2 Discussion questions. 300 words per answer. 2 BIBLIOGRAPHY SOURCES per answer. I am a middle school teacher in Brooklyn NY if that is applicable to either of these answers.

1. Federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation has created radical change in U.S. classrooms. State and local school governance bodies must align their goals to meet NCLB criteria, including Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) benchmarks on standardized testing and ensuring that special education students are achieving at higher levels.

How has NCLB changed the way in which your school operates?
How do you and your colleagues feel about the NCLB legislation?
What has been the most positive and most negative impact that NCLB has had on your school and its teachers?

2. As we learned this module, students do not give up their right to free speech at the schoolhouse gate, but schools must also ensure that the educational goals for all students are not compromised. Respond to the questions in the discussion.

When have you experienced a situation that has blurred the line between student expression and school safety or discipline?
How did your school handle the situation?
If you have not experienced such a situation, find a case study and describe how you/your school might react.

It is an exciting and challenging time to be an educator. Media attention has never been greater as curriculum and delivery of instruction is under deep scrutiny. No Child Left Behind, The Race to the Top and renewed calls for National Standards are keeping assessment at the forefront of many books, documentaries and TV news features. Technology is generating many advancements in assessment from test design to proprietary software that keeps track of data.

For this assignment please read a book, (an issue of a professional journal devoted entirely to assessment the use of technology is also acceptable0or watch a book or documentary feature about education where the focus is on assessment and technology specifically technology and data. Consider as well, that Special Education should feature prominently in the book or media report, or professional publication.You may also read Prepare a paper of approximately 1000 words (this is the upper limit) that addresses such a topic.





Part 1: Introduction:

The introductory paragraph should include the title, author, year of publication or production of the book or media piece and a statement of rationale for your choice.

Part 2: Summary and Analysis:

The focus of the paper should thoroughly discuss the impact of technology as addressed by your research.. Briefly summarize the content of the book, journal or media so that a clear picture is given of the essence of the content.



Analyze the content terms of how it connects with principles and topics we have covered in this course. Make strong connections to the purpose of assessment and how technology has impacted on that mission.





The following prompts are merely suggestions to clarify the direction the paper should go. What was clarified and what remains ambiguous? Does the media piece present a realistic picture of the topic? How does it relate to other books, articles or media youve read on the topic. What are the benefits and drawbacks of using technology and assessment.

Part 3: Concluding Statement:

Close with a brief statement that ties the elements of your writing together .

Part 4: Citation page using APA format.






Write a 1000 word paper, double spaced using a standard, 12 pt font.


MS Word should be used to avoid incompatibility issues. PLEASE SAVE YOUR PAPER IN WORD 03 OR pdf FORMAT.


All pages should be numbered.


Provide a title page with your name, title of the paper, college name, course number and semester and the instructors name (not part of the page count).


Your name should appear on every page. (Use APA format for title pages


Clearly delineate the parts of your paper by using headings to separate the sections.


Use APA format when citing works. The web-site below provides information on how to cite using this format.


http://www.uwp.edu/departments/library/guides/apa.htm


Touro Virtual library also provides similar information on-line.


Topics must be cleared with the instructor prior to beginning this assignment.

Short Essay/Response

In what ways might Whole School Reform reduce discipline problems, academic delays, and social segregation? What might be the implications for the future roles of general education and special education teachers? How can we serve all children well, especially those with differences in ability and disability? Explore the many sides of the issues with your peers.

Cite the text in your initial response to support your views. Essay should be approximately 150-300 words. OK if longer. Include APA in-text citations and references. APA Format, but no cover page or abstract required.

Your topic for research is very broad. I want you to research CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT in a regular education classroom or a special education classroom. After you find an article that you like:

write a 2 page report

double space, 12 font

page 1 is a summary of the article

page 2 is a reflective narrative of the article (your opinion of what the article stated)

you must site the article

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

For this assignment you will need to first determine what is the cultural diversity of your district and community. Cultural diversity can exist in many forms such as ethnicity, race, color, income, or something that shows a difference. This does not include special education as a type of diversity.

1. Research your local, state, and county federal documents to determine the cultural diversity in your schools and community. A good starting point is the diversity form you were to submit with your initial Practicum paperwork.
2. Discuss with various district employees how diversity issues are handled. Are there specific programs in place? Does the district print and distribute information in various languages? Does the district celebrate all types of holidays? (not just Easter and Christmas)
3. What types of services are available for non-English speaking families and students?
4. Does the food service department cater to the needs of all cultures? How?
5. Write a 4 to 6 page paper (not including the cover or bibliography) with the following:

a. What is the cultural makeup of your school, your district, and your community?
b. What services are in place to work with culturally diverse populations?
c. Based on your research what programs and services will you recommend be maintained, added or deleted?
d. Succinctly write a brief summary of what you consider to be an ?ideal? cultural diversity program for your school, district and community.

Hi! I'm Michelle.
I need your help to write research project.

The following is the description of this research project.

Research proposal ? students are required to complete a proposal for a research project. In the proposal, relevant literature will be reviewed and a study in or related to the field of special education will be developed. The proposal must be typed and submitted in the format specified in the American Psychological Association (APA) publication manual. The following are required for successful completion of the project:
a. a. Introduction: A discussion introducing the general idea of the research problem to the field of special education. It will include:
i) General statement of the problem
ii) Definition of terms; and
iii) Specific research questions and statement of the hypothesis
iv) Significance of the proposed study
b. b. Review of the Literature: The review of the literature is to demonstrate how previous research relates to that which the investigator is preparing to undertake. It is the background information from which to view the proposed study. You are required to cite not less than 10 articles and at least some of the reports must be empirical studies. A bibliography is to be included with the final draft of the report. Most articles should be no more than 10 years old.
c. c. Methodology: This section is to describe, in outline form only, exactly how the investigator will conduct the proposed study. This section is to include: a description of who the sample will be, how the sample will be developed, the instruments to be used, the design of the study, and the procedures to be followed.
i) Design
ii) Setting
iii) Participants or Subjects
iv) Measures or Instrumentation
v) Procedures
vi) Data Analysis Procedures-how to analysis data
vii) Limitation of he study


The following is my topic. I want to you write based on my topic.

The topic to be investigated in this study is how teaching AAC early on impact on developing verbal communication skills for children with autism.

Children with autism who are taught AAC early on develop more verbal communication skill than those who are only taught speech.

Autism is termed as a syndrome marked chiefly by important difficulty in the development of speech and social functioning. Autism influences three important vicinities of developing namely verbal and nonverbal interaction, social association, and recreational play. (Dawson & Osterling, 1997) Although students with autism have idea of communication, as do students without disabilities, they recurrently cannot discover relevant means to communicate. Frequently, their idea of communications gives rise to behavior problems like oppressiveness, self-destruction, wealth destruction, and frequent quarrels. For this particular reason learning communication assets is the most significant one for students with autism to boost their social cooperation skills and reduce behavior difficulties. Without concise communication system, preference opportunities are hugely reduced. Constrained preference-creating opportunities also bear a semblance in more happenings of difficulties in behavior (Kern et al, 1998). For this particular reason, a basic aim of imbibing children with autism is enhanced communication, the most convenient and socially open attire of which turns out to be speech (Bondy and Frost, 1994). Anyhow, when children with autism are taught the communication skills directly, their proportion of speech attainment is generally retarded, and even when the attempt does not reap any results, a vast chunk of deliberation is needed of children and staff (Carr, 1982). Apart from speech, another section of learning Augmentative and Alternative communication skill as a functional communication skill has been comprehensive of viable or gaining communication entities. However, most parents believe that teaching functional communication skill may hinder children with autism developing verbal communication. The topic to be investigated in this study is how teaching AAC impacts on developing verbal communication skill for children with autism.

If you have question, email to me([email protected] or [email protected])

in a 1000??"1250 word essay, discuss and summarize the definitions and challenges of EDB. Include the following three sections:
(1) Create a special education (SPED) team for this course. Include at least one special educator and one regular educator, a parent, and an administrator.
(a) What is their area of expertise; and what will they contribute to the team.
(2) The issues you and your team have had in regards to diagnostic concerns relating to definitions of emotional disabilities and challenges of providing services to students with EDB.
(a) What changes would you make to resolve the issues?
(b) How could the definitions be more distinct?
(3) Use the reading assignments as a resource to support your answers.
(4) Compare/ contrast the reading assignments for this module with the above discussions, and summarize the difficulty with categorizing, the definitions for, and the challenges of working with students with EBD.
ii) Use standard essay format in APA style, including an introduction, conclusion, and title page. An abstract not required. Cite in-text and in the References section


There are faxes for this order.

This assessment task requires you to respond to a fictional case study to enable you to examine and defend children?s rights towards their health and development within a human rights and equity framework. This assessment relates to unit learning outcome (LO) 2: Examine and defend children's rights and teacher advocacy.

Reflect upon the school response to managing James? behaviour. As an early graduate, discuss strategies that could better support James? mental health and wellbeing for inclusion and support, whilst ensuring all children and teaching staff are safe.

"James is a boy in Grade 4 at a large high socio-economic suburban school. For the past two terms, James? behaviour has detoriorated, and more recently, he has been disrupting the classroom by shouting swear words to the teacher and throwing dangerous items at the teacher. As a means of intervention, James? mother has been called by the teaching staff to collect him from school. Both the school and James? parents are at a loss as to what to do to help his behaviour. Owing to the numerous days James has spent at home, he has now developed a high level of anxiety about attending school and finds it difficult to step foot in the school. He now complains of feeling ill and has started exhibiting unusual ritualistic behaviours. Socially, James has shut himself off from his friendship group and is constantly picking fights with his younger brother. The once harmonious life James led, is now one he experiences with fear and a diminishing confidence. As the school grapples with James? change in behaviour, the school has made the decision to exclude him from school sporting days and upcoming camps. James? mother feels that he has now been labelled the ?naughty boy? by the teaching staff and that the school response and intervention he is receiving is unreasonable. The teaching staff have said that they are fearful of what James will do next in the classroom and playground to other children and staff members. James? parents have involved the family GP and special education experts to provide advice to the school, but the information about James? mental health deterioration appears to be falling on deaf ears."


Within your response you will need to demonstrate:

knowledge and understanding about children?s rights, health and wellbeing, including issues, appropriate theories and policies that discuss or advocate children?s rights and healthy development - your discussion should highlight complexities for teachers but does not necessarily need to provide clear strategies
discussion and rationale as to why advocacy for both children and teachers is important
awareness of the complexity involved when responding to children?s behaviours and the impact on mental health and wellbeing. You will also need to show consideration of legal and ethical responsibilities expected of teachers and how this impacts on your understanding and response to students.

Critique this Journal Article: (What are the implications of this point of view for classroom instruction and are these ideas/strategies feasible for a particular classroom, can they be adapted, alter, or incorporated to benefit students with disabilities?).

TITLE: Cultural Models of Transition: Latina Mothers of Young Adults With Developmental Disabilities
SOURCE: Exceptional Children 71 no4 401-14 Summ 2005

ROBERT RUEDA
LILIA MONZO
JOHANNA SHAPIRO
JUAN GOMEZ
JAN BLACHER


ABSTRACT
This study used several focus groups to examine culturally based variation in attitudes, beliefs, and meanings of transition. Sixteen Latina mothers of young adults with disabilities participated in the study, recruited from an agency serving low-income, predominantly Spanish-speaking communities. Data analysis identified five primary themes: (a) basic life skills and social adaptation, (b) the importance of the family and home rather than individualism and independence, (c) the importance of the mother's role and expertise in decision making, (d) access to information; and (e) dangers of the outside world. The overarching theme was a view of transition as home-centered, sheltered adaptation as opposed to a model emphasizing independent productivity. The findings and the implications for future research and practice are discussed.
Transition is an important part of the service system for students with developmental disabilities, a period during which young adults prepare for life beyond mandatory schooling (Blacher, 2001). During this time, decisions about living arrangements, further schooling, work placements, and the like must be made primarily by the young adult (whenever possible) with the input of teachers, school personnel, service agency representatives, and parents (Kramer & Blacher, 2001).
Despite the key role of transition as both a construct and a process in the service delivery system, little is known about culturally based variations in attitudes, beliefs, and meanings of transition for those involved. The present article begins to address this gap by providing a qualitative look at these areas from a group of Latina mothers of young adults with disabilities. Before reporting on the study, we provide a brief review of the concept of transition, and then discuss the role of cultural issues and why a cultural perspective is needed in the field.


THE CONCEPT OF TRANSITION
Transition reflects a service delivery focus on the pursuit of a productive, independent life (Rusch & Menchetti, 1988), including domains such as career choices, future social relationships, and living arrangements (Halpern, 1985). Beginning no later than age 14, each student now must have included in the individualized education program (IEP) a statement of the transition services that he or she needs in order to prepare for such postschool outcomes as employment, postsecondary education, adult services, independent living, and community participation (IDEA Amendments, 1997), although the actual process of transition can take place anytime from ages 14 to about 26.


