- Identify students in one of your classes who would qualify as diverse according to Kellough (e.g., 3 with IEPs, 2 are ELL, etc.) - Do these students have difficulty learning in your classroom? - What ideas do you have to meet their needs?
- I picked my 7th hour class as the class that I'd like to discuss. In this particular class, I have 1 student who has an IEP as well as being an ELL learner. I have 3 students who are ELL learners as well. - My ELL learners for the most part are pretty much on par with my other students. A couple of areas where I notice these ELL students sometimes struggle is with vocabulary and spelling. I'm always a little surprised by the spelling and grammar skills my students display but the quality goes down even more so with ELL students. Words that I would think are a normal part of vocabulary for 8th graders just aren't there with some of my ELL students. - In order to to install vocabulary for these stduents, I do many different activities in which they do more than just define words. I like to do activities such as drawing what this word means to them and using them in sentences so they truly understand the meaning. I've noticed that when they draw what the word means or brings to mind that it really helps to make this word stick in their memories.
I also do a lot of questioning. After I explain how to do something or do a lecture; I always try to make sure to ask if anyone has questions or if they understood what we went over.
I chose my first hour Freshman English class. I have 4 students on iep and 5 gifted students in with 14 "normal" students.
Of the students on iep, two are doing fine and two are struggling. However, the two who are struggling are challenged primarily by ineffective work habits and turning in things late. Part of this is their lack of understanding, however, another part is that they: A. miss school a lot, and B. don't use class time productively. In a class of 24 students, I struggle to find enough individual time to spend with them.
Since these students are on iep, but not in special education, little support is in place for them. They have a "structured study" period in the schedule, which basically a closely supervised study hall, but they often lie to their structured study teacher about the work they have to do for me. I have begun to communicate more directly with those teachers, and things are improving, but I fear that until they begin to put in some work and come to school, it will be difficult for them to excel.
I like your ideas about installing vocabulary by drawing, etc. As a read/write learner myself, I find it hard to come up with non-traditional ideas for instilling vocab. I may try the picture thing.
In reference to your questioning, one thing I find necessary is to not only ask if they understood, but also to ask probing, specific quesitons of individuals to be sure they do. Many of my students who do not understand will still not ask questions. I am unsure of whether this is because their level of understanding is so minimal that they don't even know what to ask, or if they are simply shy, but either way, I find I have to not only ask them, but make sure they ACTUALLY understand before setting them loose on projects/assignments/activities. Just food for thought.
You make a very good point at kids missing school a lot. It's a very high correlation of students who miss school a lot and the students who have lower grades in my class. A lot of time when these students never ask me what they've missed so they end up with missing assignments because it's hard for me to keep track of who misses and reminding them the next day.
In my Money Management class I have two students who qualify for special education IEPs. They have had varying degrees of success in my classroom. Both of them struggle with math and have difficulty taking notes during lecture. To accommodate the lack of ability for note taking, I provide a hard copy of my power point to the para who sits in the class with the students. I have placed the para in the seating chart between the students that way she can help them without disturbing the rest of the class. When one of the students falls behind they can get caught up by checking with her. If they have a difficult time reading their notes, they always have a source to obtain them. During math assignments such as calculating compound interest, I reduce the number of problems or length of the problems. This helps them feel that the task is manageable and keep them from getting discouraged. I feel that if these students feel the tasks are manageable, they will be more likely to succeed in the classroom.
Response to Nathan: Large classes seem to be a major challenge to me as well when it comes to giving individual instruction to students with special needs. We have to work closely with the special ed teachers and paras in order to make sure the students complete the assingments on time correctly. I have been very fortunate to work with very capable paras who take a vested interest in the students. I know that is not always the case in some districts.
My 6th hour Physics class is probably the most diverse group of students in terms of academic abilities and attitude toward learning. I have 2 ELL students, 2 gifted students, 3 students who have wanted to drop out because the class is challenging and/or family problems and 1 "regular" student.
Because the class is small I have time to work with each student, and I give them time to help each other. The ELL students get extra time to work on the tests and all of my students are encouraged to come after school for additional help. I've spent a lot of time encouraging, cajoling, praying, and conferencing to keep the three wannabe dropouts in. One was gone with parental support and permission from the principle before I could do much. I spent a lot of time with the other two and I'm happy that they're both doing very well in the class.
Sometimes we'll take a few minutes to appreciate other cultures by having the international students teach us a word or two in Korean. As far as class goes...
I let the gifted students work on their own (sometimes I'll give them a little challenge or a special project) and spend time going slowly through the material with the rest of the students. It works OK, but it comes at the expense of having a unified learning community.
I like the idea of customizing assignments, but I almost always find that students adjust by putting out less effort rather than working just as hard on the newly more manageable assignment. Do you have a particular approach that helps minimize this phenomenon?
In my photojournalism I have 2 with special education IEPs. This list is not extensive but our school is very high achieving. 90% of our students attend college.
I'd say that these students can have difficulty learning. Mostly when we are learning a concept such as the mechanics of using an SLR camera. Since I teach a class that they enjoy they are motivated to participate. I don't teach as much of an academic subject. There are times when photojournalism is harder for the book smart high achieving student more so then the student on IEPs. Students get to express themselves through art and photography. When I give a written test, my IEP students struggle but when I have a hands-on project, they are just as creative as the next student.
My idea for meeting their needs is to use cooperative learning. They participate in the learning much better when they are accountable to peers. I've seen a boost in their achievement when I use this strategy. This way they feel like they are a part of the class instead of being separated and given specialized assignments.
Response to Dman That is such a small class. Sounds like you get to have a lot of one on one time with students who need it. I appreciate that hard work your putting into keeping the 3 struggling students in your class. Your success goes to show how valuable small classroom environments can be.
Thanks. I am really thankful for the students who have worked hard to stay in the fray. It is nice to have a small class to deal with these issues even though I think there is something about having a core of regular performers to help establish a more stable learning ambiance. I'm glad to hear you are using cooperative learning to good effect. I'd love to hear what kinds of assignments you do and how you build accountability into the groups.
There are very few special education or “diverse” students in the alternative school where I work because the main school has a great program for their needs. My school deals more with students who had behavioral issues at the main high school. But we do have a couple students who are on IEP’s, and I have both of them in class. Because of how our system is set up, these two students have very little trouble learning in my classroom. All students work at their own pace on their assigned classes and the teachers help keep them on task and guide them through their learning. My two IEP students often require more of my time and attention, but they don’t fall behind because they get to work at their own pace. I meet the needs of these students in a couple different ways. One student has great difficulty writing his thoughts on paper, it’s like there is a block between his mind and his pencil, but he can explain answers very well. So I go through assignments with him and ask him to explain the answers to me and then I initial his worksheet to show that he answered a question correctly. This method has helped the student quite a bit and he is learning very well. My other IEP student has trouble understanding what is written and sometimes he just needs to hear a question read out loud so he can understand what it’s asking. What I usually do with this student is have him read the question aloud to me and tell me what he thinks it’s asking. Most of the time he can understand the question if he just hears himself read it aloud.
