Amanda Rowland 1. Student: Description (age, disability, placement, etc.

) Student R is a 16 year old sophomore at Champaign Central High school. R qualifies in Special Ed. services through Basic Reading, Math Calculation, and Written Expression deficiets, so Specific Learing Disability (SLD) in those areas. His previous Elgibility Determination Conference (EDC) data states that R's IQ results are as follows: "Math Calculation without a calculator is in the Very Low range (Standard Score = 61). Similarly, Applied Math is in the Borderline range (Standard Score = 71). At this time, Math Calculation skills appear to be significantly below what would be expected from his intellectual ability." He is placed in a general education Geometry classroom. I will be working with him in the hallway outside of the geometry class for 10 minutes three times a week. 2. Skill Solving one variable complex equations. 3. Summary of what is already known R talks throughout about 4/5 of the class period. He loves to interact with peers and teachers. However, he gets distracted from the academic content whenever someone interacts with him. I know he has a problem with the correlation of a variable and its unknown value, ie 5x +7 does not equal 12x, but that is a mistake he will make. Many Geometry questions require the use of this skill to obtain the correct answer. 4. Questions
What: What Characteristics impede Why: Knowing what will help him his learning and which characteris- learn and when will not help him tics enhance his learning? learn will help me to better teach him. Source: Cooperating teacher

Amanda Rowland
Answer: R can work well with small groups but he is constantly distracted. He responds well to verbal praise and will work to earn the attention of teachers and peers. He responds well to direct verbal instructions when he is alone.

What: How does he feel about math?

Why: Knowing his feelings can helpSource: Asking the student to understand behaviors he exhibits. Answer: He doesnt like math. He finds if difficult and thinks it is a waste of time.

What: How are his peers in his ge- Why: We want to give him access ometry class using this skill? to the general education curriculum.

Source: Cooperating teacher and math book.

Answer: Students solve complex equations in order to find the measures of angles.

What: What is the typical curricu- Why: I should teach it how it is Source: Cooperating teacher lum sequence for this skill? generally taught and proven to be successful. Answer: I was just thinking if you have give him a pretest of equations that are like the one above, derived from the chapter, and then start him off with super easy basic combining like terms problems: a + a = ??? I know he has a problem with the correlation of a variable and it is an unknown value, ie 5x +7 does not equal 12x, but that is a mistake he will make. Your Instructional Program (IP) could focus on teaching him what a variable is and then highlight (or subsequently identically mark) similar variables. Colors are FUN! Your pretest can be reused as a midpoint check and the post-test to see absolute growth of the skill.

What: What accommodations is he Why: So I can provide him with allowed? what he needs to be successful.

Source: Cooperating teacher

Answer: He is allowed an alternative setting and extended time on quizzes and tests.

5. Data collection

Amanda Rowland
What: Given a checklist of skills Why: I need to get a feel for how Source: Three informal quizzes needed to solve complex equamuch of this task the student can that I designed. tions, which skills can he indepen- do so I can know where to begin dently perform correctly? Given my teaching. I also need to know problems from simplest to most ad- what strategies to teach the stuvanced where does the skill break dent in order to help solve the down? What steps to solving these problems. I also need to know how problems does the student not high to make a goal for this stuknow? Can he solve questions his dent. peers are currently solving? Procedures:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Ask the student to come to the hallway with a pen or a pencil. Ask the student to please sit down.