AMBIGUITY, VARIATION, AND ALTERNATIVE VIEWS OF TRANSITION
Transition planning for young adults with disabilities can be more complex and ambiguous than that involving nondisabled persons, the most obvious difference being that transition decisions for nondisabled young adults are generally informal processes that occur within the locus of the family, and interaction with larger social systems (i.e., colleges, workplace) are to some extent voluntary. Nondisabled adolescents and teenagers gradually assume responsibilities and roles that result in increasing independence, and transition to adulthood is often marked by specific life events (going away to college, marriage, employment, moving from home). Although there may be variance, the general expectation is that a nondisabled young adult will become independent from the family at some point. Successful transition of the young adult with disabilities, however, is less clearly delineated and is predicated on the notion of life-long support from family members, advocates, and/or agencies.
Transition for both persons with and without disabilities may be further complicated when cultural differences are involved (Blacher, 2001; Harry, Rueda, & Kalyampur, 1999; Lehmann & Roberto, 1996). For example, there is some evidence of cultural variation regarding "normal" childrearing or family practices for young adults without disabilities (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001; Maga?a, 1999). In the special education literature, studies have shown variation in the meaning attached to disability (Blacher, 2001; Geenen, Powers, & Lopez-Vasquez, 2001; Harry, 1992a; Kalyanpur & Harry, 1999) and to service delivery systems and the values embedded in them (Chavira, Lopez, Blacher, & Shapiro, 2000; Gomez & Shapiro, 2000) from different cultural perspectives. This work suggests caution in assuming the universality of values such as development, life outcomes, family structures and roles, parenting, independence, and individual achievement apart from one's nuclear family that may be implied in discussions of the concepts of normalization and least restrictive environment.
An alternative view is that the notion of transition can be seen as a social construction, highly symbolic in ways that go beyond the more mundane issues related to living arrangements and economic support. A culturally relative framework allows for variance in the underlying values that define what is normal and desirable as well as in the timing and degree of expected developmental changes.
A small body of work investigated the issue of transition in different cultural settings. Shapiro, Monzo, Rueda, Gomez, and Blacher (2004) described Latina mothers' perspectives related to the service delivery system surrounding transition. Primary concerns of these mothers included (a) poor communication with service providers, (b) low effort on the part of service providers, (c) negative attitudes of professionals toward client-children, and (d) negative treatment of parents by professionals. Although these mothers adopted a role of advocacy for their offspring, they did so in an alienated rather than a collaborative fashion because of lack of trust and disillusionment with how they and their children were treated. The study also documented the mothers' belief in their role as central to the-well-being of their children.
In another study, Harry (1998) followed seven culturally diverse families over a 4-year period, focusing on socialization patterns and social pathways of family members with a disability. Harry documented the strong sense of family and family decision making that cut across all of the participants. Expectations for children's development were closely tied to cultural assumptions about child rearing, family structure, and sibling responsibility. In addition, families' values were discrepant with values espoused in the field in general and in legislation in particular around areas such as personal choice, friendships, independence, and equality of opportunity. Although there was important variation among even the small number of families studied, Harry suggested that a "normal life" is a highly culturally influenced concept about which the families held differing expectations compared with those for other children without a disability.
It is unclear if the variance in values and practices among different groups described in these studies reflect economic, class, cultural, or other influences, but it is clear that views about the underlying values vary. On the one hand, seemingly universal assumptions and meanings regarding transition may be inappropriate when applied to diverse populations (Geenen et al., 2001; Meier-Kronick, 1993). On the other hand, there is danger in making inferences about individuals based on group membership. This issue is briefly addressed in the following section.


A NOTE ON CULTURAL MODELS, CULTURAL PRACTICES, AND CONTEXT
Gallimore and Goldenberg (2001) described cultural models as shared mental schema or normative understandings of how the world works, or ought to work, including what is valued and ideal, what settings should be enacted and avoided, who should participate, the rules of interaction, and the purpose of interactions. With respect to services for persons with developmental disabilities and their families, such models would help define what is normal, expected, and appropriate.
One problem with discussions of culturally based beliefs and values is that often these are treated as stable, context-free, and pervasive among all members of a group. This presumed homogeneity fails to capture the dynamic nature of cultural beliefs and also fails to account for the variability often seen among members of the same cultural, ethnic, or racial group. However, Gallimore and Goldenberg (2001) noted that even though a group may appear homogenous and may widely share similar cultural models, these shared models can produce varying cultural practices among members of the same group, depending on features of specific social contexts, and these need to be differentiated. In the present study, we focused on common themes in Latina mothers' cultural models related to transition, but did not focus on cultural practices.


WHY ARE CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IMPORTANT?
A major reason for focusing on variations in assumptions, beliefs, and values is the increasingly diverse population as well as different outcomes among groups. The recent Twenty-fourth Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (U.S. Department of Education, 2002) documented that the racial, cultural, and language backgrounds of students in America's schools have changed dramatically in recent decades. This is also reflected in the population of students with disabilities. The report noted that Hispanic students exhibited the largest increase, being half again as large in 2001 as in 1987 (14% vs. 9%). There was more than a fourfold increase in the percentage of students with disabilities who did not use primarily English at home (3% to 14%). Thus, growing numbers of students with disabilities face the challenges of communicating in two languages and accommodating two cultures, in addition to the challenges posed by their disabilities (U.S. Department of Education).
Failure of the service delivery system to account for this diversity in values and beliefs may make transition more difficult for some groups than for others. The National Longitudinal Study (Blackorby & Wagner, 1996), for example, revealed that African American and Latino youth with disabilities had greater difficulty than European American youth with disabilities finding employment, and when they did work, earned significantly less than European American workers. Given these circumstances, it is important to more closely examine variation among different groups in order to refine the concept of transition and the service delivery system that reflects it. Work to date suggests that culturally relevant issues need to be documented and considered in order to facilitate the widest possible access to services for all members of society.


PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
Although work such as Harry's (1992a, 1998) examined developmental disability and service delivery issues from a cross-cultural perspective, little work has been done on culturally based differences specifically on transition for students with disabilities and their families. In order to add to what is known about this issue, we conducted a qualitative study of Latina mothers' views of transition and transition-related issues and compared these views with the explicit and implicit assumptions in the current regulations and practices involved around the concept of transition and transition planning. We explored a wide range of participants' views of transition and the transition planning process. We used these responses to identify common themes in the cultural models regarding transition-related issues of these Latina mothers.


METHOD


PARTICIPANTS
Although the 16 mothers who participated in our study were Latina mothers of young adults with developmental disabilities, and all lived in low-income predominantly Latino and Chicano communities of the East Los Angeles area, it is important to note the diversity of the participants who fell under this umbrella. Two came originally from Ecuador, 1 from Peru, and the remainder had emigrated from Mexico except for 2 who were born in the United States. The immigrant mothers had lived in the United States for some time (between 8 and 40 years). Spanish was the primary language of 14 of the mothers. The other 2 spoke Spanish but seemed more comfortable speaking in English. Their ages ranged between 35 and 68. Their education levels varied. Seven had completed 1 to 6 years of education, 3 had completed 7 to 8 years of education, 2 had completed some high school, and 4 had some higher education either at the college level or at a trade school. Ten of the 16 mothers were married. Only 4 out of the 16 mothers were employed. Although Latinos are often seen as a homogenous group, there is often significant variability in country of origin, length of time in the United States, language proficiency and use, education, employment, marital status, and so forth. Thus, the variability among this group was not unexpected.
In age, their sons and daughters ranged between 14 and 31 years. All 16 young adults had severe disabilities and lived at home with their parent(s). Based on maternal reports, 7 were diagnosed with Down syndrome, 4 with autism, 3 with mental retardation (unspecified), 1 with pachygyria (a genetic disorder), and one with microcephaly. Nine had not yet completed their transition programs, whereas 7 had already transitioned, or exited, out of the school system.
We recruited participants through a non-profit community organization that provides support services to families of children with developmental disabilities. A staff member from the agency who had close interaction with the families served assisted in recruiting Latino parents who had children between 14 and 25 years of age with severe developmental disabilities, our initial target range based on our estimate of the approximate age range during which issues of transition would be salient. However, in order to secure a sample with the number and types of young adults we sought (students with severe disabilities), we went slightly above the initial target age range. Participants received a $40 honorarium immediately following their participation. Although no emphasis was placed on which parent was sought in our recruitment efforts (or perhaps because of this), we secured participation only from mothers.


FOCUS GROUP AS A METHOD OF RESEARCH
Focus groups involve informal discussion among a small group of participants who are asked to express their viewpoints or opinions on a particular topic about which they have special expertise or life experience. The objective is to explore experiences and beliefs rather than to reach consensus (Carney et al., 1998). They can be particularly useful in encouraging participants to provide candid, complete, and in-depth responses. Because responses from participants are shared or discussed, more diverse, and often more nuanced, opinions are gathered than what would be possible to obtain with an individual interview.


DATA PROTOCOL AND COLLECTION
The research team used a question protocol (Shapiro et al., 2004), translated by a Latina member of the team who was familiar with the local community, and this translation was then reviewed by other bilingual team members. Themes addressed included participants' definitions of transition, involvement with social service agencies, their rights to support services, the impact of transition on the young adolescent with severe disabilities and his or her family, differences and similarities of transition between children with severe disabilities and their nondisabled siblings, and out-of-home placement.
A familiar and comfortable setting was sought for the meetings; and a back room in a local church was identified by the community agency that assisted in recruiting participants. Focus groups were conducted approximately 2 weeks apart. Each one was about 3 hr in duration.
Three focus groups were conducted. The first group included 4 participants and was conducted bilingually, with much code switching (Zentella, 1997) and repetition in both languages. Only 2 participants of the 6 recruited arrived for the second focus group, held entirely in Spanish. The third focus group had 10 participants, a larger than optimal size that was related to over-recruitment based on the experience with the second group. A bilingual Latina doctoral student with experience conducting qualitative interviews and focus groups with other Latinas/os from similar communities facilitated all three focus groups. A second bilingual Latino researcher, who was also present at all of the focus groups, took careful field notes while the discussion was taking place.
Focus group discussions were primarily informal in nature. Following recommendations by other cross-cultural researchers to adopt a recursive, open-ended approach in interviewing (Blakely, 1982) and an innovative interviewing style with elements of "la platica" (social conversation; Moll, Rueda, Reza, Herrera, & Vasquez, 1976), the interviewer willingly engaged in discussions with participants of issues not directly related to the research project and proceeded at the pace and response sequence of the respondents. All focus groups were audio recorded and later transcribed and translated verbatim. The bilingual members of the research team reviewed all transcripts for accuracy


DATA ANALYSIS
Data analysis took place simultaneously with data collection. Debriefing sessions were held after each focus group session to begin to identify categories and themes in the data. In addition, written transcripts were reviewed several times by all investigators.
Transcript data were compared both within and across groups. Initial ideas, themes, and categories were first identified using open coding (Vaughn, Schumm, & Sinagub, 1996), then fractured and recoded using axial coding to make connections between categories and subcategories that reflected more generalized themes and patterns. Finally, themes were used to form a grounded theory (selective coding) that clarified concepts and allowed for interpretations and conclusions (Gilgun, Daly, & Handel, 1992). The goal of analysis was to identify patterns, make comparisons, and contrast one set of data with another in order to explore the cultural models and issues surrounding transition for these Latina mothers.


MAJOR THEMES
Data analysis identified five primary themes surrounding transition for these participants: (a) basic life skills and social adaptation, (b) the importance of the family and home rather than individualism and independence, (c) the importance of the mother's role and expertise in decision making, (d) access to information, and (e) dangers of the outside world. The overarching theme that emerged from the data was mothers' view of transition as home-centered, sheltered adaptation as opposed to a model emphasizing independent productivity. Each of these issues, as well as the overarching construct, is discussed in more detail in the following section.


A FOCUS ON BASIC LIFE SKILLS AND SOCIAL ADAPTATION
The emphasis of the analysis was on exploring participants' definitions and associations with the term transition. A consistent theme was Latina mothers' salient concerns for their sons' and daughters' continued development of basic life skills. Although work placements and employment considerations were addressed, they were primarily seen as a vehicle for continuing school placement and further development of basic life skills. These mothers placed a high priority on the development of life skills such as bathing, fixing light meals, and so forth. However, the development of these skills was not discussed in terms of a final goal of independent living, but rather in terms of increased independence with respect to hygiene and personal self-help in the context of existing living and care arrangements. As the following (translated) example suggests, mothers were clear that they were primarily concerned that their young adults with disabilities become more self-sufficient in terms of their personal needs. Olga, "I want her to wash her own plates, make her bed, take a bath, daily things that she can do by herself. I would like her to learn how to cook, just small things."
A related subtheme for these mothers was a strong preoccupation regarding their young adult's social development, especially ways to handle relationships with the opposite sex, sexual curiosity or feelings, and aspects of developing friendships. For example, one mother explained the frustration and ambivalence she felt about her son's growing sexual curiosity and her fear that he might not realize that this is a private matter; she worried how he might handle this curiosity at his work placement where she was not present. Another mother expressed concern over her daughter's growing romantic feelings for her brother-in-law. She explained that she had tried many times explaining to her that her brother-in-law was her sister's husband and that he cared for her like a sister. However, the daughter did not seem to understand the differences in feelings or how to act appropriately with the brother-in-law. A problem perceived by the mothers was that their young adults were increasingly showing interest in romance and in social activities such as going to parties, and they discussed a need for support in handling these issues.


