Natalie Harake 1708031162 EDCO 610

Child Study Report: It Takes a Village

Introduction

A newly converted advocate for inclusive education in mainstream education and a firm

believer in education for all, this report was eye opening for many reasons. While the United

Arab Emirates is proactively encouraging inclusive classrooms as the norm, it was interesting to

observe first-hand what an average week in the life of one student with unique learning needs

looks like. Inclusive education “involves placing students with disabilities in general education

settings only when they can meet traditional academic expectations with minimal assistance”

(Friend & Bursuck, 2015, p.7). The purpose of this in depth observational study is to further

understand dyslexia as a special educational need and recognize the various challenges an

inclusive classroom faces. As part of the study I conducted, I observed a young boy, Ahmed

(to protect the privacy of the student the name and identifying details have been changed), for

eight hours over the course of one week during inclusive classroom settings, break time, pull out

classes with other students with varying special needs and one on one classes.

Child Profile

Ahmed is a nine year old male student in grade three at a private American school

(common core) curriculum. Currently being raised by his grandparents, he has been diagnosed

with dyslexia and color blindness by a clinical psychologist. The middle child of two working

parents, Ahmed was born by C-section and was carried to full term. In terms of early

development milestones he experienced no delays. However, in 2015 he started experiencing

frustration when completing school related task. He was found to be myopic and was fitted with

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glasses to correct his vision. Towards the end of 2016, he was diagnosed with color blindness.

Based on the learning difficulties he was facing at his previous school, he was referred to a

psychologist for assessment. The psychologist met with him and his mother to assess his

intellectual functioning and facilitated an assessment with a speech and language therapist.

While he is fluent in speaking both Arabic and English and uses them both equally, he struggles

to read and write in both languages. The school he was in before had no Special Education Needs

and Disabilities (SEND) provision. It was recommended that he be transferred to another school

that can provide him with complete and targeted support. Staying in his previous school would

have been detrimental to his learning as well as his emotional and psychological well-being.

Factors Affecting Child’s Inclusion

While Ahmed is managing at his new school and appears to be sociable, well liked and

accepted by his peers, I observed many factors that could be affecting his inclusion. The factors

range from lack of support, minimal collaboration and preparedness, and his self-esteem. The

lack of support is visible in the non-existence of teacher workshops and trainings on the different

learning strategies that can be employed in the classroom to facilitate his learning. His classroom

teacher feels that the workshops they have reference the SEND students for more informative

purposes so all teachers are aware of the diverse needs in the school but minimal emphasis is

placed on what they should and can be doing. For example, only a few months after switching

off the lights to use the projector did his classroom teacher become aware that this was hindering

Ahmed’s ability to see as he needs a certain level of contrast and brightness to see clearly.

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While the SEND department is available if the teachers face difficulties and should the

teachers have questions or problems, the collaboration is minimal and they do not have regular

meetings to discuss his progress. On the contrary, his classroom teacher says she relies on online

research for help. Collaboration is also weak (possibly nonexistent) on the home front as his

parents are not involved in his education and he is being raised by his grandparents. Despite the

fact that the initial report claimed the grandparents are cooperative and involved, the classroom

teacher finds setting up a meeting with his grandmother has proven to be difficult as she often

cancels them. According to his classroom teacher, Ahmed doesn’t mention his family at all and

while working on a family tree project he relayed to her that he does not know what his father

looks like. “True collaboration exists only when all participants in a team or another shared

activity feel their contributions are valued and the goal is clear, when they share decision

making, and when they sense they are respected” (Friend & Bursuck, 2015, p.67). Unfortunately

for Ahmed, the collaboration on all fronts is severely lacking.

