Behavioral Needs of a Student with Learning Disabilities

1. Behavioral Needs of a Student with Learning Disabilities By: Luis D. Chelsea B. Kaitlin G. Cole M.

2. IDEA’s Definition • The term 'specific learning disability' means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which disorder may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations. • Such term includes such conditions as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. • Such term does not include a learning problem that is primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, of mental retardation, of emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage.

3. Discrepancy in one or more • oral expression • listening comprehension • written expression • basic reading skill • reading comprehension • mathematics calculation • mathematics reasoning

5. Learning Characteristics • Reading • Math • Study Skills • Social Skills • Oral Language • Writing

6. Reading • Confusion of similar words, difficulty using phonics, problems reading multi-syllable words. • Slow reading rate and/or difficulty adjusting speed to the nature of the reading task. • Difficulty with comprehension and retention of material that is read, but not with material presented orally.

7. Math • Difficulty memorizing basic facts. • Confusion or reversal of numbers, number sequence, or operational symbols. • Difficulty reading or comprehending word problems. • Problems with reasoning and abstract concepts.

8. Study Skills • Poor organization and time management. • Difficulty following directions. • Poor organization of notes and other written materials. • Need more time to complete assignments.

9. Social Skills • Difficulty "reading" facial expressions, body language. • Problems interpreting subtle messages such as sarcasm. • Confusion in spatial orientation, getting lost easily, difficulty following directions. • Disorientation in time, difficulty telling time.

10. Oral Language • Difficulty memorizing basic facts. • Difficulty expressing ideas orally which the student seems to understand. • Problems describing events or stories in proper sequence. • Residual problems with grammar, difficulty with inflectional or derivational endings.

11. Writing • Difficulty with sentence structure, poor grammar, omitted words. • Frequent spelling errors, inconsistent spelling, letter reversals. • Difficulty copying from board or overhead. • Poorly formed letters, difficulty with spacing, capitals, and punctuation.

12. Behavioral Characteristics • Helplessness • Impulsiveness • Inattention • Distractibility • Shout out instead of raising their hands • Rush through projects • May not understand social cues • Low self esteem

13. Response to Intervention (RTI) • A multi-level prevention system to maximize student achievement and to reduce behavior problems. • Response to Intervention was developed as an alternative to the discrepancy model, which requires children to exhibit a discrepancy between their ability (IQ scores) and academic achievement (grades and standardized test scores).

14. RTI (Continued) • Tier 1 The first tier states that all students receive core classroom instruction that is differentiated and utilizes strategies and materials that are scientifically research-based. • Tier 2 In the second tier, supplemental interventions may occur within or outside of the general education classroom, and progress monitoring occurs at more frequent intervals. • Tier 3 Tier three is for students who require more intense, explicit and individualized instruction and have not shown sufficient response to Tier 1 and Tier 2 interventions.

15. Response to Intervention Model

16. Direct Instruction Features of DI include: • Explicit, systematic instruction based on scripted lesson plans. • Ability grouping. Students are grouped and re-grouped based on their rate of progress through the program. • Emphasis on pace and efficiency of instruction. DI programs are meant to accelerate student progress; therefore, lessons are designed to bring students to mastery as quickly as possible. • Frequent assessment. Curriculum-based assessments help place students in ability groups and identify students who require additional intervention. • Embedded professional development/coaching. DI programs may be implemented as stand-alone interventions or as part of a school-wide reform effort. In both instances, the program developers recommend careful monitoring and coaching of the program in order to ensure a high fidelity of implementation.

17. Resource Room • A separate special education classroom in a regular school students with educational disabilities, such as Specific Learning Disabilities, receive direct, specialized instruction and academic remediation. • Assistance with homework and related assignments as individuals or in small groups. • Research has suggested these classrooms are of particular benefit to students with language-based learning disabilities such as dyslexia. Other research has indicated that students show growth in visual-motor perception, arithmetic, spelling and overall self-perception through time in the resource room classroom.

18. Case Study

19. Effective Home Interventions/Supports • Contingency Management: an “if then” type model that makes use of carefully selected reinforcers to follow targeted behaviors. • This approach reinforces the students desire to stay on task • It must be used BEFORE a behavior takes place • Very practical to use on a daily basis • An example: Johnny almost always has a difficult time staying at the dinner table while everyone eats. Mom knows that Johnny loves to play with moon sand more than anything in the world. So, she says, “If you sit with the family until everyone is done eating tonight, then you will get to play with moon sand for 15 minutes before you go to bed.”

20. Cognitive Behavior Modification • This intervention can be used at home or at school • It is meant to teach the student how to think about thinking, or in a cognitive fashion • Students learn to answer questions, like… • What is my plan? • What is my problem? • What do I need to do next? • Students can use this at home for multiple self-help processes that require multiple steps, to problem-solve situations that do not go their way, or to create a plan for something they want to do

21. Cognitive Behavior Modification Continued • The process: • Cognitive Modeling: The adult model performs a task while verbally self-instructing • Over, self-guidance: The student preforms the same task by imitating instructions spoken by the model • Faded overt self-guidance: The student softly repeats the instructions spoken by the model • Covert self-instruction: The student performs the task while silently self-instructing

22. Effective Community Interventions/Supports • CDLT (Community Learning Disabled Teams): a team that serves people with learning disabilities out in the community • A part of a study constructed across a total region of the UK • CDLT aims to provide/connect people with the services they need to be successful out in the community • Provides scaffolding experiences within real-life situations • They service many different types of needs: • behavioral • social • academic • professional • intellectual • The study found the CDLTs attempts to be successful

23. Medication • N/A • 20-40% of AD/HD children have a learning disability-see AD/HD medications

24. References • Brown-Chidsey, R., & Steege, M. W. (2005). Response to intervention: Principles and strategies for effective practice. New York: Guildford Press. • Effective direct instruction practices in special education settings. Englert, Carol S. Remedial & Special Education, Vol 5(2), Mar-Apr 1984, 38-47 • The resource room: rationale and implementation. DD Hammill,Wiederholt, J. Lee .1972. Philadelphia:Buttonwood Farms • Henley, M., Ramsey, R., & Algozzine, R. (2009). Teaching students with mild disabilites. (6th • ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education. • Slevin, E., McConkey, R., Truesdale, M., Barr, O., & Taggart, L. (2007). Community learning • disability teams. Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, 11(4), 329-342. Retrieved from http://jid.sagepub.com.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/content/11/4/329.full.pdf html • Kemp, G., Smith, M., & Segal, J. (2012, October). Learning Disabilties in Children . Retrieved October 28, 2012, from Helpguide: http://www.helpguide.org/mental/learning_disabilities.htm • Stuart, A. (2012). Is My Child's Behavior the Sign of a Learning Disability. Retrieved October 28, 2012, from National Center for Learning Disabilities : http://www.ncld.org/parents-child-disabilities/social-emotional-skills/my-childs-behavior-sign-learning-disability • Wren, C. (2012). Characteristics of Students with Learning Disabilties. Retrieved October 28, 2012, from Pepperdine University : http://www.pepperdine.edu/disabilityservices/students/ldcharacter.htm