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| Models and Classroom Instruction |
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Case Study |
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Leilani Kim is a 7th grade student at Queen's Middle School. Teachers and her parents describe her as "bubbly" and "spirited," a student who works hard when her mind is set to accomplish a specific goal. When she was in the 3rd grade, Leilani was identified as having a learning disability. She received special education services in both general education and self-contained classrooms. Transitioning from 6th to 7th grade was not easy for Leilani, as she had many adjustments to make when she moved from elementary to middle school: adapting to a new school environment, becoming accustomed to block scheduling, and being placed in a general education history class. Concerned about Leilani's performance on tests and writing assignments, Leilani's history teacher, Mr. Tolentino, approaches Mrs. Carmichael, Leilani's special education and English teacher, at the end of the first quarter. Mr. Tolentino tells Mrs. Carmichael that he believes Leilani to be a bright student, marveling at her ability to speak at length about what she has read. However, Mr. Tolentino says that putting words to paper is an altogether different matter for Leilani. It appears to him that writing is difficult and laborious for her, as she struggles with organizing and expressing her thoughts articulately on paper. In addition, Mr. Tolentino says that Leilani has difficulty performing well on chapter and unit exams. "Her thoughts are scattered all over the place," he comments. Mr. Tolentino says that although Leilani can recall specific facts, she does not collect them into a larger framework, holistically, explaining, "she sees many trees, but doesn't get that it's a forest." Mr. Tolentino says he is seeking Mrs. Carmichael's assistance with improving Leilani's ability to retain, recall, and express information in an organized and structured way. The teachers search for a variety of interventions and techniques that address the kinds of problems Leilani is having. While examining the EMSTAC web page on study skills, they find models and instructional practices that they believe can help. They target their selections on using advance organizers, developing a "big picture," and using the memory aid ANSWER. Mrs. Carmichael and Mr. Tolentino like the way that an advance organizer provides a "game plan" for the student on the unit to be covered. Mr. Tolentino adds that while he creates advance organizers for the chapters of the history book, he could incorporate the "big ideas" from the chapters, highlighting the overall themes. He comments that creating such advance organizers and big pictures will not only help Leilani but will serve all his students as a valuable tool as it prepares students to learn the chapter, keeps them on track with learning the content, and serves as a study tool for chapter tests. Both teachers agree that Leilani would greatly benefit from using a strategy that would allow her to better demonstrate her knowledge during essay-type exams. They select the mnemonic strategy ANSWER, deciding that having her practice using the writing and study aid would enhance her ability to recall facts in a systematic, organized way that would allow her to collect her thoughts into a general understanding of the main ideas from each of the chapters. Armed with new tools, and excited with anticipation, Mr. Tolentino and Mrs. Carmichael give the strategies a try.
1. What are some possible scenarios for what happens next? 2. How would Mr. Tolentino and Mrs. Carmichael know that the strategies they use are working? What kinds of data could be collected to show that the interventions are working? 3. If Leilani's performance did not improve within the first few days, should Mr. Tolentino and Mrs. Carmichael start all over again? How long should one wait for the interventions to work? 4. Using what you know about the change process (from the Linking Agent training), describe the process by which Mr. Tolentino and Mrs. Carmichael address Leilani's problem. 5. If another student had a different problem, could the same process (described in your previous answer) be used again? Create an example to explain.
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