INDEPENDENCE AND THE ROLE OF THE FAMILY AND HOME
For the mothers in the focus groups, the marker for independence and the time for their children to make their own decisions was not when they left school and entered young adulthood, but rather when they left home, a developmental milestone primarily associated with marriage. Until such time, mothers felt that their children were not free to make their own decisions merely because they might be adults under the law. The notion of having one's young adult go off on his or her own was not part of the mindset of these mothers, irrespective of whether a developmental disability was involved, and this value was often referenced to their own experiences growing up, as illustrated in the following (translated):


Olga: Never. I have never said that to my daughter. I told her, "When your own daughters are grown, never tell them to leave, because that is very Anglicized." And among Latino families, no, on the contrary, my father used to tell me, "Why do you want to be going out all the time? You have your house here."
The home was seen as the appropriate residential setting for the young adult with developmental disabilities, but it was also seen as a safe haven in the event of something happening to the mother. The care of their young adults with disabilities was viewed as the mother's own responsibility while she was alive, and the responsibility of another family member if she was no longer able to provide care. Several mothers noted plans for siblings to take over the young adult's care when the mother died, but some were unsure about their nondisabled child's willingness or ability to care for the young adult. In any case, independent living as an option for the young adult with disabilities was discussed and considered a ludicrous and inappropriate concept by most of these mothers.


THE MOTHER'S ROLE AND EXPERTISE IN DECIDING TRANSITION ISSUE
Another dominant theme was the mothers' strong belief that no one would be able to care for their children with disabilities better than they did themselves. These mothers perceived themselves as more knowledgeable about their children and better able to make decisions about work placement and living arrangements for their children than the professionals involved. The mothers' decision-making role also superseded any decision making on the part of the young adult with disabilities. Although mothers felt it was important to ask their young adults their opinion and to take their desires and preferences into consideration, mothers also felt that they--as parents--should make all final decisions about transition planning.
It is interesting to note, however, that despite their determination to maintain control of the transition decision-making process, these mothers felt that their children were often much more capable than professionals realized. Indeed, mothers often referred to their children with disabilities as "normal" or "very intelligent." For example, consider the way this mother, Reina, described her son to us (translated from Spanish):


He is a very handsome young man and he is attending the Easter Seals and his functional level is basically a moderate mental retardation, very intelligent. He has the functions, that he is a normal young man. He has been diagnosed like a boy of 6 and 8 years old, but that diagnosis was done in 1987, but I see that my boy is more mature, that is, that he doesn't represent that age.
This belief in their offspring's competence was often at odds with how professionals perceived these young adults--as only disabled, without particular strengths, and incapable of performing any meaningful life tasks, as illustrated in the following (translated):


Luisa: I sometimes think that the personnel working with our children, I think they don't treat our young children as serious.
Rosa: Yeah, I agree with you.
Luisa: Even when you hear them having a conversation like they're talking to a baby and I think that's hard, you know.
However, the important point to understand is that mothers wanted professionals to see the strengths and capacities of their children not so they could be autonomous decision makers, but so they would be treated with respect and caring. Mothers saw themselves as the appropriate decision makers and regularly complained that their expertise and experience were considered less valuable than the academic knowledge of professionals such as teachers and agency workers. For example, one mother recounted a story in which her son became very excited and aggressive with his sister (who herself was studying in the area of special education) during a family outing. The mother explained to her daughter that she knew how to manage her son best, and how to minimize his tendency toward aggression (example translated from Spanish): "Look Tere, I think that here I have something [more knowledge] over you because I know how and I tell you that when you see him nervous don't say anything to him."
The mother explained, however, that the daughter had not heeded her warning, discounting her insights, and had attempted to rush her brother thereby making him nervous in a large crowd; indeed, her son had reacted aggressively just as she feared.


ACCESS TO INFORMATION
As previously mentioned briefly, many mothers discussed needing additional information about transition issues, particularly with respect to services. We did not learn of any mothers who had been able to find services that adequately dealt with their many concerns. Some of the mothers suggested that parent groups would be especially beneficial, where they could learn from each other, discuss their particular situations, and get advice from other mothers.
The desire for access to information was based on both a desire to receive useful services relevant to their children's needs, but also on a mistrust of service providers' motives. In one focus group, for example, a point of discussion was that professionals sometimes encouraged the young adult to adopt the professionals' position regarding independent living, even though it went against the mother's beliefs.
A significant concern of these mothers was the poor communication between themselves and caseworkers, teachers, and other professionals, which was due in part to the fact that many felt that they lacked information regarding transition planning and service options. Some mothers believed that parent involvement in the transition decision-making process was only perfunctory and that many professionals preferred mothers to be less informed and less involved. As evidence for this, some mothers noted that parents lacked viable sources of information, in Spanish, regarding work placements and other transition services. Some mothers indicated that the professionals they dealt with objected to being questioned regarding the details of the services they were providing, and that they resented mothers making suggestions about the quality and type of transition services desired. The sense was that increased information would lead to empowerment in dealing with professional service providers, even though it might also have negative consequences for interactions with those same providers. As one mother articulated (untranslated):


When a parent starts getting too smart and really learning the system then you little by little become a persona non grata wherever you go because you do know the system, you do know your rights and they like resent it.
An important obstacle to parents making informed choices regarding transition seemed to be the lack of availability of information in Spanish. Yet mothers pointed out that even having materials translated into Spanish would not remove all barriers, as many immigrant mothers may not have sufficient reading skills to comprehend the often complex language used.


DANGERS OF THE OUTSIDE WORLD
A final theme was a generalized fear of the dangers of the world outside of the family setting, in particular the perceived lack of adequate supervision in work placements. Prior to the transition from school to work, most young adults were housed within the school facility; posthigh school work placements often involved activities that took them out into the community. Some mothers felt that there was significantly less supervision in these work placements than there had been at school.
Related to this concern was the possibility of discrimination against young adults with disabilities, because work placements often involved having the person with disabilities become integrated into the community with nondisabled persons, where the same levels of protection and sensitivity offered at school were not always observed. A number of stories of discrimination were shared among the mothers. They were especially concerned about their young adult's feelings, commenting that the young adults were aware of being discriminated against. The following excerpt (untranslated) provides an insight into these concerns:


Carolina: Yoli was accused one day at Pavilions of stealing because we were grocery shopping and I told Yoli, "Go and get, that tuna." So she went and, you know, she looked and these kids, they look, and they look kind of suspicious. And she always has a handbag. So, anyway, she brought the cans and put them in. And the boy that works there in the grocery part came and said that the guard had been watching her and for me to look in her bag because he felt that she had stolen something and put it in there. Well to look into her bag was quite a problem because she got offended. We showed the guy that there was nothing in there.
Luisa: They didn't let me in to Marie Callender's because Jennifer's wheelchair was taking up too much room.
Thus, for the mothers in this study, the community involvement aspects of transition often represented negative and dangerous experiences because of both insufficient supervision (compared to earlier school settings) and discrimination against persons with disabilities.


DISCUSSION
There is an implied model in the laws and policies regarding transition that assumes that the problem-solving process is collaborative, that the partners in the collaboration are well-informed and knowledgeable, and that the values and goals of all parties correspond. In addition, there is an assumption that all partners in transition value normative timelines and goals focused on independent functioning and productivity. In previously reported research (Magafia, 1999; Shapiro et al., 2004), it has been suggested that these assumptions do not hold up well, particularly from the perspective of Latina mothers. This study provides further evidence that there may be multiple perspectives on transition, some of which may conflict with the views of transition implied in various official policies and definitions. In the present study, as noted earlier, the view of transition reflected was based on a model of home-centered, sheltered adaptation as opposed to a model emphasizing independent productivity. In discussing these findings of the study, we first focus on the specific themes that emerged as well as two more general issues. These two issues concern the homogeneity in the views expressed by participants and the issue of whether the present findings are universal or culturally specific.


BASIC SKILLS AND SOCIAL ADAPTATION VERSUS PRODUCTIVE WORK
In the United States, in general, much emphasis is placed on what one does with respect to work and how one's work relates to one's identity. However, these mothers did not view employment, now or in the future, as a major aspiration for their young adults with disabilities. We found that, contrary to a common focus in the transition planning on vocational experiences and work placements, the absence of discussion about future employment in our focus groups suggested that these mothers did not consider work placements or employment as particularly pertinent issues. Rather, when employment settings were discussed, it was with reference to an extension of school and an opportunity to continue basic skills training, or else as a source of apprehension because of the perception of various dangers.


THE IMPORTANCE OF THE FAMILY AND HOME VERSUS INDIVIDUALISM AND INDEPENDENCE
Another aspect of transition planning typically includes an emphasis on the individual student's concerns and desires. This is based on the assumption of shared decision making and on the view that high school students should be involved in decision making about their own transition. However, these mothers did not speak often of issues reflecting independence or individualism, nor did they view these concepts as synonymous with young adulthood. Mothers' expectations; even for their nondisabled offspring, did not favor independent living arrangements without clearly sanctioned transition points such as marriage. Given these mothers' sentiments regarding their children without disabilities, independent or group living arrangements for their children with disabilities (an option often introduced and recommended by professionals in the course of transition planning), was inconsistent with their beliefs and values.


THE MOTHER'S ROLE AND EXPERTISE IN DECISION MAKING VERSUS THE PROFESSIONAL'S
Previous research (Shapiro et al., 2004) suggested a strong sense of dissatisfaction of Latina mothers with respect to the service delivery system and with service providers. Variance in the values and understandings of transition decision making may be partially at the root of this dissatisfaction. In these focus groups, mothers clearly felt that they had greater expertise than did professional service providers about their individual children. Moreover, the emphasis on collaborative decision making and the importance of the views of the young adult with disabilities were not as much a priority as they may have been for service providers or as implied in the law. At the same time, lack of confidence in service providers also led mothers to believe that professionals underesimated the competence of their offspring, which resulted in disrespectful and uncaring attitudes and behavior toward the children.


ACCESS TO INFORMATION AS A SAFEGUARD VERSUS A PLANNING TOOL
The desire for more information on the part of mothers was tempered by a mistrust of service providers and the service delivery system in general. Although access to information was seen as a tool to pave the way for increased services, it was also seen as a form of protection from motives of service providers that might not be in the family's best interests. This is consistent with the notion of "alienated advocacy" (Shapiro et al, 2004) in which adversarial interactions between families and service providers are based on mothers' perceptions of unfriendliness, aloofness, and lack of sympathy on the part of professionals. While on the surface it might appear that lack of access to information might be addressed by more creative outreach efforts on the part of service providers, the underlying dynamics of the concern suggest that a more fundamental issue is at stake. This is consistent with earlier work that discussed professional service providers' attitudes that devalue or dismiss parental insights and observations (Kalyanpur, 1998).


DANGERS OF THE OUTSIDE WORLD
Transition policies often seem to assume that productive involvement in the community is a critical outcome of successful transition. Yet for these mothers, successful transition was not indexed by increased interactions with the larger society. In fact, the community involvement aspects of transition often represented negative and dangerous experiences because of both perceived insufficient supervision (compared to earlier school settings) and possible discrimination against persons with disabilities. An interesting issue, not explored here, is the extent to which these beliefs and attitudes reflect these mothers' own experiences and interactions with the larger society and social institutions.
Whereas transition is often seen as a unitary phenomenon, there may be multiple dimensions or levels of transition (Harry, 1992a, 1998). As suggested earlier, for example, transition marks changes for the individual with a severe disability on at least the following dimensions: (a) social/personal development (moving from being cared for toward independence), (b) roles within the family (from child/adolescent to adult), and (c) role within the service delivery system (from student to productive worker).
A fundamental issue underlying these dimensions of transition is the target of intervention and how it changes over time. Although the service delivery system might emphasize a family focus for young children with a disability, the implied expectation is that the target would increasingly focus on the young adult with developmental disabilities. This is consistent with the goals of increased independence, productive and supportive employment, and integration into the larger community. However, this same shift did not appear in the discussions of these mothers. Rather, the focus appeared to be a consistent emphasis on the home/family, similar to what others have found (Harry, 1998). A strong view expressed was that the well-being of the family member with the disability is not separable from that of the family, and that independence is marked by shifts in specific roles of family members (such as marriage). Although transition may have represented a structural shift for the young adult with a disability (e.g., from school to work), for these mothers and families, it did not necessarily represent a role shift for the mother or young adult. With the increasing diversity represented in the special education system, it will be important to examine more systematically and in different contexts the most appropriate ways to assure the best outcomes and to achieve the "posture of reciprocity" advocated by Kalyanpur and Harry (1999, p. 498).