In response to Dman: You said at the end of your blog that your system for teaching your students comes at the expense of having a unified learning community. I think your situation is an excellent example of how a "unified learning community" is not always necessary. At the alternative school where I teach, each of my students is on a different subject and different assignment because they all work at their own pace. So in my classroom, there is NO unification of learning, but it works GREAT! I help each of my students individually and that's what they need. In fact, when they are being taught as a class they learn less because it is easier for them to daydream or not participate. What you are doing with your students is awesome, don't feel like you should be teaching them all together just because that's the "traditional" way. I don't think that in your situation not having a unified learning community is much of an expense at all. Kudos to you for being such an attentive and caring teacher!
Thanks again. I really appreciate the encouragement and perspective that you offer. Thinking of the class in that way will help diffuse a lot of frustration and refine my approach.
Hmmm...maybe I should just let the motivated students work ahead and then have them teach the class when their done. Mwuhahahaa!
In my Sixth grade class I have one IEP student. He takes his math and reading classes at the public school and is in my class the rest of the time. He has difficulting keeping up in my class for several reasons: 1. He is probably tardy atleast once per week 2. He loses about 45 minutes per week getting transferred back and forth between schools. 3. He never gets a chance to sit in on a full class. 4. His reading comprehension skills are well below 6th grade level. I have made up a seperate packet for him. Simple Math problems on a clip board he can do while he is on the bus. A study guide for each chapter in history. I also give him a more abreviated test so that he does not feel self conscious when the others finish ahead of him.
I believe more could be done for him yet I only get a chance to see him about three hours per day because of his schedule between schools.
In response to Dman: Yup, Heidi's the name! I feel special that you know that =] Actually, having your more motivated students work ahead and teach others is a FANTASTIC idea. I often have my students ask another students who is ahead of them for help. The student that is helping learns it even better and the student being helped would probably rather listen to one of their peers than to my ever-talking voice. This method is also nice because then I don't have to explain the same thing 400 times. (well, maybe not 400, but multiple times nonetheless.)
Response to Kelly G: Kelly, teaching journalism classes I see many of the same things that you are talking about with your photo students. We may have a writing project that allows that the higher achieving students to do better than the students with an IEP, but when we shift to a project on the computer that requires an art touch for layout or design, many times the higher achieving students will struggle and the students with the IEP will excel. Because of this I try to mix up my assignments and have a good variety so that all of the students are able to feel like the are achieving at a high level at some point. It also allows all of them to be able to spend time working on areas that they may not be as strong in as the need to be.
Being the art Teacher all of my classes have diverse students in them, Generally because the administration recommends they take my class to build on simple skills, but I do have one class in particular that is extremely diverse. In a class of 23 students I have 6 students that are ELL, 2 high Functioning, 3 high drop out risk, 5 on IEP’s, 1 that suffers from ADHD, and a whole gambit of social differences. In my class the workload consist of (Lecture/notes, Test, class projects, fallowing directions, and review work sheets). The easiest modification that I make deals with art projects, I simply screen each subject matter on an individual student base and I direct them into a project that will challenge them accordingly. I spend a majority of my time during lectures explaining how to take notes. I know that my class should be an easy A but I want skills that will be use full in other classes to sink in as well. We do not cover deep material until the end of the year, for a few students the lectures drag on but for others it is one of the first times they feel a since of accomplishment. To help on review work sheets students are allowed to work in groups to complete the paper, I grade that progress and then give them the correct answers before the test. During this time I see higher functioning students begin asked to share there understanding with students they would normally never talk to and vice versa this opens doors where I see lower functioning students helping with art projects. I do not modify the content of my test because it is designed to build on student’s vocabulary as well as there sentence building skills. I do offer help on an individual basis to read aloud questions, offer hints and direction for students to think as well as opportunities for students on IEP’s to sit in another room quietly with a Para.
I agree with many of you that one of the biggest markers on success is truancy. If you can’t get a child to school there is no way to reach them. So many students feel hostile or hurt by teachers that it is hard to reach them. The most common phrase I hear is “ I hate _____, they hate me, I just want to quit this school.”
To Dman I think one of the most challenging things to do in Differentiated instruction is not make the work easier but change the approach toward the same goal. If a student can’t memorize the planets for a test have them build a model of the solar system in it’s place.
To Nathan Just want to say Paras Rule!! Been with out mine for a week and it is amazing how much I miss her ☹
I am in agreement with you on having some of the higher achievers work ahead and then have them help others. That has been particularly succesful in my 8th grade math class. I have to students that really love to work ahead and then help the other kids. The rest of the class really gets engaged when these two are presenting new information...and the two high achievers stay focused and seem very proud of their status.
To Kelly G, I agree with you about the hands on projects. In math it is sometimes difficult to come up with a good hands on project...but when I can do some kind of hands on project, it is great to see how exuberant some of the kids get who don't do so well on the daily work. It really helps them to grasp a concept that they might not have been able to understand otherwize.
In my art 1 class I have 4 students with special education IEPs. Two of them are identified as learning disabled and two have mental retardation. I present the same art lesson to all of my students. I expect them to all create a work of art based on the concepts presented. I do make some adaptations to the techniques for some of the students. My students with IEPs may require some sort of adaptation in the materials or processes being used. When it comes to taking notes and testing the students’ knowledge of the concepts learned. I rely heavily on para support. I have one para for each of my art classes. They assist with note taking and read tests to the students. They are also very helpful in assisting the students that are struggling with a project. The paras understand that I only want them to assist, not do. I have observed para s that basically creates every project for the students. The students don’t learn through this process, I feel that they only learn to become more dependent on the para. One of the most important lessons that I want them to learn is creative problem solving. I always reinforce the idea that there is more than one solution to the creative challenges that I present to them. I also think that the students gain independence and it builds self esteem when they accomplish something on their own.
In response to Kelly G. I too have rather small classes and have very few students in special education. In my biggest class (22) I have 1 gifted student and 1 gifted/ADHD/OHI. My gifted student does exceptionally well in any type of learning environment. My student with a triple diagnosis struggles to interact with other students at times and cannot focus when working alone. I have found that he can work well in cooperative learning groups as long as I strategically place him. He has come a long way this semester! He is very forgetful and it is hard for him to focus for long periods of time, so group work is great for him because his team members keep him on track and more focused than when he works independently on written assignments.
In one of my Spanish 1 classes, I have 22 total students. Of those students I have two students on an IEP. Both of these students are gifted; however, one of the gifted students is also ADHD and OHI. My student with a single diagnosis of gifted is doing well in my class. Although he’s never taken Spanish before, he is doing great and is on track with the class. My other gifted student with additional diagnosis has a very difficult time in many of his classes. He is very gifted and does not struggle with the information, but his ADHD is problematic for him. He finds it very hard to focus for short and long periods of time. When I have students do quick question/answer assignments, about 10 minutes in duration, he struggles to get past writing down the first question. He finds other things to distract him from doing his work. In trying to get this student more focused, I have met with his mother and special education teachers to come up with some ideas. Together we have found that giving him written assignments that already have the questions printed out for him allows him to start answering the questions immediately. We have also found that if he works in a group of pre-selected students, he tends to stay focused longer than if he chooses his group. I do find that he is turning in more of his assignments and is beginning to focus better throughout the class period, but 90 minutes is a long time for any student to stay focused. I continue working with him to keep him from interrupting others, and we are making progress. I believe it will just take time.