Show student the informal assessment and explain to the student that I want to help him improve his math skills, but first I need to know what he already knows. Explain that I just want him to try her best. If he doesnt know the answer it is ok, just try your best to answer it from what you know. Show the student which questions they need to simplify and which questions they need to find x and ask if they have any questions. Each quiz has 4 questions. One question uses the distributive property, one you must combine like terms, one is taken from his Geometry book, and one is a skill using complex equations that most of his peers can do. Only answer questions about what to do, not how to do the problem. Tell them if they have a question at any point to raise their hand and you will come discuss it with them and that they have 15 minutes to complete the quiz and may use the calculator provided. Throughout the quiz frequently look at him to see if he is raising his hand to ask a question. When the student is done collect the quiz and thank him for working really hard and trying his best and send them back into the classroom. Repeat three days in a row with a different variation of the assessment each day. Review informal assessment

9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

Record Data each day by filling in the following chart. Then graphing the average percent of tasks completed correctly out of total tasks for all four questions as well as a graph indicating how many questions they answered correctly. Use data to inform decisions when creating instructional program.

Amanda Rowland
Results:

Quiz 1: Question 1: combine like terms Question 2: taken from Geometry book Question 3: Peers can solve this type of problem Question 4: distributive property Quiz 2: Question 1: Peers can solve this type of problem Question 2: taken from Geometry book Question 3: Combine like terms Question 4: Distributive property Quiz 3: Question 1: Combine like terms Question 2: Peers can solve this type of problem Question 3: Distributive property Question 4: taken from Geometry book numbers 1-8 in the left column represent the following checklist for tasks to complete when solving complex equations. 1. Combines like terms 2. Uses distributive property 3. Performs operations to both sides of the equation 4. Performs correct operations 5. Does computation correctly 6. Shows all steps 7. Answer is written in variable= form 8. Sets up equation correctly 1,2,3,4 indicates the question numbers on each quiz N/A is written when not applicable x when it was done correctly o when it was done incorrectly or left out Percents are calculated by taking the number of steps in the checklist done correctly and dividing by the total number of applicable steps. Cor. means was the problem correct tot. means total percent for quiz and total questions correct

Amanda Rowland

Quiz 1 1 1 2 x N/A 2 o N/ A N/ A o o o N/ A N/ A 0/4 =0 3 x N/A 4 o o

Quiz 2 1 o N/A 2 x N/ A x 3 x N/A 4 o o

Qui z3 1 x N/A 2 o o 3 o o 4 x N/A

N/A

N/A

4 5 6 7

x x N/A N/A

o o o N/A

o o o x

o o x x

x x x x

x x x x

o o o x

x x o N/A

o o o

o o o

x x x x

N/A N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/ A 6/6 =1 00 x

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A N/A

N/A

3/3= 100

1/5 = 20 o

1/7 2/7= = 28.6 14.3 o o

6/6 = 100 x

1/7 3/4= = 75 14.3 o x

0/6 =0

0/6 =0

6/8= 75

Cor. x

Amanda Rowland

Questions answered correctly out of 4

Quiz 1 Tot. 1/4

Quiz 2 5/19 2/4 = 26. 3 Quiz Dates

Qui z3 15/2 2/4 6= 57.7 9/24 =37. 5

4. Summary This data about student R has showed me many different things. It showed me that sometimes R is able to combine like terms and sometimes he is not. He tends to make the mistake of add a term with an x n it to a term that does not have an x in it. He also does not know how to use the distributive property at all. He often is able to solve equations from his Geometry book, but only if he does not have to set up the equation. He is more accurate in problem solving when all terms containing x are on the same side of the equation. When he knows how to do a problem he often shows all of his work and doesnt when he isnt sure how to solve the problem. He has difficulty with some of the more complicated problems his peers are doing. Sometimes performing operations to both sides of the equation is difficult for him. All of this has helped me to be able to form an instructional objective for R. 5. Objective On a 4 question complex equation quiz in Student Rs pull-out Geometry time, he will complete all applicable steps in the complex equations checklist for 2 one variable combining like terms problems, 1 one variable distributive property problem, and one complex equation problem taken from his Geometry book with 100% of problems answered correctly on two consecutive quizzes. 6. Rationale This skill is important to teach because it is essential to many future skills in math. Math is a subject that constantly builds on itself. Without this skill students will not be able to progress and will only fall farther and farther behind

Amanda Rowland