From: Hillary Beshears
Email: hillrich@pacbell.net
Course: CD 169: Motivating Children and Adolescents in Educational Settings
College: San Jose State University
Instructor: Eugene Matusov
ClassWeb: http://www.ematusov.com/
ChildrenObservations: Yes
Date: 23 May 1997
Time: 03:04:41
Remote Name: ppp-206-170-26-149.sntc01.pacbell.net
Are "special" schools more beneficial to the motivation and education of children with learning disabilities than "regular" schools? How are these programs different? These are the questions that I will look at in this paper. These topics are important not only because they directly effect the teachers and future teacher in our communities, but because these children need and deserve to be educated in the best way possible for them just like "normal" children. Through the research, I have found that these programs do differ and in most cases, the "special" schools can be more beneficial unless the "regular" school is modified to accommodate for the children with learning disabilities.
In this paper, I will look at the different effects that "special" schools, schools that cater to the needs of children with learning disabilities, and mainstreaming, putting children with learning disabilities into a regular classroom, have on the motivation of children with learning disabilities. I would like to find out which type of program might be more beneficial to the child's motivation and learning. Also, I would like to find some ways of making the less beneficial program better.
I feel that this topic is important to the field of child development because most of the people in this field are teachers and will come across students with learning disabilities all the time. I hope that this paper will be helpful to teachers and future teachers in defining, motivating, and teaching children with learning disabilities. This topic is also important to local communities because children and adults with learning disabilities are all around us in our communities It would benefit those with learning disabilities and those without if everyone knew more about learning disabilities in general and that is what I hope to accomplish with this paper.
Learning disabilities affect about five to ten percent of school-age children. They have average IQ scores, but because of their learning disability, their achievement is significantly lower that what would be expected on the basis of their IQ. The disability cannot yet be linked to any physical or emotional source. It is, however, believed that faulty brain functioning is at fault. Although the learning disability does not stem from any emotional source, it can lead to serious emotional difficulties due to the child's frustration from the learning problem. Nevertheless, if proper treatment, understanding, and educational intervention are available, the children with learning disabilities have a good chance of making a sufficient adjustment into adulthood. (Berk, 1996).
In this paper, I will focus on two learning disabilities, dyslexia and attention deficit disorder. Dyslexia is a visual perceptual disability. A child with dyslexia might have difficulty organizing the shape and position of what he of she sees, such as letters. The information they receive may be seen with reversed or rotated letters. For example, an e might look like a 9, a 3 might look like an M, or 'dog' might be seen as 'god'. Luckily, this type of disability can be noticed almost immediately when the child begins to copy letters or designs, reads, or writes. (Silver, 1997).
There are two types of attention deficit disorder (ADD) and they are ADD, as mentioned, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Both conditions are chronic disorders that can begin in infancy and go through adulthood. ADD is characterized by difficulties with the child's attention span, impulse control, and hyperactivity (occasionally). The difficulty with the child's attention span is that the child cannot concentrate or keep his or her attention focused on one thing for very long. The impulse control is the child's inability to control his or her impulses to do things that would otherwise be inappropriate. (http://www.rsts.net/eli/teaching.html). Hyperactivity sometimes occurs in children with ADD, and this can include fidgeting, rapid shifting from one activity to another, and excessive physical activity. (Farley, 1989).
ADHD is characterized by the child fidgeting constantly, having trouble remaining seated, becoming easily distracted, having difficulty waiting his or her turn, blurting out answers, having difficulty following directions, having difficulty keeping his or her attention focused, shifting form one uncompleted task to another, having difficulty playing quietly, talking excessively, having trouble listening, often loses things, and frequently engaging in dangerous actions. In order for a child to be diagnosed with ADHD, he or she must exhibit at least eight of the previous characteristics for at least six months before turning seven years of age. (http://www.rsts.net/eli/teaching.html).
Because these learning disabilities, such as dyslexia and ADD/ADHD, can be so severe, special schools have been organized to try to better help these children. One such school is the Briarwood School. This school was founded in 1967 in order to provide for the education needs of children with learning disabilities. Briarwood has the facility to enroll 300 students between kindergarten and grade 12. Their motivational goal is to, "Educate the mind and cultivate the spirit, always striving to enhance self-image through academic, physical, emotional, and social growth." (http://www.briarwood.houston.tx.us/binfo.htm).
