Case Study: Sarah 1

Case Study:
How Learning Disabilities Affect Education: Sarah
Mandy Upton
Uniersity of Detroit Mercy
Case Study: Sarah !
Are we doing all that we can do to help our students and children with early childhood
disabilities" Are we proiding the# with the education and serices that they need to help the# catch
up to their peers so that they can beco#e independent or se#i$independent adults" Are we giing the#
the opportunity for an education to ensure a high %uality life" &hese are all %uestions that educators
and society as a whole needs to as' the#seles when it co#es to all students with special needs(
especially those with early childhood deelop#ental disabilities)
&his case study is going to focus on Sarah* a student in an Early Childhood Special Education
progra# in Clar'ston Co##unity Schools) Sarah is four years old and is in preschool) During a face$
to$face interiew* her teacher Mrs) &ho#as discussed her deelop#ental delay with #e) She stated that
Sarah %ualifies for special education serices due to her early childhood deelop#ental delay +ECDD,)
She has a few deficiencies in early #athe#atics and social and e#otional deelop#ent +-) &ho#as*
personal co##unication* .ebruary !1* !/10,) Mrs) &ho#as also stated that Sarah fre%uently engages
in parallel play with little interaction with her peers and also has so#e speech and language delays +-)
&ho#as* personal co##unication* .ebruary !1* !/10,) She also infor#ed #e that Sarah will still be
eligible for this progra# for the following school year* where at that ti#e her acade#ic status will be
ealuated to deter#ine place#ent for the following school year) At that ti#e Sarah will either attend
regular 'indergarten* or attend a progra# in the Early Childhood Center called 12oung 34s)5 2oung
.ies is an inter#ediary progra# between preschool and 'indergarten for students who need a little
#ore interention before attending 'indergarten +-) &ho#as* personal co##unication* .ebruary !1*
!/10,) 6 then as'ed Mrs) &ho#as about her other students) She infor#ed #e that she has fie other
students in her classroo#) &hree of those students hae been diagnosed with Autis# and the other
student has been only diagnosed with an Early Childhood Deelop#ental Delay) She told #et that
#ost preschoolers do not hae official diagnosis until ele#entary school* so the one student with
ECDD could hae his diagnosis changed at so#e point +-) &ho#as* personal co##unication* .ebruary
Case Study: Sarah 0
!1* !/10,)
6 began #y obseration on .ebruary !1* !/10 at 1://p#) At this ti#e all of the students were
transitioning fro# a table actiity to the carpet for 17reeting)5 All of the students sat on the carpet with
Mrs) &ho#as sitting in front of the#) Mrs) &ho#as began the lesson by playing and singing a song
called 18ise and Shine)5 At this ti#e students are e9pected to sing along and do a few si#ple sign
language hand #oe#ents that the teacher is de#onstrating for the#) .or the #ost part Sarah was
engaged during the song but did loo' away a few ti#es* playing with her shoes and wiggling around in
her spot) :hile she was engaged in the song* she did #ost of the hand #otions and sang along
boisterously) After the song* the students did what was called the 1na#e ga#e)5 &he na#e ga#e is a
na#e recognition actiity where the teacher holds up one of the student4s na#es and they are supposed
to recogni;e it) Mrs) &ho#as as'ed the class 1who4s na#e is this"5 and students are e9pected to say
so#ething along the lines of 1that4s #y na#e5 and then ta'e the card and #atch it to a board with all of
the student4s na#es on it) Sarah instantly recogni;ed her na#e and said 1that4s Sarah4s na#e5 at which
point Mrs) &ho#as erbally pro#pted her to say 1that4s #y na#e)5 After each student placed their
na#e on the board* all of the students are to clap along and sing a hello song that #entions their na#e
specifically) During this portion of the lesson* Sarah not only recogni;ed her na#e* she also recogni;ed
her class#ate4s na#es and said the# aloud as the teacher held the# up) She also clapped and sang
along to the song and inserted the correct na#e into the song as applicable)
&he ne9t part of 7reeting inoled a #ini weather lesson) &he teacher displayed a board that
said 1&he :eather 6s"5 and students were gien two picture icon choices) &he teacher then told all of
the students to loo' outside to find out what the weather is) Sarah loo'ed outside and i##ediately
began to shout out the answer to the %uestion) &he teacher instructed all students to raise their hand
when they 'new the answer but Sarah continually shouted the answer aloud without raising her hand)
Another student who was sitting ne9t to her at the carpet raised his hand so Mrs) &ho#as called on hi#
Case Study: Sarah <
to place the correct picture icon on the board) Sarah instantly beca#e upset that she wasn4t called on)
She began putting her head down and whining) At that point Mrs) &ho#as told her that the ne9t ti#e
she would li'e a turn she needs to raise her hand) &his is a techni%ue that Mrs) &ho#as is using with
Sarah in order to teacher her what the appropriate responses and actions are by only reinforcing
positie behaiors +-) &ho#as* personal co##unication* .ebruary !1* !/10,) &he ne9t part of greeting
was the letter of the wee' lesson) &he letter of the wee' was the letter 1=5 and it was displayed on the
white board and was ery large) &he teacher then played a short song that corresponded with the letter
1=5 and included #a'ing the sound of the letter along with a s#all hand #otion) >ecause the class
does the sa#e letter all wee'* Sarah was already fa#iliar with the song and the hand #otions) She sang
ery loudly and did her hand #otions while s#iling and laughing) &he last part of the 7reeting lesson
was story ti#e) Mrs) &ho#as read the boo' Engine, Engine Number Nine aloud to the class) Sarah did
well sitting and listening to the story for the #ost part but had to be erbally pro#pted a few ti#es to
1sit on her botto#5 or to 1listen %uietly)5 Sarah see#ed ery interested in the story but often tal'ed
aloud oer her teacher about pictures or things in the boo') She was also distracted a few ti#es*
loo'ing at the carpet or fiddling with her shoe) During the ti#es where Mrs) &ho#as noticed that Sarah
was distracted she would as' Sarah +and other students when applicable, to answer an easy %uestion
about the boo' +such as touch the train* or what is the train doing,) &his was a good techni%ue that
Mrs) &ho#as used to reaffir# what the appropriate ad e9pected behaior was* rather than point out
what Sarah was doing wrong) After the story was oer the 7reeting lesson was co#plete) &he entire
7reeting lesson lasted appro9i#ately !/ #inutes)
After 7reeting the students were all gien isual schedule tags to direct the# to the correct
direct instruction table for 1&eacher &i#e)5 &he classroo# contained three tables* the 1s%uare table*5
the 1circle table*5 and the 1triangle table)5 &he students were diided into groups of ! and each staff
#e#ber sat at a table to direct the students in their wor' tas's) &he first table that Sarah went to was
Case Study: Sarah 3
the circle table) &he circle table consisted of three bins each nu#bered 11*5 1!*5 and 10)5 At this table
students are e9pected to do each bin starting with nu#ber one and co#plete each #ini tas' in the bin)
&he first bin that Sarah did was a nu#ber #atching actiity inoling #atching train cards with
nu#bers 1$1/ printed on the#) Sarah co#pleted this tas' without any pro#pts fro# staff e9cept to
wor' %uietly because she li'ed to shout out the nu#bers as she was #atching the#) &he staff didn4t
#ind her saying the nu#bers out loud they ?ust wanted her to use a %uieter oice as to not disturb the
other students in the classroo# +-) &ho#as* personal co##unication* .ebruary !1* !/10,) &he second
bin that Sarah did was a shape #atching actiity) Sarah co#pleted this actiity with only one erbal
pro#pt to 1'eep wor'ing5 when she beca#e distracted by a picture on one of the shape cards that she
was supposed to be #atching) Sarah then continued on with her wor' and said the shapes aloud as she
#atched the#* howeer when she said the shapes she would say 1letter s%uare or letter dia#ond5
instead of referring to the# as shapes) &he staff #e#ber wor'ing with Sarah would then correct her
si#ply by saying the phrase correctly and referring to it as a shape instead of a letter) &he third and last
bin that Sarah co#pleted was a shape pu;;le where she put wooden shapes into the correct spots on the
pu;;le) Sarah co#pleted this tas' independently with little effort)
After the circle table Sarah and her class#ates all switched tables along with staff #e#bers)
Sarah then went to the s%uare table along with the other student who was wor'ing at the s%uare table
alongside of her) &he actiities at the s%uare table were all fine #otor actiities) &he ti#e that students
spend at the s%uare table is a bit less teacher directed( staff basically assists students who need help and
directs the# to new tas's if they are unable to do so the#seles) 6nstead of haing set bins that they
are re%uired to do* at the s%uare table they are allowed to choose fro# any of the actiities on the table
but need to 'eep wor'ing or choosing different actiities until it is ti#e for the whole class to switch
tables) At this table Sarah did seeral tas's such as using clothes pins to pic' up and #oe puff balls*
stringing frog beads onto a string* and cutting practice inoling cutting straight lines on a paper) Sarah
Case Study: Sarah @
needed little assistance at this table( and only needed staff to help her #oe on to another actiity when
she was finished)
&he last table that Sarah went to during 1&eacher &i#e5 was the triangle table) &he triangle
table #ostly consistsAed of pu;;les* categori;ing actiities* and a na#e #atching actiity specific for
each student) Bnce again* Sarah needed ery little assistance at this table and was able to co#plete all
of the tas's that were laid out)
After &eacher &i#e the students transitioned to 1Centers5 which is a play and e9ploration ti#e
where they are allowed to #oe around the roo#* play and do actiities with #ini#al teacher direction)
During this ti#e 6 was able to tal' to Mrs) &ho#as a bit #ore about Sarah) Sarah4s #ain area of
concern at school is her lac' of interaction with her peers) Sarah does not initiate conersation with her
peers ery often and the #a?ority of ti#e she engages in parallel play alongside of her friends( rather
than with the#) Mrs) &ho#as also infor#ed #e that Sarah is doing e9tre#ely well on her Early
Learning in Mathe#atics goals so they #ost li'ely will not be on her ne9t 6E=) Mrs) &ho#as then gae
#e a copy of Sarah4s 6E= so that 6 would be able to reiew her deficiencies and her current goals) Her
current deficiencies are as follows:
Early Learning in Mathe#atics:
Sarah is currently #atching basic shapes and sorting ob?ects by shape but not pointing to
or na#ing any shapes)
Social and E#otional Deelop#ent:
Sarah is engaging in predo#inantly parallel play e9periences when at school per
docu#ented by teacher obseration)
Sarah only has a few annual and short$ter# goals for the current school year) &hose goals are as
follows:
Case Study: Sarah C
Early Learning in Mathe#atics:
Annual 7oal D Sarah will de#onstrate #athe#atics pre$readiness s'ills of identifying
basic shapes by pointing to and na#ing basic shapes whenEat in a s#all group setting
when gien speciali;ed instruction)
Short$ter# 7oal D Sarah will point to @ basic shapes when they are na#ed +heart* circle*
star* dia#ond* triangle* oal* and s%uare,)
Short$ter# 7oal D Sarah will na#e < basic shapes +circle* heart* star* and oal,)
Social and E#otional Deelop#ent:
Annual 7oal D Sarah will engage in associatie play interactions with peers when at
school per teacher obseration)
Short$ter# 7oal D Sarah will play with co##on #aterials alongside a peer and initiate
sharing of toys ! ti#es with one adult pro#pt)
Short$ter# 7oal D Sarah will engage inE#aintain a erbal e9change of three turns with a
peer during a play interaction with one adult pro#pt)
=er her 6E=* Sarah also receies speech au9iliary serices) She receies 13$!/ #inutes of
speech serices each wee') Considering that Sarah is in a special$education progra# she has ery few
goals and deficiencies) During #y interiew with Mrs) &ho#as 6 as'ed her about the 6ndiiduals with
Disabilities Education Act +6DEA, guidelines that relate to children being put into the least restrictie
eniron#ent) According to the Michigan Depart#ent of Education 1all children should hae the
opportunity to be educated together* regardless of disability* in the school he or she would attend if not
disabled unless otherwise deter#ined appropriate through the 6E= process)5 6 as'ed Mrs) &ho#as how
Case Study: Sarah F
Sarah4s school progra# is co#pliant with the 6DEA act) She told #e that because there are general
education students in the building that Sarah #ight hae so#e for# of interaction with* that her
progra# can be considered the least restrictie eniron#ent) &hese ti#es where she #ight be
integrated with general education peers are for !/ #inutes once a wee'( during a #usic lesson* and
possibly outside during play ti#e* howeer classes are not scheduled to be outside at the sa#e ti#es)
.or this reason* Mrs) &ho#as is trying to integrate Sarah as #uch as possible with general education
peers) Sarah now has snac' eery day in another classroo# with different peers) :hile these peers are
still special$education students* they are students who are #ore li'ely to initiate conersation) Also*
after isiting Sarah at her daycare progra# that she attends eery #orning before preschool* and
discoering that she does e9ceptionally well with those general education peers( Mrs) &ho#as
suggested that Sarah stay there a full day on Monday and then attend her preschool progra# &uesday
through &hursday) &his way Sarah can spend #ore ti#e around general education peers and in a least
restrictie eniron#ent +-) &ho#as* personal co##unication* .ebruary !1* !/10,)
After #y obseration* 6 feel that there is only one thing that 6 would change about Sarah4s
educational progra#) >ecause at least three of the other students in her classroo# hae an Autis#
Spectru# Disorder +ASD, and are unable to initiate conersation or #odel appropriate behaior* 6 feel
that it would be in Sarah4s best interest to attend another classroo# within the sa#e progra# where the
students are higher functioning) Due to her lac' of so#e social s'ills and social interaction s'ills* 6 feel
that she would do best in a progra# where other students could #odel appropriate social behaiors and
initiate interaction and conersations with her) 6 feel that peer #odeling* especially when it co#es to
social and e#otional s'ills are best taught by peer #odeling) &he #ore that Sarah is able to directly
obsere other students interacting with each other* and the #ore that they atte#pt to interact with her*
the #ore her own social s'ills will deelop) 6 feel that this is a better solution then si#ply attending
daycare howeer because there are still so#e basic s'ills that Sarah needs to i#proe upon before
Case Study: Sarah G
#oing up to 'indergarten) Also* because Sarah is eligible for speech serices she needs to attend this
progra# otherwise she would not be able to receie those serices +-) &ho#as* personal
co##unication* .ebruary !1* !/10,)
&hough 6 personally feel that all children should be integrated with their general education
peers* 6 feel that Sarah is still receiing a high %uality education that is going to prepare her for
ele#entary school and beyond) Een though she is in a special$education classroo# with other
children who #ight not be filling her social needs* she is still receiing educational support that she
#ost li'ely would not receie in a daycare alone) She is able to wor' with teachers ! on 1 and 1 on 1
to get her caught up acade#ically and she is also able to receie the speech support that she needs)
Sarah is definitely on the right path for a successful education)