In one of my computer classes, there are three second language learners and eight students with identified learning disabilities and active individualized education plans (IEPs).
There is no question that these students have difficulty in my classroom. Office 2007 can be confusing enough for those comfortable with the English language, let alone when a student has to attempt to translate and understand the menu commands and follow the lessons in the textbook. Students who speak a different primary language often need more time to comprehend directions because they have to translate the words first, and then contemplate what they are being asked. Usually they think in their native language. If being asked questions in class, they may have to first translate the question being asked, determine the answer in their native language, and then translate the answer into English before responding.
For students with learning disabilities, this process may be similar. Their translation process involves putting the question or the directions into a format that they can process. For students with auditory difficulties, they take longer to process verbal directions. Those students with visual difficulties find the printed directions in the textbook confusing and even overwhelming.
With students who are still learning English, I have found that visuals to support verbal directions work well. If I can show a student what I expect for an assignment along with explaining it, they may better comprehend the task given them. This method also assists those with learning disabilities, especially when in the auditory area. The goal is to present information using as many modalities as possible to reach the highest number of students.
There are some of my students with special needs that warrant having a paraprofessional for extra support. The para assists with keeping a student on task and sometimes rephrasing the directions to ensure understanding.
Some assignments may need modifications. I can allow extra time when needed, adjust the level of expectation, or adjust the assignment itself. The goal is that the student make an effort and feel successful. If the students get frustrated, they tend to shut down and produce nothing.
Another helpful method I have found is to present the material in chunks or even allow them to break down the assignment into pieces. This keeps them from being overwhelmed by a large assignment that may not be difficult, but appears to be due to a large amount of steps involved to complete the process.
As you and a few others have noted, truancy and other attendance issues greatly impact the student's behavior, focus, and ultimately learning. This quarter I have a class in which 40% of the students have been suspended multiple times during the nine week quarter. Of course these students are getting frustrated when they return to the classroom and they are clueless with regard to the subject matter and how to go about fulfilling the assignment. I try to give them some individual time upon return to the classroom but it is difficult for these students to concentrate and work on the current assignments since these students are probably now behind in every class in which they are enrolled.
I understand what you're saying about struggling students excelling in project oriented classes eventhough they may struggle in regular academic..book work.. classes. I have had several parents and teachers ask what I did to help a particular student becuase he is doing very well in my class and failing most others. I just give credit to the subject matter, computers. The students get to touch and feel it, use the internet, and be creative. Projects oriented assignments have really helped many of my students too.
At my school, this year our administration decided that due to budget cuts they reduced the number of paras available to to help students in the regular classroom. Therefore, I have all the students with learning disabilities and the ELL students in the same class which for my 8th grade Earth Science class is 4 special needs and 2 ELL and 12 "regular" students. At first I wasn't too keen on the idea of having two very uneven leveled classes. However, this has worked out well. I was afraid one class would be moving along at a much faster pace and I thought it would be the class with no learning diversity. However, I have found that the class with the different levels usually understand the content more easily. Also I usually only have to make modifications for the one class and usually they are the same level of modfications for all the special need students in this class. My ELL learners seem to be on the same level as my "regular" students except in the area of vocabulary and writing assignments. Many times the ELL students can orally give me the correct answers and information when they struggle writing it correctly for an assignments. Many times I will just ask them to explain it to me to assess it rather than their incorrect grammar. For the students with learning disabilities, I modify notes as well as assignments and tests by either reducing the number of questions to answer, giving them fill in the blanks sheet as we take notes, or word banks on tests. I also assess them according to their abilities and participation on projects rather than just the final answers.
Regarding Dman and Heidi: I like the idea of "unification" of the content but I also like letting students learn that information at their own pace on their own levels. I hope to keep working with my curriculum so that I can make each subject diverse for all level of learners as well as self-paced projects that students can work on to help apply the content in a more real application.
Identify students in one of your classes who would qualify as diverse. I decided to choose my Freshman Boys PE class for this particular assignment. This is also my largest class (24 students). Three students have been identified with special education IEPs.
Do these students have difficulty learning in your classroom? From my observation, these particular students tend to have difficulty following verbal instructions when told something for the first time. I have also noticed that these students will never be the first in line to attempt a new activity. I have never had a problem with them not participating, but they tend to hang back at the end of line and observe the other students before attempting an activity.
What ideas do you have to meet their needs? After introducing an activity, I am apt to pay extra attention to these students to make sure they understand the material that was just introduced to them. When the material has many steps or movements involved, I will approach these students individually and instruct them further with some of the finer points to enhance their understanding. Another technique I use to meet their needs is to ask questions. I will ask the student specific questions regarding the material and evaluate their comments for understanding.
It makes me feel good when someone else uses the same techniques. I like how you question the students over the material you have just lectured. Sometimes the students are too embarrassed to ask questions in front of their peers.
I also like the memory techniques you use in class. Students tend to make a game of this technique and do not see it as learning. We use the same teaching techniques in football. For example, we have a play called “Speed Option” and the code words for the play are fast, hurry, and quick.
I chose to talk about the diversity in my 4th hour multimedia class. I have a student that is on an IEP and I have a student that is ELL and pretty new to the country. My classroom isn't set up very handicap friendly the tables are so crowded that it is hard for someone in a wheelchair to get across the room to use the computer equipment such as the scanner. I had to rearrange my room in order to make it more handicap assessible. This particular student is very motivated and requires extra help but always tries very hard and always ends up doing a great job on her projects. My ELL student requires extra assistance and extra examples then my other students usually need before they understand how to do a project. But once she has examples she has been doing a great job on her PowerPoints. I have given these students extra time on their projects as well in order to accomodate them. I think as long as you give all students extra help when they need it then all students should be successful. One of the greatest difficulties for some of my diverse learners are learning how to save properly. I have had instances where they have lost everything and had to start over. I have tried to remember to check on those students at the end of class and make sure they saved their material properly. In order to not single them out I have tried to remind the whole class of proper saving methods at the end of class. I also walk around and give each student independent help so the diverse students don't stand out as well.
I have three students this semester that are on IEPs. They are all in the same section of French 1 at the beginning of the day. Two out of the three students are doing perfectly and the third student is a senior and is having senioritis issues as well as having been used to making excuses and not doing the work her whole high school career.
My class is unique in that they are learning a different language. In every other class, they already speak the language that the class is being taught in and have to read, listen and respond in ways that are orally and written.
The particular way that I teach, I teach for long term speaking ability. The method is based on how we learn our own native language. You just start speaking on day one and have English there for you to look at. We read, write and speak in French over and over until eventually they can do it on their own. As soon as they understand the method, all english is taken away except for new words. For many students that have an IEP they have never had the opportunity to be taught like this. They have not succeeded up to this point in the traditional methods that are all out there to help them to learn at the same level as any other student.
The students with the IEPs are doing better than some of the other students that I have. This may be because we tell stories in French and it has numbers, colors, and letters, much like a kindergarten class-but in a different language. The best part is, is that they learn French!
