Literature+Review

//Introduction // My research is intended to examine the different strategies that can be used to help students with special educational needs progress in inclusive multileveled regular classrooms. Or this task, I have selected a variety of Literature reviews and articles that can are related to this study. The literature used will provide a theoretical framework on the strategies that can be used by teachers inside their classrooms to reach students as individual learners. It will also provide teachers with research-based instructional methods to cater for the individual needs of these students within the settings of a regular inclusive classroom. //Literature Reviews // Reid(2010) provides a historical background on the idea of inclusion. It tackles this issue from an emotional and ethical view. According to Reid (2010), all students are entitled with the right to proper education in a regular classroom regardless or their capabilities. Teachers have a moral and ethical responsibility to accept these students in the class, care for them, respect them and provide them with opportunities that are equal to other students. In this sense, Reid (2010) discussed her personal experience with inclusion at different schools. She stresses that the cases where inclusion failed were due to the lack of the proper training for the teachers to be able to effectively deal with the different students in the classroom. As a conclusion, to achieve a successful mainstreaming, Reid (2010) assures that it is essential to provide the proper training for the teachers. In addition to that, teachers should understand their moral obligation towards the SEN students, provide variety of instructional means to reach to these students and treat them with respect and equity. New South Wales Department of Education and Training (n.d) provide a theoretical frame work for teachers on how to deal with SEN students inside the classroom. Their framework includes modification of the contents, processes, and products to support students of different needs. They offer key point on how to address instruction to cater for low achiever as well as gifted students. Their instructions are based on the Cognitive approach of Bloom’s Taxonomy. On the other hand, Harris and Alexander (1998) provide a Constructivist Philosophical approach and framework on how to deal with SEN students. According to Harris and Alexander (1998), a deep meaningful learning experience can only be achieved when learning becomes a socially situated activity that is enhanced in functional, relevant and simulating context, which is the core belief of Constructivism. To achieve this, they refer to a constructivist educational reform as intradisciplinary, interdisciplinary and cross disciplinary integration. These reformations along with the integrations of student centered philosophy are key points when reformations in pedagogy and performance standards are needed. Accordingly, Giangreco (2007) provide a back up for the theoretical frame proposed by Harris and Alexander (1998) through presenting the experience of Ms. Santos, a 5th grade math teacher that was successfully able to integrate and cater for SEN students into her regular classroom for years. The article discusses the usage of Multilevel Curriculum and Curriculum Overlapping to cater for SEN students in the classroom. Multilevel Curriculum and Curriculum Overlapping are practical applications of the intradisciplinary and interdisciplinary integration discussed by Harris and Alexander (1998). Giangreco (2007) stresses that inclusion should be approached through modification process of the curriculum to include collaborative activities that enhance the social learning and empower SEN students’ self recognition. A similar case study affirms these findings is discussed by Kincaid and Jackson(2006). Their article discusses a Problem-based Learning Project where students from three classes were merged into one class to solve the problem of making the pavement accessible to wheelchair users. The classes comprised of students with moderate to severe mental and physical disabilities, mild disabilities and students with emotional disabilities and learning disabilities. The project was the key to other PBL units that had positive impact on the students. Among the positive outcomes were higher degree of attendance, higher self esteem and better attainment in knowledge transfer tests. Another case study that presents another Constructivist framework to cater for students with Special needs is presented by Ernest, Thompson, Heckaman, Hull, and Carter (2011). The case study is done by a special education teacher in the course of an M.A.T. certificate on a group of teacher education candidates (TEC) in a designed to identify and implement different instructional strategies through applied projects focused on Prek-12 students. The case study provides a constructivist theoretical framework to the case study and provides the various methods used to carry out the instructions. For Data collection, the group used pre-assessment followed by self-assessment and reflections. In their results and conclusion, it was evident that the changes in planning resulted in better attainment and better transfer of information during the assessment and a positive shift in the teaching learning process. The same results were found in the case study presented by Tam (n.d.). Tam performed the study in Hong Kong on two different schools. He chose two SEN students from each school. The subject matter presented was mathematics. A pre-assessment, assessment and post assessment were used to measure the effect of differentiating instruction for a certain mathematical concept. The results show that there was a better transfer when the concept was introduced in a different way. As a conclusion, Tam concludes that it is very important to understand the critical factors for any instructional object through a Learning Study to be able to present it in different ways that address different learning levels.

//Conclusion: // The Literature provides a theoretical foundation that can be supported with evidence and study cases to cater for Students in inclusive classrooms. The Literature chosen can be used to answer my research questions by providing evidence to the effectiveness of using a constructivist approach to address SEN students in inclusive medium. Applying a Constructivist approach that depends on Student –Centered Learning, Problem-based Learning and Differentiated Instructions as in-class instructional strategies to create deep understanding and better learning experience for SEN students inside the classroom. Reference

Ernest, J. M., Thompson, S. E., Heckaman, K. A., Hull, K., & Carter, S.W. (2011). Increasing the teaching efficacy of a beginning special education teacher using differentiated instruction: A case study. International Journal of Special Education, 26(1), 191-201. Giangreco, M. (February 1, 2007) Extending Inclusive Opportunities. Educational Leadership [serial online]. 64(5):34-37. Available from: ERIC, Ipswich, MA. Harris, K. R., & Alexander, P. A. (1998). Integrated, constructivist education: Challenge and reality. Educational Psychology Review, 10(2), 115-127. doi:10.1023/A:1022169018926 <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;">Kincaid, S.S. and Jackson S.E. (January, 2006). Empowering students with special needs to help others: How Problem Based Learning made it possible. Teaching Exceptional Children Plus, 2(3). <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">New South Wales Department of Education and Training (n.d). When one size doesn’t fit all! Retrieved from <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none;">[|www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/secondary/pdhpe/reading/pr_007.htm] <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;">Reid, C.M. (2010). The inclusive classroom: How inclusive is inclusion? Retrieved via Academic Search Complete <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;">Tam, P. (n.d). Learning study: Catering for students with special needs in inclusive classrooms [PDF]. Retrieved from conference.nie.edu.sg/paper/new converted/ab00411.pdf Solution Outline Detailed Solution Home