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Allowing students to feel welcomed and safe inside their classroom is one of the first things to a great start of the school year. I love how this source says to have regular discussions with them about "individual strengths". I think that is super important.

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Curriculum modifications play an essential role in the academic and social/emotional success of students with intellectual disabilities. With students who have disabilities spending more time in the general education classroom, general education teaching practices need to evolve to include adapting and modifying curriculum so it is accessible and achievable.

So, how can administrators and special education teachers help staff make the successful transition to creating accessible and achieveable lessons for all?

Develop shared values - As education professionals, we are concerned with closing achievement gaps and creating more equitable learning environments. Therefore, it makes sense that our classrooms reflect our value systems and embrace students with a wide range of backgrounds and abilities. Have conversations with staff members that center on creating equitable classrooms and then explore strategies for including all students in the classroom and school community. Develop the mindset that "all students" are "our students".

Help teachers understand their role and responsibilities - Research tells us that teacher "buy-in" is greater when they understand the reasons for change. Teachers typically take greater ownership of the process and are more likely to implement it with fidelity. "Underscoring the importance of the work, and that it is based on research, and not the latest whim" is essential to success (Murray & Brooks, 2017).

So, why must general education teachers take on more responsiblity for modifying curriuclum for students with disabilities in their classroom? First and foremost, T he Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, (2004) mandates that students with disabilities have a legal right to access and make progress in the general education curriuclum.

Second, while the education of students with disabilities has long been the responsibility of the special education teacher in self-contained special education classrooms, research and experience tell us that the social, emotional, and academic outcomes of students with disabilities are greater when they are educated in general education classrooms. As a result, we are seeing a shift in placement, with general education teachers having a wider range of learners to instruct.

Finally, 70% of the school day is allotted to academic instruction during which all students - including students with disabilities - need to have access to meaningful, appropriate, and engaging learning experiences.

Provide professional development - In all fairness, general education teachers are typically not given any training or information on how (or why) curriculum needs to be modified for students with intellectual disabilities.

Give teachers the tools that they need to be successful when modifying curriculum and plan time for professional development. For example, provide step-by-step instructions on how to make modifications. Whether you meet as a staff, a grade-level, or in-person, provide information on modifying curriuclum and multiple resources that will set teachers up for success.

In addition to giving teachers the "why" behind the need for modifying curriculum (see above), equip teachers with examples, websites, and tools for instruction.

Give the gift of time - As educators, we juggle a thousand things in a school day. Most of us don't even take a break to eat lunch! Since time is a luxury, one of the best ways to get teachers modifying curriuclum is giving them time to do it. Plan time to meet with teachers (either individually or in groups) and modify a lesson together. Better yet, collaborate on a series of modified lessons or even create a bank of modified materials.

Coach and communicate - Support staff through the process of learning to modify curriculum. Learn about teacher needs and challenges. Set goals with teachers (individual and/or groups) and follow-up. Check-in with them on a regular basis and provide support as needed.

Identify the runners, joggers, walkers, and sitters on your staff - K now who you are working with. Author, Becca Silver, writes that it's important to know the speed that teachers are willing and able to make changes. She suggests identifying four groups:

Runners - These are your fastest changing teachers. They will begin planning out their next steps before they leave the staff meeting. They are motivated and on a mission. S tay out of their way but praise is appreciated.

Joggers - Joggers are the direction-followers. They play by the rules and want to get everything "just right". They are also very co-operative. T o support joggers in learning how to modify curriculum, first model the modification, give them step-by-step directions, and then watch them complete the modification independently . Encourage them to support others (which they love to do). Be generous when praising Joggers - they love it!

There isn't much change taking place and you might need to move mountains to get them to meet with you. When you do end up meeting with the walkers, present information in small, "bite-sized" pieces so as not to overwhelm them. Offer to co-plan or even co-teach the lesson. Be prepared to re-schedule.Walkers - Walkers are slow to embrace change.

Sitters - Sitters are the least likely to make big changes. They are resistant even when you provide them with a wide range of supports. Be patient and work on building a relationship first. Get to know their classroom challenges and concerns. Ask them what they are already doing to support their students with disabilities. Best to build off their established routines rather than introduce new ones.

Do you have any suggestions to add? What has or has not worked with your staff?

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An education blog with strategies, tips and information for teachers about teaching students with disabilities in the inclusive classroom.

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Working With Families of Children With Special Needs

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Working With Families of Children With Special Needs

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something I love about this article is the categories it is divided up into. "Know, See, Do" Know your students and the differences that each one of them struggles with. See your students as they perform in the classroom. Know how to help them learn to their best ability.

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Explore own assumptions about working with families of children with special needs.

Identify variables that may challenge or support family-centered practice.

Choose effective ways to support families of children with special needs.

Know

Families of Young Children with Special Needs

Preschoolers with special needs are members of our communities, programs, and families and it is our responsibility to provide high-quality, inclusive support and care for these children and their families. While these families often experience additional challenging situations and stressors, they have hopes, dreams, and goals for their children just like other families. You can positively impact families with a preschooler with a disability by empowering them with knowledge, empathizing with their feelings, and collaborating with other support professionals in their lives.

Within the VLS, the terms special needs and disability are often used interchangeably. It is important to note that while the two terms have similar meanings, the word disability is generally used to refer to a long-term condition or impairment that impacts the way a child or youth learns, participates, or interacts with the world around them. The term special needs often refers to additional supports or assistance a child or youth may need within an educational, developmental, behavioral, or health context. Language is a powerful tool that can create a sense of identity, purpose, and pride and is particularly important to consider when working with children and families. One critical way to empower families of children with special needs is to have a dialogue with them around their preferred language when referring to their individual child's unique needs and abilities.

Working with Families of Children with Special Needs

Establishing meaningful relationships with families is a critical part of your work, and your communication is especially important when working with families with preschoolers with special needs. Some preschool children will enter your program with a known disability, and other families will learn that their child has a disability or is delayed while enrolled in your program. You may even be one of the professionals that assists in identifying an area of concern or delay. Families with eligible preschool-age children may receive special education services and have an individualized education program (IEP). Others may only receive support from a medical center, and some families will be involved with multiple systems of support. Regardless, families can be overwhelmed by what feels like a constant flow of suggestions, therapies, and appointments to help their child learn and develop. These families may need more help supporting their children and may turn to you, or others in your program, for assistance with connecting to services or agencies outside of your program. It may be helpful to form relationships with outside agencies so you, or trainers and administrators in your program, have up-to-date information on how to make a referral and the types of services offered and available. Positive interactions with families and other professionals can decrease families' stress and improve their well-being, as well as improve their confidence in you as their child's early care and learning program.

Families with preschoolers with special needs may go through various evaluation processes and may ask you to complete questionnaires or provide input at the request of a doctor, specialist, or teacher. Other professionals rely on this input, especially when they have limited amounts of time with children compared to program staff who often spend many hours each week caring for, educating, and observing children. This information can be used to determine if a child has a specific condition, support the child outcomes summary (COS) process, determine eligibility for specific services, and develop goals for an individualized education program (IEP). You, or a trainer or administrator from your program, may be asked to participate in an IEP review, a time when the team of professionals and families come together to assess progress, create new outcomes, and determine needed services. Preschool children with IEPs may attend your program and their local education agency (LEA). Services on an IEP may only be provided at the LEA, or interventionists and related services personnel may "push in" and provide services within your program. Regardless of how special education services are delivered, working with professionals from outside agencies helps things run smoothly for families and ensures that all of the professionals and caregivers in a child's life are communicating. This lessens family stress by reducing the need for primary caregivers to act as the in-between messenger of important information.

Families with preschoolers with disabilities may go through various evaluation processes and may ask you to complete questionnaires or provide input at the request of a doctor, specialist, or teacher. Other professionals rely on this input, especially when they have limited amounts of time with children compared to program staff who often spend many hours each week caring for, educating, and observing children in their daily routines. This information can be used to determine if a child has a specific area of need, support the child outcome summary (COS) process, determine eligibility for specific services, and develop goals for an individualized education program (IEP). You, or a trainer or administrator from your program, may be asked to participate in a family's IEP review, a time when the team of professionals and the family come together to assess progress, create new outcomes, and determine needed services. Preschool children with IEPs may attend your program and their local education agency (LEA). Services on an IEP may only be provided at the LEA, or interventionists and therapists may provide services within your program. Regardless of how these services are delivered, working with professionals from outside agencies helps things run smoothly for families and ensures that all of the professionals and caregivers in a child's life are communicating. This lessens family stress by reducing the need for primary caregivers to act as the in-between messenger of important information, goals and expectations.
Effective Practices
The first step in establishing strong relationships with families of children with special needs is to spend time discussing and learning their wishes and concerns for their children and to learn about the meaningful activities and routines they participate in at home. Maintaining this communication throughout a child's time in your program is essential. Ask questions to learn about strategies that work at home and consider using them in your classroom. Through your interactions you can build trust so both you and families feel comfortable sharing children's strengths and if there are concerns (Sandall, Hemmeter, Smith, & McLean, 2005). Before communicating concerns with families, it may be helpful to discuss with a coach, trainer, or administrator your plan to share this information using family-centered practice. Be prepared for families to react in a variety of ways, and know how you can offer support if they seek assistance from other agencies and resources. For families already receiving support from other professionals, ongoing communication with both families and professionals is critical to maintain consistency between program and home environments. When all the caregivers and professionals in a child's life are consistently using the same, effective strategies to promote development and outcomes, children are more likely to benefit and learn new skills.

In your collaboration with families, it is important to acknowledge and respect their strengths and unique background, while realizing their ability to make decisions that are right for them (Hanson & Lynch, 2004). This means that when a family's wishes and decisions are different from what you would recommend, you respond to the family's decisions with respect. Ultimately, meaningful communication and relationship-building will enrich the process for both yourself and the families you serve.

Take a look at the following guidelines that reflect family-centered practice. You may remember some of these from Lesson 1. Then, think about which of these you can use in your work with families of children with special needs (Turnbull, Turbiville, & Turnbull, 2000):

Recognizing the family as a constant in the child's life; caregivers and service systems may often change

Facilitating collaboration between families and professionals

Honoring and respecting family diversity in all dimensions (cultural, racial, ethnic, linguistic, spiritual, and socioeconomic)

Recognizing family strengths and the different approaches that families may use to cope

Sharing unbiased and honest information with family members on an ongoing basis

Encouraging family-to-family support and networking

Acknowledging and incorporating the developmental needs of the child and other family members into your practice

Designing and implementing services that are accessible, culturally and linguistically respectful and responsive, flexible, and based on family-identified needs

See

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Watch this video to learn about addressing the needs of families who have children with special needs.

Do

There are many ways you can demonstrate respect and consideration for families of children with special needs or disabilities in your classroom. Consider the following:

Acknowledge that families know their child best and ask them questions about services, resources, or typical routines that may be helpful to you.

Establish ongoing communication between home and school. Communication journals are a great way to maintain communication. These are usually sent home with the child and returned the next day. Teachers can share noteworthy observations, events, or daily challenges and families can respond to those or share their own news or reflections. While communication journals can be used with families of all children in your classroom, they can be an especially valuable tool in establishing consistency between home and school environments for children with special needs.

Incorporate children's books in your classroom library that reflect consideration of multiple abilities and differences.

Modify daily activities so that all children can participate in their own way.

Invite families to talk about their child. For example, a family member may come in your classroom and talk about their child's use of adaptive equipment (e.g., braces, wheelchair, or a communication device). The family member may explain the use of equipment, which can help children and other families understand aspects of their life. This also promotes acceptance of differences.

Be a team player! Work collaboratively with families and other professionals who may be involved in the delivery of services to children with special needs.

If disagreements or miscommunication arise, consider the following:

Remind yourself that your role is to support families' hopes and dreams for their child.

Be patient. Dealing with a child with a disability may be challenging at times, and family members need time to navigate this experience at their own pace.

Avoid making judgments of families and their children.

Consider difficult times as opportunities to build trust between yourself and families.

Question your assumptions about working with families of children with disabilities or special needs and urge other professionals you know to do the same.

Talk with your trainer, supervisor, or coach when in doubt about any aspect of your work with families.

Video not available
Watch this video to hear a family of a child with special needs share their school experience.

Barrera, I., & Corso, R. M. (2003). Skilled Dialogue: Strategies for responding to cultural diversity in early childhood. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing.

Center for Parent Information & Resources. (n.d). Supporting the Parent Centers Who Serve Families of Children with Disabilities. Retrieved from https://parentcenterhub.org/

Hanson, M. J., & Lynch, E.W. (2004). Understanding Families: Approaches to diversity, disability, and risk. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.

Harry, B., Kalyanpur, M., & Day, M. (1999). Building Cultural Reciprocity With Families: Case studies in special education. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing.

Harry, N., Rueda, R., & Kalyanpur, M. (1999). Cultural reciprocity in Sociocultural Perspective: Adapting the normalization principle for family collaboration. Exceptional Children, 66(1), 123-136.

Howard, V.F., Williams, B.F., Port, P.D., & Lepper, C. (1997). Very Young Children With Special Needs: A formative approach for the 21st century. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.

Johnson, B. H. (1990). The changing role of families in health care. Children's Health Care, 19(4), 234-241.

Kalyanpur, M., & Harry, B. (1999). Culture in Special Education: Building reciprocal family-professional relationships. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing.

Lynch, E. W., & Hanson, M. J. (2004). Developing Cross-Cultural Competence: A guide for working with young children and their families, 3rd ed. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.

National Association for the Education of Young Children (2011). NAEYC Position Statement: Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment. Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/positionstatements/ethical_conduct

National Association for the Education of Young Children. Engaging Diverse Families.

Peck, A., & Scarpatti, S. (2002). Special Education around the world. Teaching Exceptional Children 34(5).

Poston, D., Turnbull, A., Park, J., Mannan, H., Marquis, J., & Wang, M. (2003). Family Quality of Life: A qualitative inquiry. Mental Retardation, 41(5), 313-328.

Salend, S. J., & Garrick-Duhaney, L. M. (2002). What Do Families Have to Say About Inclusion? How to pay attention and get results. Teaching Exceptional Children, 35(1), 62-66.

Sandall, S., Hemmeter, M. L., Smith, B. J., & McLean, M. E. (2005). DEC recommended practices: A comprehensive guide. Longmont, CO: Sopris West.

Trivette, C. M. & Dunst, C. J. (2005). DEC Recommended Practices: Family-Based Practices. In S. Sandall, M. L. Hemmeter, B. J. Smith, & M. E. McLean (Eds.). DEC Recommended Practices: A comprehensive guide for practical application (pp. 107-126). Longmont, CO: Sopris West.

Turnbull, A. P., Turbiville, V., & Turnbull, H. R. (2000). Evolution of Family-Professional Partnerships: Collective empowerment as the model for the early twenty-first century. In J. P. Shonkoff & S. J. Meisels (Eds.). Handbook of Early Childhood Intervention (pp. 630-650). Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.

Turnbull, A., Turnbull, R., Erwin, E. J., & Soodak, L. C. (2006). Families, Professionals, and Exceptionality: Positive outcomes through partnerships and trust. 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education Inc.

Consider your view on families of children with special needs and think about your role in their lives

Consider how much information a family is comfortable sharing about their child's needs

Use these resources to learn more about families with children with special needs

Understand the emotional impact a family can experience when they learn about their child's disability

Create a list of resources to support children with disabilities

This activity is required for the CDA Professional Portfolio and should be completed by CDA candidates only.

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Working With Families of Children With Special Needs

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Explore own assumptions about working with families of children with special needs. Identify variables that may challenge or support family-centered practice. Choose effective ways to support families of children with special needs.

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This article opened my eyes up to realizing it is just not the child being cared for, sometimes as a teacher you need to be there for the parents as well.

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Challenges and Roles for School Counselors

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Challenges and Roles for School Counselors

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This article really emphasized on the point of the school counselor's involvement. Connections with parents, teachers, the students peers, and many more can significantly help the student work towards progress.

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Understanding the Concerns of Parents of Students with Disabilities: Challenges and Roles for School Counselors

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Professional school counselors can be more effective in their work with parents of students with disabilities - as well as with the students themselves, their teachers, and other students - if they understand parent perspectives. Parents' areas of concern are described, and implications for school counselors are discussed.

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Supporting Parents of Students With Special Needs

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Supporting Parents of Students With Special Needs

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I really like this article because it mentions how parent's may not be experts on their child's mental health, but they make it clear that they are an expert on their own child!

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There's often a rift in communication between educators and parents who suspect their kids have special needs. A parent describes the support that would have helped her initiate an assessment.

©Shutterstock/Africa Studio

Even as young children, we're able to identify a behavior that is not the norm for our peer group-the one kid in the class who seems a little more agitated than the rest, a little more loud and unruly. Across the room is a scared child. Another struggles with reading.

All of this may also be evident to a teacher, who can compare one child with his or her peers. But it may not be evident to the parent, who does not experience a whole classroom of children.

To the parent, a particular behavior may not seem beyond the norm. The first thing we parents observe is that our child is shy, or picky, or argumentative. We don't observe that behavior and diagnose our child as anxious, having a sensory disorder, or oppositionally defiant. We see behaviors that we seek to modify, not categorize.

A Gap in Experience and Understanding

This opens up a rift in experience, understanding, and communication between parents and educators. Education specialists may speak in professional jargon that parents don't always understand. An educator's perspective on how a student's behavior differs from that of his or her peers and on the demonstration of behaviors can be helpful to parents.

Parents are most often not mental-health experts, but they are experts in knowing their children. When they feel that something isn't right, there's reason to investigate. But most parents who have shared their experiences with me about asking for help for their children have not received it initially. Pediatricians may tell parents to be better disciplinarians. Teachers may say, "He doesn't qualify for services."

Many disabilities-most learning disabilities, most mental health disabilities, and many physical health disabilities-are hidden. A hidden disability is by its nature difficult to observe. Only someone trained in psychological assessment, using prescribed evaluation methods, can determine such a disability-educators generally don't have this qualification.

State departments of education have standards for assessing and evaluating a child for special education services, yet being denied this assessment and evaluation is quite common. A discussion between the parent and teacher or principal may result in an evaluation, but parents are often forced to make repeated requests to push the issue. Parents may also not understand that requests for evaluation must be in writing.

Parents new to the individualized education program (IEP) process are then confused and angry. Worse yet, some parents accept the initial denial, and then the child does not receive an evaluation.

These problems generally occur because educators lack knowledge. In preparing general education teachers, most education programs don't require a class on children with exceptional needs (gifted, special education etc.). States have tests and other assessments to evaluate the knowledge of an education program graduate, but even so, a teacher may not be able to recognize special needs or have knowledge about state regulations.

Parents look to teachers and principals to be experts. Not knowing what to do when a school declines to evaluate a child is a common dilemma for parents of children who are struggling. Advocacy groups may help, but a parent would need to understand that external help is available before they would seek it out. Many parents don't understand the obligation of the school to evaluate their child, and they may not know how to push through a request for evaluation when facing resistance.

Directing Parents to Organizations That Can Help

It would be helpful if school staff referred parents to the appropriate state advocacy organization listed by the Center for Parent Information and Resources. This would steer parents toward a group that could help them to find answers.

In Kansas, our parent group, Families Together, answers questions, holds informational and training sessions for parents and education advocates, and shares documents to inform parents. No one in the school environment let my family know that this group existed, and it took us several years to find it. During that time, we felt isolated and confused. If only a teacher, principal, or district staff member had shared this information.

Hopefully a parent can initiate an assessment and evaluation. He or she will then be accosted with a host of acronyms and other special terms such as IDEA, IEP, BIP, and 504.

My personal experience has been that at no time were the evaluation process or special terms like IDEA, IEP, or 504 explained to me, and I have yet to encounter a parent for whom this did occur. The process of getting help for a struggling child is bureaucratic and complicated, and for the most part educators don't mentor parents through it.

If they haven't located an education advocacy group for assistance, parents usually lack the understanding needed to represent their children well through this process. Following an assessment and evaluation of a child, which requires special services to support that child's education, the next step should be educating the parents about this process. Even a district FAQ website would be helpful. Parents should be part of their child's education team, yet how can one contribute without a good understanding of the framework for special education services and an understanding of how accommodations can be implemented to help a child succeed?

Some educators and schools are amazing. But as a college professor and a parent of a child with an IEP, I have met students who have not been supported through the K-12 years or who received only minimal support to get them through the system. We can do better, starting from the first time a parent approaches a teacher and says, "I'm worried that Olivia seems to be struggling."

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Supporting Parents of Students With Special Needs

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There's often a rift in communication between educators and parents who suspect their kids have special needs. A parent describes the support that would have helped her initiate an assessment.

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12 Ways to Support Families of Students with Disabilities

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12 Ways to Support Families of Students with Disabilities

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I enjoyed reading this article because out of the 12 different reasonings they listed, some were new to me. The one that stuck out to me the most was conducting a reflection exercise. It makes a lot of sense to have something planned to talk about the positives and negatives after the conversation you just had with them.

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Families are the ones who know your students best-their strengths and needs, their likes and dislikes, their hopes and dreams. And the more effectively you work with and support the families of your students, the more your students will benefit.

It's important to form powerful partnerships with all families, but today's post focuses on building a supportive relationship with families of children with disabilities. Excerpted and adapted from Eight Paths to Leadership by Belva C. Collins, these 12 practical suggestions will help you gain new insight into families' needs, connect them with valuable resources, and welcome them as respected members of their child's school team.

Conduct a reflection exercise. Reflect on the last educational planning meeting you attended as a teacher. What do you think went right in the meeting? What specific things could have improved it? Write down your responses and use them as a guide to improve your next meeting.

Interview a family. Conduct an interview with a family of a child with a disability. How do the family members feel about the educational process for their child? Do they see their relationship with the teacher as a true partnership? Why or why not? Use the insights you uncover to strengthen your work.

Learn more about the effects of poverty. Socioeconomic status can affect the performance of students with disabilities and the educational participation of their families. Do some internet research on the various ways poverty may affect the families in your community. Find data on the prevalence of poverty in your community and demographics about who is affected. Have the prevalence and/or demographics changed in the past 10 years? If so, how? Find and read literature on educating students who experience poverty, such as this free resource from the National Education Association .

Make IEP meetings a positive experience. Are your IEP meetings as comfortable and welcoming to families as they could be? Here are some things to do:

Provide a summary or an agenda ahead of time

Create an IEP draft that includes goals that the family values

Meet in a setting that's comfortable for the family and greet them warmly on arrival

Arrange seating so that all parties have equal status

Provide an interpreter, if necessary, who is familiar with the family's culture, language, and any jargon that may be used in the meeting

Hand out helpful supplementary materials-a chart to summarize the discussion, a "cheat sheet" of terms

Follow up afterward to see if the family has additional thoughts or questions

Communicate regularly. Families often express frustration when they're not kept in the loop about their child's progress. Be sure to communicate often with families, and ask them which mode they prefer-telephone calls, letters, email, or occasional face-to-face meetings. If one mode isn't working well, give another one a try. And when you communicate, challenge yourself to listen as much as you speak, so that families know you respect their views and knowledge about their child.

Make it easy for family members to get involved. Share information with families on how to become involved in school activities and take on leadership roles. Point them to resources on how to join and participate in the PTA, volunteer activities, and family councils.

Offer families evidence-based practices (EBPs). Tell families how important and beneficial it is to use EBPs with their children, and ask family members if they'd like you to share these practices with them. Explain that consistently using the same strategies at home and school can help their children learn faster and apply their new skills in environments where they are needed. (Be careful not to pressure families to use EBPs.)

Help families find high-quality resources. Some of the resources that families find on their own may not reflect best practices. Make a list of legitimate websites and other trusted resources that present EBPs, so you can easily share reliable information with families. Directing them to online learning modules, for example, can save families the cost, time, and travel associated with face-to-face training.

Point families to support groups. Use the internet to find professional organizations (e.g., The Arc, Autism Society, Down Syndrome Society, TASH) that offer support groups for families. Are support groups affiliated with these organizations offered in your community? Is support offered online (e.g., through discussion groups)? Create a list of valid support group networks to share with families and help them benefit from these valuable connections.

Think beyond parents. Remember that many families consist of more than the child's parents. When you're developing family partnerships, make an effort to include siblings, extended family members, and other caregivers who wish to be involved. (This gives you some starter suggestions for involving siblings.)

Respect each family's culture. There are complex issues at play in the lives of each of your students. Recognize that each family is unique, even within a specific culture. Instead of making generalizations and assumptions, use data on each individual family to guide you in your work. Respect the position of families who cannot or choose not to be involved in their child's school.

Set an example. Lead by example in your school-model positive ways of speaking with and interacting with families, so that other teachers and staff members will follow suit.

In this empowering professional development resource, Belva Collins shows special educators how they can pursue eight different paths to leadership so they can make a powerful difference in schools, communities, and the lives of their students. Explore the description, reviews, and table of contents for Eight Paths to Leadership !

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12 Ways to Support Families of Students with Disabilities - Brookes Blog

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Families are the ones who know your students best-their strengths and needs, their likes and dislikes, their hopes and dreams. And the more effectively you work with and support the fami­lies of your students, the more your students will benefit. It's important to form powerful partnerships with all families, but today's post focuses on building [...]

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8 Tips for Working with Parents of Special Needs Children

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8 Tips for Working with Parents of Special Needs Children

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This article pairs with the one right above it... Something that stood out to me was to not mention medication to the parent! It can become very defensive to a parent if you as the educator could recommend that their child needs medicine! Let the doctor handle that.

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Knowing how to work with parents of students with special needs is just as important as knowing how to help the students. Robin Hartman, educator and mother of a son with Autism, says, "I know I am a difficult parent to deal with which is why I thought I would give some tips on how to deal with the parents of children with special needs because we are super sensitive about our children." Read her story below where she lays it all on the line and shares her concerns, fears, and respect for those teachers who make a difference in the lives of students with special needs.
by Robin Hartman, Guest Author
As I take education courses, I feel myself at odds with some of the information because I look at things as a parent. I look at the needs of my child first, even when sometimes his needs could hinder the academic progress of the class by causing disruptions. However, as I parent, I view his disruptions as an indication that his needs not being met. Granted, this is an issue because this places no responsibility on the child for not choosing the appropriate behavior. I also realize I tend to find fault with the teachers simply because I probably could have or would have handled the situation differently. However, I can honestly say that the teachers have helped me immensely with raising my child with Autism. It has taken me awhile to trust their judgment.

Originally, I failed to remember that the teacher has a role, they are a specialist in the field, and my child is not the only student he or she is dealing with in the classroom. The teachers are there. They have the full picture of the situation. But, as a parent, I will also look at things as though my child, because he is my child, will be the most important student in the teacher's classroom.

I know I am a difficult parent to deal with which is why I thought I would give some tips on how to deal with the parents of children with special needs because we are super sensitive about our children.

8 Tips for Working with Parents of Special Needs Children
1. Open up communication before a situation arises.
As a parent, I will not trust a teachers' judgment until I get to know them. I view myself as being on the teacher's side once I know the person. But if I see them as a stranger who is being mean to my baby at our first meeting, there may be a problem. If I have to come to the school because of my child's inappropriate behavior or their lack academic successful and this also happens to be the first time I have spoken directly to the teacher, I am not sure whether my child is at fault.

Also, if I have to come to school to address a particular situation I was completely unaware of, I would feel that I should have been contacted before the situation became a huge issue for everyone, before the situation has crippled my child's grades or hindered your classroom's behavioral compliance.

I am the kind of parent that likes to hear updates about my children as much as possible. I want to know what he or she is struggling with, what they are excelling at, and what they are enjoying. Remember, sometimes the communication from the teacher is the only window into the child's school day because children with special needs (well even typically functioning children) do not share information about their day with the parent.
2. When opening up communication, always start with a compliment about their child.
Parents will not get tired of hearing how awesome their child is. A teacher should never begin the discussion about how the student is struggling with decoding and compliance until he or she has given an overview of how absolutely adorable the parents' child is and maybe even start with a cute story.

I always enjoy hearing little funny stories about my child, especially if it is something that I can identify as his behavior but never experienced that particular situation. This helps me know that the teacher knows my child and found his behaviors a refreshing gift, something charming and cute, rather than a strange abnormality that needs to be trained out of him.

For example, he once yelled at his teacher for not writing their math textbook. They were not sure why he got upset about it but he was convinced she was stealing. She had to talk him through the situation, explaining how teachers order textbooks for the classrooms that everyone uses based on the district's curriculum to insure that everyone learns the same material.

Considering I teach writing courses, I think he overheard a discussion I had about plagiarism.

I knew that based on the story, the teachers could handle him and truly loved him. They showed true patience with the situation by talking him through the logistics of his assumption; however, someone else may have just silenced him in order to move ahead.
3. Do not tell a parent to teach the child to behave.
I always work with my child's school to make sure there are at home consequences for inappropriate school behavior. Make sure you work with a parent to institute some type of communication and consequence arrangement.

Telling a parent simply to talk to your child about this or that behavior is not appropriate. It shows that the teacher did not deal with the situation, cannot deal with the situation, and believe the parent can magically with a simple discussion make the child act appropriately when the parent is not present.

I am a pretty good parent, but I do not have that kind of authority over my child when I am not present. Many parents with children with special needs will struggle connecting the talk or correction with the inappropriate school behavior that more than likely the child cannot remember demonstrating. Do not leave every correction up to the parent. The teacher needs to be given the authority to correct the child's behavior. Reminding and connecting the at home consequence with the behavior at school while the child is illustrating that particular behavior helps quite a bit. Thus, the teacher has the authority over the situation. The parent does not step in to have to take care of the situation.

Also, when asking a parent to discipline their child it could also imply that the teacher feels disciplinary actions are being made at home. As a parent with a special needs child, you would not imagine how horrible people can be about my child's behavior. I feel the looks when he acts up. Unlike other disabilities, you cannot see Autism written across my child's face, and while I am happy that disability is not what people immediately see when they look at my child, some adults do not sympathize with what I am going through at first glance because a melt-down looks so similar to a tantrum. Many people, from a distance, just see a bratty kid throwing a fit because a parent fails to parent. Parents of children with special needs are treated like this all the time; people even get vocal about their disapproval of other parents. Teachers should avoid the "parent your child", "make them behave" bandwagon advice pile on.

