Low incidence disabilities

Severe intellectual disabilitiesHard of hearing and deaf

Visual impairments

Prevalence of intellectual disabilities Estimates vary: 1/1000 in BC schools - DSM-IV predicts 1%

More males than females – 1.3:1

Organic Cultural-familial

Definition Individual shows clear organic cause of mental retardation

Individual shows no obvious cause; sometimes another family member is also retarded

Characteristics -More prevalent at moderate to profound levels-Equal or near-equal rates across all ethnic and SES levels-More often associated with other physical disabilities

-More prevalent at mild levels-Higher rates within minority groups and low-SES levels-Few associated physical or medical disabilities

Causes -Prenatal (genetics) – Down syndrome, fragile X, Prader-Willi-Perinatal (prematurity, anoxia, FAS)-Postnatal (head trauma, meningitis)

-Polygenic (parents with low IQ)-Environmentally deprived-Undiagnosed organic conditions

Funding To receive Level 2 Funding ($18 300 per year)

students need a diagnosis of moderate to profound intellectual disability

Mild intellectual disability receives funding through the general allocation.

Diagnosis of intellectual disabilities

Mild intellectual disability Moderate to profound intellectual disability

2 or more SD below the mean on Level C tests measuring academic functioning

3 or more SD below the mean on Level C tests measuring academic functioning

Approx. 2 or more SD below the mean on at least two areas measured by tests of adaptive functioning

Approx. 3 or more SD below the mean on at least two areas measured by tests of adaptive functioning

Current IEP Current IEP

Ongoing special education services beyond those offered to the general population

Ongoing special education services beyond those offered to the general population

Services in IEP relate directly to special need

Services in IEP relate directly to special need

Most common assessments used in BC Schools

Intelligence Stanford-Binet Wechsler Intelligence Scales

Adaptive behaviour Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales The Scales of Independent Behaviour Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System

Interpreting Results

Both WISC-IV and Stanford-Binet use scaled scores to describe subtests and full scale IQ to describe overall intelligence.

Subtests - Scaled scores: M=10, SD=3 FSIQ - Standard scores: M=100, SD=15

Scaled Scores 1 4 7 10 13 16 19

Standard Scores 55 70 85 100 115 130 145

Assessing Adaptive Behaviour

Adaptive behaviour Refers to how well a student adapts to

the environment Looking at whether student's behaviour

is developmentally appropriate

Assessing Adaptive Behaviour

Adaptive behaviour Refers to how well a student adapts to

the environment Looking at whether student's behaviour

is developmentally appropriate

Subtests in tests of adaptive behaviour

Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales

Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System

Communication Communication (Conceptual)

Daily Living Skills Self-care, health and safety, community use, home/school living, work (Practical), self-direction (Conceptual)

Socialization Social, Leisure (Social)

Motor Skills

Maladaptive Behaviour

Functional academics (Conceptual)

Cognitive Processes

Zigler's similar-sequence hypothesis Children with intellectual disabilities would

proceed through the various cognitive sequences found in children without intellectual disabilities.

Research largely supports this hypothesis: Sensorimotor development, affective

responding, identify and equivalence conservation, moral reasoning, comparison processes, time, space, relative thinking, role taking, mental imagery, geometric concepts, classification, class inclusion, etc...

Cognitive processes

Zigler's similar-structure hypothesis Children with intellectual disabilities

have the same organization of intelligence as do children without intellectual disabilities.

Children with and without intellectual disabilities who have the same MA should perform similarly on cognitive tasks (i.e., attentional, linguistic, information-processing, vocabulary)

No single deficit causing impaired functioning; demonstrate a flat profile from one domain to another

Cognitive processes

Zigler's similar-structure – research Largely supported for familial intellectual

disabilities (though possibly some slight deficits in memory and learning set formation)

Less clear for organic intellectual disabilities

Down syndrome – deficits in linguistic grammar

Fragile-X – perform well on holistic tasks and poorly on bit-by-bit processing

Williams syndrome – skill in language tasks

Remediation Behavioural approach

ABC – Antecedents, Behaviour, Consequence

Observe what happens before the behaviour, describe behaviour, what happens immediately following behaviour?

Develop a plan to control the antecedent or change the consequence to change the behaviour

Task analysis to teach new concepts

Differentiation exercise

In groups or individually... Step#1: Select a level of

adaptation/modification required Step#2: Discuss a lesson plan Step#3: Use the adaptation/modification

ideas to discuss how you will adapt or modify...

The environment The presentation of information The materials The representation of knowledge

Hard of hearing and deaf

The severity of hearing loss is categorized according to the increase in volume that must be made above the usual level before the listener can detect it.

Hearing loss is measured across a range of frequencies from low sounds to higher pitched sounds

Type of hearing

loss

dB loss Characteristic

Minimal loss 16-25 May have difficulty hearing faint or distant speech. If speech is too rapid with noisy background some information will be lost.

