More Inclusion Strategies That Work!

Aligning Student Strengths With Standards

Toby J. Karten

• Publisher: Corwin
• Year: 2007
• Print ISBN: 9781412941167, 9781412941150
• eBook ISBN: 9781452280776
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Didattica
• Subtopic: Didattica inclusiva

"The book is content rich and contains a wealth of examples and ideas to spark teacher creativity."
—Jacqueline S. Thousand, Professor of Special Education, California State University, San Marcos

"The worksheets, lessons, and concrete practical discipline applications make this book a must-have for every classroom teacher."
—Diane Boarman, National Board Certified Teacher, Patapsco Middle School, Ellicott City, MD

Differentiate instruction to match and heighten students? and teachers? abilities while honoring standards!

With the same "can do" attitude that made her first book, Inclusion Strategies That Work! so popular, Toby Karten takes her latest book to the next level by emphasizing standards, linking the best inclusive practices with content-specific curriculum, and demonstrating how teachers can reach individual learners while honoring whole-class dynamics.

Meeting the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, More Inclusion Strategies That Work! focuses on using the strengths of students with disabilities to give them more confidence and a greater advantage when learning new concepts. With research-based methods for identifying and meeting the needs of students with special needs, this valuable guide presents instructional and accommodation strategies to help all students access the general curriculum. This reader-friendly handbook provides teachers with targeted assistance through:

• Sample standards-based lessons organized by age and ability level
• Tools for assessing students? mastery of curriculum concepts
• Approaches for preparing students for standardized testing
• Numerous reproducibles for immediate use

Whether you are a general or a special education K–12 teacher, you?ll return again and again to this must-have reference to meet the challenges of inclusive instruction and celebrate the successes of all your students, especially students with disabilities.

PART I

Fundamentals of Honoring Potentials and Strengths of Students and Teachers

1

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Concentrating on Students’ Strengths and Curriculum Standards

This book begins by outlining students’ strengths. We all learn best when we are allowed to show what we know. By focusing on just the limitations of different disabilities and syndromes, an instructional nightmare will ensue. Yes, there are some characteristics common to different disabilities, but you are not instructing a disability, you are instructing a child. Equally true is that you are teaching a student, not a subject. We as instructors want to challenge all students to achieve their highest potentials with feasible accommodations. Frustrations present themselves most often when there are expectations that do not match the delivery of specific curriculum objectives. As teachers, we know what standards-based objectives we’d like to achieve in a given lesson or unit, but then we are sometimes dismayed to discover that the students have not achieved our expectations. Well, were our expectations realistic? Educators need to be aware of the essential specific baseline knowledge standard for each subject, and then design objectives with accommodations that do not enable, but rather challenge students. Yes, some students might need accommodations or modifications, but these do not replace the plan of each child achieving specific learning objectives. Ultimately, educational professionals need to have high expectations for all students if academic standards are to be achieved.

WHAT ARE THE STANDARDS?

A curriculum is only a guide as to what might be taught…. [T]he voluntary national standards do not constitute a program … or teaching objectives…. [T]he standards contain suggestions about the content that the student might encounter in a complete education…. It remains the responsibility of the teacher to develop and instigate an instructional program.

—Colwell, 2005

The latest scientific research shows that students with significant disabilities (approximately 2 percent of all students) can make progress toward grade-level standards when they receive high-quality instruction and are assessed with alternate assessments based on modified achievement standards.

—U.S. Department of Education, 2005b

Planning lesson activities and presenting them to students in a coherent order is a challenging task in standards-based teaching…. [W]e need to work together collaboratively.

—O’Shea, 2005

In a truly standards-based approach, students, teachers, teacher-educators, textbook publishers, and testing agencies should know what students are expected to learn (content standards) and what constitutes superior, acceptable, and unacceptable performance (performance standards).