That does not mean parents should not be open to advice about how to deal with a particular difficult situation. Just wait for a parent to ask. I have learned so much about when it is and is not acceptable to baby or comfort my child and when to be stern in order to push him to complete tasks that are new and frustrating.
4. Educate the parent.
If you are helping parents understand their child's disability, it is helpful to make sure they have access to plenty of information: handouts, websites, reading material or lists of reading recommendations about the disability. Remember, you are a professional with vital information.

It would also help to remind the parent about your expertise, what you studied, your qualifications, your teaching experience, and so forth. While you do not need to go into your whole resume, it is helpful to remind a parent their child is in strong, capable, well-educated, and well-experienced hands. I have recently gotten into the habit of asking the educators their background. It makes me feel better.

Also, know that someone outside of education is not fluent in the same terminology. I remember how inept I felt being at a teacher meeting hear the educating team discuss ARCs and IEPs. It is helpful to explain the common concepts that you know that are new for the parent. It makes us feel in the loop and a part of the educating team.
5. Never mention medication!
A teacher may have experience with similar children but he or she should never directly state that someone's child needs to be put on medication. If you think the child should be on medication, you need to request a counselor/specialist who will observe the child and make the appropriate recommendation.

That does not mean that medication is off the table. Just go through the appropriate avenues and show the parent the accommodations and behavioral interventions you have tried and the multiple observations made by various specialists before coming to the conclusion that medication is necessary.

The request for medication should never come directly from the teacher because the parent will feel like you do not want to deal with the child; you just want the child to shut up and stop being a problem.
6. Never mention new labels.
That is great that the teacher has an understanding of disabilities. But make sure the teacher does not mention five or six new disabilities which will be used to label their child. Many disabilities have similar traits.

For example, my child is Autistic; he is not depressed. He is having self-esteem issues now that he is old enough to perceive his differences. He does not have AD-HD; He does not want to focus on the writing assignment because he struggles with decoding and he is getting frustrated about that. My child is not Oppositional Defiant. If my son is refusing to do his work, there could have been a break in his routine, something could have happened with another student or maybe the class is loud resulting in his desire to shut down.

Do not try to diagnosis or RE-diagnose a child. A parent will eat you alive. I know I would.
7. NEVER make a joke about a person's child and always use the appropriate language.
This should be a given but I would like to address this situation anyway because I once had a person ask if I talk. I did not understand what she meant at first because her question was so incredibly strange. She laughed and went on to say that she wondered if I talk because my son did not. She was not a teacher, and I would prefer not to state her position as to not stereotype those in her situation. I made sure I understood whether she was aware of his disability before getting upset.

This is when I discovered that some people are skeptical that disabilities exist. Based on ignorance or stubbornness, they do not see that other people are different if they do not look different. They just see a bad kid who will not behavior. When making jokes about someone else, it only shows the person's ignorance and lack of compassion.

Showing compassion in the language also helps. Try to avoid stereotyping a behavior and using terms like "That's Aspy" or "A Downs Kid" because it shows that the teacher defines the child by their disability. Get in the habit of using child first language like child with Autism, Student with special needs, and child with Down syndrome.
8. Keep the child around capable and trained individuals: teachers, substitutes, bus drivers, student aids, assistants, and volunteer parents.
I like to meet every single person who has contact with my child, because I have a fear that someone will be mean to him, someone will not talk to him appropriately, or they will say something that he does not understand and expect him to comply with instructions that do not compute. Fortunately, his education team surrounds him with the most compassionate people.

When there is something that gets him upset, his educating team and I try to figure out the function of his behavior which includes an overview of everyone he works with, when his behavior changed, and who observed it. I am comforted that every person he has contact with understands his triggers, works with him to keep his day smoothly transitioning, and they all love him. I put him on the bus each day knowing that no authority figure will hurt him, dismiss him, or bully him.

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8 Tips for Working with Parents of Special Needs Children

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Knowing how to work with parents of students with special needs is just as important as knowing how to help the students. Robin Hartman, educator and mother of a son with Autism, says, "I know I am a difficult parent to deal with which is why I thought I would give some tips on how to deal with the parents of children with special needs because we are super sensitive about our children."

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Working With Parents of Children With Special Needs

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Working With Parents of Children With Special Needs

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Starting small when working with students, and their families who have special needs is always smart. You d not want the student or their care takers ti be over whelmed when starting something that is brand new to them both.

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A parent of a preschooler in my class corners me every day at pickup and drop-off time with so many questions about her child! This child has special needs, and I understand her mother's anxiety and concerns, but I don't always have the time to talk with her for as long as she'd like. What can I do?

Parents, being wonderfully human, will put themselves into their children's shoes, identifying with their difficulties, as well as with their successes and joys. In the case of children with special needs, parents' questions, anxieties, and tendency to over-identify with their children can become much more pronounced. It may be hard for them to understand what their children are going through, so quite a few experience extreme reactions that range from guilt, fear, and worry, to overidentification with their special-needs children's vulnerabilities. All parents secretly hope that their children will achieve what they themselves weren't able to accomplish in life. But it becomes clear that those aspirations most likely will not be realized by their special-needs children. There is perhaps no worse situation than experiencing such feelings all alone.
Suggest Support Groups
Most parents are very eager to find ways to improve the opportunities for growth and development for their special-needs children. So having the chance to interact with other parents in similar situations, to share experiences and receive practical help, can be of tremendous value.

Support groups are tailor-made for these needs. Such groups can also be helpful for teachers. Although teachers are trained to work with children, they are often not fully equipped to deal with all of the emotional challenges involved in working with special-needs children and their families. So some teachers like to participate in a support group. Others find it to be an excellent resource for parent referrals. And they are comforted by knowing there are others besides themselves supporting these parents.
Plan Teacher Participation
Teachers can also gather a great deal of information about community resources and programs through the groups. An ideal situation would be one in which the teacher and parents have an ongoing working relationship: The parents would have regular access to the support group, while the teacher periodically visits with the group, which a number of her students' parents attend. This would create something similar to a supportive extended family.
Create a Model
The model that I recommend for the support group itself requires awareness of the six functional-emotional developmental capacities. These are the ability to:

focus and attend

engage with others

read and respond to emotional signaling

problem solve

use ideas creatively

use ideas logically

It is very helpful for the group to review and think about each of the children in light of this framework. They can share information about how they try to mobilize these different functional-emotional developmental capacities. Group members can exchange thoughts and explore the types of interactions that seem to work for each of them. They can also look at how the support group functions vis-a-vis these same six levels. For example, they can examine how well they're able to:

focus and attend to one another

truly listen to one another

engage and trust one another

read and respond to one another's nonverbal signals

be empathic and responsive

help one another verbalize what's on their minds

If the teacher is part of the support group, she can look at how she facilitates these capacities in the classroom.
Try Self-Examination
It's very helpful for teachers and parents to look at their own individual differences. They need to examine the way they themselves process information; how they respond to sounds, and visual and spatial information; and how they can become better at using their motor systems. As they look at themselves, they can gain greater empathy for the children's problems. All in all, the support group can be very useful in developing a deeper understanding of the children. It can also help by encouraging brainstorming of practical issues, such as available services, what kinds of progress can be expected, and so on.
Start Small
The best way to form such a group is for either a teacher or a parent to agree to be the coordinator. This person can send out notes to all parents, inviting them to attend a get-together. Sometimes, with the teacher's cooperation, the idea of a group can be raised at a back-to-school night or PTA meeting. Try to form a group that has somewhere between 4 and 10 members. If there are more who are interested, plan to start a second group.

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Working With Parents of Children With Special Needs | Scholastic

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A parent of a preschooler in my class corners me every day at pickup and drop-off time with so many questions about her child! This child has special needs, and I understand her mother's anxiety and concerns, but I don't always have the time to talk with her for as long as she'd like.

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Working with families of children with additional needs

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Working with families of children with additional needs

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I loved the part in this article where it gives you bullet points of things to consider when working with families of children who have additional needs! This article would be great for a new teacher.

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Working closely with families helps give students with additional needs the best chance to achieve their potential.

Educators can talk to a student's family about the best way to communicate with them. This may include scheduled meetings, or through email or phone calls.

When working with parents and carers, it's important to recognise that families come from a diverse range of backgrounds. These differences can leave them feeling alienated from the school and its operations.

The willingness and ability of parents and carers to be involved can be impacted by how they are approached and engaged by the school.

It's important that you are mindful and respectful of diversity. Implement engagement strategies that help everyone feel empowered to advocate for the student and be confident that their concerns will be heard.

An Easy English version of this topic has been written for parent/carer(s). See:

Quick guides to supporting students with disability

You will be working with families and ensuring educational, wellbeing and engagement supports are in place. This is a focus for Term 4 so that students are connected with learning and engaged in a positive transition into 2021.

New quick guides are available to share key information, guidance and resources for supporting students with disability, see:

What to consider

When meeting or engaging with parents and carers you may consider:

providing parent/carer(s) with accessible information about the purpose of the meeting. This includes advance copies of documents to be discussed and a list of who will be present

scheduling a meeting at a time and place convenient for both parent/carer(s) and the school. This makes sure that parent and carer needs and commitments, such as work or childcare, are accommodated

if childcare isn't possible and young children are present at the meeting, make sure the meeting is located in a safe and appropriate space. For example, availability of toys or a safe, supervised area for them to play

make sure all key personnel have been invited and briefed on what is required of them. This may include outside support agencies

encourage parent/carer(s) to bring an advocate or support person

make sure the meeting is free from interruptions, like phone calls, other students and staff

make sure that parent/carer(s) are informed about the roles of meeting attendees, including those who have not been involved before

make accommodations for cultural needs, sensitivities and protocol

arrange an interpreter, including for AUSLAN, if necessary, before the meeting

make sure a record of the meeting is made and distributed to participants. This may include key discussion points and areas for action

in a timely manner, inform parent/carer(s) when immediate action needs to be taken

Student support groups

A student support group gives staff, families and specialists the opportunity to work together to make decisions about a student's education.

A student support group is mandatory for students in the Program for Students with Disabilities (PSD), and is recommended for all students with additional needs.

Talking about reasonable adjustments

If a student's additional needs arise from a disability, schools must make reasonable adjustments to support their participation.

The Disability Standards for Education 2005 (the Standards) require that educators consult with the student's family and the student before any reasonable adjustments are made. Online training on the Disability Standards of Educations 2005 requirements is available for schools.

Reasonable adjustments may include a meeting (like a student support group meeting) to talk about:

how the student's disability may affect the way they learn

what support and reasonable adjustments could meet the student's needs

how current reasonable adjustments are meeting the student's needs.

Applications for extra support

If a student has a disability or health condition schools may prepare and submit applications for extra resources to help them support the student.

Educators may need to obtain the following information from families:

consent forms and application forms

medical or other professional reports.

It's important to tell parent/carer(s) why the reports and assessments are needed. You should also reassure them that their child will be supported, regardless of the outcome of the funding application.

Guidance for principals on school-parent partnerships

Guidance is available for principals and schools on school-parent partnerships.

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Working with families of children with additional needs

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Working closely with families helps give students with additional needs the best chance to achieve their potential. Educators can talk to a student's family about the best way to communicate with them. This may include scheduled meetings, or through email or phone calls.

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Building Relationships with Families of Children with Special Needs

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Building Relationships with Families of Children with Special Needs

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When searching the web the title is what got me to stop and read! Building relationships with all types of students and their families is a great start as a teacher each year. Building strong bonds can help a child in so many ways. Allowing them to feel safe inside a classroom helps them learn better.

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Building Relationships with Families of Children with Special Needs

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This Infant/Toddler Resource Guide offers a host of materials to support the development and implementation of policies and practices for high-quality care for infants and toddlers.

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The Use of Technology to Assist School-Aged Students with High Incidence Special Needs in Reading

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The Use of Technology to Assist School-Aged Students with High Incidence Special Needs in Reading

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This article is so important!! Especially in times like this during a world wide pandemic we need computers and technology the most!

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College of Education, Roosevelt University, 430 S. Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60605, USA

Received: 31 January 2018 / Revised: 14 April 2018 / Accepted: 16 April 2018 / Published: 24 April 2018

This paper delineates some of the ways students with high incidence special needs are currently being served with technology in the United States in K-12 to learn skills or accomplish tasks related to reading. Categories examined were read aloud tools, computer applications, traditional instructional methods that utilized technology, and online instructional environments. The categories examined in online instructional environments include the prevalence of students with special needs, how Individual Education Plan requirements, such as accommodations and modifications, are being addressed, parental participation, and concerns in the online environments. Suggestions for future work at the intersection of reading technology and teachers of students with special needs are included, as well as conclusions from the current work. Future work with teachers of students with special needs is required to help better serve their unique learning requirements.

1. Introduction

Reading is a crucial skill in the professional world. Without it, adults are unable to follow even simple written directions or take in new information by means of written text. Thus, reading is a crucial instructional area for children in K-12 schools today. As students progress through school, their reading becomes more crucial as teachers present new material through text [ 1]. Reading deficits are especially prevalent in children with special needs. Up to 80-90% of all students with special needs (SWSNs) have issues in reading [ 2, 3]. Given that technology is increasingly more prevalent in the school classroom, or as an alternate presentation method, researchers are encouraged to examine how technology works to support SWSNs in reading. In many cases, the extra, non-judgmental, repeated drill that a computer provides can make the educational difference for the student [ 4] to access the general curriculum.

Indeed, access is a guaranteed right that SWSNs in the United States have provided to them by federal legislation. The legislation, called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, has six principles that outline how SWSNs should receive services in schools. Perhaps one of the most important provisions of the law is the Individual Education Plan (IEP). The IEP results in services that are developed from a meeting of multiple education professionals and the parents or guardians of the SWSNs who decide what best practices should be utilized to work with the student. A document developed in this meeting may include multiple strategies directing educators and schools in how best to serve the individual SWSN that the IEP concerns. The IEP requires that students have goals and objectives, as well as accommodations and/or modifications to help them access the curriculum. Often, these accommodation provide assistance in reading. The IEP also provides for parental rights in a SWSN's learning and participation in schools. IEPs state that parents will be an important part of the IEP team that decides a course of action for SWSNs. The IEP states that parents will have a right to view their child's records with appropriate notice and initiate a due process hearing if they feel the school is not meeting their child's needs in a way they see fit [ 5]. Parental rights are important not only when students receive services in brick-and-mortar schools, but also when they are served in virtual schools in online environments.

How are educators following the recommendations of the IEP while utilizing this technology in their reading instruction for SWSNs? Or, in a larger schema, how are schools utilizing technology in educational methodology as a whole? How do teachers serve students using technology as a tool or a platform as seen in Online Instructional Environments (OLEs)? The following review includes read aloud tools, computer applications, traditional methods with technology, and OLEs. These areas are included to provide greater clarity about methodology and platforms of technology used with students with high incidence special needs.

2. Review Process

Articles for this review were culled from a search of the ERIC and PSYCHINFO databases using the search terms "special education", "technology" and/or "computer assisted instruction", and "reading". After this initial search, studies were then limited to the last 15 years and the instruction that was the basis for the research had to focus on work with students in the English language. Other limiters of articles after the initial search included that the researchers had to be working with school-aged children, children with high incidence disabilities, such as learning disabilities (LD), emotional disturbance, intellectual and developmental disabilities, and autism, and that the articles chosen had to be peer reviewed articles. An additional search was conducted with the terms "online learning environments", "special education", and "reading", and similarly limited with the term "school age" and the quality of peer review. It was hoped that combining these two areas would give a clearer picture of how SWSNs are being served in English-speaking schools. Technology is not just being used by SWSNs as an educational tool; it is also being used as an educational platform remote from the brick-and-mortar schools, as can be seen in OLEs. It is hoped by adding this category to the review that increased focus will be given to the current state of educating SWSNs with technology in schools in the United States.

3. Read Aloud Tools

Perhaps the most promising area for continuing research includes screen readers. In fact, the National Reading Panel (NRP) (2000) pointed to hyperlinked text as one of the most promising areas for study in the combined areas of literacy and technology [ 9]. Further definitions of hyperlinked text boundaries, methods of using e-readers, and ways of using them in the classroom are needed to fully integrate electronic reading environments into schools [ 10].

Researchers investigated the Quicktionary Reading Pen II [ 11] which had the ability to scan and read text aloud to students with LD in upper elementary and high school grades. In a survey, students responded that they enjoyed having the pen as a tool that they could use. Overall, the students improved their scores on the Formal Reading Inventory, a comprehension measure.

Instructors [ 12] taught students with reading disabilities a self-questioning strategy and paired it with a text reader, the Kurzweil 3000. In comprehension quizzes after reading assignments associated with the intervention, no improvement was seen over the six weeks of intervention for the six students in the middle grades. In another study with a text-to-speech tool [ 13], three students with reading disabilities at the high school level used the tool while reading in seven to eleven sessions in a multiple baseline design. Though no improvement was seen in comprehension or reading fluency, students reported that the tool helped them and improved their completion time for the comprehension quizzes.

Researchers utilized another read aloud environment [ 14] with the TriAccess system. The system provided SWSNs with the ability to hear words when needed, as well as tools including text marking and word definitions. Each user could customize their experience. Researchers found that students improved their reading comprehension significantly when using the supports existent in the program. Additionally, subjects preferred reading with the supports in their own self-report.

4. Computer Applications

Students in K-12 increasingly have their own personal computer or tablet with them throughout the school day. There are many individual applications (apps) often downloaded to these devices that can provide learning games, as well as read aloud tools and other support, both for general education students and SWSNs. Some examples include SuperWhy Phonics Fair [ 15] available through public broadcasting that has literacy developing games and The Sounding Out Machine [ 16] that helps students struggling with their decoding skills. Through these applications, students have the extra support that they need, often making a difference in their overall reading efficacy.

5. Traditional Instructional Methods with Technology

As stated in the NRP (2000) and the RAND Corporation study group (2002) [ 20, 21] reports, instruction in comprehension strategies, such as visual imagery, advance organizers, visual imaging, visual mnemonics, summarization, main idea identification instruction, self-questioning strategies, and multiple strategy instruction improve reading comprehension in students with LD. Teaching comprehension strategies to students, especially those with LD, has assisted students in improving their comprehension [ 22, 23]. Previously, studies had shown that work in this area of reading comprehension with adolescents was successful in assisting them with unfamiliar narratives [ 24, 25].

One such strategy centers around graphic organizers [ 28] which pair a visual to help students organize story events to better comprehend text. Using computerized graphic organizers helped SWSNs with comprehension both in subject area instruction, as well as in reading traditional narrative writing. Gains were also seen in using computerized graphic organizers for writing. In another study, researchers completed six single-subject investigations with students with high incidence disabilities that utilized targeted online reading environments [ 29]. Students utilized graphic organizers and screen readers to repeatedly read a story, watch videos, highlight text, and view multiple presentations of instruction. Students performed the best in the conditions that worked with graphic organizers and screen readers.

One group of middle school students with LD who performed at least a year below their grade level in reading learned a previewing strategy and then read texts on the computer for several weeks [ 30]. Other students simply read the texts. At the end of the intervention, students who had received the teacher-led strategy instruction in previewing scored better on comprehension tests than the students who did not learn the strategy.

Online story mapping was the subject of another intervention [ 31]. Here, students with LD read a short story daily and filled out story maps online. Though their progress on these maps showed inconsistent growth, their overall comprehension, measured through comprehension scores on the Gates McGinitie Reading Test, improved significantly in seven out of nine cases over a period of six weeks.

Another strategy called the Word Identification Strategy [ 32] encouraged readers to find the stem of an unknown word and then attempt to better pronounce and comprehend it, as well as the root word. Though, traditionally, a paper-and-pencil strategy, the students improved not only their reading rate in four out of five cases, but also their overall passage comprehension in a computerized version.

Twenty students with autism spectrum disorders aged 5-11 utilized the computer program ABRACADABRA to improve their reading skills [ 36]. The students worked on the program for 26 meetings over 13 weeks. They were able to make significant gains in reading comprehension, and accuracy both at a single word and passage level.

6. Online Learning Environments

OLEs are defined as schools where instruction takes place between student(s) and teachers where participants are disconnected from each other either by time, (i.e., students are participating in online learning activities asynchronously) or location, (i.e., students and teachers are learning together at the same time but in different physical locations) [ 37]. Much of the presentation in these online environments involves reading material that is presented in the course shell, especially when the course takes place asynchronously. The prevalence and enrollment of general education students in OLEs is growing, as is the incidence of SWSNs. Different states report varying rates of participation by SWSNs ranging from 0-14% of the overall OLE population, an estimated one million students overall in 2009 in 25 participating states were surveyed [ 38]. Researchers [ 39] identified the population with special needs served in the OLE system as 9.4% of the whole, slightly less than in the tradition K-12 public school system. The students with disabilities served in these programs reflect a similar distribution to the face-to-face public school where most SWSNs have LD, but with multiple other students with disabilities represented including, but not limited to, emotional disturbance, autism, other health impairment, and hearing impairment [ 37]. The numbers and types of disabilities represented encompass a diverse learning corps in OLEs.

7. Accommodations and Modifications in OLEs

Overall, both the implementation of IEP services and utilization of accommodations and modifications in OLEs are new concepts. The Center on Online Learning and Students with Disabilities (COLSD) examined how OLEs serve SWSNs. They have identified that teachers, in some OLEs, struggle to accommodate and modify instruction in the curriculum for their students [ 44, 45]. They go on to state that the current OLE environment is often vendor-driven in its instructional methodology, leaving it difficult for teachers to modify and accommodate appropriately for each student with an IEP. In the traditional face-to-face classroom, teachers often accommodate or modify the reading requirements to help SWSNs succeed. Reading accommodations in the face-to-face classroom might include a glossary, reading a section aloud, a peer reader, enlarged text, and/or extended time.

When the vendor-created pre-packaged programs work well, which is not always the case; they meet students at their functional level and provide online work on sequential skills. This is best for students without special needs who are on grade level and learning, but problematic for SWSNs who may be at a functional level far below their age. They may be working on the same material that they have been doing for multiple years. This can be frustrating as some SWSNs often make progress and then lose that progress as they move forward to other learning topics. Additionally, the learning modules may be written far below the interest level of the SWSN when they drop down to instruction at a grade level appropriate to their skill level. When teachers work with students face-to-face without a vendor-made program, they are able to modify and target specific skills and interest levels, thus increasing student engagement. Oftentimes, school districts buy an additional stand-alone virtual program to assist SWSNs in their online learning. Teachers also utilize open source websites to assist SWSNs. These include such readily available websites as "OER Commons ( oercommons.org), Curriki ( curriki.org), Ck12 ( ck12.org), and Connexions ( cnx.org)" [ 44]. However, more research on best practices in instruction, accommodations, and modifications is needed for teachers working with SWSNs in OLEs.

Modifications and accommodations are very important for SWSNs because they often have trouble accessing the general curriculum. In one study [ 46], SWSNs took advantage of a slower pacing option offered by an OLE. Unfortunately, length of completion time of course work corresponded with decreased final grades. Increased time on tests and assignments is an often-used accommodation for SWSNs listed in IEPs. The potential appeal of an online program for SWSNs is its self-paced movement through the curriculum [ 42, 47] though this may be problematic for overall student outcomes, since the longer a student spends in a course, the more often it is left incomplete. Researchers examined pacing of students during their coursework finding that SWSNs took advantage of a slower pacing option when offered in an OLE. Unfortunately, in this instance, length of completion time of course work again corresponded with decreased final grades [ 46].

8. Parental Involvement in OLEs

OLEs can increase parental involvement in the SWSN's learning and provide computers in the family home for the first time as part of the OLE. In fact, parents become part of the learning community making sure students complete assignments and meet with the teacher [ 48]. This can be problematic if there is not a parent on site to ensure that students participate in the OLE. Additionally, there are potential family equity issues centering on the expense of the technology itself that may make suitable computer equipment or high-speed internet access unaffordable. It is also important to remember that parents are not trained teachers and would not necessarily be able to provide the accommodations and modifications a teacher might be able to in order to support the reading needs of a SWSN in an OLE.

Recently, researchers surveyed parents of SWSNs who had children in an OLE in grades 3-6 and found several themes. Most parents surveyed felt, to some extent, that they were both parent and teacher; in other words, the expectation was that they were responsible for making sure their student progressed through the curriculum and it was extremely time consuming for them. They knew that there were online resources for them, such as contact with the online instructor if they had questions, but they were the primary individuals driving the curriculum. In fact, they had much more direct access to their child's teacher through frequent emails, as well as occasional direct real-time contact. Perhaps, most interestingly, is that the parents pointed to the lack of ability to personalize the curriculum as hurting their children's ability to learn [ 49].

9. OLE Concerns

Another problem often seen in brick-and-mortar schools that plagues OLEs for students served both in general and special education is the quality of education that is delivered to the student [ 51]. Part of the lack of quality consists of a move from an OLE being more of a correspondence school format to a full-time learning environment where schools are expected to meet yearly standards just as brick-and-mortar institutions are [ 39].

Researchers [ 52] examined OLEs under the umbrella of distance education. The difference these authors noted is that an OLE is an entire school that is presented online, whereas distance education may only encompass several classes. The focus of the literature review examined several different types of interventions that have taken place in distance education in rural schools in order to better educate SWSNs. The authors however, saw promise in OLEs for SWSNs. In areas of low enrollment, targeted intervention could be designed specifically for the needs of the individual student.

10. Conclusion and Future Directions

It is seemingly disappointing that there are still studies [ 17, 19] and research syntheses [ 6, 8] that focus on the ability of computers and apps to synthesize speech and read text. This technology has existed for decades and is a compensatory strategy that can help students with their textual comprehension but to continue to examine its effectiveness seems redundant because the technology helps many students.

Much more promising is examining areas of reading instruction that utilize traditional best practices, but either pair them with online reading work after teacher instruction [ 28, 29, 30] or present traditional reading strategies online [ 31, 32, 33, 34, 35]. Though the results of these studies are far from conclusive, they point to several directions moving forward to support SWSNs in their work in online reading environments around what is already known about quality reading strategies. Recently, researchers pointed to several areas as part of effective instruction of strategies in general face-to-face reading strategy instruction: explicit instruction, teaching students metacognitive strategies, cooperative learning, having both large and small group instruction, and individualizing instruction for SWSNs [ 53] (researchers have identified many of these areas of instruction in previous research synthesis as good points for future work [ 20, 21]). The authors of the more current review identified these areas of good reading programs for students with LD in an attempt to contextualize their own study, but their ideas on best practices could be expanded to all SWSNs. They utilized several meta-analysis of reading strategy instruction to frame these areas. How could we include such a frame to look at ways that reading strategies or reading practice could be presented and supported for SWSNs? There are many possibilities for future research, simply looking at how we can utilize computers in these methods.

In fact, many of the studies in the review presented in this paper focus more on the technology itself [ 31, 32, 33, 34, 35], than examining how teachers utilize technology in instruction. Why do researchers and policy-makers assume that the best way to serve SWSNs is to loop the teacher and her expertise out of the equation? Indeed, this is also the case in OLEs. It is disappointing that so many SWSNs are served by OLEs with inadequate support. Technology is best used as a tool that is monitored and implemented by qualified instructors. Future work should attempt to examine how educators can use and promote better student understanding of reading strategies through use of computer programs and websites. More work should be done with utilizing the web to present learning strategies in reading.

Similarly, stakeholders working with OLEs often focus on buying prepackaged programs, but instead need to focus on how teachers can best adapt a reading-heavy learning environment for SWSNs who often struggle with reading. To assist in this effort it would benefit universities to work to train teachers about SWSNs and what accommodations can work best for them in OLEs. In OLEs, it is crucial to understand how IEPs are implemented in order to better serve SWSNs, including how special education teachers are successfully accommodating material for SWSNs in an online environment. Surveys of SWSNs need to be done to see what they perceive works.

Additionally, in OLEs it would seem that parents as instructors are the focus of most programs. It would be interesting for researchers to explore different ways, such as additional notes or plug-ins for parents of SWSNs, to work with their children in the OLE. It seems that they need more support in order oversee their student's progress in the OLE.

Perhaps in both technology used in the classroom and the online learning environment of an OLE the answer is to focus on the way we serve students in the brick-and-mortar school without technology. Good teachers of SWSNs start first with the IEP and plan their instruction accordingly, taking into account curricular standards, as well as accommodations and modifications so that SWSNs can access and learn the greatest part of the curriculum. Once we start there, the question becomes how to adapt these learning environments to best serve SWSNs.

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The Use of Technology to Assist School-Aged Students with High Incidence Special Needs in Reading

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This paper delineates some of the ways students with high incidence special needs are currently being served with technology in the United States in K-12 to learn skills or accomplish tasks related to reading. Categories examined were read aloud tools, computer applications, traditional instructional methods that utilized technology, and online instructional environments.

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This article is great for a new teacher, or someone who is trying to get more educated on these terms.

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High-incidence, adaptive, cross-categorical or multi-categorical--is there a difference?
Special Education licensure and endorsement varies from state to state, as does the terminology used in describing the knowledge that is required and the students to whom it applies. In general, the terms "high-incidence," "adaptive," "cross-categorical" and "multi-categorical" have similar meanings.
What is the definition of high-incidence disabilities?
To better serve students with disabilities, some states classify students identified for special education in terms of incidence - how frequently students' particular disability or disabilities may be encountered in classrooms.

"High-incidence" disabilities may include:

Autism spectrum disorders

Communication disorders

Intellectual disabilities

Specific learning disabilities

Emotional or behavioral disorders

Physical and sensory needs (that affect educational opportunities)

Students with a range of high incidence disabilities that complicate learning are able to participate in typical school curriculum with some additional learning and support. Special educators who support them might be credentialed as cross-categorical, high incidence, adaptive, or multi-categorical. Some states still use disability specific credentialing systems and endorse their teachers in learning disabilities, learning and communication disabilities or special needs.
What Education might be needed for Licensure and Endorsement?
In general, a teacher who wants to teach in a high-incidence, adaptive, cross-categorical or multi-categorical classroom requires a special education program from an accredited institution that includes courses in all or a majority of the high-incidence disabilities and a state license to practice. These programs address the needs of students with mild-to-moderate disabilities.

