke were enrolled in the

same class, the teacher would need to make a copy of notes for Zeke, obtain the audio materials

or arrange to have them recorded for Suzanne and Cindy, and get the class handouts formatted in

braille for Cindy. The ESE or student services department should be able to provide assistance.

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4.5.3 Plan For Each Activity

When planning instruction for students, you will need to consider the specific kinds of

accommodations that will be needed. If you have already located alternate materials or

equipment, you may only need to prepare study guides or cue cards. Many accommodations take

no preparation at all. They only require that you remember to provide the prompts or assistance

the student needs.

Don’t forget that many of the accommodations suggested in this manual may benefit other

students in your class. Here’s some help. As you look at the competencies and activities, ask the

following questions:

• How will instruction be delivered?

• What materials will students be expected to use?

• What kinds of activities will be used?

• What kinds of practice will students have?

• How will the students be assessed?

• What kind of learning environment will be needed?

Once you are clear about your expectations and plans, you are ready to think about the

accommodations.

Will the student with disabilities be able to participate in the activities and master the objectives

of this lesson if I:

• Change the way instruction is delivered?

• Change the materials to be used?

• Change the way the student must respond?

• Increase support in the learning environment?

• Change the physical features of the room?

• Change the behavior management strategies?

• Change the schedule or adjust time demands?

• Change the assessment procedures?

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4.5.4 Reflect on the Impact

It is important to continue to monitor the impact of accommodations. Sometimes students

will make such positive gains that accommodations are no longer necessary. On the other hand,

some students continue to have difficulty even with accommodations. Reflect on the impact of

accommodations by asking yourself the following questions:

• Did the student actually use and take advantage of the accommodation?

• Was the student able to participate fully in the activity because of the accommodation?

• Was the student able to master the student performance standards of the course because of

the accommodation?

• Did the accommodation help the student to feel that he or she belongs in the class?

4.6 Are Modifications Needed?

In most cases, accommodations are sufficient for students with disabilities to be

successful in the classroom or workplace. However, you may find that some students need

modified requirements or expectations. Remember that modifications can have a significant

impact on the outcomes the student will be able to achieve.

Here’s a process to follow if you think that a student with disabilities needs modified

expectations:

1. If the student is in a K–12 program, check the student’s IEP to see what kinds of

modifications are needed for the curriculum. The student may be working below grade

level, working on alternate standards known as access points, or have other educational

needs that must be addressed.

2. If the student is in an adult education program, confer with the student and consult with

student services personnel in the school to find out if other programs are appropriate for this

student.

3. If the K-12 student needs modifications, try to work them into the regular activities and

experiences in your classroom. Help the student with disabilities to continue to feel part

of the class.

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4.7 Collaborate With Others

Collaboration is a must when working with students with disabilities. Responsibility for

the student’s educational program rests with many individuals. Some schools have special

education teachers or learning specialists who provide consultation services. Other schools

schedule common planning periods so teachers can work together. Professional support from

staff in guidance, health, vision, or speech/language can be obtained, if needed.

Collaboration or consultation of professional staff and parents is sometimes identified on a K–12

student’s IEP as a service. This designation is intended to ensure that these individuals meet or

confer on a regular basis and keep informed of the progress or needs of the student.

Collaboration might be targeted toward general problem solving, identifying needed resources,

or monitoring the effectiveness and impact of the instructional program and the

accommodations. Documentation of the process and outcomes of collaboration must be

maintained.

Support for school personnel may also be included on the K–12 student’s IEP. Support

may involve services that are provided directly to the general education teacher, special

education teacher, or other school personnel to assist a student with a disability to be involved or

progress in the general curriculum. Support may include training or professional development

activities to ensure that school personnel have the knowledge and skills needed to help the

student. Support may also involve consultant services, collaborative teaching, or assistance from

a paraprofessional or teacher aide. Special equipment or materials, such as a braille writer, may

also be needed by school personnel to provide accommodations needed by the student.

As the instructor, you have the expertise in academic or career education programs.

Special education or student services personnel can identify techniques that work with students

with disabilities and identify resources to help you as you teach In adult programs, support

services are often more limited. Meetings about individual students occur on an as-needed basis.

You may find assistance from other teachers in your program. You may also need to access

community agencies, such as vocational rehabilitation or mental health facilities.

4.8 Summary

543

Teachers can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of instruction by using the instructional

techniques described in this chapter. These techniques have been proven to increase the

likelihood that all students can achieve their goals. Using appropriate assessment procedures can

help to ensure that the progress of students with disabilities is accurately and adequately

documented.

4.9 Check Your Progress 1. Explain ACCOMMODATIONS

2. Explain Instruction and Assessment

3. Explain Reading

4. Explain Listening

5. Explain MODIFICATIONS

6. Explain Impact of Modifications

7. Explain Secondary Programs

8. Explain Modified Occupational Completion Points

9. Explain Postsecondary Programs

10. Explain Planning for Individual Students

11. Explain Reporting

12. Explain GETTING STARTED

13. Explain Start with the Individual

14. Explain Anticipate Student Needs

15. Explain Plan for Each Activity

16. Explain Are Modifications Needed?

17. Explain Collaborate with Others


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.











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31st – Sept 3rd.










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Unit 5: Adaptation, Accommodation and Modification for School

Subjects

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Concept Of Curricular Adaptations

5.3 Curriculum Adaptations

5.4 Teachers Teaching Content Using Diverse Strategies-

5.5 Students Expressing Learning In Diverse Ways-

5.6 Need For Curriculum Adaptations

5.7 Strategies Of Curricular Adaptation For An Inclusive Classroom

5.8 Mathematics

5.9 Environmental Sciences (Evs)

5.10 Language

5.11 General Strategies And Suggestions

5.12 Strategies And Suggestions Related To The Classroom Environment

5.13 Strategies And Suggestions Related To Behavior

5.14 Strategies And Suggestions Related To Organization

5.15 Strategies And Suggestions Related To Motivation

5.16 A GUIDE TO ADAPTATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS Of School

Subject

5.16.1 Adaptations

5.16.2 Modifications

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5.17 When To Use Modifications

5.18 Examples Of Modifications

5.19 Grading And Reporting When There Are Modifications

5.20 Summary


5.22 references

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5.1 Introduction

In recent years, increasing focus on inclusion has brought significant attention from

educators, policy-makers, researchers and economists, to schools and classrooms in India.

Constitutional provisions, legal mandates such as the Right to Education (RTE), 2009, Persons

with Disabilities (PWD) Act, 1995 and policy measures to make improvements in India’s

education system, accessed by over 125,059,229 students as per UDISE (Unified District

Information System for Education), 2013) are being implemented. The aim of all these initiatives

is to enable effective academic and social participation of CWSN (Children with Special Needs).

The classroom offers a dynamic, productive space where ideas, values, information, knowledge

are shared and conveyed. Organization of the class and interactions amongst its fundamental

components i.e., the students, teacher and curriculum-transactions, create potential for the group

to move from a state of not knowing to one of knowing. Educational initiatives introduced to

classrooms such as Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE), inclusive

5.2 Concept Of Curricular Adaptations

Prof. Anita Julka* education and evaluative interventions suchas National Council of

Educational Researchand Training (NCERT) learning indicators arealso amongst the initiatives

taken to improveteaching-learning in our classrooms. In light ofthe introduction of these

educational innovations,the attention drawn and the urgency to makeclassrooms better call for

revisiting and revisingpractices, including (1) planning, (2) methods ofteaching and (3)

assessments, that the classroomshave been following so far.Creating an inclusive culture in

classroom willinvolve attending to the curriculum, which includesthe components of a course of

study. These consistof the syllabus, textbooks and needed teachinglearning materials, teaching

strategies/processesand assessment and evaluation processes. Indiscussing the efforts in

curricular developmentand reform, National Curriculum Framework(NCF) 2005 underscores the

significance of makingcurriculum “an inclusive and meaningful experiencefor children” stating

“this requires a fundamentalchange in how we think of learners and the processof learning.”

Attending to curriculum to define theclassroom culture and the approach to the

teachinglearningprocesses is thus a significant aspect ofteacher’s work in fostering inclusivity in

their workwith students.The teachers in an inclusive school have to teach allchildren together in

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a class. It is the responsibility ofthe school to provide a flexible curriculum that canbe accessed

by all students including CWSN. It isimportant that the school should provide

enablingexperiences so that children experience successin learning and achievement up to their

potential.This is only possible if the teachers respond tothe diversities present in an inclusive

classroomthrough curriculum adaptations.

5.3 Curriculum Adaptations Curriculum adaptation involves differentiation to meet the needs of all students. The

content, the teaching process, assessment and evaluation, and the physical environment may be

modified to help students to achieve success in the classroom. The kind of activities chosen by

the teacher, including group activities, must be flexible and reflect the background knowledge of

small groups or individual students. The following shows the adaptations that are required in

different areas for inclusive pedagogy. However, the two terms adaptation and modification

related to curriculum create some amount of confusion, perhaps misunderstanding. While

adaptation refers to adjusting assessments, material, curriculum or classroom environment, to

accommodate a student’s needs to enable him/ her to participate in and achieve the teaching-

learning goals, modifications involve making changes to learning goals, teaching processes,

assignments and/or assessments to accommodate a student’s learning needs. For example, use of

audio tapes, electronic texts where available, having peer or a classmate to assist with class

activities, or simply reorganizing seating of a child who is unable to be attentive, is easily

distracted or distracts others in the classroom would be adaptations, changing the assignment to

accommodate a student’s learning needs: allowing use of letter-cards to spell words as a

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modification to saying the spelling aloud, allow the student with intellectual impairment to

utilize concrete and/or more hands-on experiences, changing the conceptual difficulty level for

some students would be modifications. In case of content, teaching and assessment, the

following are some examples of curricular adaptations that indicate that these adaptations can be

used for all children in the classroom and are not limited to CWSN. These strategies create a

universal design of learning in inclusive classrooms.

5.4 Teachers Teaching Content Using Diverse Strategies- These include strategies like verbal,visual, kinesthetically, written, proceeding

fromsimple to complex, concrete to abstract, step by step,scaffolding, concept maps, projects,

group work,peer tutoring, using prior knowledge, brainstorming,dramatisation, giving extra time,

giving alternativeactivities, drill activities, shortening assignments,organizing excursions/ trips,

using large fonts,Braille or tacitly coded material, toys or blocks,carbon or xerox copy of notes,

hand puppets, real lifeexperiences, real objects, multiple choice questions,children’s literature,

magazines and journals, etc.

5.5 Students Expressing Learning In Diverse Ways-

These include strategies like oral, written,tactual, gestures, drawing, acting, ICT,

framingquestions, paired reading, storytelling, song,rhymes, role play, discussions, debates,

languagegames, flash cards, quizzes, graphic organizers,outlining passages, highlighting, and

paper cutting/folding, etc.

Using supplementary material like artifacts, calculators/talking calculators, Taylor frame,

abacus, Brailler, geometrical kit, Geo – board, Tactile board, Geometric shape board (for circle,

graph, representation), Tactile graph sheet (for bar-graph, histograph etc), 3-d blocks and figures,

559

manipulatives, flash cards or pictures on paper, posters, chalkboard, projection screens,

computers, books on tape and computerized text reader, screen readers, voice synthesis,

scanners, daisy books, multimedia gadgets like CDs, MP3s, talking watches and talking clocks,

videos/movies, modeling material like clay, textured objects/raised line paper, games and

puzzles, etc, can help all children learn.

5.6 Need For Curriculum Adaptations

As a result of Right to Education Act, 2009, the composition of classrooms is changing.

Students with varying levels of abilities cannot, and should not, be taught in the same manner.

Without adaptations/modifications, some children in your classrooms would never be challenged

to perform upto their potential, while others may not be able to ever experience success.

Curriculum adaptations involve effective teaching in the classroom that takes into consideration

the individual needs of all children including CWSN and learning difficulties. It has also been

seen that adaptations if carried out effectively facilitate both academic and social participation in

class activities and can be used across various settings to facilitate success. Adaptations can also

help in creating partnerships where parents and teachers can work together to evaluate/

implement adaptations.

5.7 Strategies Of Curricular Adaptation For An Inclusive Classroom

In an inclusive classroom environment, quality education would depend upon a number

of factors. Crucial amongst these are understanding of special needs of learners, infrastructural

facilities, modified environment that is warm, welcoming and inclusive, trained motivated

teachers, flexible educational content (what is being taught), strategies for teaching and

evaluating that meet the needs of all children that focus on meaning, active learning and

interaction, sufficient teaching time and its optimal use by teachers, access of every child to

teaching learning materials and continuous onsite support to the teacher by specialists if required.

The following are examples of some needs and strategies for curricular adaptations for CWSN.

5.8 Mathematics

560

1. To make the child learn the concept of ‘Time’, several real life examples can be given.

Children can be taken out in the morning, at noon and then in the evening on a sunny day, to feel

the difference between different phases of the day.

2. To teach ‘Commutative property of addition’ put two different things like toffees and balls in

two different buckets.

3. Then the children can be asked to count both the materials and add. For example, two toffees

and three balls and then three toffees and two balls.

4. To teach the concept of ‘Volume’, group activity can be conducted. For example, take water

bottles of two different sizes and make the children fill the bottles with water. One bottle can be

filled with, say, three glasses of water while the other may just take two glasses to fill.

5. Hence the capacity of the first bottle is more.

Children can take turns in filling the bottles, counting and recording.

6. The concept of ‘Money’ can be taught by first introducing notes and coins of different sizes.

Then organise fun activity like arranging shop for all students and ask them to purchase items

with the money given to them. The child with

VI can explore the notes and coins tactually and repeatedly to understand the difference.

7. Make use of different senses for teaching mathematical concepts, for example, auditory

(verbal descriptions) and tactual (converting visual figures into embossed tactile figures).

5.8.1 Strategies and Suggestions Related to Mathematics

To develop mathematics skills, the teacher may encourage students to use real-life

situations to learn and practice concepts, computations, and skills; use an abacus, concrete

materials, number lines, manipulatives, charts, and calculators as aids; use pictorial clues; use

dotted lines or graph paper to line up math problems, to determine place value or when adding

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and subtracting two-digit numbers; colour-code numbers in place value tasks and use sample

sheets that illustrate problem types and that explain difficult words.

5.9 Environmental Sciences (Evs) 1. Concept of ‘Clouds’ can be taught with the help of ice. Drop in temperature before rain

because of clouds can be discussed in the class and students can be taken to a cooler place like

cold store/ fridge to get a feel of that.

2. To teach the concept of ‘Day and night’ children can be made to observe the difference in

temperature and noise during day and night.

Days are warm and noisy whereas nights are comparatively cold and silent.

3. To explain ‘Function of roots’, children can be asked to touch a plant uprooted just then and

then a plant which is kept uprooted for few days. The child can differentiate between plants that

are alive or dead.

4. To differentiate between different animals, apart from tactile pictures or models, VI students

can also be introduced to the sounds of the animals.

5. To make the children aware of different types of material like glass, gold etc., they can be

asked to touch and feel different textures and then help them talk about it.

6. Involve students in exploring the environment using other senses like smell and touch and

organise excursions, trips and visits for the students to historical places (educational tour).

5.10 Language 1. To help the child to start ‘making sentence’ about him/her, s/he can be allowed to experience

by touch the physical attributes to help make sentences. For example, child can be asked to touch

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a warm cup and asked to make a sentence: ‘the cup is hot’. Similarly, auditory input can be given

by different sounds.

2. To teach ‘adjectives’, children can be exposed to real examples from the surroundings. For

example, they can be asked to say something about his/her friend or can be made to touch

different textures and explain the experience.

3. For a VI child, pictures should be explained verbally in detail like – what, who, where and

when. Based on the comprehension, help them summarize, give oral answers. Experience for

understanding can be enhanced by tactile and

kinaesthetic input. For example, differences or similarities between lassi and tea. Use of acting,

dramatisation and role play helps the child to understand better.

5.11 General Strategies And Suggestions Students who have mild intellectual disabilities benefit from being part of a

heterogeneous group of students their own age. As the curriculum becomes increasingly more

conceptual, however, and as the pace of the introduction of new concepts increases, these

students may experience considerable failure or show high levels of frustration. To support the

building of self-esteem in these students, teachers should ensure that they are provided with and

563

use materials that look similar to what the rest of the class is using. In addition, classroom

resources and materials should reflect the chronological age of the student, regardless of the

expectations set out in them or being addressed. Some students, in addition to their cognitive

disabilities, have physical and sensory disabilities that further challenge their abilities to learn

and to exercise control in their environment.

5.12 Strategies And Suggestions Related To The Classroom Environment

Like all students, children with CD require a supportive and encouraging learning

environment that highlights and celebrates their strengths. The optimum learning environment

for all students is predictable and safe from situations that may humiliate or embarrass them. The

teacher could:

• Set expectations for the student that are similar to those for all students in the class;

• Model and foster a climate of acceptance for all students;

• Arrange the student’s timetable to enable him or her to access classes minimize as far as

possible the number of transitions that occur in the school day and as the student moves from the

junior to the senior;

• Reduce distractions in the classroom;

• Provide the student with preferential seating or seating that is appropriate to his or her sensory

needs (e.g., away from doors and windows and near the blackboard);

• Arrange seating to place a student at risk of being isolated next to supportive peers;

• Provide the student with a headset to muffle noise, if required.

5.13 Strategies And Suggestions Related To Behavior

Students with CD may demonstrate a tendency to be distracted easily and may exhibit

behaviors that are inappropriate in the school setting. It is important to understand that all

behavior is communication. By structuring a learning environment that discourages inappropriate

behaviors, teachers can minimize disruption, increase learning time, and help all students

develop self awareness and selfcontrol.

The teacher could implement support

564

programmes for the student such as peer tutoring, “circle of friends”, co curricular coaches,

buddy systems, and recess support; teach the student selfadvocacy skills (e.g., asking for help,

explaining his or her strengths and needs through specific gestures if speech is an issue); provide

frequent opportunities for the student to learn and practice appropriate behavior in social

situations; establish and maintain consistent routines and classroom rules and reinforce positive

behavior.

5.14 Strategies And Suggestions Related To Organization

Among the most important skills needed by these students especially those with mild CD

are those required to become independent learners: the abilities to manage time, organize their

workspace, and learn study and test preparation skills. The teacher could teach the student the

use of personal organizers (e.g., a personal timetable that colourcodes or highlights important

information, a checklist for materials required for learning a homework journal or

communication book); teach the student time-management strategies (e.g., to use a watch or a

clock to follow a schedule); record up-coming assignments and events on a calendar for the

student; teach simplified notetaking techniques (e.g., using a highlighter to identify main ideas or

facts, outlining); provide advance organizers to demonstrate the key and subsidiary parts of

lessons; teach the student to use folders for finished and unfinished work; teach the student to use

graphic organizers, mapping, and semantic webbing techniques; teach the student by

modeling/demonstrating different study techniques; teach test-taking skills for multiplechoice,

fill-in-the-blank, and essay-type tests and simultaneously give the student instructions orally,

visually and pictorially.

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5.15 Strategies And Suggestions Related To Motivation

All students require opportunities to demonstrate their strengths, to experience success,

and to participate in learning opportunities that are similar to those of their peers. Learning can

be enhanced through a variety of teacher-directed, self-directed, and collaborative group

situations, as well as highly motivational instructional materials. In addition, teachers should

provide students with learning opportunities in the context of real-life situations.

The teacher could:

• Offer the student hands-on learning opportunities (e.g., teaching science concepts through

simplified experiments);

• Use real-life experiences as learning opportunities (e.g., tiffin time, setting up audiovisual

equipment in the classroom;

• Use technology and software as tools for instruction, additional practice, or to demonstrate

learning;

566

• Provide the student with frequent opportunities for large- and small-group learning, peer

assistance, and/or peer tutoring;

• Encourage the student to use tools that make automatic corrections (e.g., word processing

software with automatic spellers);

• Offer compatible incentives and rewards for effort and good work;

• Focus on the student’s strengths and abilities.

5.16 A GUIDE TO ADAPTATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS Of School

Subject

In British Columbia, three principles of learning guide practice in the development of

Integrated Resource Packages (IRPs), which contain the provincially prescribed learning

outcomes for grades and subjects. These are:

• Learning requires the active participation of the student.

• Students learn in a variety of ways and at different rates.

• Learning is both an individual and group process.

These same three principles should guide the differentiation of instruction, assessment methods,

and/or materials‐‐particularly the principle that people learn in a variety of ways and at different

rates.

Today’s classrooms are diverse and inclusive by nature. Differentiation of instruction and

assessment and the principles of universal design are now recognized practices for teachers.

Both differentiation and universal design provide systematic approaches to setting goals,

choosing or creating flexible materials and media, and assessment. To undertake differentiation

and universal design, teachers need to be aware of a range of accommodations (multiple means

of representation, of expression, and/or of engagement) that may be necessary to help each

student in the classroom succeed. These accommodations may take the form of adaptations

and/or modifications.

Many students with special needs and significant learning challenges will be able to achieve the

learning outcomes for subjects or courses with no or minor adaptations. Some may be able to

achieve the learning outcomes of some subjects or courses with adaptations. A small proportion

will need to work on individualized outcomes, goals different than the curriculum; this is

referred to as modification.

567

5.16.1 Adaptations

In BC policy, all students should have equitable access to learning, opportunities for

achievement and the pursuit of excellence in all aspects of their educational programs. (Policy

Document: Special Education: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/policy/policies/special_ed.htm.)

Adaptations are teaching and assessment strategies especially designed to accommodate a

student’s needs so he or she can achieve the learning outcomes of the subject or course and to

demonstrate mastery of concepts. Essentially, adaptations are “best practice” in teaching. A

student working on learning outcomes of any grade or course level may be supported through

use of adaptations.

Adaptations do not represent unfair advantages to students. In fact, the opposite could be true. If

appropriate adaptations are not used, students could be unfairly penalized for having learning

differences, creating serious negative impacts to their achievement and self‐concept.

5.16.2 Modifications

This section may not apply to students in ESL programs unless they are also identified as

a student with special needs as determined by Ministry and district processes.

