Case study of Miguel, an 11-year-old fifth grade student from Mexico

Miguel

There are six stages to the pre-referral strategy to help students like Miguel attain not only better performance, but also better integration into the school environment. The first stage is initial concern regarding the student's progress. This has been completed with the approach of Miguel's educators and the school psychiatrist requesting the assistance of the special education teacher in a pre-referral team meeting.

Stage 2 concerns information gathering, during which information will be collected regarding Miguel's classroom situation, home situation, and his own background knowledge and experiences. The behavior management techniques used in his classroom will also be determined. Informal assessments will be made by approaching family members, other classroom teachers, student portfolios for Miguel, observing his classrooms, and collecting school records, attendance records, and formal assessments. Particularly concerning the family, the information must be collected in such a way that nobody feels attacked or highlighted as a "problem."

During the information sharing and team discussion stage, the team reviews the information in order to determine a strategy for interventions that might help, either with or without special education. One important component is to begin by determining the strengths the student has on which an intervention strategy can be built. In Miguel's situation, valuable insight might be gained from investigating the differences in expectations in terms of behavior or academic work in his home and school environment. His family may not, for example, consider education to be as high a priority as visiting family members in Mexico.

For Miguel, a set of possible strategies should involve active and willing participation by his parents. Miguel should also feel empowered by being made aware of his strengths and how these can be used to help him become a better learner. The initial discussion should be followed by including both Miguel and his parents in devising the implementation and monitoring stage. Miguel's family should assist in monitoring his behavior and academic work at home. After some weeks of implementing the plan, the school psychiatrist can be involved in assessing Miguel's need for special education.

b. Information and data to be gathered for Miguel's situation includes a functional behavioral assessment, which is necessary because his behavior has been aggressive and can cause injury, as well as occurring at an increasing frequency. To conduct the assessment, interviews must be conducted with teachers, parents, and Miguel himself. Rating scale assessments can also be administered to teachers, parents, and the student. These can be supplemented with direct observation data gathered by an objective observer. Finally, baseline data should be collected regarding the events in which Miguel are involved when displaying inappropriate behavior, as well as the frequency with which this occurs.