Coursework is likely to include:

Introduction to special education coursework (including historical, legal and ethical foundations) and/or survey of exceptional children

Diagnosis and Assessment

Teaching methodologies and strategies for students with disabilities

Characteristics of mild-to-moderate disabilities

Practicum or clinical program working in adaptive education (including learning centers, resource centers, co-taught classrooms, as well as consultative support to general educators)

Other topics that can be covered include collaboration, communication and conflict resolution with parents and professionals including co-teachers, consultants, para-educators, and resource teachers.

Each state will have its own requirements to demonstrate that educators are qualified to teach special education. This can include examination for special education, licensure to teach other subjects, and current teaching experience. If you are interested in becoming licensed, visit your state's Department of Education and understand any requirements before embarking on any additional education.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
High-incidence, adaptive, cross-categorical or multi-categorical--is there a difference? Special Education licensure and endorsement varies from state to state, as does the terminology used in describing the knowledge that is required and the students to whom it applies. In general, the terms "high-incidence," "adaptive," "cross-categorical" and "multi-categorical" have similar meanings.

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Children with Language Impairment: Prevalence, Associated Difficulties, and Ethnic Disproportionality in an English Population

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Children with Language Impairment: Prevalence, Associated Difficulties, and Ethnic Disproportionality in an English Population

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Language impairment is a serious struggle some children face today. It'a something that should be fixed as soon as possible! This could effect the child's life in young adulthood or early adolescence.

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CEDAR, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK

Department of Education, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

Language impairment (LI) is one of the most common types of special educational needs (SENs), not only as a child's primary need but also as a secondary domain associated with other types of SENs. LI is a risk factor for children's later development, being associated with enhanced behavioral, emotional, and social difficulties, in particular peer problems and emotional difficulties; literacy difficulties, including both reading and writing; and reduced levels of academic achievement. Risks arising from LI in early childhood may also have an impact through adolescence and into adult life. This study uses national data from the UK government's annual census of all students aged 5-16 years attending state schools in England at four time periods between 2005 and 2011, over 6 million students at each census. We analyze the data on students with speech, language, and communication needs (SLCN), the Department for Education's category for students with LI, to examine the overall prevalence of SLCN and the variations in prevalence associated with child factors namely, age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic disadvantage, and having English as an additional language, and with contextual factors, namely the school and local authority. We also examine disproportionality of identification of SLCN for different ethnic groups compared with White British children. We discuss the implications of our findings with respect to the current debates regarding the varied terminology for LI, including SLCN, and of a needs-based compared with diagnosis-based approach to assessing and making provision for children and young people with SENs.

Introduction

Epidemiological studies of language impairment (LI) have reported high prevalence among children aged 5-6 years ( Beitchman et al., 1986; Tomblin et al., 1997; Norbury et al., 2016). Follow-up studies of children with LI have shown that, as a group, they are at enhanced risk of a range of other developmental difficulties ( Johnson et al., 1999, 2010). There is, however, a general consensus that children with LI are a heterogeneous group with respect to the language domain specifically, including level of severity, but also the overlap with speech problems. However, attempts to identify clinically distinct profiles of subgroups within the overall LI population have not been successful ( Tambyraja et al., 2015), and there are substantial debates about terminology ( Reilly et al., 2014a).

The aim of this paper is to examine both prevalence and heterogeneity of the LI population in England by considering associations with age, severity of LI, and a range of demographic variables namely age, gender, ethnicity, and having English as an additional language (EAL). We then consider levels of disproportionality of being identified with LI for children from different minority ethnic groups relative to White British children. We discuss the results in the context of the debate on the usefulness of diagnosis compared with needs-based approaches to assessing and making provision for children with LI. Because the term "language impairment" has been used to refer to different groups of children with developmental language difficulties, we discuss the issue of terminology. To aid clarity, we use LI as a general term for developmental language difficulties but use other terms when discussing research that has favored these. In particular we use "speech, language, and communication needs" (SLCN) when reporting our study, as this is the special educational needs (SENs) category used by the UK Government's Department for Education (DfE) for children and young people with LI ( Department for Education and Skills, 2001; Department for Education and Department of Health, 2014).

This study was part of the Better Communication Research Programme ( Dockrell et al., 2014), which was commissioned as part of the Better Communication Action Plan ( Department for Children, Schools and Families 2008), the UK government's response to the review of provision for children and young people in England with SLCN ( Bercow, 2008), which had recommended a program of research "to enhance the evidence base and inform delivery of better outcomes for children and young people" (p. 50). The basis for the paper is an analysis of the SLCN data from the School Census conducted by the UK government on all children and young people in state schools in England (over 6 million students at each census), using data at four time points over 7 years.

Prevalence of Language Impairment

Language Impairment as a Risk Factor

Substantial research has demonstrated the persistence of language and communication difficulties throughout childhood and adolescence ( Beitchman et al., 1994; Stothard et al., 1998) and into adulthood ( Tomblin et al., 1992; Johnson et al., 2010; Beitchman et al., 2014). Other studies have demonstrated differential trajectories of children with different types of language and communication difficulties, whereby those children with impaired speech had a better prognosis than children with impaired language ( Beitchman et al., 1996). LI is also related to a number of other developmental difficulties. Children with LI are likely to have poorer literacy, and this persists throughout childhood ( Catts et al., 2002; Dockrell et al., 2007, 2014; Tambyraja et al., 2015; Pentimonti et al., 2016) and then into adolescence ( Catts et al., 2002; Dockrell et al., 2009) and into adulthood ( Johnson et al., 2010).

Language impairment is also associated with sociobehavioral difficulties as indicated by general or aggregated measures across domains, for example, the total difficulties score from the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire ( Goodman, 1997) - see for example, Charman et al. (2015). In addition, more analytical studies have found differentiated risk relative to different aspects of sociobehavioural development. Recent evidence has shown that children with LI are at greater risk than typically developing children especially for academic self-concept, peer problems, and emotional difficulties, whereas conduct problems are less common, although still above the level for typically developing children ( Lindsay et al., 2010b; Yew and O'Kearney, 2013, 2015; Charman et al., 2015). Furthermore, longitudinal studies have shown that these problems may persist over time ( Lindsay et al., 2007; St Clair et al., 2011; Lindsay and Dockrell, 2012). Children with LI are also more likely than typically developing children to have attention problems ( Karasinski, 2015) and hyperactivity when aged about 8-12 years, but not when they enter adolescence ( Lindsay and Dockrell, 2012).

Given these adverse factors, it is not surprising that children with LI also have lower educational attainments across school subjects: at the end of reception class ( Norbury et al., 2016) and at the transition from both primary to secondary school (from Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3 in England), age 11 years ( Durkin et al., 2014) and at the age of 16, the end of compulsory education in the UK ( Conti-Ramsden et al., 2009; Dockrell et al., 2011). There are also associations between LI and the risk of maltreatment, encompassing both abuse (physical, sexual, and emotional) and neglect (physical or emotional), see Lum et al. (2015). Young people with LI also become engaged with the criminal justice system more often than typically developing children. Bryan and colleagues argue that at least 60% of young people in the UK who are subject to the youth justice system have speech, language, and communication difficulties and, in their study of young people aged 11-17 years in a secure children's home, 30% had substantial language difficulties ( Bryan et al., 2015).

Language Impairment: Variants and Terminology

The evidence for LI as a risk factor is substantial. However, research studies have varied in the nature of impairment studied. In particular, a major distinction has been between SLI and other forms of LI characterized by different overall profiles of abilities. Developmental difficulties with language may be distinguished by whether these present as a child's primary area of difficulty, and hence the main focus of need for intervention, or as secondary to a different primary area of difficulty. The first group has historically been referred to as having SLI. This categorization has been based on a discrepancy or exclusion model, namely where a child with an LI had general cognitive ability within the normal range; and in the absence of other identifiable reasons for LI. The model was based on "discrepancy" therefore as it required language to be significantly poorer than cognitive functioning; and "exclusionary" by identifying the child as having LI in the absence of other developmental difficulties that could impact adversely on language development, including sensory impairment [primarily hearing impairment (HI)], autism, and substantial lack of opportunity to develop language, typically by reason of socioeconomic disadvantage ( Bishop, 2014).

The evidence from research has not supported the use of a discrepancy between verbal and non-verbal performance or the validity and usefulness of using exclusionary criteria, which were also found wanting. These criteria include social disadvantage, episodes of otitis media, anomalies of the oral structure and oral motor function, being bilingual, and autism spectrum disorders [ASD: see Bishop (2014)]. Similarly, Reilly et al. (2014b) argue for a lack of support for inclusionary criteria of biological (neural and genetic) markers, clinical behavioral markers, and differentiated profiles and outcomes of children with SLI compared to children with non-specific impairments. Furthermore, there is a lack of consistency in the use of different terms for children with language difficulties as used by practitioners and researchers ( Dockrell et al., 2006). Bishop (2014) has explored this challenge of multiple terms and, through a Google search, identified 130 terms being used for unexplained language difficulties.

In summary, there is substantial evidence that LI is a risk factor for educational and sociobehavioural development. However, there are variations in terminology and debates about the validity of proposed distinctions between subgroups of children with LI. These present challenges to both researchers and practitioners, and indeed to policy makers, and parents of the children concerned.

The Study

The Bercow review of services for children and young people with SLCN in England identified a number of limitations in provision of services for children and young people with SLCN ( Bercow, 2008). Research conducted to inform the review revealed problems including identification of children with SLCN, assessment of their needs, and with making provision to meet the needs identified ( Lindsay et al., 2010a). The UK government's action plan in response to the review provided funding for a research program, the Better Communication Research Programme ( Department for Children, Schools and Families 2008). This was conducted by the research team but in conjunction with representatives from policy makers, commissioners of services, practitioners, and third sector organizations, including major charities for children and young people with SLCN and their parents, and a professional association (Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists). Hence, a research program was developed that addressed priorities of policy and practice, as well as research.

The aim of the present study was to examine the overall prevalence of children with SLCN, how these rates had changed over time, and the relationship with factors associated with the classification of children with SLCN: both child factors, namely age, gender, socioeconomic disadvantage, ethnicity, and having EAL; and contextual factors, namely the school and the local authority (LA).

Materials and Methods

The data for this study were derived from the UK government's January School Census, a census of all students in state schools (primary and secondary, including special schools) in England, conducted by the UK government's DfE. The School Census data set comprises a range of student-level background characteristics including gender, month of birth, ethnicity, whether the student is eligible for free school meal (FSM), whether the student has EAL, and whether the student is classified as having a SEN.

The School Census for the period covered by this study recorded two measures of SEN: level and type. The SEN Code of Practice in force over this period recommended a graduated approach to addressing the needs of children and young people considered to require special educational provision ( Department for Education and Skills, 2001). The first stage was at the discretion of the school, which identified the student and determined the type of provision from within the school's own resources (School Action). At the second stage (School Action Plus), the school drew upon the involvement of professionals external to the school, for example, an educational psychologist or speech and language therapist, in order to access specialist expertise to assess and make provision to address the student's needs. Where this support was considered insufficient, the LA could be requested by the school (or parent) to carry out a statutory assessment under the Education Act 1996. This could lead to a statement of SEN for the child, which imposed a statutory duty on the LA and the school to meet the child's needs, as defined in the statement.

Type of SEN was recorded for students at School Action Plus or with a statement of SEN, according to 12 categories. For SLCN, identification would include a range of clinically and school ascertained needs and diagnoses relating to language and/or communication difficulties following assessments by a speech and language therapist, an educational psychologist, and the school's SENs coordinator. In recognition that a child may have more than one type of SEN, the School Census required that the primary need always be recorded and a secondary need, where applicable, may also be included. The present study focuses on students whose primary SEN was designated as SLCN at the level of School Action Plus or where the student had a statement: these are the two highest levels of need.

The Data

The data were made available by the DfE, which funded the study as part of its support for the Better Communication Research Programme. Before conducting the analyses, data were excluded for students in reception classes (those for children aged 4+ years in September who would have their fifth birthday during the course of the school year), as the census date (January) is only 4 months later: at this stage, relatively few children have an identified SEN. Data on students in post-compulsory education (aged 16-19 years) were also excluded. Many students leave school at 16 years of age, so the group that remains is consequently selective. As a result, this paper is based on the analysis of the total population of students in years 1-11 (Y1-Y11), aged 5-16 years, in England each January, approximately 6 million students at each census date. The main analyses are reported on the latest data (2011) alone, but data over the four census points (2005, 2007, 2009, and 2011) are used in order to examine trends.

Other variables collected included:

* Ethnic group: schools record the child's ethnicity in 1 of 18 main categories (the source is typically parents in primary schools but increasingly from the students themselves in secondary schools);

* Gender (boy = 1 vs. girl = 0);

* Age within year group (September-December = autumn born; January-April = spring born; May-August = summer born) with autumn born as the reference group;

* Year group (Y1-Y11);

* Entitlement to an FSM - this is a commonly used measure of poverty since only families largely dependent on state benefits are entitled to an FSM;

* Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) - this measures the proportion of children under the age of 16 in an area living in low-income households. The measure has a wide base including families in receipt of income support, job seekers allowance, and working families' tax credit/disabled persons' tax credit, if below 60% of national median income. The indicator is available for very small localized areas called super output areas (SOA), of which there are 32,000 in England, each containing approximately 200 children (SD = 70). The variable is normalized to have a mean of 0 and SD of 1 with a higher score indicating higher deprivation;

* EAL - 0 where the students' first language was English and 1 otherwise.

Analysis

Odds Ratio Analysis

Because we are working with student-level data, we can use the odds ratio (OR) as the measure of disproportionality for SLCN. For ethnicity, the OR compares the odds of being identified with SEN for each minority ethnic group against the odds of being identified for SEN for the majority White British group. To calculate the ORs, we use a multinomial logistic regression model as this is an efficient means of comparing the prevalence of each SEN type against a reference group of students with no SEN within a single model (though only the results for SLCN are reported here). The alternative would require separate logistic regression models for each of the 12 primary SEN needs, which is inefficient. Use of a multinomial regression makes the assumption of independence of irrelevant alternative (IAA), namely that the probability of having a given SEN is not influenced by the other types of SEN included in the analysis, which is not an unrealistic assumption for these data.

Unadjusted and Adjusted Odds Ratios

In order to identify the association between ethnicity directly, and after adjusting for other factors such as year group, age, gender, socioeconomic disadvantage, and EAL, two nested models were run:

Unadjusted: the initial model included only ethnic group as an explanatory variable to assess the simple ORs for identification associated with each ethnic group, relative to the White British majority group.

Adjusted: a second model was created by adding year group, birth season, gender, entitlement to FSM, IDACI score, and EAL to determine how the ethnic group ORs changed after accounting for the associations with these other factors.

The OR indicates how much more (or less) likely an outcome is for one group rather than a comparator group, in this case White British students. The OR has advantages over simple percentage measures although the OR measure requires careful interpretation ( Skiba et al., 2005; Strand and Lindsay, 2009). For example, there is no absolute level at which an OR may be considered significant in an educational sense. In the present study, with over 6 million students for each census, statistical significance is an unsatisfactory indicator of educational significance because almost any difference will be statistically significant as a result of the very large number of students. Furthermore, the present study comprises analyses of whole populations, not samples from which inferences about the population characteristics are drawn.

In the present study, we highlight results where the odds of being identified with SLCN for students in an ethnic minority group were 1.33 times higher than for White British students (a ratio of 1.33:1 or higher), or where the odds for the ethnic minority group were 0.75 times lower than for White British students (a ratio 0.75:1 or lower). These differ from Strand and Lindsay (2009) where we used cutoffs of 1.5:1 and 0.67:1 as we now consider that we set the bar very high and that these revised cutoffs are more reasonable indications of marked disproportionality, and hence educational significance [see also Skiba et al. (2004)].

Relative Risk Ratio Analysis

We also use the relative risk (RR) ratio to compare the extent of ethnic disproportionality between LAs. The RR ratio is the percentage of students from a minority ethnic group identified with SLCN in the LA divided by the percentage of White British students identified with SLCN in the LA. It is used to give an indication of disproportionality in SLCN at the LA level, though unadjusted for any of the demographic variables described above. The RR ratio is regularly used in studies of disproportionality in school boards and districts in the US [e.g., Bollmer et al. (2007)].

Results

Prevalence of Speech, Language, and Communication Needs

National Prevalence

Speech, language, and communication needs comprised the third most prevalent type of SEN, with 15.7% of those with SEN having SLCN as their primary SEN at School Action Plus or above (Table 1). Only students with moderate learning difficulties (MLD: 24.3%) and behavioral, emotional, and social difficulties (BESD: 23.7%) were more prevalent. This indicates a prevalence of 1.6% of all students in Y1-Y11 with SLCN as their primary SEN. Furthermore, prevalence of students identified as having SLCN as their primary SEN increased substantially over the period 2005-2011, from 0.94% in 2005 to 1.61% in 2011, an increase of 72% (Table 2).

In addition, 5.5% of students with a different primary need had SLCN as a secondary need. This was most frequently reported for students with severe learning difficulties (SLD: 13.3%), and those with ASD, HI, and physical disability (PD: each about 9%). The total prevalence of students with SLCN as their primary or secondary need was 2.2% of all students aged 5-16 (Y1-Y11), representing a total of 135,700 students among the 6.17 million students in the 2011 cohort of all students in English schools. As there are difficulties combining the data for primary and secondary needs, for example because it is unclear whether a secondary need should be equally weighted as compared with a primary need, only data from students with SLCN as their primary SEN will be included in subsequent analyses.

Prevalence by Age and Ethnicity

There was a strong relationship between prevalence of SLCN and age as indicated by year group. Students in Y1 are over four times more likely to be identified with SLCN than students in Y11 (the base group). The prevalence of students with SLCN and different ages varies by the severity of need, as shown by the cross-sectional analysis of the 2011 cohort in Figure 1. The prevalence of students with a statement is relatively consistent between Y1 and Y11, showing a shallow rise and then decline around a prevalence of about 0.4%. However, the data for students at School Action Plus indicate a steady decline in prevalence from a high point in Y1 (2.6%) declining to 0.6% at Y7 and to 0.3% by Y11.

Figure 1. Prevalence of children with speech, language, and communication needs across year groups - 2011. Note: SAP, School Action Plus; SLCN, speech, language, and communication needs.

White British students comprise 74.8% of the total school student population, with students from minority ethnic groups comprising the remaining 25.2% - see Table 3 for a breakdown of school population by ethnicity. Prevalence of SLCN varied greatly by ethnicity (Table 2). Taking the data from the final year of the study (2011), 1.49% of White British children had SLCN as their primary need, and 15 of the 18 minority ethnic groups had higher proportions, most notably Black African (2.65%), Black Caribbean (2.53%), Black Other (2.64%), and Bangladeshi (2.38%) groups. Even higher levels were found for the two Traveler groups, but these groups are relatively small in the population so their data should be treated with caution.

Comparison of the increase in prevalence of students with SLCN as their primary need over the 7-year period (2005-2011) also varied by ethnic group (Table 2). The increase in prevalence over the period was less marked among Chinese students (21%), although this group was greatly overrepresented: 2.19% compared with 1.49% for White British students. Other groups, however, showed substantial changes in the percentage of children with SLCN; in particular six groups had increases of 80% or more over this period, with the Mixed White and African group showing an increase of 89% (Table 2). Consideration of the effects of gender and socioeconomic disadvantage will be considered in the next section.

Odd Ratios and Student Characteristics

The unadjusted ORs for SLCN by ethnic group for the four census points are reported in Table 4. In order to explore disproportionality in more detail, we examined the association between SLCN and ethnicity also taking into account year group, age, gender, socioeconomic disadvantage, and EAL by means of a multinomial regression analysis for the 2011 data. This analysis controls for all variables simultaneously so each coefficient represents the unique effect for that variable, after the variation in the outcome associated with all other explanatory variables in the model is controlled (Table 5).

Gender has the strongest association with SLCN identification, with boys 2.6 times more likely to be identified than girls. A strong social gradient for SLCN is also evident: the odds of identification for students entitled to FSM are 1.8 times higher than the odds for students not entitled to FSM, and a 1 SD change in IDACI is associated with increased odds of 1.3. Combining the estimates for FSM and IDACI in order to produce an estimate of the total impact of socioeconomic disadvantage shows that students entitled to FSM and living in a socioeconomically deprived area (+1 SD on the IDACI) are 2.3 times more likely to be identified with SLCN than those who are not so socioeconomically disadvantaged.

As reported above, there is a strong relationship between the prevalence of SLCN and year group. Students in Y1 are over four times more likely to be identified with SLCN than children in Y11 (the base group). Furthermore, there is a strong age effect within year group: students who are young for their year group (summer born) are 1.5 times more likely to be identified with SLCN than the older (autumn born) students, with spring born students 1.2 times more likely to be identified. EAL is only weakly associated with SLCN prevalence, after taking into account ethnicity, socioeconomic disadvantage, gender, and age, with just a small increase in the OR (OR = 1.09:1) for those identified as having EAL compared to students whose first language was recorded as English.

Controlling for the above variables substantially reduced the ethnic coefficients: Bangladeshi, Black African, and Black Other groups are no longer overrepresented; the only raised odds to remain are for Black Caribbean (although the OR reduced substantially from 1.80:1 to 1.29:1) and Chinese (1.39:1, which is reduced to 1.32:1) students.

School Characteristics

The large majority of students with SLCN at School Action Plus or with a statement were attending mainstream schools (96.2%) rather than special schools (3.8%). Furthermore, 85.4% of students with a statement were in mainstream schools, with just 14.6% attending special schools. To explore associations with school characteristics, over and above student factors, the student-level analysis was repeated adding selected school factors. This analysis was conducted for primary and secondary schools separately. Special schools were excluded as they cater specifically for students with substantial SEN, and small schools (<20 students) were also excluded as percentage figures for school composition are likely to be very unreliable.

For primary schools, the proportion of students entitled to FSM was a significant predictor of prevalence of SLCN, over and above the FSM entitlement and IDACI score of individual students (Table 6). Students in primary schools in the lowest %FSM quintile were about half as likely to be identified as students in schools in the top %FSM quintile, with a clear graduation across quintiles. However, there was a much weaker association with %FSM for secondary schools. School size was associated with higher levels of identification of SLCN in small schools and was consistent across both primary and secondary phases. Voluntary aided/controlled primary schools (faith schools where the religious authority had a higher level of influence and control of the school than in other state schools) had low levels of identification; there was no association with school type for secondary schools.

The odds of being identified with SLCN were higher in schools with a higher proportion of ethnic minority students (a 1 SD increase in the percentage of White British students was associated with a 0.90 reduction in the odds for SLCN identification in secondary schools) even after control for all the pupil level measures. Although girls were less likely to be identified with SLCN than boys, SLCN identification rates were higher in girls-only schools than in mixed schools (OR = 1.12) perhaps reflecting the higher proportion of ethnic minority students educated in single-sex schools [3% of White British girls but 18% of Black girls ( Strand, 2007)]. Selective school status was very strongly associated with SLCN identification with much lower levels in grammar schools that admit students of higher ability (OR = 0.10) and higher levels of identification in secondary modern schools that take the students of lower ability (OR = 1.40) compared to comprehensive schools.

Regarding ethnic disproportionality, the patterns were largely consistent across both phases: although this is more marked in secondary and is not eliminated by the controls for student background (Table 7). Regarding the three Black groups, greater disproportionality (overrepresentation) in the secondary phase was reduced but was generally not eliminated by controls for student background: for example, from an OR of 2.13 to 1.65 for Black Caribbean students. Bangladeshi students were also overrepresented in both phases, but this can be accounted for by student background with the raw OR reduced from 1.41 to 0.95 (adjusted) in primary and from 1.77 to 1.13 (adjusted) in secondary schools, both adjusted ORs thereby being lower than our cutoff of 1.33. However, children of Indian heritage were underrepresented at primary school when student background is taken into account (OR = 0.73) and at secondary school only when both student background and EAL are taken into account (OR = 0.67). White Other students were overrepresented in the secondary (OR = 1.40) but not the primary phase (OR = 0.94).

These results are not contradictory to the result reported above and in Table 5, where we noted that the ethnic coefficient was substantially reduced when we controlled for the whole age range (Y1-Y11). The main analysis (Table 5) is for the whole 5-16 years range. It controls for age within year (birth season) and year group but is still for all cases across the entire aged 5-16 range. We subsequently find that this obscures somewhat greater disproportionality if the data are parsed separately for secondary age (Y7-Y11) compared to primary age (Y1-Y6) (shown in Table 7). This may be related to the higher SLCN prevalence rate in primary (as shown in Figure 1), so that disproportionality may be lower in the early years when more students are identified. However, the ORs are in the same direction in both phases, so we do not wish to overemphasize this result.

Local Authority Variation in Disproportionality

Table 8 presents the RR rates for the 10 LAs with the lowest and the 10 LAs with the highest disproportionality for Black students (i.e., Black African, Black Caribbean, and Black Other) with SLCN, for the 135 of 152 LAs in England with a minimum of 60 Black students in the Y1-Y11 population. The range of disproportionality is substantial ranging from four LAs where no Black students were identified with SLCN, to overrepresentation of Black students 3:1 relative to White British students. Overall, there was substantial diversity across LAs, with 36 LAs showing substantial underrepresentation of Black students (RR < 0.75) and 56 LAs showing substantial overrepresentation (RR > 1.33).

Although the absolute level of SLCN identification is correlated with socioeconomic disadvantage (for example, LA level correlations with %FSM and mean IDACI scores were 0.51 and 0.50, respectively), socioeconomic disadvantage is not strongly correlated with disproportionality (LA level correlations with %FSM and mean IDACI score of r = 0.17 and r = 0.10, respectively). Furthermore, whereas the proportion of Black students in the LA population is strongly correlated with the overall level of SLCN identification ( r = 0.67), there is only a very weak relationship with disproportionately ( r = 0.15).

Discussion

In this paper, we have examined the factors associated with identification as having SLCN, the category used for LI in the School Census of children and young people attending state-funded schools in England. We now discuss our findings regarding prevalence and disproportionality, and the factors that affect these, and then consider their implications for policy, practice, and research, including needs compared with diagnosis-based methods of identification, assessment, and provision.

Prevalence

The prevalence of children identified as having SLCN in England rose steadily over the period covered by our analysis, 2005-2011, rising to 1.61% of all school students having SLCN as their primary SEN: 15.7% of children with SEN. This represents an increase in prevalence of 72% over this period. A further 5.5% of children had SLCN associated with a different primary need, resulting in overall prevalence of 2.2% of all school students. Although substantial, this prevalence is substantially lower than that found from epidemiological studies of children at 3-6 years of age ( Stevenson and Richman, 1976; Silva, 1980; Beitchman et al., 1986; Tomblin et al., 1997). This discrepancy is partially explained by the different samples of children and measures included in the studies. Also, of significance, however, is the substantial age gradient found in the present study from age 5 to 16 years and its interaction with severity.

Although prevalence of children with the most severe SLCN as their primary need remains relatively constant from Year 1, about 5 years old, to Year 11, about 16 years old, the prevalence of children with lower levels of need (School Action Plus) reduces substantially over the period Year 1 to Year 6 and then more slowly over the period to Year 11. This indicates two distinct trajectories over chronological age, related to severity of language difficulties, with relative improvement in a substantial proportion of children with lower severity levels of language difficulties over the period. Previous research on remission of language difficulties in early childhood has reported a similar trend ( Stothard et al., 1998). Furthermore, our study has shown that there is also a substantial association between identification as having SLCN and age within year group. This is supported by a recent study of children in reception classes (the year before Year 1), in one English county, which found a highly significant relationship between teacher-rated language difficulties and age within this year group of 4- to 5-year-old children ( Norbury et al., 2016).

We propose that the high level of identified SLCN in the early years of schooling in England is related to the attribution of children having SEN rather than age appropriate development. We suggest that this is a result of the difficulties faced by teachers in providing curriculum targets and pedagogy, which are developmental age appropriate for the children. As a result, teachers seek external support to meet the needs of these children, leading to the children's categorization as having SEN, in the form of SLCN. This is compounded by the national assessment undertaken by children at the end of the reception year, the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile ( Department for Education, 2011): this is a high stakes measure of students' achievement that is used as an accountability measure of schools. Our finding that summer born children are about 50% more likely to be identified as having SLCN, and spring born children are 20% more likely to be identified, compared with older autumn born children, suggests that teachers are very poor at making appropriate age adjustments. As those children with early SLCN identification mature and move through the year groups many will improve their language abilities relative to their peers, resulting in the reduction of children identified as having SLCN at School Action Plus, comparable to a trend identified in earlier work, which identified that children with EAL made significantly greater progress between the age of 4 and 7 years ( Strand, 1999).

The picture regarding prevalence of SLCN is more complex, however, as our study indicates other important associations. Boys were 2.6 times more likely to be identified with SLCN than girls, indicating the strong gender discrepancy found consistently in epidemiological studies of children at 3-6 years of age, which remains as those samples were followed up ( Beitchman et al., 1986; Tomblin et al., 2003). There was also a significant relationship between SLCN and social disadvantage: children with high socioeconomic disadvantage were 2.30 times more likely to have SLCN than children with low levels of socioeconomic disadvantage. This social gradient of SLCN is well established and is not unique to SLCN: other research has indicated a strong association with, for example, MLD and BESD ( Strand and Lindsay, 2009).

There has been little previous research on the relationship between developmental language difficulties and ethnicity ( Tomblin et al., 1997). This may in part be due to the substantial interest in children whose first language is different from the host culture, having EAL in the UK context, or more generally described as English Language Learners (ELL). Our study has shown that SLCN prevalence varies relative to ethnicity. For example, with respect to our 2011 data, the prevalence of SLCN over the period was highest among the Bangladeshi (2.38%) and the three Black groups (about 2.6%) compared to 1.49% of White British children. Furthermore, absolute prevalence for all ethnic groups increased over the period 2005-2011, but rates of increase varied greatly: that for Chinese children showed the lowest rise (21%) whereas there were substantially higher rates of 89% for the Mixed White and African group and 86% for the Mixed White and Caribbean group. Also of note is that having EAL became non-significant when our model was adjusted for ethnicity, social disadvantage, and other factors.