The unavailability of information and lack of preparedness is also a key concern affecting

effective inclusion. The classroom teacher was only aware of Ahmed’s learning difficulties in

January 2018. She said that the only information she was given at the beginning of the school

year was the classroom roster with his name highlighted as a SEND student scheduled for pull-

out classes. However, no further information on what his special needs requirements are or how

she should facilitate any difficulties was shared. Instead, when she realized he was having

trouble distinguishing between colors she proactively conducted a color blindness test in class to

learn where he falls on the color blind spectrum. Having to resort to her own means made her

feel unprepared and the classroom teacher believes she needs to be equipped with learning

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strategies and knowledge of how he sees the world if she is to successfully facilitate his learning.

As a result, Ahmed is at times side lined and feels frustrated.

Ahmed’s assessment report in 2017 found that he is compliant, cooperative and trying his

absolute best at tests. However, my interviews with his classroom teacher, language teacher, and

a member from the SEND department all shared the same concern that his self-esteem has

noticeably begun to change and his frustration levels are increasing. Unfortunately, they all

expressed a similar sentiment that he was becoming more aware of his difficulties in comparison

to his peers and has recently been making statements such as “I’m not smart” to the classroom

teacher. While Ahmed is becoming more aware of his struggle as he gets older and the difference

between him and his classmates becomes difficult to hide I do worry that he may also be feeding

off the attitudes of those around him. “Teachers’ attitudes towards disability are a key factor in

the inclusiveness of teaching” (Goodall, 2014, p. 133) and since their struggle to help him was

visible to me I can only wonder how much of their frustration he carries with him.

Accommodations and Modifications

As part of my study, I observed Ahmed in various settings such as recess, Arabic and

English pull out class (SEND students are pulled out twice a week), science class (inclusive

classroom), and private one on one intensive English class. It was highly informative to see the

different sides of his character in the different classes. His Arabic class was the first I observed

as I lined up with him and six other SEND students to go to another classroom. His behavior in

the class was cheeky and jokey even though they were meant to be doing a test. Insisting he

didn’t know there was going to be a test that day, he kept looking for excuses to avoid working

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on the test so much so that I watched him break his led pencil twice to delay getting started.

Throughout the remainder of the test he seemed to require the most help and attention and the

Arabic language teacher spent most of the class sounding out the words for him to write. If she

turned around to assist someone else he would resort to drawing on the table. Irrespective of

what I observed, the Arabic language teacher insisted that he is smart and capable but has

recently been refusing to try when in group settings. She insists that something has gotten into

his head that he is incapable as he frequently says “I don’t know, I can’t”. While Ahmed is

pulled out of his class with six other special needs students for Arabic, the teacher says that it is

still not an equal playing field. Not only are the special needs students required to complete the

same tests as their typically developed peers but even with the SEND classroom, he is not at all

close to their level and it is only when she is able to work with him privately one on one does she

feel he makes any progress.

The cheeky and easily distracted Ahmed was swiftly replaced with a more attentive and

interested boy when he was in science class which is an inclusive classroom set up. He sits at a

table with three other special needs students and once the classroom teacher has explained the

day’s activity she takes a seat beside him and remains there for the whole period. The typically

developed students seem to know that they need to come to her at their table if they have

questions and while she encourages them to use dictionaries I hear her loudly tell him to use the

iPad and instruct the remainder of the students to only use them if they are having trouble. Aside

from the use of iPads and visual aids, the classroom teacher varies worksheets and the method

questions are asked. When prompted about what the tests are like she explained that the

curriculum tested is identical but instead of asking Ahmed to read and write she either gives him

oral tests or creates a personalized test for him that includes visuals where he would need to do

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minimal reading and writing and instead connect corresponding images to one another to ensure

he has grasped the lesson.

His English classes are slightly different. While he is accustomed to pull out classes for

intensive English classes with other SEND students twice a week, his teachers have decided he

needs a more concentrated effort. As of March 2018, he has started an intervention program with

private English classes twice a week. While there was no IEP (Individual Education Plan) in

place at the time of my observation, the SEND department coordinator informed me that they

were working diligently on putting one together with short and long term goals for the remainder

of the school year.

