Teaching All Types of Learners
Helping Students with Learning Disabilities Succeed
Teaching strategies can help students with LD improve their performance in the science classroom.
Cornerstone Conference Notes
Read Jen's notes from this conference, to learn more about Cornerstone Day School.
Cornerstone Conference Notes
Read Jen's notes from this conference, to learn more about Cornerstone Day School.
This video provides great insight about the way that learning disabled children process information.
Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities
Learn about ways you can accommodate Learning Disabled students in your classroom.
Individualizing a Grading System for your LD Students
Get help to develop a fair and equitable approach to grading.
Common Characteristics of Students with Learning Disabilities
How to identify students and adapt instruction in your classroom.
What's a Learning Disability, Anyway?
Questions for Response/Comments:
1. Based on the accommodations discussed in these articles, which accommodations do you feel would be difficult to provide in your classroom?
2. What are your greatest challenges when working with diverse learners? How do you handle this?
3. How do you track your LD students' progress to ensure you are providing proper accommodations?
4. What additional support do you need to provide accommodations for your LD students?
I found "Teaching Students With Learning Disabilities" VERY informative, and, even though I am not a teacher, I thought the explanation of the best practices is something we could all use a refresher on. I think our classified students are really a great treasure to UC, and I've enjoyed working with them immensely. Though it can be difficult to keep the students on track & focused, I think the author's tips & study habits would be very helpful for our students to read & practice -- ALL of our students ;)
ReplyDeleteI agree, Mike - you're so smart! We need a more effective strategies for helping the faculty help these students since we NEVER see them in a one-on-one or small group environment. We should come up with an effective plan - it's not at all practical, but if each classified student had an online profile on SASI the broke their recommendations down in clear, easy bullet points that the teachers could access from their laptop during the day (a doc with as few words as possible) it might begin to make a difference.
DeleteMare, I think an online profile is a great idea.
DeleteMy DIL works in a large district in Pennsylvania...Teachers' on line grade books have notations with designated students' needs,accomodations and recommenations that can only be opened by the specific classroom teacher.Having worked in public school systems for many years, I find UC teachers are amazing with how they do so much for so many students without labeling or having access to the vast"special seervices" resources available to public school districts. Our "special needs" students are a true mission and a unique part of the Union Catholic calling.
DeleteI too think it is amazing that teachers here at UC do not necessarily need all the "special resources" to realize that all the students have special needs and they try to treat all of their students as if they were their own children!!!TEACH AS JESUS DID!
DeleteI too believe that some of the 'tips' offered to help these learners whould be really useful.
ReplyDeleteThe concept of focus is difficult for many of today's learners.Distractions are so common.
I believe that cell phone use is the worst.
Study habits for many learners - not just those with disabilities - is a serious concern.
With my Chemistry 341 (RA) I use smaller lessons within the class time. There are usually two switches.
Fot example - listing and defining 15 vocabulary terms and handwriting the definitions;
then examining a new topic with board written terms.
I couldn't agree more that the study habits of students in general is a serious concern, especially those with disabilities. I do think that the proper use of cell phones can help the students learn though. Although they can serve as a major distraction, I believe they can be used in a manner that will spark some interest in our students.
DeletePatti and Dave, I agree with both of you. Students in general have a very poor sense of the concept of studying. I believe the cell phone can be a distraction, but it could also be a great studying tool (I've witnessed both with my students). It's the life skill of self discipline and usage of time that needs to be delivered to the student.
DeleteTeaching students with learning disabilities is very challenging. I try to use smaller lessons. This is easier for some to get and not feel overwhelmed. I liked this article.
ReplyDeleteI was particularly struck by the video on Processing Speed. Yesterday my 10 year old son, Jack, had a psych eval to determine classification. We found that he scored a 17 on verbal comp but a 7 in processing. He's very smart, but when the boat is pulling away from the dock, Jack either has to stay onshore or swim for it. He's getting pretty tired of swimming. He's been really down all year. Now we know why and have techniques to accommodate him. But I think we are extremely UNDERTRAINED with specifics for dealing with these different learners. They get put in classes that are so large that unless they are an obvious discipline problem they are left on their own most of the time and probably don't go home feeling very good most days.
