Group+1

**Multiple Disorders in a Classroom Setting
 * Brandi, || Anthony, || Andrea || and April ||
 * I think the last two class meetings have helped tremendously, as well as, the case studies. || I have seen distractors and disruptors as a substitute teacher. a couple of classes got to the point of being sent to another class or having an assistant principal take the students aside about what they were doing. || Hey guys! I'm completely excited about this project!! What ideas do you guys have about the study? || I have experienced children with Speech and Language disorders, Autisum (bites wist to release frustration), and Behavior Problems such as temper tantrum due to lack of attention in the home. ||

Part One:** Ms. Jones is in her third year of teaching 9th grade English at Rhodes High School in Memphis Tennessee. Her 6th period class is the most challenging she has faced. She has that realized four of her students have separate issues needing special attention. James constantly sleeps in class, Nic is very disruptive, Xavier has a mild case of Autism, and Christy yearns for attention so she “meows.” This is the first year Ms. Jones has had more than two special needs students in one class and is in dire need of assistance.

Nicholas is a major disruptor of the classroom. He doesn’t want to do the handouts or listen to the lecture, so he asks to go to the bathroom. He likes to throw wads of papers at the teacher when she turns her back. He has discussions with his neighbor about things that have nothing to do with class. When he does do his work, he does so for a few minutes at a time then goes back to his disruptive behavior. During class discussions he says things to try to change the subject or make a joke out of the lesson. In other words, he tries to make the class something funny instead of something serious.

James has just moved to this neighborhood and is very quiet, uninterested, and will not socialize with his classmates. He has been labeled as having ADD. He will start on tasks with the rest of the class, however, shortly after starting the lesson he will fall asleep. I constantly have to wake him up and talk to him. The other students tease him for falling asleep everyday in class.

Xavier is a fourteen year old boy who appears normal, but has been diagnosed with the serious disorder of Autism. His speech and language are below the average of a normal child on his age level. Xavier’s speech is not clear, and it is difficult to understand him. Xavier is a genius at the computer; he helps his classmates to operate the technology such as knowing how to use the mouse, printing, creating PowerPoint, Spreadsheet, Database, and Kidspiration. He also has a hard time staying in his seat unless he is at the computer. However, his academic learning skills are a deficiency. For example, when I gave him a 3 to 5 piece puzzle he was able to undo the puzzle, but the hard part was putting the puzzle pieces back together. When this happened, the child began to bite on his wrist to release the frustration of not mastering the skill. Periodically, the child will scream for no apparent reason.

Christie is 14 years old. She has a tendency to meow in class during lecture or times of independent learning such as lesson review or testing (anytime the class is quiet or she is not receiving direct attention). Christie has many problems at home as well as being classified as having AD/HD and other learning disabilities. She does not seem to have much parental attention, and craves conversation and attention from any adult who is present. Christie has low scores on her standardized English tests from Middle school and does not think she can possibly do well in high school English, so she doesn’t care about being disruptive. Due to her strange outbursts in class, her peers do not like her, they avoid her, and this causes her to become more disruptive and meow even louder as the year progresses.

As an educator, what are your thoughts on how to start the year? What would you consider to be important information regarding the management of the classroom? Do you think it would be helpful to contact parents as you encounter problems, or should you go ahead and contact them for input at the beginning of the year?
 * Questions:**

The candidate would be evaluating the class and individuals for understanding of what materials should be presented. The candidate would be looking at students abilities and behaviors in order to get everyone involved as much as they can. The candidate would be contacting the parents for input so they can get help with understanding the students.
 * Facilitator Notes:**

By the end of the first month Ms. Jones has gotten the majority of her problems in class under control through good classroom management and planning. James has gotten back on his medication due to conversations between Ms. Jones and his parents. They all felt that the stress of the move had aggravated his ADD and now he is back on track. He is awake and doing all of work he had missed while sleeping. Nic was given an informal IQ test and turned out to be very intelligent. As Ms. Jones began to realize this, she used extended assignments to keep his interest and keep him busy. After all of the content standards have been achieved, she will allow Nic to find out information on Edgar Allen Poe using the internet. This is his favorite author, but he has branched out as he has come into contact with new information. He is no longer a discipline problem, in fact he is making an A in class now. Christie has done well with the peer partner that was assigned to her and is starting to come around in class. Ms Jones has followed her IEP modifications to perfection and is starting to understand how Christie thinks and why she behaves the way she does. Since all of these obstacles are under control, Ms Jones is much happier in her classroom and so are all of the students. There has been a marked increase in the amount of instruction and learning going on in this classroom. Now Ms. Jones can focus on Xavier, who has continued to be a problem in class. Christie and her peer tutor
 * Part Two:**

Nic doing an extended project with a partner

James awake and participating in class

Xavier is one out of 100,000-400,000 children that have been diagnosed with the disorder called Autism. The child has been provided with an IEP which requires more activities on how to use proper grammar, and how to identify parts of speech such as nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and adverbs. Xavier needs to explore these standards using technology based practices because that is how he interacts with the world. He does not do well interracting with people on a personal level, but he is happy to show his work and understanding using technology. Also, according to Sandra Calvert and Monique Moore technology based practices are very successful in the classroom setting for children that are autistic. [] Hopefully, with the interventions that are now in place and the technology based assessments his educational experience will greatly improve. Is Xavier's mother using strategies at home to help Ms. Jones with the child's learning abilities in the classroom? Is Xavier performing well as a result of both the teacher and parent strategy plan? What kind of strategy or activities is Ms. Jones using to help Xavier interact more with his peers?
 * Questions:**

The teacher and parent strategy plan should be evaluated to determine if Xavier's performance is a result of their efforts. Candidates should examine the advantages of using technology based learning in the classroom to help children with Autism.
 * Facilitator Notes:**

Xavier has begun a program that has shown a great deal of promise in other children with similar disabilities. According to the Technology-Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1988 (Public Law 100-407), an assistive technology means any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially, off-the-shelf, modified or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities. Assistive technology service is any service that directly assists an individual with a disability in the selection, acquisition, or use of an assistive technology device. [] Autistic children generally understand visual cues better than auditory, so the hope is that he will adapt to this new technology and be excited about expressing his knowledge. Also, he should be able to pick up the standards in a way that he can use, rather than being disruptive or hindering the progress of the lesson for the other students. Zac Browser is an assistive technology that has been used successfully by over 700,000 children with autism. This will be implemented in class as soon as possible with Xavier.
 * Part Three:**

The classroom teacher, parents, and IEP team members have worked dilgently to accomodate Xavier and his special needs. He has shown progress and is getting settled into his very rigid structure. He finds this structure comforting, and now that he doesn't have to communicate personally with other students much in the classroom, he is much less stressed. This is a benefit for him, as well as the other students and Ms. Jones. He is beginning to show academic progress and some social progress. This is definitely a step in the right direction, and hopefully, he will continue to progress. Ms. Jones' happy, healthy classroom

1. How long Xavier will be in the program? 2. In what way, did Xavier show social progress if he does not communicate with his peers? 3. Why wasn't Xavier present in the IEP meeting since he is making progress?
 * Questions:**

The candidates should be aware of which assistive technologies will be used with Xavier and be aware of different assistive technologies that can be used in the classroom. They should also focus their thinking on what types of home intervention can be implemented for autistic children. Finally, the candidates should become familiar with the personalities and social skills of children who are autistic.
 * Facilitator notes:**