Accommodations in the form of modifications are instructional and assessment‐related decisions

made to accommodate a student’s educational needs that consist of individualized learning goals

and outcomes which are different than learning outcomes of a course or subject.

5.17 When To Use Modifications

The decision to use modifications should be based on the same principle as adaptations—

that all students must have equitable access to learning, opportunities for achievement, and the

pursuit of excellence in all aspects of their educational programs. Before modifying the outcomes

for a student, schools should review all instructional interventions tried and consider assessment

information, utilizing a process that is ongoing and consultative—similar to IEP development

practices overall.

568

Modifications should be considered for those students whose special needs are such that

they are unable to access the curriculum (i.e., students with limited awareness of their

surroundings, students with fragile mental/physical health, students medically and

cognitively/multiply challenged.) Using the strategy of modifications for students not identified

as special needs should be a rare practice. In many cases, modifications need only form part of

an educational program for a student with special needs, and they need not be a permanent or

long term solution. Whether to use modifications should be reviewed on a regular basis.

Decisions about modifications should be subject or course specific wherever possible. For

example, a student with an intellectual disability may require modifications to a specific subject

area such as mathematics; however, modifications may not be required to meet the provincial

outcomes in physical education.

Although decisions about modifications to a student’s courses or subjects may take place

in grades earlier than Grade 10, a formal decision that an overall program is modified does not

need to occur until Grade 10. The decision to provide modifications, particularly at the secondary

school level, will result in students earning a

School Completion Certificate upon leaving school rather than credits toward graduation or a

Dogwood Diploma. Therefore, the critical decision of whether a students’ education program

should include modifications should not be made in isolation by a single classroom teacher. The

decision should be carefully and thoughtfully made, in consultation with parents, school

administration, and/or instructional support personnel. This decision should address longer term

educational, career and life goals of students and encompass plans for attaining these goals.

5.18 Examples Of Modifications

An educational program for a student might include a combination of accommodations

which includes modifications. For example, a student could be working on grade level learning

outcomes in Physical Education and Health and Career Education and below grade level learning

outcomes in Mathematics, all with adaptations while at the same time working on individualized

learning outcomes that meet the student’s IEP goals in all other subjects. The individualized

outcomes address functional life skills and foundational academic skills.

For students with special needs, modifications that consist of individualized learning outcomes

or goals must be included in the IEP. Some further types of modifications include:

569

• Content and evaluation related to the course or subject but at a lower level of conceptual

difficulty that is based on a student’s individualized outcomes or goals. When students do well

on this especially designed material, they have a chance to feel successful. For example, while

students in a Grade 3 class are researching for presentations on the solar system, a student with

special needs in this class uses a computer to drag and click planets into a template of the solar

system and learns to say the names of each planet. At the secondary level, a Grade 9 student with

special needs learns how to count change and manage a personal budget while other students are

introduced to algebraic expressions.

• Only portions of the learning outcomes are addressed so that a student may participate in the

classroom and feel success even though they are working at a conceptual level significantly

different from the other students. For example, in a science class a student with special needs

learns to identify safe and dangerous chemicals used in the lab, while other students carry out a

chemistry experiment.

• Although related to the outcomes of the curriculum, the goals for a student with special needs

are significantly different. For example, while other students are learning how to read and

respond to text in a Grade 4 classroom, a student with special needs is learning how to listen to

stories at a pre‐primary level and when to turn the page at the appropriate time using assistive

technology.

5.19 Grading And Reporting When There Are Modifications

If schools are using BCeSIS or Student Achievement Data Exchange (SADE) to record

progress for students inGrades 4 to 12, a value is required to be entered to maintain student

records over time. For more information about BCeSIS, please contact your local school district.

For more information about SADE, please see the following link:

http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/datacollections/sade/

Progress reports to parents for students with special needs who are working toward

individualized outcomes or goals in an IEP rather than the outcomes of the curriculum for that

subject or course may be done using structured written comments or letter grades. The most

appropriate form of reporting for the student should be determined collaboratively at the school

570

level. If letter grades are used when modifications have been made, the body of the student

progress report should state that the evaluation is in relation to the individualized outcomes or

goals and not in relation to learning outcomes for the subject or course. The specific IEP

outcomes or goals evaluated should be included in the student progress report. Further

information on this subject is available in the Ministry document: Reporting Student Progress:

Policy and Practice:

http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/classroom_assessment/09_report_student_prog.pdf

571

572

5.20 Summary

Modifications in curriculum content or outcomes may be provided for students with

disabilities who have IEPs. In high school programs, modifications to academic or basic

education courses are generally associated with a special diploma. Modifications to secondary

career education programs known as MOCPs can be offered through regular career education

classes. In adult programs, modifications to program requirements are generally not allowed.

Reasonable course substitutions may be allowed. In addition, adults are able to enroll in other

types of programs, including specialized programs for adults with disabilities.


1. Explain Concept Of Curricular Adaptations

2. Explain Curriculum Adaptations

3. Explain Teachers Teaching Content Using Diverse Strategies-

4. Explain Students Expressing Learning In Diverse Ways-

5. Explain Need For Curriculum Adaptations

6. Explain Strategies Of Curricular Adaptation For An Inclusive Classroom

7. Explain Mathematics

8. Explain Environmental Sciences (Evs)

9. Explain Language

10. Explain General Strategies And Suggestions

11. Explain Strategies And Suggestions Related To The Classroom Environment

12. Explain Strategies And Suggestions Related To Behavior

13. Explain Strategies And Suggestions Related To Organization

14. Explain Strategies And Suggestions Related To Motivation

15. Explain A GUIDE TO ADAPTATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS Of

School Subject

16. Explain Adaptations

17. Explain Modifications

573

18. Explain When To Use Modifications

19. Explain Examples Of Modifications

20. Explain Grading And Reporting When There Are Modifications


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

578







6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








579


The Belknap Press.

























Office.





580


















31st – Sept 3rd.













581






















Office.











582












31st – Sept 3rd.










583

Block5: Curriculum Evaluation

Unit 1: Concept, Meaning, Definition of Curriculum Evaluation

Unit 2: Types and Approaches of Evaluation

Unit 3: Emerging trends in evaluation –CCE, Teacher Made Tests, Grading System

Unit 4: Differential evaluation of PwID in inclusive setup

Unit 5: Implications of evaluation for inclusion

584

Unit 1: Concept, Meaning, Definition Of Curriculum Evaluation

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Historical Overview

1.3 The Basic Concepts Of Curricular Evaluation

1.4 Purposes And Roles Of Evaluation

1.5 Method Of Evaluating Individuals And Curricular

1.6 The Role Of Technology In Evaluation

1.7 Evaluation Information Provided By A Curricular

1.8 Evaluation Planning As Curriculum Analysis

1.9 Perspectives On Curricular Evaluation

1.10 Summary


1.12 References

585

1.1 Introduction

Attitude towards and treatment of persons with mental retardation can be traced back to

ancient civilizations (including Egypt, Sparta, Rome, China and the early Christian world).

The earliest recorded mention of mental retardation is thought to be in the "Therapeutic papyrus

at Thebes" in 1552 B.C. (Doll, 1962).

People with mental retardation during middle ages were viewed as "innocents of God"

and provided with humane care either at home or in monasteries. On the other hand, some cases

&ith mental handicaps were viewed as visitations of the devil and were subjected to exorcism

and torture. Beginning in the latter years of the middle ages and continuing through the 18th

century, many individuals including individuals with mental retardation were persecuted and

executed for practicing witchcraft.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, which encompassed the age of reason and the

enlightment in Europe and the colonial period in America, understanding of brain function and

certain types of mental retardation (e.g. cretinism and hydrocephalus) increased.

However, the treatment of individuals with mental retardation seemed to reach an all-

time low. Individuals with mental retardation were confined to institutions (e.g. foundling

homes, hospitals, prisons). The death rate of children placed in these facilities was appallingly

high. People with menql retardation were incarcerated with criminals and individuals with

mental illness. A few humanitarian individuals did attempt to improve the prevailing conditions.

During the same period, in the U.S.A., dismal conditions prevailed for people with mental

retardation. % The history of the systematic treatment of individuals with mental retardation

began in the 19th Century. Mental retardation became a conspicuous social problem during this

period. As industrialization expanded and grew, opportunities for a simple agrarian existence

decreased. With technological advances, jobs became more complex. Mass education became

more common. Inability of some children to handle school curriculum led to the identification of

mild mental retardation. The disciplines of Medicine and Psychology progressed considerably

during this period. Scientific developments began to support a more clearly defined concept of

mental retardation. Many of the clinical types of mental retardation were identified, and

classification systems were proposed.

Reform movements began to appear in both Europe and U.S. The major aim of these

reforms was to urge the states to provide humane treatment in the form of well-designed,

586

specialised, residential facilities for individuals with mental retardation and mental illness. Many

distinct etiological categories were identified and described (e.g. Down Syndrome, cretinism,

hydrocephaly, microcephaly) although the causes of many of these conditions were poorly

understood (Scheerenberger, 1983).

During the last half of the 29th century, the idea that individuals with mental retardation

could benefit from education and training finally came into its own. By the turn of the century,

the attitudes of society towards people with mental retardation worsened as the condition was

increasingly attributed to hereditary factors. Public opinion began to support the segregation of

people with mental retardation. The first public day-school classes for children with Mental

Retardation in the U.S. are generally thought to have started in Providence, Rhode Island in

1894. From 1900 through the 1920s, optimism concerning the prospects of ameliorating mental

retardation was replaced by profound pessimism. The first decades of the twentieth century

represented the nadir of professional sensitivity towards mentally retarded persons, at least as a

class or sub population. Education and training efforts in institutions were largely replaced by

custodial care. The belief that mental retardation was caused by environmental factors was

replaced by a belief that mental retardation was caused by hereditary factors. The period between

1930 and 1950 has been described as the "The Great Lull", during which little progress was

made in this field, though residential and community programmes were established that

determined the direction of future developments in the field.

During the 1950s, children with moderate mental retardation emerged as a focus of

concern, largely through the efforts of increasingly well-organised parent advocacy groups.

An important event during this time was the formation in 1950 of the National Association for

Retarded Children (NARC), now known as the ARC (Association for Retarded Citizens). In

North America, the emergence of civil rights movement assisted the cause of people with mental

handicaps.

The 1960's were dominated by a concern for the rights of minority individuals, including

individuals with mental retardation. In US, President Kennedy appointed the President's Panel on

Mental Retardation in 1961. The panel of experts recommended an extensive eight point

programme in 1962 which covered every aspect of mental retardation from preventive to

rehabilitative measures.

There is a considerable increase in the literature on the topic of mental retardation

throughout the world, and in the recent years the discoveries and methodological innovations

587

have increased. Recent times have witnessed the advent of new directions in educating and

training students with mental retardation. There is a trend toward providing community based

instruction and programming for these students. Great strides have been made in providing

services to infants, toddlers and other young children. Transitional programming is in evidence.

New models for making these individuals employable have been introduced. Competitive

employment options are replacing the former sheltered employment model. Self advocacy and

consumer awareness, that have empowered people with disabilities globally, have made human

services to recognise and restructure their programmes and strategies.

1.2 Historical Overview

Four thousand years ago, when the Ayuweda (book of medicine) was conceptualised,

mental retardation was not left out. Charaka, the "Father of Indian Medicine", and Susruta, the

"Father of Surgery", hypothesized that mental retardation or "manasamandyam" was a result of

defective genes, poor condition at the time of pregnancy and faulty child rearing practices in

much the manner it is understood even today. Charaka's explanation of the role played by the

parental seed or the "Germ Plasm" in subsequent personality development incorporates concepts

now recognised as Darwin's concepts of "gemmule" and spencer's "Id". However both the

Charaka Samhita and the Susruta Samhita professed reservations about the genetic basis of

mental retardation, emphasizing instead the influence of divine forces and "Grahas" (planetary

influence). This line of thinking, i.e. in which the present, past and future are attributed to super

natural powers, typifies Indian philosophical thought with its belief in the "Karma" accepted in

large part even today (Puri and Sen, 1989).

The ancient Indian literature reveals the existence of the rural "Pathasala" (day school) or

the 'Gurukul' (residential learning centre) which gave due emphasis to a childcentred approach,

by identifying the learning channel and pace of each learner and by individualizing both teaching

and learning. The teacher in both types of education designed the curriculum to offer utility and

durability to the learning on a long time perspective but dispensed it according to the hctional

proficiency or deficits in the learner.

Thus the system of education could cater to the educational needs of a wide range of _ learners-

the highly gifted to the sub-average. Many students with the special educa-

588

- tional needs were effectively integrated in the group of normal students and participated

meaningfully in the community in adulthood.

Several invasions, influence of colonisation and the prolonged rule of British Raj, brought about

changes in Indian education. British models of education were adopted which emphasised on

standard general curricula with specificity in the duration of coverage and content. This led to the

alienation of the learner with special needs, when emphasis shifted from the importance of the

child and its educational needs during the 24 hours of interaction with different social situations

to a highly academically loaded curriculum and rigid evaluation procedures (Hari Prasad, 1999).

A review of the progress made in the area of mental retardation is quite relevant now. The

country gained independence in 1947 and since then has been struggling to provide elementary

education to the ever increasing school age children. The policy makers in education naturally

felt that the problem of educating the retarded can be postponed. Besides, medical care was also

not very popular due to underdeveloped state of paediatrics in our country. Added to this is that,

people have not demanded facilities for the retardates. The disinterest in the care and education

of retardates resulted partly from indifference and partly from attention paid to reconstruction

which was more vital after independence than mental retardation.

To add to these, there is variety of language and culture. Neither any assessment test nor

baseline information on mental retardation was available which would have paved the way to

have early detection of retardation. In spite of this, some good schools for education were

established in Bombay and Ahmedabad which reflect probably the unfair urbanisation, the over

anxious professional parents have become aware of the need to train and educate the backward

child. Educated mothers also played a key role in this. Thus, urbanisation and its discontent

stimulated public support for work in retardation. The Central Government through its various

agencies have begun to take an interest in this area.

Growth of schools for the mentally retarded in the sixty years until the advent of

independence was extremely slow and sporadic. By 1947, the schools for the mentally retarded

were just three but rose to 20 by 1980 and at present there are over 1100 schools in the country.

The first school in one of the associated disabilities, i.e. cerebral palsy, was started in 1973; and

today there are more than 15 schools of CP, though without any facility for artistics.

589

A peep into the past would reflect that institutions for training and care of the mentally retarded

have grown out of the personal efforts of dedicated individuals or of philanthropic organisations.

Now, infrequently, the primary donors for a certain institution have within their family some one

mentally defective. This is also true of majority of social workers who have taken interest in the

growth of a retardate institution. By 1968, when the first review of the status appeared, there

were only 18 institutions for mental retardates, (15 out of which were headed by women) which

indicated an interest

- "the labour of love", in the words of Pt. Jawahar La1 Nehru. A majority of the institutions

depend primarily on donations from'the public but they also receive assistance from state and

federal governments through welfare departments.

Welfare, not education was the main concern, then. The institutions for the retarded in India have

both residential and day schools. Many of these institutions were started as boarding houses for

the retardates, but were later expanded to include scholastic and vocational education. All such

institutions were established after independence. A few institutions have, included in their

objectives, parent counselling for the retarded child. Staff members were essentially

psychologists, physicians, teachers. Special education did not have a head way then, and some of

these institutions were also attached to most of the mental hospitals in India (Das, 1968).

1.3 The Basic Concepts Of Curricular Evaluation

CURRICULAR EVALUATION BASIC CONCEPTS

The process by which some individual or group makes a judgement about the value of some

object,person,or processis termed evaluation.

DEFINITIONS OF CURRICULAR EVALUATION

According to Gatawa (1990: 50), the term curriculum evaluation has three major meanings:

• The process of describing and judging an educational programme or subject.

• The process of comparing a student’s performance with behaviourally stated objectives.

• The process of defining, obtaining and using relevant information for decision-making

purposes.

590

BASIC TERMINOLOGY

Test. As used in this case, test is a set of questions with an accepted set of presumably correct

answer to gather information about some individual characteristics like achievement.

Scale, is an instrument whose questions do not typically have correct and incorrect answer that

designed to measure such characteristics as attitudes, interests, values, beliefs, and behaviors.

Standardized. A test or scale is “ standardized” to the extent that it has been administered and

scored under standard, or uniform, condition and procedures.

Norm-referenced. “ norm-referencing a test means comparing scores of individuals on a test

with those of some external reference group. Scores on a norm-referenced test tell us little about

what individuals can do or what they know.

Criterion-referenced. Test are designed to describe specifically what objectives individuals

have mastered.

Clinical interview, is an evaluation method in which an interviewer uses questions and props

to explore the concept and attitudes of the students

1.4 Purposes And Roles Of Evaluation

The purpose of an evaluation is to determine the value of something. Most evaluation experts

contend that the main reason of evaluating an curriculum is to provide information for making

decisions about either individuals or the curriculum.

a. Decision about individuals

It is necessary for six purposes:

591

1. Diagnostic

Those who must make diagnostic decisions require information about strengths and weaknesses

and determination of areas that need special instructional attention.

Method : 1) Observations of the student performance, attitude, interest, behavior; 2) standardized

achievement and aptitude test with sub scores.

2. Instructional feedback

Decision concern adjusments students might need to make in their approach to studying a subject

based on their knowledge of the progress they are making.

Method : teacher make test and quizzes.

3. Placement

Information about the level of proficiency of the students in particular skills in order to place

them in group that are relatively homogeneous.

4. Promotion

Decision about promotion is based on information about the proficiency and maturity of students

in order to decide wether or not to promote to the next grade level.

5. Credentialing

It have to do with certification, licensure and otherwise attesting to the competence of a program

graduate. This decision require attaining a predetermined passing level on a test designed by the

credentialing body, typically the state or professional organization.

6. Selection

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Made by college admission offices, typically use existing data about student achievement

(grades), but may also depend on standardized test.

b. Curriculum decision

Curricular evaluation decisions are of two types:

1. Formative (how to improve the curriculum)

Evaluation plays as a formative role when it occurs during the ongoing curriculum development

process.

2. Summative (decision as to continue to use the curriculum)

Evaluation plays as summative role when it enables administrators to decide whether or not a

curriculum is good enough to warrant institutional support. Decision on whether a school system

should formally adopt a curriculum, or whether an external funding agency should continue to

support a curriculum.

The important difference of formative and summative role is the location of the decision

maker and the evaluation.

• Formative : the decision maker is part of the curriculum development effort and the

evaluation is an internal process.

• Summative : the decision maker is external to this effort and the evaluation is an external

process too.

1.5 Method Of Evaluating Individuals And Curricular

Curricular decision used : questionnaires, interviews with teacher, content analyses of curriculum

materials, case studies of classroom, follow-up interviews of course graduates ,etc.

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Individual decision used : norm- and criterion-referenced test data, clinical interviews, and

family or professional conferences to identify an individual’s strengths , weaknesses, problem

etc.

Standardized Testing as A Means of Making Decisions

The widespread use of standardized test to determine whether an individual is promoted from

one grade to the next, placed in one track or another, awarded a degree, or admitted to a

university can be problematic. There are definite advantages to using standardized test. Some of

what students learn can be counted; progress in some disciplines can be measured. Standardized

test also enable policy markers to initiate reforms and to control, to a great extent, the curricula

in school.

Several studies have shown a close correlation between classroom teaching and the standardized

test they know students will take. Teachers are under a great deal of pressure to teach to the test

because often the stakes for their students are high. Promotion to the next grade, graduation from

high school, or admission to college can be tied to scores on standardized test.

Problem of fairness

Standardized test are an efficient means of grading because generally they are timed and

comprised of multiple-choice questions. Multiple-choice questions reward students for choosing

the correct answer and doing it quickly.

Unfortunately, they thereby limit the type of knowledge being tested, because there is

typically little room for creativity, ambiguity, developing idea, or reflection. In addition, for

students to do so well on state-mandated test, teachers much devote considerable time to

preparing students for those test, thereby eliminating many other curricula possibilities.

The consequences of standardized test performance extend far beyond any particular grade,

even beyond school years.

Responses to the problems

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Recognizing the biases and inadequacies of standardized test, many educators are exploring

the range of alternative ways to asses what students know.

In the elementary school, they are developing plans to use a combination of type of assessment.

For example: students take local reading and writing test a compile portfolios of their work in

class.

At the high school and university levels there are also alternative assessment. The plan focuses

on a more comprehensive look at students performance than a single standardized test can give.(

class rank, the number and type of courses taken, essays, work experience ,etc). Students

portfolios can also take into account differing students backgrounds and abilities.

1.6 The Role Of Technology In Evaluation

Technology has changed the way tests are administered and scored and the ways in which those

scores are processed and publicized.

1. Test administration

Technology has changed the handling of test administration. Now students can complete test via

network computers. Technology for managing online test is already available.

2. Test preparation for students

There is now a wider array of material marketed to prepare test takers than ever before. Test

publishers, both governmental or for profit , offer test preparation software.

3. Calcultor use Usually, students using calculator while taking test.

4. Instantaneous scoring

When standardized test refer to test made by curriculum publisher, then technology can provide

instantaneous feedback for teachers and students in well-equipped schools. Students can

595

complete practice tests or homework assignments at the computer, which are then automatically

graded by the computer, thus aiding in formative evaluation. The feedback is not only how a

particular student faired, but also include statistical analysis of entire tests or assignments or

specific items within a test.

5. Test generation software

It is allow teachers to pick and choose questions from databases of tests questions allowing

customization from asset of publisher-generated questions. It is often included in curriculum

packages or may be purchased separately, allowing teachers to use items from previous

standardized state exams in place of test provided by the textbook publisher.

6. Publication of test results

School and district results for standardized tests are now available to anyone with an internet-

connected computer.

1.7 Evaluation Information Provided By A Curricular

First taps in analyzing curriculum from an evaluation is try to identify any evaluation data,

suggestion, or instruments provided by the curriculum materials or in the research literature.

Then, try to determine the purposes and roles that evaluation information is intended to serve.

In searching for evaluation suggestion and instruments, look beyond the obvious sources, such as

end-of-unit and end-of-year tests. Test is only one means of gathering evaluation information.