ReplyDeleteOne issue that always comes to my mind when finding ways to work with a student with a slower processing speed, is what will really benefit the student. Extended time will give the student the time necessary to complete the assessment and demonstrate his or her knowledge, but if the student needs extended time for many different tasks, then it most be discouraging to the student who is now spending even more time on school work. If the student stays after school to complete a test, then the student gets a late start on homework, homework that will already take this student longer to complete. I personally beleive that it might be in the student's best interest if a modified test could be prepared instead, meaning one with less questions. The test could still span the same amount of content, but rather than ask 50 multiple choice questions, provide 25 instead. In the case of an essay test, provide less questions or allow the student to answer in bullet form. In the case of Math provide one or two of each type of problem to assess understanding. If a vocabulary test includes 25 words, hold the student responsible for learning all 25 words, and then randomly test 10, the student will not know in advance which ten, but while the rest of the class completes a test with 25 questions, this student will complete a test with 10 pre-selected questions.
DeleteI agree...the video was very interesting and informative. Teaching various learning levels can certainly be a challenge but it helps you figure out better methods to tier your lessons and include everyone. Since I teach a World Language, I find that everyone has a different processing time even if they are in the same level and some may need clarification and a deeper explanation. Students with processing difficulties may act out or need more attention but it is important to include them as much as possible so they do not feel left out. I have learned a lot from teaching various levels of Spanish. Not all students learn a language the same way and I try to offer the same material in more than one method.
DeleteI agree, Meg! Modified testing, rather than extended testing time, can be a huge help to students.
DeleteThanks for sharing about Jack, Mare. I know our experiences as parents are so helpful to understanding where our students are coming from! Also, re: training, I have found that individualized training can be the best for working with individuals. In other words, try to discover in what areas or with what types of learners you have the most difficulty, and seek out training with that specific issue in mind. Because there are so many facets to LD, there are so many facets to the training and to addressing the needs of individual classroom teachers. There are great workshops and webinars available for personalized professional development. One great resource is the Morris-Union Jointure Commission (http://www.mujc.org/catalog/FullCatalog.pdf), and periodically check out #spedchat on Twitter.
I think an invaluable help for teachers would be to have the recommended acccomadations for students available online on the school network. Even if a teacher were to have read about the accomodations in the hardcopy file,it would be a convenience to access the information again later if a student were still having difficulty.
DeleteI also totally agree that modified testing with a shorter length rather than extended time seems to be a better solution. If students who require extended time due to processing speed have to constantly be spending extra time finishing tests/quizzes/homework assignments, then that can be very discouraging. The only thing that I find difficult to figure out fairly in terms of modifying testing is trying to make it still fair. In other words, what if the questions that are omitted are ones that the student would have answered correctly, and what if several of the questions I leave on the test are ones that the student answers incorrectly? While questions are pulled randomly from a vast amount of information to begin with, I just wonder if a shortened test would be seen as completely equitable to the longer version...
DeleteI found these articles to be both interesting and informative. One thought that came to mind, when reviewing the characteristics of students with learning disabilities is that there is not a “one size fits all” approach. We can not just group students together and label them as LD. Each student is an individual with his or her own unique strengths and weaknesses. Not all students need or will benefit from the same accommodations and therefore, we need to treat each student as an individual and, to the extent possible within the context of the classroom setting, find ways for each student to capitalize on his or her strengths and compensate for any weaknesses. Very often, the students have great ideas as to how that can best happen if we discuss previous strategies with the students. The guidance department and Mary-Eileen have been encouraging students to advocate for themselves and I know this is a skill many classroom teachers encourage as well and find quite helpful, but sometimes the students who are not as good at self-advocating can be drawn out when asked and often times can provide the best suggestions for accommodations moving forward. Another thought that came to mind, is that I feel it is very important, particularly for teachers of freshmen to be aware of any student who is struggling or showing signs of a learning disability. Sometimes a learning disability may go undetected until high school, particularly when a student is coming from a small elementary school where individual attention and accommodations were the norm for all students. I also found the suggestion about breaking down assignments into smaller segments to be helpful for all students to keep them on task, and also a technique used by many teachers already. In terms of introducing test taking techniques in the context of the Science classroom, once again, I think this would be helpful for all students if test taking skills were incorporated throughout the curriculum and would help prepare students for testing such as the PSAT, SAT and ACT. I am not talking about major lessons here, as everyone has a curriculum to cover, but sometimes, as many teachers do, when reviewing a test, just reinforce some tips that might have helped the student come to the right answer. I do not personally support an individualized grading system, but do support alternate ways to demonstrate the same knowledge, such as oral testing, extended time, etc. I believe the grade for all students should reflect mastery of content, not just effort, which to me is really a non-academic factor, though a good strength to have. The other point that I thought was made well is that very often a student with a learning disability can be of above average intelligence. In my TA course, I have students at the Foundations level through AP and I know others experience this same scenario. I try to incorporate reading material that includes, text, graphics, audio and video clips. I also try to provide options for the students when submitting papers and projects. A few weeks ago we were discussing multiple intelligences and I found the students’ responses to be very enlightening in that many of the students really do know and can articulate how they learn best. That is another reason I feel so strongly about really talking to the kids about what works for them.
ReplyDeleteThe video by Richard Lavoie (F.A.T. City) is very interesting. The segment on processing speed is just a small portion of the video that also includes risk-taking, perception, comprehension, and fairness. He puts adults, both educators and parents,in the shoes of their learning disabled children. They get to see the world from their perspective. It gives valuable insights that can help us better understand and address the needs of our learning disabled students.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the article, "Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities." I think it's clear that many students, not just those with major issues, show some signs of having a learning disability. While going through the list of possible classroom adjustments provided in this article, I tried to focus on what really works in my classroom. For example, it talked about calling on all students to read aloud, not to serve as embarrassment, but to keep them focused on a lesson. This has really worked with my foundations group this year. I definitely have to choose wisely on who is picked to read certain passages, but the entire group has responded well. Also, it talks about how moving around the room and using students names in examples keeps them focused. With the smaller groups that we have in h Foundations Program, these strategies are very realistic.
ReplyDeleteSue,
ReplyDeleteProcessing speed segment is an eye opener! It does really help when we see what they see. I believe we often take 'our gifts' for granted. Slowing down, giving the student an opportunity to assimilate the ask questions will have to be a new goal for me.
I sense the frustrations for some students who honestly "do not understand".
Oddly---having several International students in each class has brought this to the forefront!
Time to evaluate how to help the individual. The concept of an online profile would be a HUGE help. We cannot always remember who needs what but when the student has a performance lapse we could seek out a quick check to evaluate and help.
As I looked through these articles I focused much of my attention to question number 3, how do we track the progress of an LD student. I agreed with the concepts of the "Individualized Grading System" which discussed a focus on student accountability and performance as well as being flexible to the LD student's personal needs. However, in the video the ability of an LD student to "process the question" presented to them is a skill. So as we place an emphasis on grading content retention and usage, does that also keep track of the progression of academic skills?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Maryann and Jim-an online profile breaking down the recommendations very specifically would be very helpful-so you could access it quickly rather than having to shuffle through so many papers in guidance. Obviously it would have to be a very secure site.
ReplyDeleteThe article, "What's a Learning Disability, Anyway?" got me thinking about the challenges both educators and parents face when dealing with a child that is not in the "typical" range of language acquisition, socialization, motor function etc... The reality of the situation is that every child is a unique learner and has to be treated individually... As a music teacher, getting to know my students strengths and weaknesses is a case by case study, every class, every child, every year... I have to assess how well they read, listen, perform and interact... I also have to assess their comprehension and retention of the material which is chosen by me specifically for their personal skill sets....
ReplyDeleteHaving a classroom with mixed grade levels (9-12), "typical" students, as well as students with Asperger's, ADD etc., is both a challenge and a blessing. Could the facilities and equipment be improved to help facilitate more coordinated learning? Sure. However due to the community and faith based nature of our school, the students really band (no pun intended) together and contribute to the learning process in my classes... More experienced students help the less experienced ones, there is a strong spirit of camaraderie, teamwork and a "get it done" type of attitude. We work towards common goals and everyone including myself has a sense of accomplishment when those goals are completed and conquered....
Don, I think you hit the nail on the head with this one - every child is a unique learner. Thanks!
DeleteDon, I agree with just about everything you wrote! Teaching languages, I have come to the same conclusions and I too have noticed that the students themselves, in this school, tend to be each other's best teacher. I see it especially in my Italian 2,3 and 4 classes, when one student struggles, they all try to chip in and help. This is probably due to the fact that in Italian, the classes remain the same, so they get to know each other better and are more at ease with each other. Do you have the same rosters in your classes?
DeleteI loved Mare's idea too!
ReplyDeleteThanks for these great resources. I echo some of the comments above. My biggest challenge is that I do not feel as if I am adequately trained to assist some of the students we have at UC. When I read the classified student's reports or 504s, they all tend to sound the same...extended time, oral testing, sit close to the front of the room. These accomadations are simple enough to make. However, I do believe each of these learners is not cookie cutter and do have individual needs. My daughter was classified in the second grade but as Mare said, one of the reasons it took so long for her to get the assistance that she needed was because she was not a problem. She was and is, well behaved and would work tireless to keep up. We didn't even realize how much she was struggling and we couldn't understand why because her older brother had no problems. I can remember hating thurs. nights because that would be the night we had to study for the 10 word spelling test and it would inevitably end with she and I in tears. Cara is now in 5th grade. She is doing very well but it has taken working with her teachers, working with her at home and being lucky enough that she does not get discouraged. It is interesting to see the change in her as she has transitioned to Middle School. She is much more aware of the social surroundings, doesn't want to be perceived as not understanding something and will not ask questions. Handwriting is still an issue and one of her teachers suggested that she may have to use a word processor for the NJASK. She was furious and has painstakingly practiced penmanship every day since then. What is my point? As her mother, I am learning as I go and I want most of all for her for to know how amazing she is. As a teacher, I want to have the skills to help these students know how amazing they are. I don't want to make it more difficult or more frustrating. I will end with this. Cara recently started using a math tutor once a week. She is a lovely young energetic teacher at Terrill. After the first session, I asked Cara how it went and if she liked her. Cara's response was so telling. She said she really liked her and couldn't wait to next week. I asked her why she liked her so much. She said: " she appreciates my intelligence." Wow!
ReplyDeleteWow Kim that is such a blessing that Cara found a tutor who appreciates her strengths, builds her up, and makes her feel empowered! Thank you for sharing how impactful one person can be to a struggling student with just a little encouragement and genuine praise.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteKim I agree totally with you about accommodations sounding generic in each classified students ISP. This is something that I have brought up to Union County Educational Services. To be honest we have one of the best Child Study Teams because I have read many that are much worse to the point I wonder if the CST even knew which child they were reporting about. However, many accommodations are picked using state standards which is why they may sound redundant in each child's report. I find it is more valuable to read the results from the WISC which gives their intelligence range and contains sub-tests which will also lets you know how they scored. You can easily scan them to see which students struggle with verbal, auditory, Mathematical or processing. This information will then help you to know which strategies will help to use in your classroom.
DeleteOne of my biggest challenges this year has been giving more attention and focus to the students with Asbergers or ADD. When you're teaching a class of 30-35 it is difficult to give that student the time they need/deserve.
ReplyDeleteAt times it can take a lesson twice as long to complete and that is when the other students become disengaged. It is a growing challenge that I continue to work on each day but the article above offer some great insight.
We, as a community of educators, have to keep working with these students and offer them the support and resources to help them succeed. Great suggestions from everyone and I hope together we can come up with some effective strategies to help these students succeed.
