Case Study:

High School
Maria Moritz
Lauren Normoyle
Erin Rutkowsky
Teri Sikri

Student Demographics
-

Sex: Male
Age/Grade: Ninth
School: Whitewater High School
Race: Hispanic

Language Characteristics
- The student is an English Language
Learner, whose first language is Spanish.
- The student receives ELL services if he needs
additional academic support
- The student has strengths in the following
areas:
- Math & Science
- Social interaction with teachers and peers
- Auditory comprehension

Language Characteristics (cont.)

- The students IEP states that he is supposed to
be provided with 40 minutes of speech and
language intervention per week.
- The students language is characterized by a
delay in receptive and expressive
language, and his IEP states that he
experiences difficulty with reading and writing
skills.
- These delays make it difficult for him to

Language Characteristics (cont.)

The students IEP reports that he experiences
difficulty with the following reading abilities:
- Vocabulary
- Reading comprehension and inferencing
- Recall and sequence specific details from the
text

Language Characteristics (cont.)

The students IEP reports that he experiences
difficulty with the following writing abilities:
- Sentence organization
- Paragraph organization
- Use of appropriate syntax
- Noun-verb agreement
- Use of appropriate punctuation
- Run-on sentences

Hallidays Functions
Observed the student using language in three
settings:
- Large group
- Small group
- One-on-one
Overview:
- Context
- Language functions observed
- Did this context facilitate language?

Large Group Instruction

- 9th grade English classroom
- Reviewing a test
o Grammar rules related to punctuation
o Reviewing for a 2nd retake exam
- Lots of distractions
o Class was not focused or engaged in
discussion
o Disruptive behaviors

Hallidays Functions: Large Group

- Heuristic (3): environmental exploration and
knowledge acquisition (Halliday, 1969)
o What number are we on?
- Informative/Representational (2): the
language of school (Halliday, 1969; Pinnell,
1985)
o Indicator. - answering a teachers
question

Facilitating or Inhibiting Context?

- This context inhibited language use
o Teacher directed lecture
o No invitation for student participation
o Very distracting environment
o Fear of being judged by peers

Small Group Instruction

- The students broke into groups of three
(assigned by the teacher)
- Each group was given two-three punctuation
rules
o They were instructed to prepare to teach
the class about their assigned rules
o Students were mostly goofing around and
this was evident when they were not
prepared to present

Hallidays Functions: Small Group

- Instrumental (1): I want language
o Can you help us? (Halliday, 1969)
- Interactional (2): Define and establish
personal relationships (Halliday, 1969)
o Hi.

Facilitating or Inhibiting Context?

- This context inhibited language use
o Placed in a group with another English
Language Learner
o Both students required additional support
from the SLP in English
o Very loud and distracting environment

One-on-One Instruction
- The student went down to the SLPs office
o Classroom was having quiet reading time
o Reading Of Mice and Men
- Listened to the audio-book and read along
- SLP frequently stopped the audio-book to ask
comprehension questions
- Comprehension and prediction worksheet

Hallidays Functions: One-on-One

- Heuristic (2): environmental exploration and
knowledge acquisition (Halliday, 1969)
o Should I write that?
- Informative/Representational (15): the
language of school (Halliday, 1969; Pinnell,
1985)
o Um...Crook was trying to scare Lenny but
Crook didnt. - answering a comprehension
question

Facilitating or Inhibiting Context?

- This context inhibited language use
o Initiation-Response-Evaluation instruction
style (Wilkinson & Silliman, 2001)
o Lots of closed response question (yes/no)
o No time for open discussion (appeared to be
rushing through the chapter)
o No opportunities for social interactions

Classroom Discourse: Overview

- Directive scaffolds (No supportive scaffolds)
- Initiation/Response/Evaluation
conversational sequence (Wilkinson &
Siliman, 2001)
- Some Indirect Language Facilitation Strategies
(3) (Paul, 2012)

Classroom Discourse: Overview

The classroom discourse inhibited the students
language development by:
- Rushing through the activity
- Ask teachers to use a slow rate of
presentation, (Paul, 2012, p. 640)
- Directive Instruction
- Initiation-Response-Evaluation
conversational sequence

Classroom Discourse: Recast #1

Student: Ok,
number 2 is C
because they
are adject-.
Teacher:
Adjectives.
Student: Yes,
that word.
Teacher: Ok,
Now when you
have a list of
adjectives,
you need to
separate them

