Modifying Schoolwork, Second Edition (Teachers' Guides) - Softcover

Janney Ph.D., Rachel; Snell Ph.D., Martha E.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1557667063 ISBN 13: 9781557667069

Publisher: Brookes Publishing, 2004

Synopsis

Introducing the authors' fresh approach to adapting schoolwork for students with disabilities, the second edition of this handbook is a must-have for every educator in an inclusive classroom. Educators of students from grades K–12 will learn about curricular, instructional, and alternative adaptations and decide when and how to implement them with the new strategies in this revised edition. Teachers will

• find step-by-step guidance on planning adaptations for individual students
• adapt instruction and tests in key skills and content areas — including reading, writing, math, social studies, and history
• get updated photocopiable planning forms
• learn from the experience of other teachers with Voices from the Classroom and get examples of how to fill in the forms
• discover, in everyday language, what current research says about modifying schoolwork

Expanded throughout and based on current research, this how-to guide is just what teachers need to design effective, flexible modifications for students with a broad range of ages, disabilities, and learning needs.

The book is part of theBrookes Publishing Teachers’ Guides to Inclusive Practices Series

About this title

About the Author:

Rachel Janney, Ph.D., is an independent scholar and consultant who has worked with and on behalf of children and adults with disabilities in a number of capacities, including special education teacher, educational and behavioral consultant, technical assistance provider, teacher educator, researcher, and author. For a number of years, she was a professor in the School of Teacher Education and Leadership at Radford University in Virginia, where she taught courses and supervised student teachers in the special education program, specializing in the inclusion of students with extensive learning and behavior support needs. Dr. Janney received her master's degree from Syracuse University and her doctorate from the University of Nebraska—Lincoln.

Martha E. Snell, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Special Education, Curry School of Education, University of Virginia, 405 Emmet Street, Charlottesville Virginia 22904

Dr. Martha Snell is a Professor Emeritus of Special Education at the Curry School of Education, University of Virginia where she directed the teacher preparation program in severe disabilities for 30 years. With others, she has authored a number of books on teaching methods and the definition of intellectual disability and has been an active member of TASH and the American Association for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. She directed both federal and state grants directed toward the preparation of teachers and research with individuals having intellectual disability and autism and their teachers; more recently her research has concerned Head Start classrooms and young children at risk. Her research topics have encompassed the inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classrooms, effective teaching strategies, communication intervention, and positive behavior support for problem behavior.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:

Excerpted from Chapter 1 of Modifying Schoolwork, Second Edition, by Rachel Janney, Ph.D., & Martha E. Snell, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2004 by Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

This book is designed to be a practical, hands-on resource for use by teams of general and special educators who share responsibility for educating elementary, middle, and high school students with and without disabilities in inclusive classrooms. The book has three main purposes: 1) to describe flexible, accommodating teaching practices that make the general education suitable for students with a wide range of abilities and learning needs, 2) to provide a process for making decisions about modifying instructional activities for particular students when necessary, and 3) to give concrete examples of planning formats and instructional materials that have been developed by teachers to design and monitor modifications for individuals students.

Most of the student-specific tools and strategies illustrated in this book were contributed by teachers in several school districts who have put inclusive education practices into action. Although these contributors are master teachers who have years of experience in inclusive practices and who have the support of their school and school-division administrators, they are nonetheless teachers who face the challenges and demands as their colleagues around the country. These challenges include the demands for curriculum coverage and academic achievement that are so pressing for educators in today's era of high stakes tasting and public accountability systems. Therefore, even though the principles and approaches described in this book are presented as ideals, they come from real teachers in real classrooms. Some strategies have been adapted from the published work of other educators (e.g., Davern, Ford, Erwin, Schnorr, & Rogan, 1993; Ford et al., 1995; Giangreco, Cloninger, & Iverson, 1998; Jorgensen, 1998; Sailor, Gee, & Karasoff, 1993; Udvari-Solner, 1994; Villa & Thousand, 2000). Strategies continue to evolve as various teams of teachers working with various students apply these strategies creatively.

Although it takes great effort — on the part of many people across many years — to prepare a school system and its schools to provide effective inclusive education, the primary focus of this book is on classroom strategies rather than on the process of making school systems more inclusive. We do not extensively address the systemic change efforts that go into moving students from segregated or self-contained classrooms to integrated or inclusive classrooms. However, we do provide some helpful references (see Appendix B) and, in the final section of this chapter, suggest a general process, as well as some specific strategies, for moving forward with systems change efforts.