I appreciate everyone's honesty regarding teaching students who learn differently. Teachers in both public school and private have to differentiate instruction, as most students who have learning disabilities are mainstreamed. Every student is so unique that even with specific strategies, it requires teachers to look at each student individually to assess what might best help them. I really liked the idea of asking students what helps them learn best etc as a strategy. It is true that most accommodations listed in ISPs are very similar and that they don't seem to have the "magic answer" for how to teach a student. What I have witnessed is that teachers who are approachable and reach out to students have the best results with students who learn differently. For instance, pulling a student aside who did not do well on a test and offering to give the test to the student orally at another time lets the student know that the teacher noticed them and wants to help them do well. Although these students struggle, they have a very keen sense of who is helpful and who is not. If they feel a teacher is not approachable, they will often shut down and not ask for accommodations out of fear regarding the response (often based on past negative experiences). On the other hand, a teacher who notices a student has missed several homework assignments or failed several assessments, and pulls a student aside to speak with them in an encouraging way, often has great results. Although the personal approach can take a little more time, it usually reaps very big rewards. I think some people do not want to single a student out or make them feel badly but when a teacher reaches out first in a kind way, students feel that the teacher has their best interest in mind and often the open communication creates a positive learning/working environment for the students. There is a quote from Maya Angelou that states " people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." Thank you to those teachers who shared their own experiences with their children. As parents we don't always know what to do either- kids don't come with instruction manuals but through listening we learn a lot. Teaching these sensitive learners is not an exact science with specific strategies all them time but the respect, consideration, patience and appreciation for their gifts makes all the difference. On a side note, there are tons of conferences that you can attend to build strategies. I'll be attending one on ADHD next week and will be sure to post my notes to the PLN for you to view! Thank you to all of you who took the time to learn more about teaching these unique learners!
ReplyDeleteYour reference to how they feel...
DeleteThrough the years (33 to be exact) I have noticed many changes in young people.
Today, many learners seem to be 'alone'. Text with no verbal conversations...Individual gaming against an unseen foe.... many young people today welcome a few personal remarks..
I believe that Jen is so right. It is not what I teach but do I try to understand 'their side' and tell them how I can help.. That is why I come early and stay late. they need to know I can be there for them.
I enjoyed the articles on students with learning disabilities. The articles reinforce the issues with which these young people struggle and about our mission to understand and be of assistance. Reading the articles reinforced what I can do as a counselor to assist classroom teachers, parents, and my counselees, some of whom feel "stigmatized" and embarassed to seek accomodations. There are numerous times when students and parents are hesitant to reveal a disability to the college they will attend and it takes a lengthy discussion (with the student present) to have them see that a learning disability is an addressable condition of our humanness and accomodations help a young person "level the playing field." What helps a lot is when I refer to the efforts of our classroom teachers being so attentive and helpful that helps them make a decision to reveal, so thanks for your help with that!
ReplyDeleteI think that many strategies, modifications and adaptations that we make for of our general population and classified students can be applied to our international students as well. Each student is unique, and part of our calling is to help each child. It takes time, patience and dedication, but I think working together we can help our students meet with success.
ReplyDeleteI thought that the articles were very interesting, offering different perspectives on helping students with learning disabilities. In terms of the questions, for question 1, there are many accommodations and extra help strategies that are very possible. One of the suggestions to keep students’ attention that I have found very effective is to use the name of a student in the class or a name students are familiar with. This was found in the “Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities” article and was just something I had never read as an actual suggestion before. I also find that the idea of breaking an assignment down as suggested in the “Cornerstone Conference Notes” works well. Not just in terms of write your name…read the first sentence, then read the second, but it works when having students answer a question with multiple steps. This works well with all students, not just ones that have a learning disability. It works in my honors Spanish class when I ask a question in Spanish of a particular student and he/she says that he/she doesn’t know the answer. By breaking it down into steps in terms of responding, most times the student does actually know the complete response but just needs to take it one step at a time. I think that breaking assignments down into pieces and emphasizing time management strategies are also important across the board. However, I would find the idea of an individualized grading system difficult to provide, and I am not sure I am comfortable with the idea of adjusted grading as discussed in the article “lndividualizing a Grading System for a Student With LD and an IEP”. I do feel that the actual grade does need to be based on mastery of content, and that is why we have different levels of learning at UC. We try to make it so that students can be successful at a level that is appropriate to their academic ability. To use an extreme example, if a student never learns math on even a second-grade level, and arrives in high school with a transcript saying he/she passed 8th grade math if the grading is done on an adjusted scale, then I feel we are putting the student at more of a disadvantage and more of a route for discouragement and failure then in the future. Although we all love it when students put in 100% effort, I think we need to be cautious of the emphasis placed on effort not only for students with learning disabilities, but across the board at all levels. Effort is certainly important, but students need to be able to achieve mastery of content, and our grades should most reflect the mastery of content that our students achieve. In terms of question 2, I think some of the greatest challenges are determining “what works best” strategies for individual students. Although two students may have similar suggestions for accommodations in an ISP, what extra resources and support that each needs might be vastly different. As the academic year progresses, it becomes much more clearly evident what methods work best with individual students. I think that an open communication line between teacher, student, and parent can help to streamline progress. I believe that motivating students is the biggest key, and that does sometimes present a challenge. I liked how the “Cornerstone Conference Notes” stressed the importance of positive feedback when a student does and/or achieves something good, and I feel that positive feedback is a great motivating factor, so we need to make sure that we emphasize this. In terms of question 3, I think it is very evident if the student is not making progress or becomes disinterested, and then we must constantly move on as teachers to devise new strategies to make things work. I think we must consistently monitor both academic achievement and interest levels to see what works best.