Ethnic Disproportionality

Our findings indicate the importance of not only examining absolute levels of prevalence but also the relationship between these for different minority ethnic groups compared with the majority ethnic group, in the present case White British. This issue of disproportionality for children with developmental language difficulties has received relatively little research attention. Research has focused particularly on disproportionality of black children in the US (African American) and the UK (Black Caribbean) and their identification as having intellectual difficulties or BESD ( Strand and Lindsay, 2009). Ethnic disproportionality in special education, particularly the overrepresentation of black students, and especially males, has been a highly contentious topic for many years, particularly in the US ( Skiba et al., 2004). Our paper extends examination of this topic by examining not only the relationship between SLCN and ethnicity but also taking into account other factors such as socioeconomic disadvantage.

We have demonstrated a strong overrepresentation for SLCN for most ethnic groups, compared to White British children, which generally persists over time. ORs for the 2011 census showed 8 of the 18 ethnic groups were overrepresented for SLCN, using our cutoff of OR > 1.33. As well as the three Black groups, Bangladeshi and Chinese students were also overrepresented, although when adjusted for socioeconomic disadvantage and other factors, these ORs reduced substantially. The Indian group was underrepresented for SLCN in both unadjusted and adjusted analyses (OR = 0.81 and OR = 0.69 in the unadjusted and adjusted analyses, respectively).

Examination of trends over time indicates that the higher relative prevalence of SLCN for Pakistani students reduced substantially after 2005 and was non-significant in subsequent years: from OR = 1.56 in 2005 to OR = 1.21 in 2011 (Table 4). The ORs also reduced for Chinese, the Any Other Asian, and the White Other groups. There is consistent overrepresentation, across all years, for Bangladeshi, Black African, Black Other, and Chinese groups compared with White British students. This overrepresentation is substantial. For example, in 2011 the odds for Black Caribbean students being identified with SLCN were 1.80 times (or 80%) greater than the odds for White British students. Similar levels of overrepresentation are apparent for Black African (OR = 1.78:1) and Black Other groups (OR = 1.83:1). These findings suggest that not only changes in policies and practices have occurred at local level but also that these have not been consistent across different ethnic groups.

Context

A number of significant relationships were found between the prevalence of SLCN and school characteristics, after controlling for all pupil level measures. For primary schools, higher levels of SLCN were associated with schools having students with higher levels of social disadvantage (FSM eligibility for students), having fewer students on roll, and having a lower proportion of White British pupils, while faith schools had slightly lower than expected levels of children with SLCN. Associations for secondary schools were similar with lower risks in schools that were small, with lower levels of socioeconomic disadvantage, with low proportions of ethnic minority students or with selective intakes (grammar schools). Associations with ethnicity were also somewhat stronger with secondary than within primary schools, both before and after adjusting for pupil background.

The findings from LAs were more striking, revealing substantial variation across the country in terms of ethnic disproportionality for SLCN, both underrepresentation and overrepresentation, which was not accounted for by level of socioeconomic disadvantage within the LA. Variation has previously been shown in LA provision ( Lindsay et al., 2005) and achievement levels of students with SLCN ( Lindsay, 2011). LA variation in disproportionality for SEN identification has also been found. For example, Pakistani pupils in 10 LAs were half as likely as White British pupils to have an SEN (OR < 0.50:1), whereas in 4 LAs Pakistani pupils were 1.5 times more likely than White British pupils to have an identified SEN (OR > 1.5:1), see Lindsay et al. (2006).

Identification, Action, and Meeting Children's Needs

Our study has demonstrated clearly that identification of children having SEN with SLCN as their primary need is far from straightforward. The model of diagnostic approaches to identification and assessment is based on there being clear criteria for inclusion and exclusion, to ensure high levels of true positives and true negatives (hits). Whereas this is highly likely to be achieved with certain conditions, this is often difficult with psychoeducational concerns. For example, the diagnosis of SLI compared with other types of LI has been shown to be of questionable validity ( Bishop, 2014; Reilly et al., 2014a, b). This matters as optimal actions may occur only if the proportions of false positives and false negatives (misses) are very low and the proportions of hits are very high, and that there is a well evidenced intervention for the diagnosed conditions.

With respect to SLCN however, we have shown that identification, and hence prevalence, is affected by a range of factors, both developmental (within children) and contextual (external to the child). These interact and furthermore, their interaction then may vary over time ( Lindsay and Wedell, 1982). Consequently, the rationale for diagnosis-based methods of identification of SLCN is questionable. Our preference is for needs-based approaches ( Dockrell et al., 2015). These identify a constellation of within child and contextual factors that contribute to the identifications of the child's needs, indicating their SEN. It is not only useful to identify the child's primary need as a marker or signpost but also important to recognize the range of other factors to address.

In addition, our study has provided directions for policy development, which have been taken up by the Department for Education and the Voluntary and Community Sector following the completion of the Better Communication Research Programme ( Strand and Lindsay, 2012). For example, schools and LAs, and other commissioners of services must recognize the complexity of SLCN and the consequent need for more granular analysis, designed for developing, commissioning, and implementing services ( Dockrell et al., 2015). This study also contributes to the current attempts to achieve a consensus on terminology, providing evidence concerning the previously under researched relationship between developmental language difficulties and ethnicity.

Limitations

The present study comprised the analysis of data on all children in England attending state schools aged 5-16 years with SLCN as their primary SEN. Most analyses were conducted on one cross-sectional cohort, with trend analyses drawing on data at four time points over a period of 7 years. These national datasets provide a unique perspective on the prevalence of children and young people with LI. However, our research is cross-sectional not longitudinal. Further research is required into patterns of relationships between the category and severity of SEN relative to age to identify the extent to which SLCN is different from other SEN categories.

A second limitation of the study is that the DfE data derive from the category "speech, language, and communication needs." Although this is essentially a category of children with LI, it will also include some children whose main problem concerns only speech difficulties - many children have speech as well as language difficulties. This limitation, however, is relatively minor as children with speech difficulties without accompanying language difficulties comprise a small percentage. Furthermore, as we have shown, there is substantial debate about appropriate terminology; attempts to address this issue and achieve a consensus are now underway ( Bishop et al., 2016).

Conclusion

The present study provides evidence from an analysis of the total state school population of England, using data derived from the School Census at four time points over a period of 7 years. Using the School Census category of SLCN, we have demonstrated that prevalence is strongly associated with several factors, namely gender, age, socioeconomic disadvantage, and ethnicity, and also with the practices of schools and LAs. Our findings support the critiques of the varied terminology for children with LI and expand the evidence base of the complexity of interacting factors relating to the nature of LI. With respect to policy and practice, our study provides support for the importance of focusing on the assessment of a broad range of within-child and contextual factors, and hence the identification of children's needs rather than diagnostic category, when determining the provision needed to support children with LI to progress optimally.

Our study extends the research on ethnic disproportionality for SEN. This is an issue with direct bearing on matters of social justice as well as education. The pattern of identification of SLCN indicates overrepresentation of different minority ethnic groups and also both overrepresentation and underrepresentation with respect to LAs. Our study cannot give direct evidence on the reasons for these phenomena. Combined (mixed) methods' studies are necessary to go beyond the quantitative data ( Lindsay et al., 2006) to explore the reasons why. Overall, our findings provide indications to national and local government, commissioners, and schools of the range of factors to take into account in developing both policy and practice with respect to children with LI, and the importance of monitoring the practical implementation of policies to ensure that they are evidence-based and non-discriminatory.

Author Contributions

GL led the Better Communication Research Programme, which included the study, and led the writing of the paper. SS led the analysis of the data and was the joint author of the paper.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Funding

This study was supported by funding from the UK Government Department for Children, Schools and Families (now Department for Education) as part of its funding of the Better Communication Research Programme.

Footnote

References

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Children with Language Impairment: Prevalence, Associated Difficulties, and Ethnic Disproportionality in an English Population

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Language impairment (LI) is one of the most common types of special educational needs (SENs), not only as a child's primary need but also as a secondary domain associated with other types of SENs.

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This article pairs with the one above it, speech and language impairments. The author goes into depth of what causes this disorder, but the cause of this happening can also be unknown.

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Center for Parent Information and Resources

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Speech and Language Impairments - Center for Parent Information and Resources

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Your Central Hub for Parent Centers Serving Families of Children With Disabilities

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Helping Children with Communication Disorders in the Schools

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Helping Children with Communication Disorders in the Schools

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This article goes on about students with communication disorders. Some characteristics that come along with this disorder is misunderstanding social cues, poor judgement, difficulty with tests, and many more.

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U.S. Department of Education. (2005). To assure the free appropriate public education of all Americans: Twenty-seventh annual report to Congress on the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Accessed January 16, 2008, http://www.ed.gov/about/reports/annual/osep/2005/index.html

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Helping Children with Communication Disorders in the Schools

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Answers to frequently asked questions on how to help children with communication disorders, particularly in regards to speaking, listening, reading, and writing.

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This article gives a lot of informational sentences but the thing that jumped out at me were the statistics. 63% of people know someone with a learning disability. And 10-15% of students of school aged children have a learning disability.

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A specific learning disability is a disorder that interferes with a student's ability to listen, think, speak, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations. ¹ Students with a specific learning disability may struggle with reading, writing, or math. ²

The term "specific learning disability" is commonly used in federal and state law, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), and by many private and public schools. ³

63% Of people know someone who has a learning disability⁵

43% Of people wrongly think that learning disabilities are correlated with IQ⁵

10-15% Of school-aged children have a learning disability⁴

types of specific learning disabilities

"Specific learning disability" is an umbrella term that can describe many different types of learning issues. An educational evaluation may show that your child has a specific learning disability in a certain subject area.
For example:

A specific learning disability in reading, also known as dyslexia

A specific learning disability in writing, also known as dysgraphia

A specific learning disability in mathematics, also known as dyscalculia

signs of specific learning disabilities

Persistent difficulties in reading, writing, arithmetic, or mathematical reasoning⁵

Inaccurate or slow and effortful reading or writing⁵

Poor written expression that lacks clarity⁵

Difficulties remembering number facts⁵

Inaccurate mathematical reasoning⁵

What to Do if You Notice Signs of a Specific Learning Disability

What to Do if Your Child is Diagnosed with a Specific Learning Disability

Get to Know Your Child's Specific Diagnosis

The more you know about your child's specific learning disability, the more you can do to help. Develop a deep understanding of your child's diagnosis, as well as his or her strengths.

For more information on specific diagnoses, see Churchill's learning disability guides, including:

Common Specific Learning Disability Myths

Myth:Smart students don't have specific learning disabilities.

Specific learning disabilities and IQ are not connected, and many individuals who struggle with reading, writing, or math are bright and successful students.

Myth:All specific learning disability diagnoses are the same.

"Specific learning disability" is an umbrella term that can describe many different types of learning issues including dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia. Different types of specific learning disabilities require different interventions.

Myth:Specific learning disabilities are rare.

According to the National Institutes of Health, approximately 10-15% of school-aged children have a learning disability. ⁴

Myth:If my child is struggling in school, he or she probably has a specific learning disability.

The only way to find out whether your child has a specific learning disability is by completing a full educational evaluation. You can request this testing through your public school, or through a private evaluator.

Myth:Specific learning disabilities are a result of a poor diet or too much TV.

Specific learning disabilities are brain-based disorders, and are not caused by external factors such as diet or activity.

Additional Resources on Specific Learning Disability

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References

1. IDEA - Building The Legacy of IDEA 2004. Retrieved from http://idea.ed.gov/explore/view/p/,root,statute,I,A,602,30

2. What's the Difference Between Learning Disabilities and Learning and Attention Issues? Understood. Retrieved from https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/getting-started/what-you-need-to-know/difference-between-learning-disabilities-and-learning-and-attention-issues

3. Types of Learning Disabilities. Learning Disability Association of America. Retrieved from https://ldaamerica.org/types-of-learning-disabilities/

4. Lowell, S. C., Felton, R. H., & Hook, P. E. Basic Facts About Assessment of Dyslexia: Testing for Teaching

5. Cortiella, Candace and Horowitz, Sheldon H. The State of Learning Disabilities: Facts, Trends and Emerging Issues. New York: National Center for Learning Disabilities, 2014, from http://www.ncld.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/2014-State-of-LD.pdf

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What is a Specific Learning Disability? | Symptoms & Strategies

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A specific learning disability is a disorder that interferes with a student's ability to listen, think, speak, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations. 1 Students with a specific learning disability may struggle with reading, writing, or math.

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This article maps it out plain and simple and list's some of the common learning disability students are struggling with today. Dyscalculia, dysgraphia, dyslexia, being non-verbal, ...etc.

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Learning disabilities are due to genetic and/or neurobiological factors that alter brain functioning in a manner which affects one or more cognitive processes related to learning. These processing problems can interfere with learning basic skills such as reading, writing and/or math. They can also interfere with higher level skills such as organization, time planning, abstract reasoning, long or short term memory and attention. It is important to realize that learning disabilities can affect an individual's life beyond academics and can impact relationships with family, friends and in the workplace.
Since difficulties with reading, writing and/or math are recognizable problems during the school years, the signs and symptoms of learning disabilities are most often diagnosed during that time. However, some individuals do not receive an evaluation until they are in post-secondary education or adults in the workforce. Other individuals with learning disabilities may never receive an evaluation and go through life, never knowing why they have difficulties with academics and why they may be having problems in their jobs or in relationships with family and friends.

Learning disabilities should not be confused with learning problems which are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor handicaps; of intellectual disability; of emotional disturbance; or of environmental, cultural or economic disadvantages.

Generally speaking, people with learning disabilities are of average or above average intelligence. There often appears to be a gap between the individual's potential and actual achievement. This is why learning disabilities are referred to as "hidden disabilities": the person looks perfectly "normal" and seems to be a very bright and intelligent person, yet may be unable to demonstrate the skill level expected from someone of a similar age.

A learning disability cannot be cured or fixed; it is a lifelong challenge. However, with appropriate support and intervention, people with learning disabilities can achieve success in school, at work, in relationships, and in the community.

In Federal law, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the term is "specific learning disability," one of 13 categories of disability under that law.

"Learning Disabilities" is an "umbrella" term describing a number of other, more specific learning disabilities, such as dyslexia and dysgraphia. Find the signs and symptoms of each, plus strategies to help below.

Types of Learning Disabilities

Related Disorders

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Learning disabilities are due to genetic and/or neurobiological factors that alter brain functioning in a manner which affects one or more cognitive processes related to learning. These processing problems can interfere with learning basic skills such as reading, writing and/or math.

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Critical Tools for Students Who Struggle

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Critical Tools for Students Who Struggle

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I love article's that talk about how technology benefits students. I think all elementary schools should involve technology within their classrooms. This article speaks on how technology can really push students to work better at "learning motivation, prolong focus, and build confidence."

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Share This: `

Family members, teachers, tutors, employers, and professionals often face difficulties in selecting appropriate technology to support individuals who struggle with literacy or math. This fact sheet offers an overview and some general recommendations for selecting appropriate tools for learning or practicing skills ( instructional technology) and for allowing independent performance of a function that would be difficult without the technology ( assistive technology). Technologies for dyslexia and other learning disabilities are increasingly available and accessible at lower cost. Everyday devices found in homes, schools, and businesses such as smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices provide access to technology that is literally at one's fingertips. Because the number of tools is rapidly expanding, this fact sheet does not review specific ones, but rather provides guiding principles for evaluating technology .

Benefits of Technology Tools

Children and adults with dyslexia and other learning disabilities can benefit from the instructional and compensatory strategies that technology can provide. Technology also has the potential to increase learner motivation, prolong focus, and build confidence (Bennett, 2012; McClanahan, Williams, Kennedy, & Tate, 2012).Use of technology aligns with best practices based on educational research. These technologies fit well with the principles of universal design for learning (UDL), personalized learning, differentiated instruction, and inclusion-especially in the ways that they help "make differences ordinary" (McLeskey & Waldron, 2007).

Fundamentals of Instructional Technology and Assistive Technology

Technologies that can be of help to those with dyslexia and other learning disabilities fall primarily into one of two categories: instructional technology (IT) and assistive technology (AT).

IT tools are designed for all types of learners. They are usually used to reinforce or to provide additional practice for skills already taught. An example of IT is an app that provides practice for math facts. When used as IT, technological devices and apps help teachers and learners expand academic skills either as part of (a) independent learner practice or (b) explicit teacher-led instruction. However, to improve skills, both devices and accompanying software programs must be well designed with accurate content validated by scientific research and must align with the student's reading curriculum. When evaluating IT, make sure there is an intuitive and user-friendly interface along with clear instructions for the intended user (Ishizuka, 2011). Tools designed for independent practice need timely corrective feedback and professional sound and images to support learning. People with learning disabilities may also have attention issues, so it is important to select apps with few distracting images or sounds or that allow sounds and images to be modified. (Winters & Cheesman, 2013).

To support learning, tools need to have a clear focus that is aligned with the learner's needs and one or more of the areas identified as essential for proficient reading, spelling, and writing. These skills fall into one of two areas: 1) word identification skills (letter identification and formation, phonemic awareness, explicit phonics, morphology, and text fluency) or 2) language comprehension (vocabulary, background information, language structures, verbal reasoning, and literacy knowledge) (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2000; Scarborough, 2001). These guidelines apply to all types of apps, as all academic tasks require a fluid and automatic command of literacy skills as well as the targeted skill of the app. For example, understanding math word problems requires good language comprehension as well as competent number sense and calculation skills.

An assistive technology (AT) tool allows a learner to complete a task that the learner could not complete independently. An example of AT is providing a screen reader for someone who is visually impaired. Without the screen reader, this individual could not read what's on a page; with it, he or she would be able to access the text independently. This example makes it obvious that technology access can be a vital tool for student learning, and text-to-speech (TTS) technology that translates written text into audio can be as vital for students with dyslexia as a screen reader is for someone who is visually impaired.

AT can support various aspects of literacy by helping individuals gather information through reading and express their knowledge and thinking through writing in ways not possible without AT. However, not every device or app is appropriate for every task. When considering AT, the user and his or her support team need to consider several aspects, such as the following four components-Student, Environments, Tasks, and Tools-in the SETT framework (Zabala, 2005):

Student. The Student, or individual, component focuses on the specific characteristics of the AT user, including strengths, challenges, interests, and preferences. Essentially, this component describes who the user is.

Environments. The Environments component focuses on the setting in which the tool is going to be used. For a student, this may include characteristics of the classroom or home study area. For an adult, this may include the individual's workplace such as an office, workstation, or other work setting. Essentially, this component describes where the user will be using the AT.

Tasks. The Tasks component focuses on the specific tasks that the user needs to do in order to successfully meet requirements and expectations. Often a task involves several subtasks. In addition, in any single environment, multiple tasks are likely to exist. Essentially, this component describes what the user needs to do.

Tools. The Tools component focuses on the specific tools the person needs to successfully complete the identified tasks. This component begins by identifying already available tools, such as a classroom computer, tablet, or personal smartphone. Then this component identifies potential devices and/or apps that might be better suited to the specific Student, Environments, and Tasks described in the previous components. Essentially, this component describes how the user is going to accomplish the tasks in the environment.

Practical Tips for Evaluating and Using Both IT and AT

When selecting either IT or AT, these guiding principles will increase the likelihood of successful technology use:

Whenever possible, try low-tech before mid-/high-tech. Low-tech IT/AT doesn't involve electricity (no batteries or cords), is often fairly inexpensive, is generally simple to use, and focuses on a single task. For example, pencil grips and cushioned pens help writers hold a pencil or pen correctly to increase the legibility and fluency of their writing. However, if a low-tech solution does not work, then the user should try mid- or high-tech. Mid-/high-tech uses electricity, is often more complex and expensive than low-tech, and may focus on one task (mid-tech) or multiple tasks (high-tech) (Winters, 2014).

When considering technology, one "size" does not fit all (Winters, 2014). Many factors need to be considered when choosing technology, whether a device or an app. Chief among these is the user's preferences, strengths, and challenges. Therefore, a good approach to technology is to offer or try several options in order to find the best device or app fit for the user and the specific task.

Whenever possible, take advantage of a trial offer or lite version of a device or app. Even after careful consideration of the important factors that go into choosing a device or app to use, its appropriateness may not be fully evident until actual use. Therefore, trying a device or app through a trial offer or lite version first can increase the likelihood that the user will find the best device or app (Winters, 2015).

After getting a new tool, be sure to fully explore it and get plenty of practice with it before using it in a real-life or important situation. High-tech IT/AT tools usually come with numerous features and settings. To increase the likelihood that users will experience success, they need to be very familiar with those features and settings. Both training and practice may be required, including practice with the tool when no pressure exists for quick and efficient use. Making sure the user is skilled at using the tool and verifying that the tool is actually working as intended are essential steps to prepare the user for success when the device or app is actually needed (Winters, 2017).

When AT and IT are part of a student's instructional plan, a dual approach combining direct instruction and alternative access to text through AT and IT is critical, particularly when older students are experiencing reading, spelling, and/or writing difficulties. Too many times, when struggling readers and writers reach fourth grade, efforts to build accuracy and automaticity in foundational skills stop. However, work on fluent, automatic decoding, spelling, and writing should continue, and IT strategies may be a key component. In addition, AT strategies may become critical in helping the student keep up with peers when information demands ( input and output) increase as the student moves through the grades, into higher education, and begins a career (Winters, 2015).

To gain maximum benefit from IT and AT tools from childhood through the transition to adulthood, it is important to use a team approach involving parents, educators, and technology specialists in ongoing communication and progress monitoring. Ask technology professionals in schools or local adult government services for recommendations. One can also do a web search using the word review and the appropriate type of IT or AT, or search back issues of IDA publications.

Bennett, K. R. (2012). Less than a class set. Learning & Leading With Technology, 39(4), 22-25

Ishizuka, K. (2011). The app squad: SLJ's advisors weigh in on kids' book apps. School Library Journal, 57(5), 38-43...

McClanahan, B., Williams, K., Kennedy, E., & Tate, S. (2012). A breakthrough for Josh: How use of an iPad facilitated reading improvement. TechTrends: Linking Research and Practice to Improve Learning, 56(3), 20-28.

McLeskey, J., & Waldron, N. L. (2007). Making differences ordinary in inclusive classrooms Intervention in School and Clinic, 42(3), 162-168. doi:10.1177/10534512070420030501

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. (2000). Report of the National Reading Panel: Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Scarborough, H. S. (2001). Connecting early language and literacy to later reading (dis)abilities: Evidence, theory, and practice. In: S. Neuman & D. Dickinson (Eds.), Handbook of early literacy research. New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Winters, D. C. (2014). Dr. Dave's AT Lab: Welcome to Dr. Dave's AT Lab! The Examiner. Retrieved from https://dyslexiaida.org/dr-daves-at-lab-welcome-to-dr-daves-at-lab/

Winters, D. C. (2015). Reading E-text: Alternative strategies using AT. The Examiner. Retrieved from https://dyslexiaida.org/reading-e-text/

Winters, D. C. (2017). AT for reading: Reading by pen. The Examiner. Retrieved from https://dyslexiaida.org/at-for-reading-reading-by-pen/

Winters, D. C., & Cheesman, E. A. (2013). Mobile instructional and assistive technology forliteracy. Perspectives in Language and Literacy, 39(4), 49-52.

Zabala, J. (2005). Using the SETT framework to level the learning field for students with disabilities. Retrieved from http://www.joyzabala.com/uploads/Zabala_SETT_Leveling_the_Learning_Field.pdf
The International Dyslexia Association (IDA) thanks Elaine A. Cheesman, Ph.D., and David C. Winters, Ph.D., for their assistance in the preparation of this fact sheet.
The International Dyslexia Association (IDA). IDA encourages the reproduction and distribution of this fact sheet.
If portions of the text are cited, appropriate reference must be made. Fact sheets may not be reprinted for the purpose of resale. © Copyright 2020. The International Dyslexia Association (IDA). For copyright information, pleaseclick here.

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Overview of Instructional and Assistive Technology: Critical Tools for Students Who Struggle - International Dyslexia Association

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I enjoyed reading this article because it gives you a different perspective on the misunderstandings assistive technology can have inside the classroom!

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For students with disabilities, assistive technology isn't a nice-to-have-it's crucial to their learning and success in school.

©Shutterstock/Ermolaev Alexander

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 2004 says that assistive technology is "any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of children with disabilities." It includes both stand-alone devices and software, and encompasses no-tech, low-tech, and high-tech options.

Assistive technology (AT) can be a game changer for students with disabilities-when they're matched with the right assistive technology tool for them, they can better access curriculum, learning, and opportunities for success inside and outside the classroom.

If AT can be so beneficial and crucial to student learning, why are educators and school teams sometimes hesitant to use it in the classroom? It's possible that the answer lies in misunderstandings about what assistive technology is and how it functions in education.

5 Common Misunderstandings About Assistive Technology

1. Using assistive technology is cheating: Do we consider a student who wears glasses to be cheating? Nope. But glasses are an assistive technology; they allow someone with poor eyesight to see better.

Similarly, assistive technology allows students with reading, writing, communication, visual, hearing, and mobility challenges to improve their functioning in the classroom. As Mary Pat Radabaugh, director of IBM's National Support Center for Persons With Disabilities, said in 1988, "For most people, technology makes things easier. For people with disabilities, however, technology makes things possible."

2. Assistive technology is expensive: Some AT costs a lot, it's true-but some is free or very inexpensive.

No-tech devices should always be tried first as many of them suffice to meet a student's needs. For example, a teacher or occupational therapist can create a slant board to address writing challenges from a large binder-an AT device that only costs $1. Pencil grips and low-tech calculators are also inexpensive. Guided reading strips-which can help students with reading difficulties such as dyslexia-are a few bucks per pack.

Software for computers, tablets, and iPads ranges from free apps to expensive programs. To help offset the cost of potentially expensive AT, many states have AT device loan programs that allow students, families, and teachers to try out devices for free for a period of time so that they can find the right AT before making a purchase. For example, Connecticut has the AT Device Loan program through the CT Tech Act Project. Teachers and families should check with their state to find out more about options like this.

3. AT is more work for the teacher: Incorporating assistive technology into lessons can be done without creating more work for the teacher. For one thing, teachers in special education classrooms are likely already using differentiated instruction and tailoring their teaching strategies to diverse learners.

Assistive technology is simply a tool that teachers can use to deliver instruction. For example, creating centers that give students the option of listening to an audiobook while their peers read silently is an example of how to easily incorporate assistive technology. Another way to work AT into lesson plans is to give students the option of using concept maps to organize their thoughts before beginning a writing assignment.

Graphic organizers can assist all students, and for students with writing disabilities they are an AT tool. Adding captioning to videos shown in class is another easy AT tool. YouTube offers captioning on its videos to make them accessible to all viewers.

4. AT is primarily for students with significant or severe disabilities: AT can benefit all students with disabilities, based on their skill level, environment, or task. We may first think about students who have challenges walking, talking, or seeing as those who need AT the most. However, students with learning disabilities are the fastest growing group to utilize technology tools.

Several guiding questions can be used to facilitate discussions when considering AT for a student with any type of disability: What difficulty is the student experiencing, in school or at home, that the AT is intended to address? What tools has the student already tried? What new technology could be tried? How will we determine whether or not a technology tool is effective?

5. AT can only be used in the classroom: Many AT tools can be used at home as well as at school. AT is used in academics and learning, recreation, daily living activities, communication, mobility, and more. And if students use an assistive technology both at school and at home, their proficiency with it will increase, which leads to more opportunities for learning and success in both settings.

For example, a student who uses an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device to communicate in school-such as an iPad with a communication app-can also practice using it in the community when attending doctor appointments, family gatherings, or any other situation in which they have some difficulty communicating.

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For students with disabilities, assistive technology isn't a nice-to-have-it's crucial to their learning and success in school.

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Assistive Technology for Kids with Learning Disabilities

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Assistive Technology for Kids with Learning Disabilities

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This source gives a huge list of assistive technology pieces that are being used inside classrooms today.

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Assistive Technology for Kids with Learning Disabilities: An Overview

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If your child has a learning disability, he or she may benefit from assistive technology tools that play to their strengths and work around their challenges.

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Difference Between Assistive Technology and Instructional Technology

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Difference Between Assistive Technology and Instructional Technology

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The title says it all!! As an educator you need to know the difference between AT and IT. Great source to figure this out.

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We live in a world where technology continues to be a major driving force behind innovation. Innovation is more than just a new technological development or breakthrough; in fact, people drive innovation. People are the advocates of new products and innovative technologies. Two such people-driven technologies are Assistive Technology and Instructional Technology. Well, there is a thin line between the two technologies but the primary purpose is same - to improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities, and in case of instructional technology, people with learning disabilities, especially students.

What is Assistive Technology?

Assistive technology refers to a wide range of products, systems and services that assist people with disabilities or the elderly people. When you call somebody only to be answered by their answering machine saying "please leave a message..." this is a kind of assistive technology. When you see a disable person on a wheelchair or someone wearing a hearing aid or some kind of prosthetic, these are all examples of assistive technology. So, any device or service that assists with daily activities of people, particularly people with disabilities or the elderly population, is a type of an assistive technology. Assistive technology solutions are great resources that address a wide range of functional problems, such as walking, eating, hearing, driving, talking, etc. Assistive technology encompasses both hardware and software resources providing individuals with practical solutions to everyday life activities.

Instructional Technology

Technology plays a fundamental role in modern teaching methods. In fact, technology has revolutionized the teaching scene over the past couple of years. The learning programs have also been greatly affected by it. Instructional technology proves to be a great resource for learning for years, but what exactly is Instructional Technology? Instructional technology, as the name suggests, is any technology or resource that aids in learning. Instruction is mainly concerned with the development of knowledge and understanding in an individual. Instructional technology has evolved from a field to a profession. According to the 1994 definition, Instructional technology is a field of study as well as practice. However, the term 'instructional' is more appropriately describes the function of technology. It is often used synonymously with educational technology. In fact, Instructional technology can be defined as a subset of 'Educational Technology' based on the context that instruction is a subset of education. The goal is to create effective learning experiences using technological tools.