Discussion questions and recommendations for student interviews and conferences can also be

used to improve both of instruction and evaluation.

1.8 Evaluation Planning As Curriculum Analysis

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Determine what aspects of the curriculum you would want an evaluation to focus on.

Outcomes- Based Evaluation

In fact, most evaluations focus on only those outcomes that reflect the curriculum’s goals and

objectives, or “narrow” sense of outcomes-based evaluation. Also it provides more an

assessment of instructional effectiveness than one of the curriculum. On the other hand, it

provides information on both main effect and side effects of the curriculum. “Main effects” are

the major outcomes intended by the curriculum. “Side effects” are the by-products produced

inadvertently by the curriculum.

Whether explicitly anticipated or not, curricula have both long- and short term outcomes. Short-

term outcomes include what student remember and can do during and immediately after taking a

course. Longer term outcomes include what students remember and can do with their knowledge

well after the details of the course are forgotten.

Intrinsic Evaluation

Screven distinguished between “pay-off” and “intrinsic” by provide an analogy. The analogy

reflects a conception of a curriculum as an instrument with features such as goals, content, and

teacher-training requirements that are distinct from the curriculum’s effects on students, teachers

and the community.

Stake made a similar distinction between outcome evaluation data and other kinds of data.

O Antecedents, conditions existing before students interact with teacher and subject matter.

Data on antecedents are particularly useful in determining whether certain claims made by the

curriculum are empirically supported.

O Transactions, it is occur in whenever a student interacts with a teacher, guidance counselor,

other students, or instructional materials. In other words, transactions comprise the process of

education.

One transaction flows smoothly into another with only arbitrary demarcations between them.

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Data on transactions are particularly important in curriculum evaluation to explain why certain

outcomes did or did not occur. Also it give the evaluator information on the way the curriculum

has functioned, the variety of ways it has been implemented, and the possible pitfalls a teacher

might face in using it.

1.9 Perspectives On Curricular Evaluation

a. Traditional

- The major evaluation questions: seek to measure whether the students have acquired the

information, mastered the basic skills, and internalized the accepted values.

- Methods: comparison of standardized test scores, answer given in classroom recitation,

neatness and promptness in completing assignments, and ability and willingness to follow the

teacher’s directions.

- Evaluation aimed: determining whether the accepted facts, skills and values have been

effectively transmitted.

b. Experiential

- Evaluation questions: seek to measure the broad range of both short and long term effects of

experiential programs on students and the intrinsic quality of experiences students have.

- Methods: The Eight Year study providing a wide range of outcome measures in cognitive and

affective and Experience-based career education.

- Evaluation aimed: to determine the effectiveness of the programs and the quality of the

experiences that students have.

c. Behavioral

- The major evaluation questions: whether students have acquired the behaviors that the

curriculum targeted.

598

- Methods: paper-and-pencil tests, observational checklist, and practical exams.

- Criterion referenced measures of student performance are preferred. These measures assess

achievement in terms of absolute standards.

d. Structure of disciplines

- Evaluation questions: whether students gain insight into the conceptual structure of the

discipline and whether students engage in real inquiry.

- Methods: giving students problems to solve, data to interpret, and experiments to design.

- Evaluation aimed: congruence of the curriculum with real inquiry in the disciplines.

e. Constructivist

- evaluation question : seek to measure whether students acquire basic concepts meaningfully

and learn to solve nonroutine problems.

- Methods : clinical interviews, analyses of student problem-solving efforts, analyses of

mistakes and concept-mapping exercises.

- Evaluation aimed : determining what and how the individual think and understands.

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1.10 Summary

Curricular-based assessment is used to help determine what teachers teach based on student

performance. The process of describing and judging an educational programmed or subject.

The process of comparing a student’s performance with behaviorally stated objectives. The

process of defining, obtaining and using relevant information for decision-making purposes.

Curricular decision used : qustionnaires, interviews with teacher, content analyses of

curriculum materials, case studies of classroom, follow-up interviews of course graduates ,etc.

Individual decision used : norm- and criterion-referenced test data, clinical interviews, and

family or professional conferences to identify an individual’s strengths , weaknesses, problem

etc.

First teps in analyzing curriculum from an evaluation is try to identify any evaluation data,

suggestion, or instruments provided by the curriculum materials or in the research literature.

Then, try to determine the purposes and roles that evaluation information is intended to serve.

In searching for evaluation suggestion and instruments, look beyond the obvious sources, such as

end-of-unit and end-of-year tests. Test are only one means of gathering evaluation information.

Discussion questions and recommendations for student interviews and conferences can also be

used to improve both of instruction and evaluation.


1. Explain Historical Overview

2. Explain The Basic Concepts Of Curricular Evaluation

3. Explain Purposes And Roles Of Evaluation

4. Explain Method Of Evaluating Individuals And Curricular

5. Explain The Role Of Technology In Evaluation

6. Explain Evaluation Information Provided By A Curricular

7. Explain Evaluation Planning As Curriculum Analysis

8. Explain Perspectives On Curricular Evaluation


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REFERENCES

1. Bel, R.L. and Frisbie, D.A.(1991) 5th ed, Essentials of Educational Measurement,

Prentice hall publication, New Jersy

2. Brigance, A.H. and Hargis, C.H. (1993) Educational Assessment, Charles C Thomas

publication, USA

3. Jalvi R, Nandurkar A., Bantwal A., (2006). Introduction to hearing impairment. New

Delhi: Kanishka Publication.

4. Jurs, S.G. and Wiersma, W.(1990) 2nd ed Educational Measurement and Testing,Allyn

and Bacon publication, Boston

5. Linn, R. L. and Gronlund, N. E. (1995) 7th ed Measurement and Assessment in

Teaching,Prentice hall publication, New Jersy

6. Martin, F. N. Clark, J.G. (2012). Introduction to Audiology. 11th ed. Boston: Pearson

Education.

7. Martin, FN & Clark, J.G. (2009). Introduction to Audiology. 10th ed. Boston: Pearson

Education.

8. Mathew, S. and Misra, A. (2010) Knowledge based evaluation of students with hearing

impairment, Journal of NCED, Vol 2, Issue 1, page 26-33

9. Newby, H. A., & Popelka, G. R. (1992). Audiology (6th ed.). New York: Appleton-

Century-crofts.

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10. Nitko, A. J. (1983) Educational Tests and Measurement, An Introduction, Harcourt Brace

Publication, New York

11. Northern, J.L. Downs, M.P. (2002). Hearing in Children. 5th Edition. Philadelphia:

Lippincott Williams and Wilkins

12. Patel, R.N. (1985), Educational Evaluation, Himalaya publication, Bombay

13. Quigley & Paul, (1984) Language and deafness, College – Hill Press Inc. California

14. Rehabilitation Council of India (2007). Status of Disability in India - 2007: Hearing

Impairment and Deaf-blindness. New Delhi: Rehabilitation Council of India.

15. UNICEF (2006), new trends in development evaluation. Retrieved from

http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/new_trends_dev_evaluation.pdf

16. Boyle, J. and Fisher, S. (2007) educational testing (A competence based approach), BPS

Blackwell publication, Singapore

17. Evens, P. and Varma. V (1990). Special Education Past, Present and Future, The Falmer

Press

18. Gregory, Jnight, et al. (1998), Issues in Deaf Education. Cromwel Press

19. Madell, JR & Flexer, C., (2008) Pediatric Audiology: Diagnosis, Technology and

Management. New York: Thieme Medical Publishers.

20. McMillan, J.H (2001) Classroom assessment: Principles & practices for effective

21. instruction (2nd Eds), Allyn & Bacon, Boston.

22. Poham, James. W. (1993), Educational Evaluation. Prentice Hall, New Jersy.

23. Singh, B. (2004) Modern educational Measurement and Evaluation System, Anmol

Publication, New Delhi

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24. Waldman, D., & Roush, J. (2010). Your child’s Hearing Loss; A Guide for Parents. San

Diego: Plural Publishing.

25. Warden, P., Winter, J., & Broadfoot, P. (2002). Assessment, Routledge Falmer

Publication, London.

26. Yoshinaga-Itano, C. (2003). From screening to early identification and intervention:

Discovering predictors to successful outcomes for children with significant hearing loss.

Journal of deaf studies and deaf education, 8(1), 11-30.

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Unit 2: Types And Approaches Of Evaluation

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Purposes

2.3 Current Practices

2.4 Federal And State Disability Categories

2.5 Medical And Social System Models

2.6 Assessment

2.7 Requirements In Programming

2.8 Tools Available In India

2.9 Basic Mr

2.10 Types

2.10.1 Individualized Education Plan (Iep)–Flow Chart

2.10.2 The Interdisciplinary Team

2.10.3 Mdps Behavioral Scale

2.11 Assessment In Special Education

2.12 Suggestions Made By USEFI Seminar For Development Of Assessment

Tool For Identifying, Classifying Persons With Mental Retardation

2.13 Teaching Persons With Mental Retardation Using Behavioral Approach

Behavioral Technology

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2.15 Problems Related To Assessment/Evaluation And The Direction Of

Reforms

2.16 Summary


2.18 References

609

2.1 Introduction

Today's elementary and secondary students are undergoing more mandated assessments

than any group in the history of education in the United States. In 2001, forty-nine states required

statewide assessments in mathematics, as compared with forty-five in 1994 and thirty-four states

in 1984 (CCSSO, 2002). The outcomes of these measures have more implications for the

students, teachers, schools, and districts than ever before. Some high-stakes assessments are used

to determine student placement, promotion, and graduation; teacher assignments and bonuses;

and overall school ratings and benefits. Perhaps the most serious effect may be the "teaching to

the test" syndrome that is occurring in many classrooms.

What are the implications for students with specific disabilities and other learning

problems? According to the 1999 regulations of IDEA (and reauthorized in 2004), students with

disabilities must have the necessary supports to "be involved and progress in the regular

curriculum" and to participate in state and district assessments of student achievement

(§300.347). These regulations were adopted because too many students with disabilities were

being excluded from testing programs and therefore not provided the same access to the general

education curriculum as their peers. Often these students weren't expected to meet the general

education mathematics standards, so they couldn't enroll in courses required for college or

technical training, although they may have had the ability. The No Child Left Behind Act of

2001 also required the "participation in such assessments (high-quality, yearly student academic

assessments) of all students."

Now with new opportunities for participation come the challenges. What testing

accommodations are fair for students with disabilities or language differences that adhere to the

same performance standards? Can a student who is working on standards one or two grade levels

behind his peers be expected to take a grade-level test? How can districts apply standardized

scores to students who have taken off-grade level tests? Are standard-ized tests the best measure

of student understanding and skill? Should teachers and schools be penalized for differences in

student performance that are disability or language related? The questions are endless, but the

issues are found in every town's newspapers.

610

For teachers responsible for preparing students with disabilities for mandated

assessments, the most important considerations will be understanding the assessment

requirements and determining needed accommodations. Assessment requirements include

administration dates, formats, and conditions, in addition to the test content emphasis. Most state

and district assessments are administered in the late spring and may take an entire week. If the

mathematics portion is last or is scheduled later in the day, students may not do as well. Some

tests allow and even encourage calculator use for portions of mathematics tests, but students

should have been using the same calculators throughout the year if this is the case. For test

content, teachers should ask to review test development materials and, if permitted, previous

forms of tests.

Test accommodations are changes in the way tests are administered or changes in the

testing environment, not in the construct being measured. Modifications usually are not allowed

on high-stakes tests because they change the construct being measured (National Center on

Educational Outcomes, 2005).

Formats for mathematics assessments vary considerably from state to state and may even

differ from formats within the state's adopted textbooks. In recent years, more states have

incorporated open-ended and performance items into their assessments in addition to multiple-

choice items (CCSSO, 2002). In the 2003-2004 academic year, states gave a total of ten norm-

referenced mathematics tests, sixty-six criterion-referenced tests, and five augmented norm-

referenced tests that included mathematics subtests (some states admin-istering more than one

statewide test each year or different tests for different grade levels). The NCLB Act requirements

have caused criterion-referenced tests to be much more prevalent (CCSSO, 2005). For example,

in 2001, Arizona students in grades 2 through 8 were given the Stanford Achievement Test (ninth

edition), a norm-referenced test of multiple-choice items. Students in grades 3, 5, 8, and 10 were

also given the Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards (AIMS), a criterion-referenced test with

multiple-choice, short response, and extended response items. Now Arizona administers only the

AIMS. Teachers should expose students to the question formats that will be required on these

summative assessments throughout the school year when specific, corrective feedback can be

provided.

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Different testing accommodations are permitted in different states. In addition to students

with IEPs, accommodations are provided in many states for students with 504 plans (for students

who are disabled, but do not qualify under IDEA), students with limited proficiency in English

(ELL), and an emerging group of students with "emotional anxiety" about test taking. A few

states make accommodations available for all students as needed (Thurlow, Lazarus, Thompson,

& Robey, 2002). The most common accommodations for mathematics assessments are extended

time, separate setting, and portions read aloud. Since these state-level assessments are now

required for all students, state policies on accommodations have become more specific, but

educators are not always trained in implementing them. It is important for the accommodations

selected to actually match student needs, not be applied to all eligible students. Inappropriate

accommodations may actually cause lower performance. And like the use of calculators,

accommodations used on high-stakes tests should have been used for other assessments

throughout the school year.

2.2 Purposes

The two main purposes of identification and assessment of students with disabilities are

to determine whether they are eligible for special education services and, if they are eligible, to

determine what those services will be. Eligibility for special education services requires two

findings: first, the student must meet the criteria for at least one of the thirteen disabilities

recognized in the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) or the counterparts

thereof in state law,1,2 and second, special education and/or related services must be required for

the student to receive an appropriate education.2,3 It is true that some students are eligible for

special education and/or related services but do not need them, while other students need the

services but are not eligible according to federal or state classification criteria. If the disability

diagnosis and special education need are confirmed, the student then has certain important rights

to individualized programming designed to improve educational performance and expand

opportunities. These rights are established through several layers of legal requirements based on

federal and state statutes, federal regulations, state rules, and state and federal litigation.2 Chief

among these rights are the requirements that eligible students with disabilities must receive an

individualized educational program (IEP) based on needs identified in an individualized, full,

and complete evaluation. The needs identified during the evaluation form the basis for the

student’s personal and educational goals, the specially designed instruction and related services

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(for example, psychological consultation or physical therapy), and the methods to evaluate

progress toward the student’s goals. The classification system used in special education

identification also serves numerous other functions that are not discussed here (for example,

organization of research; communication among scholars, lay public, and policymakers;

differential training and licensing of specialists such as special education teachers; and advocacy

for expanded rights and support for programs).

2.3 Current Practices A number of comprehensive classificationsystems exist and influence, to varyingdegrees,

classification in special education.4–6 There is, however, no official specialeducation

classification system that is useduniformly across states and regions. For statisticalpurposes,

students are classified bytheir primary disability, though it is notunusual for a student to have

disabilities inmore than one category.

2.4 Federal And State Disability Categories

Thirteen disabilities are briefly defined in the federal IDEA regulations: autism,

deafblindness, deafness, hearing impairment, mental retardation, multiple disabilities, orthopedic

impairment, other healthimpairment, serious emotional disturbance, learning disability, speech or

language impairment, traumatic brain injury, and visual impairment. Federal law does not

provide classification criteria for any of these disabilities except learning disability.1 These

disability categories are based to varying degrees on eight dimensions of behavior or ability:

intelligence, achievement, adaptive behavior, social behavior and emotional adjustment,

communication/language, sensory status, motor skills, and health status.7 About 90% of the

students who are found eligible for special education have disabilities that fall primarily within

the first five of those dimensions. Although all states must provide special education to all

students with disabilities, states may or may not adopt the disability categories recognized in the

federal regulations. In fact, there are significant differences across the states in the categorical

designations, conceptual definitions, and classification criteria.8,9 These differences have their

greatest impact on the students who will be described later as mildly disabled. It is entirely

possible for students with identical characteristics to be diagnosed as disabled in one state, but

not in another, or to have the categorical designation change with a move across state or school

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district lines. The category of mental retardation (MR)10 illustrates the diverse classification

practices in special education. The IDEA regulations define mental retardation as “significantly

subaverage general intellectual functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive

behavior.”1 Mental retardation has been recognized as one of the disabilities for which special

education was provided throughout this century.6,11 Despite the longevity and nearly universal

recognition of this category, enormous differences exist among states in terminology,10 key

dimensions (for example, some states do not include adaptive behavior in the conceptual

definition), and classification criteria (for example, the intelligence quotient [IQ] “ceiling” for

this category varies from 69 to 85). The variations in criteria have the most effect on the mild

level of mental retardation. Similar variations among states exist for other disability categories,

especially serious emotional disturbance (SED), learning disability (LD), and speech or language

impairment (SP/L).

2.5 Medical And Social System Models

Historically, the special education classification system involved a mixture of medical

and social system models of deviance.7–9 The least ambiguous disabilities are the clearly

medical disabilities (such as visual impairment or orthopedic disabilities), often recognized by

the child’s physician soon after birth or during the preschool years. In contrast, the disabilities

defined by social system models represent behavior, intelligence, communication abilities, or

other characteristics that deviate significantly from the norm, and which are generally diagnosed

during the school years (see Table 1). The initial identification of a student with social system

disabilities usually occurs because of a teacher-initiated referral of the child as a result of severe

and chronic achievement or behavioral problems.7 In the social system model, the question of

where to draw the line between normal and “significantly different” characteristics is somewhat

subjective, and has properly been considered a matter within the discretion of local or state

authorities. (See the article by Parrish and Chambers in this journal issue.) In addition,

knowledge about the possible underlying physical causes of some social system disabilities (such

as learning disabilities and attention-deficit disorder) is changing rapidly. There is research

linking biological factors to mild disabilities such as learning disability, and in particular reading

disabilities. (See the article by Lyon in this journal issue.) These links involve possible

differences in brain functions among readers with and without disabilities as well as a possible

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genetic link to severe reading disabilities. The differences are, however, correlational as noted by

a writer in a recent Science News and Comment.12 Furtherresearch is needed to determine

(1) if thesebiological correlates are replicated with newsamples of students with learning

disability;

(2) whether the presence or absence of thecorrelates reliably distinguishes betweenthose

with and without learning disability;and

(3) whether treatments work differentlydepending on the presence, amount, andkind of

biological correlates.

Until thesequestions are answered, little practical utilityexists for the research on the

biologicalcorrelates of learning disability.Mental retardation is perhaps the clearestexample of

the mixture of medical and socialsystem models. The current prevalence ofmental retardation

among school-age childrenand youth is 1.1%.13 Approximatelyone-half of these persons have

moderate tosevere disabilities (IQ below 55) characterizedby identifiable anomalies (such

asDown’s Syndrome) that are the cause oftheir significantly lower performance inadaptive

behavior and intelligence.6,11 A secondgroup of persons with mental retardationwho typically

perform at the mild level(IQ about 55 to 70 or 75) do not exhibit anybiological anomalies that

can be posited asthe cause of their lower performance.14,15Indeed, the etiology of this form of

mentalretardation has been called cultural-familialor psychosocial as a means of

acknowledgingthat social system factors may be preeminent.16 Persons with mild mental

retardationrather than moderate or severe mental retardationhave markedly different levels

andpatterns of educational needs and adultadjustment. Unfortunately, the current

classificationsystem uses the same term to referto both groups of persons,5 leading to

frequentconfusion over what mental retardationmeans and unnecessary stigmatizationof persons

with mild mental retardation.6The paucity of clear evidence of a medicalbasis for many

disabilities and the factthat most disabilities are at the mild level(see later discussion) does not

diminish theimportance of early recognition of problemsand the implementation of

effectivetreatments. For example, problems withattaining literacy skills as reflected in verylow

reading achievement or poor behavioralcompetencies as reflected in aggressivebehaviors often

interfere significantly withnormal development and seriously impairthe individual’s

opportunities to become acompetent, self-supporting citizen.

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2.6 Assessment

For an appropriate Individualized Program Planning, accurate and comprehensive

information of the individual is essential. For this purpose a standard assessment tool is

necessary. Systematic observations and analysis of an individual’s skills and deficits identifies

the individual’s present developmental level and provides information about his strengths,

abilities and developmental needs. This forms the basis for educational programming.

Overall Purpose of Assessment

The assessment tool should

• be developmental, indicative of both the strengths and the needs of the assessed individuals,

• be easy, and simple to administer and to record even by a non-professional; versatile enough to

be administered individually and also in groups; economical—time-wise and cost-wise, using

materials available in homes or in classrooms,

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• yield results, a profile of the individual that can be easily used for program planning,

interpreted to parents; useful for on going assessments; a communication tool for future use in

placement and which is comprehensive about the individual’s development and needs.

Specific Purpose of Assessment

• Initial identification or screening.

• Determination of current performance levels, educational needs, evaluation of teaching

programs and strategies (prereferral intervention).

• For decision-making, regarding

classification and program placement.

• Development of Individual Education Program including goals, objectives and evaluation

procedures.

2.7 Requirements In Programming

An assessment provides answers to the following requirements in programming:

Step 1: Behavioral assessment is a complete statement of the behavioral level or performance

level of the person. A person’s past behavior and present level of functioning is looked at to

determine what he needs to work on now Based on the assessment, a decision on the future

program of action is taken on how far the person needs to advance in behavior and in acquiring

daily living skills. Assessment leads to an individualized program plan.

Step 2: It states in general terms a Goal statement arising directly from the assessment and states

the behavioral objective which is a statement of the expected behavior in specific terms. The

objectives stated, which should be observable and measurable, is followed by the method of

teaching this targeted (new) behavior.

Step 3: Evaluation of the individualized program plan: It is the looking back on the behavioral

objective and asking if the behavior change observed as stated in the objective was timely. If not,

why not? This step evaluates the individualized program plan and not the person’s entire

behavior.

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Note: Evaluation is done to determine the effectiveness of the program. But assessment is for

creating a baseline for further programming and intervention.

2.8 Tools Available In India Persons with mental retardation are assessed for intelligence, personality, education,

social achievement, special abilities, and aptitudes. Primary assessment includes recording of

case history, physical examination of the child, preschool assessment, school learning and post-

school adjustment. The approach, so far, has been psychometric even though adaptive behavior

assessment has formed the basic component in testing for screening, placement and

programming for intervention.

