Interpreting and Identifying

Also read: Classroom Behavior Strategies

Interpreting and Identifying 6

Interpreting and Identifying

Learning disabilities

There are three types of learning disabilities, including dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia. These disabilities are characterized by poor comprehension and retention, poor decoding skills, problems in identifying the main ideal in a reading context, reading slowly and pronunciation, and difficulty building ideas and images (Fletcher et al., 2018). In the case of dyslexia, students with the condition tend to have difficulties with reading. It makes reading challenging because sufferers experience trouble with word and letter recognition, reading fluency and speed, and understanding words. Also, dyslexia impact language-based processing skills adversely. It makes it challenging for students to comprehend and retain words and vocabulary. In this regard, dyslexia aligns with learning disabilities’ parameters since it makes the overall learning difficult for the sufferers.

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs)

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) consist of neurodevelopmental conditions that affect the ability of how an individual learns, communicates, and interacts with others. The condition is characterized mainly by difficulty with social interactions, engaging in repetitive behaviors, and abnormal body posturing (McLeskey et al., 2017). Also, people who have ASD tend to experience behavioral disturbance, delay in learning to speak, deficits in language comprehension, and abnormal tone or voice.

Intellectual Disabilities

Generally, intellectual disability entails a condition that is characterized by below-average intellectual and adaptive functioning. Regarding intellectual functioning, people with intellectual disabilities can experience difficulties with learning, judgment, and the ability to solve simple problems. The adaptive functioning is associated with the daily activities of life, this includes independent living and communication. The person may have trouble reading, writing, memorizing, and reasoning.

Definitions Using IDEA and Common Characteristics

Under IDEA, a learning disability consists of one or more disorder of the fundamental psychological ability that one uses in language, that includes understanding, writing, or speaking that can stand out in the imperfect thinking, listening, reading, speaking, and doing mathematical problems abilities. In the educational environment, the significant characteristics that can be seen to signify this condition include poor comprehension, problems identifying the main ideas in context, inadequate reading skills, and a lack in performance.

IDEA defines Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), as a developmental disability that impacts social interactions and verbal and nonverbal communication (McLeskey et al., 2017). Often, this condition manifests before age three. Other notable characteristics of ASD include unusual responses to sensory experiences, engaging in repeating activities, and opposition to environmental change. Some of the common features of ASD in the educational environment include difficulty with social interactions/fellow students, delay in learning to speak, and deficits in language comprehension.

Lastly, under IDEA, intellectual disability entails a condition relating to a massive sub-average general intellectual functioning while at the same time experiencing deficits in adaptive behaviors. The main signs of intellectual disability that can be seen in the educational environment include trouble learning, reading, writing, memorizing, and reasoning.

Impact on Educational Performance and Academic Progress

The characteristics of the above disabilities in the educational environment tend to impact students’ educational performance and academic progress negatively. Typically, they prevent students from reaching their educational and academic potentials like other normal students. It makes them lag behind the same-aged peers and limit them from focusing on achieving their educational goals.

Part II

Category of Eligibility and Specific Disability

In the case of Henry, He does qualifies for special education under the Specific Learning Disability (SLD) eligibility category. Typically, Henry has dyslexia, which is a specific type of SLD. This is because Henry exhibits particular characteristics for dyslexia based on his parent’s report, classroom observation, and teacher’s reports. Under IDEA, dyslexia is describe as one having problems with reading, word and recognizing letters, reading fluency and speed, and understanding words. It also makes it challenging for students to comprehend and retain words and vocabulary.

Henry demonstrates most of these characteristics; for instance, the test results indicated that reading and vocabulary comprehension comprises Henry’s most areas of need. He scored below average in passage comprehension, reading vocabulary, and writing fluency. Besides, Henry struggled with letter/word identification, word retention, and spelling, which characterizes dyslexia. Henry’s past intervention shows that he received Tier 1, 2, and 3 for reading, writing, and spelling in the past two years, which further confirms the severity of dyslexia.

Part III

One of the evidence-based interventions to meet Henry’s individual needs entails providing individualized tutoring services. Research has shown that tutoring services can help students with dyslexia improve their reading, writing, and comprehension skills (Mahmud, 2019). Although Henry has been receiving tutoring service in the past two years in his significant areas of weakness, they need to be more intensive.

There is also a need for using a multidisciplinary approach to addressing Henry’s needs (Griffiths & Stuart, 2013). Both players, including teachers, parents, librarians, and school psychologists/specialists, must assist this student. For instance, the librarian should be there to guide and encourage Henry to read the right books and provide him with the desirable ones. This approach will help improve Henry’s reading, word recognition, and comprehension skills and allow the parents and teachers to monitor the student’s progress to guide further appropriate and helpful interventions.

Finally, employing systematic instruction such as phonemic awareness instruction and systemic phonic instruction can also help Henry meet his individual needs. In the case of systemic phonics instruction, the teacher makes the student understand that individual sounds are represented by letters and gain the ability to use the sounds to decode words. It can involve teaching each phonogram in isolation with enough time and repetition to enhance mastery. A study by Moats (2019) indicated that systemic instruction such as systemic phonic instruction can enable students with dyslexia to decode words, which can, in turn, boost their reading and comprehension skills. Implementing the above interventions and strategies will likely create positive effect on Henry’s academic progress (Sullivan & Castro-Villarreal, 2013). His areas of weakness (reading and vocabulary comprehension) will improve, thus boosting his overall grades and performance.

References

Fletcher, J. M., Lyon, G. R., Fuchs, L. S., & Barnes, M. A. (2018). Learning disabilities: From identification to intervention. Guilford Publications.

Griffiths, Y., & Stuart, M. (2013). Reviewing evidence‐based practice for pupils with dyslexia and literacy difficulties. Journal of Research in Reading, 36(1), 96-116.

Mahmud, R. (2019). Mixed implications of private supplementary tutoring for students’ learning. International Journal of Comparative Education and Development.

McLeskey, J. L., Rosenberg, M. S., & Westling, D. L. (2017). Inclusion: Effective practices for all students. Pearson.

Moats, L. C. (2019). Structured Literacy: Effective instruction for students with dyslexia and related reading difficulties. Perspectives on Language and Literacy, 45(2), 9-11.

Sullivan, J. R., & Castro-Villarreal, F. (2013). Special education policy, response to intervention, and the socialization of youth. Theory Into Practice, 52(3), 180-189.