Self-determination of pupils with intellectual disabilities in Norwegian secondary school

This article examines how the self-determination of pupils with intellectual disabilities is practised in secondary school in Norway and discusses possible challenges connected to this practice. The argumentation builds on the fieldwork of qualitative interviews (N?=?55) and participant observations in schools in Norway (pupils 13–16?years old). The pupils attend a variety of educational settings, including ordinary classes at mainstream schools, the department of special education at mainstream schools and special education schools. The study reveals considerable variations in the pupils’ opportunities to practise self-determination. While the self-determination of pupils with intellectual disabilities is rather extensive when it comes to their influence over informal and minor decisions in everyday life at school, it is very limited when it comes to formal and major decisions. Furthermore, the implementation of the pupils’ self-determination is primarily spontaneous and seldom anchored in the pupils’ Individual Education Plans. Such an implementation practice limits the pupils’ opportunities to participate in democratic processes, learning and social interaction.     

Changing the attitudes of high school students towards intellectual disabilities: the contribution of a social coexistence programme

Students’ attitudes towards peers with intellectual disabilities are mostly negative, and negative attitudes appear more among secondary education students than any other age group. Social coexistence programmes are intervention programmes implemented by school psychologists to manage and change negative attitudes and enforce social interaction with students with disabilities. The research sample consisted of 193 public high school students in Greece who were given the Chedoke–McMaster Attitudes Toward Children with Handicaps (CATCH) Scale. The study aimed to explore whether there is a change in the attitudes of high school students towards peers with intellectual disabilities after participation in a social coexistence programme. The findings showed that students who participated in the programme had more positive attitudes towards people with intellectual disabilities after the completion of the programme. The above findings confirm the research on the possibility of changing attitudes of secondary school students towards peers with disabilities and reinforce the need for the systematic development of social coexistence programmes for the entire student population. Future research should focus on the benefits of students with disabilities from their participation in social coexistence programmes.     

Teaching handwriting skills to children with intellectual disabilities using an adapted handwriting programme

Children with intellectual disabilities often struggle with handwriting, but there is very little research to inform intervention approaches. In this study, we developed a teaching manual based on Handwriting Without Tears®, a comprehensive handwriting programme designed for typically developing children. Three children with intellectual disabilities participated in the study and received handwriting instruction based on the manual three times a week over a 32‐week period. Our aims were to explore whether Handwriting Without Tears® can be used as a comprehensive handwriting curriculum for children with intellectual disabilities and to evaluate improvement in handwriting skills. We found that the intervention was successfully incorporated into small group teaching sessions within the child's regular classroom, and that all three children made improvements. Our data show promising results and support the need for larger evaluation studies.     

Preparing students with intellectual disabilities to audit inclusive university courses

There is a growing trend toward including adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) in further education. However, there is a lack of literature on the preparation of students with ID to attend further education. This article, by James Wintle of Queen's University, Ontario, describes how a non‐profit organisation, CALC Prep, prepares adults with ID to audit university courses. Eighty hours of observations were conducted over the course of one term at this organisation. A grounded theory approach was used to identify themes within CALC Prep's curriculum. Themes within the curriculum that were considered most useful for students preparing to audit courses at the university included familiarising the students with the university, enhancing self‐awareness, enhancing self‐expression and building literacy skills. Additionally, recommendations for improving the transition of students with ID from the preparation programme to auditing university courses are offered.     

Inclusion of pupils with intellectual disabilities: primary school teachers' attitudes and willingness in a rural area in Uganda

Teachers in regular schools have a responsibility to accommodate the needs and interests of all learners. The attitudes and willingness of teachers to include learners with intellectual disabilities in their classes in regular schools in a district with a semi-nomadic pastoral population in north-eastern Uganda was investigated. A survey of 125 school teachers was conducted, using an attitude scale and a willingness sub-scale. The results showed slightly more positive than negative attitudes, and more willingness than unwillingness to teach learners with intellectual disabilities. Attendance of workshops and seminars had a positive impact on teacher attitudes and willingness towards inclusive education. The findings are discussed with reference to historical–cultural characteristics of the district, as well as pupil and teacher characteristics.     