The Tests

Adaptive Behavior Scale (AAMD-Lambert et al., 1981), Vineland Social Maturity Scale

(Doll, 1953) and a few others have been adapted for use with Indians, but there has been a wide

difference in the application of each. In this direction, the Madras Scale (Jeyachandran P., 1968),

Madras Development Programming System (Jeyachandran P. and Vimala V., 1975; revised

1983) was the first adaptive behavior scale to be developed in the country for implementation of

the Individualized Educational Plan (IEP). The reprinted edition (2002) is being used throughout

the country. Following this pioneering development of the Madras Scale (1968), the following

were evolved at the NIMH, Secunderabad:

• Behavioral Assessment Scale for Indian Children with Mental Retardation (Peshwaria and

Venkatesan, 1992, Basic- MR).

• Functional Assessment Tools (NASEOM).

• Assessment of the Mentally Retarded Individuals of Grouping and Teaching (NIMH, 1991).

• Problem Behavior Checklist (Peshwaria, 1989).

• Maladaptive Behavior Checklist (Peshwaria & Naidu, 1991a).

• Problem Behavior Checklist (Arya, Peshwaria, Naidu & Venkatesan, 1990).

• The Assessment Scale-Speech and Language (Subba Rao, 1998).

• Behavior Disorder Checklist (Mishra, 1990).

• Adaptive Behavior Scale (Indian Revision) (Gunthey & Upadhyaya, 1982).

• Educational Assessment of the Persons with Mental Retardation, based on functional

performance rather on verbal performance (Jangira, Ahuja, Kaur, & Sefia, 1990).

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• School readiness measure development (Muralidharan, 1975).

The Illinois Test of Psycho-Linguistic Abilities in its adapted form, available in our

country (Sahoo, 1988), is used for diagnostic and related language processes. The ERIC

(NCERT) has initiated determinants to assess the psychometric validity of Indian tests in various

areas which need wider dissemination

Madras Developmental Programming Systemb(MDPS), 1975

• The scale consists of 360 observable and measurable items. Grouped under 18 functional

domains, such as gross motor, fine motor, eating, dressing, grooming, toileting, receptive and

expressive language, social interaction, reading, writing, numbers, time, money, domestic

behavior, community orientation, recreation and leisure time activities, vocational activities.

• Each domain lists twenty items in the developmental order, along the dependence-

independence continuum.

• The MDPS also provides an Adaptive Behavioral Assessment of each child with mental

retardation.

• The MDPS system helps to record challenging behaviors (problem behavior) which can be

taken care of through the IEP. A schedule for the management of challenging behaviors is also

included.

• The administration procedure involves getting information regarding the skills and behaviors

that the child can or cannot do currently.

• Information is derived through direct observation of the child, through parent/ caretakers’

observations and by means of testing in simulated situations or through interviews.

• The child’s performance on each item is rated from two directions, A or B, depending on

whether the child does not or does perform the target behavior listed as an item on the scale.

• The data recorded/presented, graphically and/or numerically, at weekly, quarterly, and annual

intervals, helps the teacher to set goals and draw behavior profiles of the assessed individual; it

helps in the evaluation of a child’s progress over a period of time.

• Once the assessment is completed, persons with mental retardation, as per the design, will

naturally fall into the educational classifications: pre-primary, primary, secondary, pre-vocational

and vocational.

• The reliability and validity of this scale has been established.

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Upanayan Developmental Programming System (UDPS) for Children with Mental Retardation

(Madhuram Narayan Centre for Exceptional Children, Madras), 1987

It is comprehensive, covering the management of children with mental retardation in the

age group of 0-2 years and 2-6 years to meet a ‘felt need’ for systematic training. Appropriate to

Indian conditions and suited to the cultural milieu, the printed program comes equipped with a

user manual and a set of activity cards.

Upanayan Early Intervention Developmental Programming System: This System consists

of background information form (Case history), the Upanayan checklist, profiles, evaluation

formats – Graphical and Numerical, an assessment kit, activity cards, training materials and a

user manual.

The check list, covering the five areas of development from birth to 2 years, is arranged in

the normal developmental sequence, comprising a total of 250 skills, 50 from each domain, such

as, motor, self-help, language, cognition and socialization.

The activity cards are colored differently for easy identification. The manual gives

instructions on the use of the checklist and the activity cards and a list of materials to be used

during assessment. In the Upanayan program, age 2 + to 6 years, the check list includes 50 skills

in each of the selected 12 domains, a total of 600 skills. The domains are: communication, self-

caremeal time activities, personal daily activities, social activities, community use, self direction,

health and safety, functional academics–writing, reading, arithmetic, leisure time and work. The

manual includes instructions for use. The checklist and the activity cards containing suggested

activities have been field tested extensively with parents, special educators and other

professionals in different parts of the country.

Behavioral Assessment Scale for Indian Children with Mental Retardation (BASIC-MR)–

Peshwaria and Venkatesan, 1992, (NIMH)

• Though designed to elicit systematic information on the current level of behavior in school

going children with mental retardation, in age group 3 to 16 (or 18) years, the teacher may find

the scale useful even for older individuals with severe retardation.

• Relevant for behavioral assessment, the scale, field tested on a select sample, can also be used

as a curriculum guide for program planning and training based on the individual needs.

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2.9 Basic Mr

The scale has been developed in two parts, BASIC MR, Part–A and BASIC MR, Part-B.

• PART-A consists of 280 items grouped under seven domains— motor, activities of daily living

(ADL), in motor, language, reading–writing, number, time, domestic, social and prevocational.

• PART-B consisting of 75 items grouped under 10 domains, that is, violent and destructive

behaviors, temper tantrums, misbehavior with others, self-injurious behavior, repetitive behavior,

odd behavior, hyperactive behavior, rebellious behavior, anti-social behavior, and fears, helps to

assess the current level of problem behavior in the child, along a descriptive scale, namely,

independent, cueing, verbal prompting, physical prompting, totally dependent and not applicable,

each scale awarded a score of 5 to 0 in that order.

• Test administration of any item within any domain can be stopped after five consecutive

failures by the child. The rest of the items should be scored ‘0’. In such cases, maximum scores

possible for the child in each of domain is 200.

• The child is rated on each item of Part- B along a descriptive scale, namely, 0 for ‘Never’, 1 for

‘Occasionally’ and 2 for ‘Frequently’ based on three levels of severity and frequency.

Functional Assessment Checklist for Programming– NIMH (Narayan, Myredi, Rao &

Rajgopal, 1994)

• Each of the seven checklists is addressed to different levels of the child’s functioning, namely,

pre-primary, primary-I, primary-II, secondary prevocational- I, pre-vocational-II and care group.

• At each level, selected carefully and written objectively, excepting care group, the checklists

cover a broad domain of skills, such as, personal, social, academic, occupational and

recreational.

• When a child achieves 80% success at a given level, promotion to the next higher level

considered. Each item on the checklist is rated along a descriptive scale namely, yes (+) means

the child performs the item with no help, occasionally cueing (OC), verbal prompting (VP),

physical prompting (PP), no (-) meaning one has to completely support the child in the

performance of the task.

• Teaching goals and objectives set quarterly (once in three months) and the progress evaluated

at the end of each quarter, the checklist provides for periodic evaluation.

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• This checklist has a high correlation with

the Madras Developmental

Programming System.

The Portage Guide to Early Education Designed in 1975, as a home based intervention

program for pre-school children aged 0-6 years with developmental disabilities, it provides a

flexible model for early intervention by involving parents and families in the education of their

child.

Dissemination in India –The Jamaica Adaptation The Jamaica adapted Portage Guide

disseminated in 1986, at NIMH, Secunderabad (M.Thorburn), was found culturally loaded.

Hence, a programming system, suited to the Indian cultural milieu, was developed by an

interdisciplinary team of experts.

Curriculum Based Assessment Checklist (MRIH), Kolkata, 2000

It was developed to help parents and professionals make curricular decisions for those

learners for whom a portion of their program must be devoted to direct instruction in the

community living areas.

The checklist contains 17 domains for different levels of mental retardation. These are, Motor,

Selfhelp Skill (ADL), Language, Cognition, Safety, Health, Physical Fitness, Pre-Vocational,

Vocational, Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, Money, Time, Social play, Recreation.

The full scale of the checklist consists of nine

domains which contain core skills. Eight other skill

areas are grouped into five performance levels (Pre-

Primary, Primary, Secondary, Pre-Vocational and

Vocational).

Thakhur Hariprasad Institute (THPI), Hyderabad, Diagnostic Record for Persons with

Mental Retardation

This comprises the following:

• Social work related information, medical history which includes pre-natal, perinatal, post-natal

information.

• Special Education Assessment is conducted using the list of activities as in 1983.

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• AAMR definition from gross motor functions to vocational skills.

• Psychological Assessment, Cognitive Vocational Abilities, Behavior Problems, Speech and

Language Assessment, Speech Communication-verbal and non-verbal, Gessel Drawing Test,

Seguin Form Board, Colored Progressive Matrices, Standard Progressive Matrices, Binet-

Kamath Scale, Vineland Social Maturity Scale, Malin’s Intelligence Scale for Indian Children,

Bhatia IQ Test, Koh’s Block Design, Denver Developmental Screening Test. An

interdisciplinary team of experts give their inputs using their own assessment system.

2.10 Types

2.10.1 Individualized Education Plan (Iep)–Flow Chart

The IEP a sequential process for making decisions regarding the program of management

of persons with mental retardation, is essentially an assessment process for teaching, popularly

known as criterion referenced scale. With an inbuilt system for periodic assessments and

evaluations, it helps the planners to arrive at a comprehensive picture of an individual’s

performance level in adaptive behavior, an area often neglected in the traditional method of

“treatment planning”. The entire process of program planning can be visualized in the flow chart

(Bock and Jeyachandran, 1975) shown in Graphs 1 & 2. Assessment, the first and a necessary

step in the entire system, is followed by designing the individualized program plan which

includes setting goals and objectives. After quarterly evaluation, new goals and objectives are set

as needed, the entire process to be repeated annually.

2.10.2 The Interdisciplinary Team

Since many persons with mental retardation also have associated problems, the expertise

of several professionals is necessary to provide effective programs using the skills of the

interdisciplinary team. The special educator plays a pivotal role. The most commonly involved

members being the special educator, psychologist, physiotherapist, occupational therapist,

623

speech therapist, social worker and paediatrician. The team also includes the trainee, his parents

and the referral agency, all participating in the program planning activities. Though each member

of the team has a clearly defined function, all of them work together. Program planning is a good

practice, irrespective of the “tools” or “instruments” employed.

2.10.3 Mdps Behavioral Scale

In the MDPS Behavioral Scale, the behavioral assessment instrument is designed to

provide objective and sound information about the functional skills of the assessee for purposes

of program planning. Assessment data are presented in a graphic form on the Behavioral Profile

for use by the interdisciplinary team.

Formats: The priority goals and objectives set by the team based on individualized assessment

are recorded on the Individualized Program Plan forms, that is, the Priority Goal Statement Form

and the Quarterly Program Plan Forms.

Record of Progress: The quarterly progress can be recorded, both numerically and graphically,

in the profile format in which the individual’s achievement is shown for each quarter with

distinct markings on the selected objectives. This facilitates a comparison between the initial

assessment and the quarterly evaluations. In the Individualized Program Plan form (Quarterly

Program Plan Form) weekly progress may be recorded. When completed, the tabular form will

give a clear, consolidated picture of the progress made by the individual in regard to the

objectives selected for the quarter.

On the Problem Behavior Assessment Form, a description of the problem behavior can be

recorded. A few of the frequently observed problem behaviors is also given. In summary, the

component parts of the IEP include:

• The Behavioral Scale –an assessment tool.

• The Behavioral Profile with space to record the quarterly progress and the identifying

information.

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• The Individualized Program Plan Forms include the Priority Goal Statement Form, the

Quarterly Program Form and the Problem Behavior Assessment Form.

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2.11 Assessment In Special Education

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In an All India Seminar on Assessment in Special Education - MR (MRIH - USEFI,

2001) recommendation for a Multidimensional Model of Assessment was made with a series of

operational recommendations. This has been implemented. Multidimensional assessment refers

to a comprehensive and integrated evaluative approach that employs multiple measures, deriving

data from multiple sources, surveying multiple domains and fulfilling multiple purposes.

Use of multi-measures provides a broader base and a more valid method for assessing

children with developmental disabilities. Diagnostic batteries that combine norm based,

curriculum based and clinical judgment based scales, help achieve the greatest probability of

accurately describing and prescribing the complex needs of children with multiple disabilities.

Information from Multi source, i.e., from several contexts (home, school, clinic) and sources

(parents, teachers, therapists) is gathered. This requires interdisciplinary, ecological, interactional

and environmental assessment.

Multi domain assessment refers to the use of instruments that examine the child’s

capabilities and deficiencies within and across several developmental and behavioral areas or

processes. In multi purpose assessment, besides cognition, domains like social competence,

communication, self-care, play, temperament, self-regulation, attention, emotional expression

and coping behavior, are included.

2.12 Suggestions Made By USEFI Seminar For Development Of Assessment

Tool For Identifying, Classifying Persons With Mental Retardation • Using a process oriented assessment tool (planning, attention, simultaneous, successive

processing) Das et. al. (2000) instead of IQ Test (MR, L.D., Reading Disability).

• Clinical psychologists working in organizations of disability training research/NTs to take up

adaptive behavior scales suitable to our culture and life (translate to regional language) and

validate the schedule.

• Adoption of completely uniform procedure of testing, laying down tester characteristics for all

institutions, including ethical considerations.

• Learning potential assessment device (LPAD) in content areas, in the pattern of achievement

tests for different levels/ classes, is to be developed.

• Development of clinical diagnosis schedule and procedure involving National Institutes and

other leading Non-Governmental Organizations.

• Adoption of information schedule for family data and ecological conditions.

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• Evolving guidelines for drawing profiles in terms of developmental milestones and points of

intervention.

• Evolving an outline of an assessment report–what and how it can be meaningful to

parents/special educators.

2.13 Teaching Persons With Mental Retardation Using Behavioral Approach

Teacher-centered process giving way to a child-centred one, has influenced the area of

special education with emphasis on the Individualized Education Program (IEP) planning for

children with mental retardation. Along with individualized instruction, the teaching strategies

introduced are cooperative learning, peer tutoring, computeraided learning (CAL), multi-sensory

teaching and clinical-diagnostic teaching.

Procedures–IPP

The individualized program plan (IPP) is based on assessing a person and evolving a

baseline at the point of entry into the program, setting goals and objectives in the order of

priority and converting the goals and objectives into concrete lesson plans which include the

teaching steps, the planning strategies for use, the material selection and finally, evaluation.

Behavioral Technology

Although behavioral technology principles in all cases not only ticked to certain model of

teaching, but also incorporated the principle of task analysis, condition of promoting learning in

special integrated setting. At the National Institute of Mentally Handicapped (NIMH), Peshwaria

and Venkatesan (1992) developed the “Behavioural Approach in Teaching Mentally Retarded

Children” which has been tested in class rooms and at homes. Parents and teachers can develop

programs suited to the specific needs of an individual child. The teacher is also acquainted first

with the behavioral assessment of the person with reference to the current level of functioning,

and the current problem behavior/s.

The teacher must then assess each child’s performance rather than its deficiency, that is,

what he can do rather than what he cannot do. The behavioral assessment tools available in India

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are: MDPS, NIMH assessment schedule, Functional assessment tools, and problem behavior

management system (NIMH). While teaching, the teacher has to identify and analyze problem

behavior and use behavioral techniques to manage the same. The details are given in the manual

and the teacher has to go through the orientation. Studies done by Narayan, Peshwaria, and

Myeredi support its effectiveness. Even though research studies prove the effectiveness of the

Behavioral Approach, evaluating on that basis is not yet practiced at every teaching institution.

2.15 Problems Related To Assessment/Evaluation And The Direction Of

Reforms

The focus Group on Examination Reforms has highlighted certain problems with

conventional examinations tat need to be tackled. The quality of the question papers is low and

they usually call for rote memorization and fail to test higher-order skills like reasoning and

analysis, let alone lateral thinking, creativity, and judgment. Because they are inflexible, based

on a ‘one-size-fits-all’ principle, they make no allowance for different types of learners and

learning environments. Also, there is often a lack of full disclosure and transparency in grading

and mark/grade reporting. While some improvements in such external final examinations can be

made, the far-reaching changes can come only through a functional and reliable system of

school-based evaluation. The flexibility such local assessment allows and the possibility of using

several modes (beyond the timed written examination) can be exploited to assess more aspects of

learners’ development, and make assessment more child friendly and free from tension. Some

specific suggestions are that: (i) Assessment should “not expect everything of everybody in

every subject. The assessment scheme for a subject should have both a standard level and a

higher level option. The former is linked to the basic grasp of the subject matter, while the latter

has a larger component of high-order skills and demand more depth of understanding and greater

speed. Students should have the choice of picking either one of two levels within a subject. Of

say, six subjects, every student would choose to do 3 or 4 exams at the higher level and 3 or 2

exams at the standard level.

(ii) Thee should be flexibility regarding when exams are taken: If it is accepted that learners

learn at different paces, there is no reason, other than administrative convenience. For a fixed

examination schedule, students should be allowed to clear some (up to two, perhaps) subjects at

the end of IX grade for the secondary exam.

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This would not only reduce stress a year later but also make for better long-term learning. This

type of on-demand examinations has already been put in place by the Open School. (iii) The

reporting of achievement should be on a relative scale rather than on the currently used scale of

absolute marks (or grades) in each subject. A percentile rank should be given with respect to (a.)

the entire universe of candidates in that subject, (b). all candidates in that school and (c). all

candidates in that block. A student from a disadvantaged area with low-quality educational

infrastructure who scores, say, 70% (absolute marks) would attain a percentile rank on 95%

within her block-

1. A set of measures to reduce exam anxiety have also been suggested, which include:

a. Shorter exams that leave time for deliberation and periodic test would help.

b. Questions that require students to draw on two or more areas of the syllabus would also allow

more comprehensive testing within lesser time, in addition to constituting good educational

practice by calling on candidates to make relevant connections between materials from different

chapters.

c. A shift in emphasis from ‘short answers’ to MCQs designed to test real understanding of core

concepts would help reduce students anxiety.

d. A shift in emphasis to testing competencies and away from memory would certainly reduce

stress, in addition to aiding the validity of exams. A long-term move toward open-book exams

can be envisaged.

e. The tenth grade board exam should be made optional for those not seeking admission to higher

levels immediately.

2.16 Summary

Many persons with mental retardation also have associated problems. The services to

these individuals must be rendered using the professional skills of the interdisciplinary team

whose members may also be made available on a consultative basis. The team should be

involved in identifying the individual’s needs and in designing programs to meet them. The

individual, his family and the referral agency also form part of the interdisciplinary team. Each

member of the team should utilize the skills, competencies and insights that his/her training and

experience provides, but they should work together as a team without imposing constraints. The

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special educator plays a pivotal role in the interdisciplinary team. The members of the team

should always work together with the child as the main focus.


1. Explain Purposes

2. Explain Current Practices

3. Explain Federal And State Disability Categories

4. Explain Medical And Social System Models

5. Explain Assessment

6. Explain Requirements In Programming

7. Explain Tools Available In India

8. Explain Basic Mr

9. Explain Types

10. Explain Individualized Education Plan (Iep)–Flow Chart

11. Explain The Interdisciplinary Team

12. Explain Mdps Behavioral Scale

13. Explain Assessment In Special Education

14. Explain Suggestions Made By USEFI Seminar For Development Of

Assessment Tool For Identifying, Classifying Persons With Mental

Retardation

15. Explain Teaching Persons With Mental Retardation Using Behavioral

Approach

16. Behavioral Technology

17. Explain Problems Related To Assessment/Evaluation And The Direction Of

Reforms


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





638


















31st – Sept 3rd.













639






















Office.











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31st – Sept 3rd.










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Unit 3: Emerging Trends In Evaluation –CCE, Teacher Made Tests, Grading System

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Continuous And Comprehensive Evaluation

3.2.1 The Importance Of Continuous And Comprehensive Evaluation With A

Formative Orientation

3.3 Student Response Systems

3.4 Teacher Made Test

3.4.1 Opportunities.

3.4.2 Challenges.

3.5 More Information Needed On This Issue Includes:

3.6 Learn More About This Issue:

3.7 Teaching Strategies And Interventions

3.8 Teacher Monitoring Of Student Progress

3.9 Student-Teacher Interaction

3.10 Effective Teaching Literature

3.11 Online Learning


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3.11.2 Challenges.

3.12 Grading System

3.13 Summary


3.15 References

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3.1 Introduction

Today, educational systems across the globe are undergoing efforts to move beyond the ways

they operated at the beginning of the 20th century, with traditional instructional practices that

commonly ask students to work individually on exams that require them to recall facts or

respond to pre-formulated problems within the narrow boundaries of individual school subjects.

Reforms currently underway reframe what is taught, how it is learned, and how it is being

evaluated in innovative ways that help personalize learning. Assessments that support learning

must explicitly communicate the nature of expected learning. Research, in fact, shows the

powerful effect that on-going assessment embedded into the learning process has on student

learning, particularly for low ability students (Black & Wiliam, 1998). Creating such a system of

personalized learning requires new forms of formative and summative student performance

assessments that enable individual students to stretch onward from wherever they are in a

learning continuum.

For over a decade, Intel® Corporation has been involved in a number of global initiatives

such as Assessment and Teaching of 21st Century Skills (ATC21S) that support developing new

national assessment strategies and new benchmarking tests. Through its partnerships with

ministries of education, Intel Teach’s teacher professional development programs have helped

millions of teachers in developing countries integrate these innovative assessment strategies, as

well as technology, into their classroom practice (EDC & SRI International, 2008; Light, Polin,

& Strother, 2009). While these strategies support new assessments of learning, all of the Intel

Teach professional development programs also use a variety of assessment for learning

approaches. Assessment for learning is the idea that classroom assessments should support

ongoing teaching and learning (Assessment Reform Group, 2002; Heritage, 2010), thus

highlighting the vital role that teacher-made classroom-based formative and process-focused

assessments could play in improving the entire education system. Intel’s Getting Started course,

teachers learn the technical skills to design rubrics and the Essentials course teaches teachers

how to use rubrics to assess student products and encourages performance-based assessments.