When it comes time to do an essay in English or a research project on a French person in history, I run into some more of the regular issues that the student has always struggled with.
I make it a point to adhere to the IEP and if the student needs extra time I give it to them. I also talk to these three students on an individual basis regularly to ascertain their comfortableness in my class. I don't always have to ask though, they love it!
I also make sure that I attend all the IEP meetings. This tells the student and the parent that you want to help the child learn and that you are there to listen and understand what the student is going through.
Since I haven't had a lot of trouble, I haven't had to try too many different approaches where these students are concerned.
In reading your post it reminded me of a foreign exchange student from Mexico. She is not classified as ELL, but has a harder time writing in English and has a terrible time with the grammar. One issue that I find is that she writes phonetically, which Spanish is a more phonetic language as far as I have learned so far. She had virtually no idea how to write many words correctly in English in the past tense. Since I teach French, that part isn't as big of an issue, but when it comes time to translate (which should be the easy part) she is struggling just to do English in the first place. I haven't really figured out a way to help her with that other than giving her the English words and meanings typed out so she can read them and see how they are spelled.
I am choosing my assessment prep class. It is my most diverse class, with the most challenges, but also with the most rewards. Many of the students in this class struggle with the concept of mathematics for one reason or another. 2 are on IEPs, 1 is on a section 504 and 7 out of 8 are on free or reduced lunches. We don't talk about that last one much, but sometimes instructors have a tendency to write off students who come from econmomically challenged households. This particular class won a Certificate of Merit this year from the State Board of Education based on its success in imporvement in the state assessments and its rate or 'poor' students. Yeah, I am bragging a bit, but it goes to show what differentiated instruction is capable of doing for a student. For the IEP students,I make sure they have plenty of time to work with the paraprofessional when appropriate, but also that they get pleny of time with their peers. I also ensure I get their workload to their study skills supervisor, so that they do not blow off the work when they leave the classroom. THe section 504 fella has a vision problem. So, without singling him out, I make sure he is in the appropriate seating arrangement for the visual activities. As for tackling the economic challenge. I try to include problems that relate to the kids and the struggles they go through. I also try to avoid making problems that put the kids on a track to get a job after high school. I always encourage the kids to go to college and we have a lot of emphasis on college preparatory problems. I know I could do better, and I am working on it, but we have had a measure of success and hope to continue with it!
I can really relate with the fear of having a lot of special needs students in a classroom. When I was first tasked with teaching the at-risk class, I believed that it would be too difficult of a challenge, that too many behavioral issues would arise and little learning would be accomplished. I didn't think the effort would be worth the rewards. Boy was I wrong. The rewards are amazing. Seeing some of these students achieve in areas they never have before is great and it is well worth it. It is very similar to what you said, it seems more learning gets done in these classes, wierd isn't it?
In response to Greg... I read where one of your methods is chunking assignments. I just started doing that this year in my multimedia class and it has helped alot. Not only with students becoming overwhelmed but has also helped improve their time management and organization skills. I forgot to add that accomodation to my post.
In response to Coach Smith... I agree when I started teaching I got some of the most challenging classes that had the most IEP and ELL students. I felt like it was unfair to dump the most challenging classes on the new person on the totum pole. But since this is my third year I have found that I prefer this type of diverse classroom setting. I have found that I find it more rewarding that teaching the higher level students. It is amazing when I see a student that was deep into gangs start focusing on their school work and then I have even got to see them graduate. It as been wonderful to see them transform into people that will become productive members of society.
In response to Annette D's 10:20 comment... I agree. As a first year teacher, I was saddled with two CWC (Classroom Within a Classroom) classes with upwards of 15 IEP bearing students. For the first 9 weeks, I didn't know what IEP stood for--much less that an IEP placed legal responsibilities on me as an instructor! I was given two more CWC classes my second year and now, in my third year, I don't have any (though I do have an 'Honors' class). I have come to realize that my school district has historically 'dumped' CWC classes on new teachers and 'awarded' teachers who stay in the district with less challenging classes. It seems to me that these CWC classes require the most differentiation and the most instructor experience--it seems to me that the assignment of teachers to these classes should be reevaluated.
As a 9th, 10th, and 11th grade English teacher in your district, I'm glad to read that you're teaching vocabulary. Test prep has become such an overwhelming concern in our district that in my building a teacher was actually asked to STOP spending so much time teaching vocabulary. I was also pleased to read that you frequently ask your ELL students if they have questions. I've found that many of my ELL students have learned to put up a front that pretty convincingly fools those around them into believing the student knows what's going on--the last thing my kids want to do is ask a question. I've been pretty successful in modeling questioning strategies. I offer question stems and 'key words' I'd like to see in questions. The end of every think sheet, summary, response, worksheet, and assessment I hand my students asks them to write down a question about either A) something they don't understand, or B) something they think a classmate might not understand.
In my sixth hour English II class I have one IEP-bearing student, seven ELL students, and a number of low SES students. None of my ELL students have an IEP, but several of them have been identified as at-risk by their formative and SRI test scores. A number of these students are either veterans of our “Read 180” program for struggling readers or students who are enrolled in my class concurrently with the “Read 180” program.
My IEP-bearing student has a hearing disability. This student has full hearing in one ear and limited hearing in the other. She sits in the front, off to the side, and has her own para who takes notes for her. As I was her teacher last year, we have formed a relatively successful student/ teacher relationship and she is not afraid to ask me questions or talk to me after class if she has failed to understand things. Her hearing disability shows in her writing (sometimes she uses words like “in” instead of “and,” etc) but she is largely capable of reading, writing, speaking, and working with classmates.
My ELL students are typically behind the curve in my class. They have trouble reading and writing and are less inclined to participate vocally in groups. Many of these students claim to dislike reading alone, and state that they would prefer that the class read as a whole or in groups. As they are tenth graders, I would prefer that we start removing the ‘crutches’ and start reading on our own. Further, problems arise when I allow group reading or whole-class reading. Many of my students—my ELL students in equal proportion to the rest of the class—either stop following along when we read as a whole group or stop reading and start talking when I give chances to read in groups. I’m not sure how to solve this problem—I’ve been pushing for them to keep reading on their own and I’ve tried to spend more time anticipating tough vocabulary before we begin.
One of the things that has encouraged my ELL students to read more in my classroom has been my offering of “High Interest” “Blueford” series books aimed at seventh and eighth grade readers. These books are available for twenty-minute self-selected reading sessions. These books about troubled teens provide my low skill level readers chances to feel like successful readers in my classroom.
Please discuss with your classmates:
ReplyDelete- Identify students in one of your classes who would qualify as diverse according to Kellough (e.g., 3 with IEPs, 2 are ELL, etc.)
- Do these students have difficulty learning in your classroom?
- What ideas do you have to meet their needs?
This blog is due December 6.
- I picked my 7th hour class as the class that I'd like to discuss. In this particular class, I have 1 student who has an IEP as well as being an ELL learner. I have 3 students who are ELL learners as well.
ReplyDelete- My ELL learners for the most part are pretty much on par with my other students. A couple of areas where I notice these ELL students sometimes struggle is with vocabulary and spelling. I'm always a little surprised by the spelling and grammar skills my students display but the quality goes down even more so with ELL students. Words that I would think are a normal part of vocabulary for 8th graders just aren't there with some of my ELL students.