How students with intellectual disabilities experience learning in one Irish university

Over the last number of years, opportunities to learn in higher education for people with intellectual disabilities have increased. Consequently, this subgroup of students is gradually becoming part of an increasingly diverse college community. Because learning varies across different individual cultures and systems of higher education, our current understandings of how students with intellectual disabilities learn are inadequate. This study set out to explore how people with intellectual disabilities learn in one Irish college. Eighteen students with intellectual disabilities were asked to make a drawing of how they understood learning and were interviewed by six of their peers who trained as co-researchers. The findings indicate that the learning experiences of these students are as complex and as multifaceted as any other college student. A model that captures this learning is presented using four categories: the Cognitive Stages of Learning, Self-regulation of Learning, Learning as Collective Meaning Making and the Supportive Environment and Learning. The learning potential for people with intellectual disabilities presented in this paper goes some way to addressing preconceived notions associated with the label of intellectual disability.     

Enhancing social interaction of pupils with intellectual disabilities with their general education peers: the outcomes of an intervention programme

The goal of the study was to investigate the outcomes of an intervention programme regarding social interaction of four pupils with intellectual disabilities with their typically developing peers. The programme aimed at enhancing social inclusion of pupils with intellectual disabilities and consisted in (1) the implementation of structured activities designed to promote emotion regulation and appropriate expression, self‐confidence and cooperation, and (2) participation of the target pupils in social activities in the neighbourhood, with the active involvement of school staff members. Data were collected by means of observations, teachers’ reflective journals and semi‐structured interviews with the school staff members and the pupils themselves. Findings revealed significant increases in target pupils’ social interactions with their peers inside and outside the school setting, as well as positive changes in general education pupils’ attitudes, both during and upon the completion of the programme. Factors which contributed to the above‐mentioned changes are discussed in relation to the implications of the study.     

The efficacy of reciprocal teaching in fostering the reading literacy of students with intellectual disabilities

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of strategy instruction on the reading literacy of students with mild and moderate intellectual disability. Students aged 15–21 with intellectual disability (n=35) participated in 24 sessions of literacy strategy instruction (experimental condition) or remedial literacy‐skill acquisition‐ lessons (control condition). The main objective of strategy instruction was to foster comprehension monitoring. Through shared dialogues, students were trained to generate questions about text, to summarise what was read, to clarify difficult words and to make predictions. The strategies were taught using the reciprocal teaching method developed by Palincsar and Brown. This method involves provision of support adjusted to students’ difficulties and peer teaching of strategies. Control subjects were exposed to direct instruction of basic reading skills that were presented sequentially and practiced solitarily by the students. Opportunities were given to respond to questions and to summarise but no strategy instruction was provided to foster comprehension monitoring. Two different measures of comprehension and a measure of strategy use were administered to test for variation across different methods of instruction. Findings on all measures provide support for the claim that strategy instruction is indeed superior to traditional remedial methods of skill acquisition in fostering reading literacy comprehension. These findings challenge the common perception that literacy is an organic impossibility for people defined as intellectually disabled. Moreover, the results add to recent research in sociocognitive instruction that supports the need to modify prevailing methods of reading curriculum and suggests a reconceptualisation of the comprehension process and its instruction to students with intellectual disabilities.     

Curriculum research for students with intellectual disabilities: a content-analytic review

Curriculum content, the issue of what to teach is fundamental. For students with intellectual disabilities (ID), the choice of educational content is crucial in a life span perspective. Curriculum research for this learner group is sparse. Drawing on a curriculum approach, the purpose of this content analytic reviw study is to analyse trends in curricular research, and discuss implications for further curricular research and policy. Curricular research articles from 1994 to 2016 were identified from databases, using systematic search procedures and specific criteria for inclusion and categorisation of the literature. Based on prior review studies, functional life skills and cognitive academic content formed the analytical fulcrum. The results showed that cognitive academic articles had the highest coverage in the literature and showed a steep increase in publication frequency compared to functional life skill articles. If curricular research on functional life skills stagnates, curriculum policy and practice may fail to provide students with ID the skills necessary for social and practical adaption in their communities. A discursive connection to normative curricular frameworks is essential to analyse and guide curricular choices. This article provides analytical insight and directions for future research in the field of curriculum research for students with ID.     