DISSENTING VOICES IN THE DATA
There was a strong pattern of uniformity in the responses of the participants and the themes generated through the analysis. Although this may seem unusual given the variance in the backgrounds of the mothers, it is consistent with the cultural models versus cultural practices distinction described earlier in this article. Despite individual, educational, linguistic, and immigration-related differences, these mothers shared a general cultural model that influenced their thinking in similar directions on broad issues such as individual autonomy versus family, productivity versus self-care, and so forth. Whereas significant differences might not be expected at this general level of cultural models, significant differences among participants would be expected at the level of specific cultural practices. That is, had this study investigated what these families actually do within their individual local ecological settings, considerable variance might be anticipated. Economic necessity or family circumstances such as death or divorce, for example, might lead to cultural practices that may appear to conflict with the underlying cultural models. We argue that inferences about cultural practices should not be made based solely on information about general cultural models. This is an important limitation in the present study that needs to be highlighted. Although we are confident that we were able to elicit key aspects of these mothers' cultural models, we did not investigate cultural practices. Thus, even though there was a great deal of consensus about features of the cultural models, because specific cultural practices were not investigated directly, there may be significant variance in individual practices in different social contexts. Future studies should focus on both aspects.


UNIVERSAL VERSUS CULTURALLY SPECIFIC PATTERNS
The question might be raised as to whether the themes identified in this study are unique to the Latina mothers who participated in the focus groups, or whether they express more universal issues. To some extent, it is indisputable that most parents, regardless of cultural background, and regardless of their children's abilities or disabilities, want their children to acquire basic self-care skills, develop social relations, and find productive (and even meaningful) work. Most parents value the family, but also allow a certain level of individualism and independence in family members. Likewise, most mothers feel that they have important knowledge about their own children, although they are usually willing to listen to the perspectives of others with special expertise, such as teachers, physicians, or pastors. Parents also regard information about how systems work, and options available to their children, as useful in planning their children's futures as well as in protecting their children's interests. Finally, there are probably few parents who do not appreciate that the world is a place of some danger, but nevertheless recognize that their children must somehow venture into it at some point. Therefore, we argue that differences are a matter of emphasis, rather than absolutes.
What was striking to us as researchers was the lack of a shared perspective between these mothers and the system designed to help them and their children. (It should be recalled that we did not attempt to assess the personal values and beliefs of system caseworkers, many of whom were Latinos themselves. We did form the impression that regardless of variability in personal beliefs, in their professional roles as caseworkers and teachers they tended to represent the assumptions and priorities of the system that employed them.) In every instance concerning the major themes we identified, the orientation of the mothers and of the service delivery system appeared to be at odds. Where the system stressed productivity, and put less attention on social development, to mothers productivity was a pleasant, but rather irrelevant afterthought; their real worries focused on the need to encourage socially appropriate interactions in their children. Where the system repeatedly tried to view the young adult child as an autonomous individual, mothers found this approach a disturbing violation of their view of the child as embedded in the family. Whereas to the system, privileging of professional expertise seems correct, mothers felt their personal knowledge of their children was devalued and ignored. The system tends to regard information as value-neutral, but to the mothers it was not simply a technical tool, but a protection and at times even a weapon that could be used to ward off those who did not appear to have the best interest of their child at heart. Although many recognize the sometimes considerable risks encountered in the larger society, most generally assume that all people must take their proper place in that society. The mothers of this study reacted quite negatively to this assumption, and challenged its relevance and veracity.
We believe that families coming out of the dominant cultural model that helped to shape the present service delivery system for persons with disabilities will be more likely to place emphasis on similar values. Although generalizing is always risky when speaking about particular cultural groups, we speculate that these families will tend to recognize, be comfortable, and agree with values of productivity, independence, expert knowledge, information as a tool, and assimilation into the larger society. Although we would expect significant variation in terms of how these particular themes of the dominant cultural model are translated into cultural practices for specific subgroups or specific families, we also suggest that participating in a shared model creates a greater sense of safety in families, therefore less alienation and less resistance. For the mothers in our study, the lack of a shared model appeared to lead to confusion, misunderstanding, and isolation.


CONCLUSION
Care should be exercised in generalizing these results to parents of young adults with disabilities in general or even to other Latina mothers. We cannot claim to have identified a representative sample of the population of Latino families who receive services. The sample was recruited from a community agency and was drawn from those who were known to the agency, willing to participate, and able to attend the sessions. Focus groups, by design, are not representative, nor should any attempt be made to generalize from them.
In addition, the perspective of service providers, fathers, and other family members are not represented here, and may provide different ways of understanding the issues discussed. A more systematic exploration of the dynamics of the transition planning process with both service providers and the entire family would be useful. However, taken together with earlier work with similar populations (Harry, 1992b; Kalyanpur & Harry, 1999; Zetlin, Padron, & Wilson, 1996), it is reasonable to hypothesize that problems continue to exist in Latina mothers' perceptions of, and satisfaction with, the service delivery system in special education in general and in terms of transition in particular. As other investigators have noted in a point of great relevance to the present study, "How one defines 'successful adulthood,' the end goal of transition planning, is determined by culture-specific values and expectations about many important issues, such as work, community integration, role expectations, and social functioning" (Geenen et al., 2001, p. 266). The issues of values, beliefs, and cultural models represented in the diverse clientele served by the special education system remain an important area of investigation as a means of assuring equal access and meaningful collaboration for all young adults and their families. Finally, there are currently no lifespan perspective studies that investigate these issues. The existing studies, taken as a group, present an interesting cross-sectional view, but it would be valuable to investigate the development and change over time in mother's beliefs, values, and perspectives as a result of ongoing contact with the service delivery system.

Observe a qualified staff member in the special education department at your school administer an assessment tool/test used in the evaluation process for determining eligibility of students for special education (e.g., Brigance, WISC-III).
Write a summary of 600 words on the test administration.
Explain each purpose of assessment and the impact it has on the overall process.

What I need your help is to write an article review after reading the assigned research paper( I will email you later)
no citation needed, just write according to the given article and the write-up guideline. Thanks very much!
The following is the guidelines the professor gives me,
Evaluation Write-up Guidelines
o The article should be research article (as opposed to opinion papers, review
articles, descriptions of projects or instructional activities, etc.) .
o The write-up should include an overview, an analysis, and a conclusion.
o In the Overview section, address:
o The impetus for doing the research (i.e., summarize the introduction and
literature review);
o The goal of the research (i.e., summarize the research question(s) or
hypothesis/hypotheses);
o What the author(s) ?found? (i.e., summarize the results, in non-technical
terms);
o What the findings mean (i.e. summarize the conclusion/discussion section).
o In the Analysis section, describe the strengths and weaknesses of the research. You might want to use the resources on questions to ask and things to consider when evaluating studies as guides. It might also be useful to organize your discussion around the sections of the article.
o In the Conclusion section, talk about how the research relates to the field of ed-tech in general, and/or your particular area of interest within ed-tech.
o The overview and conclusion sections should be somewhat brief; concentrate most of your effort on the analysis of the article.
and please talk about someting about special education( more in learning/reading disabilities/dyslexia) related to educational technology.
please help me, I need your help. thanks.
My deadline is May 4, So I need to receive this by May 4, Please, and thanks.
I will email an attached file to you.

Prepare a case study of a student with a disability identified in IDEA. The student?s grade has to be appropriate for your certification. You need (1) to observe a student in an inclusive, special education classroom, or gifted classroom for a minimum of 15 hours (2) review student work samples of various content areas and structures, and (4) to interview at least two individuals (e.g., the student?s family, teachers, and/or the student) who are each knowledgeable about the student. If possible, interview the student about interests, goals, and strategies for learning. The interviews and observations should be analyzed thematically.

During this process you will review the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) module (http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/udl/challenge.htm) that examines its three principles and discusses how to apply these principles to the four curricular components (i.e., goals, instructional materials, instructional methods, and assessments). Once completed, you will use these ideas to provide specific UDL recommendations in this case study. Use the UDL Solutions Template in your paper.

1) Write background information on the student (e.g., student age, gender, ethnicity, grade level, disability type, classroom type, student strengths and interests, family beliefs, strengths, values, and concerns about the student).
2) Describe case study methods (e.g., frequencies of the interviews, # hours of observations, description of the environments and activities during the interviews and observations.
3) Write a summary and analysis of your observations and interviews including:
a. Academic, social, and behavioral performance of the student.
b. Issues and concerns the student may have and the effects of an exceptional condition(s) on the learning of the student, his peers, and his family.
4) Based on the data (observation, work sample, and interviews analysis), complete the UDL Solutions Table. Specific details should be included for an education to clearly understand the specific Lesson (Content, Materials and Methods), at least two Barriers to student learning, and obtainable UDL solutions to include the learner. At least six Solutions for Representation, Action/Express and Engagement must be included.
5) Conclude your report with reflections on how this case assignment broadens your knowledge about students with exceptional learning needs and the learning environments for success.
6) Proofread, use a title, subheadings, 1-inch margin, and number pages.


Please complete the UDL Solutions based on the Observation
UDL Solutions
Lesson Content, Barriers Options for Multiple Representation Options for
Materials and Methods Action or
Expression
Options for Engagement

The main focus of this proposal is how mainstreaming can better the education of children with special education examples may include ADHD,ADD others maybe included aswell.b

This is ONLY a proposal. This proposal should include the following: Definition of Subject/ Participants- Clearly state the "inclusion criteria" for participation in this study. That is describe in detail, the sujects/participants/persons that will be studied.
Selection of subjects( experimental & control)- state the proposed number of subjects, describe the population from which they will be chosen, and outline the sampling method that will be used to achieve this number of subjects for the study. (justify the sampling method)

-Describe the intervention (including all measures) and how it will be administered.

Data collection procedures:
ethical consideration:(role of the IRB, Informed consent, confidentioality,anonymity ect.)
*Mention all ethical issues associated with this study and how you intend to address them.*

Development of data collection instrument (Questionnaire): Logically outline the process that iwll be followed( includeing consultation at each stage) for formulating, organizing and pre-testing the questionnaire. Justify each stage/activity.

Quality control- Outline the measures that will e taken to ensure that the optimum quality of data is collected. Emphasize measures of reliability and validity.

Describe how the questionnaire will be distributed and completed. Wuold an interviewer be required( specify training) or would it e self-administered?

Data Management and Analysis- Mention the computer software(e.G. SPSS) that you intend to use for data entry, analysis and presentaion. Clearly identify the outcome and explanatory variables(noting the type of data(categorical, numerical...) and identify the appropriate statistical method(s) for testing the hypothesis or exploring associations defined by objectives. Name appropriate graphical formats for data presentation. Specify how missing data will be handled. As this is just the proposal, and the data have not been collected, you will present the following in this section:
*A detailed plan for the presentation of data with emphasis on logical order in relation to the hytpothesis/specifi questions/objectives.

* Present dummy(mock) tables and charts that you are likely to use for presentation of data. All dummy tables must have likely titles and footnotes.

Please include list of reference, appendices, and table of contents

This is a literature review for a dissertation. It should include a historical perspective of autism as well as address current current programs and treatment. There should be no more then two/three direct quotes per page.

Below is the perspectus.

Historically, documented disruptive behaviors displayed by residential students diagnosed with Autism and other developmental disabilities include noncompliance, physical and verbal aggression, inappropriate verbalizations not characterized as aggression, poor social skills, as well as deficits in attention to task (Green, 1996; Luce, 1981; Maurice, 1996). These behaviors require residential treatment and preclude participation in community based activities, (Luce, 2004). Educators generally agree that deficits in academic skills result from a decrease in on-task behaviors because of disruptive off-task behaviors (Skinn, Ramsey, Walker, Stieber, & O?Neill, 1987).

Frequently used techniques to decrease these disruptive behaviors include reinforces such as verbal praise, token economies, time out, and self-contained classrooms. Autism affects one in 1,000 individuals in the United States (World Health Organization, 2001) and warrants further investigation to examine the use of daily activities to decrease these inappropriate behaviors. This quantitative dissertation study will examine the effectiveness of an everyday activities-based protocol (Holm, Santangelo, Fromuth, Brown & Walter, 2000) for managing challenging and disruptive behaviors of 13-23 year old residential students (male and female) with Autism and other developmental disabilities to reduce two out of three inappropriate behaviors as identified by residential staff.

Purpose
The purpose of this quantitative dissertation study is to test the effectiveness of an everyday activities-based protocol (Holm, Santangelo, Fromuth, Brown & Walter, 2000) for managing challenging and disruptive behaviors of 13-23 year old residential students (male and female) (dependent variable) with Autism and other developmental disabilities who live at Melmark Homes, Inc., of southeastern Pennsylvania, and attend school or adult day programs. Applied behavior analysis and a focus on everyday occupations (activities) (independent variable) will be combined during the intervention phase. Reinforcement will be for subtask completion and duration of participation, not for absence of target maladaptive or disruptive behaviors. A single-subject, multiple-baseline, across-subjects design with 50 subjects will be used to evaluate change in behaviors under alternating conditions. Data will be analyzed using graphical, semi-statistical, and statistical techniques, including celeration lines, slopes, 2 standard deviation bands, and the C-statistic.

Research Question
Will participation in Activities of Daily Living (ADL?s) reduce or extinguish inappropriate behaviors displayed by individuals with Autism or other developmental disorders who currently reside in residential facilities?