The Teaching Thinking with Technology and the Essentials V10 courses stress formative

assessments for 21st century skills. The online Elements courses include one entirely devoted to

assessing 21st century learning. Intel also offers a free online rubric maker.

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Additionally, courses like Getting Started and Essentials model good assessment

practices when they have teachers assess and provide feedback on their work or when the

courses ask teachers to reflect on their own learning in the course. But, these programs alone are

probably not sufficient and local agencies and ministries may need to do more to support the

needed shifts in classroom assessment strategies.

In its work collaborating with governments, policy-makers, and local agencies around the

world, Intel has always maintained that education reform is a systemic process in which

stakeholders need to consider how policy changes in one area affect other areas. Yet, one of the

biggest challenges for ministries of education engaged in school reform is measuring whether

they are having a real impact in the classroom. While, many of these teacher-designed

assessment strategies are increasingly common in the classrooms of developing countries, they

are still rarely used in emerging market countries. To truly improve student learning in emerging

market countries it is important to transform how teachers’ assess their students learning in the

classroom. This paper highlights the research on a number of assessment strategies or tools for

classroom-based assessment that can play a key role in creating and supporting the new 21st

century learning environments and encourages ministries to consider how these strategies may

play a role in their own reform efforts.

There is unequivocal support for the continuous/formative assessment across the world.

Bell and Cowie (2001) define formative assessment as the process used by teachers and students

to recognize and respond to student learning in order to enhance that learning, during the

learning. Black and Wiliam (1998b) define assessment broadly to include all activities that

teachers and students undertake to get information that can be used diagnostically to alter

teaching and learning. Under this definition (Boston, 2002) assessment encompasses teacher

observation, classroom discussion, and analysis of student work, including homework and tests.

Assessment becomes formative when the information is used to adapt teaching and learning to

meet student needs. Feedback given as part of formative assessment helps learners become aware

of any gaps that exist between their desired goal and their current knowledge, understanding, or

skill and guides them through actions necessary to obtain the goal (Ramprasad, 1983; Sadler,

1989). Through teacher-student interactions during learning activities (Newman, Griffin, & Cole,

1989) that formative assessment is done and that students receive feedback on what they know,

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understand, and can do. Black and Wiliam (1998a) conducted an extensive research review of

250 journal articles and book chapters to determine whether formative assessment raises

academic standards in the classroom. Research studies have also shown that students who

understand the learning objectives and assessment criteria and have opportunities to reflect on

their work show greater improvement than those who do not. (Fontana & Fernandes, 1994;

Frederikson & White, 1997). Formative assessment is seen as a crucial component in teaching

for conceptual development (Bell, 1995). Black and Wiliam (1998b) view that efforts to

strengthen formative assessment produce significant learning gains and apparently help low-

achieving students, including students with learning disabilities, even more than it helped other

students. Teachers (Boston, 2002) generally need to undertake or participate in some summative

assessment as a basis for reporting grades or meeting accountability standards. However, the task

of summative assessment for external purposes remains quite different from the task of formative

assessment to monitor and improve progress. Assessment can be considered formative only if it

results in action by the teacher and students to enhance student learning (Black, 1993).

3.2 Continuous And Comprehensive Evaluation

In the light of the above, the focus of source book, a comprehensive document on

assessment at secondary stage would be to emphasize on continuous and comprehensive

assessment. Continuity means assessment throughout the session, and making it an integral part

of teaching learning process through formal and informal methods. Comprehensiveness means

assessment of all areas of learning. This encompasses all aspects of pupils’ growth such as

intellectual, physical, social personal qualities, interests, attitudes and values. The term

comprehensive also means variety of evaluation tools and techniques employed for different

learning areas. The CCE is multi-dimensional as it involves multiple techniques and different

persons like teacher, pupil, peer, parent and community. CCE takes care of students pace of

learning in all aspects of personality growth with regular periodicity and timely addressing of the

problems. The essential principles for a planned scheme of CCE are flexibility, functionality,

accountability, and economy. The learning environment such as conditions, persons, and

resources, which throw light on pupil’s learning, must also be taken into consideration in

assessing the students.

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3.2.1 The Importance Of Continuous And Comprehensive Evaluation With A

Formative Orientation

Many of suggestions for improving assessment practices over the years come together in

the broad framework of CCE. Its components serve to reduce the tension inducing rigidity of the

conventional system and provide for the fuller engagement with the varied dimensions along

which the school child develops cognitively, emotionally and socially. Equally important is the

role of formative assessment in making a positive contribution to the enhancement of quality.

Virtually all activity under this head has to be local and internal: teachers and students to a

significant degree will be the agents. This has major implications for teacher autonomy and

empowerment and for students’ involvement and ownership of their educational programmes.

One scheme has been worked by the CBSE. The details are given in Appendix. The present

framework is an attempt to build on this and other initiatives to evolve a meaningful and feasible

scheme for assessment (incorporating CCE) specially oriented to the curriculum of the secondary

stage. From the academic session i.e., 2010-11 CBSE has introduced CCE in both classes IX and

X. The academic session is divided into two terms (I term –April-September, II term – October –

March). Each term will have two formative and one summative assessment. However, a serious

concern that emanates from the above kind of assessment is that students will need to undergo

more tests instead of one and ultimately it may lead to aversion towards testing and learning

itself. In this regard it is not only important for CBSE but also other boards and agencies

concerned with secondary education to focus more on appropriate and diverse tools and

techniques of assessment. Periodicity of assessment does not mean mere increase in the number

of tests administered on students.

3.3 Student Response Systems Student response system (SRS), also known as classroom response system (CRS), audience

response system (ARS) or colloquially as “clickers,” is a general term that refers to a variety of

technology-based formative assessment tools that can be used to gather student-level data

instantly in the classroom. Through the combination of hardware (hand held clickers, receiver,

PC, internet connection, projector and screen) and software, teachers can ask students a wide

range of questions (both closed and open-ended), students can respond quickly and

anonymously, and the teacher can display the data immediately and graphically. The value of

SRS comes from teachers analyzing information quickly and then devising real-time pedagogical

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solutions to maximize student learning (Beatty & Gerace, 2009; Bruff; Caldwell, 2007). As with

most teaching tools (including the rubric), an SRS is only as effective as the pedagogy it is

couched in (Beatty & Gerace, 2009; Rochelle, Penuel, & Abrahamson, 2004). As a result, this

section discusses not only the tool but also the questioning strategies at the heart of its

implementation.

At its core, SRS allows for the generation of data that can guide the ongoing modification

of pedagogy and content coverage to better differentiate teaching strategies to meet all students’

needs (Bruff; Caldwell, 2007; Salend, 2009). What makes SRS distinct from other assessment

tools is its ability to collect and display data instantly rather than waiting days to present the

outcome as with a test, essay or project. SRS has been found to be effective across grade levels

and in a variety of subject areas (Beatty & Gerace, 2009; Bruff, 2007; Caldwell, 2007; Rochelle,

et al., 2004).

The effectiveness of the SRS tool is closely linked to the type, quality, quantity, speed

and sequence of the questions being asked (Bruff, 2007; Beatty & Gerace, 2009; Caldwell,

2007). SRS technology can be used to pose a variety of types of questions including recall

questions, conceptual understanding questions, application questions, critical thinking questions,

student perspective questions, confidence level questions, monitoring questions, and classroom

experiment questions (Bruff). Depending on the learning goal for the lesson, a teacher can ask

questions to help gauge understanding, foster discussion, elicit feedback or give student voice in

what they are studying. An instructor may also choose from a number of questioning sequences

including easy-hard-hard (a “warm-up” question followed by two more challenging questions

meant to elicit student discussion and test transferability across contexts) or rapid fire (a series of

moderately difficult questions around one concept). Some general examples of effective SRS

questions include: given a graph, match it with the best description or interpretation; match the

method of analysis with a particular data set; sort ideas or steps into the correct order; or apply a

familiar idea to a new context.

One strand of questioning strategies that is highly effective at integrating SRS is a series

of questions designed to promote peer learning. Peer learning is an active learning method where

students spend time collaborating and discussing issues in small groups (Caldwell, 2007). To

648

foster peer learning, SRS can be used to pose a question that a teacher knows students will have

varying opinions on. Peer learning has been proven an effective teaching method that increases

student engagement, improves learning outcomes, promotes the circulation of knowledge

between students, fosters metacognitive learning, and provides feedback to the instructor (Beatty

& Gerace, 2009).

Practitioners and researchers report many other benefits to the use of SRS in the

classroom. The research suggests that when integrated effectively into instruction SRS can

1) improve engagement,

2) provoke critical thinking;

3) give students voice in classroom decisions,

4) improve classroom discussion,

5) increase attendance and retention, and finally,

6) increase enjoyment of class

(Caldwell, 2007; Bruff; Salend, 2009; Beatty & Gerace, 2009; Johnson & McLeod,

2004). Though small studies show that SRS has been effective at increasing achievement levels

among special populations like students with learning disabilities, on a larger scale, researchers

have difficulty making a causal link between the tool and academic outcomes (Jerome &

Barbetta, 2005; Caldwell, 2007; Roschelle et. al., 2004). In additional to enhancing instructional

strategies, SRS can be used as an effective classroom management tool to help monitor

participation (Rochelle et. al., 2004), manage a large classroom (Caldwell, 2007; Beatty and

Gerace, 2009), practice and review for tests (Beatty and Gerace, 2009), and facilitate homework

collection (Bruff).

3.4 Teacher Made Test

Common Core State Standards (CCSS) have been developed by the National Governors

Association Center for Best Practices and the Council of Chief State School Officers. Currently

the CCSS have been formally adopted by 45 states and the District of Columbia with the

remaining states adopting standards more rigorous than their existing state standards.

The CCSS are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, providing a consistent, clear

understanding of what students across the country are expected to learn. The standards promote

649

equity, applying to all students regardless of their location, race, ethnicity, disability status or

English language proficiency.

For many states and districts, implementing the CCSS in lieu of their existing academic

standards will require a significant boost in rigor. And this clearly has enormous implications for

students with LD and related learning difficulties and disorders.

Assessments aligned with the CCSS are being developed by two federally funded

consortia of states, the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers

(PARCC) and the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced). The

assessments have begun field testing during the 2013–2014 school year and will be fully

implemented in the 2014–2015 school year. The consortia are also required to develop

accommodation policies for students with disabilities, and it will be important to monitor how

these accommodations are being granted and whether they are indeed providing the right kinds

of supports for students with LD.


For students with LD who receive special education services and supports, the

widespread adoption of the CCSS should accelerate a practice that links the development of a

student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) directly to grade-level standards—a process

known as “standards-based IEPs.”

Aligning IEP goals with the skills needed to be proficient on the CCSS for a student’s

enrolled grade level is critical to bolstering the intensity of instruction that will be necessary for

students with LD to be successful in these new, more rigorous standards.

The CCSS-aligned assessments will encompass significant advances in assessment,

incorporating universal design principles and embedded supports and enhancements, thereby

eliminating the need for many of the different types of traditional accommodations that are

currently used on pencil-and-paper tests. These advances will certainly provide improved access

(opportunities to demonstrate knowledge without the constraint of a disability) for all students,

including those with disabilities.

3.4.2 Challenges.

650

Ensuring that students with LD have access to the general education curriculum aligned

to the CCSS will require significant retooling of practices within general and special education.

Heightening expectations, sharing ownership, improving collaboration and providing

professional development for teachers are among the essential elements needing attention.

3.5 More Information Needed On This Issue Includes:

data that capture how students with LD perform on CCSS assessments and ways to

compare student outcomes in states using new assessment systems

data to reflect whether students who are entitled to accommodations receive them for all

or part of their test administration

data on students’ preferences for embedded supports

data on student access and opportunity to become familiar with testing platforms and

technology

data on the adoption and implementation of standards-based IEPs

3.6 Learn More About This Issue:

Information about the Common Core State Standards, including the application of the

CCSS to students with disabilities, is available at corestandards.org.

Information on the state assessment consortia developing assessments aligned to the

CCSS is available at k12center.org/publications/assessment_consortia.html.

The International Center for Leadership in Education paper Fewer, Clearer, Higher

Common Core State Standards: Implications for Students Receiving Special Education Services

(2011) provides helpful information on CCSS and students with disabilities and is available at

leadered.com/pdf/Special%20Ed%20&%20CCSS%20white%20paper.pdf.

Parent Advocacy Brief: Understanding the Standards-based IEP by the National Center for

Learning Disabilities, provides an overview of this important approach to aligning IEP goals to

academic standards and is available at LD.org/UnderstandingStandardsIEP.

3.7 Teaching Strategies And Interventions

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For the most part, research shows differences between general and special education

instruction, though findings have not been consistent across studies. Some comparison studies

have focused on the differences in the teaching strategies and interventions used by general and

special education teachers, and this literature consistently shows differences. One study, which

compared teacher planning and adaptation for students with learning disabilities, found that

general educators preferred to use manipulative and audiovisual activities, while the special

educators preferred detailed intervention programs designed for special education students, for

example, direct instruction and cognitive strategy instructions.44 (Direct instruction and

cognitive strategy instructions are described later in this article, in the section on inclusion

efforts.) Another study of instruction for children with educable mental retardation (EMR) in

general and special settings foundthat special educators showed more flexibility in selecting

strategies with which to manage and monitor the classroom.

3.8 Teacher Monitoring Of Student Progress

The research comparing teacher monitoring of student progress is also consistent in

showing that general and special education teachers approach this task differently. General

education teachers prefer to determine progress or success through informal observations in the

classrooms; when tests are involved, they prefer tests directly based on material taught (as

opposed to standardized tests such as the California Achievement Test). On the other hand,

special educators are generally more data-based. Further, with smaller classes, special education

teachers can be more knowledgeable about their students and can tailor educational programs for

specific students.

3.9 Student-Teacher Interaction

With regard to student-teacher interaction in the two settings, results are

somewhatinconsistent. One study, which compared the interactions of students with learning

disabilities with a group of nondisabled students in general education classes, found that the

students with learning disabilities had more interaction with the teachers, but that the teachers

asked academic questions and provided feedback more to the students without disabilities. Other

652

researchers have found that the proportion of exchanges focused on academic content is greater

in special than in general education.

A study of beginning general and special education teachers also found that special

educators monitored and praised their students with learning disabilities more than did general

educators. During teacher-initiated interactions, the special educators were more likely to

provide more answers to their own questions and less likely to ignore students’ inattention or

disruptive behaviors. A follow-up study49 with different general and special education teachers

produced similar findings.

3.10 Effective Teaching Literature

Some studies comparing instruction in general and special education come from the

effective teaching literature. Advocates for inclusion have often cited this literature because they

assume that students with mild handicaps are essentially the same as low achievers and will

respond well to the same interventions that have been effective with low-achieving students.50

This is a controversial assumption because recent research indicates that there are differences in

brain structure and functioning between children with dyslexia (a common learning disability)

and other children and that there is a biological and possibly genetic factor in some reading

disabilities. One study compared instructional behaviors of general and special education

teachers from the perspective of the effective teaching literature to identify behaviors that

differentiated teachers whose students had high and low proportions of on-task behavior.

Overall, special education teachers were more likely than general educators to monitor student

behavior, praise, show positive regard, give the answer, and reject students’ verbalizations. More

effective general and special education teachers had materials ready, began lessons promptly,

oriented learners to the lesson, made assignments more often, exhibited more teacher-directed

than student-directed learning, praised student responses more, and had to manage student

inattention/disruption less often.

It appears that differences in instruction between general and special education teachers

are common. Some of these differences may be a function of smaller class sizes; others may be

related to teachers’ professional training. Given the existence of these differences, it is

653

reasonable to ask whether outcomes for students with disabilities are determined more by the

setting in which they are educated or by what happens in that setting.

3.11 Online Learning

Online learning—education in which instruction, content, knowledge and skill

acquisition are mediated primarily by network technologies such as the internet—is now a

common mode of instruction in nearly all of the nation’s schools. In fact, some states have

mandated that students complete at least one online course as a requirement for high school

graduation.


The versatility and flexibility of online learning provides opportunities for students with

LD not available in traditional school settings. For example, the pace and presentation of

instruction can be customized on a student-by-student basis, providing truly personalized and

individualized instruction for students with LD. It can also provide a platform for continued

services during out-of-school time that arises because of disciplinary removals.

3.11.2 Challenges.

The Center on Online Learning and Students With Disabilities has raised a list of early

concerns regarding the participation of students with disabilities in new online learning

environments. Given the rapid expansion of online learning offerings and requirements, it is

critical to quickly and adequately address the issues that might impose limitations for students

with disabilities.

More information needed on this issue includes:

data to reflect how many students with LD are enrolled in online and blended learning

courses, whether these types of learning opportunities result in improved mastery of skills and

course content, and whether knowledge and skills generalize to real-life situations

data to inform ways that ensure students with LD can participate fully in the social and

behavioral demands of online learning

654

data to inform the creation of procedures and systems to ensure that online learning

activities for students with LD are structured in ways that can be managed and supported by

educators (or parents) without compromise to students’ rights under federal law

data to ensure that students with LD, and with other disabilities, are not inappropriately

assigned to online learning in lieu of traditional classroom settings

Learn more about this issue:

Center on Online Learning and Students With Disabilities’ Open Letter Concerning

Participation in Online Learning (2012), which outlines many concerns, is available at

centerononlinelearning.org/an-open-letter-from-don-deshler-bill-east-and-david-rose-principal-

investigators-diana-greer-project-director.

State and district information on online learning by Evergreen Education Group is available at

kpk12.com/states.

3.12 Grading System

The analysis of the performance of students, whether it is of CCE or common/public

examination is a very important activity. While the CCE feedback helps students immediately,

the summative information provides about the levels of attainment of students during a particular

academic session. The analysis of performance can be taken up at different levels such as

individual teacher, school, district educational administration, state agencies such as Board of

Education/SCERT and National level agencies. However, the kind of analysis and the feedback

that can go to students varies with varying levels. While the teacher can give immediate feedback

to the students, the feedback that a national agency can provide at best is for systemic

improvement and not for individual performance enhancement.

In view of this different stakeholders need to participate in the entire exercise by making

use of different tools and techniques to monitor the progress of the students at different intervals,

so that even the authenticity of each of the stakeholders is cross verified.

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The proposed Certificate of School Based Assessment is divided into three parts. Part I consists

of evaluation of Scholastic attainments which will be reflected both for classes IX & X in the

card in the form of Grades and Percentile Rank. Part I (A):

• There will be two terms in both classes IX & X, the first term will be from April – September

and the second term from October to March of the subsequent year.

• Each term will have two formative and one summative assessment.

• Assessment will be indicated in grades and percentile rank.

• The grading scale for the scholastic domain is a nine point grading scale given at the back of

the card.

Part I (B):

• This will assess students for work-experience, art education and physical and health education.

• It will be assessed on a five point grading scale.

• Descriptive indicators are statements used to describe each learner.

• Overall grade will be given at the end of class IX and class X.

Part 2: consists of Co-scholastic areas where participants are assessed in two parts; 2 (A) Life

skills and 2 (B) Attitudes and values. Part 2 (A):

• Life skills: This consists of thinking skills, social skills and emotional skills which will be

assessed on a five point grading scale.

Part 2 (B):

• This consists of attitude towards teachers, schoolmates, school programmes and environment

and will be assessed on a three point grading scale.

• Value systems refer to the framework, which must be developed right through primary to

secondary level. These will be assessed on a three point grading scale.

Part 3 consists of Co-scholastic areas where in choice in participation and assessment thereof is

available. This pat consists of two sub parts. Part 3 (A): Literary & creative skills, scientific

skills, aesthetic skills and performing art and clubs (Eco, health and wellness clubs etc.) Part 3

(B) Eight different kinds of activities have been provided. 1. Sports/indigenous sports (kho-kho

etc.) 2. NCC/NSS 3. Scouting and guiding 4. Swimming 5. Gymnastics 6. Yoga 7. First Aid 8.

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Gardening/Shramdan The learner needs to be assessed on any two from the first subpart and any

two from the second subpart.

• Except life skills each of these co-scholastic areas will be assessed on a three point grading

scale.

• Assessment of scholastic attainments 1 (A) will be reported once in class IX and once in class

X.

• Assessment of scholastic attainments 1 (B) will be reported once in class IX and once in class

X.

• Assessment of Co-scholastic 2 (A) and 2 (B) will be reported once in class IX and once in class

X.

• Assessment of Co-scholastic 3 (A) and 3 (B) will be reported once in class IX and once in class

X.

The CBSE scheme also provides for assessment of self-awareness. While the assessment

certificate covers very broadly all the areas of child’s development, the rigid demarcation of

areas of assessment and the scope for teacher’s to identify indicators which are not defined in the

certificate limit the scope for teachers to provide contextualized assessment. Further, in many of

the areas such as life skills, attitudes & values and co-scholastic activities etc., it would be

sufficient to provide details under descriptive indicators and not necessary to award grades as

such.

3.13 Summary

While learning disabilities affect millions of Americans across the age span, the number

of identified individuals is most easily determined for school-age children and, to a lesser extent,

college-age adults. Studies indicate that few adults identify themselves as having LD, making it

difficult to ascertain just how such individuals are faring in key areas such as higher education,

employment status and earnings.

The decline in the numbers of school-age children being identified with LD over the past

decade appears to be the result of multiple factors, including a better understanding of reading

657

acquisition and efforts to provide intervention activities before a special education eligibility

determination is made. Also related to this decline may be changes in the LD identification

process in special education law and regulations as well as in school-based practice. Change in

the rate of LD identification during the past 10 years has varied across states, perhaps a reflection

of the many different approaches being implemented. These trends must be carefully watched to

help inform both practice and policy.