- In order to to install vocabulary for these stduents, I do many different activities in which they do more than just define words. I like to do activities such as drawing what this word means to them and using them in sentences so they truly understand the meaning. I've noticed that when they draw what the word means or brings to mind that it really helps to make this word stick in their memories.
I also do a lot of questioning. After I explain how to do something or do a lecture; I always try to make sure to ask if anyone has questions or if they understood what we went over.
I chose my first hour Freshman English class. I have 4 students on iep and 5 gifted students in with 14 "normal" students.
ReplyDeleteOf the students on iep, two are doing fine and two are struggling. However, the two who are struggling are challenged primarily by ineffective work habits and turning in things late. Part of this is their lack of understanding, however, another part is that they: A. miss school a lot, and B. don't use class time productively. In a class of 24 students, I struggle to find enough individual time to spend with them.
Since these students are on iep, but not in special education, little support is in place for them. They have a "structured study" period in the schedule, which basically a closely supervised study hall, but they often lie to their structured study teacher about the work they have to do for me. I have begun to communicate more directly with those teachers, and things are improving, but I fear that until they begin to put in some work and come to school, it will be difficult for them to excel.
Cody--
ReplyDeleteI like your ideas about installing vocabulary by drawing, etc. As a read/write learner myself, I find it hard to come up with non-traditional ideas for instilling vocab. I may try the picture thing.
In reference to your questioning, one thing I find necessary is to not only ask if they understood, but also to ask probing, specific quesitons of individuals to be sure they do. Many of my students who do not understand will still not ask questions. I am unsure of whether this is because their level of understanding is so minimal that they don't even know what to ask, or if they are simply shy, but either way, I find I have to not only ask them, but make sure they ACTUALLY understand before setting them loose on projects/assignments/activities. Just food for thought.
Nathan,
ReplyDeleteYou make a very good point at kids missing school a lot. It's a very high correlation of students who miss school a lot and the students who have lower grades in my class. A lot of time when these students never ask me what they've missed so they end up with missing assignments because it's hard for me to keep track of who misses and reminding them the next day.
In my Money Management class I have two students who qualify for special education IEPs. They have had varying degrees of success in my classroom. Both of them struggle with math and have difficulty taking notes during lecture. To accommodate the lack of ability for note taking, I provide a hard copy of my power point to the para who sits in the class with the students. I have placed the para in the seating chart between the students that way she can help them without disturbing the rest of the class. When one of the students falls behind they can get caught up by checking with her. If they have a difficult time reading their notes, they always have a source to obtain them. During math assignments such as calculating compound interest, I reduce the number of problems or length of the problems. This helps them feel that the task is manageable and keep them from getting discouraged. I feel that if these students feel the tasks are manageable, they will be more likely to succeed in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteResponse to Nathan:
ReplyDeleteLarge classes seem to be a major challenge to me as well when it comes to giving individual instruction to students with special needs. We have to work closely with the special ed teachers and paras in order to make sure the students complete the assingments on time correctly. I have been very fortunate to work with very capable paras who take a vested interest in the students. I know that is not always the case in some districts.
My 6th hour Physics class is probably the most diverse group of students in terms of academic abilities and attitude toward learning. I have 2 ELL students, 2 gifted students, 3 students who have wanted to drop out because the class is challenging and/or family problems and 1 "regular" student.
ReplyDeleteBecause the class is small I have time to work with each student, and I give them time to help each other. The ELL students get extra time to work on the tests and all of my students are encouraged to come after school for additional help. I've spent a lot of time encouraging, cajoling, praying, and conferencing to keep the three wannabe dropouts in. One was gone with parental support and permission from the principle before I could do much. I spent a lot of time with the other two and I'm happy that they're both doing very well in the class.
Sometimes we'll take a few minutes to appreciate other cultures by having the international students teach us a word or two in Korean. As far as class goes...
I let the gifted students work on their own (sometimes I'll give them a little challenge or a special project) and spend time going slowly through the material with the rest of the students. It works OK, but it comes at the expense of having a unified learning community.
To D Clevenger
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of customizing assignments, but I almost always find that students adjust by putting out less effort rather than working just as hard on the newly more manageable assignment. Do you have a particular approach that helps minimize this phenomenon?
I am also absolutely blessed with fantastic paras as well. I don't know how some of my kids would make it without them!
ReplyDeleteIn my photojournalism I have 2 with special education IEPs. This list is not extensive but our school is very high achieving. 90% of our students attend college.
ReplyDeleteI'd say that these students can have difficulty learning. Mostly when we are learning a concept such as the mechanics of using an SLR camera. Since I teach a class that they enjoy they are motivated to participate. I don't teach as much of an academic subject. There are times when photojournalism is harder for the book smart high achieving student more so then the student on IEPs. Students get to express themselves through art and photography. When I give a written test, my IEP students struggle but when I have a hands-on project, they are just as creative as the next student.
My idea for meeting their needs is to use cooperative learning. They participate in the learning much better when they are accountable to peers. I've seen a boost in their achievement when I use this strategy. This way they feel like they are a part of the class instead of being separated and given specialized assignments.
Response to Dman
ReplyDeleteThat is such a small class. Sounds like you get to have a lot of one on one time with students who need it. I appreciate that hard work your putting into keeping the 3 struggling students in your class. Your success goes to show how valuable small classroom environments can be.
to Kelly
ReplyDeleteThanks. I am really thankful for the students who have worked hard to stay in the fray. It is nice to have a small class to deal with these issues even though I think there is something about having a core of regular performers to help establish a more stable learning ambiance. I'm glad to hear you are using cooperative learning to good effect. I'd love to hear what kinds of assignments you do and how you build accountability into the groups.
to Nathan.
ReplyDeleteappreciating paras = greatness
having awesome paras = divine favor
I am glad you enjoy both. :D
There are very few special education or “diverse” students in the alternative school where I work because the main school has a great program for their needs. My school deals more with students who had behavioral issues at the main high school. But we do have a couple students who are on IEP’s, and I have both of them in class. Because of how our system is set up, these two students have very little trouble learning in my classroom. All students work at their own pace on their assigned classes and the teachers help keep them on task and guide them through their learning. My two IEP students often require more of my time and attention, but they don’t fall behind because they get to work at their own pace.
ReplyDeleteI meet the needs of these students in a couple different ways. One student has great difficulty writing his thoughts on paper, it’s like there is a block between his mind and his pencil, but he can explain answers very well. So I go through assignments with him and ask him to explain the answers to me and then I initial his worksheet to show that he answered a question correctly. This method has helped the student quite a bit and he is learning very well. My other IEP student has trouble understanding what is written and sometimes he just needs to hear a question read out loud so he can understand what it’s asking. What I usually do with this student is have him read the question aloud to me and tell me what he thinks it’s asking. Most of the time he can understand the question if he just hears himself read it aloud.