Significance
Clinically significant behavioral changes in this area have the potential to lead to the expansion of residential programs, implementation of new programs, and the identification of, and access to, additional community funding resources for curriculum improvement and development; in addition to the development of more comprehensive community-based programs. The proposed dissertation study replicates the results found by Holm et al. (2000), which successfully combined behavioral and occupational therapy interventions with dually diagnosed subjects in Community Living Arrangements (CLA)/School environments. Should a study such as this be successful, a full protocol can be developed for residential staff so that they too can be taught how to break down everyday tasks into manageable units so that residents with Autism are able to increase their participation in everyday activities at school and in their communities-be they residential or non-residential (home-based) living communities (WHO, 2001).

When evaluating community based programming for individuals with Autism and other developmental disabilities, community, school, and healthcare leaders, must utilize data that is not only clinically significant but data that will drive cost effective programming to ensure the appropriate utilization of private and governmental financial resources (McConnell, 2004). The study will have significance to the consumer community because of the intervention's potential to enable greater participation of individuals with Autism in lived in environments. The study will have significance to the care-giving community because it promotes a novel approach to care-giving, using an intervention that combines a behavioral approach with enabling of everyday activities. To community healthcare leaders, this reduces the financial resources needed for community based programming (WHO, 2001).

Here is additional information that may be incorporated, but should only serve to provide a basis.

Abstract
The purpose of this dissertation study is to test the effectiveness of an everyday activities-based protocol (Holm, Santangelo, Fromuth, Brown & Walter, 2000) for managing challenging and disruptive behaviors of 13-23 year old residential students (male and female) with Autism who live at Melmark Homes, Inc., of southeastern Pennsylvania, and attend school or adult day programs. Applied behavior analysis and a focus on everyday occupations (activities) will be combined during the intervention phase.

Reinforcement will be for subtask completion and duration of participation, NOT for absence of target maladaptive or disruptive behaviors. Behavior analysts, however, will document the frequency/duration of the target behaviors during each condition. Interventions will occur daily, Monday through Friday. A single-subject, multiple-baseline, across-subjects design with 9 subjects will be used to evaluate change in behaviors under alternating conditions. Data will be analyzed using graphical, semi-statistical, and statistical techniques, including celeration lines, slopes, 2 standard deviation bands, and the C-statistic. The projected outcome of the study is the validation of an activities-based protocol to enable greater participation of individuals with Autism in everyday activities (WHO, 2001), and in their communities, be they residential or non-residential (home-based) communities.

Background
The World Health Organization?s International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) (World Health Organization, 2001, see Figure 1) provides a model for describing and studying functioning (positive state) and disability (negative state) of individuals and populations, including residential students diagnosed with Autism and other conditions. ICF performance qualifiers differentiate between performance in the actual or ?lived in? home environment, and the student?s ability to execute tasks or actions in a standard or uniform environment such as the classroom (WHO, 2001). Thus, the ICF provides a guide for examining and documenting a student?s functioning and disability and the impact of the environment and participation on the functional outcomes of everyday activities-based behavioral interventions.

Because Autism creates a disabling impact on functioning and full participation, in February 2002 the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Health and Human Services prepared a report to Congress addressing Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD); the report authorized both money and research to ?conduct activities relevant to Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders". It indicates, "Families coping with this devastating illness are searching for answers about these causes, diagnoses, prevention, and treatment? (NIH, 2002; Strock, 2004).

Historically documented disruptive behaviors displayed by residential students diagnosed with Autism and other developmental disabilities include noncompliance, physical and verbal aggression, inappropriate verbalizations not characterized as aggression, poor social skills, as well as deficits in attention to task. Educators generally agree that deficits in academic skills result from a decrease in on-task behaviors because of disruptive off-task behaviors (Skinn, Ramsey, Walker, Stieber, & O?Neill, 1987). These behaviors continue to be seen today in educational and residential programs. Frequently used techniques to decrease these disruptive behaviors include reinforcers such as verbal praise, token economies, time out, and self-contained classrooms (Luce, 2004).

In order to increase the frequency of an individual?s appropriate behavior, it is most often recommended that such behaviors be praised or otherwise rewarded when they occur (e.g., with a natural consequence). Attempts to increase the frequency of positive behaviors are based on the belief that, by doing so, behaviors that are more appropriate will gradually replace less desirable (e.g., disruptive) behaviors. The literature suggests that teacher or caregiver consideration should provide attention to the individual when he/she is engaged in positive rather than negative behaviors (Green, 1996). Token economy systems involve awarding tokens, stickers, points, or other items to individuals who demonstrate targeted behaviors. Students usually exchange tokens for rewards, which may consist of preferred food or other activities. Token economies can be effective for those individuals who are resistant to other types of behavior management techniques. The benefits to using this system are ease of administration, immediate reinforcement (tokens) while teaching delayed gratification (holding tokens until trade in time), satiation for the student due to the availability of a variety of back-up reinforcers, as well as lack of competition between students as they compete only against themselves (Society of Treatment for Children, 1998).

Over the last several years, Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) has become the most preferred and utilized behavioral intervention. ABA, in brief, "involves a breakdown of all skills into small, discrete tasks, taught in a highly structured and hierarchical manner." This is accompanied by differential reinforcement, and data are recorded systematically and regularly so that interventions can be adjusted as needed based on the student's progress or lack thereof. ABA is designed to help those with Autism learn how to learn (Luce & Christian, 1981; Maurice, 1996, p. 8).

Consistent with the ICF (WHO, 2001) view of the impact of the environment on functioning and disability, another perspective is that ?the origin of challenging, disruptive behaviors is not within the person with the disability, but rather the interaction of the person, environment, and task? (Holm, Santangelo, Fromuth, Brown & Walter 2000, p. 362). In fact, one profession, namely occupational therapy, ?was founded on the belief that engaging in occupation (everyday activities) brought about mental and physical health? (Trombly, 1995, p. 970). One of the tenets of occupational therapy related to disruptive behaviors displayed by individuals diagnosed with Autism and other developmental disabilities is that engagement in everyday functional activities has the potential to decrease incidents of inappropriate disruptive behaviors. However, to date there is limited documented research supporting such a statement. In 2000, Holm, Santangelo, et al., conducted a seminal study that used everyday activities- (or occupation-) based interventions with two dually diagnosed students who attended school and lived in a CLA. The everyday activities-based intervention focused on enabling the students? participation in everyday AM and PM activities such as bed making, selecting clothes for school, helping prepare the food for dinner, setting the table, and selecting the games and crafts for after-dinner activities. Overall, the disruptive and challenging behaviors of the two students were significantly reduced when they participated in the everyday activities based tasks, even though the focus of the intervention was NOT on their behavior as in the school environment, but rather on their active participation in everyday activities.

The references below are provided to help provide a focus and can be used as references but should not be counted as part of the 50-75. 80% of the references used should be within the last 5 years.

American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, IV-TR. (4th ed.). Washington, DC.
Bianchi, S. M. & Robinson, J. P. (1997). What did you do today? Chiltern Jews of time, family composition, and the acquisition of social capital. Journal of Marriage and Family, 59, 332- 344.
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Thanks

I request that Looneytunes writes this paper.

Project: Review the recruiting and selection process for personnel in a school district.
For each project, the following should be completed:
1. A description of the current system.
2. An analysis of the effectiveness of the system
3. Recommendations for how to improve the system.

The project should be 4 ? 6 pages in length.


Research I did for this paper


Overview of Rio Linda Union District Recruitment and Selection Process.




http://www.gamutonline.net/indexframes40.html

Recognizing the importance of teacher effectiveness in improving student achievement, the Governing Board desires to recruit, hire and train teachers who possess the subject matter knowledge and teaching skills required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act in programs for educationally disadvantaged students and for students in core academic subjects.
(cf. 4112.2 - Certification)
(cf. 4112.21 - Interns)
(cf. 4112.22 - Staff Teaching Students of Limited English Proficiency)
(cf. 4112.23 - Special Education Staff)
All teachers newly hired to teach core academic subjects in a program supported by Title 1 funds shall be "highly qualified" as defined by federal law and the State Board of Education. (20 USC 6319, 7801; 34 CFR 200.55; 5 CCR 6100-6115)
(cf. 6171 - Title 1 Programs)
All teachers teaching in core academic subjects shall be "highly qualified" not later than the end of the 2005-2006 school year. (20 USC 6319, 7801; 34 CFR 200.55; 5 CCR 6100-6115)

Rio Linda Union
Board Policy
BP 4111
Personnel
Recruitment And Selection
Certificated Appointment
Certificated personnel shall be appointed by the Governing Board upon the recommendation of the Superintendent or designee, and properly placed on the adopted certificated salary schedule, subject to all approved rules and regulations.
Because an important factor in student achievement is the quality of the teaching staff, the Board desires to employ the most highly qualified and appropriate person available for each open position.
The Superintendent or designee shall recruit candidates for open positions based on an assessment of the district's needs for specific skills, knowledge and abilities. He/she shall develop job descriptions that accurately describe all essential and marginal functions and duties of each position, and shall disseminate job announcements to ensure a wide range of candidates.
(cf. 4119.3/4219.3/4319.3 - Duties of Personnel)
With a focus on recruiting teachers to low performing schools:
1. The Superintendent or designee may participate in the Teacher Recruitment Program as established by Project Pipeline Northern California Teacher Recruitment Center.
2. The Superintendent or designee may provide incentives grants to attract and retain credentialed teachers in low performing schools, defined as schools ranking in the bottom half of the Academic Performance Index. Such incentives may include, but are not limited to, teacher compensation, improved work conditions, signing bonuses, or housing subsidies.
(cf. 4112.2 - Certification)
The Superintendent or designee shall develop selection procedures that identify the best possible candidate for each position based on screening processes, interviews, observations, and recommendations from previous employers.
No inquiry shall be made with regard to the age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, medical condition, disability or sexual orientation of a person seeking employment. During job interviews, applicants may be asked to describe or demonstrate how they will be able to perform the duties of the job. Inquires to assure employment eligibility shall be made in accordance with the law.
(cf. 4030 - Nondiscrimination in Employment)
(cf. 4032 - Reasonable Accommodation)
Legal Reference:
EDUCATION CODE
200-262.4 Prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sex
44066 Limitations on certification requirement
44259 Teaching credential; exception; designated subjects; minimum requirements
44735 Incentive grants for recruiting teachers for low-performing schools
44750-44754.5 Regional teacher recruitment centers
44830-44831 Employment of certificated persons
44858 Age or marital status in certificated positions
44859 Prohibition against certain rules and regulations re residency
52051 Academic Performance Index
GOVERNMENT CODE
12900 Unlawful employment practices
12940-12956 Discrimination prohibited; unlawful practices
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 8
1324(a)(b) Immigration and Nationality Act
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 42
2000d-2000d-7 Title VI, Civil Rights Act of 1964
2000e-2000e-17 Title VII, Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended
2000h-2-2000h-6 Title IX, 1972 Education Act Amendments
12101-12213 Americans With Disabilities
Policy RIO LINDA UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT
adopted: September 21, 2001 Rio Linda, California



Project: Review the recruiting and selection process for personnel in a school district.
For each project, the following should be completed:
1. A description of the current system.
2. An analysis of the effectiveness of the system
3. Recommendations for how to improve the system.

The project should be 4 ? 6 pages in length.

Overview of Rio Linda Union District Recruitment and Selection Process.

Recruitment and Selection
Goal (This comes right out of our board policy)
Employ the most highly qualified and appropriate person available for each open position in order to improve student achievement and efficiency in district operations.
Recruitment
Recruit candidates for open positions based on:
Assessment of the district?s needs for specific skills, knowledge and abilities.
? Job descriptions that accurately describe all essential functions and duties
? Dissemination of job announcements to ensure a wide range of candidates.

Job Postings
? Personnel Office
? School
Sites
? Department Sites
? Personal contact
? Employee referrals

Publications
? Ed Cal
? CASBO
? Arcadia News
? ADVANCE
? California Job Journal

Job Fairs
? CSUS
? UC Davis
? CSU Chico
? Chapman
? National
? Counties (P)lacer/San Joaquin)
? Cal Expo
Interview
Personal interview(s) is/are required
? Establish Interview committee
o Rank candidates
o Recommend finalists
o Confidential

Web Sights
? District
? Ed Join
? Craigslist
? Pipeline

Professional Services

? California School Board Association
? School Services

Selection
Select candidates for each position based on:
? Screening process
? Interview(s)
? Observation(s) (as appropriate)
? Recommendations

Screening
? Application on district form
? Verification that applicant holds or qualifies for appropriate certificates, licenses, diplomas, credentials.
? Verification of official transcripts and experience
? Evidence of passing proficiency test(s)
? Direct references
? Screening interview (as appropriate)

Recommendations for Employment

Recommendation by Superintendent of designee for Board approval is based upon:
? Screening, interviews, recommendations
? Equal opportunity guidelines
? Specific needs and best interest of the district.