Difference between Assistive Technology and Instructional Technology

Definition

- According to the WHO, Assistive technology can be defined as devices and technologies whose primary purpose is to maintain or improve an individual's functioning and independence to facilitate participation and to enhance overall well-being. In simple terms, assistive technology refers to a wide range of products, systems and services that assist people with disabilities or the elderly people. Instructional technology, on the other hand, can be defined as a subset of educational technology that is concerned with the development of knowledge and understanding in an individual using technological tools. It is the use of hardware and software to facilitate effective learning.

Role

- Assistive technology is any device or tool that aids in the overall physical well-being of individuals with disabilities, making them function better. For example, assistive technology can help students with physical impairments or any other cognitive problems function just as well as other students in the classroom. Assistive technology plays a fundamental role in learning, assisting those with learning disabilities. Instructional technology plays a crucial role in learning, making it more engaging and effective. It is a systematic approach to establishing conditions for effective learning, including visual and auditory abilities, speech comprehension abilities, and so on.

Examples

- Assistive technology encompasses both hardware and software resources providing individuals with practical solutions to everyday life activities. Common ones include wheelchairs, canes, walkers, hearing aids, prosthetic devices, crutches, and so on. Other examples of assistive technology include screen optimizer, speech recognition, audio player, digital recorder, word processors, visual search engine, etc. Some common yet innovative examples of instructional technology are digital readers and tablets, audio books, virtual reality, cloud, artificial intelligence, online learning, computer-based learning, social learning, active learning, video conferencing software, virtual classroom, etc.

Assistive Technology vs. Instructional Technology: Comparison Chart

Summary

While the two technologies are often interrelated, there is a fine line between the two. Assistive technology is mainly intended for individuals with disabilities or the elderly population, but also proves to be a great resource for students with physical impairments or secondary health conditions. Instructional technology is more or less associated with educational technology that is developed for students with learning disabilities, such as visual or hearing impairments, speech comprehension conditions, and so on. It is a systematic approach to establishing conditions for effective learning. Assistive technology can be any technology, such as a software program, or a product that can be used to improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities. Instructional technology can be used in the same context but more geared towards students with learning disabilities.

Email This Post : If you like this article or our site. Please spread the word. Share it with your friends/family.

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Difference Between Assistive Technology and Instructional Technology

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We live in a world where technology continues to be a major driving force behind innovation. Innovation is more than just a new technological development or breakthrough; in fact, people drive innovation. People are the advocates of new products and innovative technologies. Two such people-driven technologies are Assistive Technology and Instructional Technology.

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Using Assistive Technology to Empower Students with Disabilities

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Using Assistive Technology to Empower Students with Disabilities

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This article gives you information from the US department of PA. This article is fairly updated with the new technology and standards today.

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Technology Solutions That Drive Education

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This is just one example of how technology can give students who think and learn differently a more personalized and accessible learning experience.

Referred to as assistive technology, these tools are "any type of equipment or software that helps people to work around the challenges they have, whether that be with learning, communication or mobility," explains Kara Ball, an elementary science and STEM education specialist for Baltimore City Public Schools and a special education expert at Understood, a nonprofit organization providing support for people with disabilities and their families.

But what types of assistive technology tools are out there? And how can educators best use them in a modern learning environment to help students of all abilities reach their full potential?
MORE ON EDTECH: Read about the 2020 ed tech trends that focus on equity and tech accessibility.
Examples of Assistive Technology in the Classroom

Nearly 7 million students in the U.S. - almost 14 percent of all students - received special education in the 2017-2018 school year under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), according to the most recent figures from the U.S. Department of Education.

To ensure those services are provided and that instruction is inclusive of all learners, school districts are increasingly integrating assistive technology tools in general education classrooms.

Ball categorizes them into two areas: high tech and low tech. High tech refers to devices or equipment with digital or electronic components, such as augmentative communication devices, alternative keyboards and power wheelchairs. It also includes software or built-in accessibility features on devices such as text to speech, word prediction and optical character recognition. Low tech refers to simple adaptive tools such as timers, graphic organizers and flexible furniture.

"Assistive technology really gives students the ability to access grade-level content and allows them to be independent," Ball says.
Discover how immersive technology sparks critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity.
Adopting Assistive Technology in a Modern Learning Environment

As schools increasingly embrace modern learning environments and integrate technology into classrooms and the curriculum, they must also be mindful about potential barriers of technology in special education.

Here are a few ways educators can use digital tools in the classroom to meet the individual needs of their students and help them through learning challenges:

For students who are blind or visually impaired: Today, many devices such as Google Chromebooks come with audiovisual assistance. For example, Chromebooks have a built-in screen reader called ChromeVox, which reads content out loud for users on the Chrome browser. Chromebooks also have features that make on-screen content easier to read, such as screen magnifiers, high-contrast mode and select-to-speak. Teachers can also plug in or pair a Braille keyboard with Bluetooth if students need Braille support. Popular cloud-based applications such as G Suite for Education and Microsoft Office 365 also have dictation capabilities, allowing students to type by using their voice.

For students who are deaf or hard of hearing: Ball says she uses FM systems - wireless devices that directly transmit sounds to a hearing aid - to communicate clearly with students who have hearing loss, even in a noisy classroom. For teachers using video technology in the classroom, there are educational apps such as Flipgrid with closed-caption features, as well as videoconferencing tools such as Microsoft Teams, which comes with live captioning and subtitles.

For students with speech disabilities: Speech-to-text software and word prediction tools can assist students with speech disabilities in communicating with their teachers and peers. For example, Office 365 applications have Dictate, an AI-enabled add-in that allows students to speak into a microphone and have their speech converted into text on the computer.

For students with learning, cognitive and developmental disabilities: Besides creating VR experiences for students with autism, tools such as memory aids, audio books and text-to-speech systems are especially helpful for students who need assistance with learning, attention and organization. One particular tool is Microsoft's Immersive Reader, which was specifically designed to support students with dyslexia and dysgraphia. With the Immersive Reader, students can have text read out loud and broken into syllables - even in other languages. Microsoft's Tell Me feature allows students to access commands on Office 365 applications without having to remember them. There are also downloadable fonts such as OpenDyslexic, which can enhance readability and reading speed for students with dyslexia, Ball says. Plus, there are handy smart tools such as the Livescribe Echo Smartpen, which acts as an all-in-one microphone, speaker and storage device.

For students who need mobility assistance: One way teachers can optimize their classrooms for all students is by adopting flexible furniture, a key component of a modern learning environment. Standing desks, wobble stools and even exercise balls give students more freedom and comfort to move around in the classroom, Ball says. Another example is having students use interactive displays or touch-screen monitors if they aren't physically able to use a keyboard or computer mouse.

With assistive technology, schools can create more inclusive classrooms and empower students with disabilities to participate in the general education curriculum.

"If I'd had any of those options available to me, I probably would have been a very different student," says Ball, who has dyslexia and dyscalcula. "Being able to give students these resources to help them be independent is really the benefit of these technologies."

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Assistive Technology in The Classroom Empowers Students with Disabilities

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Assistive technology (AT) is available to help individuals with many types of disabilities. Learn how assistive technology gives students a voice in their education.

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13 ways to incorporate assistive technology into the classroom

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13 ways to incorporate assistive technology into the classroom

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This article is similar to the ones above, just some more ways on how to teach and incorporate technology inside the classroom today.

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13 ways to incorporate assistive technology into the classroom - Classcraft Blog

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As teachers, we're always looking for the next big thing to help our students succeed in school. We're constantly looking for new ways to encourage our kids while reading, writing, playing, and socializing. When it comes to teaching children with disabilities, this can get even more tricky.

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The Value of Digital Tools in Science Classes

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The Value of Digital Tools in Science Classes

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I really like this article just because it specify's science class. I think it's helpful to understand the technology in todays world because there are some things that can definitely help more or less within different subjects.

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Digital learning experiences can be used to mirror the work of real scientists, boosting students' engagement and learning outcomes.

Juice Images / Alamy Stock Photo

Educators are increasingly encouraged to update the learning experiences in their classrooms. This includes more attention to STEM learning, such as promoting the integration of technology and science instruction into everyday classroom experiences, and implementing pedagogical frameworks like open-ended inquiry learning and problem-based learning that mirror the work real professionals engage in-frameworks that guide students to " play the whole game at the junior level."

These considerations are important for guiding students to be ready to take on a highly scientific and technological world. Merely implementing more open-ended science instruction or using applications on laptops or iPads doesn't necessarily improve student learning, though. It's how we design and use technology in schools that can truly improve students' learning outcomes.

Fortunately, the scaffolds and supports within technologies can act in the service of science learning.

Role-Playing as Scientists

Allowing students to get into the shoes of scientists and to mirror the work they do is a powerful technique to get students interested in a science field by offering them opportunities to practice the skills that scientists use on a daily basis. This can increase students' sense of identity in science, self-efficacy in science work, and general affect toward science.

Digital structures that enable students to step into the shoes of scientists include first-person narratives and role-playing scenarios like the digital learning environment EcoMUVE, which was developed by the Harvard Graduate School of Education. It is a curriculum for middle school students in which they enter a virtual world and must figure out why their local ecosystem is declining. In programs like this, students can play as an avatar and explore an engaging virtual world, talk to scientist non-player characters, use scientific tools, and conduct authentic experiments.

By working through these digital scenarios, students practice science-related skills and processes, ultimately contributing to the transfer of scientific understandings.

Problematizing Learning Tasks

Problematization is a pedagogical technique that makes parts of a learning task problematic in some way, with a goal of increasing students' problem-solving skills. Problematization is often used to invite students to puzzle over specific processes and ideas. In EcoXPT -a soon-to-be-released program from Harvard-new scientific information is dispensed as the program progresses, meaning that students must rethink their initial hypothesis.

Digital structures that provide this kind of just-in-time information include help buttons and tutorials. During digitally enabled open-ended and problem-based learning scenarios, reminding students about available automated help and tutorial buttons during a confusing part of the work allows them the opportunity to further their understanding at their own learning edge. Tutorials can help explain difficult concepts or tools that students use in these digital learning contexts, ultimately deepening their scientific understandings.

Illustrating Complex Processes

There are many complex processes that students have to reason through in science learning. Oftentimes, these processes are at the heart of the scientific understandings we hope students will gain. For example, consider genetic processes, which can be difficult for students to grasp. Teaching Genetics With Dragons from the Concord Consortium has three programs that offer middle and high school students an engaging way to learn about some of the complex intricacies of genetics in a playful digital learning platform.

This kind of experience aids students as they reason through highly complex and scientific processes.

The Value of Interactivity

A key beneficial aspect of digital learning is interactivity. Technology can also provide many opportunities for students and teachers to collaborate, such as when students are working in larger groups in online peer learning interactions. Numedeon's Whyville is a great example of an online community where preteen students can create a character, interact with friends online, and participate in science, math, and history activities. Teachers can aid students in thinking about their role in the online community, and how their learning is progressing throughout such online activities.

Teachers play an integral role in these interactions as mentors supporting students in their developing understandings by providing additional support and pushing students to deeper learning.

Aiding Teachers in Assessment

Assessing student understanding in science learning is important for teachers, who must determine where their students are and figure out how to design learning experiences to deepen their knowledge even more. Digital learning contexts allow teachers to build in different types of assessments to periodically assess student understanding. These assessments can be formative and diagnostic, or summative.

These assessments can include typical quizzes or multiple-choice questions that appear in order to assess students' understanding of scientific content. Digital quizzes allow for quick feedback to students, aiding them in assessing their own learning, which can be particularly helpful in learning complex scientific concepts and processes. Digital quiz results can also be visible to teachers, highlighting student progress and allowing them to see where each student is in their learning without the hassle of paper and pencil grading. Digital assessment may also take the form of a concept map, a medium that allows students to express their understanding visually.

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The Value of Digital Tools in Science Classes

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Digital learning experiences can be used to mirror the work of real scientists, boosting students' engagement and learning outcomes.

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The Importance of Increasing Access to Digital Learning Tools

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The Importance of Increasing Access to Digital Learning Tools

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Not just what can you use inside the classroom, but why they are important! The whole reasoning behind the point explains inside this article.

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As technology becomes increasingly essential in our daily lives, students need to develop new skills in order to succeed. Within the classroom, students may be required to use tablets, complete online research, and take digitized assessments. In day-to-day life outside the classroom, students are inundated with information and opportunities available online-but many lack the access or skills to use these resources.

Experts have coined a term for this tech-savvy knowledge: Digital literacy. Digital literacy may become the new buzzword in education as parents and educators alike work to help students prepare for a world that is increasingly online. But what exactly is digital literacy? Why are some students struggling to learn these skills, while others come to school with as much-if not more-technological know-how as their teachers? And perhaps most importantly, how can educators close this digital literacy gap?
What is digital literacy?
For educators seeking to define the importance of technology in the classroom, the library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a resource that works closely with librarians and faculty. The University Library notes that digital literacy involves a plethora of skills: "Literacy includes the ability to read and interpret media, to reproduce data and images through digital manipulation, and to evaluate and apply new knowledge gained from digital environments." In short, digital literacy is defined not only by the ability to use technology to read and write, but by the ability to use it effectively.

Although digital literacy is clearly important in many aspects of modern life, not all students have equal access to technology. As educators make strides in bringing online reading resources into their classrooms, it has become clear that some students have a steeper learning curve in achieving digital literacy.
A double disadvantage
In terms of digital literacy, students from low-income households are at a disadvantage compared to their more affluent peers. According to a 2013 Pew Research study, 39 percent of Advanced Placement and National Writing Project teachers of low-income students believe their school is "behind the curve" when it comes to effectively using digital tools in the learning process. In contrast, just 15 percent of those teaching higher-income students rate their schools poorly in this area. According to the same study, "56 percent of teachers of the lowest-income students say that a lack of resources among students to access digital technologies is a 'major challenge' to incorporating more digital tools into their teaching; 21 percent of teachers of the highest-income students report that problem."

This disparity between high- and low-income students leads to additional challenges in the classroom, as low-income students also have less access to books and print material in their homes compared to their high-income peers. If some students are able to read and use the internet for school projects in their homes while others only have access to these resources at school, the literacy gap-both print and digital-will continue to widen.
Closing the (digital) literacy gap
While the gap between high- and low-income students' access to newer technology is apparent, so too are the efforts to fix it. According to a 2014 Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education paper titled Using Technology To Support At-Risk Students' Learning, "The good news is that research shows that if at-risk students gain ready access to appropriate technology used in thoughtful ways, they can make substantial gains in learning and technological readiness."

For years, various education and charitable organizations have provided print books to low-income students to help close the literacy gap. Now, the same method is being applied to help disadvantaged students access technology in their homes. On the national level, President Obama widened his ConnectEd initiative to bring high-speed internet to K-12 schools and libraries by introducing the ConnectHome expansion in 2015. The pilot program proposed to bring the internet-and the literacy resources it provides-to low-income American families by providing broadband, tech training, digital literacy, and new devices to residents in assisted housing, including nearly 200,000 children.

Individual school districts can help, too. For instance, Washington state's Kent School District provides laptops to each of its students in the seventh grade and higher, and allows students without at-home online access to do their homework at "internet kiosks." Within the classroom, educators can provide one-to-one access (one device per student) to help support students who are at a disadvantage for learning technological skills. According to the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education paper, "Researchers have found that one-to-one availability is particularly important for lower-income students' ability to gain fluency in using the technology for a range of learning purposes, since they are less likely to have these opportunities at home."

For low-income students, using technology in the classroom can create an additional hurdle to learning if they are not already familiar with using technology at home. By helping low-income families access the internet and technological devices and providing one-to-one technology access at school, educators can help bridge the digital literacy gap. As we move further into the digital age, dual literacy in print and technology is the key to success for our students, both inside and outside the classroom.

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The Importance of Increasing Access to Digital Learning Tools

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As technology becomes increasingly essential in our daily lives, students need to develop new skills in order to succeed. Within the classroom, students may be required to use tablets, complete online research, and take digitized assessments. In day-to-day life outside the classroom, students are inundated with information and opportunities available online-but many lack the access or skills to use these resources.

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This article shows many different ways teachers and educators can add technology within their classroom. This article would be great for a teacher who is against technology enhanced learning with their students.

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

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How Instructional Technology Can Improve the Learning Process

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How Instructional Technology Can Improve the Learning Process

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How technology can help a student. I think it is really important to know the facts having to deal with pushing and furthering students in the right direction.

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Almost 90 years ago, an overhead projector was used to display images in a classroom for the first time. A few decades later, Texas Instruments invented the handheld calculator. In the 1980s, schools started introducing Apple Macintosh computers to the classroom. The ratio of computers to students in U.S. schools at the time was 1-to-92.

Today, technology is widespread among schools. Access to computers has become so ubiquitous that digital devices are replacing the use of pen and paper in many classrooms. While public opinion on the use of technology in schools has been divided, experts have found that technology has the ability to create profound changes in teaching and learning, creating opportunities for unprecedented collaboration, engagement, and support. The key is knowing how to use technology in meaningful ways-a skill some education degree programs are bringing to the forefront of their curricula.

What Is Instructional Technology?

Instructional technology is the theory and practice of using technology for education. Encompassing the design, development, use, management, and evaluation of technology in education, instructional technology can take many forms. Anything from electronic whiteboards to online courses or even virtual reality classrooms can be considered instructional technology.

While the applications and benefits of instructional technology vary widely, all instructional technology shares one main purpose: to create engaging and effective learning experiences. And many applications of instructional technology have proved effective at achieving this goal. Experts widely agree that instructional technology provides many benefits to the education process, including better access to information, more opportunities for collaboration, and better capabilities for meeting diverse learners' needs.

The Role of Technology in Modern Classrooms

Just a couple of decades ago, teachers used very little (if any) technology in the classroom. Today, technology is a fundamental part of the education process. A recent study conducted by MidAmerica Nazarene University reports that students complete less than 42% of their work, both in and out of the classroom, using paper and pencil. In addition, the study found that 73% of teachers said that their students use tablets or laptops every day.

The increasing prevalence of technology in the classroom reflects a broader cultural shift. As the modern world becomes more digitized, tech literacy is becoming increasingly important. Teachers who use technology to support learning in meaningful ways can help prepare students for success in the digital era.

Uses of Instructional Technology

According to the U.S. Department of Education, schools can use educational technology to support both teaching and learning by infusing the classroom with valuable digital tools, expanding course offerings, increasing student engagement, and accelerating learning. Instructional technology offers nearly endless applications, but experts have identified three key areas where integrating technology can have a significant impact.

Collaborative Learning

Instructional technology provides unparalleled opportunities for collaborative learning. Advances in technology have made sharing information easier than ever before. Today, educators have access to digital tools that allow students to work collaboratively outside of the classroom, discussing ideas or completing projects remotely and eliminating constraints such as standard classroom hours or geographic location.

Instructional technology also provides opportunities for students to work collaboratively with teachers, discussing ideas or asking questions outside of the physical classroom. For example, teachers could hold digital office hours, making themselves available via instant messaging or video chat to support students as they tackle the day's homework.

Virtual Classrooms and Online Learning

Virtual classrooms can be a useful tool at every level of education. One common challenge of the traditional classroom environment is that students learn at their own pace, so teachers need to find a way to tailor their lesson plans to the average learner, rather than addressing each student's unique needs.

Online courses level the playing field and provide students with the time and resources to develop the skills they need. For example, students could listen to a lecture for a second time if they didn't immediately grasp the subject matter or move ahead to the next one if they grasp a particular subject quickly. On top of this, online learning provides access to a wider array of topics, giving students opportunities to enrich their education by taking courses that their schools might not offer.

Real-Time Feedback

Instructional technology provides better capabilities for gathering or providing feedback compared with more traditional methods. Teachers can use a variety of digital tools to gauge where their students are in a particular lesson. For example, teachers might conduct an online survey of students' current understanding of a topic to gain insight into where they should focus the next lesson. Or they might opt for using digital education software so they can provide immediate feedback to students on lessons and homework, which could help keep students on track with learning objectives. Some schools have even been piloting virtual reality classrooms, where teachers can rehearse lessons or work through professional challenges in an artificial environment, helping them hone their abilities without negatively impacting real students.

Learn More About Instructional Design

Technology in the classroom can have impressive benefits-but only if educators understand how to harness these new capabilities in meaningful ways. LSU Online's Master of Arts in Education with a specialization in Educational Technology is designed specifically with this goal in mind. The program's cutting-edge approach to technology integration, digital transformation, and online training helps teachers transform their expertise into innovative educational leadership.

Recommended Reading
Make the Most of Educational Leadership Conferences What Can I Do With a Master's in Educational Leadership In the News: Dr. Sasha Thackaberry Recently Interviewed by Inside Higher Ed

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How Instructional Technology Can Improve the Learning Process

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Educators are finding innovative ways to use technology in the classroom. Explore how instructional technology is transforming education as we know it.

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Five Ways to Collaborate With Families of Students with Disabilities

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Five Ways to Collaborate With Families of Students with Disabilities

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This article discusses certain key points to hit when working with students and families who have disabilities. I really like all of the key points they shared!

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Five Ways to Collaborate With Families of Students with Disabilities

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Five Ways to Collaborate With Families of Students with Disabilities From the Marshall Memo #435
“Families’ involvement in their children’s education stands o…

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The Iris center website is not only an article, but it contains of a few slides includes video's and other resources to make sure your getting the full understanding of the website. I like the IRIS center website because we did something very similar during class this semester.

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IRIS | Family Engagement: Collaborating with Families of Students with Disabilities

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This module—a revision of Collaborating with Families, which was originally developed in cooperation with the PACER Center—addresses the importance of engaging the families of students with disabilities in their child’s education. It highlights some of the key factors that affect these families and…

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I chose this article to add into here because one of the biggest advantages when teaching students with special needs is through the parent. Trust and communication is key when dealing with these situations!

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Whether you are a parent or a teacher, your goal throughout the individualized education program (IEP) process should always be to help your student reach his or her potential. Since parents and teachers are arguably the most important adults in a child's life, they are best suited to help that child prepare for and face challenges and new experiences. They are also uniquely positioned to model teamwork and compromise for a student by working together in a positive way to solve disputes.

Learning At Home and At School

Whether your child is new to special education or has been receiving services for years, transitioning to an unfamiliar environment can be frightening. By keeping lines of communication open and working together, parents and teachers can ease a student's anxiety about a transition and ensure that a child is always learning. In Making a Smooth Transition to School, parents and teachers are given practical advice to help ease a student into a new classroom, school or program. Parents and teachers will find helpful tips on how they can prepare the student ahead of time and solidify routines before that crucial first day of school.

Additionally, an important goal of the IEP process is to create students who are continual, lifelong learners. In Consistency Between the Classroom and Home, parents and teachers will find specific ways that they can encourage students to continue learning at home. Since parents are uniquely positioned to help students apply the skills they've learned, they are encouraged to work on their children's IEP goals outside of the classroom. In addition, teachers will find specific tasks that they can ask parents to complete at home with their children to support these goals and the overall academic progress.

Open Communication is Key

When the lines of communication are kept open, the parent-teacher relationship should remain a positive one. What happens when something goes wrong, though? In Where to Turn When You Have Concerns parents will find a list of important IEP team members who can answer questions or help to address concerns. In addition, this article will help parents understand the authority and the limitations of each team member so that parents can approach these team members with realistic expectations and goals. This section also encourages parents to go through the appropriate team members before considering any legal action.

Unfortunately, even the most well-meaning parents and teachers sometimes disagree. In Strategies for IEP Dispute and Conflict Resolution, parents will discover how conflict resolution is built into the IEP process. Parents and teachers will also find IEP-specific guidelines that will help make the process easier and reduce the likelihood that a conflict will escalate. And, both parents and teachers are reminded that the IEP process should be child-centered, and that all team members should work collaboratively to create a plan that best suits the needs of the child.

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Whether you are a parent or a teacher, your goal throughout the individualized education program (IEP) process should always be to help your student reach his or her potential. Since parents and teachers are arguably the most important adults in a child's life, they are best suited to help that child prepare for and face challenges and new experiences.

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6 Tips for a First-Year Special Education Teacher

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6 Tips for a First-Year Special Education Teacher

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A great article for a first year special needs educator! i think whether or not you are a first year teacher this is great common knowledge every educator, or aid should have.

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After years of coursework and student teaching, you've finally been offered a job as a first-year special education teacher. This is what you prepared for.
So, now what do you do?
It's not uncommon for special education teachers to feel extra anxious facing their first year of teaching, as they have additional, unique responsibilities to complete in order to have a successful year. To keep you afloat, here are some tasks you should tackle first.

1. Review All IEP Due Dates

For special education teachers, timelines and deadlines are critical. In addition to planning daily lessons and teaching, special education teachers are responsible for holding annual Individual Education Program (IEP) meetings and three-year reevaluations within certain timelines. Missed deadlines can lead to IEPs that are out of compliance, which can mean potential citations from your district or state.
Further reading: One Teacher's Path to Special Education
At the start of the year, go through each student's IEP and mark your calendar with their due dates. It's helpful to know ahead of time and plan for the months when you'll be busiest with meetings and paperwork.

2. Make Positive Contact with Parents

As a first-year special education teacher, developing positive relationships with your students' parents will make your job easier. Start your year with a phone call or email to each parent, asking to learn more about their child. Not only will this provide valuable information, but it also lets parents know you view them as partners, and will start your relationship out on the right foot.

Establishing positive rapport at the beginning of the school year is greatly appreciated, and it will make parents more receptive should you need to contact them about less positive news in the future.

3. Review and Organize Your Students' IEPs

Before school starts, you'll need to review all your students' IEPs. Become familiar with your students' goals, areas of need, accommodations, and service minutes. Most special education teachers develop a binder or other system to organize and keep all IEPs easily accessible in one location. A helpful organization tip is to create one-page summaries of your students' IEPs that can be shared with any other teachers that might teach or interact with your students during the day.

If you're an elementary or resource room teacher, you'll develop your schedule based on students' service minutes and needs. If you're a high school or middle school teacher, who teaches a particular class or subject, you'll want to make sure your students' goals align with the curriculum you are teaching.

4. Create a Game Plan for IEP Meetings

Running your first IEP meeting can be stressful. As a new special education teacher, I felt intimidated and unqualified leading my first meeting. But over the years, I've learned the best strategy to combat these feelings is to come prepared.

Develop an agenda to keep you on track. Have a good understanding of the student's current IEP and come with a plan for the new goals and services you intend to propose. Creating a new IEP is always a team decision, but bringing a tentative plan will make you appear prepared and professional, leading others to trust and respect you.

5. Lean on Your Mentor

As a new special education teacher, hopefully your school will provide guidance through an assigned mentor. Seek out that person and ask a lot of questions. Ask if you can observe one of their IEP meetings, and have them attend your IEP meetings until you're comfortable conducting them on your own. Most veteran teachers enjoy helping new teachers, and many are paid extra to do so.

If your assigned mentor isn't helpful or doesn't have time to help, you may need to seek out someone else. Being a new special education teacher can feel lonely and isolating at times, so take initiative and ask for the help you need.

6. Find Your Work-Life Balance

From the moment school begins, you'll feel like you're trying to outrun a train. Many new teachers try to maintain this impossible pace, but you should be conserving your energy. Teaching special education is not a job you can do if your mind and body are depleted. Designate a time each day when you stop working-even if you have more to do. Take time to rest and recharge. Set boundaries and expectations for yourself, and don't spend all your free time working. Developing healthy habits from the beginning of the year will not only help you feel better, but will give you the energy and stamina you'll need to thrive.
Further reading: Survival Tips for the Special Education Teacher
All teachers, even veterans, get the first-day jitters. Completing these tasks will help you feel more prepared, relaxed, and ready to meet your students.

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6 Tips for a First-Year Special Education Teacher

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If you're a first-year special education teacher, here are six tips to ensure that you start the year off right.

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Tips and Tricks From a Special Education Teacher

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Tips and Tricks From a Special Education Teacher

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Something that stood out to e in this article was one of the tips they have listed. Tip #4, "Treat every day as new" I love this so much because when dealing with children in general special needs or not, they do mess up and things do go wrong because they are learning. I think its really important to be flexible when stuff doesn't go as planned.

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By Guest Blogger and Educator Karla Banks

Perfect hair and dress, lunch packed, materials organized, room cleaned, and you have been standing at the door of your classroom for half an hour eagerly waiting on your students to arrive. That's right! Those kids are YOURS! They finally arrive and you start your first official day as a teacher. There are ten or so kids staring at you. So, what do you do now?

Write an actual lesson plan for each routine just as you would any reading or math skill. After you teach the routine or expectation, have the kids practice it. (I like to start off teaching an attention signal: When I flip the lights off and on, I want the students to immediately become silent. We practice this. First, I have my kids whisper to each other. I flip the lights. We do this several times and we make it a game. I time them to see how quickly they can become silent. I reward them for following my request quickly. (Class marbles can add up quickly for a fun reward such as no shoes, extra recess, etc.)

2. Be prepared

I know this sounds simple, but having extremely prepared lesson plans and materials will prevent a lot of problems in your classroom. If students are busy learning, they won't have time to be bored or misbehave.

3. Be flexible

Students have bad days, teachers are tired, there's a fire drill, and so many other variables can change our day in a second. Always have a back up plan, well - actually - several. You will need an activity you can pull out when your students are over stimulated to help them calm down. You will need an activity that focuses on social skills and can be easily adapted to cover a variety of topics such as role play, drawing our feelings while listening to music, or simply have students draw/write, "I feel..." and use the day's event as a starting point. You will also need a basic reading, writing, math, science, social studies lesson plan that can be pulled out and used at a moment's notice. I know this sounds like a lot of prep work, but it will save you so much work later on. When your lesson falls apart, or you have a student having a meltdown and you can grab a backup activity with everything you need at your fingertips, you will feel so much better yourself.