In response to Dman:
ReplyDeleteYou said at the end of your blog that your system for teaching your students comes at the expense of having a unified learning community. I think your situation is an excellent example of how a "unified learning community" is not always necessary. At the alternative school where I teach, each of my students is on a different subject and different assignment because they all work at their own pace. So in my classroom, there is NO unification of learning, but it works GREAT! I help each of my students individually and that's what they need. In fact, when they are being taught as a class they learn less because it is easier for them to daydream or not participate. What you are doing with your students is awesome, don't feel like you should be teaching them all together just because that's the "traditional" way. I don't think that in your situation not having a unified learning community is much of an expense at all. Kudos to you for being such an attentive and caring teacher!
To halbin,
ReplyDeleteFrom David Green
Your name is Heidi, right?
Thanks again. I really appreciate the encouragement and perspective that you offer. Thinking of the class in that way will help diffuse a lot of frustration and refine my approach.
Hmmm...maybe I should just let the motivated students work ahead and then have them teach the class when their done. Mwuhahahaa!
In my Sixth grade class I have one IEP student. He takes his math and reading classes at the public school and is in my class the rest of the time. He has difficulting keeping up in my class for several reasons: 1. He is probably tardy atleast once per week 2. He loses about 45 minutes per week getting transferred back and forth between schools. 3. He never gets a chance to sit in on a full class.
ReplyDelete4. His reading comprehension skills are well below 6th grade level.
I have made up a seperate packet for him. Simple Math problems on a clip board he can do while he is on the bus. A study guide for each chapter in history. I also give him a more abreviated test so that he does not feel self conscious when the others finish ahead of him.
I believe more could be done for him yet I only get a chance to see him about three hours per day because of his schedule between schools.
In response to Dman:
ReplyDeleteYup, Heidi's the name! I feel special that you know that =]
Actually, having your more motivated students work ahead and teach others is a FANTASTIC idea. I often have my students ask another students who is ahead of them for help. The student that is helping learns it even better and the student being helped would probably rather listen to one of their peers than to my ever-talking voice. This method is also nice because then I don't have to explain the same thing 400 times. (well, maybe not 400, but multiple times nonetheless.)
Response to Kelly G:
ReplyDeleteKelly, teaching journalism classes I see many of the same things that you are talking about with your photo students. We may have a writing project that allows that the higher achieving students to do better than the students with an IEP, but when we shift to a project on the computer that requires an art touch for layout or design, many times the higher achieving students will struggle and the students with the IEP will excel. Because of this I try to mix up my assignments and have a good variety so that all of the students are able to feel like the are achieving at a high level at some point. It also allows all of them to be able to spend time working on areas that they may not be as strong in as the need to be.
Being the art Teacher all of my classes have diverse students in them, Generally because the administration recommends they take my class to build on simple skills, but I do have one class in particular that is extremely diverse. In a class of 23 students I have 6 students that are ELL, 2 high Functioning, 3 high drop out risk, 5 on IEP’s, 1 that suffers from ADHD, and a whole gambit of social differences.
ReplyDeleteIn my class the workload consist of (Lecture/notes, Test, class projects, fallowing directions, and review work sheets). The easiest modification that I make deals with art projects, I simply screen each subject matter on an individual student base and I direct them into a project that will challenge them accordingly. I spend a majority of my time during lectures explaining how to take notes. I know that my class should be an easy A but I want skills that will be use full in other classes to sink in as well. We do not cover deep material until the end of the year, for a few students the lectures drag on but for others it is one of the first times they feel a since of accomplishment. To help on review work sheets students are allowed to work in groups to complete the paper, I grade that progress and then give them the correct answers before the test. During this time I see higher functioning students begin asked to share there understanding with students they would normally never talk to and vice versa this opens doors where I see lower functioning students helping with art projects.
I do not modify the content of my test because it is designed to build on student’s vocabulary as well as there sentence building skills. I do offer help on an individual basis to read aloud questions, offer hints and direction for students to think as well as opportunities for students on IEP’s to sit in another room quietly with a Para.
I agree with many of you that one of the biggest markers on success is truancy. If you can’t get a child to school there is no way to reach them. So many students feel hostile or hurt by teachers that it is hard to reach them. The most common phrase I hear is “ I hate _____, they hate me, I just want to quit this school.”
To Dman
I think one of the most challenging things to do in Differentiated instruction is not make the work easier but change the approach toward the same goal. If a student can’t memorize the planets for a test have them build a model of the solar system in it’s place.
To Nathan
Just want to say Paras Rule!!
Been with out mine for a week and it is amazing how much I miss her ☹
To Halbin
ReplyDeleteI am in agreement with you on having some of the higher achievers work ahead and then have them help others. That has been particularly succesful in my 8th grade math class. I have to students that really love to work ahead and then help the other kids. The rest of the class really gets engaged when these two are presenting new information...and the two high achievers stay focused and seem very proud of their status.
To Kelly G,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about the hands on projects. In math it is sometimes difficult to come up with a good hands on project...but when I can do some kind of hands on project, it is great to see how exuberant some of the kids get who don't do so well on the daily work. It really helps them to grasp a concept that they might not have been able to understand otherwize.
In my art 1 class I have 4 students with special education IEPs. Two of them are identified as learning disabled and two have mental retardation. I present the same art lesson to all of my students. I expect them to all create a work of art based on the concepts presented. I do make some adaptations to the techniques for some of the students. My students with IEPs may require some sort of adaptation in the materials or processes being used. When it comes to taking notes and testing the students’ knowledge of the concepts learned. I rely heavily on para support. I have one para for each of my art classes. They assist with note taking and read tests to the students. They are also very helpful in assisting the students that are struggling with a project. The paras understand that I only want them to assist, not do. I have observed para s that basically creates every project for the students. The students don’t learn through this process, I feel that they only learn to become more dependent on the para. One of the most important lessons that I want them to learn is creative problem solving. I always reinforce the idea that there is more than one solution to the creative challenges that I present to them. I also think that the students gain independence and it builds self esteem when they accomplish something on their own.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Kelly G.
ReplyDeleteI too have rather small classes and have very few students in special education. In my biggest class (22) I have 1 gifted student and 1 gifted/ADHD/OHI. My gifted student does exceptionally well in any type of learning environment. My student with a triple diagnosis struggles to interact with other students at times and cannot focus when working alone. I have found that he can work well in cooperative learning groups as long as I strategically place him. He has come a long way this semester! He is very forgetful and it is hard for him to focus for long periods of time, so group work is great for him because his team members keep him on track and more focused than when he works independently on written assignments.
In one of my Spanish 1 classes, I have 22 total students. Of those students I have two students on an IEP. Both of these students are gifted; however, one of the gifted students is also ADHD and OHI. My student with a single diagnosis of gifted is doing well in my class. Although he’s never taken Spanish before, he is doing great and is on track with the class. My other gifted student with additional diagnosis has a very difficult time in many of his classes. He is very gifted and does not struggle with the information, but his ADHD is problematic for him. He finds it very hard to focus for short and long periods of time. When I have students do quick question/answer assignments, about 10 minutes in duration, he struggles to get past writing down the first question. He finds other things to distract him from doing his work.