When I look at
number 2, I
see that there
are 3
adjectives.
When I see
these three
words, Scary,
clever, and
sassy, I know
these three

Classroom Discourse: Recast #1

When I look at number 2, I see
that there are 3 adjectives.
When I see these three words,
Scary, clever, and sassy, I
know these three words are
adjectives because they are
describing a noun. Now, I
remember when we talked
about what to do when I have
a list of adjectives. I use a
comma to separate them.
So if I am describing my shirt
by using 3 adjectives I would
say, I am wearing a beautiful,
red, cotton shirt. Beautiful,
red, and cotton are the 3
adjectives I used to describe

Recast #1 demonstrates:
explicit modeling type of scaffold
self-talk type of indirect language
facilitation strategy
How would Recast #1 facilitate our students
language development?
Scaffold provides support to our
student in order to understand,
remember, and express his own
perspective (Wilkinson & Siliman, 2001)
Indirect language facilitation strategy
provides support to our student by
using the grammar rules (i.e.,
adjectives) in multiple contexts in order
to support language development
(Paul, 2012)

Classroom Discourse: Recast #2

Teacher: Ok,
number 3.
Teacher: This
is a title,
somewhat.
Teacher: What
rule is this?
Teacher: Do
you know
what rule it is?
Student: I
dont know.

When I was
growing up, I
remember
that it was
silly that my
Fathers name
was Robert
and my

Classroom Discourse: Recast #2

When I was growing up, I
remember that it was silly that
my Fathers name was Robert
and my Brothers name was
Robert, also. My mother
explained to me that my
Fathers title is Robert, Sr., and
my brothers title is Robert, Jr.
Now I remember that when I
write titles such as my Fathers
title, Robert Sr., and my
brothers title, Robert Jr., I need
to put commas around the
title. So in my Father and
Brothers titles, Sr. and Jr., I will
put commas around them.

Recast #2 demonstrates:
Explicit modeling type of scaffold
How would Recast #2 facilitate
our students language
development? Scaffold: this
explicit model adjusts the type of
assistance the student may need
to comprehend (Wilkinson &
Silliman, 2001).

Interview: Outline
- Participants & Interview Contexts
- Themes
- Perspective on Professional Collaboration

Interview: Participants & Context

- Participants:
- English Teacher
- Speech-Language Pathologist
- Interview Context:
- Informal, one-one-one conversation in
teachers classroom and SLPs office
(respectively)
- Meeting scheduled by appointment
- Received permission to use audio recorder
to record interview for later analysis

Interview: Themes
-

Preferred Service Delivery Model

Effects of Classroom Behavior
Collaboration
Influence of Common Core Standards
Perceptions of Communication Strengths and
Challenges
- Accommodations
- Effects of English as a Second Language

Interview: Themes (cont.)

- Preferred Service Delivery Model
English
Teachers
Response

SLPs
Response

a lot of times, if
theres work time in
class he will go
downstairs and work
with Ms. Palmer and
get help that way. And
then shes got a much
smaller group of kids
that she works with
down there.

at the beginning
of the year, I went
into the classroom,
but the class is so
large and it was
really disruptive
since there were so
many kids in the
class that needed
extra helpwe
ended up just having
the teacher send the
kids down when they

I do try to check in
with him whenthey

Interview: Themes (cont.)

- Effects of Classroom Behavior
English
Teachers
Response

SLPs
Response

hes chatty, not

necessarily on task.
But he doesnt I
dont think hes shy
when hes in the
group either. I think
he feels comfortable
in the group that hes
in. I just dont know if
they are necessarily
doing what they are
supposed to be doing.
Or that hes doing

at the
beginning of the
year, I went into
the classroom, but
the class is so
large and it was
really disruptive
since there were
so many kids in
the class that
needed extra
helpwe ended

Interview: Themes (cont.)

- Collaboration
English
Teachers
Response

SLPs
Response

communicating
with Angela when he
does go to work on
something if I dont
think shes gonna
know what hes
supposed to be
working on. I just
shoot her an email
and say this is what
he should be working
on and making sure
she knows so she can

I talk to the
English teacher
the most because
hes usually
coming down and
working on her
assignments I
would say weekly.
It varies. Last
semester I had
lunch with her so
we would talk

Interview: Themes (cont.)