Interview with Betty Barker Assistant Superintendent of Personnel for Rio Linda Union School District on October 17, 2005

Personnel practices are different in every district. In a lot of districts there is what you call a human resource department that has a whole recruitment department. We don?t have that in this district (Rio Linda Union School District) It goes back to our original superintendent who really didn?t have personnel people working for them or human resources and so originally superintendents did all the hiring themselves and so the superintendent that hired me hired everybody else most of those people have retired but that superintendent did all the personnel hiring. A lot of districts had that model but as they grew and got bigger and things changed they did what is called decentralization. They moved from a superintendent that did all the hiring to a human resource department or personnel department and from there it went further decentralized it went straight to the people who have the openings which in the case that we?re probably talking about would be principals because we are talking about hiring classroom teachers right now. Many districts have moved from personnel or human resources doing it to decentralized where all the recruitment and hiring is done directly by the sights. How that looks is everybody applies on line they have what is called out there Ed Join. Everyone out there applies on line through Ed Join. So if you were a principal you would advertise on Ed Join that you have a third grade, second grade or whatever openings you have People would apply directly to you on Ed Join and you as the principal would paper screen those people applying for your job, you?d set up your own interviews, you would make your own selection and then you would let the assistant superintendent of personnel know that you wanted to hire this person then that person would come over to personnel and then they would go though all the things like signing a contract, choosing a health plan. There are districts that conduct hiring in this manner right now, San Juan, Elk Grove, and Sacramento City. Most districts handle things this way. They are decentralized. So all of their sight administrators have been trained on how to paper screen based on criteria because you must have criteria, trained how to interview and then the principals recommend to personnel who they want to hire. At that point depending on the district the district may conduct another interview or they may just hire that person. In Elk Grove they just hire them. I asked, ?Is that for cost saving purposes?? I think in a district like Elk Grove that would be because they are growing so rapidly that they?ve decided that they had to decentralize. So technology has allowed them to do that. But in RLUSD , I still have a file cabinet over there in the corner that actually has applications in it and these days that is pretty unusual. I have a whole file cabinet because you are required to keep applications on file for a certain number of years. I also have a file cabinet of anyone who has applied in the last three years very handy and forever in another where house. Our district made a choice not to decentralize and again that goes back to originally our district has had very few superintendents and they use to do all the hiring then as education progressed the superintendent started hiring personnel people then from personnel people they went to human resources. We don?t even have a human resource department. We?re still personnel. We do Human resource work, but actually in our district Educational Services does a lot of Human Resources so we have Ed. Services and personnel that actually could be combined into one large human resources department. We are not decentralized because the previous superintendents made a choice that they wanted to maintain one standard for hiring. If there was one basic standard and expectation for hiring that they could control who?s being hired and they could control the standards and expectations if there was one person who was the person who gives it the blessing. So that keeps it so that it is more consistent. Let?s say in our district we?ve got principals who just came to work for us a few years ago there from other districts and now we?re going to let them hire? And decide who?s a fit for our district when they just got here themselves so you know in Elk Grove and Sac City and other places, and I?m not putting down their system at all, but you know that there sight administrators vary greatly. The superintendent and the board feel that it is more difficult to do it that way. I have talked to people in Elk Grove who used to work here who had different roles who have said when they first made the switch from the centralized recruitment to decentralize that it was pretty overwhelming for a few years until they could get their principals trained, because it?s all in the training. I think you can train your people in what?s a fit for your district and you could have really good procedures but you would have to really train, monitor and then retrain your people and then let them do all the selection and recruitment themselves. Other districts have what they call at the District level have a pool of candidates so when people apply They have a group of people that paper screens and then they have a group that calls them in if they make it through the interview of this panel then you go on to the next panel. And then there may be demonstration lessons or video taping that you must present so there?s that model to but it became pretty cumbersome and that?s why some of them went too decentralized. In these large districts you can run as many as 500 people through these panels it?s a pretty big task. We are considered one of the largest elementary districts in California so we aren?t really considered to be a small district but we are still centralized. So when we got a new superintendent, when Frank Porter came on board I asked him how would you like to do your recruitment, selection and recommendation to the board regarding personnel. I explained to him how we currently have a centralized approach which means I?m involved in the paper screening and who the candidates are and in the interviewing. I do meet the candidates and am able to say yes this is a good person for our district and I want to recommend this person on your behalf to the board. Is that they way you want to do it? Or do you want to do it the way some other districts do it. And I explained how some of the other districts do it. Frank Leaflet said he liked the way we had been doing it. So that doesn?t mean that someday it won?t change so I would say that we still have a system that is not new or progressive but I think it is differentiated and individualized I think we get to know our candidates better and I as the personnel person am the person who recommends that the board hires them. I know the person I am recommending to the board.
I have realized that a lot of schools have needs. That is really what has changed for me. It used to be that I would hire them all and give them open contracts and then I would let the principals choose from the pool I?d already hired but now I?m doing less of that and more of letting the principals choose the candidates that meet more of their needs. I believe that change has come about because of the grade level collaboration that?s required. I could go out and hire all the teachers we need for this district and they could be a good fit for what the district needs but they may not be the right person for individual schools that have the opening because there is so much team work and collaboration needed for teachers to be successful these days so that has changed our hiring practice recently. So that?s been the biggest change. Curriculum focus and standards have impacted the way teachers teach and therefore the way we do our hiring and whom we select. Teachers no longer can go in their room and shut their door and teach much collaboration and grade level planning and teamwork is required to meet the challenging needs of our community. So before I could just hire a lot of people that we thought were right and the expectations, standards and the training to deliver a good quality education and also people who can relate to our kids because I?m always looking for people who can relate to our community and to our children They can be fabulous people and teachers but they might not relate to our children but I never had to worry about will they work or put up with diversity with their grade level partners I never had to worry or consider that. So that?s been my biggest change. From a legal standpoint of course every one will say No Child Left Behind is the biggest change and most people believe that NCLB has absolutely changed the way most districts hire, but it really didn?t change our hiring practices because all of our teachers were highly qualified by the new standards in NCLB. We are one of the few districts that have 100 % fully credentialed people. We also happen to be very centrally located in a nest of many universities that are putting out many teachers we do not have a shortage of candidates. So recruitment ?is based on the items that are listed there. So you have to make sure you know what your district is about and that you have the proper job descriptions. I?ve had to revise the application process several times to reflect new laws. Now it?s the ELA (English Language Learner), CLAD, Highly qualified where they have had to pass the CSAT so we are always changing our application.

Recruitment
Recruit candidates for open positions based on:
Assessment of the district?s needs for specific skills, knowledge and abilities.
? Job descriptions that accurately describe all essential functions and duties.
? Dissemination of job announcements to ensure a wide range of candidates.

This is where we do our job postings:

Job Postings
? Personnel Office
? School Sites
? Department Sites
? Personal contact
? Employee referrals

We do a lot of recruitment from referrals. Our teachers, my current employees are my best resource. Our student teachers are a big resource too. The universities in our area are always wanting us to take more student teachers National University, Chapman University and I keep trying to pull away from them because we have a strong collaboration with CSU, Sacramento and they get a little disturbed when we bring in other universities, but we do still do have student teachers from other places but we have made our biggest commitment to CSUS. The publications?we advertise in

Publications
? Ed Cal
? CASBO
? Sacramento Bee
? ADVANCE
? California Job Journal

CASBO is a classified publication because we hire certified and classified people. We do use the Sacramento Bee, ADVANCE and the California Job Journal but those things are really not that profitable. I?ll tell you what?s profitable and that?s our district web sight.
Web Sights
? District
? Ed Join
? Craigslist
? Pipeline

We also go to job fairs?


Job Fairs
? CSU, Sacramento
? UC Davis
? CSU Chico
? Chapman
? National
? Counties (Placer/San Joaquin)
? Cal Expo

I attend those myself and I take principals with me. But really our partnership with CSUS and Pipeline which is a brand new web sight started by the superintendent in Center Unified School District. He and some other very wise people new we were having a hard time finding certain people to full the positions especially special education. So what pipeline gives us the ability to do is to hire multi subject teachers who are making a switch to special ed and hire them as an intern so they can actually work a special ed job while their getting their special education credential. This is the first year we have been involved in pipeline. Before we were involved in Pipeline just as an advertisement. People would apply to Pipeline and we would look at their application. We have never taken interns before but this year we have taken one intern in special education to see how that works out.
But we?ve also got Web Sights. Ed Join is a really big recruitment vehicle for everybody.

Selection
Select candidates for each position based on:
? Screening process
? Interview(s)
? Observation(s) (as appropriate)
? Recommendations



We advertise on Ed Join but we, unlike other districts, don?t let people apply to our district on Ed Join, We request that they down load the application where other districts are paperless. (They apply on line. The application is in a file so if you want to hire you can just look in a file to see who has applied to the district on Ed Join You could just look on line) but I still just actually have the paper file. The reason I like to look at the paper application vs. the web sight is I like to see how they fill out the application There is a lot about how they fill out the application that tells me a lot about them. I like the fact that they have to bring in the application because we actually get to see whom they are and how they present themselves, how they interrelate with people. So our application process starts from the moment they step into this office to deliver their application and sometimes from the minute they call us on the phone. How do they talk to us on the phone, how do those conversations go see all of that leads us to our decision as to whether that person is good for us. How do they conduct themselves with other people? It?s not just do they have all the right buzzwords and all the correct education lingo.
So we have our job fairs there and of course once we have our candidate pool then we have to select. Then we have to select. Of course first you have to paper screen.

Screening
? Application on district form
? Verification that applicant holds or qualifies for appropriate certificates, licenses, diplomas, credentials
? Verification of official transcripts and experience
? Evidence of passing proficiency test(s)
? Direct references
? Screening interview (as appropriate)


We look at their application and then we have to check it out. We actually have to look at that whole application to make sure all of those things listed are present. We rate their application and then we decide are they somebody who?s given us an application that first of all completed it correctly, that has good references, the next thing would be the things that they presented in their application does it meet our needs. We have a questionnaire that they fill out. We have a screening form that we use to screen the applications because we want to make sure all these things are present. Especially with NCLB (No Child Left Behind) And then once the application is accepted and they are in our pool, we do an interview.

Interview
Personal interview(s) is/are required
? Establish Interview committee
 Rank candidates
 Recommend finalists
 Confidential

They go from the paper pool to the interview pool. If they are interviewed and their screening interview was a strong interview we rank candidates. Sometimes in the interview we might be looking for a particular thing so it?s not like they fail the interview but it could be there ranked high because we are looking for this. Or that they?re not ranked as high because they don?t have some of the things we?re looking for. They might be a viable candidate for something else. So the only way they can really fail the interview is for something to be wrong with their references or the questions that they answer are short or just do not have any kind of depth and most the time you can pick up if they don?t like people or they don?t like kids then they probably are going to have failed the interview. Other than that we kind of put our candidates into categories depending on what we are looking for. A lot of times we are looking for different things. So once they are in our candidate pool we send them out on interviews. From that interview sometimes I will give them an open contract because I don?t want another district to snatch them up. It usually happens if I know this person would be good in several places. Then it?s just a matter of sending them out on interviews to find where the right fit for them is. But in most cases I know who the people are that we really want to consider and then I send those people out for specific jobs. Often times I have principals that conduct interviews with me or they conduct them on their own. I train my principals on the interview process. As an interviewer you have the responsibility to make that interview a successful experience. The interviewee and the interviewer have to come together and make the interview successful for both parties. I always tell my prospective candidates if you leave an interview in my district and your not feeling good, it?s probably not just you that means we haven?t done a good job of getting what we need out of that interview. If both parties feel good after the interview, whether or not you end up working in this district or the principal ends up selecting that person it still can be a successful experience and somewhere it will fit in to the future and it will make a difference. I see the interview as a relationship and on the screening interview (mentioned above) I often will have 4 or 5 principals on that panel. Especially if the principals know they are going to have a lot of openings at their schools it pays off for them to be on the screening interviews because they get the first look at the candidates. Sometimes they may not have any openings at their school but they want to get the experience and see what?s out there. So sometimes I do the first screening and then I send them to the principal and sometimes they go to the principals first and then come to me, but usually I try to put them through 2 interviews prior to going out to a specific interview for a specific job. That doesn?t always happen it depends on the need because if I was doing screening and the principals were doing screening and then all of a sudden we have an opening that we didn?t expect and those principals aren?t available to screen or I?m not available to screen as long as I have paper screened the person I will send them out to a principal and then I will meet them after the principal has met them. So sometimes you have to be flexible. I mean that isn?t the way you want to do it but if all of a sudden a job opens up and its two days before school starts and you have a classroom with no teacher you?ve got to make decisions. Am I going to be able to get 5 principals together to do screening interviews, no so sometimes if I?m not available I?m not going to make that principal wait. But usually I take the people from the pool that?s already been screened. And then of course after they are all rated and then we recommend and it?s all confidential. So no matter if it?s an interview here with me, or an interview with five principals we use the same process. We don?t change the process it?s always the same. The interview questions may change depending on what interview panel the person is with and the job they are applying for. If they are with me I just make sure I use the same questions for everyone I interview. My questions are all based on looking for a fit. When the principals do the interviewing they usually have questions based on the need like right now we need people who are strong on the
State Standards or maybe a school has a need on hiring someone who would be good with collaboration with a certain team of teachers. So when principals establish their questions they are always more curriculum based and pupil management where mine is like where did you go to kindergarten because I want to know about them and where did they come from and all of that because I know when people get stressed they teach the way they were taught so I want to know where because you have this whole influence as a teacher on how you were taught and you know the things that you liked and the things that you didn?t like. I want to find out what those things are. Teachers will teach and implement the things that they liked. Especially if they get stressed out?they will always revert back to what they know, which is usually the way they were taught. I used to always hear about the superintendent of personnel before me from people who had interviews, oh ya he didn?t ask me anything, well really he was asking but they just didn?t know that what were after is about values. Is there a match. Are they going to be someone who can relate to our community. Can they connect with kids because I don?t think it?s all about teaching strategies, I think it?s about connecting with kids. Personally I think you can teach people strategies but you cannot teach people to connect with children. I think you can help them do a better job with connecting to children but you can?t basically change a core value. If it?s not there then it?s not there. And then of course we always recommend for employment.