4. Treat Each Day as a New Day

You have to treat each day as a new day. I know how hard this is when you watch a student have an epic meltdown, which involves throwing and breaking everything they can reach. It's only human nature to become upset. You can hold your students accountable for their behavior, but all consequences need to occur as soon as possible. This means the student cleans up the mess they made and apologizes to classmates. It does not mean that when the student arrives the next day, you say, "I hope we don't have another problem like we did yesterday. I'm really tired to watching you throw a fit." By allowing students a fresh start each day, you are allowing them to learn from their mistakes and an opportunity to make better choices. Think about how you would feel walking into a group of people who watched you totally lose it. How would you want them to treat you? You would want to be treated with grace and forgiveness, not bitterness and anger.

5. Make a Comprehensive IEP Calendar

Special Ed teachers have a ton of paperwork. It's best to stay on top of it. At the beginning of the year, I set up my calendar and mark each student's IEP due date. Then, I mark a month before each IEP in my calendar. This gives me plenty of time to schedule the meeting, complete my testing, and prepare all my paperwork for the meeting.

6. Establish a Strong Curriculum

A good curriculum can make all of the difference in your class. I love using Reading Mastery for all levels of my students. The first level really focuses on phonics. The second level still focuses on phonics, but also works on comprehension. The third level is my favorite. It uses both fiction and nonfiction texts. It really makes students think logically and put information together to draw conclusions. When I am able to get students to a level where they are able to work independently in level three, I can start moving them back into the general education classroom for reading! Huge success!!

I also love using SRA Connecting Math Concepts. I use the first three levels. The first level begins with writing numbers correctly and counting and moves through kindergarten standards. I really love how all of the levels spiral through the skills so that students are constantly reviewing and building on skills. It really helps students master grade level skills.

I have yet to find a writing program that I love, so I decided to make my own program. I used what I have learned over my seventeen years of teaching and put all of the best parts of the different programs/trends/etc. together. Teaching students to write is hard because there are an infinite number of possibilities for students. I tried to make the writing process as concrete as possible and narrow the choices to make it easier for my students. Last year was the first year that I used my No Prep Writing Curriculum with my class and loved the progress I saw. At the end of the year, over 80% of my students were able to diagram a sentence (noun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun, prepositional phrase) and write a paragraph on a given topic. I was beyond thrilled! I can't wait to see what they do this year!

7. Focus on Positive Behavior

Be positive. Try to focus on students who are following expectations and reward them. Try to reward students four times as often as correcting their behavior. This doesn't mean you ignore all inappropriate behavior, but there are many behaviors we can ignore. A good trick is to find someone who is doing what you want and compliment them. When a student sees you compliment a peer and then changes his/her behavior, complement them too. This will increase positive behaviors in your class without you fussing at anyone. This helps create a positive working environment for everyone, staff and students.

It's the last day of school. You didn't have time to pack lunch, but everything else is ready for the perfect last day. You stand at the door and wait as anxiously as you did that first day of school. Now the kids bound into the room and hug you good morning as they chat away. You stand back and look and wonder how an entire year passed in a blink of an eye. You will make it through the day. It will be bittersweet for more reasons than you can count. After the last student leaves, you think, "Now what?" You have a million ideas of everything you want to change and improve for next year. You will make a list of at least twenty different things you want to create for your class. Pick One. Yes, only one. Pick one and make it awesome. Work on it all summer and don't feel bad if you don't get to #2 on your list. When school starts back, you will have one subject completely ready to go. Then you can focus your planning time on all of the other things you have to teach. Don't worry, you will continue working on your list next summer. Teaching is, after all, a life-long adventure!

Hang in there, my friend! You are making a difference.

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Tips and Tricks From a Special Education Teacher

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Perfect hair and dress, lunch packed, materials organized, room cleaned, and you have been standing at the door of your classroom for half an hour eagerly waiting on your students to arrive. That's right! Those kids are YOURS! They finally arrive and you start your first official day as a teacher.

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Love this article an author. One of her biggest points was color coding. I decided to add this article to this project because I color code things too! A lot of her tips were helpful and I learned a lot from reading. Inside that article contains her 27 minute video explaining in audio what she does as a special education teacher who struggles with anxiety.

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Time to be honest. We deal with a lot of paperwork.

Yep, I said it. I let our secret out.

IEPs, FIEs, BIPs, progress monitoring, data collection on IEP goals and objectives... it all requires paperwork, and that's just on a slow day.

This post may contain affiliate links.

Let's be honest again. Our job can be difficult some days.

Take out creating and differentiating the curriculum for our students. Take out the all of the meetings we attend. Take out the daily responsibilities that include duties and contracted teacher hours ( we don't really know what those are anyway... it's more of a guideline). Take out actually teaching too.

Now we can really talk.

Behind our lesson plans, a loaded classroom library, and 5 minute lunch breaks, we spend hours upon hours organizing our classrooms. We do this, not only for ourselves, but for our students.

They need the organization just as much as we do, especially when the day begins spiraling out of control at 8AM after the morning announcements.

Insert your new best friend: a color coded classroom.

Supplies that will be helpful in implementing a color-coded classroom:

So now that I have shared with you my favorite classroom supplies for color-coding my classroom ( which is a great beginner list and where I started), I want to take you inside of my classroom to show you how I organize things.

Let's start with this video I did on how to stay organized and sane as a special education teacher, with tips on how to utilize a color coded classroom:

Okay, now that you've watched the video, let me explain myself and where it all started. It all started over summer when I found a teacher's Heaven... really... in the form of organized, color coded Heaven.

In the middle of my first school year teaching self-contained, I decided to color code my classroom. Better late than never.

But boy oh boy, did Lakeshore Learning ever turn into a classroom game changer for me. And then a year or so later, I amped up my color coding with bins from Really Good Stuff.

I'm not sure what made it *click* in my mind, but once I went color-coded... well I have yet to go back actually.

It was one of the biggest game changers in my classroom over the last year... if not the absolute biggest, most positive game changer.

Each of my students has a colored bin inside of their desk. It helps keep the insides of student desks organized.

We use our desks in the morning for calendar and for iPad time.

Inside of this bin, students house their headphones, iPad tray, and possibly a chewy. Inside of their desk, each student also has a pencil box of icons for their specials schedule.

On top of their desk is the schedule and on the front board we flip a chart that tells the student what day it is. Every morning, students change out their special and tell us where they are going.

Not only does it help students take control of their learning, but it helps us ( teachers and paras) remember who goes where on what day and when.

While I do not use these often, each of my students has their own absent work folder.

If a student is absent for more than one day, I will put important skill work they are missing inside of this folder for us to complete together when they come back.

Each of my students also has a shelf bin. Inside of this are their IEP Progress Monitoring Rings, a First Then board, sight word pockets, and other random supplies.

You can find the "Monday" sequence spelling (Days of the Week) activity in the Resource Library. There is also one for months of the year too.

Not only do my students have their own color-coded desk boxes, shelf bins, work spaces, IEP goal boxes, and iPad backgrounds... I keep each student's progress data and information in a color-coded binder by my desk.

Not only does it help me visually ( I mean, I can just grab a color and know it's the correct student), but having these binders readily available helps me with impromptu, and even scheduled, meetings with parents or admin.

I wanted to show you a sneak peak inside of my [FREE] Parent Contact Binder too.

To create color-coded sections inside of my PCL, I simply laminated pieces of cardstock... which you can laminate construction paper or Astrobrights paper too.

Every time I talk to a parent, I log the information inside of this binder - or at least I try to remember to. Mostly for parent phone calls and parent meetings (since there is a record of email and ARD meetings).

This video shares a deeper look inside the Parent Contact Log and how I use it.

I know it seems super easy and like all you need to do is go buy colored bins... which is half the battle.

On the other hand, you have to implement the use of them in your classroom and teach your students their color.

I also have a specific name for each "bin," which students need to learn for following directions (i.e., "go put that in your bin" versus "go put that in your box").
How do organize "the mess" in your classroom?
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Staying Organized in SPED { Color Coded Classroom } - Mrs. D's Corner

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Time to be honest. We deal with a lot of paperwork. Yep, I said it. I let our secret out. IEPs, FIEs, BIPs, progress monitoring, data collection on IEP goals and objectives... it all requires paperwork, and that's just on a slow day. This post may contain affiliate links.

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How Teachers Can Help Students With Special Needs Navigate Distance Learning

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How Teachers Can Help Students With Special Needs Navigate Distance Learning

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I really like this website due to the fact distance learning is in full effect due to the pandemic the world is facing right now. Students need their teachers the most right now more than ever.

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How Teachers Can Help Students With Special Needs Navigate Distance Learning

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Kids with disabilities are often shortchanged by pandemic classroom conditions. Here are three tips for educators to boost their engagement and connection.

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Collaboration with Parents in the SpecialEducation Setting

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Collaboration with Parents in the SpecialEducation Setting

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This PDF that I found is interesting because it is not similar to the other articles I have been finding. IT gives actual research findings that have been made.

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Something that caught my eye was the header that said "Reflect before you react" Its very important to think before you speak!

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I like to think that I possess strong interpersonal skills. I am able to not only pick up on others' emotions and social cues, but react to them in a way that allows me to establish and maintain a good relationship. When I'm unable to do that, I feel like I've personally failed in some way.

In truth, it's unrealistic (impossible, even) to think I can win over every person I meet.

This is true for my students' parents, as well. Each August, our school hosts a "Sneak-a-Peek" event, allowing children and parents to visit their new classroom and meet their teacher. Parents often take this opportunity to introduce themselves to me, and to ask any questions prior to beginning the school year. It's a whirlwind of an hour and a half, with all new faces and names, and I've promptly forgotten every encounter as soon as everyone has left. Since parents are only focused on meeting one person (me), they tend to remember it more vividly. Same goes for "Back-to-School Night." The next time I might see my students' parents isn't until November at parent-teacher conferences. A lot can happen in that time.

"Forget public speaking; the scariest thing for me is when parents have no questions at Back-to-School Night."

Teachers use the term "difficult parents" to describe many different types of parents.

Sometimes someone who advocates for their child might seem demanding when they only want the best for their son or daughter. Other times, a parent who isn't involved in their child's education can make helping that student difficult. Personally, my biggest concern is the parent who doesn't share her concerns with me until well into the school year. Forget public speaking; the scariest thing for me is when parents have no questions at Back-to-School Night. There is no way I've covered absolutely everything, so I can only imagine what conclusions they've come to before I'm even finished speaking.

Open communication is your first line of defense.

One thing I've learned in the dozen years that I've been teaching is that you can never communicate too much with your students' parents. And while communication alone is not enough to win over difficult parents, it is your first defense in establishing a good working relationship.

"One thing I've learned in the dozen years that I've been teaching is that you can never communicate too much with your students' parents."

I use an online communication tool to send out up-to-date information about curriculum and classroom events as well as to set up Parent Conferences. It allows me to have private messages with parents, and even shows me who has seen my announcements. If your students' families don't have internet access, hard copy newsletters are still the best way to share information. Many teachers personally call their students' families to check in. No matter how you do it, you should do it regularly so parents feel in the loop.

Clarity is key.

In my time as a special education teacher, I learned quickly that although I knew the information I wanted to convey, I'd find out later that I wasn't always as clear as I thought. Special education terminology is notorious for its acronyms, and in trying to be efficient in some very long meetings, I would use some abbreviations. Parents often wouldn't ask questions for fear of looking foolish or uninformed. I realized soon enough that I need to word things in a variety of ways to ensure that my message is clear.

Reflect before you react.

When things don't go as planned, the best thing to do is pause to reflect on your next course of action. Being reactionary only serves to heighten the tension, and possibly make the situation worse.

Ask a teammate if they've ever dealt with a similar situation to see if their solution would work for you, too. Seek out the child's previous teachers to ask how they handled interactions with this particular parent. Meet with your principal for advice, and maybe even have her attend a meeting with the parent to help clear up any misconceptions. And when you do meet with parents, be kind. Take time to listen. You don't know what challenges they might be dealing with that could have led them to this situation.

"And when you do meet with parents, be kind. Take time to listen. You don't know what challenges they might be dealing with that could have led them to this situation."

People are complicated. We can't expect to win over every parent, and placing blame does nothing to serve the students we're charged with educating. Forming good working relationships with parents is imperative in helping your students be successful.

Want to read more from this author? Check out Amy's tips on making your first year of teaching a successful one, building a positive classroom community, or learn what special education teachers wish "regular" education teachers knew.

Author Bio:

Amy McKinney, M.Ed., is a third grade teacher in Pennsylvania. She has been teaching for eleven years, eight of them in special education. Her experience working with students with special needs has helped form her philosophy on teaching and collaborating with her colleagues. Follow her on Instagram: @theuniqueclassroom.

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I like to think that I possess strong interpersonal skills. I am able to not only pick up on others' emotions and social cues, but react to them in a way that allows me to establish and maintain a good relationship. When I'm unable to do that, I feel like I've personally failed in some way.

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How to deal with aggression in Special needs children?

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How to deal with aggression in Special needs children?

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I thought it would be smart to add an article that takes a different outlook on this topic... Aggressive special need students.

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Starlit Services - Shadow Teachers & Special Educators

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Children with special needs are different, so is their medium of expression. We are all aggressive in some ways - it's only human. But the manifestation of aggression in special needs populations in itself brings an altogether different set of problems.

Aggression in special needs children differs in its strength depending upon the child's concerns. But regardless of its severity, it is always a difficult emotion to handle.
In children, the way in which they express their anger mainly depends on their developmental age. Here, we differentiate between very young children ( 3 - 6 years), young children ( 6 - 11 years) and adolescents (12 - 16 years).
We then discuss the causes and strategies to help tackle this problematic emotion in each of these age groups.

Identify the roots and triggers of aggression

Sudden changes in your child's behavior will always have some causes. If your little one has been acting unruly or has been having frequent anger outbursts lately, it is a red flag. No, freaking out is not the first thing to do. You should dig up and look for the specific triggers and changes that the child is going through.

Aggression in special needs children, or children in general, could simply be a natural process of growing up. Many things around kids change as their age multiplies. These changes may include:

Physical changes:
Changes within the body, hormonal or physical. these can sometimes be a significant source of stress. Remember how painful it used to be when our milk teeth used to fall off?

Social changes:
Changes in a child's peer relationships, in their academics, in their understanding of things may pool up to be overwhelming and lead to frustration.

Environmental changes:
Modifications in their classroom setting as they pass out from one grade to another can get extremely difficult for the child to adapt to. Knowing that their favorite teacher will no longer be teaching them or that their friend is in another division, may lead to an outburst.

For special needs children, even a minor change can bring immense dissatisfaction if they are not able to verbally express how they feel about the change. Knowing that they can no longer fit into their favorite night suit can also be a potential trigger.
Such kids are especially sensitive to changes in parent and peer relationships.
Therefore, it is important for parents and caregivers to be sensitive to their needs at such times.

Other common causes of aggression in special needs children include:

1.Communication issues, sensory problems, frustration or just not getting what one wants.
2.Aggression could also be a result of built up emotion and resentment in kids.
3.Children may also act out in aggressive ways only to seek attention.
4.Low self esteem or low confidence.
5. Passive aggression:
This includes subtle forms of aggression. When your child is acting stubborn, or regularly exhibits resistance to your requests or demands, s(he) may be expressing passive aggression. Technically, it is when your child finds an outlet to their built up emotions in acting out to you.

Strategies to deal with aggression and unruly behavior

For very young children (3 - 6 years old)

Caution: For children so young, DO NOT use any coercive methods. Yelling at the child or punishing him for being aggressive will only enrage him further. Threats and abusive language at this age can settle into the child's mind and aggravate his/her problems.

Behavior modification techniques:

Methods we use to gradually work on the child's specific aggressive behaviors. These techniques are the most effective with children so young.

Positive reinforcements -

Which means rewarding them for an appropriate behavior. These immediate rewards help a great deal. So if your child loves music, tell him, " If you do not hit others in class, I will give you 5 minutes of music time". This will motivate him to get the reward and not engage in hitting behavior.

Token Economy techniques -

Token economy for dealing with aggression in special needs children is to develop a relatively long term plan with the child. Once s(he) learns ways to work with their anger on an immediate basis, the child is asked to continue trying to control his/her anger outbursts for say, a week to get a reward. Tokens given throughout the week for specific instances of anger control could be anything, from sticker stars to smileys. The idea is, if the child manages to collect all the tokens, s(he) will be rewarded with the desirable reward at the end of the week.

However, such token economy techniques should be used with necessary cautions. Use of behavior modification charts will help the child understand the idea easily. Giving the promised rewards on time is equally essential. This will get the child to develop faith in your system. Remember to wean the rewards off once the behavior is learnt.

In summary, first make the child understand that a particular act/behavior s(he) does when angry is wrong. Next, help the child learn an alternative way to channelize their resentment. Example, point to a sad smiley instead of crying out loud or squishing a sponge ball.
Tell the child 'what to do' instead of only telling them 'what not to do'. So when telling them to not run out of the class midway, tell them that sitting in class and paying attention is what needs to be done. Reward them for the same to have them do it continuously till it becomes a habit.

For Young Children ( 6 - 11 years old):

Caution: Understand that this is the age where most things change, both within the child and in the environment. It is at this age that aggressive outbursts or tantrums in children are most common. Not traumatizing the child by being too harsh (physically or verbally) is of utmost importance. Remember, children never learn from people they don't like.

Understand the triggers -

Most special needs children are sensitive to something or the other. Sensitivity to loud noises, screams, bright colors or even the clicking of a pen could provoke the child. Just about anything could be a potential trigger for their aggression. Understanding what causes the outbursts and work to move them away from the child.

Root causes -

If the child acts out aggressively in response to low self esteem, for example, tackling the issue of low esteem will ultimately reduce aggression levels. Parents could better be able to point out such root concerns. There could be causes deeply entrenched in the kid to which s(he) may respond by being stubborn because they don't know how to handle those. Observation will tell you what is it that needs to be resolved first.

Take another example: If the child was locked up in a dark room alone when young, there are chances that s(he) will become deeply fearful to being alone in a closed space. So the next time the child is left all by himself in a room, s(he) may become so anxious that s(he) starts yelling and crying and kicking things around.
Aggression, here, will disperse as soon as the child is helped to deal with the fearful memory.

Testing -

Aggression, as a trait, could also be inherited or genetic. A special needs child could have a co-morbid hyper-aggression, mood disorders, IED, impulsiveness etc. Getting a child clinically evaluated to identify these co-occurring conditions will help you deal better with their aggressive tendencies. Getting therapy and professional counseling services helps a great deal.

Physical activities -

Image via Google

Behavior modification techniques (discussed above) can also be used with children in this age group. Along with them, since kids here are older, one could also use calming meditative and physical exercises to burn off their bubbling energy.
Traditional yoga and meditation is sometimes boring to us as well, admit it. This is why, you need to get your thinking caps on and make them interesting for your child.

There are a number of YouTube channels that may help. Art therapy activities, story yoga routines etc. can all get you child moving without them even realizing that they're exercising. Do a bit of internet surfing and you can pick and choose what suits your little one's needs.

For adolescents (12 - 16 years old)

Caution: Kids in this age group are no more 'kids'. They understand that there is something 'different' in them. Aggression in such older children could simply be a result of this understanding. People look at them differently, they need to go for several therapy sessions unlike their friends etc. can all create a feeling of inadequacy in their self perception. Therapy and remedial sessions catering to their specific needs are crucial. But do not make your adolescent feel like s(he) is 'less' than others. Treat them like any other child, do not be too harsh with them and let them grow at their own pace.

Conditioning -

Along with Behavior Modification, Token Economy and Reinforcements, Conditioning can particularly help. Technically, conditioning is pairing up a neutral stimulus with another stimulus repeatedly so the neutral stimulus itself becomes capable of eliciting a response. POOF! Too complicated.

Take an example: Make a red flag and a green flag. Every time your child starts hitting and shouting out of his temper, show him the red flag immediately. The red flag signifies that the behavior is wrong. Over time, your child will associate the red flag with unwanted actions and will calm down soon as he sees the flag. Thus, the red flag can then be used right away when you notice him starting to bubble up out of anger, signaling him to relax and not act out.

Pair this up with desired reinforcements for the child to feel appreciated to not act out.

Expressive strategies -

Art and play therapy are effective mediums of self expression.
Every color has a different effect and meaning. Explain it to your child, give him a black sheet of paper and ask him to paint his emotions. Or to paint his strengths and weakness, a perfect day, or just let it flow. This can provide an effective way to vent his emotions out. They will use all the black and brown shades on days they're angry. And all warm colors like yellow, red when they are happy.

Image via Google

Play therapy techniques, like writing up a bad memory on an air balloon and letting it go, also provide a channel for letting suppressed feelings out. Of course, for children with special needs, it is important to first have them understand the logic and idea behind such techniques for them to be effective.

Conclusion

Aggression in special needs children is critical. Dealing with it is all the more difficult. But it is extremely vital to tackle it. For our ultimate goal, usually, is to make the child functional and independent. Aggression, if it is a learnt behavior, is surely treatable. If it is a condition in itself, professional treatment therapies should be brought into practice.

We, at Starlit Ability Enhancement Services, use these techniques and many other ways to help special needs kids deal effectively with their concerns. To know more about our services, visit www.starlitservices.com or call +91-9167240056

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How to deal with aggression in Special needs children?

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Children with special needs are different, so is their medium of expression. We are all aggressive in some ways - it's only human. But the manifestation of aggression in special needs populations in itself brings an altogether different set of problems. Aggression in special needs children differs in its strength depending upon the child's concerns.

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How to Teach Social Skills, Step by Step

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How to Teach Social Skills, Step by Step

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Big fan of this article because there is no confusing parts to it!! It allows you to read literally step by step and gives great explanation.

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Seating students together is not enough to ensure teamwork. Many kids have very little idea how to interact appropriately with their classmates. They simply lack the social skills needed to perform the most basic cooperative learning tasks. Lack of social skills is probably the biggest factor contributing to lack of academic success in teams. Fortunately, social skills can be taught just like academic skills. If you use a systematic approach like the one described below, you'll find that your students CAN learn how to interact appropriately and become productive team members.

Listen to the Podcast: How to Teach Social Skills for Working Together
For more information about how to teach social skills, listen to Episode 7 of my Inspired Teaching Made Easy podcast below.

Six Step Process for Teaching Social Skills

1. Discuss the Need for Social Skills
Before you can help students improve their social skills, they need to understand why these skills are important. You might begin by asking your students to think about problems they may have experienced when working in groups, such as team members not listening to each other or not taking turns. Explain that most of these problems are caused by poor "social skills," sometimes known as "people skills." You might even mention that sometimes adults need to work on their social skills, too! Brainstorm a list of social skills that might make it easier for students to work together in teams. If they can't think of any social skills for working together, share some of the suggestions from the list below.

2. Select a Social Skill
Even though your students may need to work on several different social skills, it's best to focus on just one skill at a time. You can start with the skill you feel is most important, or you can let your class decide which skill they need to work on at a given time. I like to start with "Praising," which might also be stated as "Showing Appreciation," because when kids master this skill, all of the other skills are easier to learn.

3. Teach the Social Skill
Step 3 is to teach the skill explicitly so that your students know exactly what to do and what to say in order to master the social skill. For this part of the lesson, you can use the Working Together Skills T-chart below by projecting it on a whiteboard or drawing it on anchor chart paper.

Write the name of the social skill in the box at the top of the Working Together Skills chart. Then ask your students to help you brainstorm what they might do and what they might say when demonstrating the social skill. Write what they might DO under the Looks Like heading because this is what the skill looks like when it is demonstrated. Write the words they might SAY under the Sounds Like heading because this is what the skill might sound like to someone who is observing the activity.

Examples for the social skill of Praising:
Looks Like: Thumbs up, Clapping, Smiling
Sounds Like: Terrific! I knew you could do it! Way to go! I like the way you...

4. Practice the Skill
After you complete the Working Together Skills chart with your students, it's important to have them practice the skill right away by participating in a structured cooperative learning activity. For example, if you taught Active Listening as the social skill, you might follow up with a team discussion activity in which students take turns answering questions or sharing ideas around the team. Here a a few suggestions for cooperative learning structures you can use to practice specific social skills:
Social Skills and Cooperative Learning Structures

Active Listening

Roundrobin, Think-Pair-Share, Mix-Freeze-Pair

Praising

Rallytable, Roundtable, Pairs Check, Showdown

Taking Turns

Rallytable, Pairs Check, Roundtable

Using Quiet Voices

Think-Pair-Share, Numbered Heads Together, Showdown

Staying on Task

Rallytable, Roundtable, Pairs Check, Showdown, Mix-N-Match

Helping or Coaching

Rallytable, Pairs Check, Showdown, Mix-N-Match

Using Names

Mix-N-Match, Mix-Freeze-Pair, Showdown

* For more information about these cooperative learning structures, check out Dr. Spencer Kagan's book, Cooperative Learning.

5. Pause and Reflect
Sometime during the practice activity, use an attention signal to stop the class. Ask them to think about how they've been using the social skill. If you have observed teams or individuals doing a good job with the skill, share your observations with the class. Challenge students to continue to work on their use of the social skill as they complete the activity. Refer to your Working Together Skills T-chart if students have forgotten what the skill Looks Like and Sounds Like.

6. Review and Reflect
At the end of the activity, reflect again on how well the social skills were used. Take a few minutes to discuss the positive interactions that were happening, and aspects of the social skill that still need work. This is a also a perfect opportunity for personal journal writing and reflections. Consider these writing prompts:

How well was the social skill being used on your team? What specific examples do you remember?

How did you personally use the social skill? What did you do and/or say? To whom?

How might you improve in using this skill next time?

By the way, it's not necessary to follow all six steps every time you teach a new social skill. The most important elements are explicitly teaching of the skill and immediately following the instruction with a cooperative activity to practice the skill. The reflection steps are important and should be included as often as possible, too.

Modification for Younger Students
Younger students or special needs students could benefit from watching an excellent video created by Model Me Kids called Time for School. This video shows students exactly how to perform specific social skills. Even if you don't use the video with your students, you might be interested in viewing it yourself to see how social skills can be broken down into steps and taught. If the video is appropriate for your students, they could watch it before completing the Working Together Skills chart above.

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How to Teach Social Skills, Step by Step

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Seating students together is not enough to ensure teamwork. Many kids have very little idea how to interact appropriately with their classmates. They simply lack the social skills needed to perform the most basic cooperative learning tasks.

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9 Ways to Teach Social Skills in Your Classroom

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9 Ways to Teach Social Skills in Your Classroom

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I have linked this same website, but different articles in this project! Great website and gets to the core issue of the topic that we are talking about. I also love this article because is mentioned Pen-Pals. This is something that I did when I was in elementary school, we used to write letters to our pen pals, until one day we got to meet them on a picnic!

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Research and experience has told us that having social skills is essential for success in life. Inclusive teachers have always taught, provided and reinforced the use of good social skills in order to include and accommodate for the wide range of students in the classroom.

Essentially, inclusive classrooms are representations of the real world where people of all backgrounds and abilities co-exsist. In fact, there are school disctricts with curriculum specifically for social and emotional development.

Here are some ways in which you can create a more inclusive classroom and support social skill development in your students:

1. Model manners

If you expect your students to learn and display good social skills, then you need to lead by example. A teacher's welcoming and positive attitude sets the tone of behaivor between the students. They learn how to intereact with one another and value individuals. For example, teachers who expect students to use "inside voices" shouldn't be yelling at the class to get their attention. In other words, practice what you preach.

2. Assign classroom jobs

Assigning classroom jobs to students provides opportunties to demonstrate responsibility, teamwork and leadership. Jobs such as handing out papers, taking attendance, and being a line-leader can highlight a student's strengths and in turn, build confidence. It also helps alleviate your workload! Teachers often rotate class jobs on a weekly or monthly basis, ensuring that every student has an opportunity to participate. Check out this list of classroom jobs for some ideas!

3. Role-play social situations

As any teacher knows, it's important to not only teach the students a concept or lesson but then give them a chance to practice what they have learned. For example, if we teach students how to multiply, then we often provide a worksheet or activity for the students to show us their understanding of mulitiplication. The same holds true for teaching social skills. We need to provide students with opportunities to learn and practice their social skills. An effective method of practice is through role-playing. Teachers can provide structured scenarios in which the students can act out and offer immediate feedback. For more information on how to set-up and support effective role-playing in your classroom have a look at this resource from Learn Alberta.

4. Pen-pals

For years, I arranged for my students to become pen-pals with kids from another school. This activity was a favorite of mine on many different academic levels; most importantly it taught students how to demonstrate social skills through written communication. Particularly valuable for introverted personalities, writing letters gave students time to collect their thoughts. It levelled the playing field for students who had special needs or were non-verbal. I was also able to provide structured sentence frames in which the kids held polite conversation with their pen-pal. Setting up a pen-pal program in your classroom takes some preparation before the letter writing begins. You want to ensure that students have guidelines for content and personal safety. This article, Pen Pals in the 21st Century, from Edutopia will give you some ideas!

5. Large and small group activities

In addition to the academic benefits, large and small group activities can give students an opportunity to develop social skills such as teamwork, goal-setting and responsibility. Students are often assigned roles to uphold within the group such as Reporter, Scribe, or Time-Keeper. Sometimes these groups are self-determined and sometimes they are pre-arranged. Used selectively, group work can also help quieter students connect with others, appeals to extroverts, and reinforces respectful behavior. Examples of large group activities are group discussions, group projects and games. Smaller group activities can be used for more detailed assignments or activities. For suggestions on how to use grouping within your classroom, check out this article, Instructional Grouping in the Classroom.

6. Big buddies

We know that learning to interact with peers is a very important social skill. It is just as important to learn how to interact with others who may be younger or older. The Big Buddy system is a great way for students to learn how to communicate with and respect different age groups. Often an older class will pair up with a younger class for an art project, reading time or games. Again, this type of activity needs to be pre-planned and carefully designed with student's strengths and interests in mind. Usually, classroom teachers meet ahead of time to create pairings of students and to prepare a structured activity. There is also time set aside for the teacher to set guidelines for interaction and ideas for conversation topics. Entire schools have also implemented buddy programs to enrich their student's lives. Here is an article that offers tips on how to start a reading buddy program.