We also do not focus on the development of individualized education programs (IEPs), although we do provide some general information about IEPs for students in inclusive settings. The suggestions given about IEPs are consistent with the federal legislation contained in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Amendments of 1997 (PL-105-17), but readers should, of course, consult with their local and state specialists concerning informal norms and formal regulations to which they should adhere. References that detail the process of developing IEPs for inclusive programs are provided in Appendix B.

Instead, this book focuses on the processes of designing instruction that accommodates as wide a range of student learning characteristics as possible and making adaptations for individual students with IEPs. It is assumed that these students are starting the school year in an inclusive classroom with a classroom teacher who 1) considers the student to be a full member of the class, 2) has the support of a collaborating or consulting special education teacher, and 3) has the assistance of other support personnel as determined by the needs of the student.

This chapter provides an overview of some of the broad school and classroom practices that set the stage for effectively educating students in inclusive classes. Chapter 2 outlines a selection of the teaching practices that have been demonstrated to be effective in enhancing student achievement, particularly the achievement of students in mixed-ability classrooms. Chapter 3 provides a model for thinking about the process of making adaptations — the elements of curriculum and instruction that can be modified for individual students — and the criteria used to judge what makes a good adaptation. Chapter 4 illustrates the steps and procedures used to design and implement individualized adaptations and the monitoring and evaluation of those adaptations. Chapter 5 provides arrays of ideas for adapting instructional activities in basic skills (reading, writing, and math) and content areas, as well as a discussion of issues related to adapting tests and other assessments for individual students.

Throughout the book, each planning format or adaptation strategy is illustrated using case examples of students we have known. Blank copies of some of the forms used in these examples are provided in Appendix A. These case examples include students ages 5-22 who have a range of learning and support needs, such as

• Daniel, a first-grade student who has severe disabilities including cerebral palsy and mental retardation
• Melanie, a fourth grader who has autism
• Vanessa, a sixth grader with a learning disability
• Sam, a ninth-grade student who has a behavioral disorder and Asperger syndrome
• Walter, an eleventh grader who has mental retardation

Six Key Elements of Inclusive Education

1. An inclusive program model
2. An inclusive culture in the school
3. Collaborative teaming and problem solving
4. Accommodation of curricular and instructional practices in the classroom
5. Strategies for making individualized adaptations
6. Strategies to facilitate peer relationships and supports

We provide specific strategies that could be used to improve each element of your school's inclusive practices. Most schools have some type of school improvement plan or action plan that has been developed through a self-study process. An ideal approach to promoting or improving a school's inclusive practices is to incorporate goals and strategies related to the elements of inclusive education into the existing school improvement plan.

Figure 1.1 Six key elements of inclusive education

1. Inclusive program model: Staffing arrangements, service delivery methods, and administrative support that enable students to receive appropriate services within inclusive age, appropriate settings



2. Inclusive culture in the school: A vision of a diverse community that is put into practice



3. Collaborative teaming and problem solving: Skills and strategies used by general education and special education teachers for productive co-planning, communication, problem solving, and teaching



4. Accommodation of curricular and instructional practices in the classroom: Teaching that is known to be effective for all learners.



5. Strategies for making individualized adaptations: Agreed upon methods for planning, implementing, and evaluating the adaptations needed by individual students



6. Strategies to facilitate peer relationships and supports: Formal and informal ways to foster age-appropriate interactions and relationships among students with disabilities and their classmates

An Inclusive Program Model

In nearly every school district in the country, teachers, parents, and administrators are discussing issues related to the inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classrooms. People have come to use the terms inclusive education and full inclusion to describe a wide variety of special education programming options. In this book, we use these terms more narrowly. We define inclusive education or full inclusion as providing necessary services and supports for students with disabilities from within a homebase in general education classes in neighborhood schools.