ReplyDeleteIn some respects, I feel I'm ahead of the learning curve when it comes to working with LD students. I've had a pretty good success rate with these students over the years. Each year, several of them ask me to write a letter of recommendation for them for college. In the majority of these cases, the answer to question #8 on the "college recommendation prompts for teachers" (What did you learn about yourself as a result of being in this class?)is usually one of the following:
ReplyDelete"I learned that I can be successful."
"I found out that I can do anything if I put my mind to."
"I learned I have to pay attention in order to learn."
To me, it is all about little successes. Many of the LD students understand failure all too well. However, the little successes they experiece really do lead to more successes for them.
I have a son and a granddaughter with learning disabilities. I had to push the school to evaluate my son back in the 80's when he was 17. More recently, I had to push my daughter to have her 16 year old daughter evaluated as well.
What's my secret to success? I wish I knew. I've done the research, I have had a pretty good understanding of what these students go through on a daily basis, and I'm experienced. But, that's just the beginning.
I offer the following on how I go about the teaching process:
- Be thoroughly prepared every day
- Go beyond what is expected of you as a teacher
- Take the time to get to know each student individually
- Bond with them
- Provide a warm, inviting, and stress-free classroom environment
- Get them engaged and keep them engaged
- Recognize their strengths and weaknesses
- Treat them with respect
- Be fair to everyone
- Build a rapport with them
- Build life skills with them
- Establish short and long range goals with them
- Recognize subtle downward changes in grades and with life
- Recognize when they are experiencing any difficulties
- Immediately address any concerns w/guidance counselors
- Immediately address any behavioral issues w/disciplinarians
- Provide workable rules and regulations
- Make sure they know what is expected of them
- Be consistent
- Prepare them for life; don't protect them from it.
- Minimize distractions in the classroom
An unfortunate by-product of computer and smartphone technology is the "distraction" they cause to LD students, and mainstream students as well. I have a hard time understanding why we give students, who are easily distracted, a means to be distracted. It is my experience that given the opportunity to use their computer for learning or play, they will play.
I am not against technology. I love technology. It helps me to work smarter and not harder. However, I have found that with the number of students I have per class, and the subject matter I teach, my students are more successful without their computers.
I post my Powerpoint slide presentations for each chapter or unit on my schoolnotes page each week and encourage the students to download them. Most do.
I expect them to pay attention. The vast majority do. I involve my students in the learning process and application of the concepts to be learned. I call on them indiscriminately. However, I'm careful no to embarrass anyone. I usually change direction approximately three times during a class period.
My lowest grade in any one of my fall elective classes this past semester was a "B". Even though the grading system changed, the vast majority of the "B" grades would have been "B's" under the old grading system.
If anyone is interested, I have more to offer. However, I don't find this the appropriate forum to explain how to do what I do, and what I've accomplished.
Teaching all of the levels available here at UC, I personally see not only the difference from one learning/academic level to another, but also the differences within the levels. It has always been my struggle to figure out how to address all of the different learning needs while still keeping everyone engaged - it always seems that just as soon as I seem to figure it out with the group that I have, the school year is coming to a close.
ReplyDeleteI have found that one of the best ways to observe them efficiently is to have great classroom management from the first day to the last day -- these kids CRAVE structure, and if we lax on procedures, so do they. I promise them on the first day of school that the policies they see now they will still see come the very last day of exams. By assuring they know what to expect, I have has an easier time each year strategizing the classroom procedures for teaching there individual learning styles.