论当前我国英语教学的新范式

范式是一个特定社团的成员共同接受的信仰,公认的价值和技术的总和。我国课程与教学改革的全方位推进,为逐渐形成新的英语教学范式创造了理论与实践基础。语言与文化是现代英语教学的基本观念范式,活动与参与是现代英语教学的过程范式,系统是现代英语教学的方法范式,回归生活状态是现代英语教学的质量范式。     

Supporting the education of pupils with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities: the views of teaching assistants regarding their own learning and development needs

Learning support assistants or teaching assistants play a vital role in the education of pupils with complex learning disabilities, routinely supporting students on a 1:1 basis without the direct supervision of teachers. Despite the responsibility afforded these classroom support staff, there appear to be few training programmes designed for this specialised role. This qualitative study, by Trudi Martin of the Manchester Institute of Education, was undertaken at a special school in England. The study explored the views of 17 teaching assistants and five teachers regarding the extent to which teaching assistant training equipped them to support pupils with complex learning needs. The findings illustrated that much of the training, including that on the Qualifications and Credit Framework, provided inadequate information and guidance. Without sufficient knowledge to underpin their practice, teaching assistants are impeded in the educational support they can give to pupils, who face significant learning challenges, with a resultant impact on their students' ability to learn and develop new skills.     

The new environmental paradigm scale: Reassessing the operationalization of contemporary environmentalism

Researchers have long aimed to quantify environmental attitudes, subsequently incorporating them into more comprehensive models of values, attitudes, and behaviors. However, many metrics, notably the New Environmental Paradigm scale, conflate a situated, incomplete set of environmental attitudes with pro-environmental worldviews generally. Further, the measurement of environmental worldviews is often used instrumentally to engender pro-environmental behaviors, proving problematic both theoretically and pragmatically. Three dimensions are suggested to better explain the diversity of contemporary environmentalism—view of technology, view of societal response, and view of nature. This article argues that any multi-item scale will be limited in its ability to capture a dynamic concept like environmentalism, but when used appropriately quantitative scales can engender individual and community empowerment; therefore, reassessment rather than rejection is the appropriate way forward.     

Belonging to higher education: inclusive education for students with intellectual disabilities

Abstract

The college experience in Iceland has traditionally been reserved for those who have passed the matriculation examination and meet the admission requirements of higher educational institutions. Since 2007, the University of Iceland has offered a Vocational Diploma Programme for people with intellectual disabilities in inclusive settings. The purpose of this article is to describe the diploma programme as well as exploring students’ sense of belonging to the college community. The diploma programme is located at the School of Education and students trained to work at pre-primary schools, after school clubs and within the field of disability such as self-advocacy. Inclusion has been achievable by adapting the general curriculum and learning outcomes to individual needs, flexible teaching methods and the cooperation between academic faculty members, programme coordinators, student mentors and the diploma students themselves. The diploma students receive academic and social support from student mentors who are other undergraduate students at the School of Education. The collaboration with student mentors has proven to be valuable, expanded diploma students’ social networks and contributed to a sense of belonging. Regardless of various attitudinal and structural hindrances, there is much evidence that the diploma students are not only tolerated but welcomed at the School of Education and belong to the college community.     

Vocational education and training and transitions into the labour market of persons with intellectual disabilities

The aim of the study is to deepen the understanding of teacher’s perspective on how to promote all children’s learning in reading and writing in grade 1 of primary school. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in a Swedish context with 18 primary school teachers, representing a large collective experience from working as teachers in grade 1. The result shows there is a lack of sharing information and experiences, between preschool class and grade 1, concerning reading and writing activities and instructions. The teachers’ perspectives on reading and writing instruction can be described as pluralistic, in the sense that each teacher refers to several strategies and approaches to promote learning and development related to reading and writing. The variation of children appears to give meaning to the work of the teachers in the study, though it also is associated with challenges e.g. the experience of being alone and not sufficient to support children’s different abilities, experiences and needs. According to teachers in the study, the additional support in schools is more remedial than preventive since the resources are mainly invested in older students.     