ReplyDeleteIn trying to get this student more focused, I have met with his mother and special education teachers to come up with some ideas. Together we have found that giving him written assignments that already have the questions printed out for him allows him to start answering the questions immediately. We have also found that if he works in a group of pre-selected students, he tends to stay focused longer than if he chooses his group. I do find that he is turning in more of his assignments and is beginning to focus better throughout the class period, but 90 minutes is a long time for any student to stay focused. I continue working with him to keep him from interrupting others, and we are making progress. I believe it will just take time.
In one of my computer classes, there are three second language learners and eight students with identified learning disabilities and active individualized education plans (IEPs).
ReplyDeleteThere is no question that these students have difficulty in my classroom. Office 2007 can be confusing enough for those comfortable with the English language, let alone when a student has to attempt to translate and understand the menu commands and follow the lessons in the textbook. Students who speak a different primary language often need more time to comprehend directions because they have to translate the words first, and then contemplate what they are being asked. Usually they think in their native language. If being asked questions in class, they may have to first translate the question being asked, determine the answer in their native language, and then translate the answer into English before responding.
For students with learning disabilities, this process may be similar. Their translation process involves putting the question or the directions into a format that they can process. For students with auditory difficulties, they take longer to process verbal directions. Those students with visual difficulties find the printed directions in the textbook confusing and even overwhelming.
With students who are still learning English, I have found that visuals to support verbal directions work well. If I can show a student what I expect for an assignment along with explaining it, they may better comprehend the task given them. This method also assists those with learning disabilities, especially when in the auditory area. The goal is to present information using as many modalities as possible to reach the highest number of students.
There are some of my students with special needs that warrant having a paraprofessional for extra support. The para assists with keeping a student on task and sometimes rephrasing the directions to ensure understanding.
Some assignments may need modifications. I can allow extra time when needed, adjust the level of expectation, or adjust the assignment itself. The goal is that the student make an effort and feel successful. If the students get frustrated, they tend to shut down and produce nothing.
Another helpful method I have found is to present the material in chunks or even allow them to break down the assignment into pieces. This keeps them from being overwhelmed by a large assignment that may not be difficult, but appears to be due to a large amount of steps involved to complete the process.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Jeff:
ReplyDeleteAs you and a few others have noted, truancy and other attendance issues greatly impact the student's behavior, focus, and ultimately learning. This quarter I have a class in which 40% of the students have been suspended multiple times during the nine week quarter. Of course these students are getting frustrated when they return to the classroom and they are clueless with regard to the subject matter and how to go about fulfilling the assignment. I try to give them some individual time upon return to the classroom but it is difficult for these students to concentrate and work on the current assignments since these students are probably now behind in every class in which they are enrolled.
In response to Kelly G:
ReplyDeleteI understand what you're saying about struggling students excelling in project oriented classes eventhough they may struggle in regular academic..book work.. classes. I have had several parents and teachers ask what I did to help a particular student becuase he is doing very well in my class and failing most others. I just give credit to the subject matter, computers. The students get to touch and feel it, use the internet, and be creative. Projects oriented assignments have really helped many of my students too.
At my school, this year our administration decided that due to budget cuts they reduced the number of paras available to to help students in the regular classroom. Therefore, I have all the students with learning disabilities and the ELL students in the same class which for my 8th grade Earth Science class is 4 special needs and 2 ELL and 12 "regular" students. At first I wasn't too keen on the idea of having two very uneven leveled classes. However, this has worked out well. I was afraid one class would be moving along at a much faster pace and I thought it would be the class with no learning diversity. However, I have found that the class with the different levels usually understand the content more easily. Also I usually only have to make modifications for the one class and usually they are the same level of modfications for all the special need students in this class. My ELL learners seem to be on the same level as my "regular" students except in the area of vocabulary and writing assignments. Many times the ELL students can orally give me the correct answers and information when they struggle writing it correctly for an assignments. Many times I will just ask them to explain it to me to assess it rather than their incorrect grammar.
ReplyDeleteFor the students with learning disabilities, I modify notes as well as assignments and tests by either reducing the number of questions to answer, giving them fill in the blanks sheet as we take notes, or word banks on tests.
I also assess them according to their abilities and participation on projects rather than just the final answers.
Regarding Dman and Heidi:
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of "unification" of the content but I also like letting students learn that information at their own pace on their own levels. I hope to keep working with my curriculum so that I can make each subject diverse for all level of learners as well as self-paced projects that students can work on to help apply the content in a more real application.
Identify students in one of your classes who would qualify as diverse.
ReplyDeleteI decided to choose my Freshman Boys PE class for this particular assignment. This is also my largest class (24 students). Three students have been identified with special education IEPs.
Do these students have difficulty learning in your classroom?
From my observation, these particular students tend to have difficulty following verbal instructions when told something for the first time. I have also noticed that these students will never be the first in line to attempt a new activity. I have never had a problem with them not participating, but they tend to hang back at the end of line and observe the other students before attempting an activity.
What ideas do you have to meet their needs?
After introducing an activity, I am apt to pay extra attention to these students to make sure they understand the material that was just introduced to them. When the material has many steps or movements involved, I will approach these students individually and instruct them further with some of the finer points to enhance their understanding. Another technique I use to meet their needs is to ask questions. I will ask the student specific questions regarding the material and evaluate their comments for understanding.
Response to Cody
ReplyDeleteIt makes me feel good when someone else uses the same techniques. I like how you question the students over the material you have just lectured. Sometimes the students are too embarrassed to ask questions in front of their peers.
I also like the memory techniques you use in class. Students tend to make a game of this technique and do not see it as learning. We use the same teaching techniques in football. For example, we have a play called “Speed Option” and the code words for the play are fast, hurry, and quick.
I chose to talk about the diversity in my 4th hour multimedia class. I have a student that is on an IEP and I have a student that is ELL and pretty new to the country. My classroom isn't set up very handicap friendly the tables are so crowded that it is hard for someone in a wheelchair to get across the room to use the computer equipment such as the scanner. I had to rearrange my room in order to make it more handicap assessible. This particular student is very motivated and requires extra help but always tries very hard and always ends up doing a great job on her projects. My ELL student requires extra assistance and extra examples then my other students usually need before they understand how to do a project. But once she has examples she has been doing a great job on her PowerPoints. I have given these students extra time on their projects as well in order to accomodate them. I think as long as you give all students extra help when they need it then all students should be successful.
ReplyDeleteOne of the greatest difficulties for some of my diverse learners are learning how to save properly. I have had instances where they have lost everything and had to start over. I have tried to remember to check on those students at the end of class and make sure they saved their material properly. In order to not single them out I have tried to remind the whole class of proper saving methods at the end of class. I also walk around and give each student independent help so the diverse students don't stand out as well.
I have three students this semester that are on IEPs. They are all in the same section of French 1 at the beginning of the day. Two out of the three students are doing perfectly and the third student is a senior and is having senioritis issues as well as having been used to making excuses and not doing the work her whole high school career.
ReplyDeleteMy class is unique in that they are learning a different language. In every other class, they already speak the language that the class is being taught in and have to read, listen and respond in ways that are orally and written.
The particular way that I teach, I teach for long term speaking ability. The method is based on how we learn our own native language. You just start speaking on day one and have English there for you to look at. We read, write and speak in French over and over until eventually they can do it on their own. As soon as they understand the method, all english is taken away except for new words. For many students that have an IEP they have never had the opportunity to be taught like this. They have not succeeded up to this point in the traditional methods that are all out there to help them to learn at the same level as any other student.