Despite a decline in the number of school-age children reported to have LD, it remains

the largest category of students served by special education (42 percent). Those identified

continue to be largely male (66 percent), disproportionately poor and, to some degree, from

minority groups. Students with LD also continue to experience disciplinary actions at a much

higher rate than those without LD and encounter difficulties in school and other settings as a

result of inappropriate behavior and conduct.

While an increasing percentage of students with LD are receiving most of their

instruction in general education classrooms, it is difficult to determine if this results in positive

academic achievement. The performance of students with disabilities (including those with LD)

on measures of reading and math continues to show little improvement.

Improving the graduation rate of students with LD and reducing the drop-out rate are

among the many pressing issues for this group. Given all that is known about the detrimental and

lifelong effects of dropping out, efforts to implement effective drop-out prevention programs and

early warning systems that help schools identify and intervene with high-risk students should be

a top priority in the nation’s high schools.

To better facilitate moving successfully from school to college and careers, transition

planning needs to be improved. A key provision of IDEA, transition planning activities must

become a greater priority, with increased input from parents, and more direct involvement by

students. Transition planning must reflect the post-high school goals of students in meaningful

ways, and individuals from other agencies must be more frequently involved in transition

planning for students with LD, particularly disability support services personnel in colleges and

universities.

658

The current level at which young people with LD access and succeed in postsecondary

education is unacceptably low. The unemployment rate of Americans with only a high school

diploma is twice that of those with a bachelor’s degree; their weekly earnings are almost half.

659

Adding to these pressing problems is the emergence of a host of new issues confronting those

with LD, including significant changes in how LD is identified, increased rigor of academic

standards in our nation’s schools and a rapidly expanding variety of ways to access education.

All of these issues will need attention to ensure equal opportunities for students with LD and to

assure that the rights of those with LD are upheld.

Research efforts such as the National Longitudinal Transition Studies have provided a

wealth of information that can be used to improve instruction, impact academic achievement and

enhance post-school outcomes for students with LD. Surveys such as those conducted by NCLD,

with the support of NCLD and others in the field and by the Tremaine Foundation continue to

further our understanding of the public’s perception of and attitudes toward LD. On the horizon

is a new large-scale study, the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012, which will provide

up-to-date information on youth with LD. Examining all of these data will help map future needs

and opportunities for providing necessary services and supports to individuals with LD, their

families and their school-based and workplace communities.

Looking only at data about the incidence, prevalence and reported outcomes of

individuals with LD, this report does not delve into the issue of neurodiversity as a lens through

which to understand the LD experience. Neuroscientists and other clinical and educational

professionals have recently begun discussing ways that having LD (e.g., dyslexia) might be

advantageous for certain types of information processing, and highly successful individuals with

LD and ADHD have publicly disclosed their struggles and successes, pointing to the importance

of self-awareness, perseverance and self-advocacy for those in need of hope and encouragement.

Examining the data as well as the values, strengths and talents of those with LD is critical to

helping create opportunities for them to achieve success and satisfaction in school, at work, at

home and in the community.

As the nature of LD continues to be better understood and the particular needs of those

with these neurological differences are better defined, success in all aspects of life should

become more achievable for a larger number of Americans with LD. It is important to consider

the well-being of individuals with LD as society changes, school transformation efforts are

implemented, instructional technologies are adopted and assistive technologies are introduced.

Each of these will influence the reality of individuals with LD, and the implications for research,

660

practice and public policy must be considered from the perspectives of those who live with LD in

an increasingly complex world.


1. Explain Continuous And Comprehensive Evaluation

2. Explain Explain Formative Orientation

3. Explain Student Response Systems

4. ExplainTeacher Made Test

5. ExplainOpportunities.

6. ExplainChallenges.

7. ExplainMore Information Needed On This Issue Includes:

8. ExplainLearn More About This Issue:

9. ExplainTeaching Strategies And Interventions

10. ExplainTeacher Monitoring Of Student Progress

11. ExplainStudent-Teacher Interaction

12. ExplainEffective Teaching Literature

13. ExplainOnline Learning


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.









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31st – Sept 3rd.










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Unit 4: Differential Evaluation Of Pwid In Inclusive Setup

4.1 Introduction

4.2 Outcomes For Students With Disabilities:

4.3 Definitions: “Mainstreaming” And “Inclusion”

4.4 Current Placement Patterns

4.5 Positions On Inclusion

4.6 Room To Grow

4.7 The Effects Of Inclusion On Students Without Disabilities

4.8 Interventions Designed To Promote Inclusion

4.9 Summary


4.11 References

671

4.1 Introduction

Studies investigating the effects of placement in general education classrooms reveal

positive outcomes in the areas of IEP quality, time of engagement, and individualized supports.

Significant increases in IEP quality on measures of age-appropriateness, functionality, and

generalization were found when students moved into general education classes from special

education settings even though the special educator remained the same (Hunt & Farron-Davis,

1992). Within the general education classroom, there was an increase in the amount of

instruction on functional activities as well as basic academic skills such as literacy for students

with severe disabilities (Hunt, Farron-Davis, Beckstead, Curtis, & Goetz, 1994). In addition,

students were observed to be less engaged and often more alone in self-contained classrooms.

Similar student engagement outcomes were reported in a study involving nine elementary

students with severe disabilities who were observed in both special and general education

settings. General education classrooms delivered more instruction, provided a comparable

amount of 1:1 instruction time, addressed content more, and used non-disabled peers more and

adults less (Helmstetter, Curry, Brennan, & Sampson-Saul, 1998). Furthermore, comparisons of

the two settings revealed a significant difference in non-instructional time. In self-contained

classes, 58% of the time was classified as non-instructional versus 35% of the time in general

education classes.

To answer the question of individualizing supports, McDonnell and colleagues compared

the instructional contexts of students with low incidence disabilities and their typical peers in

general education settings. The students with severe disabilities were 13 times more likely than

their peers without disabilities to receive instruction directed exclusively toward them during

whole class activities, and were 23 times more likely to receive 1:1 instruction (McDonnell,

Thorson, & McQuivey, 2000). This challenges the prevalent notion that students with disabilities

cannot receive individualized supports in general education classrooms.

4.2 Outcomes For Students With Disabilities:

672

Most research studies examining educational outcomes have found positive effects for

inclusion. Baker and colleagues reviewed three metaanalyses that addressed the issue of the most

effective setting for the education of students with disabilities. A small-to-moderate positive

effect for inclusive placement was found in all three meta-analyses (Baker, Wang, & Walberg,

1994). More recently, Waldron, Cole, and Majd (2001) investigated the effects of inclusive

programs for students with high incidence disabilities and their typical peers. This two-year

study found that 41.7% of students with learning disabilities made progress in math in general

education classes compared to 34% in traditional special education settings, without the presence

of nondisabled peers. Gains in reading were comparable in both settings. When comparing

progress with their typical peers, 43.3% of students with disabilities made comparable or greater

progress in math in inclusive settings versus 35.9% in traditional settings. Similar academic

gains were reported in a study examining the use of class-wide peer tutoring on the achievement

of students with high incidence disabilities in inclusive classrooms. Significant increases in

spelling, social studies and other academic indicators were observed (Pomerantz, Windell, &

Smith, 1994). Positive educational outcomes are not in the area of academics alone. The National

Longitudinal Transition Study examined the outcomes of 11,000 students with a range of

disabilities and found that more time spent in a general education classroom was positively

correlated with:

a) fewer absences from school,

b) fewer referrals for disruptive behavior, and

c) better outcomes after high school in the areas of employment and independent living (Wagner,

Newman, Cameto, & Levine, 2006).

Meta-analyses and comparative studies examining the educational outcomes of students

with low incidence disabilities in inclusive versus segregated classrooms have found either no

difference in outcomes or positive effects for inclusion (Hunt & Goetz, 1997). There is a body of

empirical evidence that shows students with severe disabilities are able to acquire skills in a

range of areas within inclusive classrooms. McGregor and Vogelsberg (1998) report that

students demonstrate higher levels of social interaction with typical peers, social competence and

communication skills improve (e.g., Hunt, Alwell, Farron-Davis & Goetz, 1996), and academic

gains are made (McDonnell, Thorson, McQuivey, & Kiefer-O’Donnell, 1997). In addition,

673

Kliewer and Biklen (2001) found that inclusive learning environments facilitated the acquisition

of literacy and adaptive skills as well as enhancing students’ social relationships. In this domain

of social outcomes, Fisher and Meyer (2002) conducted a two-year longitudinal study to examine

social competence for 40 students with severe disabilities in inclusive and selfcontained

classrooms. Students in the inclusive settings had significantly higher mean scores on

the ASC (Assessment of Social Competence) after a two-year period, and although students in

self-contained classrooms made gains, they were not statistically significant. Falvey (2004)

notes that “no studies conducted since the late 1970’s have shown an academic advantage for

students with intellectual and other developmental disabilities educated in separate settings.”

Effect on typical peers: Concerns are often raised about the impact that students with

disabilities, especially those with challenging behavior, have on the learning of typical students.

Hollowood and colleagues investigated the degree to which the presence of students with

severe disabilities affected the time allocated for instruction, the actual time used for

instruction, and students’ engaged time. Results indicated no differences across the three

domains when comparing classrooms that included students with severe disabilities and

classrooms without students with severe disabilities (Hollowood, Salisbury, Rainforth, &

Palombaro, 1995). The finding that engaged time for typical learners is not negatively impacted

by the presence of students with severe disabilities was also replicated in other studies (Peltier,

1997; Staub & Peck, 1995).

In the area of academic progress, Waldron, Cole, and Majd (2001) report that more

students without disabilities made comparable or greater gains in math and reading when taught

in inclusive settings versus traditional classrooms where no students with disabilities are

included. This suggests that inclusive classrooms provide greater access to the general education

curriculum that benefits all students. Further evidence for the positive effects of inclusion on

students without disabilities is reported by McGregor and Vogelsberg (1998). They found: o

inclusion does not compromise general education students’ outcomes, o typical peers benefit

from involvement and relationships with students who have disabilities in inclusive settings, and

o the presence of students with disabilities in general education classrooms leads to new learning

opportunities for typical students.

674

4.3 Definitions: “Mainstreaming” And “Inclusion”

Both mainstreaming and inclusion are concepts and movements, rather than precisely

defined programs. Within this article, main streaming and inclusion will be defined as described

below. “Mainstreaming” is the integration of children with disabilities with their peers in general

education based on individual assessment. The term is associated with the least restrictive

environment (LRE) mandate in the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) and with the “full

continuum of services” 4 (see Box 1). That is, mainstreaming occurs when an interdisciplinary

team (including parents) determines that, given all available placement options, a specific child

should participate in general education for some part of the school day. “Inclusion” goes beyond

mainstreaming in that it implies that most children with disabilities will be educated in the

general education classroom for most, if not all, of the school day. “Full inclusion” means that

all children with disabilities, regardless of the nature or severity of the disability, will be

educated in general education: in a full inclusion system, separate special education placements

would no longer exist. Both inclusion and full inclusion imply that otherplacement options

would be severely curtailed or abolished.

4.4 Current Placement Patterns

Data from the most recent annual report to Congress5 of the Office of Special Education

Programs (OSEP) show that a variety of placements are used (see Figure 1). The percentage of

students with disabilities served in the various placements has changed very little over the past

decade.6 Approximately one-third of special education students spend 80% or more of their

school day in the general education classroom. Another one-third spend 40% to 79% of their day

in general education. Approximately one-quarter spend 0% to 39% of their time in general

education, but their special education classrooms share a building with the general education

classes. The remaining 5% to 6% of special education students are served in separate schools,

residential programs, hospitals, or their own homes.

4.5 Positions On Inclusion

675

Many constituencies, representing people with widely differing disabilities, as well

asprofessional organizations of teachers, school administrators, and professionals who work with

students with disabilities, have issued position statements on inclusion through their professional

or advocacy organizations. These positions have been categorized as follows:7 n unqualified

enthusiasm for full inclusion and elimination of the continuum of special education services;8 n

enthusiasm for the philosophy of inclusion but support for the continuum of ser vices and

individual decision making;9,10 n reduction of the special education system in size;11 n support

for “appropriate” (individually determined) inclusion, including a full continuum of placement

options and services;12 n concern that inclusion does not provide appropriate services for

students with learning disabilities, vision impairment/blindness, or hard-of-hearing/deafness;13–

18 and n concern about responsibilities of general education teachers and effects of inclusion on

all students,19 with recognition that diversity of placement options and teaching approaches is a

strength of the current system

Box 1

Full Continuum of Educational Services

and Student Placement

Level I Attendance in general education class, without supplementary instructional

supports, and with or without medical supports

Level II Attendance in general education class with supplementary

instructional services delivered in the general classroom

Level III Part-time attendance in resource room

Level IV Full-time attendance in special education class

Level V Special schools

Level VI Homebound instruction

Level VII Instruction in hospital or domiciled settings

676

677

4.5 Making Inclusion Work

Recognition that inclusion benefits both students with and without disabilities has led to

research that seeks to define the necessary contexts, instructional practices, and curricular

efforts that result in improved learner outcomes. Some of this research, especially for students

with high incidence disabilities, is well documented and its effectiveness clearly established.

For students with low incidence disabilities, the body of empirical evidence is smaller but favors

inclusive settings with its use of strategies such as varied instructional arrangements and peer

supports.

Peer Mediated Instruction & Intervention: The use of peer mediated instruction and

intervention is often cited in the literature as one of the most effective strategies for inclusive

classrooms. In several studies focused on students with mild disabilities, the use of peermediated

strategies results in improved academic outcomes for all students including those considered at-

risk academically (Sailor, 2002). In a review of the literature, Fisher, Shumaker, and Deshler

(1995) reported significant increases in reading, spelling, math, social studies, and other

academic indicators for studies investigating the use of class-wide peer tutoring models (CWPT)

where students serve as tutors and tutees in acquiring basic academic skills and factual

knowledge. Positive outcomes are accrued when training for tutors is emphasized and in some

cases, results in large effect on student outcomes (Stenhoff & Lignugaris/Kraft, 2007). Increases

for both elementary and high school aged students were noted.

Specifically for students with moderate to severe disabilities, CWPT has also shown to

result in increased levels of engagement and academic responses as well as academic gains.

Dawson and colleagues investigated the effects of CWPT for students with intellectual

disabilities and their typical peers in general education classrooms. Results showed increases in

spelling accuracy as well as greater levels of engagement with typical peers and a decrease in

competing behaviors when compared to teacher-led instruction (Dawson, Delquadri,

Greenwood, Hamilton, Ledford, Mortweet, Reddy, Utley, & Walker, 1999). Similar outcomes

were reported by McDonnell and colleagues in a study that focused on the use of CWPT along

with a multi-element curriculum and accommodations for students with severe disabilities

678

(McDonnell, Mathot-Buckner, Thorson, & Fister, 2001).

More recent studies modeled after CWPT investigated the use of Peer-Assisted Learning

Strategies (PALS) as a method for improving academic outcomes for students with high

incidence disabilities and struggling typical peers. Features of PALS include reciprocal tutoring

roles, opportunities to respond and experience success, structured activities, and supplemental

practice of skills taught in the core curriculum. Fifteen years of pilot studies, component

analyses, and large-scale experiments have shown improvement in the reading achievement of

low, average, and high achieving students including those with high incidence disabilities

(McMaster, Fuchs, & Fuchs, 2007). In the large-scale field studies involving second through

sixth grade classrooms, effect sizes of .22 to .56 were reported when compared to classrooms

using a traditional teacher led approach to reading. Furthermore, Fuchs and his colleagues

report greater social acceptance for students with learning disabilities in classrooms using PALS

presumably due to the greater level of reciprocal engagement of those settings (Fuchs, Fuchs,

Mathes & Martinez, 2002).

In addition to the structured use of tutoring arrangements, the successful use of peers as

supports in inclusive classrooms has also been documented for students with low incidence

disabilities. In a study investigating the effects of peer delivered self-monitoring strategies on

middle school students with significant disabilities, results showed an increase in percentages

of occurrence across eleven identified academic survival skills for all students (Gilberts, Agran,

Hughes & Wehmeyer, 2001). The role of peer training is a critical feature in the effective use of

peer-mediated instruction. Two studies investigated the issue of contribution of peers to the

generalization of social behaviors for elementary students with autism. In both studies,

increases in social interaction with typical peers were noted with greater generalization of skills

observed from groups with trained peers and less from groups with untrained or stranger peers

(Kamps, Royer, Dugan, Kravits, Gonzalez-Lopez, Garcia, Carnazzo, Morrison, & Garrison

Kane, 2002). Peer support interventions are also emerging as an effective alternative to

traditional paraprofessional support models for students with low incidence disabilities (Carter,

Cushing, Clark & Kennedy, 2005). Several descriptive studies have documented the

disengagement of teachers when a one-on-one paraprofessional service delivery is

679

used (Giangreco, Broer & Edelman 2001). Since the level of engagement and sense of

ownership that general educators have with students with disabilities is a critical factor to

success in inclusive classrooms, other support strategies must be explored. Cushing and

Kennedy (1997) trained typical peers to adapt class activities, provide frequent feedback, and

promote communication among other support strategies for three students with severe

disabilities in general education classrooms. Results indicated that serving as a peer support

resulted in higher levels of engagement for students without disabilities which is consistent

with previous studies employing peer-mediated techniques. This challenges the assumption

that having a typical peer support a student with a disability takes away from their participation

in the classroom. In looking for optimal configurations, Carter and colleagues studied the effect

of using two peers in a support role for students with severe disabilities. Data from the

investigation showed an increase in social interaction as well as an increase in the amount of

time students with disabilities were engaged in activities aligned with the general curriculum

(Carter, Cushing, Clark & Kennedy, 2005). In these peer support arrangements, the

paraprofessional’s role is broadened and shifts to providing guidance and support to the

students serving as a peer support (Carter, Cushing & Kennedy, 2008).

Instructional & Curriculum Adaptations: Instructional and curriculum adaptations can be

conceptualized in two categories. Routine adaptations include the use of varied grouping

arrangements, materials, and goals while specialized adaptations are those made above and

beyond routine ones that are in direct response to specific challenges faced by students (Fuchs

& Fuchs, 1998). Weymer and colleagues use the term curriculum augmentations to refer to

efforts to augment or expand the general education curriculum to provide additional skills or

strategies that help students succeed (Wehmeyer, Lance, & Bashinski, 2002). Research on

curriculum and instructional adaptations that support students with disabilities in general

education classrooms is varied.

For students with learning disabilities, many studies describe instructional methods that

extend the typical adaptations and help to promote progress in the core content areas for all

students (including those without disabilities). These include graphic or advanced organizers,

selfregulation strategies, semantic maps, mnemonics, chunking, questioning, and visualizing

strategies (Baker, Gersten, & Scanlon, 2002). Swanson and Hoskyn (2001) also confirmed the

use of advanced organizers as an effective strategy for positively influencing student

680

performance. The use of content enhancement routines, a type of advanced organizer, was shown

to have dramatic results for students with learningdisabilities in general education classrooms

where the average unit quiz gradeincreased by ten percentage points (Lenz, Schumaker, Deshler,

Boudah, Vance, Kissam, Bulgren, & Roth, 1993).

In addition to these, strategy instruction (teaching students how to learn) has been shown to

improve academic achievement across grade levels for both students with and without

disabilities (Fisher, Shumaker, & Deshler, 1995). Other techniques that have resulted in

improved learner outcomes in inclusive classrooms include the use of materials other than

grade level textbooks in the area of social studies (Gersten, Baker, Smith-Johnson, Dimino, &

Peterson, 2006) and employing an inquiry-based approach to science with a focus on varied

ways of communicating learning (Pulincsar, Magnusson, Collins, & Cutter, 2001).

In contrast to the vast array of evidence for the effects of adaptations for students with learning

disabilities, research has recently begun to emerge related to the implementation of curriculum

accommodations and modifications for students with significant disabilities (Fisher & Frey,

2001). For example, there are few studies examining the use of strategies such as graphic

organizers for students with severe disabilities in inclusive classrooms. In a review of the

literature, Lee and colleagues found no studies applying techniques such as chunking and

mnemonics while many studies examined self-directed learning strategies such as choice

making. However, very few of those studies were conducted in academic content areas (Lee,

Amos, Gragoudas, Lee, Shogren, & Theoharis, 2006).

Historically, the focus of research on instructional strategies for students with severe

disabilities has been on “functional life skills” that were taught outside of the general education

curriculum (Soukup, Wehmeyer, Bashinski, & Bovaird, 2007). Browder and Cooper-Duffy

(2003) report that less than 10% of studies with students with severe disabilities focused on

academics, with some research showing success in functional academics and access skills in

general education environments. Clearly, the use of curriculum adaptations such as content

specific modifications is necessary for the successful inclusion of students with severe

disabilities. While there is ample descriptive literature of methods and examples for making

adaptations for these students, there is limited empirical evidence to date (Fisher & Frey, 2001).

Some descriptive studies investigated how students with severe disabilities access the core

681

curriculum in general education classrooms. Salisbury andcolleagues found that modifying

curriculum based on students’ IEPs resulted in successful physical, social, and instructional

inclusion of students with mild to severe disabilities in kindergarten through fourth grade

(Salisbury, Mangino, Petrigala, Rainforth, Syryca, & Palombaro, 1994). More

recently, Fisher and Frey (2001) describe the experience of three students (elementary, middle,

and high) with significant disabilities and the supports/services necessary for them to access

the core curriculum in general education classrooms. The prominent use of individualized,

content specific modifications and accommodations were noted for all students. Examples of

these individualized content specific modifications included reading picture books, having a

picture communication symbol version of a textbook chapter, and unit vocabulary added to a

student’s speech output device.

Soukup and colleagues (2007) also examined the use of adaptations for students with

severe disabilities in general education classrooms as well as the relationship between access to

the general education curriculum and classroom variables. Researchers found that students with

severe disabilities worked on grade level standards in 60% of the intervals and worked on

standards linked to any grade for 20% of the intervals. Curriculum adaptations (changes to

content representation, presentation, or student engagement) were observed in 18% of the

intervals with no observations of curriculum augmentations (learning-to-learn strategies). In

terms of classroom variables, large and small group instructional arrangements were predictive

of greater access to the general education curriculum. Soukup and her colleagues conclude

that students receiving instruction in general education were significantly more likely to be

working on activities linked to the general education standards, although they were doing so

without the types of adaptations that research suggests is critical for making progress (Soukup,

Wehmeyer, Bashinski, & Bovaird, 2007). Following up on this work, Lee, Wehmeyer, Soukup,

and Palmer (2010) studied the impact of curriculum modifications on student and teacher

behaviors. Researchers observed 45 students with a range of disabilities and found that the

presence of curriculum modifications predicted increased student engagement and decreased

competing behaviors that would disrupt learning. In addition, the presence of modifications

also resulted in teachers engaging in fewer management behaviors.