Recommendations for Employment

Recommendation by Superintendent or designee for Board approval is based upon:
? Screening, interviews, recommendations
? Equal opportunity guidclines
? Specific needs and best interest of the district

Mainly the specific needs and the best interest of the district is the number one priority so that?s what our recommendations are always based on.

Every district is different but every district has a board policy and guidelines on how they do it. They all have procedures and what they use that are based on what they think is most important for them. So I certainly respect what any other district does. The main difference in the last few years has been the use of technology in the interview process. The only thing our district really uses technology for is Ed Join to let people down load the application because Ed Join is a wonderful resource to get your district out there and let people know you have jobs. We get a tremendous response from them.

Things that I feel would improve the system are to begin using technology in interviews. Instead of teachers bringing in portfolios maybe they could present a power point on their beliefs and philosophy of teaching. It would be helpful to see some footage of their teaching. I asked several principals what they think would improve the system and they felt that they would like to see the candidates teaching in a classroom, either a demonstration lesson with a class unfamiliar to them or maybe a class they have done their student teaching in.

Essay
Describe the theory/s that you feel represented the tenets of career development in helping the following client develop their career goals and objectives:

? 1st generation immigrant with a college degree

? 28-year-old female

? Bachelor?s degree in teaching-special education

? Bilingual (English and Spanish)

? Currently employed as a paraprofessional in the Department of education

? Divorced from abusive spouse with two children ages five and fourteen

? Enjoys bowling with friends periodically

? Father deceased

? Has applied for the teaching fellows program

? Has bouts with depression because of divorce which causes her to drink occasionally

? Has two siblings-poor relationship

? Immigrated to USA six years ago

? Mother lives with older siblings

? Would like to become a psychologist or psychiatrist

? Youth worker at local community center once a week so her children can attend program for free.


a. Outline the possible problems that she could encounter
b. Develop a treatment plan to assess her current and future needs
c. State the theory and assumptions that clarify your views
d. How can you utilize this theory or theories to help a client research and develop their options?
? Be sure to clearly outline goals and objectives that this client may explore and how those goals and objectives can be met
? Describe any obstacles that could interfere with this client?s successes

I need a 5 page research paper on Autism. I have provided the reference that are to be used.

References:

Bible gateway. (2011). Retrieved July 7, 2011 at http://www.biblegateway.com/

Fisher, Mary & Anne Ocepka. (2011). We?re all in this together. Teacher Education and Special
.
Hardman, Michael, Clifford J. Drew & M. Winston Egan. (2010). Human exceptionality- school,
community and family. Wadsworth.

Loth, Eva, Juan Carl?s G?mez, & Francesca Happ?. (2011). Do high-functioning people with
autism spectrum disorder spontaneously use event knowledge
to selectively attend to and remember context-relevant aspects in scenes Journal of
Autism and Developmental Disorders, 41 (7): 870-887.

Morrier, Michael J. Kristen L. Hess, & L. Juane Heflin. (2011). Teacher training for
implementation of teaching strategies for students with autism spectrum disorders
Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education
Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 2011 34(2): 119-132.

Murdock, Linda C. & Jan Q. Hobbs. (2011). Picture me playing: Increasing pretend play
dialogue of children with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and
Developmental Disorders. 41 (7): 870-887.


Solomon, Marjorie, Nirit Buaminger & Sally J. Rogers. (2011). Abstract reasoning and
friendship in high-functioning preadolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 41 (7): 32-43.

Rutter, M. (2011). Progress in understanding autism: 2007-2010. Journal of Autism and
Developmental Disorders. 41 (7).

The Agency must submit a Quality Assurance (QA) Plan for all services
provided by an agency.The plan should take into account the size of the agency ( 3-10 employees), type of service (SEIT and Speech Therapy), location of service( Home and Community, Daycares ) , whether contractors or employees ( Both ), experience of the professionals( Have early Special Education with NYS license) ,
requirements of the professions, EI state & federal requirements and in general
what is necessary to ensure that quality services are being provided to children &
families by the agency.

The plan will be unique to each agency and probably many of the QA practices
already exist and will just need to be formalized into the QA plan.
The Quality Assurance (QA) Plan should be submitted with this application, and
must be available for review by local or State Early Intervention Program
personnel or their designees.

The following references may be of assistance when completing this application:

? Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part C (Title 20 USC Sec. 1431 et. seq.)
and Title 34 Code of Federal Regulations Part 303
(http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/osep/index.html)

? Title II-A of Article 25 of the Public Health Law and Title 10 NYCRR Subpart 69-4 (Early
Intervention Program State Program Regulations) (www.health.state.ny.us/nysdoh/eip)

? The Office of Children and Family Services provides support for people and organizations
that are interested in starting day care programs in their communities.
http://www.ocfs.state.ny.us/main/childcare/regionaloffices.asp

? The Bureau of Day Care in NYC provides support for people and organizations that are
interested in starting day care programs in one of the five boroughs of New York City. Please
contact the Bureau of Day Care in NYC at (212) 676-2444.

Please write approximately 2-3 pages per question- Total of 4 questions. Please provide at least 3 references per question with at least one of the references being a primary source reference.


References to possibly use:
*Interventions for Academic and Behavior Problems II: Preventive and Remedial Approaches. Edited by Mark R. Shinn, Hill M. Walker, and Gary Stoner. 2002.

*Best Practices in School Crisis Prevention and Intervention. Edited by Stephen E. Brock, Philip J. Lazarus, and Shane R. Jimerson. 2002.

*Best Practices in School Psychology IV and/or V. NASP

*Childrens Needs III: Development, prevention, and intervention. Bear and Minke 2006.

*California Special Education Programs Twenty-Ninth Edition: A Composite of Laws. 2007.

*Neef, N. A. et al. (2004). Behavior analysis in education (2nd Edition). Lawrence, KS: Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis

4 Questions:
1. In many cases, children learn the majority of their prosocial behaviors from school. Please discuss the process of teaching social skills to young children and adolescents. Please discuss the challenges associated with each age group and describe in detail procedures to assess need acquisition, progress, and mastery of social skills in elementary and secondary settings.
a. Possible references:
i. Shinn et al. Ch 15 and 17
ii. Kohler & Fowler (1985). Training prosocial behaviors to young children: An analysis of reciprocity with untrained peers. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 279.

2. An 11th grade Special Day Class student has met his 10 days of suspension due to destruction of property in the classroom. Please discuss in detail the process of completing a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) of property destruction. Include the rationale of conducting an FBA. Please discuss all possible hypotheses, as well as corresponding interventions by function keeping in mind that our prevention approach attempts to make disruptive behaviors irrelevant, inefficient, and ineffective.
a. Possible references:
i. Shinn et al. Ch 31: Mayer & Sulzer-Azaroff (2002). Intervenitons for vandalism and aggression.
ii. Mayer (1995). Preventing antisocial behavior in the schools. JABA 338

3. Research on school refusal, bullying, substance abuse, and school failure have revealed that a primary protective factor for students in a positive relationship with one adult in a school. Please discuss ways that school psychologist can foster such relationships with students, as well as be an advocate for other school staff to do the same. Please describe how these efforts fit into a comprehensive hierarchical and preventive model of school-wide mental health support.
a. Possible references
i. Shinn et al. Ch 31, 7,
ii. Brock et al. Ch 12
iii. Bay-Hintz et al (1994). Cooperative Games: A way to modify aggressive and cooperative behaviors in young children, Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis 417.

4. A 5th grade student uses a drill bit to carve profanity and a threat to harm a teacher into a cafeteria window. The principal determines that you need to complete a Threat Assessment for the student and that a hearing must be held before the student returns to school. Please describe what behaviors prompt a threat assessment and discuss the process of completing a thorough threat assessment for a student.
a. Possible References
i. Shinn et al. Ch 31

*Please use no more than 1 quotation per question.
*Please write from a behavioral school psychologists perspective

THANK YOU!

*********SUPERDUPER68 please write essay!


Introduction

Deiner (2010, p 234)) states that an ECOLOGICAL model of behavior management focuses on interaction between the child and others in the environment. She states that it views deviance from a culturally relevant perspective and recognizes that behaviors that are deviant or abnormal in one setting (e.g., school) may be relevant and highly desirable in another (e.g., the street). Further , the ecological approach considers it to be meaningless to discuss behavior problems in isolation from the contexts that define the behavior as a problem. The emphasis is placed not only on the child but also on the factors and individuals in the child?s immediate environment

Dunlap adopts an ecological approach to emotional development and to intervening in children?s functioning. Thus, she states that ?the ecological perspective emphasizes the need to create environments that enhance the likelihood of positive behaviors and healthy emotional development rather than focus on correcting negative behaviors? (cited by Dunlap, p190).

The ecological perspective is not incompatible with the introduction and implementation, - where necessary or desirable - of BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION TECHNIQUES based on the theory of B F Skinner and other behaviorists. These theorists see disturbed behavior as learned responses that are subject to the laws that govern all behavior. Techniques based on this theory and correctly applied can bring about positive change.

***Task 1

****Read the following case study and answer the questions that follow:

Megan was a pre-school child who was particularly disruptive during group time. The teacher had her assistant take Megan out into the hall when she acted up. Instead of decreasing, Megan?s disruptive behavior increased, and it began to occur closer to the beginning of group time.

The teacher decided to see for herself what was happening. So, the next time Megan created a disturbance, the teacher herself took Megan out into the hall. After doing so, she realized why Megan was continuing to disrupt the group.

1. What did the teacher discover when she took Megan out?

2. What behavior management technique had the teacher planned for Megan with her assistant?

3. Why was it not working and under what conditions would it be more likely to work?

4. Briefly describe how other behavior modification techniques could be used to improve Megan?s behavior



5. Briefly state how you would understand Megan?s behavior within an
Ecological Model, and what plan of action you would devise within the framework of this model



*****Task 2

Dunlap suggests ways of dealing with a number of common childhood problems through behavior modification.

Selecting ONE* of these problems, describe the behavioral approach to its alleviation that you would adopt with a PRESCHOOL child with a specified category of special needs (e.g. autism, ADHD, intellectual impairment, etc).


Required Reading for this Session


?Dunlap, L. L. (2009). An introduction to Early Childhood Special Education. NJ: Pearson.
Chapter 13: Behavior Management

**Request username "sunandmike" if possible -if not still need fastest turnaround time the better. Earlies response the better even if that is at 1am or 12pm tomorrow. As I was called in for a gravyard shift as a 911 operator I am unable to but my thoughts & writings into a intelligent format given time constraints.
**APA format in writing, however no page #s or title in needed as this will be used as a portion of a group project.
***Content of paper is about the direct relationships law enforcement has with schools. Education awareness education inplace today specifically dealing with preventing violence and avoiding situations such as columbine. No details need to be given about Columbine. I would like the paper to concentrate on how public safety has taken a more aggressive stand in preventing these incidents. The paper could read something like "Since incidents like columbine law enforcement is forced to take a more aggressive & careful role in school safety. Making mention of a "lockdown" method staff should use during a crisis, where children are not able to leave their present location until law enforcement has deemed it safe. Even in the event of possible danger police dispatchers call schools to go into lockdown mode. An extra precaution when even the threat of danger is present. Secondly one of the most effective procedures would be the school resource officer, a sworn officer serving as somewhat of a police sub-station on campuses that are deemed prone to violence.Pointing out how these officers are trained in programs such as the "active shooter". In turn the officer is able to teach school staff more effective means when dealing with emergencies. Other interventions include programs such as "Red- Ribbon week",
"every 15 minutes, "dry 2K". Although geared toward anti-drug & alcohol awareness, the programs provide the opportunity for staff & officers to gain insight. Insight to patterns are at times the key to monitor those individuals that are straying into a direction of increased violence & destructive behavior. All the programs are set forth to maintain public safey in schools my taking an interest and active role in the lives of our youth.
**the last 2 paragraphs or so I would like to read something like "Preventive measures and educational tools are not the only methods of dealing with increased violence. Zero tolerance is also strictly adhered to. Students impaird in any fashion are immediately subject to suspension and/or penalties of law. The paper can go on to explain the idea of zero tolerance and how it is used in schools.
The only thing I would like mention of somewhere under zero tolerance is the shortcoming of the policy when it comes to special education students. Many instances those students displaying aggressive behavior are not subject to permanent suspension from school. The courses provided on campus to these students is regarded as the greater need than the disruption being caused. How this issue is a present & future issue schools face.
Thank you for your assistance as I have no time to put this all into proper format & research given the 1 hour block i have between class &work. I can check my e-mail at work thank you.

