• First, share what you determined was the root cause in Case Study 1 from week 3 and explain why.
• Next, identify aspects of the problem in this week’s case study, Case Study 2, as they relate to the Essential Competencies 7 – 12. Use the analysis questions that follow each of the Essential Competencies 7 – 12 in the textbook, School Leader Internship (pp. 135-144), as a guide.
• 7. Managing Group Processes
• 8. Supporting Others with Appropriate Leadership Style
• 9. Using Power Ethically
• 10. Creating and Managing a Positive Culture and Climate
• 11. Initiating Change
• 12. Evaluating Student, Personnel, and Program Performance

Part 1: Short Answer Responses

Evaluate the following case studies and, in 100-250 words, classify the IDEA disability category for each student. Provide a rationale for your identification choice that takes into consideration each student’s developmental milestones.

Tomas, Kindergarten

Tomas entered Mrs. Richards’ kindergarten classroom at the beginning of the school year with great excitement! He showed great interest in learning and being in the classroom with other students. As the school year progressed, however, Tomas’ excitement quickly turned into frustration. He struggled with recognizing the letters in his name, identifying different shapes, and consistently could not follow two-part instructions. He also was dramatically less able than his peers to focus on a task. His frustrations have led to impulsive actions. Mrs. Richards has called a meeting with his parents to address her concerns.

Harper, 3rd Grade

Harper attends Sunset Elementary School and is in a class with 25 other third graders. Harper loves her teacher Mrs. Hernandez and struggles when a substitute takes her place. She excels in math and tends to get bored when the other kids in her class struggle. Harper also loves reading about the weather, somewhat obsessively, and can share weather facts and details for hours. She enjoys going to school, but does struggle with the loud noises a school brings. In school assemblies, for instance, she becomes overly upset about the noise level and tends to rock back and forth to calm herself. She also does not like fire drills and has refused to leave the classroom because of the sound of the fire alarm. Instead, she will flop to the ground, kick, and cover her ears.

Austin, 5th Grade

Austin was 9 years old when he was hit by a car while riding his bike on the sidewalk. He broke his arm and leg and hit his head very hard. When he came home from the hospital he looked just fine, but he needed help. Now back at school, there are changes in Austin that are hard to understand. It takes Austin longer to do things, and he has trouble remembering. He cannot always find the words he wants to use. Math is hard for him now, but it was his strongest academic area before the accident.

Mary, 9th Grade

Mary and her mother recently moved to the school district from Mexico after divorcing her father, who still lives in Mexico. Mary and her mother now live with Mary’s uncle, his wife, and five kids. Mom is working two part-time jobs to make ends meet so they can eventually afford to move to an apartment nearby. Mom can speak and read English, but is often working during times when Mary is home from school. Mary speaks some English, but only reads and writes in Spanish. She is reading at the third grade level in Spanish and has difficulty writing paragraphs. Writing is limited to simple sentences. Mary likes mathematics and can complete simple algebraic expressions, and is close to grade level in geometry. She does struggle with word problems.

EFFECTIVE ROOM ARRANGEMENT LEVEL C • CASE 1 

Donna is a 5th grader who has recently increased the amount of time she spends in her standard classroom to two hours. During this block of time, the class is working for 45 minutes on math, one hour on social studies or science (alternating each week), and 15 minutes in sustained silent reading. Math instruction in Donna’s classroom is typically conducted with pair interactions. Social studies and science instruction varies in format from paired to small group to whole group based on the unit of study. Sustained silent reading is conducted with students seated at their individual desks. The special education teacher anticipates that Donna’s strengths will help her to compensate for her difficulty with reading. Donna has progressed this semester to reading on the second grade level, but is still a shy, reluctant reader.

AREAS OF STRENGTH

• Participates well in group      activities
• Has a strong interest in science      and social studies
• Follows oral directions well

!ASSIGNMENT

• Develop 2 goals for Donna.
• Complete the room arrangement  below by sketching the furniture (e.g., 22 student desks attached) to meet the class’s      instructional needs and support Donna in meeting her goals.
• Designate Donna’s specific seating location (desk) with a star.
• Explain your rationale for both      the sketched classroom arrangement and Donna’s seating location.

Identify which strategies you used in making your decisions. (You may review the STAR sheets if necessary.) Indicate how your decisions support Donna in meeting the two goals.

HTTP://IRIS.PEABODY.VANDERBILT.EDU

8

BACKGROUND

Student: Heather Age: 8.1
Grade: 3rd

SCENARIO

Encouraging Appropriate Behavior Level A • Case 2 

Heather is a third grader in Ms. Reyes’ classroom of 24 students. Heather enjoys school and often arrives early so she can spend time with friends on the playground. Ms. Reyes, however, is concerned because Heather is disrupting the class. She reports that Heather calls out answers during lessons, speaks over others during class discussion, and talks to neighbors during group and independent work. For 25 minutes each day, Heather and two peers receive resource room support in math. Heather’s resource room teacher has not noticed any of these behaviors. Ms. Reyes decides to set these goals for Heather for the next nine weeks:

· Raise her hand and wait to be called before speaking

· Decrease interruptions and wait for others to finish before adding to discussions

· Complete independent work quietly

POSSIBLE STRATEGIES

· Effective Rules

· Contingent Instructions

· Group Contingency

!ASSIGNMENT

1. Read the STAR Sheets on the possible strategies listed above.

2. Write a summary of each strategy, including its purpose.

3. Describe why each strategy might be used to help Heather meet one or more of her goals.

Textbook: Bos, Candice. S. And Vaughn, Sharon. (2015) Strategies for teaching students with learning and behavior problems. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon