CASE STUDY

Becka

Becka is a fourth grade student at Otter Bay Elementary School in Squantoca, Oregon. She has
had a clinical diagnosis since she was two, and has been receiving services through the schools
since she was five. Becka is now nine years old, and receives special education services in the
general classroom for the entirety of her school day. Her teacher, Daniel Redding, works closely
with Beckas parents, Kathleen and Brent, to assure that Becka is able to keep up with her IEP
goals.

BECKA PARENTS
Beckas parents both work in the local hospital. Kathleen is a nurse practitioner, and Brent is a
custodian. They have lived in Oregon since childhood, and were high school sweethearts. They
had Becka when they were both nineteen. Kathleen went to school to become a nurse practitioner
when Becka turned one, and Brent took care of her during the day while Kathleen went to
school. He worked as a custodian in the evenings. They have advocated strongly for Beckas
inclusion in the general education classroom, sometimes needing to threaten the schools with
mediation. However, the schools and Beckas family have finally recognized the value of her
placement, and have seen significant growth in Beckas social and academic outcomes. Becka
has one younger brother, Alex, who is in the first grade, and who is progressing well through the
general curriculum. He has no identified disabilities.

When Becka was four, she fell out of a tree, hitting her head on the ground below. Her mother
found her crying, when the other children ran to the house and announced that Becka had fallen.
Although the doctors found no sign of significant injury, Becka has demonstrated some
aggressive behaviors toward other children ever since.

This coming Friday, Becka is scheduled to have an IEP meeting. It is also to review the results of
her most recent psycho-educational evaluation, which was conducted by the school psychologist,
Brandy Nehemeier. In her report, Dr. Nehemeier found that Becka has a performance IQ of 80, a
verbal IQ of 57, and a full-scale IQ of 69. She also found that Beckas performance on the
Woodcock-Johnson test of academic achievement showed a standard score in broad reading of
60, in broad writing of 49, and in broad mathematics of 49. Beckas visual-motor integration,
short- and long-term auditory memory are areas of need, while her organization and attention are
areas of relative strength.

Dr. Nehemeier also conducted the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) with two of Beckas
teachers, Mr. Redding and Ms. Ingalls, Beckas PE teacher, as well as with Beckas parents. the
results of the CBCL included the following observations:

Becka is always friendly with other students.

Becka is sometimes liked by students in her class.
Becka often tells lies.
Becka is often defiant when asked to perform tasks with which she is
uncomfortable.
 Becka rarely or never cries in class.
Becka always comes to school with her homework and supplies.
Becka often makes up stories about her parents.
Becka sometimes brings toys to school.

The special education consultant, Mallory Cope, who consults with Beckas teachers on
appropriate interventions for Becka, has invited two additional individuals to the meeting, other
than Dr. Nehemeier, Mr. Redding, Ms. Ingalls, Beckas parents, and the principal, Suzanne
Piotrowski.. she has invited Becka and the school counselor, Tim Mulligan.

In consulting with Mr. Redding, Ms. Cope learned that Becka has been doing very well with her
reading. Mr. Redding has been working with her on her sight words for fourth grade, and she has
been able to recognize them with over 70 percent accuracy. She is also able to read some books
independently, although they are at the second-grade reading level. She is able to answer
comprehension questions about these books with over 70 percent accuracy, if the questions are
asked orally. Becka is less successful with writing, and she has only been able to write the
following words with 100 percent accuracy:

Beckas math skills are generally at the second grade level, and she is able to perform single-
digit addition and subtraction with over 90 percent accuracy, when carrying and borrowing are
not required. she is able to do double-digit addition and subtraction, with no carrying or
borrowing, single-digit addition and subtraction, with carrying and borrowing, and single-digit
multiplication and division of whole numbers with approximately 75 percent accuracy.

Ms. Cope and Mr. Redding have worked together to create alternative materials for Becka,
when appropriate, but usually try to use the same materials as those used by the other students in
Mr. Reddings class. In addition, they have assigned Becka a peer buddy, Chantal, to work with
Becka during independent activities in the classroom, as well as during special classes, such as
PE, art, and music.