Collaborative Practices: The inclusion of students with disabilities in general education

682

classrooms necessitates collaboration between administrators, general educators, special

educators, parents, and related service providers in order to deliver quality services to all

students. In a survey to experts in the field of severe disabilities, Jackson and colleagues

reported that collaboration was often cited as a foundation to the implementation of inclusive

education (Jackson, Ryndak, & Billingsley, 2000). In many schools, collaboration takes the form

of co-teaching where a general and special educator work together to deliver instruction to

students with and without disabilities.

In a meta-synthesis of 32 qualitative studies, Scruggs, Mastropieri, and McDuffie (2007)

found that teachers generally supported co-teaching but the instructional techniques employed

did

not necessarily reflect prevailing best practices in the literature. The predominant model of

coteaching was “one teach, one assist” even though this is not a highly recommended practice in

that the special educator often plays a subordinate role. In addition, evidencebased practices such

as peer mediated and strategy instruction were infrequently observed. Some quantitative studies

do exist that document the efficacy of coteaching. Murawski and Swanson (2001) conducted a

meta-analysis of this research and found only six studies worthy of the report. Results from these

studies indicated an overall effect size of .40 on academic achievement, social outcomes,

attitudes, absences, and referrals. Findings from both the qualitative and quantitative

investigations suggests that co-teaching currently falls short of realizing its potential for

delivering quality services to students in general education classrooms.

Collaboration among teachers and related service providers is also a critical factor in

implementing effective inclusive education. Soto and colleagues found that general educators

who have regular opportunities to collaborate and consult with professional peers show

evidence of increased instructional skills as well as decreased tendencies to make referrals to

special education (Soto, Müller, Hunt, & Goetz, 2001). Two studies by Hunt and colleagues

further document the effectiveness of collaboration as a strategy for improving student

outcomes in inclusive settings. In both studies, researchers document the successful teaming

of teachers, related service providers, and parents in implementing support plans for students

with severe disabilities and typical peers considered academically at-risk. Teams met on a

683

monthly basis to delineate specific instructional adaptations and support strategies for

students. Consistent implementation of these plans resulted in increases in academic skills,

engagement in class activities, interactions with peers, and student-initiated interactions for all

students (Hunt, Doering, Hirose-hatae, Maier, & Goetz, 2001; Hunt, Soto, Maier, & Doering,

2003).

4.6 Room To Grow

Reframing Inclusion: As the language of inclusive education has evolved from

mainstreaming to integration to inclusion, so too has the practice. Mainstreaming operated on

the notion of readiness for general education while integration focused on the enhancement of

students’ social development. From a legislative, moral, and efficacy standpoint, the general

education classroom is now the placement of choice for students with disabilities. These earlier

descriptors of inclusion clearly framed it as a special education issue. In other words, it was

about the separateness of special education versus belongingness with general education

(Sailor, 2002).

Researchers and advocates of inclusion have placed a considerable amount of focus on

meeting students’ needs through individualized instruction and adaptations of the general

education curriculum for students with disabilities (Spooner, Baker, Harris, Ahlgrim-Delzell, &

Browder, 2007). Thus, special educators are typically responsible for retrofitting lessons (e.g.,

modifying the curriculum, providing intervention, teaching remedial skills) that have been

designed by the general education teacher. So while general and special education may have a

shared agenda, to a certain extent, the “separateness of special education” still exists.

Reframing the issue of inclusion by using the larger rubric of “universal design” may indeed

move the practice so that it “belongs to general education.”

The universal design concept assumes high standards for all students and serves as a

“blueprint for creating flexible goals, methods, materials, and assessments that accommodate

learner differences” (Rose, 2001). The underlying premise of universal design is that teachers

should

684

plan instructional supports during the beginning of lesson planning instead of modifying

materials as an afterthought (Hitchcock, 2001). In applying this concept, the burden shifts from

the individual to the curriculum and curriculum design. Reframing the issue of inclusion in this

way takes a sustainable approach to instruction where diversity is considered the norm and

should be anticipated in all aspects of instruction and learning.

Shaping Attitudes: “Inclusion is a philosophy that urges schools, neighborhoods, and

communities to welcome and value everyone, regardless of differences. Central to the

philosophy of inclusion are the beliefs that everyone belongs, diversity is valued, and we can all

learn from each other" (Renzaglia, Karvonen, Drasgow & Stoxen, 2003). Holding such an

attitude can greatly impact the participation of students with disabilities in inclusive

classrooms. According to a study conducted by Robertson, Chamberlain, and Kasari (2003),

when teachers have positive perceptions of their relationship with students with disabilities,

the students’ behavior problems were reported to be lower, and the students were more

socially included with peers. Prater (2003) also identified teacher attitudes as one of several

elements that are critical in promoting the success of students with disabilities in general

education settings.

In addition to the role that teacher attitudes play in the success of inclusive classrooms, it

is widely acknowledged that an inclusive school culture begins with the committed leadership of

principals. Praisner (2003) examined principals’ attitudes toward inclusion including their

placement perceptions. Out of 408 principals surveyed, only one in five held positive attitudes

toward inclusion. Factors that were associated with positive attitudes included experiences with

students with disabilities and exposure to special education concepts. Furthermore, principals

who had positive attitudes were more likely to place students in less restrictive settings. Clearly,

teacher and administrator attitudes are critical factors that shape the experiences of students with

disabilities. These findings hold particular implications for personnel supporting and providing

technical assistance to teachers and staff. Efforts aimed at providing teachers and

administrators with meaningful contact with people with disabilities as well as information on

special education concepts makes a difference in the quality of students’ educational

programming.

685

4.7 The Effects Of Inclusion On Students Without Disabilities

Parents and teachers often have expressed concerns about the likely impact on students

without disabilities when children with special needs are moved to the general classroom.

Although the body of literature examining this issue is small, in general these studies have

indicated that students without disabilities do not suffer from being in classes also serving

students with mild disabilities (learning disabilities or mild behavior disorders) or severe mental

disabilities. Nondisabled elementary students have shown no difference on California

Achievement Test scores, whether they were assigned to typical classes or to an Integrated

Classroom Model (ICM), a highly structured class composed of one-third students with and two-

thirds students without disabilities.77 Similarly, nondisabled students have benefitted

academically from a program78 that created an integrated classroom composed of one-third

mildly disabled students and two-thirds nondisabled students. These classes also had two

teachers, giving a low teacher-to-student ratio of about 1 to 14. The nondisabled students in the

integrated classes benefitted most in a comprehensive test of reading, math, and language skills,

showing greater gains than both nondisabled students in general classes and students with

disabilities in integrated classes. In an analysis of behavior and time management, one study79

examined the behavior of 89 nondisabled students in grades 1 through 5 in five classrooms

where 11 students with learning disabilities had been placed for an eight-month period. When the

students with learning disabilities were added to the class, the nonhandicapped students spent the

same amount of time (35% to 40%) in academic instruction; nonacademic behavior decreased

significantly during math instruction. Further, the time devoted to waiting and classroom

management activities decreased significantly in reading. Research on the integration of students

with severe mental disabilities has emphasized the social and emotional benefits to nondisabled

children and teachers, showing increased awareness of the needs of persons with disabilities,

increased levels of social development in nondisabled children, increased willingness to work

with students with disabilities, and increased skills for teachers.

4.8 Interventions Designed To Promote Inclusion Prereferral interventions are individualized accommodations and adaptations made in the

general classroom,

686

with the goal of avoiding referral to special education. Although prereferral interventions are

widely recommended and are required in many states, there are few data demonstrating that they

lead to long-term academic improvement for struggling students. However, prereferral

interventions do appear to reduce the number of students referred to special education.

Teacher consultation typically involves assistance (for example, suggestions for teaching

strategies) provided by a special educator to a general educator. The student toward whom the

problem-solving process is targeted may be a general education student experiencing problems

(possibly needing referral to special education) or a special education student in a general

education class. Research on the impact of teacher consultation for students with disabilities is

scant and inconclusive.

Many types of modified instructional methods in the general classroom have been tried.

Practices in this category are classwide changes, not modifications for individual students. Types

of modified practices include, but are not limited to, direct instruction (which, among other

things, breaks academic skills down into small, sequenced steps); cooperative learning (which

groups students heterogeneously and makes the group responsible for the performance of all

students); peer tutoring; and cognitive strategy instruction (in which students are taught specific

learning strategies).

Several instructional methods appear to result in modest improvements in academic

outcomes for students with mild disabilities. The more promising programs involve lengthy

(often multiyear) teacher training, teacher planning time, administrative support, and sometimes

additional instructional staff. When additional resources are provided, outcomes for nondisabled

students may be improved.

In transenvironmental programming (TP), special educators and general educators coordinate

their efforts to support individual students as they leave special education settings and reintegrate

into general education. Transenvironmental programming appears to improve student academic

progress initially, but there is some question as to whether faithful adherence to TP is feasible in

general education.

Whole school models have been developed to enhance the capacity of schools to address the

needs of students with disabilities. These models have involved an intensive use of resources.

687

Results show that 51% of the students with learning disabilities moved up in standing relative to

their nondisabled classmates, while the remaining 49% lost ground. The best outcomes were

attained by the project that used case-by-case reintegration of students into mainstream settings

(as opposed to reintegration of all students), ongoing assessment and intensive instruction in

special education, and trans environmental programming.

4.9 Summary

Routine outcome measurement of psychological interventions for people with ID is

becoming essential practice today. Studies of the use of psychological therapies with people who

have ID suggest that these interventions are effective to a moderate degree, though the evidence

continues to be limited. With little evidence of ineffectiveness of psychological therapies, there

is no reason to assume that all psychological therapies will not find future research to be an

important foundation for their inclusion in specialist ID services. As discussed here, a simple

methodology for measuring both global and specific outcomes can easily be implemented using

existing tools that have acceptable reliability and validity. Further research may specify the

relationship of inputs and processes to outcome, but there is very little current evidence in

relation to these at present.


1. Explain Outcomes For Students With Disabilities:

2. Explain Definitions: “Mainstreaming” And “Inclusion”

3. Explain Current Placement Patterns

4. Explain Positions On Inclusion

5. Explain Explain

6. Explain The Effects Of Inclusion On Students Without Disabilities

7. Explain Interventions Designed To Promote Inclusion


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References







University Press.






Inc.






London: Longman.


Thornes.


Press.





Routledge.

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6, 87-250.










Press.




Statistics Office.



and Education.








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The Belknap Press.

























Office.





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31st – Sept 3rd.













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Office.









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31st – Sept 3rd.










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Unit 5: Implications Of Evaluation For Inclusion

5.1 Introduction

5.2 A Brief History Of Inclusion

5.3 Learning Theories Related To Inclusion

5.4 Review Of Literature On Inclusive Education

5.5 Practical Aspects Of Inclusive Classrooms Problems Faced By Special

Needs Students

5.6 Attempts To Improve Inclusion

5.7 Summary


5.9 References

699

5.1 Introduction

The inclusion method is a basic model where both disabled and non-disabled students are

educated within the same classroom. Educational inclusion, then, offers education geared to

include all students, even those with disabilities in the same learning environment. This may

include special needs children who have emotional and/or behavioral problems. Teachers may

encounter a variety of situations in the classroom, including those with learning disorders,

emotional disabilities, and mental retardation. Special needs students are placed in the regular

education classroom and are involved in instructional settings that may have the general

education teacher, the special education teacher, the teacher assistant and possibly parental or

community volunteers (Wiebe & Kim, 2008). The most popular inclusion method seems to be a

co-teaching model. “Co-teaching may be defined as the partnership of a general education

teacher and a special education teacher or another specialist for the purpose of jointly delivering

instruction to a diverse group of students, including those with disabilities or other special needs,

in a general education setting, and in a way that flexibly and deliberately meets their learning

needs” (Friend, Cook, Chamberlain, & Shamberger, 2010, p. 241).

Inclusion of all children within the classroom has brought about a new challenge for

teachers. A typical class may consists of gifted children, slow learners, English-language

learners, mentallyretarded children, hyperactive children, emotionally challenged children, and

low socioeconomically status children. With such a diverse combination, classroom

management, along with focusing on delivering a differentiated instruction that targets each

student individually in the classroom has made a regular education teacher’s job beyond difficult.

Because the state and federal education systems are calling for schools to improve special

education, school systems are turning to inclusion of special education students in the

mainstream setting.

Education can be a powerful tool to unify the students with disabilities and those without

them (Mowat, 2010), but what problems do special needs students encounter by being included

in the regular classroom? This review of the literature will examine the effects of the inclusion

model on the academic achievement and social interaction among students with disabilities.

5.2 A Brief History Of Inclusion

700

The many issues affecting inclusion of special needs students have been debated over the

last 25 years (Odom, Buysse, & Soukakou, 2011). The term “inclusion” replaced all previous

terminologies, i.e., integrated special education, reverse mainstreaming, previous to the early

1990s in hopes that the word would mean more than placing children with special needs in the

regular educational classroom, including a sense of belonging, social relationships, and academic

development and learning (Odom, Buysse, & Soukakou, 2011).

The reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act

(IDEA) 2004 and the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), requires American school systems to

examine how to best address the needs of students with disabilities based on academic

achievement. This has “shifted the instructional focus with regard to students with disabilities

from where they are educated to how they are educated” (McDuffie, Mastropieri, & Scruggs,

2009, p. 494). It requires that students with disabilities have access to the general education

curriculum by being placed in the least restricted environment possible and therefore participate

in the same assessments as students without disabilities unless the nature of their disability is

determined to be too severe to do so. Both also mandate that students with disabilities show

progress in academic classes and participate with their non-disabled peers on all state

assessments. “Districts and schools have struggled to overcome a history of a separate and

segregated special education system, and for various reasons, efforts to include students with

disabilities in general education have not always been successful” (Calabrase,

Patterson, Liu, Goodvin, & Hummel, 2008, p. 62). Many school systems have adopted the

inclusion model as a method to ensure IDEA and NCLB are being implemented.

5.3 Learning Theories Related To Inclusion

Social Learning Theory. With so many factors that would seem to make inclusive

classrooms unproductive, what learning theories might support the idea? Within the school

setting, all students are expected to learn academic concepts as well as behavioral skills. Because

both of these areas often times are potential barriers for disabled students, they can develop low

self-esteem issues which hinder them socially. “These learners, due to their histories of repeated

701

failure at school, are likely to feel as though academic outcomes are beyond their control, thus

perceiving themselves as less competent than their peers” (Ntshangase, Mdikana, & Cronk,

2008, p. 77). It is important that academic content and social skills are addressed within the

classroom.

Albert Bandura developed the social learning theory which states that learning, both

cognitive and behavioral, takes place through the observation, modeling, and imitation of others.

“The main characteristic of the social learning theory, are the centrality of observational

learning, a causal model that involves an environment- person- behavior system, cognitive

contributions, and self-efficacy and agency” (Miller, 2011, p. 236). This theory proposes that

academic and behavior modeling takes place through verbal instruction, live modeling by a

person, and symbolic modeling through four steps: attention, retention, reproduction, and

motivation. Inclusion classes capitalize on this theory because disabled peers can observe their

nondisabled peers and their teachers and then imitate them both academically and behaviorally.

Social learning theory combined with Freudian learning principles focus on teaching children

important real-life social behaviors (Miller, 2011). As mentioned before, advocates for inclusion

thought this course of action would help students with disabilities by emerging them into a

learning community that mimics a mini society.

Through this learning community students with disabilities are able to interact with their

peers and develop friendships. When included in the regular classroom, special needs students

have the opportunity to see their peers working habits, and they can model those habits and

behaviors to reflect their own. This insight ties into the Freudian theory of identification through

observation of learned behavior from the peers around them. Bandura and Walter, who were two

other researchers who expanded on the exploration of Sigmund Freud’s identification concept of

identification through modeling, realized that new behavior can be attained by observation; for

example, when a student sees a peer being praised for their hard work, the student learns to try

that behavior in hopes of pleasing the teacher and being praised also (Miller, 2011). This plays

into the observational theory, where students with special needs can watch the correct behavior

and model that desired performance.

Observational Learning Theory. Students with special needs can learn not only desired

702

behaviors from their peers through social interaction, they can also learn academically within

their learning community. Children can be the best teachers. Cooperative learning involves social

interaction amongst the students, and it is the key to educational thinkers such as Piaget and

Vygotsky (Slavin, 2009). Using social interaction and active experiences in learning helps

children to feed knowledge to one another. These methods also promote social communication

skills that children will need to possess as adults. They will need to be able to effectively discuss

the various issues that will occur as life progresses. Even students with special needs can offer

educational knowledge to their peers; if the students learn that they can teach others and learn

from others, and then they will feel a sense of belonging, pride, and responsibility. When

students are working together, these students can be paired with slower learner students from

time to time. When students work together and are able to engage in discussions on different

ideas, then the sky’s the limit to what types of knowledge the students can transmit to one

another. Peer learning helps students to build effective listening and communication skills

(Harding, 2009).

Guided Learning Theory. In addition to social learning and observational learning theories,

the zone of proximal development also has implication for inclusive classrooms. According to

Lev Vygotsky, the zone of proximal development states that students learn when guided by an

adult or when working with more capable peers. “A more competent person collaborates with a

child to help him move from where he is now to where he can be with help. This person

accomplishes this feat by means of prompts, clues, modeling, explanation, leading questions,

discussion, joint participation, encouragement, and control of the child’s attention” (Miller, 2011,

p. 175). Students with disabilities can learn from their peers without disabilities as well as with

the support of adult guidance to gain a better understanding of the concept being taught. For

example, peer tutoring has been found to be effective for students with disabilities (McDuffie,

Mastropieri, & Scruggs, 2009).

A second example is when a teacher provides scaffolding. Scaffolding occurs a great

learning support is provided at the time new concepts are introduced and the support is slowly

taken from the student as he or she masters the content.

All three of these theories discussed describe how learning occurs in the classroom both

academically and socially. According to Ntshangase, Mdikana, & Cronk (2008), “high social

703

interaction is important not only for learners’ academic achievement but also for their long-term

general well-being and personal development” (p. 82). The zone of proximal development, in

conjunction with the social learning theory, should theoretically help explain how students with

disabilities progress academically and increase appropriate social interactions with placed within

an inclusion classroom.

5.4 Review Of Literature On Inclusive Education Effect on Academic Achievement. The effect of inclusion classes on academic achievement

and social interaction for students with disabilities continues to produce positive results. Because

self-esteem is a spring board for appropriate social interactions, it is important to note the effect

of inclusion in this area. According to a study conducted by Ntshangase, Mdikana, and Cronk

(2008), “included and mainstream adolescent boys do not have disparities in their overall levels

of selfesteem. This result is very encouraging for schools promoting inclusive practices as it

implies that overall sense of worth for included and mainstreamed learners is not disparate” (p.

80). It is important to note that according to this study, disabled students did not indicate lower

self-esteem than non-disabled students although it would seem the opposite would be true.

Another study by Calabrase, Patterson, Liu, Goodvin, and Hummel (2008) found that the Circle

of Friends Program (COFP) was very beneficial in increasing social interactions both inside and

outside the classroom.

The COFP paired disabled students with a non-disabled buddy and is supported by

parents and sponsors. “The COFP is not only a model for successful inclusion of students with

disabilities in and outside the classroom but has the potential to serve as a vehicle for facilitating

school-wide inclusive educational practices. It was evident that the COFP helps foster a culture

of acceptance through encouraging relationships between students with disabilities and their non-

disabled peers. While the COFP introduces buddies into the special education setting, most

inclusion efforts begin with placing students with disabilities in the general education classroom”

(Calabrase, Patterson, Liu, Goodvin, & Hummel, 2008, p. 37). The success of this program

began with an inclusion classroom. Parents, students, and teachers noted the positive results in

the area of social interaction during this study.

In another study, Dessemontet, Bless, and Morin (2012) conducted a study comparing the

704

academic progress of students with intellectual disabilities (ID) who were served within an

inclusion setting as opposed to a special school setting. The findings indicated that “the included

children made slightly more progress in literacy skills than children in special schools” and

concluded “from this study that inclusion in general education classrooms… is an appropriate

alternative to an education in separate settings for primary pupils with ID who require extensive

support in school. This study gives empirical support to the actual efforts made to develop more

inclusive practices for children with ID” (p. 583). Further, research by Chitiyo, Makweche-

Chitiyo, Park, Ametepee, and Chitiyo (2011) examined the correlation between positive behavior

support (PBS) and academic achievement in special education students as mandated by IDEA.

The study found that the use of PBS to address behavior problems led to an increase in academic

achievement. Effect of Co-Teaching. Some studies specifically address the effects of the co-

teaching inclusion model on the academic achievement of disabled students. For example,

Conderman (2011) studied the reflections of middle school students, both disabled and non-

disabled, in coteaching classrooms. Students reported that their favorite aspects of co-teaching

included “felt I could ask for help… I get more time with teachers… I understand the subject

more… Do more fun things…” (Conderman, 2011, p. 25). Students also reported their least

favorite aspect of coteaching was that “they could not get away with anything” (Conderman,

2011, p. 26). Wilson and Michaels (2006) also researched student’s perspectives of co-teaching

and found that both special and general education students thought they received much of what

they needed in the cotaught English classes (e.g., ready access to help, feelings of support and

academic efficacy, access to multiple presentation and instructional styles, access to different

opinions). Certainly, the beneficial themes that emerged revealed educational settings very

favorable to learning. In addition, student participation in co-taught classes contributed to self-

reported improvements in literacy (p. 220).