According to the definition given in Figure 1.2, inclusive education means that individualized supports follow the student; therefore, students with disabilities are not isolated from their peers without disabilities. This definition also means that participation in general classes and other age-appropriate activities is the goal for all students. However, no absolute, across-the-board decisions are made for all students; the IEP process is the means by which decisions are made regarding which of a student's needs are addressed inside or outside of the classroom. Such decisions are based on the skills to be taught and where instruction to address those skills is best delivered, not simply based on students'; disability classifications. True inclusive education requires collaborative learning to plan individual students'; daily schedules and instruction and to incorporate special education services and supports into the ongoing classroom schedule. (Another way to describe this approach to service delivery is to say that the services are pulled in to the classroom.) It does not mean that students no longer receive specialized instruction and related services or that students are thrown into the mainstream to sink or swim. Indeed, the federal definition of special education is "specially designed instruction," a definition that makes no reference to the place where such instruction occurs.

Figure 1.2 Definition of inclusive education.

• The opportunity for all students to attend the neighborhood schools they would attend if they did not have disabilities
• All students based in general education homerooms and classes
• General and special education teacher consultation and collaboration to incorporate special supports and services into age-appropriate school and community environments
• Flexible and individualized decision making about students' individualized education programs (including learning goals, services provided, and where and how instruction takes place) that is not solely based on disability categories
• All students learning what is important for them to learn, which may vary from one student to another.

Notice that inclusive education or full inclusion is different from the following types of programming:

• Full integration: Students with IEPs are based in general education classrooms, but all students do not necessarily have the opportunity to attend their neighborhood schools. Students may be clustered in designated schools according to their disability classifications.



• Partial integration: Students with IEPs receive a combination of pull-in and pull-out services. They tend to be integrated into general education classes for nonacademic portions of the school day. Students with IEPs do not necessarily attend their neighborhood schools but may be clustered in designated schools.



• Student-or school-level inclusion: Instead of a districtwide effort to provide inclusive opportunities for all students, particular students are provided with inclusive programming because of their parents or particular schools have become inclusive due to the advocacy of faculty, parents, and/or administrators.

Creating a truly inclusive school can be require many changes in aspects of school organization and structure that may at first glance seem far removed from the teaching and learning that goes on within the classroom. However, the ways students are assigned to teachers and classrooms, and the ways resources are allocated all have a significant impact on what happens among the teachers and students in a school. The effectiveness of inclusive education as a way to provide educational services depends on many variables in addition to teachers'; knowledge and use of the most effective teaching methods.

An inclusive program model is a system by which appropriate special education services and supports are delivered to students who need them without removing those students from the schools and classrooms attended by their typical peers (see Figure 1.3). If students with disabilities in your school are not scheduled into general classes first and provided with special education supports and services within that setting before other alternatives are developed on an individual basis, then revising the program model is the place to start. An inclusive program model entails a number of features, including 1) methods for determining what services and supports students require in order to be successful in inclusive settings and 2) methods for getting those services and supports to the students. In other words, an inclusive program model requires appropriate staffing arrangements and appropriate service delivery methods.

Figure 1.3 What we know about best practices in inclusive education

What the Research Says

In the monograph Inclusive Schooling Practices: Pedagogical and Research Foundations, McGregor and Vogelsberg (1998) summarized the literature base on the best approaches to supporting students with disabilities in inclusive settings. The monograph gives the background and history of the inclusive schooling movement, provides descriptions of instructional practices that are effective for diverse students, and summarizes the research about inclusive education. Some of the key findings from the research 1) students with disabilities demonstrate high levels of social interaction in inclusive settings, but physical presence along does not guarantee positive social outcomes; 2) interactive, small-group contexts facilitate skill acquisition and social acceptance; 3) friendships do develop between students with disabilities and typical peers; 4) teachers play an important role in facilitating the development of friendships; 5) the performance of typically developing students is not compromised by the inclusion of students with disabilities; 6) parent support for inclusion is positively affected by actual experience; and 7) although many teachers are initially reluctant about inclusive education, support and experience make them more confident in their abilities. McGregor and Vogelsberg's monograph is useful to those who want advice about how to implement inclusive programs, and to those who want to be knowledgeable about the research on the outcomes of inclusive schooling.

Excerpted from Chapter 1 of Modifying Schoolwork, Second Edition, by Rachel Janney, Ph.D., & Martha E. Snell, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2004 by Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

About this edition

• Publisher: Brookes Publishing
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 1557667063
• ISBN 13: 9781557667069
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 160