7. Class stories

There are dozens of stories for kids that teach social skills in direct or inadvertant ways. Find strategies to incoporate these stories in your class programs. You can set aside some time each day to read-aloud a story to the entire class or use a story to teach a lesson. Better yet, have your class write their own stories with characters who display certain character traits.

8. Class meeting

Class Meetings are a wonderful way to teach students how to be diplomatic, show leadership, solve problems and take responsibility. They are usually held weekly and are a time for students to discuss current classroom events and issues. Successful and productive meetings involve discussions centered around classroom concerns and not individual problems. In addition, it reinforces the value that each person brings to the class. Before a class meeting, teachers can provide the students with group guidelines for behavior, prompts, and sentence frames to facilitate meaningful conversation. Here is a great article, Class Meetings: A Democratic Approach to Classroom Management, from Education World that describes the purpose and attributes of a class meeting.

9. Explicit instruction

Finally, teachers can carve out a time in their curriculum to directly teach social skills to their students. Research-based programs such as Second Step provide teachers and schools with explicit lessons for social development. These programs can provide schools and classrooms with a common language, set of behavior expectations, and goals for the future. I have used programs such as Second Step in my classrooms with much success!

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9 Ways to Teach Social Skills in Your Classroom

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Research and experience has told us that having social skills is essential for success in life. Inclusive teachers have always taught, provided and reinforced the use of good social skills in order to include and accommodate for the wide range of students in the classroom.

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This article is great including 7 of the main parts of social skills. I really like how they give a kid friendly diagram in the middle of the article.

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Good social skills allow kids to enjoy better peer relationships. But the benefits of robust social skills reach far beyond social acceptance. Children with better social skills are likely to reap immediate benefits. For example, one study found that good social skills may reduce stress in children who are in daycare settings.﻿﻿

Social skills are a set of skills that need ongoing refinement as your kids get older. They aren't something your child either has or doesn't have. Look for teachable moments where you can help your kids do better. In fact, some social skills are quite complicated-like understanding it's important to be assertive when a friend is being bullied, or understanding staying silent when you don't agree with a call from the umpire.

Meanwhile, kids who have strong social skills and can get along well with peers are likely to make friends more easily. In fact, a study published in the International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences, indicates that childhood friendships are good for kids' mental health.﻿﻿

Good social skills also can help kids have a brighter future. According to a study published in the American Journal of Public Health, a child's social and emotional skills in kindergarten might be the biggest predictor of success in adulthood.﻿﻿

Researchers from Penn State and Duke University found that children who were better at sharing, listening, cooperating, and following the rules at age five were more likely to go to college. They also were more likely to be employed full-time by age 25.

Children who lacked social and emotional skills were more likely to have substance abuse issues, relationship issues, and legal trouble. They were also more likely to depend on public assistance.

Likewise, not having the social skills to interact with others likely compounds that stress. For instance, being away from family places stress on children. And, when they are unable to communicate effectively with others, it only gets worse. But, researchers have found that children experienced a decrease in cortisol, a hormone released during stressful situations, once they learned new social skills.﻿﻿

The good news is that social skills can be taught. It's never too soon to start showing kids how to get along with others. And it's never too late to sharpen their skills either. Start with the most basic social skills first and keep sharpening your child's skills over time. Here are the most important social skills for kids to learn and how you can help teach them.

A willingness to share a snack or share a toy can go a long way to helping kids make and keep friends. According to a study published in Psychological Science, children as young as age two may show a desire to share with others-but usually only when their resources are abundant.﻿﻿

However, children between the ages of three and six are often selfish when it comes to sharing resources that come at a cost. For example, children with only one cookie might be reluctant to share half with a friend because it means they'll have less to enjoy. On the other hand, those same children might readily share a toy that they're no longer interested in playing with.

Overall, studies show children who feel good about themselves are more likely to share. Sharing also makes them feel good about themselves. So teaching them to share may be key to boosting their self-esteem.

How to Practice

While you may not want to force your child to share certain toys or with certain children, you can regularly point out sharing when you see it. Praise your child for sharing and indicate how it makes others feel. Say something like, "You chose to share your snack with your sister. I bet she feels happy about that. That's a nice thing to do."

Cooperating

Cooperating means working together to achieve a common goal. Kids who cooperate are respectful when others make requests. They also contribute, participate, and help out.

Good cooperation skills are essential for successfully getting along within a community. Your child will need to cooperate with classmates on the playground as well as in the classroom. Cooperation is important as an adult, too. Most work environments thrive on employees' ability to work together as a team. Cooperation is key in romantic relationships as well.

By about age three and a half, young children can begin to work with their peers on a common goal. For children, cooperation may involve anything from building a toy tower together to playing a game that requires everyone to participate. Some may take a leadership position while others will feel more comfortable following instructions. Either way, cooperation is a great opportunity for kids to learn more about themselves.

How to Practice

Talk about the importance of teamwork and how jobs are better when everyone pitches in. Create opportunities for the whole family to work together. Whether you assign everyone a specific job when you're making a meal or you assign specific chores that are integral to the family, emphasize the importance of cooperation.

Listening isn't just about staying quiet-it means really absorbing what someone else is saying. Listening also is a critical component of healthy communication. After all, much of the learning in school depends on a child's ability to listen to what the teacher is saying. Absorbing the material, taking notes, and thinking about what is being said becomes even more important as your child advances academically.

It's essential that your child grows up knowing how to listen to the boss, a romantic partner, and friends. This skill may be an even more difficult skill to master in the age of digital devices because so many people tend to stare at their smartphones when they're engaged in conversation.

How to Practice

When reading a book to your children, periodically stop and ask them to tell you about what you're reading. Pause and say, "Tell me what you remember about the story so far." Help them fill in any gaps they're missing and encourage them to keep listening as you continue. Additionally, don't allow them to interrupt others when they're talking.

Following Directions

Kids who struggle to follow directions are likely to experience a variety of consequences. From having to redo their homework assignments to getting in trouble for misbehavior, not following directions can be a big problem.

Whether you instruct your children to clean their rooms or you're telling them how to improve their soccer skills, it's important for kids to be able to take direction-and follow instructions.

For example, don't give a young child more than one direction at a time. Instead of saying, "Pick up your shoes, put your books away, and wash your hands," wait until the shoes are picked up before giving the next command.

Another mistake to avoid is phrasing your directions as a question. Asking, "Would you please pick up your toys now?" implies that your kids have the option to say no. Once you've given your children directions, ask them to repeat back what you said. Ask, "What are you supposed to do now?" and wait for them to explain what they heard you say.

It's normal for young kids to get distracted, behave impulsively, or forget what they're supposed to do. View each mistake as an opportunity to help them sharpen their skills.

How to Practice

Praise your child for following directions by saying things like, "Thank you for turning off the TV the first time I told you to." If your children struggle to follow directions, give them opportunities to practice following simple commands. Say things like, "Please pass that book to me," and then provide immediate praise for following directions.

Respecting Personal Space

Some kids are close talkers. Others crawl into the laps of acquaintances without any idea that the other individual feels uncomfortable. It's important to teach kids how to respect other people's personal space.

Create household rules that encourage kids to respect other people's personal space. "Knock on closed doors," and "Keep your hands to yourself," are just a few examples.

If your child grabs things out of people's hands or pushes when impatient, establish consequences. If your child climbs into the laps of acquaintances or stands too close to people while talking, use it as a teachable moment. Take your child aside and provide some coaching about personal space issues.

How to Practice

Teach your children to stand about an arm's length away from people when they're talking. When they're standing in line, talk about how close to be to the person in front of them and talk about keeping their hands to themself. You might role-play various scenarios to help them practice describing appropriate personal space.

Making Eye Contact

Good eye contact is an important part of communication. Some kids struggle to look at the person they're speaking to. Whether your child is shy and prefers to stare at the floor or simply won't look up when engrossed in another activity, emphasize the importance of good eye contact.

If your child struggles with eye contact, offer quick reminders after the fact. In a gentle voice, ask, "Where should your eyes go when someone is talking to you?" You don't want to cause a shy child additional anxiety. And, provide praise when your child remembers to look at people when they're talking.

How to Practice

You might even show your children how it feels to hold a conversation with someone who isn't making eye contact. Ask them to share a story while you stare at the ground, close your eyes, or look everywhere except for at them. Then, invite them to tell another story and make appropriate eye contact while they're talking. Afterward, discuss how it felt in each scenario.

Using Manners

Saying please and thank you and using good table manners can go a long way toward helping your child gain attention for the right reasons. Teachers, other parents, and other kids will respect a well-mannered child.

Of course, teaching manners can feel like an uphill battle sometimes. From burping loudly at the table to acting ungratefully, all kids will let their manners go out the window sometimes.

How to Practice

Be a good role model with your manners. That means saying, "No, thank you," and "Yes, please," to your child on a regular basis. And make sure to use your manners when you're interacting with other people. Offer reminders when your children forget to use manners and praise them when you catch them being polite.

A Word From Verywell

If your child seems to be struggling with social skills more than other kids, talk to your pediatrician. While it may just take a little extra reinforcement and maturity to catch up, a lack of social skills also can be a sign of other problems. Children with mental health issues, like ADHD or autism, may be behind socially. A physician can assess your child and determine whether treatment is needed to improve social skills.

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7 Social Skills You Should Start Teaching Your Child Now

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Good social skills allow kids to enjoy better peer relationships. But the benefits of robust social skills reach far beyond social acceptance. Children with better social skills are likely to reap immediate benefits.

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Social Skills Resources for Online Learning

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Social Skills Resources for Online Learning

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This article pairs great for what is happening in the world right now! This PDF file contains applications, strategies, and links to so many helpful resources for online learning.

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An overview of a colorful interesting article to read. This link also gives you a video choice if you do not feel like reading the article, you can just listen!

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Anyone can use video modeling. The parties who most often use social skills videos, though, include:

Special educators & Diverse Learning Professionals: Teachers of children with disabilities, attention deficiencies, and other special needs can use these video lessons to impart essential social skills. These videos can help educators and their students immensely by building and improving critical skills, like communication and problem-solving.

School teachers: Teachers with students in kindergarten, elementary, middle, or even high school can use our courses to teach students social skills and prepare them for various social interactions.

Parents: Parents looking to teach their kids social-emotional life skill lessons at home or after school can use these videos too.

Private practices: A private practice or after-school program can also use these social-emotional life-skill video lessons to teach children various social skills

If you're a teacher or school based professional, Everyday Speech created these videos with you in mind.

Whether you're teaching students in kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, high school, or special needs classes, you'll find these top-notch video modeling courses useful. They'll help you save time by providing you with a pre-made lesson plan, and everything you need for a no-prep lesson, including companion worksheets and printable visuals.

These social-emotional learning videos can also give you the confidence that you're providing your students with a foundation for lifelong success.

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Anyone can use video modeling. The parties who most often use social skills videos, though, include: Special educators & Diverse Learning Professionals: Teachers of children with disabilities, attention deficiencies, and other special needs can use these video lessons to impart essential social skills.

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This is so cool! It reminds me of the bit-moji classrooms. An engaging online game to teach social skills to children experiencing social-behavioral problems.

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Online social skills training game for children with social-behavioral problems | 3C Institute

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An engaging online game to teach social skills to children ages 7-12 who experience social-behavioral problems...

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SEL Lessons and Activities for the Virtual Classroom

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SEL Lessons and Activities for the Virtual Classroom

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This blog had a great idea of keeping a social- emotional learning journal. Encouraging students to write things down when good, or even bad things happen within their life could help them from eliminating situations.

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Social emotional learning is playing a huge role this school year. Of course, SEL is important all of the time, but right now kids and young adults are in special need of support. In order for kids and teens to succeed academically, they also need skills for understanding emotions, problem-solving, conflict resolution, and persevering through challenges. These are just a few small examples of social emotional skills that we use every day.

If you're unsure about what SEL is, it might be helpful to read about social emotional learning and what the five core domains are!

With all of that said, it's important for educators to have access to digital social emotional learning lessons and activities. I've put together this list with resources to help educators get started.

Besides some of my favorite and most popular paid digital SEL resources, I've listed free materials as well. As someone who taught 10 years in the classroom myself, I understand that resources are limited. Free materials are also a great way to test out an activity before making the purchase.

One more note that all materials include digital and print activities to allow you to meet the needs of your students and whatever the year brings you.

DIGITAL SEL RESOURCES
Social Emotional Learning Journal
This social emotional learning journal is a yearlong journal to target SEL skills from self-awareness to decision-making. The idea is simple: just assign one section per day to cover social emotional learning throughout the entire school year. It covers critical topics like friendships, empathy, values, self-control, and a lot more.
Social Emotional Learning Digital Workbook
This SEL digital workbook is a fun online tool to teach social emotional learning skills from A-Z. It includes 40 mini-lessons on various SEL topics, giving kids and teens practice with those skills in a digital way. The activities even use moveable pieces in Google Slides, making the lessons interactive and fun!

I get asked about this one a lot, so here's a video!
Mindful Breathing Cards
Help kid and young adults learn skills for mindfulness with mindful breathing cards. Practicing mindfulness with deep breathing can be a simple, fun, and effective way to work on self-regulation skills. These breathing activities are also memorable and fun, which means students will be able to use them when they really need them most.
SEL Complete Curriculum
This complete social emotional learning curriculum has everything an educator needs to teach SEL for the entire year. It includes five units targeting the core domains of SEL: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationships, and decision-making. Updates were recently added to allow kids and teens access to a completely digital student workbook.
SEL Daily Prompts
One simple way to integrate social emotional learning is with SEL daily prompts. These questions give one meaningful prompt each day to help teach and practice social emotional skills. A student journal is included, allowing kids and teens a space to share their thoughts before moving on.
SEL Choice Boards
Make learning SEL a little bit more fun with social emotional learning choice boards. These boards cover important SEL topics in a fun and unique way. Each board includes 9 activities to target each SEL skill. You can choose to assign all 9 activities or let kids choose their favorite for the week. This can be a homework assignment or extra for early finishers.
Coping Strategies Menu
Help kids and young adults determine which coping skills are best for them with an interactive coping strategies menu. In order to effectively manage emotions, kids and young adults need to practice coping strategies before they are overwhelmed. This activity can help open the door to working on skills to help kids develop stronger self-regulation skills.
Mindfulness Journal
Help integrate mindfulness with a daily mindfulness journal. Another yearlong journal, this activity provides practice using senses, visualizations, gratitude, mindful puzzles, and more.
Social Emotional Learning Digital Workbook
This social emotional digital workbook is a helpful tool to teach SEL skills in a fun and interactive way. It includes step-by-step and guided practice on 25 unique social emotional learning topics from empathy to problem-solving. Digital moveable pieces are included to help make this activity more fun and engaging for younger learners.

FREE DIGITAL SEL RESOURCES
Mindfulness Morning Check-In
This mindfulness morning check-in is a free daily quick activity to encourage learners to start the day in a more mindful way. It includes 5 activities: taking deep breaths, using senses, practicing gratitude, using positive self-talk, and identifying something to look forward to.
Perspective-Taking Lessons
Use perspective-taking lessons to introduce the idea that we all think differently, and that's perfectly okay.
SEL Journal
Grab a free week of this social emotional learning journal to help kids learn about their individual strengths and challenges. This is a helpful introduction to self-awareness while testing out this yearlong SEL Journal.
SEL Choice Board Activities
These SEL choice board activities teach about managing emotions, strengths and challenges, responsibility, and more. This free set includes a total of 36 activities targeting social emotional skills.
Positive Thinking Affirmation Activity
Start the day with positive thinking affirmations to boost confidence and morale. Students can make their own positive self-talk list using the statements to read when they are stressed, upset, or just to start the day in a positive way.
Social Problem-Solving Task Cards
This social problem-solving task cards set has been turned digital to help kids and young adults learn strategies for problem-solving in all elements of life.
Coping Strategies Challenge
Use a 30-day coping strategies challenge to help kid and teens learn a variety of coping skills they can use in their life. Let students choose activities or select them and complete together!
Read Aloud List for Social Emotional Learning
Use this SEL read aloud list to select books that teach critical SEL skills. It includes a list of various read alouds that target skills like confidence, empathy, growth mindset, goals, self-control, study habits, and more.
Coping Strategies Notebook
Use this free coping strategies notebook to help kids and teens create their own individualized list of coping skills that work for them.

I hope this list has been helpful to you. It truly is filled with lessons and activities I wish I had years ago.

I'm always in the process of adding new digital resources to support social emotional learning. If there is a lesson you'd like to see, let me know!

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SEL Lessons and Activities for the Virtual Classroom

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Social emotional learning is playing a huge role this school year. Of course, SEL is important all of the time, but right now kids and young adults are in special need of support. In order for kids and teens to succeed academically, they also need skills for understanding emotions, problem-solving,

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Practicing Social Skills: How to Teach Your Student Social Interactions

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Practicing Social Skills: How to Teach Your Student Social Interactions

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This article provides a table within, the categories of the table are skill set, used for, and examples of when it happens. I really think the table is beneficial to read.

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By: National Center for Technology Innovation and Center for Implementing Technology in Education (CITEd)

If you ask someone how they learned to read nonverbal cues in everyday conversations, they may reply that they learned these things through observing the interactions of family and friends; many people may reply that they aren't quite sure how they know that a certain expression means a friend is bored or annoyed — they just know. This is because for most people, the skills needed for social interaction come 'naturally' during the process of growth and development. However, for many individuals this process may not be so effortless and direct social skills instruction may be necessary (Canney and Byrne, 2006; DeGeorge, 1998).

Students who may benefit from social instruction

While many students — both those with and without disabilities — may struggle with reading nonverbal cues and engaging in social interactions, certain individuals are more likely than their peers to have difficulty with these interactions (Canney and Byrne, 2006; DeGeorge, 1998; Elksnin and Elksnin, 2000; Fussell, Macias and Saylor, 2005; Parsons, Leonard and Mitchell, 2006):

Students at risk for school failure;

Students with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD);

Students with learning disabilities (LD), particularly those with nonverbal learning disabilities (NLD or NVLD); and

Students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

The ability to navigate everyday social interactions can frequently present significant challenges for these students. While there are differences in the way these difficulties present themselves, most students who struggle with social interactions will exhibit difficulties in similar situations. For example, students with learning disabilities may interact frequently with peers on an informal level, but may have less experience and competence when it comes to engaging in more formal interactions (Schumaker and Deshler, 1995).

Social situations that present difficulties for students with disabilities can range from the fairly simple (engaging in a conversation with a peer) to the extremely complex (determining whether someone who seems friendly is actually harming you) (De Bildt et al., 2005). Because of this, social skills are often broken down into categories, or types of skill according to the level of complexity and interaction. An example of one way of categorizing social skills can be found in the table below:

Foundation Skills

Basic social interaction

Ability to maintain eye contact, maintain appropriate personal space, understand gestures and facial expressions

Interaction Skills

Skills needed to interact with others

Resolving conflicts, taking turns, learning how to begin and end conversations, determining appropriate topics for conversation, interacting with authority figures

Affective Skills

Skills needed for understanding oneself and others

Identifying one's feelings, recognizing the feelings of others, demonstrating empathy, decoding body language and facial expressions, determining whether someone is trustworthy

Cognitive Skills

Skills needed to maintain more complex social interactions

Social perception, making choices, self—monitoring, understanding community norms, determining appropriate behavior for different social situations.

Social interactions are incredibly complex and the list presented above is not exhaustive in terms of the skills that students may need to successfully navigate social situations. Additionally, each student's 'social skill profile' is different. Some students with disabilities may have strong foundation skills but lack appropriate interaction skills; others may require assistance in developing more basic skills such as making eye contact.

Because so many students in the classroom — both general and special education — may need some type of social skills instruction, it can be helpful to understand both the importance of social skill development and the most effective ways of remediating social skill deficits. For the purposes of this article, we focus on the social needs of students who may function fairly well academically, but who struggle with daily social interactions; a group which includes students with learning disabilities. Many of these students may have adequate or well—developed foundation skills, but need extra help developing higher order social skills.

Social skills are important for inclusion

Educators strive to reach each and every student in the environment that is the least restrictive and the most conducive to their learning. This means that many children with disabilities spend part or all of their day in the general education classroom. While these students are physically present and included in the classroom with their peers, students who are unable to interact appropriately with their peers cannot be said to be fully included (Waltz, 1999).

Because of these inappropriate interactions, students with LD may find themselves socially isolated or ostracized by their peers. For example, students with learning disabilities may have difficulties controlling physical or verbal impulses; they may shout out answers without being called on or inadvertently say something thoughtless or rude to a classmate (Hayes, 1994; Lavoie, 2005). Students with learning disabilities may also have trouble recognizing personal space and appropriate levels of physical contact (Hayes, 1994). These types of difficulties or other social skills deficits can serve to isolate students with learning disabilities, resulting in missed social opportunities.

When students miss out on the numerous social opportunities present in a typical classroom they are missing out on opportunities for academic enrichment (collaborating on projects, working in pairs, participating in class discussions) as well as personal and social enrichment (making new friends, playing games). There are a number of benefits, both academic and interpersonal to developing social competence:

Acceptance by peers;

Positive self—concept;

Academic achievement; and

Successful employment (DeGeorge, 1998; Elksnin and Elksnin, 2000; Fussell, Macias and Saylor, 2005).

Social skills instruction

The good news is that social skills can be fairly easily integrated into a special or general education curriculum using a variety of methods. Research has shown that social skills can be taught to students with disabilities — particularly those with nonverbal deficits — as long as educators teach skills directly and use a structured approach to instruction (DeGeorge, 1998; Elksnin and Elksnin, 2000; Peterson et al., 2006). A structured approach would involve "identifying critical social skills and then teaching them through modeling, role—playing and performance feedback" (Peterson et al., p. 2, 2006).

Generalizing social skills to new situations

One difficulty with social skills instruction is that many students with disabilities may struggle with generalizing new skills to different situations (Elksnin and Elksnin, 2000). You can help students generalize social skills in several ways:

Teach students new skills in the setting where they are most likely to be used (i.e. on a bus, in a restaurant, in the classroom, etc.) (Elksnin and Elksnin, 2000; NCLD, 2005); if this is not possible, role playing can be an effective substitute (Hayes, 1994);

Teach social skills that are valued by the student's community (parents, peers, teachers, family members, etc.); these skills are more likely to be reinforced (Elksnin and Elksnin); and

Teach social skills with a variety of mediums (video, books, games, software, etc.) across a variety of settings and situations (Elksnin and Elksnin, 2000).

Strategies for teaching social skills

Because students use social skills in nearly every aspect of their day, every moment has the potential to be a 'teachable moment'. To take advantage of this, you should try to teach social skills throughout the school day in a variety of ways. Some methods for introducing social skills include:

Incidental teaching — using a natural interaction between a student and adult to practice a skill (Elksnin and Elksnin, 2000);

Reading and discussing children's literature and videos — many children's stories are on social skills topics such as making new friends, dealing with bullies, or encountering new situations (DeGeorge, 1998);

Social skill autopsies — after a social interaction discuss what the child did, what happened, whether the outcome was positive or negative and what the child will do in the same situation in the future (Elksnin and Elksnin, 2000; Lavoie, 2005); and

Use of social stories — social stories are a successful way of teaching social skills to students with PDD/ASD (Waltz, 1999) because they can provide students with a narrative or script about a variety of situations and appropriate behavior.

Multimedia and social skills instruction

While research into the use of multimedia tools to teach social skills is fairly recent, there are a number of reasons to consider using multimedia technologies to augment your social skills instruction. Many types of multimedia technologies can be an excellent match for the specific learning styles and preferences of students with disabilities (virtual environments, simulations, videos, etc.) and new technologies are emerging rapidly.

For students with learning disabilities who are visual learners, videos, simulations, virtual environments, pictures and other multimedia can be effective teaching tools (Parsons, 2006; Parsons, Leonard and Mitchell, 2006). Additionally, many of the teaching and generalization strategies mentioned in the previous section mesh nicely with a variety of multimedia tools. Students seem to learn social skills best when they are taught in authentic situations using a variety of mediums. Activities listed above such as role playing, listening to social stories, observing peer behavior, and conducting social skills autopsies can all be augmented with the use of multimedia tools.

While there are commercially available software programs to teach social skills to students with disabilities, with some basic technology tools, it is also possible to create your own social skills tools; these tools can then be tailored to the specific needs of your students. For example, you could video tape your students in class or around the school and then use the video to conduct a discussion or "autopsy" of the social interactions. Still images from the video could be captured and used to create a slide show with text or loaded onto a handheld personal digital assistant (PDA) to be used as reminders when the student is in mainstream environments. It may make sense to use a combination of tools — both purchased and 'homemade' — for a variety of situations and skills. Consider the following resources and see more in the CITEd article, Multimedia Instruction of Social Skills.

Multimedia resources
References
References

Canney C., & Byrne A. (2006). Evaluating Circle Time as a support to social skills development - reflections on a journey in school-based research. British Journal of Special Education, 33(1), 19-24.

de Bildt A., Serra M., Luteijn E., Kraijer D., Sytema S., & Minderaa R. (2005). Social skills in children with intellectual disabilities with and without autism. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 49(5), 317-328.

DeGeorge K.L. (1998). Using children's literature to teach social skills. Retrieved on March 14, 2007 from http://www.ldonline.org/article/6194. Elksnin L.K., & Elksnin N. (2000). Teaching parents to teach their children to be prosocial. Retrieved March 14, 2007 from http://www.ldonline.org/article/6036.

Fussell J.J., Macias M.M., & Saylor C.F. (2005). Social skills and behavior problems in children with disabilities with and without siblings. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 36(2), 227-241.

Hayes M.L. (1994). Social skills: The bottom line for adult LD success. Retrieved November 21, 2007 from http://www.ldonline.org/article/6176. Lavoie R. (2005). Social skill autopsies: A strategy to promote and develop social competencies. Retrieved November 21, 2007 from http://www.ldonline.org/article/14910.

Lavoie R. (2005). Social skill autopsies: A strategy to promote and develop social competencies. Retrieved November 21, 2007 from http://www.ldonline.org/article/14910.

National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD). (2005). Helping children with LD find social success. Retrieved November 21, 2007 from http://www.ncld.org/content/view/955/.

O'Connor M.J., Frankel F., Paley B., Schonfeld A.M., Carpenter E., & Laugeson E.A. (2006). A controlled social skills training for children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74(4), 639-648.

Parsons L.D. (2006). Using video to teach social skills to secondary students with autism. Teaching Exceptional Children, 39(2), 32-38.

Parsons S., Leonard A., & Mitchell P. (2006). Virtual environments for social skills training: comments from two adolescents with autistic spectrum disorder. Computers in Education, 47(2), 188-206.

Peterson L.D., Young K.R., Salzberg C.L., West R.P., & Hill M. (2006). Using self-management procedures to improve classroom social skills in multiple general education settings. Education and Treatment of Children, 29(1), 1-21.

Waltz M. (1999). Pervasive Developmental Disorders: Finding a Diagnosis and Getting Help. O'Reilly & Associates.

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Practicing Social Skills: How to Teach Your Student Social Interactions

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LD OnLine is the leading website on learning disabilities, learning disorders and differences. Parents and teachers of learning disabled children will find authoritative guidance on attention deficit disorder, ADD, ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, dysnomia, reading difficulties, speech and related disorders.

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Social Skills Instruction for Students with Learning Disabilities

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Social Skills Instruction for Students with Learning Disabilities

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Another great article on the basics of social skills.

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Social skills instruction is a critical educational component for many students with learning disabilities. To completely understand learning disabilities requires consideration of the social areas of the child's life (Learner, 1997). A student's learning disability is not confined by the classroom walls; it permeates into all areas of the students' life. For some students with learning disabilities the social domain presents problems because of deficits in auditory processing, memory, attention, visual, spatial, motor, and expressive language (Brown and Hedinger, 1995). This brochure will consider the difficulties that students with learning disabilities encounter because of the lack of social skills and present effective instructional strategies for teaching social skills.

Some of the long term effects caused by lack of social skills can be: classroom management problems, negative effects on academic areas, delinquency, peer rejection, emotional difficulties, lack of peer acceptance, problems with interpersonal relationships, and low social status and esteem. Some of these problems might be avoided when a social skills curriculum is embedded in the daily activities of all students. At the same time, students with learning disabilities can be targeted for systematic social skill instruction. Brown and Hedinger (1995) recognized five problematic areas exhibited by the students with learning disabilities in the social context:

1. Auditory processing problems, which make it difficult to process verbal messages. These students are easily distracted, have problems discriminating between the message being expressed and background noise, problems with the pace of conversation and tracking the conversation.

2. Memory, long and short term. Learning Disabilities that effect the short and long term memory effect students in several ways: difficulty remembering the sequence of instructions or events, following conversations, recalling personal information of classmates, and recalling past conversations.

3. Attention. These individuals attend to almost everything presented in their environment. They are perceived as not paying attention, will jump from topic to topic, have poor conversation tracking skills and can become overwhelmed by auditory and visual stimuli.

4. Visual, spatial, or motor disabilities. Students with these disabilities may have problems counting money, using writing utensils, reading a menu or community signs, observing personal space and recognizing nonverbal cues in basic conversation.

5. Expressive language, affects the students written and verbal abilities. These students have difficulty relaying thoughts verbally and in writing, speaking in complete sentences and expressing understanding of the thought s of peers. The areas recognized by Brown and Hedinger are an example of how learning disabilities and social skills are reflected together.

Now that the need for social skills instruction has been established, some of the best practices in social skills instruction will be presented. Using multiple approaches to teach social skills is the most effective method. Effective social skills training and instruction methods include strategies of self-verbalization and self monitoring, prosocial skills, social skills support groups and virtual reality. These methods will be explored as effective approaches to teach social skills and help students respond to social situations.

Social skills can be taught through various techniques. Two of the social skill strategies presented in the Janet Learner text use mnemonics, the FAST strategy and the SLAM strategy. The F (freeze and think) A (alternatives) S (Solution) T (Try it) strategy helps students deal with interpersonal problems. Students have a chance to stop and approach the problem in a rational instead of impulsive manner. The S (stop) L (look) A (ask) M (make) strategy helps students receive verbal messages from peers. Students are taught to ask for clarification of the expression and then to respond appropriately. The practice and implementation of these mnemonics afford the student a chance to react appropriately in a social situation and relieving themselves from possible embarrassment.