Mild 26-40 Student may miss up to 50% of class discussions

Moderate 41-55 Conversation from 3-5 feet away can be understood if vocab. Is controlled. Amplification is essential. Attention to language, reading, writing

Moderate to severe

56-70 Student can miss up to 100\5 of speech information. Full time use of amplification is essential. Attention to all language based subjects.

Severe 71-90 Student can only hear loud noises at close distances. Require amplification, auditory training, instruction in reading, language, and speech dev.

Profound >90 Student relies on vision rather than hearing for processing information. Candidate for signing and specialized instruction in reading, speech, and language dev.

Type of hearing

loss

dB loss Characteristic

Minimal loss 16-25 May have difficulty hearing faint or distant speech. If speech is too rapid with noisy background some information will be lost.

Mild 26-40 Student may miss up to 50% of class discussions

Moderate 41-55 Conversation from 3-5 feet away can be understood if vocab. Is controlled. Amplification is essential. Attention to language, reading, writing

Moderate to severe

56-70 Student can miss up to 100\5 of speech information. Full time use of amplification is essential. Attention to all language based subjects.

Severe 71-90 Student can only hear loud noises at close distances. Require amplification, auditory training, instruction in reading, language, and speech dev.

Profound >90 Student relies on vision rather than hearing for processing information. Candidate for signing and specialized instruction in reading, speech, and language dev.

Prevalence

1 in 1000: profoundly deaf before 3 6 in 1000: born with hearing loss 1 in 16: impairment serious enough to

effect communication.

Hearing loss in the classroom

Most students with hearing loss in regular classrooms have enough residual hearing to process language through hearing with appropriate amplification (and possibly speech-reading)

Amplification: FM to hearing aid Sound field system Personal sound field system

Amplification

Hearing aid

FM to hearing aid

Sound field system

Personal sound field system

Step#1: Assessment and interpretation

Assessment DB loss Language development Communication skills Academic achievement

Consult with specialist teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing to determine what the results of the assessment mean for your student and from your class

Step#2: Planning

IEP's generally include specific instruction in:

Language development Auditory management Speech development Speech-reading Sign language (as required) Deaf culture (when appropriate)

Step#3: Differentiating Ensure student sees your face at all times Minimize glare (don't have student looking

into bright lights/sun) Speak naturally Discuss preferable seating Visual outlines – lessons, schedule Use overheads rather than blackboard Summarize information that other

classmates provide in discussion Visual demonstrations

Step#3: Differentiating

Pre-teach vocabulary Provide written summaries Be attuned to student's level of frustration

and provide breaks and support as necessary.

Minimize noise in the classroom (i.e,. tennis balls on chairs)

Sit in circles for classroom discussion Use gestures, body language, and facial

expressions to support communication

Step#3: Differentiating

Check comprehension (i.e., “tell me what you need to do”)

If necessary use pencil and paper to communicate if you are having problems being understood

Remain in one position as much as possible while communicating

Photocopy another students notes for this student so they can fully attend to the conversation

Visual impairments

Loss of vision in both eyes, which cannot be corrected with glasses. Degree of loss may vary significantly.

Low vision – print users requiring special equipment (i.e., magnification) and materials (most common)

Blind – usually have some usable vision

Prevalence

Low Vision: 16 out of 1000 students Blindness: 3 out of 10 000 students

Step#1: Assessment and interpretation

Assessment Visual acuity: determine finest detail the

eyes can see Visual fields: determine the degree of

central and peripheral vision Functional vision: administered by vision

resource teacher, conducted in real life situations, and are an indicator of useful vision

Consult with vision resource teacher to determine how to make appropriate adaptations to materials and environment and to determine which tools will be useful.

Step#2: Planning

IEP's generally include specific instruction in:

Orientation and mobility skills Concept development Interpersonal communication skills Life skills Academic development

Step#3: Differentiating Prepare

Prepare handouts several days in advance to give vision resource teacher time to adapt the material

Order texts and novels up to one month in advance if you need books enlarged, taped, or Brailled.

Instruct

Talk while you teach Real-life examples - connect abstract concepts Tactile learning Check comprehension (i.e., “Tell me what you

see”)

Step#3: Differentiating

Assessment More time Fewer questions Adapt materials as necessary (or

prepare in advance for vision resource teacher to adapt)

Step#3: Differentiating

For the student who uses print More time for reading, tapes can be useful Provide outlines, highlight key concepts,

provide point form info Skip non-essentials Computers are recommended*

For the student who uses Braille Braille is the work of the specialist teacher Taped books may be appropriate

sometimes Quality over quantity

Aids your student may use

Bold-lined paper Large print or Brailled texts (or handouts) Talking books Tilt-top desks Reading windows Optical enhancers (materials that enlarge,

increase space between, and increase contrast) Tape recorders Braillers (machines for writing braille) Computers (enlarged print, speech output)

Reflection

In one short paragraph outline: The concepts from the readings/course

notes that you were hoping to apply Your contribution How your contribution successfully

applied those concepts