After reading the article, you will write an article review. It will include the following:

All research has 5 basic components: the question being asked, the theories the author(s) use as the foundation for their research, the subjects, the methods used, and their findings and conclusions. You must include each of the following in your article review: (Be sure to title each section with the headings below.)

1. Question: This will tell you why the research was done and what the researchers were trying to find out. All research is conducted to provide answers to well defined questions. Make sure this is written as a question(s).

2. Theoretical Foundation: This will tell you what theories are being used ? what perspectives are providing the foundation for the question and the answers ? the philosophical underpinnings which justify the question. This theory makes it possible to ask the question in the first place. You need to think about learning theorists which would form the basis for the researcher?s perspective. This may not explicitly mentioned-you may have to use your prior knowledge about learning theorists to infer what framework is being used.

3. Subjects: The people being studied ? in certain content areas the subjects can vary but in education research the subjects are almost always people. This section should be detailed enough that a reader can tell exactly what characteristics the subjects possess and why/how they were chosen.

4. Methods: How was the data for the study gathered? Did the researchers interview people, observe people, survey people, test people etc..? The methods are important because all methods of study provide opportunities and limits on what kind of information can be gathered and what ?truth? can be told based on that specific kind of information. This section should have enough detail so that the study is represented accurately, and so a reader can tell how the research was conducted.

5. Findings: The findings are the answers to the questions and they will generally sum it all up. ?Using this perspective to ask this question about these subjects using this method for searching we found this answer out.? This includes both findings and conclusions. This section should provide enough detail that all findings and conclusions are reported.

Next, you will evaluate this study on 2 criteria:

6. Relevance/Importance of Research to the Field: How does this research study assist in the knowledge of the field of special education? Was it the first or most recent study, does it build on prior research studies, does it break new ground or confirm past findings, etc. This is not your opinion of the study or the research.

7. Evaluation of the Claims of the Study: This is the only part of the article review where you can provide your opinion, provided that you can justify it based on the study itself. In this section, look at what the authors are claiming they found out or concluded. Are these claims justified based on the information and evidence in the study? Why or why not? Is any part of the article presented in a prejudicial way? If so, how or where? Overall, you need to decide if what the authors are claiming in their study is correct and accurate? In either case (it is correct and accurate or it is not correct and accurate) you need to provide evidence that supports your position.

8. List the article you chose in proper APA format.

Make sure that you are detailed and specific in your answers to each part. If you do not include enough information you can misrepresent the study.

However, do not plagiarize-make sure you paraphrase. No direct quotes can be used. You do not need to do citations for this since everything is from this one specific article.

I have an essay to write for my graduate class in special education. Please do not use a title page, per professors instruction.

The essay asks me to address the following:
Explain Russell Barkley's theory of ADHD as a disorder of diminished impulse control that impacts executive control and/or self-regulation. Consider how you will use this information to support more effective learning and behavior in children at school and at home.

Please use the article from Scientific American titled "Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder" by Russell A Barkley, September, 1998, pgs 66-71. I am sending you the entire magazine.

Personal Philosophy Project

? Review the Professional Dispositions at https://www.fordham.edu/info/21001/accreditation_and_strategic_planning/2117/accreditation_information/2 (diversity, scholarship, community, reflection, technology, social justice, professionalism), Course Objectives (in our syllabus), and CEC performance-based standards for the preparation and licensure of special educators related to this course (on page one).

? Then reflect upon all you?ve learned about students, families, instruction, and collaborative practices in your program and work-related experiences. Develop a maximum of ten professional ethics that you will strive to honor and abide by as you work in the field of special education. Each ethic should have a brief (two to five sentence) but thorough rationale accompanying it. You do not need to cite specific research for each ethic, but it should be clear to the reader that your values are informed by your studies and professional experiences (you may wish to include quotes from our book or your research). This paper should have an introduction and conclusion in narrative format, and individual ethics should be presented in a list form. The introduction will describe your current teaching and graduate studies experiences in one paragraph. Your conclusion will describe briefly the setting you hope to work in where you hope to apply your professional ethics or principals. This could be something that you share with parents one day so that they understand your philosophy as an educator serving students with diverse abilities.

Sometime during the semester, each student will interview a parent or care giver (e.g., custodial grandparent) of a student with a disability. This may be a friend, family member, neighbor, or someone solicited for this project.
You will be required to write a report (minimum of 2 pages) on your experience.
Complete the tell me about your child last page of these instructions and include this page with your report (in the same WORD document). The information on this page will be a repeat of information in your report and will be used for data coding only (so it can be separated from your report)
The report should include the following 4 sections:
I. Description of the child. Include such information as: age, any medical problems or information on physical development, any relevant diagnosis, cognitive and social development, any behavioral concerns, language / literacy concerns, any relevant school diagnostic or special education information, etc. (Briefly, draw me a mental picture of the student your report will be about.)

II. Information obtained from the family. You should have a list of questions prepared based on your knowledge / background of the student / family. DO NOT PLAN FOR A LENGTHY INTERVIEW AND BE SENSITIVE TO FAMILY FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS DURING THE INTERVIEW. Your report should include a synthesis and analysis of the information learned. You should NOT just give a transcript of the dialog.
Potential Interview Questions (ask 3 or 4 or develop your own):
How / when was your childs diagnosis made?
What was involved in making the diagnosis? (Dr. visits, school tests, etc.)
How has the childs disability affected your family? Other children in your family?
Is your child involved in special education in school? If so, what is your childs special education classification?
How are you (or were you) involved in your childs class placement in school? In determining their IEP goals and objectives?
What do you consider your childs greatest strengths?
How do you best communicate with the teacher / the school?
How do the teacher / school best communicate with you?
Are you involved in a parent support group?
What strategies do you find most effective in
oManaging your childs behaviors
oAchieving IEP objectives
Mandatory Interview Questions:
If there is one thing you could tell your childs teacher anonymously, what would it be?
Would you agree to be interviewed by a member of the TAMU-Commerce faculty about your childs school experience? If yes, please include family contact information.

III. Your reaction / reflection on the experience
Examples of ideas that you could include (but is not limited to):
Your emotional, intellectual and behavioral responses to the exercise. How did the interview make you feel? What did you want to do after conducting this interview?
What did it make you think?
What did you learn that surprised you?
How this child and familys experiences tie into what you have learned in this class?
IV. What did you learn that will make you a better teacher?

This is my research and notes that I wrote concerning this particular study: Please Make this paper better.

Matthew Thomas Brown
Dr. Thompson
Child Development
Case Study #3

Childs Name: Christopher Cole
Age: 10
Grade: 5th grade, but the aptitude of a 1st grader
School: Homeschool and Taught by Matthew Brown for the past year
Observer: Matthew Brown
Time of Day: 11:00 A.M.
Location: Sims Library
Brief Notes:
Christopher Cole is a male boy with severe learning disabilities that have been unchecked from birth; even though he comes from a family that is very wealthy on both sides of each parent. These hindrances that Christopher has range from: A lack of a proper education due to his homeschooling, mild form of autism called Aspergers Syndrome that was not diagnosed until this year, cleft pallet, poor eyesight, and ADHD. Christopher has been through three different private schools throughout the Waxahachie area. Each school has not been able to aid whatsoever in his education due to Christophers inability to pay attention and social disorder. When I began to teach Christopher a year ago, he refused to learn or pay attention to what I was teaching him. He threw multiple temp tantrums which ended him slapping my face on multiple occasions. After my teaching Christopher Cole for almost a year now, the consistency of my educating him and a strict guideline of rules and procedures, Christopher has made drastic improvements on multiple levels ranging from: controlling his tantrum, sociability, memory retention, and self-respect. It has almost been a year since I was given the opportunity to teach Chris, since my student has made multiple strides concerning his social, verbal, and educational skills; I took the time out of my day to observe my student apart from my teaching him.


Observation:
Today Christopher Cole was dropped off by his mother at the Sims Library in Waxahachie, TX. I was sitting nearby the front door, side entrance where everyone could see me who walked into the library. My Observation began as I saw Chris exit his mothers van and walk up the stairs. Christopher today, as usual, wore blue cargo shorts, a short sleeve, stripped, polo shirt, knee socks with sandals and caring a Sesame Street blue Lunch box at his right side. When he saw me sitting near the front door he walked over to me and asked the same ritualistic question every time I see him, Hi Matt, so, what are we going to do today? I have found that with his type of learning hindrances, that Chris will ask the same questions like that of two to five year old child even though he knows the results of my answer every time. Our lessons begin by working on these particular education skills: basic wrote handwriting skills i.e. Aa Bb Cc Dd, cursive skills, and holding the pencil and saying the direction of where the mark is going as he writes his letters example: A uuuup stop, dooown stop left to right stop.
We sit down at a nearby table near the front entrance of the childrens section of the library. The reason we sit here, is for the main reason that he can see people walk by and most important of all, there is a conventional clock located at the door frame. I will use this clock for Chris to see, understand, and tell time; since he does not understand nor have the knowledge as of yet to tell time. The inability of an eleven year old to tell time is a hindrance socially in one aspect, from my own observation. I can remember fighting my parents when I was five and six years of age that I would not use this information when Im older, but one does in life every day example: School, work, schedules/appointments etc. When I tell Chris to be back in five minutes or 11:55, in order for him to take a break, I will ask him, What time will it be in five minutes? He would reply, 11 oclock, so as of now, I give him a timer in order to remind him when his break is over in order to keep him on task.
Today, I observed his actions in order to see if my student is developmentally delayed. I began to closely look at what type of mannerism he exhibited when he worked, his body posture, social interaction with others, and compared his actions to an average nine to ten year old using a key guide, Introduction to Early Childhood Education Resource Guide.
Christopher uses his left hand when he writes, but his written skills are that of a beginning kindergarten. He uses two fingers to space his words and uses two to three lines for two words at the most. Spelling for Christopher at this age is very difficult for him, for the simple fact that he has not mastered this particular skill of placing letters in their proper order. I have not determined as of now if this particular academic hindrance is a developmental problem, or the other the signs of a preteen emerging of a laze fair attitude; since Chriss parents do not challenge him in any way and make excuses for his behavior. There are simple words that Chris can write, but he does not xhibit the age development of phonological awareness when ask to make the sounds of each letter in the word.
Reading at Christophers age level should be the introduction of some of the classic literature by various authors like Mark Twain and Kenneth Grahame, but his reading level is at a Dr. Suisse Green Egg and Ham level. Today I wanted to see if he would read portions of classic literature made into a comic book, in order for him to gain some insight into basic literature classics. When there are words that he does not know he mumbles through and reads on. His reading resembles a pianist going up an octave scale and back down again without stopping at any punctuation. Now when he his asked to give detailed information concerning the story, he can only, at this time, describe the settings and the time period. The names of the characters and the description the author write about, Chris does not have inkling what or who the story is pertaining to.
The math work that Chris knows is at the age of first year second semester first grader. Chris understands the concepts of addition and subtraction when the problem consists of only two numbers at a time. As I observe Chris through the mathematic process, I took note that he still uses his fingers to count up or down the number scale. Christopher has a very difficult time adding or subtracting number past ten. When he has faced problems that consist of two to three lined mathematic problems, Christopher basically has an anxiety attack which then leads to a temper tantrum.
Socially when you speak to Chris, he uses he has a big heart that really cares about what crisis you may be facing. He interacts well with adults but disregards ones personal space. He enjoys the company of older people, since they seem to be more tolerant concerning Chriss action. Christopher Cole does not have any friends, but talks about his ventriloquist dummies as if they were alive. Today, he brought one of his friends with him and sat him in-between him and I. When I would ask a question concerning what the rules and procedures of bringing one of his toys to work with him, he has the dummy talk for him. One of the reason Chris enjoy the company of inanimate objects, is my opinion, due to lack of any social skills that parents teach their children at an early age. Since Chris has a minor deformity on his upper lip; due to having multiple surgeries, his mother likes to keep him home in order that he does not get hurt emotionally. I encourage that Chris interact with others on a regular basis in order that he understands the world around him and the great and the bad thing that people can do that in the end builds character. On numerous occasions, like today, Chris has a tendency to attempt a wolf whistle when he see a lady walking by him, and then proceed to talk with them concerning his love of ventriloquism. Since living in a society where the lines are drawn on social status and the status quo with parents and their kids, Chris on numerous occasions like to day gets snubbed. Since Chris has a social disorder, people like you and me would be heart broken and ashamed, but Chris does not comprehend when a snub happens; he keeps right on talking as the person walks away.
Chris understands about personal hygiene, but when comes to burping and breaking wind, he does not understand why this is rude when one is talking to him. It can be comical to some extent like today when he attempted to engage one of the librarians in a conversation when all of sudden he passed gas. Now the look on the person face was very interesting, but Chris kept on talking without realizing the face of disgust on that individual.
Ultimately, Chris is a very good friend to have when you understand and his idiosyncrasies. More than one occasion after he got to know me better, he has written small notes to let me know that he cares for me. It is interesting to see a young child who does not fit the mold of our society and their expectations to be a part of my students learning process. I told Chris today that I am amazed how much progress he had accomplished while being my student. With Christopher Cole, even though he has an Aspergers Syndrome, and extremely developmentally delayed, he has heart that is as big as the moon.