Commercial programs have been developed for teachers to instruct students in the acquisition, maintenance and generalization of prosocial skills. One program named Skillstreaming, that has been used extensively in schools, was developed by Ellen McGinnis and Arnold Goldstein. This behavioural training program has four components: 1) modeling, 2) role playing, 3) performance feedback, and 4) transfer training, that will effectively teach prosocial skills. It is important that students understand the behaviour of concentration. The use of modeling gives the student a chance to see, hear, and experience the specified behaviours. After the behaviour has been modeled, the students will be guided to role play the specified behaviour. The use of role playing is a technique to help students play an active role and internalize the skill instruction. The use of performance feedback gives students specific reinforcement and suggestions on improving the skill. Finally, transfer training is instituted to help students generalize the social skill across settings. To help the students transfer the skill it should be taught in as many natural settings as possible. The Skillstreaming plan has incorporated tools to evaluate and record the students progress on social skills. A comprehensive approach can help students become effective communicators with the ability to recognize nonverbal social cues.

A therapeutic approach is also effective in teaching social skills. Research from Gresham and Elliot (1989) tells us that students with learning disabilities experience social and emotional difficulties as a result of their disabilities (Brown and Hedinger, 1994). Using a support group approach can help students recognize and deal with stressful situations, while examining how their learning disability influences their social abilities. A facilitator is needed to remediate and instruct students in skill development during the group. The group needs to be at a pace that allows students time to process the information presented. As students convey specific difficult social circumstances, the facilitator uses the real life experiences to help students examine and develop social skills. This type of group also lets students know that they are not alone and validates their feelings.

As the capabilities of interactive computers grows by leaps and bounds, school districts should recognize the advantages of this technology. Muscott and Gifford (1994) site several advantages of using virtual reality in the teaching of social skills, such as: multisensory approach, three-dimensionality, encourages problem-solving, and effective modeling techniques. Virtual reality allows the instructor to create interactive role playing scenarios that are targeted to a students specific social deficits. This technology can also be used to help students maintain and generalize social skills.

This brochure has explored several effective strategies for teaching social skills. The effective teaching of social skills will have a great impact on inappropriate classroom behaviours and school management. It is important to recognize the development of the whole child with learning disabilities. Social skills instruction can assist in distinguishing the negative impacts associated with social skills deficits and learning disabilities. Therefore, social skills training should be a critical part of the school curriculum for students with disabilities.

"Ten Tips"

A considerable amount of research is being reported in the literature concerning poor social skills in learning disabled children and youth. It is a concern to all of us in this field because, while we've all known that academics have received first priority, we haven't known exactly how to approach social skills improvement. There are ten suggestions that have worked for others.

1. Teach your children to smile and make eye contact while talking to adults and children. This is especially important when they talk with adults.

2. Collect pictures of faces displaying various emotions such as happiness, sadness, anger, joy, love, surprise, and so forth. Begin by presenting two pictures to the child: happiness and sadness. When the child can correctly label the emotion, add another picture. Continue until the child can correctly identify all the pictures. Parents can help by asking the child to identify facial expressions of characters on TV programs. The sound should be turned off during this activity to eliminate auditory cues and to focus attention on facial expressions.

3. Discuss the meaning of various body gestures such as waving goodbye, shrugging a shoulder, tapping a foot or shaking a finger in impatience, crossed arms, outreached arms. Introduce each gesture separately. Add new gestures as the child masters earlier gestures. Always review all learned gestures by asking the child to explain the meaning of gestures made by family members and those made by characters on TV.

4. Implications in the human voice beyond the words themselves need to be explained to the LD child. Allow the child to listen to a voice on a tape recorder and ask him to explain the mood of the person and the meaning of the communication. The teacher can also say the same phrase using different tones of voice, explaining the different meanings of tonal quality.

5. To help L.D. children improve conversational skills, teachers and parents should provide feedback. Call attention to negative statements and require the L.D. child to consider the consequences of those remarks in terms of the effect on the recipient. The L.D. child may have difficulty in differentiating positive and negative statements without some assistance and training. If the child cannot make such discriminations, the teacher and/or parent can model the desired verbal behaviour. Ask the child to repeat the statement and praise him for appropriate verbalization. Discrimination of verbal behaviours can be enhanced by providing the use of appropriate reinforcers.

6. Role playing activities may be used to effectively emphasize the possible effects of verbal interaction and the emotions they may arouse in others. Situations showing a variety of emotions such as grief, joy, fear, excitement, may be dramatized and discussed. Video tapes with stop action technique may be used so that possible consequences and outcomes can be directed.

7. Direct instruction on appropriate responses in social situations is also necessary. Incomplete stories involving social judgement can be read to the child. Ask the child to anticipate the ending or complete the story. Provide opportunities for the child to discuss consequences of certain behaviour such as interruptions while someone is speaking, hitting a child while playing a game, or making a face when asked to do something. Cartoon-like figures depicting social situations can be provided for the child to arrange in sequence and explain. This gives the child practice in considering cause-effect relationships in social interactions.

8. The LD child should be given opportunities to practice social skills involving both verbal and non-verbal behaviours. Examples of these activities include smiling when meeting a friend or acquaintance, making introductions, paying attention to the person who is speaking, asking other children to play a game, and making positive statements for other's efforts.

9. Teaching social skills to LD children must include components that will assist them in the regular classroom. One such component can be teaching the children to "look like" they're paying attention. Children who do this are viewed more positively by regular classroom teachers.

10. Teachers of both regular and special classes like to use academic games to provide drill and relieve boredom. The LD teacher can instruct the LD students in a variety of games within the special education class setting. When they have mastered the games, the LD students can then take them to the regular class to teach their classmates. The LD students are thus viewed more favourably.

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Social Skills Instruction for Students with Learning Disabilities - Learning Disabilities Association of Halton-Hamilton

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Listen Social skills instruction is a critical educational component for many students with learning disabilities. To completely understand learning disabilities requires consideration of the social areas of the child's life (Learner, 1997). A student's learning disability is not confined by the classroom walls; it permeates into all areas of the students' life.

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What are Instructional & Assistive Technologies?

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What are Instructional & Assistive Technologies?

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I enjoyed reading this article because it gives great examples of Low assisted technology, and than mid- high levels of assisted technology.

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What are Instructional & Assistive Technologies?

Educators are confronted with a wide variety of terms related to technology: assistive technology, instructional technology, educational technology, adaptive technology, and information and communication technology, among others.

In this module, we define "instructional technology" and "assistive technology" in the following way:

Instructional technology (or Educational technology): Any piece of technology that educators integrate into their instructional practice to engage students and enhance students' learning

e.g., tablets, interactive whiteboards, smart phone apps, etc.

Assistive technology: Any piece of technology that helps a student with or without a disability to increase or maintain his/her level of functioning [i]

e.g., speech-to-text software, word processors, adapted keyboards, etc.

Although we may occasionally distinguish between "instructional technology" and "assistive technology" in this module, it is important to note that technology traditionally considered to be assistive technology can, in many instances, be used to support the learning of all students. For this reason, we encourage educators to reflect on how they might use various forms of technology to support the learning of all students.

Click here to access the transcription of this video.

Understanding Assistive Technology

" All students require the ability to access the curriculum, and to demonstrate their learning in order to meet their educational potential. Assistive technology (e.g., software, mobile devices, accessible versions of textbooks and media) are critical in providing voice, as well as equitable access for students with special education needs " [ii].

Students with LDs benefit from the use of technology in the same ways as other students do. However, they experience further benefits when assistive technology (AT) is judiciously selected to meet their specific learning needs, as outlined in their individualized education plans (IEPs).

The section below in an excerpt from an LD@school article. Click here to access the original article Assistive Technology for Students with Learning Disabilities: Information, Tools and Resources for Teachers.

Although AT is commonly thought of as computers, hardware and software, there is actually a continuum of technology, ranging from "low tech" to "high tech".
Low-tech Assistive Technology Mid to Hi-tech Assistive Technology

Digital recorders

Digital books

Graphing calculators

Electronic math worksheets

Portable or adapted keyboards

Mobile technology (e.g., tablets, iPods, iPads, smartphones, MP3 players, etc.)

Reading systems that utilize a computer, scanner, and software to "read" scanned book pages out loud (e.g., Kurzweil)

Speech recognition software that allows a computer to operate by speaking to it (e.g., Siri)

Speech recognition systems that turn oral language into written text (e.g., Dragon)

Software that predicts and edits words for students who struggle with spelling (e.g., WordQ)

"Talking" calculators that assist students with math challenges

Mind mapping/outlining software

Global Positioning System (GPS)

Uses and Benefits of Assistive Technology

The section below in an excerpt from an LD@school article. Click here to access the original article Assistive Technology for Students with Learning Disabilities.

AT helps students in two key ways:

1. It helps students learn how to complete a particular task, and

2. It helps students circumvent certain difficulties that pose as barriers to their learning.

For example, when a student listens to a digital version of a text using text-to-speech software, they are able to circumvent reading difficulties by using their listening skills. If the student also focuses on the screen as the software highlights the words being read aloud, then they can also learn to recognize unfamiliar words, thus enhancing their word reading skills.

The section below in an excerpt from an LD@school article. Click here to access the source article The Use of Assistive Technology at the Intermediate Level: Educators' and Students' Perceptions.

When students with LDs are effectively able to use AT, they may experience many benefits, including:

improved academic achievement,

a more positive overall school experience,

greater enthusiasm for school,

enhanced self-esteem,

enhanced self-efficacy, and

increased time spent on academic tasks.

In one of our TalkLD podcasts, Chad Downes, Assistive Technology Advisor at Amethyst Demonstration School, discusses how AT can improve students' self-esteem.

Click the play button to listen to the sound bite with Chad Downes.

https://www.ldatschool.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Chad-Downes-Interview_Pt1.mp3

Click here to access the transcription of this sound bite.
Click here to access the full podcast How Assistive Technology (AT) Affects Self-Esteem.
It is not only students with LDs who stand to benefit from AT; research has shown that the use of AT can support the learning of all students [iii]. For this reason, instructional and assistive technologies should be integrated into instruction through the universal design for learning (UDL) framework.

Click here to access Sider & Maich's article in What Works? Research into Practice, Research Monograph #50.

References

[i] Ontario Teachers' Federation, n.d.

[ii] Council of Ontario Directors of Education, 2017, p. 26

[iii] Sider & Maich, 2014

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What are Instructional & Assistive Technologies? Educators are confronted with a wide variety of terms related to technology: assistive technology, instructional technology, educational technology, adaptive technology, and information and communication technology, among others.

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I loved the 1 minute video that this article portrays. You can see the live action of a student with special needs using technology inside the classroom.

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We believe technology transforms the way we teach and how students learn. It allows a child with special needs to reach their potential and exceed. Technology gives a child a voice, fosters independence, and allows students to succeed in their school, home, and community environments. When we use technology effectively it opens doors for students that otherwise may be closed. Technology in NSSEO includes instructional technology, assistive technology and informational technology. These branches work together to provide services to students and staff to foster improved outcomes for students.

799 West Kensington Road Administration Office

Mount Prospect, IL 60056-1111

Director of Innovative Learning and Technology:
Christy Crabtree
847-463-8120 | ccrabtree@nsseo.org

Assistive Technology Coordinator:
Susan Mahoney
847-463-8142 | smahoney@nsseo.org

847-463-8195 | Innovative Learning and Technology Administrative Assistant: Jessica Eller
jeller@nsseo.org

847-463-8133 | Angie Villanueva | Professional Learning Administrative Assistant
avillanueva@nsseo.org

Focus ↓

Focus

The Instructional Technology Department utilizes technology to support curriculum, instruction and assessment. Providing 21st century tools, such as iPads, SmartBoards, response systems, digital cameras, laptops, multimedia and online learning, enables teachers to engage students, differentiate learning, and improve student outcomes. Professional Development, coaching and consultation provides support to schools and classroom teams to maximize student learning.

The Assistive Technology Department helps teams in the consideration, acquisition, implementation and effective monitoring of assistive technology. This is accomplished through the use of trials of low tech through high tech tools to provide augmentative and /or alternative communication and individualized supports to help students' access curriculum and achieve success in their educational program.

The Informational Technology Department provides a robust network of wired and wireless devices, telecommunications and the infrastructure necessary to support administrative, instructional and assistive technologies. It provides the tools necessary for student learning and for staff to do their jobs effectively.

Who We Are ↓

Who We Are

Our technology team consists of highly qualified special education teachers, speech and language pathologists, program assistants, network administrator, database manager, building level technicians and technology liaisons.

Our instructional and assistive technology team members keep informed of current knowledge and skills in the field by attending and presenting at local, state and national conferences on educational and assistive technology.

Services ↓

Services

Coaching and consultation with special education staff, general education staff and parents

Assessment and training in use of augmentative and alternative communication devices and supports

Lending library of books, software, assistive technology devices and curriculum materials

Modification of instructional materials

Networking opportunities for member district Assistive Technology Coordinators

Infinitec North Liaison Representative for NSSEO programs and member districts

Coordination and implementation of subscription services for staff and students

On line Help Desk for technology support

Calendar of Professional Development ↓

The following link will give you access to all of the Curriculum & Technology and the Professional Development sessions being hosted by NSSEO.

Calendar of Professional Development →
Questions regarding the on-line registration process may be directed to Shalini Mukhopadhyay | smukhopadhyay@nsseo.org

Contact Directory ↓

Contact Directory

Find Someone Who Can Assist You by Going to our Assistive and Instructional Technology Staff Directory →

Forms / Guidelines / Referral ↓

Forms / Guidelines / Referral

Infinitec↓

Infinitec

Workshops
Infinitec North Nomination Process →
A group buy is a great opportunity to receive amazing products at a discounted price, which the vendors are only offering to Infinitec Coalition Members. The vendors are picked by our Group Buy Committee based on the feedback from Coalition members and the success of previous Group Buys. Please follow the following instructions to insure that you receive your product in a timely manner. Infinitec's Group Buy will runs from April 15, 2016 to December 15, 2016. Here are the vendors offering discounts for FY17 (Fiscal Year 2017).

Group Buy Order Forms from Infinitec:

Unique Learning Systems and News2You →

Attainment →

Don Johnston →

Cadan Group Buy →

Cadan Exclusive Pricing for Modularhose and Time Timer LLC →

Group Buy Directions:
1. Go to Member Services in the main set of tabs on the home page.
2. Click on Group Buy in the dropdown.
3. Click on Group Buy FY 17 on the dropdown on the left side of the page
4. Click on the vendor of your choice for the order form.
5. Fill out the Infinitec Group Buy order form with contact information.
6. Make Purchase Order out to the COMPANY who makes the product: Unique Learning Systems & News-2-You, Attainment, Don Johnston, Cadan Group Buy, or Cadan.
(DO NOT make your Purchase Orders out to UCP/Infinitec.)
7. Fax or Mail forms & Purchase Orders to: Crystal Shields, Fax: 708.444.4204 or Infinitec Southwest, 7550 West 183rd Street, Tinley Park IL 60477
8. Please send all checks and make all checks payable to the company who makes the product-DO NOT make check out to UCP/Infinitec. They will be returned.

Newsletters / Technology Plan ↓

Newsletters / Technology Plan
NSSEO Technology Plan 2015 - 2018 →

Quick Sheets / Guidelines↓

Quick Sheets and Guidelines

Google
The following links are to Quicksheet PDF handouts:

Calendar

Docs

Drawings

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Forms

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We believe technology transforms the way we teach and how students learn. It allows a child with special needs to reach their potential and exceed. Technology gives a child a voice, fosters independence, and allows students to succeed in their school, home, and community environments.

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Improving online learning for students with disabilities

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Improving online learning for students with disabilities

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This article starts off by saying "Does every student in the educational system have access to online learning? No they do not. I think thats important to know that from the start.

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Improving online learning for students with disabilities

Students with disabilities make up just under 20% of the student body.

Yet the learning needs of the 20% are as diverse as the students themselves. In a traditional classroom setting, institutions provide a range of accommodations to provide equitable experiences, from increased testing time to note taking tools. So what's changed with online learning? And what does successful online learning for students with disabilities look like?

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Online access

Does every student have equal access to the online classroom? This is the question you should answer first. After all, any improvements you make in student support will be limited without the needed technology or internet access.

A recent AHEAD (Association on Higher Education and Disability) survey found that 79% of students with disabilities had difficulty accessing needed devices and equipment. Though this finding reflects data from Spring, it should still give college admins pause.

Auditing students' tech needs, coordinating with IT and other departments, and getting needed devices in the hands of students is a logical first step. From here, you can focus on learning. ;

Beware of accessibility hurdles

Blackboard ally, an LMS provider, recently discovered over 50% of PDFs provided for online courses have accessibility problems. This could create real problems for students if unaddressed.

We've created a guide to online accessibility that you can browse for tips on best practice, as well as advice on testing existing materials. This should equip you with the fundamentals to assess where you are with accessibility.

It's a pretty obvious point, but if there's something blocking students from accessing course materials or platforms, there's little chance of improving online learning outcomes.

Learning skills

With online learning, students with disabilities are having to self-advocate and study independently like never before.

Not everyone was ready for this when the Covid transition came in Spring. Some study skills, such as independent note taking, can take time to master. This is where you can start to improve learning experiences. Understanding that students need to learn independently, and that you're well-placed to help them, your plan could look like this...

Link up with student success departments. This way, you can work together on helping students develop their skills.

Take a look at your note taking accommodations. Will a peer note taker or smart pen really help students with their online learning? It's time to consider alternatives that work with the grain

Post-class work is key. With Zoom and recorded classes taking up a large portion of students' learning time, what students do after class will be just as important as what they do during. If attention wanders or distractions in the home environment prove an obstacle, having the tools and skills to consolidate learning independently will be a huge boost.

Are your students planning their days effectively? It's important to stress the importance of routines away from campus. To give the best chance of success, encourage students to work daily, breaking their tasks into manageable chunks.

Online learning models

Not all online models are created equal for students with disabilities. Asynchronous (or recorded) classes, live classes over Zoom... there's plenty of variation, all with their own advantages and drawbacks.

Asynchronous classes offer students flexibility and the ability to better dictate the pace of their learning. But they lack the opportunity for interaction or live questions.

Live classes over Zoom give students a learning routine and the chance for discussion, but can create access issues and lead to 'Zoom fatigue'.

Ultimately, improving online learning for students with disabilities will require slightly different strategies for each model.

For asynchronous classes, advising your students to treat them as 'live' at a time that suits them should help create greater engagement and bolster routines.

With Zoom classes, understanding that it might be a challenge to stay focused should place more emphasis on follow up work. Which is where learning skills come in...

Rebuilding social learning

One thing students are really missing with online learning is the social interaction and community atmosphere of campus.

Beyond the reduced opportunities to make new friends, there are also impediments to informal social learning. Think of a typical campus library. While there might be many students studying individually, you're also bound to spot tables of students working cooperatively. Students with disabilities might be feeling the isolation of online or blended learning more than most. That's why it's important to encourage and facilitate as many touch points between students as possible.

Time for a simpler, smarter note taking accommodation?

Glean's worked wonders already at institutions like the University of Memphis. And thanks to a flexible free trial, you could soon reap the benefits at your institution, too.

A tool built to improve learning, online or in-person

Since the transition to online learning began, we've been helping institutions across the US improve learning for students with disabilities.

Glean, our brand new app, has been designed to help students take great notes independently, without the need for lengthy training sessions, making students more confident and improving grades.

Here's what students have been saying about Glean:

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Improving online learning for students with disabilities

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Improving online learning for students with disabilities Students with disabilities make up just under 20% of the student body. Yet the learning needs of the 20% are as diverse as the students themselves. In a traditional classroom setting, institutions provide a range of accommodations to provide equitable experiences, from increased testing time to note taking tools.

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One thing that jumped out at me while reading this was how the author gives an example of a social skill, and then explains to the student what they need to do if they are ever in that situation.

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We've been talking with the experts at Boys Town Training® about how administrators and teachers can transform school culture. One of the key places to begin is with the explicit teaching of social skills to all students. When academic and positive social skills are the norm, students and staff feel safer and happier, office referrals go down, and, best of all, there is more time for teaching and learning.

Here are eight key social skills that all students need to be successful. Consider working on one or two skills with your class each week. Start by gathering students together and talking about the skill. For example, ask: Why is listening attentively important? What does it look like when a person is listening? How do we know? Work together to list the steps for each skill or behavior on chart paper or a whiteboard.

1. Look at the person who is talking and remain quiet.2. Wait until the person is finished talking before you speak. Skill Steps:

3. Show that you heard the speaker by nodding your head, and using positive phrases, such as "Okay" or "That's interesting."

Classroom Activity:Invite students to tell each other jokes to practice active listening. Gather joke books from your school library or send students online to Aha Jokes to find their favorite funnies to share with their friends. Have students work in small groups taking turns in the roles of speaker and active listeners. Older students can practice sharing opinions on class reading or plans for college or career.
Social Skill: How to Greet Others

Classroom Activity: Challenge your students to come up with 25 or more possible greetings they can use with each other, with you or with a classroom guest. Include greetings in different languages. Each morning, go around the room and have each student offer a greeting to the class.
Social Skill: Following Instructions
1. Look at the person.3. Do what you've been asked to do right away Skill Steps:

4. Check back in with the person.

Classroom Activity: Play classroom games that help students to increase their ability to follow instructions with traditional games like Simon Says and Red Light, Green Light. Or challenge your students to a scavenger hunt around the classroom or school. Explain that theirs is no way to succeed without following directions precisely. As with all the skills, have your students go through the steps every time you issue a request until they become second nature.
Social Skill: Asking for Help
1. Look at the person.2. Ask the person if he or she has time to help you.3. Clearly explain the kind of help you need. Skill Steps:

4. Thank the person for helping.

Classroom Activity: Asking for help can be difficult for many students and even adults. In a class meeting, have student practice this skill by taking a fun and playful approach. On separate notecards, write down situations in which a person is asking for help, e.g., "a man asking a stranger for help moving a piano," "a teacher asking a colleague for help grading a huge pile of papers," "an astronaut asking for help getting out of his suit." Invite pairs of students to pick a notecard to act out the scene including all the steps!
Social Skill: How to Get the Teacher's Attention
1. Look at the teacher.2. Raise your hand and stay calm.3. Wait until the teacher says your name or nods at you.4. Ask your question. Skill Steps:

Classroom Activity: Start by asking your students: "What is the WRONG way to get your teacher's attention?" Encourage them to demonstrate all the wrong ways-waving their hands in the air wildly, jumping up and down, calling out, etc. They will enjoy this! Then, have volunteers model the correct way to get your attention.
Social Skill: How to Disagree Appropriately

Classroom Activity: Disagreeing without arguing is a skill that many adults as well as kids and teens find difficult. Like all social skills, it takes resources and practice. That's why going over the steps of each skill is so important. Give students the chance to practice debating and disagreeing when the stakes are low. For example, write a controversial statement on the board such as, "Rum raisin is the very best flavor of ice cream," or "Rap is not music," and invite your students to disagree politely!

1. Look at the person.2. Use your best serious, sincere voice.3. Begin with "I'm sorry for...", or "I want to apologize for..."4. Do your best not to make excuses.5. Explain how you plan to do better in the future.6. Say, "Thanks for listening." Skill Steps:

, many stories lend themselves to discussions of social skills, mistakes, and apologies. Classroom Activity: Let's face it: apologizing is hard, but it does get easier with practice. Consider tying your discussion of apologies to a book you are reading as a class. From David Shannon's picture book No, David! to Louise Fitzhugh's classic Harriet the Spy

Social Skill: How to Accept "No" for an Answer

1. Look at the person. Skill Steps:

4. If you disagree, return to the subject later in a respectful manner.

"no" gracefully, a child needs to be able to respect authority, see another's point of view, and have self control. Write 5-6 situations on notecards and give them to groups of students. Examples: The class wants to ask the teacher to hold class outside. Asking your parents if you can watch an R rated movie. Challenge students to model how they will ask, and how they will handle the answer. Talk about how they could return to the subject with a respectful argument at another time. Classroom Activity: Accepting "no" can be difficult when we feel strongly about a situation. This is a skill that needs to be modeled repeatedly as its draws on other important skills. In order to accept

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8 Social Skills Students Need (And How to Teach Them Step by Step!) - WeAreTeachers

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We've been talking with the experts at Boys Town Training® about how administrators and teachers can transform school culture. One of the key places to begin is with the explicit teaching of social skills to all students. When academic and [...]

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Strategies for Teaching Social Skills in the School Environment

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Strategies for Teaching Social Skills in the School Environment

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I love the digital collection tool that is placed within this article!

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November/December 2010 Link Lines

Students with disabilities who demonstrate appropriate social behavior are likely to experience positive peer and teacher relationships, increased participation and achievement in inclusive educational settings, and success in post-school work, educational, and social environments (McIntyre, 2003; Miller, Fenty, Scott, Park, 2010). In order for students to learn, practice, and maintain expected social behavior, educators must teach social skills within the context of the various school settings that students encounter each day. For example, when teachers explicitly teach, model, and reinforce the expectations and rules for appropriate classroom, cafeteria, playground, and bus behavior, students are prepared to interact effectively with others in each environment. Students have the opportunity to learn and practice skills in the environments in which they are taught, making it more likely that skills generalize to other school settings (Vincent, Horner, Sugai, 2002).

Whether a student is having difficulty mastering an academic or social task, the teacher should respond by reviewing data to design targeted instruction that addresses the skill deficit. Since most academic environments have expectations for both academic and social behaviors, effective social skills instruction should be infused into the general education curriculum (Miller, et al. 2010).
Teaching Social Skills as Part of the Classroom Management Plan
Ms. Sanchez was prepared for her third-grade students to arrive in her classroom on the first day of school. Three of her students had learning disabilities in reading and behavioral challenges. She had designed a classroom management plan that included teaching classroom procedures and routines around the school-wide expectations: Be Respectful, Be Responsible, and Be Safe. She had carefully considered the social skills, such as listening to others, raising one's hand to signal for help and staying seated during independent seat work, that were important for her students to successfully access the curriculum and to create a positive classroom culture. She embedded the skills into the following classroom matrix (Figure 1) which she posted as a reminder to the students.

Figure 1. Classroom Matrix (download as a pdf)

In addition to the matrix, she explicitly taught each skill within the context of the each classroom learning environment (e.g. cooperative learning groups, independent seat work, arrival at school). Additionally, she taught her students the Focusing Together Strategy(Rademacher, Pemberton & Cheever, 2006)an evidence-based, self-management strategy, to support the development of conscientious work habits, respect for the classroom community, and emotional and physical safety. Lastly, she developed a data collection tool (Figure 2) to assist her with tracking progress on individual students who may not be responsive to the initial whole class instruction.
Figure 2. Data Collection Tool (download as a pdf)

Samantha, a student in Ms. Sanchez's class, has a reading disability and behavioral difficulties. Ms. Sanchez's data indicated that Samantha was having difficulty following the expectations for independent seatwork that required her to read independently. During assignments, Samantha talked to other students and was frequently out of her seat. If Ms. Sanchez did not immediately come to Samantha's desk when she raised her hand for help, Samantha called out to the teacher, pushed her reading materials away from her, put her head on her desk, and sighed loudly.

After reviewing the data and talking with Samantha, Ms. Sanchez and Samantha decided to focus their attention on the behaviors that were most distracting to her and the other students. These behaviors included asking and waiting for help appropriately and remaining in her seat during independent seat work. Ms. Sanchez reviewed the strategies and expectations with Samantha, and provided her with three bookmarks (Figure 3) so she could monitor her own behavior when she needed help from the teacher during independent seatwork. Samantha's reading difficulties were contributing to her behavior, so Ms. Sanchez and Samantha's special education teacher also provided additional academic support.
Figure 3. Bookmarks (download as pdf)
With practice and reminders from Ms. Sanchez, Samantha was able to use the visual cues to stay on task and ask for help in a way that was not disruptive to her or her classmates. Her classmates also began to help Samantha when the teacher was not immediately available. Samantha liked using the bookmarks and enjoyed the positive attention that she received from Ms. Sanchez and her classmates. Her grades improved, and she started using the strategies in other classes and non-academic environments as well.

Regardless of the method or strategy that teachers use to teach social skills, it is important to follow an instructional format for social skills instruction:

Identify the social skill to be taught,

Explain the importance of the social skill,

Model the skill,

Provide examples,

Allow for guided practice,

Provide opportunities for independent practice, and

Continue to monitor student progress (Miller, et al., 2010).

Positive social behavior is a win-win situation for teachers and students. Students experience better peer and teacher relationships and teachers spend less time addressing negative behavior (Vincent, et al., 2003). There are several ways to approach the instruction of social skills within the general education curriculum. The Book in a Bag strategy (Marchant & Womack, 2010) is one example (see Figure 4). Check out the resources below for additional information about teaching social skills in the school environment.
Figure 4. Book in a Bag (download as a pdf)
References

McIntyre, T. (2003). Teaching social skills to kids who don't yet have them. LD Online. Retrieved from http://www.ldonline.org/article/Teaching_Social_Skills_to_Kids_Who_Don%27t_Yet_Have_Them

Marchant, M. & Womack, S. (2010). Book in a bag: Blending social skills and academics. Council for Exceptional Children, 42, 6-12.

Miller, M., Fenty, N. Scott, T. & Park, K. (2010). An examination of social skills instruction in the context of small-group reading. Remedial and Special Education, 1-11.

Rademacher, J., Pemberton, J. & Cheever, G. (2006). Focusing Together. Lawrence, Kansas: Edge Enterprises.

Vincent, C., Horner, R. & Sugai, G. (2002). Developing social competence for all students. Clearinghouse on Disabilities and Gifted Education. Retrieved from http://www.ericdigests.org/2003-3/social.htm

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Strategies for Teaching Social Skills in the School Environment

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November/December 2010 Link Lines Students with disabilities who demonstrate appropriate social behavior are likely to experience positive peer and teacher relationships, increased participation and achievement in inclusive educational settings, and success in post-school work, educational, and social environments (McIntyre, 2003; Miller, Fenty, Scott, Park, 2010).