SPED 200 Inclusionary Education of Exceptional Students Learner Characteristics

Definitions and Prevalence Rates

At Risk Students Teachers Need to Be Prepared to Work with all Types of Diverse Learners

Defining Learner Characteristics All people are unique and certain abilities or disabilities are attributes But do not define who individuals are

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act: (IDEA) Children between 3 and 9 may be identified as developmentally delayed in one or more of the following areas: Physical Cognitive Communication Social/Emotional Adaptive Development

After Age 9 - Students Qualify for Special Education If diagnosed with one or more of the following: Specific learning disability Speech or language impairments Mental Retardation (Intellectual Disability) Emotional Disturbance Multiple Disabilities

Additional Categories Hearing impairments Orthopedic impairments Other health impairments Visual Impairment Autism Deaf - Blindness Traumatic brain injury

Cross-Categorical Approach Mild Moderate Severe

High-Incidence Disabilities High Incidence Disabilities are those that occur in more than 100,000 people in USA Speech or Language Impairment Learning Disabilities Emotional Disturbances Mental Retardation (Intellectual Disability)

Low-Incidence Disability Mild and Moderate Disabilities Learning Disabilities (LD) Behavioral/emotional disorders (E/BD) Mental Retardation (MR) Intellectual Disability (ID) Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Categorical vs. Cross Categorical Classification of Disabilities Level of Severity Learning Disability (LD) Mental Retardation Emotional/Behavior al Disorders (EBD) Mild Mild LDMild MRMild EBD ModerateModerate LDModerate MRModerate EBD SevereSevere LDSevere MRSevere EBD

Number of Students Ages 6-21 Served under IDEA Disability Percentage Change Learning Disability 2,247,0042,887, Mental Retardation 553,262612, Emotional/Behavi oral Disorder 400,211473,

Incidence Learning Disabilities (LD) are the most prevalent Represent over one-half of students Defining and Identifying LD is difficult

LD - Discrepancy Marker Students are expected to achieve better academically than they do Expected Achievement is based on IQ Score Students scoring below expectations that can’t be explained by socioeconomic factors, cultural differences, inadequate instruction, and disabling condition They are assumed to have a Learning Disability

LD Identification is Problematic Many are Advocating if a Student Responds to Scientific Research-Based Intervention Response To Intervention (RTI) is defined as a change in behavior or performance attributable to appropriate instruction A student would be identified as having a Learning Difficulty only if they do not improve satisfactorily after receiving intensive instruction Critics say RTI doesn’t distinguish between low achievement and a Cognitive Processing Disorder

Specific Learning Disability The term means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations, Including conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain disfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia

Specific Learning Disability

Emotional/Behavioral Disabilities (EBD) Represent about 8 percent of Students with Disabilities Represents 0.9 percent of Total school population But prevalence rates are estimated to be 2 to 3 time higher

Emotional Disturbances (EBD) Defined The term means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a longer period of time and a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational performance A) An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors B) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationship with peers and teachers

(EBD) continued C) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal conditions D) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression E) A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problem ii) The term includes schizophrenia. The term does not apply to children who are socially maladjusted, unless it is determined that they have an emotional disturbance

Mental Retardation (MR) Mental Retardation means significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance Movement to replace the term Mental Retardation with terms such as: Intellectual Disability or Developmental Disability New research on genes and brain imagining may soon replace the IQ test for identifying Mental Retardation

ADHD - Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ADHD is a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that is more frequently displayed and more severe than is typical Must be clear evidence of interference w/ developmentally social, academic, or occupational functions Occurs in 3-5 percent of children (3 times more likely in boys)

ADHD Characteristics On others being inattentive to work or play activities Inattention to detail or careless mistakes Not completing assigned tasks Not listening to others when spoken to Not following directions at home or school Losing or misplacing materials Being disorganized Blurting out answers Difficulty awaiting turn or failing to take turns Interrupting or intruding

Motivation Motivation affects the learning process without motivation students are unlikely to learn Even motivated students may find it very difficult to learn if they don’t have the prerequisite skills Motivation only encourages students to persist in doing something they are capable of doing Students with mild and moderate disabilities may be prone to discouragement (given their record of poor academic performance)

Attribution Students who attribute their success to internal factors such as effort and ability demonstrate a positive attribution style Students who attribute success to external causes (luck or the teacher likes me) demonstrate a negative attribution style Teachers need to help students connect knowledge, effort and achievement by linking success or failure to effort and application of skills and strategies

How Teachers can Help Design classrooms to be positive & supportive environments Teach at the students’ appropriate level of understanding Engage students in their own learning Make school fun and interesting Design for errorless learning Use natural consequences that lead to failure as a teaching opportunity Teach self-management and self-determination skills so students become responsible for their own learning and behavior Connect effort and knowledge or skills to outcomes

Summary Statements Understanding disability characteristics and definitions help teachers better understand the students they are teaching Focus on the individual not the disability - A disability does not define a person

The categorical approach refers to identifying and serving students based on their ability category (e.g., LD, EBD, MR). The cross categorical approach refers to the severity of the disability (e.g., mild-to- moderate disabilities) approach refers to the severity of the disability (e.g., mid-to Moderate.

Summary Statements Most service delivery and teacher liscensing programs follow the cross-categorical approach Whereas, identification for students under IDEA still remains categorical

Summary Statements The four major disabling conditions under mild and moderate include LD, EBD, MR, AND ADHD, although ADHD is not a disability category under IDEA All four categories of disability have been and continue to be difficult to define

Summary Statements Most students with mild/moderate disabilities have common learning characteristics including poor attention, memory, concept formation, academic skills and social competence They may have low motivation for learning LD students may attribute school failures to themselves but successes to factors outside themselves

A Smile from Heaven for Students w/ Disabilities