It is reasonable to believe that students who have positive feeling about their classes will

be more likely to be motivated and put forth good effort on assignments thus increasing

academic achievement. A fourth study by Hang and Rabren (2009) assessed the effects of co-

teaching on standardized testing. The results of this study demonstrated that students with

disabilities who had been co-taught for one year had significantly higher SAT NCEs in reading

and math than they did before being co-taught. Furthermore, there were no significant

705

differences in academic achievement found between student participants and all students at the

same grade level as measured by SAT NCEs. These results “suggest that the academic

achievements of co-taught students with disabilities are as typical as the entire school system’s

student population. Therefore, these results suggest that co-teaching, as an instructional

approach, provides students with disabilities adequate support for their achievements on

standardized tests” (Hang & Rabren, 2009, p. 264). This study determined that co-teach has

positive effects on standardized testing, an area that many disabled student struggle with. Lastly,

a study by Simmons and Magiera (2007) determined that student achievement was greatest when

co-teaching teams emphasized four quality co-teaching indicators: both teachers maintained

responsibility for the whole class, accommodations provided for all special education students,

both teachers participated during instruction, and an emphasis placed on the learning process.

These indicators proved necessary for quality co-teaching to be practiced. When co-teaching is

practiced with a correct model, student achievement increases.

Effect due to Gender. Researchers Nelson, Benner, Lane and Smith (2004) studied the academic

achievement of one hundred sixty-six K-12 EBD students and the behavior problems that

caused poor academic achievement in all content areas with attention to age and gender

differences.

The authors defined these achievement problems as externalizing behavior problems and listed

them as, “attention, aggression and delinquency” (p. 69). Nelson et al. also suggested “the

achievement issues of students with EBD who exhibit externalizing deficits may be more

pronounced and “with these students, effective instructional programs may play, at least in part,

a role in improving their social skills” (p. 71). Findings showed that male and female students

with EBD had large academic deficits relative to their norm group. Next, the authors found that

male and female students experienced deficits in all content areas. In fact, “the academic

achievement levels of students in the sample remained stable in reading and written language;

where as, deficits in mathematics appeared

to broaden over time” (p. 69). Results revealed that externalizing behaviors influenced student’s

academic achievement. In addition, results indicated that there must be earlier identification of

students with emotional and behavior disorders.

Effect of Teacher Preparation. Oliver and Reschly (2010) provide information on teacher

706

organization and preparation in the classroom. The article states that special education teachers

as well as general education teachers are not adequately prepared to manage students with

behavior disorders in the classroom. Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (EBD)

or Severely Emotional Disorders (SED) have behaviors that inhibit them academically as well as

socially. The EBD student oftentimes cannot or does not know how to control these “acting out”

behaviors. Moreover, they are frequently too disruptive in the general education classroom and

must be separated from their peers. Conversely, federal law states that students with disabilities

must be educated in the same classrooms as their nondisabled peers.

The underlying key to teacher success is preparation. Learning in the classroom with the

least disruptions possible is essential. Therefore, to impede negative behavior as much as

possible, teachers must be prepared to manage these behaviors. Oliver and Reshly (2010) argue,

“Because of the excesses exhibited by students with EBD, teacher skills in classroom

organization and behavior management are necessary to address these challenging behaviors,

attenuate academic deficits, and support successful inclusion efforts” ( p. 188). Teachers must

make sure that classrooms arestructured and conducive to learning with minimal disruptions.

Teachers must have concise rules for the classroom and ensure that students know and

understand the rules that are set. Final results of the research of Oliver and Reschly (2010) found

that special education teachers “may not be adequately prepared to meet the behavioral needs of

diverse learners” (p. 195). Sazak-Pinar, & Sucuogluo (2010) give information on teachers and

classroom management in inclusive classrooms. The inclusive classrooms in the study have at

least one or more student diagnosed with a learning disability. The authors explain, “In Turkey

the law mandating that children with disabilities should be placed in general classroom was

accepted in 1983 and mainstreaming has been expanding throughout Turkey since then” (p. 65).

However, teachers were not trained to provide accommodations or modifications to adhere to

this mandate.

Students were mainstreamed, even though few teachers were adequately trained in an

academic setting to provide for the needs of students with disabilities. Moreover, Akalin et al.

(2010), state, “The effectiveness of mainstreaming has been questioned in the light of the

problems being encountered by the children, their parents and especially the teachers since 1990”

(p. 65). Equally important was a study conducted by Fallon, Zhang, Kim (2011), which focused

707

on training teachers to manage the behaviors of students with disabilities in the inclusive

classroom.

Many general education teachers lack the skills and knowledge necessary to effectively

manage these challenging behaviors. The study focused on novice teachers that are certified in

the general curriculum who want additional certification in special education. Each participant in

the study were volunteers in a graduate class in managing and assessing behaviors of students

with disabilities using functional behavior assessments as well as behavior intervention plans.

The need to train teachers to manage students with behavior disorders in imperative since these

students are now educated in the same classrooms as their nondisabled peers. Educating,

training, and cultural diversity should be considered when recruiting teachers to teach students

with behavioral and emotional disorders.

It is essential that teachers are trained in the skills and strategies to support behavior

management in the classroom as well as the ability to differentiate instruction for students with

special needs. Frequent classroom distractions take away from the learning experience of all

students. The teacher is the manager of the classroom and he or she must have rules in place to

impede negative behaviors as much as possible. Akalin, Sazak-Pinar, and Sucuoglu (2010),

conclude, “The results of research focused on classroom management revealed that effective

classroom management increased academic achievement and decreased problem behaviors of

students” (p. 64). It is the responsibility of the teacher to structure their classroom so that it has

minimal distractions and create a learning environment for all students. Teachers should be

dedicated to teach all students. Akalin, Sazak-Pinar, and Sucuoglu (2010) state the behavior of

the student has a direct correlation to student achievement. Final results of the research found

that “classroom management should be considered as a powerful cluster of techniques and

strategies in terms of creating meaningful learning experiences for all students including students

with disabilities, because in Turkey, there are a limited numbers of experts working in special

education collaborating with the general education teachers for meeting the needs of students

with disabilities”.

Wagner, et al. (2006) reported that general educators believe that they are not trained to

effectively manage the challenging behaviors of EBD students, therefore making them

apprehensive about having these students in their classes. Furthermore, Sawka and colleagues

708

research has found that there continues to be high turnover rates for teachers of EBD students;

therefore leaving the students with EBD at greater risk of poor academic outcomes and

constantly having to adjust to new teachers. Sawka et al. (2002) in their study found that

response cost was one intervention to decrease negative behavior and encourage positive

behavior in students with EBD. During this study, a project named Strengthening Emotional

Support Services Model (SESS) was conducted in a large urban school district. The authors

reported that, “Certainly, one of the best approaches to addressing the concerns of serving

students with EBD is to create an effective special education teacher workforce” (p. 224). The

SESS project increased staff knowledge of effective behavior management of EBD students.

Sawka, et al. (2002) are supported by research conducted by Kern, Clarke, Dunlap and Childs

(2001). These researchers agree that there must be a consequence or reward to decrease negative

behavior and increase positive behavior. In their study, “the teachers used a behavior

management system in which appropriate behavior was reinforced with points that were

exchangeable for tangible rewards at the end of the day, problem behavior resulted in a loss of

points” (p. 241). The study concluded that variables such as rewards of extra computer time can

influence behavior. The teacher will need to know what specific variables are comparable for the

students in their particular class. The two participants in this study were able to manage their

behavior for variables or preferred activities. For example, extra computer time for completion of

assignments.

Effect on Behavior. The following studies further proposed that there are many variables that

can influence the behavior of EBD students during certain situations. For example, challenging

behavior can occur during certain curricular activities. Because EBD students have difficulty

completing tasks and staying on task, Kern, Delaney, Clarke, Dunlap and Childs (2001) found

that problem behaviors occurred during certain curricular activities. Kern, et al. (2001) research

participants were two eleven-year-old fifth grade boys. The two students exhibited most of their

problem behaviors during pencil and paper activities. The authors went on to state that this study

was “consistent with previous research demonstrating the relationship between environmental

variables and problematic behavior” (p. 244). Such findings are highly congruent with those of

Sawka et al. (2002) in that teachers and students must find out how to effectively manage these

behaviors through interventions, accommodations and training, so EBD students will be

709

academically successful in the inclusion classroom. Furthermore, the study by Kern and

associates illustrated how the use of functional assessment can “provide information about

relatively simple classroom adaptations for students with EBD that can be influential in

increasing task engagement, decreasing challenging behavior, and increasing academic

productivity” (p. 245).

Effect of Teacher-Mediated Intervention. One study conducted by Pierce, Reid, and Epstein

(2004) found that teacher-mediated interventions aid in academic compliance of students with

emotional and behavioral disorders. The authors reviewed thirty studies that examined teacher

mediated interventions. The study participants were children or adolescents with emotional and

behavior disorders between the ages of six and twenty years. Pierce and associates summarized

that teacher-mediated interventions proved to be successful throughout all academic areas.

Reading is an academic area that continues to be a major concern; good reading skills have

proven to help with all levels of academics. However, poor reading skills have found to be a

major factor in EBD students’ poor academic success. Poor reading skills continue to be one of

the deficits in the academic success of EBD students because reading affects other content areas.

On the whole, teacher-mediated interventions were proven to be effective in the academic

performance of EBD students.

Teacher-mediated interventions such as token reinforcement, antecedent interventions and

consequence-focused interventions can be extremely successful for students with EBD. Pierce, et

al. (2004) reviewed literature on teacher-mediated interventions and its academic success. Pierce,

et al. (2004) defined a teacher-mediated intervention as “an intervention in which the teacher (or

administrator of the intervention other than the student him/herself) takes responsibility for

treatment, manipulating antecedents and/or consequences in order to improve the academic

performance of the student” (p. 176). The major findings were: (1) A majority of the studies

focused on reading; (2) On average, interventions were implemented for short periods of time;

(3) Many studies lacked complete descriptions of participant characteristics; (4) A majority of

the studies had outcomes in the desired direction; and (5) Overall, teacher-mediated interventions

were effective for improving the academic performance of students with EBD.

710

These findings are consistent with other research that focused on reading, because reading is a

major limitation of students with emotional and behavioral disabilities. The majority of students

that had outcomes in the desired direction increased their academic performance. The first

desired outcome reached in this study was an increase in reading performance and academic

response rate.

Second, reading comprehension for all students increased. Third, there was improvement in math

problems increased. More specifically, teacher-mediated interventions provided a ninety percent

positive effect on the academic outcome of students. In particular, some teachers included

student’s interests or choices, token economies as reinforcements to improve academic success

of EBD students. Additionally, the authors suggest that interventions should be implemented in

short periods of time so the students will not get bored with the same intervention and stop

responding. Teacher-mediated interventions were effective because those teachers get to know

the students and their behaviors. Still further, the desired direction of the studies were to

implement more teacher mediated interventions to improve academic and behavioral success of

students with emotional and behavior disorders. Teacher-mediated interventions mentioned in

the study were token reinforcement, antecedent interventions, and consequence-focused

interventions. All interventions showed moderate to high levels of academic improvement

among students.

Effect of Behavioral Effectiveness Strategies. Bowman-Perrott, Greenwood and Tapia

(2007) investigated the success of Class Wide Peer Tutoring (CWPT) as an effective intervention

for decreasing problem behavior and increasing instructional effectiveness in the classroom.

Nineteen EBD students in grades 5-12 and two teachers participated in the study. Participants

showed an increase in social interaction with their peers. Students that used self-management

techniques had a reduction in negative behaviors. Also, compared to teacher led instruction, data

indicated that class wide peer tutoring instruction was more effective and social competence in

students increased. In contrast, Bowman-Perrott, et al. (2007) study has also proven that students

with emotional and behavior disabilities have trouble interacting with their peers as well as with

their families. Authors, Tyler-Wood, Cereijo, and Pemberton (2004) examined curriculum-based

assessment (CBA) as a means to decrease the negative behaviors of EBD students in the

classroom and increase their academic success. Curriculum-based assessment is a measurement

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of student performance by direct observation. Once the data is collected from the observation,

the teacher is able to decide what instructional techniques are best for the student.

The purpose of research by Tyler-Wood and colleagues (2004) was “to show how the use of

curriculum-based assessment (CBA) can have a positive effect by lowering the number of

inappropriate behavior occurrences within the classroom” (p. 30). This study used two groups of

participants and discipline referrals of EBD students. One group was the CBA group while the

other was the non-CBA group. CBA and non-CBA groups each had similar numbers of

discipline referrals. Tyler-Wood et.al. (2004) revealed the CBA group discipline referrals

decreased after the intervention. Still further, the “results of the study suggested that the use of

sound instructional techniques can lead to a reduction in student behavior problems” (p. 32). This

study also reinforces that EBD students need well-managed and organized classrooms.

More recently, Wright-Gallo, Higbee, Reagon, and Davey (2006) studied classroom-based

functional analysis as a behavior intervention for EBD students. Functional analysis provides

educators with knowledge of specific behavior problems in students and when these behaviors

may occur. The participants were two male children aged 12 and 14. The teachers in the back of

their classrooms conducted the functional analysis sessions in the back of their classrooms. After

the results of the functional analysis, teachers designed and implemented a differential

reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) intervention that was introduced to reduce the

problem behaviors. “A DRA procedure was implemented in which participants were taught to

request either escape or attention and the delivery of the functional reinforcers following

disruptive behavior was minimized” (p. 432). The two participants were given two choices,

access to attention and escape from demands. The implementation of DRA decreased disruptive

behaviors in both. Jull (2008) reiterates that inclusion of students with emotional and behavioral

disorders in the inclusive classroom is a great challenge. The effectiveness of students with

learning differences in the general education classroom requires that educators be trained in the

instructional strategies to facilitate learning. Anti-social behaviors oftentimes exclude students

from positive interactions with their peers.

The significance of research is important for the educational success of EBD students in the

classroom. They are at a greater risk of academic failure, suspension and dropout. The majority

of research indicated that students with emotional and behavioral disorders require specialized

712

training to control their behaviors. As a result of Sawka et. al. (2002), teachers specified that they

were not adequately trained to teach these students in the inclusive classroom without

appropriate interventions. Effective interventions will continue to differ depending on student

needs and variables to accommodate those needs. There must be collaborative efforts made by

all teachers and staff to find the exact intervention for that individual student and strides must be

made to consistently reinforce positive behaviors.

Collectively, functional behavior analysis, positive behavior support, teacher-made interventions,

curriculum modifications, class wide peer tutoring, and antecedent- based intervention are all

essential for EBD students to be successful in the general classroom. Again, it is of the essence

that educators have effective in-service workshops as well as frequent staff development to the

academic success of students with emotional and behavior disorders. An effective behavior

management system should be implemented in every school system. Research from Pierce, Reid,

& Epstein (2004) and Kern, Delaney, Clarke, Dunlap, & Child (2001) indicated that if

implemented correctly, response cost, token economies and reward systems reinforce positive

behavior and teach students necessary self-management skills.

More research must be done to determine the effectiveness of interventions used with

students that have emotional and behavioral disorders in the general classroom. Research should

use a wide variety of participants from different geographic locations. Specifically research done

should include African American, Latino, and Asian American student populations.

Additionally, there are more males labeled, as EBD, but there is little research on EBD females.

Current research from includes teacher-mediated interventions, token economies, and peer

tutoring as important techniques to be used to increase on task behavior in students (Kern,

Delaney, Clarke, Dunlap, & Child, 2001). It is also imperative that teachers have adequate

training, in-service workshops and consultation to teach students effectively. Teachers must

institute rules and regulations for the classroom and implement them consistently to successfully

manage the student’s individual behaviors and learning styles. Students with emotional and

behavior differences cannot be taught as part of the norm. They have numerous facets that

influence how they learn and make decisions.

Although their decisions may be inadequate, they are an integral part of the classroom.

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5.5 Practical Aspects Of Inclusive Classrooms Problems Faced By Special

Needs Students

Just as inclusion has its benefits, it also has its disadvantages. Students with disabilities

tend to disrupt the classroom with behavior issues. Because they are not as cognitively developed

as their peers, the teaching-learning process is not as effective as it could be. It is difficult to

serve the needs of every student who is normally in the regular education class, and with the

special needs students the job becomes even more of a struggle for the teacher and someone

draws the short in of the stick, usually the special needs students. Teachers have to treat special

needs students differently based on standards are on their learning level. Special needs students

are deprived of a suitable education when they are taught at a mismatched level with students

how are significantly above their level. This can negatively affect a student’s sense of self-

esteem and dignity. Even in physical education classes, students with physical disabilities are

disadvantaged because the curriculum is not gear to include them (Combs, Elliott, & Whipple,

2010). This can cause students with disabilities to face discrimination and bullying from their

peers. Causing them to experience low self-esteem, isolation, depression, and in some cases

aggression (Khudorenko, 2011). These emotional breakdowns can lead to violence (Frances &

Potter, 2010).

5.6 Attempts To Improve Inclusion

In the classroom, there are typically more regular education students than special education

students. The students who have disabilities sometimes experience regular education class for the

first time in their lives. It is difficult for these students to cognitively, emotionally, and

sometimes physically to involve themselves in the teaching-learning process. These students

understand they are different from their peers, and they come into a classroom of 15 or more of

them and feel embarrassed and uncomfortable. Schoger (2006) conducted a study designed to

have the general education students come into the special education learning environment to help

the special needs students flourish within their own community. This study showed to be very

successful for the students with special needs because they were able to work in an environment

714

that was comfortable for them, they developed friendships with their peers, they felt a sense of

respect which increased their self-esteem, and their cognitive learning increased significantly

(Schoger, 2006). Anderson, Klassen, and Georgiou (2007), detailed how the teachers in their

study lacked the knowledge they need to be more effective at teaching and dealing with students

with special needs.

The teachers in this article thought that school psychologist should play a huge part in educating

them about students with special needs. They felt that with a better understanding of the types of

students who they were working with, they could be more effective teachers to them. To

understand how these children better work mentally, emotionally, and physically changes many

aspects of the teaching-learning process for the better.

One would think he more training and insight usually make teachers feel better about

situations, however, that was not the finding for this study Wilkins & Nietfeld (2004). There

were teachers who were experts on inclusion in the classroom, and their attitudes toward

inclusion were no different than those educators who had little training and insight on the

program. Inclusion is a sore spot for many professionals in the field of education.

In order to provide a quality education for special needs students in the general education

classroom, all of the necessary resources must be available for both the students and the teachers

(Anderson, Klassen, & Georgiou, 2007). Resources are often extremely limited. There is a lack

of teachers because there is a lack of funding, and these insufficient materials affect the success

of the inclusion and those who are involved in the program.

5.7 Summary Although research has shown that inclusion methods benefit all students, teachers are still

hesitant to volunteer to teach within this specific method. For inclusion to be successful, it is

important to provide educators with training, planning time with their co-teacher, and adequate

resources to meet the needs of students. It is when teachers are fully prepared that the inclusion

model will yield positive results. Further research is needed to show particular inclusion and

coteaching methods which are highly successful yielding the best results for both disabled and

nondisabled students.

It is obvious from the research discussed that properly practiced inclusion method has

715

benefits for all students in both academic achievement and social interaction. Overall, both

disabled and non-disabled students view co-teaching in a positive manner and seem to make

progress in academic classes. Socially, disabled students have the opportunity to interact with

their nondisabled peers in order to learn academically and behaviorally. They also seem to

maintain adequate self-esteem levels which are comparable to their non-disabled peers. Co-

teaching is a form of inclusion which has gained popularity over the last several years due to

federal and state mandates. This model provides all students with support from two teachers in

the same classroom benefiting them in a number of ways. As inclusion models are adopted by

school systems, it will be important to continue to research and address its effectiveness in the

areas of social interaction and academic progress of disabled students.

Since many public schools do have full inclusion, students with emotional and behavioral

disorders that were once in self-contained classroom, are now educated in classes with their

nondisabled peers. It is necessary that students with severe emotional and behavioral disorders in

inclusive classrooms learn to effectively manage negative behaviors so that classrooms are

environments of learning for all students. It is important for teachers to learn management

techniques for emotional and behavioral disorders so that they are able to spend less time on

discipline and more time on instruction. It is also important that teacher understand the laws that

govern exceptional children. It is essential that students with emotional and behavior disorders

have the ability to manage their own behavior and stay on task so that they can be successful in

the general education classroom. When these students exhibit negative behaviors in the

classroom it affects their peers, teachers and themselves. What behavior management approaches

are most effective with Seriously Emotional Disabled students in the general education

classroom?

It is of the essence that educators are skilled to teach the leaders of tomorrow. Research

continues to support the use of self-management techniques to decrease negative behaviors and

increase academic performance that can be implemented by the student as well as the teacher

(Konrad, Fowler, Walker, Test, & Wood, 2007). Teachers must effectively manage their

classrooms so that all students can have a positive learning environment. Additionally, contend

that teachermediated interventions, establishing and enforcing rules and token economies have

proven to be successful as behavior management techniques for EBD students. In the words of

716

Bowman-Perott et al. (2007), “effective intervention procedures are essential to breaking the

cycle of school failure”.

All classes have students that exhibit negative behaviors that warrant their removal from the

classroom for interventions as well. For example, there are students that are argumentative with

staff, talk refuse to work and talk continuously without permission. The exception that I see is

that students with EBD seem to exhibit behaviors that draw negative attention to themselves

from their peers. Researchers, Nelson, Benner, Lane and Smith (2004) studied the academic

deficits in EBD students and improving their social skills. EBD students lack social skills and

want to fit in socially with their peers but many times their academic deficits in many content

areas hold them back socially. Additionally, there may need to be a school wide positive

behavior support system developed so that negative behaviors may be minimized further. Still

further, educators need to be trained in behavior management techniques for students with

behavioral disorders. Sawka, McCrudy and Manella (2002) affirm that general education

teachers do not feel adequately trained to manage these students. The importance of effective

behavior management techniques is essential for any educator.


1. Explain A Brief History Of Inclusion

2. Explain Learning Theories Related To Inclusion

3. Explain Review Of Literature On Inclusive Education

4. Explain Practical Aspects Of Inclusive Classrooms Problems Faced By

Special Needs Students

5. Explain Attempts To Improve Inclusion


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