生活化教学法在培智数学教学中的应用

在培智数学教学中 ,笔者应用生活化教学法进行以下五方面内容的教学 :用生活化教学法进行式题、应用题、图形表象的教学 ;对教材中本来就生活化的内容进行教学 ;用生活化教学方法进行主题教学 ,使数学贴近弱智学生的生活实际 ,从而提高数学教学的效果。     

Transition services for students with intellectual disabilities: School psychologists’ perceptions

For individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID), transition services increase access to postschool opportunities. School psychologists should contribute to transition services but have reportedly limited involvement in this area. This study distributed a national survey (N = 176) assessing school psychologists’ current knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors regarding transition services for students with ID. Results indicated that attitudes toward and knowledge of the ID population were significant predictors of transition task performance, and knowledge was a significant predictor of transition‐related attitudes and behaviors. The results provided preliminary evidence that increasing school psychologists’ specific knowledge of transition services and encouraging positive attitudes toward the transition needs of students with ID may increase school psychologists’ performance in transition practice. Specific recommendations are provided.     

弱智儿童语文教学中先行组织者作用的实验研究

奥苏贝尔提出的“先行组织者”是一种有效的教学辅助手段 ,其作用已被多项实验研究所证实。本研究的主要目的是探讨先行组织者在高年级弱智儿童语文教学这一特殊的教学环境中应用的可行性和有效性。同时也研究和探讨不同组织形式的先行组织者 ,在弱智儿童语文教学中的作用的异同之处。     

Sources of stress for Greek students with intellectual disabilities attending mainstream schools

Students with intellectual disabilities often experience school‐related stress. As a result, they are confronted with many difficulties in their daily school life. The goal of this study was to assess situations of school life that students attending Greek mainstream settings are likely to experience as stressful. Twenty students with mild intellectual disabilities were interviewed about their feelings and thoughts regarding possible stressful situations in school. Qualitative analysis of the interviews' data was conducted. As a result, five main sources of school‐related stress were mentioned: school achievement and classroom participation; peer interactions; student behaviour and risk of injury; parents' expectations; and teacher acceptance. The findings suggest that children with intellectual disabilities experience school‐related stress mainly to a normal degree. Concerning the stress factors that emerged as crucial, a basic conclusion can be drawn: mainstream schools should be changed into inclusive communities where student differences are fully respected, and wherein all children, with and without disabilities, are supported according to their individual abilities, potentials and needs.     

Ensuring inclusive environments for students with disabilities: school leaders play a linchpin role

ABSTRACT

Inclusion refers to the practice of educating students with disabilities in the general education setting. This concept stems from the seminal United States Congressional legislation PL 94-142, and its subsequent reauthorised amendments, which mandate that students with disabilities be educated in the general education setting with their ‘non-disabled’ peers to the maximum extent possible. IDEIA’s legal mandates underscore the stark reality of discrimination and exclusion faced by individuals with disabilities within schools and society. Although progress has been made in advancing equity agendas of access and academic achievement, few would deny that significant work remains. If all individuals, including those with disabilities are to achieve their birthright of full integration into society, schools must reflect integration at all levels. This article provides a historical perspective on the inclusion movement, discusses the role school leaders play in ensuring inclusive environments and concludes with recommendations for future school leaders and teachers.     

Middle and high school math teaching for students with mild intellectual disability

The author briefly reviews studies on the math teaching of secondary school students with mild intellectual disabilities. Then, the author demonstrates ways to teach secondary-level mathematics to students with mild intellectual disabilities. In this article, readers will learn about how to use manipulatives, diagrams, and gestures to support students' thinking. Readers will also learn how to make connections between new and challenging math content to students' experiences inside and outside of school to support them as they think through mathematics.