Understanding Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment within Eighth Grade Science Classrooms for Special Needs Students
Situation: As part of the e-QIS study funded by the National Science Foundation Project, I wanted to understand the successes and challenges of planning and executing curriculum, instruction and assessment by teachers for students with special needs.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) clearly states that students need to be in a least restrictive environment (general education classroom) with appropriate supports to help them succeed. With the adoption of the Common Core State Standards in 2014, and the Next Generation Science Standards in 2013 by most states, this is a challenge for most teachers.
Task: My goal was to not only contribute to teacher and special education literature, but also, to support the teachers that took part in this smaller study (my dissertation) in identifying areas to better support students with special needs.
What were teachers doing that was working (based on the data)?
What problems STILL existed?
What solutions can be enacted for these teachers within the context of their classrooms AND broadly for all teachers?
Action: I used data from 3 teachers tablet based portfolios that participated in the National Science Foundation project, along with extensive observations (6 months), and interviews, I found that:
Creating their OWN curriculum to meet the needs of their students was pivotal, BUT it takes time.
Professional development needs to be integrated within the classroom - participating in a lecture is not valuable by itself!
Teachers need time to observe in one another’s classrooms to truly see what ‘works’ and what does ‘not work’ to support their planning.
Resources - teachers need more books and articles that ALL students can read.
Teachers and administrators need to realize that some students have and are dealing with challenging situations at home - lack of food and shelter, in particular affected many students.
What can be done?
Prioritize planning and professional development among teaching teams.
Partner with other schools to share resources, especially reading materials.
Create and partner with community resources to support students mental and physical health.