- Influence of Common Core Standards
English
Teachers
Response

SLPs
Response

we revamped our
entire English
curriculum a couple
years ago to meet the
common core
standards

These are his goals

[referring to his IEP],
and they go along
with the common
core standardswe
try to connect their
language goals to
the reading
language, speaking
and listening goals
that are in the
common core
standards because

...have more time to

teach it all. Its a yearlong they are all
year- long courses
and it seems like we
are cramming things

Interview: Themes (cont.)

- Perceptions of Communication Strengths and
Challenges
English
Teachers
Response

SLPs
Response

if I had to pick
one, I think his
written is probably
a little bit stronger
than verbalhes
very soft spoken
and sometimes its
even hard to hear
what hes asking.
And so its just
easier when I see

I think his writing is

a little bit lower than
his verbal abilitiesif
he could choose, he
would choose
verbal.

Interview: Themes (cont.)

- Accommodations
English
Teachers
Response
he goes right
along with what
other students are
doing. We do
modify for him
when needed
today I just talked
with Angela. They
had a quiz on their
To Kill a
Mockingbird
chapters, and he

SLPs
Response
we rephrase
things for him,
explain what
directions mean, or
what we are looking
forwe use
technology
sometimes to look
up vocabulary and
examples for him
when hes reading
we get audio books
to help him with

Interview: Themes (cont.)

- Effects of English as a Second Language
English
Teachers
Response

SLPs
Response

we do narrative
writing, persuasive
writing. They have
certain grammar skills
that we would like for
them to know by the
end of their freshman
year so they carry
those with them to
sophomore year.

because hes
not getting as
much practice as
his typical peers
are gettingI
think it makes
grammar really
hard because the
grammar is so
different so hes
having to separate
and deal with

they need to
have strong

Interview: Collaboration
- Perspective on Professional Collaboration
- Communication between English teacher
and SLP
- Classroom Instructional Strategies Training

Curricular Analysis
-

Two different contexts in which the curriculum was presented

- large-group (whole class) instruction with regular ed. English teacherS
grammar and punctuation review
- 2-to-1 small group instruction with the SLP (in her room), about the fiction
novel Of Mice and Men

Two different pieces of curriculum presented that day

- Review of a grammar (punctuation) test from the day before, along
with discussion of punctuation rules in grammar packet
- Story elements and cohesive devices from the fiction novel, Of
Mice and Men

Curricular Analysis
- Text Type: Description
In-Text
Examples

Describing the
Salinas River:
The water is warm
too, for it has
slipped twinkling
over the yellow
sands in the
sunlight before
reaching the
narrow pool. On
one side of the
river the golden
foothill slopes
curve up to the

Modifications/Ac
commodations
to the
Curriculum
-Visualization
strategies as a
descriptive tool
-SLP will work with A.
in a group of two and
have a larger piece of
paper in front of each
group member. As
students have eyes
closed, the SLP could
read 1 sentence aloud
at a time.
-After each sentence,

Curricular Analysis
- Text Type: Sequence or Procedure
In-Text
Examples

Modifications/Acc
ommodations to
the Curriculum

Now you listen and

this time you got to
remember so we dont
get in no trouble. You
remember settin in
that gutter on Howard
Street and watchin
that blackboard?
Lennies face broke
into a delighted smile.
Why sure, George, I
remember thatbut
whatd we do then? I
remember some girls
come by and you
sayyou say. The
hell with what I says.
You remember about

-To demonstrate
sequence or
procedure, the SLP
could do a wholeclass lesson and
bring in something
physical (like pieces
of a PB & J
sandwich) that need
to be put together in
steps, and do explicit
modeling and a talkaloud with the class
where they have to
all describe the
actual steps needed

Curricular Analysis
-

Cohesive Device: Commas as Punctuation Marks to mark additional information

In-Text
Examples

Modifications or
Accommodations to
the Curriculum

Guys like us,

that work on
ranches, are
the loneliest
guys in the
world. (pg.
13, Of Mice
and Men)
2. On October
27, 2002,
Marie Greuel,
one of my
goddaughters
, turned 18.
(This was
actually #14
on the
students

-The SLP would do explicit

modeling during a talk-aloud
with a small-group (2 on 1) in
her room in which he/she
would describe her
interesting weekend events
(Justice & Kaderavek, 2004;
Wright & Neumann, 2014)
-Then SLP would write one
of the sentences with this
type/function of comma in it
on whiteboard, along with a
few other sentences that
would make up the main idea
of the story.
-Announce, Oh, I just

Curricular Analysis
- Cohesive Devices: Conjunctions
In-Text
Examples

Modifications or
Accommodations to
the Curriculum

Far off
toward the
highway a
man shouted
something,
and another
man shouted
back.

-The SLP could have at

least 3 children in large
or small group time
physically demonstrate
the concept of where to
put the comma within this
sentence.
-One student could be
the physical
representation of the first
clause, while a second
student physically inserts
himself (and a visual of a
comma) between the first

Related CCS
or ASHA
Standard:
CCS SL.9-

Assessment,
Intervention,
& Service Delivery
Model

Assessment
- Formal assessments completed to qualify the
student for speech and language services:
- Expressive-One-Word Picture Vocabulary
Test (EOWPVT)
- Language Processing Test
- Listening Test
- Concerns related to the formal assessments
completed:
- Language of administration (Patton Terry et
al., 2010)

Assessment (cont.)
- Further informal assessments to be completed
based on data:
- Test to identify current reading level and
comprehension
- Recent informal writing sample and
language sample analysis
- Observation of classroom and social
discourse
- Teacher instruction (Paul, 2012)
- Peer interaction

Intervention
- SLP collaboration with teacher to model high
quality classroom instruction (Justice et al.,
2008)
- Provide explicit instruction (Wright & Neuman,
2014)
- Provide appropriate accommodations for
student (i.e., time, environment, materials,
instructions) (CCS)

Intervention (cont.)
- Implement learning strategies to foster
academic independence (CCS)
- Facilitate social skills and collaboration by
encouraging group work (CCS)
- Discuss language or dialectal differences
(Paul, 2012)

Service Delivery Model

- Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
- Large Group (Classroom): this is the ideal
service delivery model (IDEA)
- Small group within the Speech-Language
Pathologists room

References
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. (2010). Roles and responsibilities of speech-language pathologists in
schools.
Berninger, V.W., Abbott, R.D., Swanson, H.L., Lovitt, D., Trivedi, P., Lin, S.J., Gould, L., Youngstrom, M., Shimada, S., &
Amtmann, D. (2010). Relationship of word and sentence level working memory to reading and writing in second, fourth,
and sixth grade. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 41, 179-193. doi: 10.1044/01611461(2009/08-0002)
American Psychological Association. (2015). Individuals with disabilities education act (IDEA). Retrieved from
http://www.apa.org/about/gr/issues/disability/ idea.aspx
Common Core State Standards Initiative. (2015). Application to students with disabilities. Retrieved from
http://www.corestandards.org/assets/application-to-students-with-disabilities.pdf
Culatta, B., Horn, D. G., & Merritt, D. D. (1998). Expository text: Facilitating comprehension. In D. Merritt & B. Culatta
(Eds.), Language intervention in the classroom (pp. 215-276). San Diego, CA: Singular.
Halliday, M. (1996). Relevant models of language. Educational Review, 22, 26-37.

References
L.

Justice, & Kaderavek, J. (2004). Explicit emergent literacy intervention I: Background and description of
approval embedded-explicit emergent literacy intervention. Language, Speech ,Hearing Services in Schools, 35,
201211. doi: 201 01611461/04/35030201
Justice, L.M., Mashburn, A.J., Hamre, B.K., & Pianta, R.C. (2008). Quality of language and
literacy instruction in preschool classrooms serving at-risk pupils. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 23, 51-68.
Doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2007.09.004
Patton Terry, N., McDonald Connor, C., Thomas-Tate, & S.Love; M. (2010). Examining relationships among dialect
variation, literacy skills, and school context in first grade. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research,
53, 126145. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2009/08 0058).
Paul, R. (2012). Language Disorders from Infancy to Adolescence: Assessment and Intervention.
4th Ed. St. Louis, MO: Mosby Year Book.
Pinnel, G. (1985). Ways to look at the functions of childrens language. Observing the Language learner, 52-72.

References
Steinbeck, J. (1937). Of mice and men. New York, NY: Penguin Books
Wilkinson, L.C., & Silliman, E.R. (2001,February). Classroom language and literacy learning. Reading Online,
4(7). Available: http://www.readingonline.org/articles/art_indexasp?HREF=/articles/handbook/wilkinson/index.h
Wright, T.S., & Neuman, S.B. (2014). Paucity and disparity in kindergarten oral vocabulary instruction. Journal of
Literacy Research, 46(3), 330-357. doi: 10.1177/1086296X14551474