According to Heward (2009), students with intellectual disabilities have significant limitations in both intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior. Learning, reasoning, and problem solving, as well as conceptual, social, and practical skills are all areas of difficulty for these students. While students with intellectual disabilities usually have poor memories, slow learning rates, attention problems, difficulty generalizing what they have learned and lack of motivation, there are effective educational strategies that teachers can use to help these students be more successful and ultimately improve their quality of life.
Heward (2009), believes that students with intellectual disabilities learn best when instruction is explicit and systematic. Complex or multi-step skills need to be broken down into smaller, easier-to-learn steps in sequential order. This process is known as task analysis. It can be used to help students meet their individualized goals in the areas of functional curriculum, life skills, and self-determination. These steps can be represented with written language or visually with pictures or video. In a study by Cihak, Alberto, Taber-Doughty and Gama ( 2006), students with moderate intellectual disabilities were instructed using static picture and video prompting to complete a functional task. Task analyses were used to develop picture and video prompts for using an ATM. Pictures of each step were taken using a digital camera and four second video clips of each individual step were filmed to create the video prompts. Simulation instruction was conducted in the classroom, while community based instruction was conducted at the local grocery store. The results determined that both of the strateg...
... middle of paper ...
... students without disabilities. Using these strategies, as well as learning about other effective methods will help students with disabilities develop functional, life, and self-determination skills needed to live independent lives.
Works Cited
Cihak, D., Alberto, P.A., Taber-Doughty, T. & Gama, R.I. (2006). A comparison of static
picture prompting and video prompting simulation strategies using group instructional
procedures. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 21, 88-99.
Elliot, C., Pring, T. & Bunning, K. (2002). Social skills training for students with intellectual
disabilities: A cautionary note. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities,
15, 91-96.
Heward, W.L. (2009). Exceptional children: An introduction to special education, 9th edition.
Merrill Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ.
There are many individuals who contribute to the education of the student with special needs. Their roles and responsibilities are varied, and each play an important part in the education of the student with disabilities. In the early years of special education, individuals with disabilities were not educated in the traditional classroom. Many of the students were left at home to be taught by their parents, or, sent away to institutions if the families were unable to care for them. In addition, some were education in private schools at the cost of the families. It was not until the 1970’s that special education became acceptable in the public schools. The passing of legislation made it possible for all students to have a right to a free and public education, regardless of their disabilities. The individual with disabilities education act (IDEA) opened the door to education for all students and therefore a change in special education.
For decades the focus of special education has been to “fit” students with disabilities into a program that has not provided them the tools necessary to further succeed in life. Educational standards for students in special education programs are often lowered, and students are not challenged to think critically and expand their knowledge above and beyond these lowered expectations. The implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) began to challenge this standard and demanded free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment for students with disabilities (Sands, Kozleski, & French, 2000).
Students with learning disabilities can learn; each student has his or her own strengths and weaknesses. Educators must continue to focus on the strengths of each student and building on them, creating a stronger student and person. Identifying the weakness is at the core of getting a student help with their learning disability, but after this initial identification and placement, the focus should shift to the strengths and adjusting the student’s schoolwork to reflect these strengths. For instance, if a student is weak in reading but has wonderful group interaction skills and is good with his or her hands, the students' reading tasks should then be shifted to reflect these st...
In the video presentation of How Difficult Can This Be? The F.A.T. City Workshop, Richard Lavoie is able to simulate several of the difficulties that a student with a learning disability has to face at school. Some of the difficulties experienced by the students are intrinsic to the disability itself, but many other difficulties are directly related with the emotions that the student experiences when attending a class, and as a result of his or her interactions with teachers and classmates. Both the United States law and the education system, have the opportunity to make a huge difference in the learning experience of every student with disability. Students with disabilities need to be guided to a path to education that is both feasible and accessible for them; with achievable goals, and by being provided what they need in order to succeed, and to be able to overcome any obstacles.
Encyclopedia of Educational Psychology (2008). Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Retrieved April 9, 2011, from http://www.sage-ereference.com/educationalpsychology/Article_n139.html
Riviere, A. Assistive Technology: Meeting the Needs of Adults with Learning Disabilities. Washington, DC: NALLD, 1996. (ED 401 686)
With such a wide spectrum of cognitive impairments, the specific problems that students and teachers encounter are exponential. Students may be limited in their ability to make decisions, process information, retain information, and apply their intelligence in an academic setting (Katsioloudis & Jones, 2013). Without interventions, these impairments can limit the learning for affected students and for other students in the classroom that may also benefit from their point of view.
“Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish.” (Einstein). Developmental disability, better known as intellectual disability, or mental retardation is a disorder that causes individuals to preform at below average levels (“Intellectual”). This disorder is characterized by continued infant-like behavior, decreased learning ability, failure to meet the markers of intellectual development, inability to meet educational demands, and a lack of curiosity (“Intellectual”). Some people with intellectual disabilities are able to live normal lives, while others may require assistance. Most people with intellectual disabilities have the same capacity to preform the same task as those without intellectual disabilities.
Students with learning disabilities in the regular classroom may have challenges that require special attention. If the teacher is able to identify the disabilities and the features associated with them then the teacher can tailor the lessons to meet the needs of the students. These may include differentiated instruction and facilitating an inclusive classroom which will see inclusive strategies employed that will cater to the needs of students with learning disabilities. These inclusive strategies can range from individualized learning programs to team and co-teaching. In some cases, the teacher can arrange for a special education teacher or arrange for a pull out program to assist students who have learning disabilities. Strategies that will also cater to learning disabilities may also include the use of technology. According to Ford 2013 ‘In some situations it may be best for students with LD to be taught in separate pull out classrooms with a teacher who can provide targeted skill instruction in areas where a student is struggling.’ ‘When provided appropriate support within this setting, many of these students can achieve academically and develop positive self-esteem and social skills. (American Speech-Language-Hearing Association 1991). They also recommend that schools should ‘require in-service programs for all school personnel to give them the knowledge and skills necessary to provide education for students with learning disabilities in the regular education classroom.’ Schools should include activities to help participants learn strategies to meet individual needs of students, foster attitudes conductive to educating students with learning disabilities in the regular education classroom, and promote
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. “Thirty-five Years of Progress in Educating Children With Disabilities Through IDEA”. Washington, D.C., 2010.
Intellectual disability (ID) and related terminology have evolved over time to reflect the legal and social gains made by individuals with such a disability and their families. ID is characterized by significant limitations in intellectual functioning (e.g., reasoning, learning, and problem solving); significant limitations in adaptive behavior (i.e., conceptual, social, and practical skills in everyday life); and onset in childhood (before the age of 18 years; American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (Disabilities, 2017). Intellectual disability is a particular state of functioning that begins in childhood and is characterized by limitations in both intelligence and adaptive skills (Janet W. Lerner, 2015).
Education is a birthright of every child. Special education involves the education of students with special needs in a way that addresses a students’ individual disabilities and requirements. These programs are designed so that special learners may learn skills which will assist them in coming closer in learning to children without disabilities.
... of SRSD and the results support the models strategies. The SRSD model has consistently shown significant improvement in the areas of performance, knowledge, strategic behavior, motivation, and perceptions, especially for the student with mild intellectual disabilities. Explicit instruction in the development of self-regulated strategies consistently promotes self-efficacy through review, encouragement, and continuous praise teaching the learning disabled student skills that are supportive of their efforts. Guided by SRSD skills the student develops the motivation to maintain attention and focus on targeted task, a common positive attribute gained when SRSD is used with MID students. The support a student develops through these practiced skills offsets the sense of learned helplessness that many learning disabled students have developed because of academic failure.
As common as learning disabilities may be, not every child in America is affected, however, the number may be larger than one thinks. In 2001, over 2.9 million children were diagnosed with a learning disability. The number is not accurate since some definitions of a learning disability are different than others. (NCLD 2001) Some of the most common are dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia. Typically one who suffers from a learning disability has difficulty in writing, reading, speaking, listening, and mathematics (NCLD 2001). They may also have short-term memory loss and will frequently let their emotions overpower their reasoning. They may have a hard time paying attention in class and find ways to avoid work, especially when they find the material too difficult. (Silverman) They are disorganized in bo...
When teaching students with disabilities it is important to know and understand the needs of all the students in the classroom. Ultimately, the goal for any educator is to educate all of the students in the classroom and ensure that appropriate accommodations are being made for students with disabilities. By utilizing these skills in reading, writing, and classroom management, an educator will be able to help all students be successful.