In the lower school program, elementary, the students are taught by one teacher in a self - contained classroom with eight to ten students. This low student to teacher ratio promotes group interactions as well as individual motivational guidance to the children from the teacher. The students who attend this part of the school are of average or above average intelligence who have learning disabilities and how can accentuate their potential with special instruction to counterbalance their unique learning styles. Also, consultants observe each of the classrooms to help with prescriptive teaching. (http://www.briarwood.houston.tx.us/binfo.htm).
The Briarwood School also has a special school that enrolls children who are developmentally delayed. "The curriculum for this program is designed to strengthen academic,motor, and living skills, as well as to provide pre-vocational exposure." The students can also participate in the Special Olympics and receive on-the-job training for "real" jobs. The motivational goal of this program is, "To help each child function better tomorrow than he did today toward the ultimate goal of being a contributing member of society." (http://www.briarwood.houston.tx.us/binfo.htm).
The opposing way to motivate children with learning disabilities is to mainstream them into regular classrooms situations with "normal" children. There are two goals behind the mainstreaming of children into regular classrooms. The first is to provide more appropriate academic exposure and the second is to integrate participation in classroom life. According to an article, "Achievement differences between mainstreamed pupils and those taught in self- contained classrooms are not great. Furthermore, mainstreamed children are often rejected by their peers. And the processing deficits of some learning-disabled children lead to problems in social awareness and responsiveness." (Berk, 1996). In my opinion, this statement is saying that although their is not much of an educational difference between "special" schools and mainstreaming, the mainstreaming might have a negative effect on the motivation of children with dyslexia or ADD/ADHD. However, this is not to say that mainstreaming is not a good way to serve these children. There are some things that can be done in a "regular" classroom situation to promote a positive motivational and learning environment for children with learning disabilities. Establishing the proper learning environment can help mainstream these children. Seating the child with the learning disability near the teacher's desk while still including them in the class. This will place the student's back to the rest of the class thus keeping him or her from becoming so easily distracted. (http://www.rsts.net/eli/teaching.html).
Another teaching tip might be to let the children have part of their instruction they receive be in a resource room with specialized teachers, and the rest of their instruction be in a "regular" classroom. It has been shown that children perform better in this type of setting. (Berk, 1996).
Give the students with learning disabilities only one assignment at a time. This way, he or she will be less likely to forget the assignment or become confused. Also, modify the assignment when needed. This way, the task will be specially designed for that particular student. The task won't be so difficult that the child becomes frustrated and quits. It also won't be too easy that the child becomes bored. (http://www.rsts.net/eli/teaching.html).
Giving the students with learning disabilities more time to complete their assignment might help motivate them to finish and do their best job. Most students with ADD or ADHD work more slowly and become to frustrated to work if they are pressured to finish. Thusly, they should also not be penalized for needing more time. (http://www.rsts.net/eli/teaching.html).
Within the research I have done on this topic, my findings state that there are positive effects upon the motivation and education of children with learning disabilities in "special" schools and positive and negative effects when mainstreaming these children into "regular" classroom situations.
In conclusion, according to these research findings, both "special" schools and mainstreaming can be beneficial to children with learning disabilities. However, for mainstreaming to possibly become as beneficial as "special" schooling special steps must be taken in order to properly accommodate for the children with learning disabilities.
Bibliography
Berk, Laura E., Infants, Children, and Adolescents, 2nd edition, Simon & Schuster Co., Needham Heights, MA 02194. 1996, pp. 454-455.
Briarwood School, http://www.briawood.houston.tx.us/binfo.htm. March 19, 1997.
Farley, Dixie, "Helping Children with Attention Disorder," FDA Consumer, February 1989.
Silver, Larry B., MD, What Are Learning Disabilities?, http://www.rsts.net/eli/whatare.html. March 19, 1997. pp. 1-2.
Teaching Tips, http://www.rsts.net/eli/teaching.html. March 20, 1997. pp. 1-3.