—Ravitch, 2006

There are a number of challenges facing all teachers as they implement standards, assessments, and accountability reforms with students with disabilities. The most significant of these challenges is how to enable each student to access the critical knowledge and skills specified in the standards.

—Nolet & McLaughlin, 2005

Higher and more rigorous expectations of students in schools today pose great implications for students with disabilities.

—Scarpati, 2000

The intense focus on two basic skills (reading and math) is a sea change in American instructional practices, with many schools that once offered rich curriculums now systematically trimming courses like social studies, science, and art…. [E]xperts warn that [by] reducing the academic menu to steak and potatoes, schools risk giving bored teenagers the message that school means repetition and drill.

—Dillon, 2006

According to a report by the Rand Corporation, having states set their own proficiency standards has become a controversial issue because some states have set proficiency standards that are easy to achieve, whereas other states have set very rigorous proficiency standards that are difficult to achieve.

—Yell, Katsiyanna, & Shiner, 2006

Standards from different states and associations were reviewed and then divided into disciplines in the curriculum chapters that follow. As an educator, it is imperative to check your state’s Web site for more current information on your state and district’s content and core standards. More information on assessment and standards will also be addressed in Chapter 2. In no way are these charts encompassing of all topics under each subject, yet they bring to mind the juxtaposition of the huge complexities and simplicities involved within individual subjects. The dilemma or challenge here is how to allow students with disabilities full access to the general education curriculum, while at the same time focusing on individual students’ goals and strengths. The conundrum is how to honor and respect varying student abilities within the framework of the standards. In the past, the deletion or overdilution of these standards, when it came to students with disabilities, resulted in a downward spiral of student knowledge. Teachers are now challenged to not only include all students in their classroom, but to also hold them accountable to learning more. It’s a road that was at one time less traveled, but with the proper teaching hiking gear, it is definitely navigable.

Chapters 2–4 address assessment issues, how students learn, and how teachers teach. Moving forward into the classroom, Chapters 5–14 list specific objectives in reading, writing, mathematics, science, social studies, the arts, physical education, career education, life skills, social areas, and communication as indicated by our national standards and several states across the nation. The objectives are all shown near each other in ranges of grades, to allow for quick viewing of adjacent grades. Teachers can pull from different ones to allow students of higher and lower levels within the same class to learn about a topic or concept, on varying levels, with vertical and horizontal alignments. Baseline, advanced, and more challenging assignments are also included on primary, intermediary, and secondary levels. Following that, possible accommodations are listed for students with differing emotional, physical, cognitive, and sensory abilities. The question here is not whether students with differing academic, motoric, behavioral, perceptual, or physical needs can learn the same topics or concepts, but rather, what are the best strategies or tools to assist teachers with their endeavors. Baseline, advanced, and more challenging assignments try to mimic actual classroom lessons. The purpose here is to replace the thinking of impossibilities with a mentality that supports a feasibility approach!

The following on line sources were consulted:

Online Sources for Standards

Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning: www.mcrel.org/standards-benchmarks/

Education World: www.education-world.com/standards/national/ and http://www.education-world.com/standards/state/index.shtml

Illinois Learning Standards: http://www.isbe.state.il.us/ils/social_emotional/standards.htm

New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards: http://www.state.nj.us/njded/cccs/Standards

Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS): http://www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/

Music Educators National Conference (MENC), The National Association for Music Education: http://www.menc.org

Science Content Standards Developed by the National Research Council: http://www.nsta.org/standards

Content Standards for Mathematics Developed by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM): http://standards.nctm.org

Content Standards for Social Studies Developed by the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS): http://www.ncss.org

Content Standards for the English Language Arts Developed by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and the International Reading Association (IRA): http://www.ncte.org

National Standards for Physical Education—American Alliance for ...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Part I: Fundamentals of Honoring Potentials and Strengths of Students and Teachers
• Part II: Standards-Based Inclusion Strategies That Work
• Part III: Application of Strengths and Standards to Inclusive Environments
• References
• Index