While I did not have the opportunity to observe Ahmed during a math lesson I was told

that he needs minimal accommodation in math. On the contrary, his teacher insisted that math

was a focal point of strength for him and he is able to compete with the high achieving students

in math.

Support Needed and Concerns

Observing Ahmed and getting to know him throughout the week raised several red flags

in terms of whether he was receiving ample support and whether the necessary accommodations

were being made to cater to his unique learning abilities. While there is an abundance of research

on dyslexia with the English language, the information available on the Arabic language is

comparatively limited. However, this only made me question why Ahmed was being taught both

languages when he is clearly struggling in both. While Arabic is his mother tongue, he struggles

more in Arabic class because the Arabic he understands orally is his colloquial Arabic dialect

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and the class is taught in modern standard Arabic. It is premature based on a one week

observation to judge whether or not Arabic should be temporarily removed to concentrate on

teaching him effective tools and strategies to help with his dyslexia and his self-esteem.

However, considering the Arabic class revealed a scared and frustrated student that it is worth

considering a new approach may be required.

Another prominent concern is his support group. The school has an open door policy

which is emphasized by the head of sections always available by phone and regular open house

sessions but it is almost the end of the school year and his parents have yet to respond to meeting

requests. The lack of involvement on the home front is affecting his learning potential and all

interviewees stressed that they love having him in class but desperately require mandatory and

regular parental involvement to help him progress. Without active involvement from his parents,

it is difficult to see how he can improve at a steady pace and live up to his potential.

Unfortunately, when he is given homework or extra worksheets he does not complete them

because he isn’t comfortable completing the work independently and assistance is not available

at home. While his tangible obstacle is his inability to read, the lack of collaboration is just as

fundamental. His teachers unanimously feel that they have exhausted their options and believe he

needs a more intensive committed program at a specialized center.

Another red flag was that the class requires a competent teacher and learning support

assistants. Instead, the classroom is made up of twenty students, five of which fall within the

SEND realm, and with no assistants available the teacher is inevitably spread too thin. Moreover,

the appropriate accommodations are not necessarily being made because there isn’t any

correlation between the classroom teacher and the special education teachers. While an IEP was

not ready to be shared at the time of my observation, I do believe that an IEP that tackles

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behavioral and academic modifications paired with collaboration will help Ahmed progress

substantially.

Conclusion

“To be effective in the inclusive classroom, teachers need to create inviting and safe

environments so that students learn to work together and support one another while respecting

neurodiversity” (Sigmon, Tackett, & Azano, 2016, p.111). While Ahmed’s classroom preaches

inclusivity (and I genuinely believe the school thinks they are practicing effective inclusive

teaching strategies), there is substantial room for growth and progress for all involved parties.

Their hearts are in the right place but practically more needs to happen in terms of

accommodations on a behavioral and academic level. At the moment his self-esteem is beginning

to deter, yet is still salvageable. However, without the right classroom environment where his

strengths are highlighted to himself, his teachers and his classmates he won’t be able to

maximize his learning potential. An inclusive teacher is a good teacher and I only hope that

Ahmed’s presence in the classroom will become more inclusive instead of merely integrated on a

physical level. Limited time and resources are always a challenge but this is especially why

collaboration is fundamental to his growth. After all, it takes a village to raise a child.

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References

Friend, M. P. & Bursuck, W. (2015). Including students with special needs: a practical guide for

classroom teachers. Boston, Pearson.

Goodall, E. (2014). Supporting Teachers' journeys towards full inclusion of students on the

autism spectrum in New Zealand. Journal of the International Association of Special

Education, 15(2), 133-141.

Riga, M. (2012). Teacher Beliefs about Teaching Children with Dyslexia/Learning Difficulties in

Mainstream Primary Schools in Greece (Doctoral dissertation, University of

Manchester).

Sigmon, M. L., Tackett, M. E., & Azano, A. P. (2016). Using Children's Picture Books About

Autism as Resources in Inclusive Classrooms. The Reading Teacher, 70(1), 111-117.