The students with the IEPs are doing better than some of the other students that I have. This may be because we tell stories in French and it has numbers, colors, and letters, much like a kindergarten class-but in a different language. The best part is, is that they learn French!
When it comes time to do an essay in English or a research project on a French person in history, I run into some more of the regular issues that the student has always struggled with.
I make it a point to adhere to the IEP and if the student needs extra time I give it to them. I also talk to these three students on an individual basis regularly to ascertain their comfortableness in my class. I don't always have to ask though, they love it!
I also make sure that I attend all the IEP meetings. This tells the student and the parent that you want to help the child learn and that you are there to listen and understand what the student is going through.
Since I haven't had a lot of trouble, I haven't had to try too many different approaches where these students are concerned.
In response to Cody Ayers:
ReplyDeleteIn reading your post it reminded me of a foreign exchange student from Mexico. She is not classified as ELL, but has a harder time writing in English and has a terrible time with the grammar. One issue that I find is that she writes phonetically, which Spanish is a more phonetic language as far as I have learned so far. She had virtually no idea how to write many words correctly in English in the past tense. Since I teach French, that part isn't as big of an issue, but when it comes time to translate (which should be the easy part) she is struggling just to do English in the first place. I haven't really figured out a way to help her with that other than giving her the English words and meanings typed out so she can read them and see how they are spelled.
I am choosing my assessment prep class. It is my most diverse class, with the most challenges, but also with the most rewards. Many of the students in this class struggle with the concept of mathematics for one reason or another. 2 are on IEPs, 1 is on a section 504 and 7 out of 8 are on free or reduced lunches. We don't talk about that last one much, but sometimes instructors have a tendency to write off students who come from econmomically challenged households. This particular class won a Certificate of Merit this year from the State Board of Education based on its success in imporvement in the state assessments and its rate or 'poor' students. Yeah, I am bragging a bit, but it goes to show what differentiated instruction is capable of doing for a student. For the IEP students,I make sure they have plenty of time to work with the paraprofessional when appropriate, but also that they get pleny of time with their peers. I also ensure I get their workload to their study skills supervisor, so that they do not blow off the work when they leave the classroom. THe section 504 fella has a vision problem. So, without singling him out, I make sure he is in the appropriate seating arrangement for the visual activities. As for tackling the economic challenge. I try to include problems that relate to the kids and the struggles they go through. I also try to avoid making problems that put the kids on a track to get a job after high school. I always encourage the kids to go to college and we have a lot of emphasis on college preparatory problems. I know I could do better, and I am working on it, but we have had a measure of success and hope to continue with it!
ReplyDeleteTo taajnia
ReplyDeleteI can really relate with the fear of having a lot of special needs students in a classroom. When I was first tasked with teaching the at-risk class, I believed that it would be too difficult of a challenge, that too many behavioral issues would arise and little learning would be accomplished. I didn't think the effort would be worth the rewards. Boy was I wrong. The rewards are amazing. Seeing some of these students achieve in areas they never have before is great and it is well worth it. It is very similar to what you said, it seems more learning gets done in these classes, wierd isn't it?
In response to Greg...
ReplyDeleteI read where one of your methods is chunking assignments. I just started doing that this year in my multimedia class and it has helped alot. Not only with students becoming overwhelmed but has also helped improve their time management and organization skills. I forgot to add that accomodation to my post.
In response to Coach Smith...
ReplyDeleteI agree when I started teaching I got some of the most challenging classes that had the most IEP and ELL students. I felt like it was unfair to dump the most challenging classes on the new person on the totum pole. But since this is my third year I have found that I prefer this type of diverse classroom setting. I have found that I find it more rewarding that teaching the higher level students. It is amazing when I see a student that was deep into gangs start focusing on their school work and then I have even got to see them graduate. It as been wonderful to see them transform into people that will become productive members of society.
In response to Annette D's 10:20 comment...
ReplyDeleteI agree. As a first year teacher, I was saddled with two CWC (Classroom Within a Classroom) classes with upwards of 15 IEP bearing students. For the first 9 weeks, I didn't know what IEP stood for--much less that an IEP placed legal responsibilities on me as an instructor! I was given two more CWC classes my second year and now, in my third year, I don't have any (though I do have an 'Honors' class). I have come to realize that my school district has historically 'dumped' CWC classes on new teachers and 'awarded' teachers who stay in the district with less challenging classes. It seems to me that these CWC classes require the most differentiation and the most instructor experience--it seems to me that the assignment of teachers to these classes should be reevaluated.
In response to Cody's Nov 2nd 9:30pm comment:
ReplyDeleteAs a 9th, 10th, and 11th grade English teacher in your district, I'm glad to read that you're teaching vocabulary. Test prep has become such an overwhelming concern in our district that in my building a teacher was actually asked to STOP spending so much time teaching vocabulary. I was also pleased to read that you frequently ask your ELL students if they have questions. I've found that many of my ELL students have learned to put up a front that pretty convincingly fools those around them into believing the student knows what's going on--the last thing my kids want to do is ask a question. I've been pretty successful in modeling questioning strategies. I offer question stems and 'key words' I'd like to see in questions. The end of every think sheet, summary, response, worksheet, and assessment I hand my students asks them to write down a question about either A) something they don't understand, or B) something they think a classmate might not understand.
In my sixth hour English II class I have one IEP-bearing student, seven ELL students, and a number of low SES students. None of my ELL students have an IEP, but several of them have been identified as at-risk by their formative and SRI test scores. A number of these students are either veterans of our “Read 180” program for struggling readers or students who are enrolled in my class concurrently with the “Read 180” program.
ReplyDeleteMy IEP-bearing student has a hearing disability. This student has full hearing in one ear and limited hearing in the other. She sits in the front, off to the side, and has her own para who takes notes for her. As I was her teacher last year, we have formed a relatively successful student/ teacher relationship and she is not afraid to ask me questions or talk to me after class if she has failed to understand things. Her hearing disability shows in her writing (sometimes she uses words like “in” instead of “and,” etc) but she is largely capable of reading, writing, speaking, and working with classmates.
My ELL students are typically behind the curve in my class. They have trouble reading and writing and are less inclined to participate vocally in groups. Many of these students claim to dislike reading alone, and state that they would prefer that the class read as a whole or in groups. As they are tenth graders, I would prefer that we start removing the ‘crutches’ and start reading on our own. Further, problems arise when I allow group reading or whole-class reading. Many of my students—my ELL students in equal proportion to the rest of the class—either stop following along when we read as a whole group or stop reading and start talking when I give chances to read in groups. I’m not sure how to solve this problem—I’ve been pushing for them to keep reading on their own and I’ve tried to spend more time anticipating tough vocabulary before we begin.
One of the things that has encouraged my ELL students to read more in my classroom has been my offering of “High Interest” “Blueford” series books aimed at seventh and eighth grade readers. These books are available for twenty-minute self-selected reading sessions. These books about troubled teens provide my low skill level readers chances to feel like successful readers in my classroom.