I like your proactive approach. Once this happened to me. And it lead to a special testing center where students were not under time pressure or being identified to other students.
Any time a student has a learning disability, we always give them extra time to complete projects/tests/etc, we always try to provide any additional assistance for them as well.
I always make the suggestion to students with learning or language disibilities to bring a recorder to class, so they can have at their disposal the lecture and/or get additional support at home with the material that was presented in class.
I try to spend extra time with these students after class and ask them ways that I can assist them to enhance their learning.
One of my strategies was to cover a small amount of material, condense the material and then ask the class as a whole to answer a question about the material that was just covered. Then having the class break into groups and complete a worksheet covering the material. It reinforced the material and students helped each other complete the sheet.
First the lecture style may not be the best method for them. I would include a lot of illustrations and demonstrations in my presentation, including power point presentations. Also, I have to slow down and articulate very well. Repeating the concept in different ways is another important method. Asking my students to write while they read aloud during their study would help consolidating the material. Also, I would provide tutoring time for them to come and have one on one discussion with me. I may offer special accomodation for their test taking setting.
Hi Cornelius!
As I reveiw the strategies posted by various instructors, one thing always comes to mind. Yes, I agree that there are students who require additional help with studying, but most of the suggestions are those things that can help improve all student outcomes. So my feelings are that whatever we need to do to help that special needs student that we would typically have in our classrooms, we do for all students.
Several things happen as a result 1) instructors might not have to spend an extraordinary amount of time helping the challenged student 2) all students get that little extra help, and 3) all students become more successful.
Keep up the good work!
Jane Davis
ED106 Facilitator
Patience is important when working with students with learning diabilities. Also, helping and encouraging students to practice, practice, practice, is critical to overcoming the disability. Whether it is reading, writing, or math or any combination of these three practice will help the confidence of the learner.
Patience, and Empathy are crucial support the students.
I have also found that repeating and rephrasing is important as well. This can help the student with recieving the information and does not single them out either.
In order to develop strategies to assist students with learning disabilities it is important to understand what role memory has in comprehension of the class material. Terry (2006) point out three potential functions of short-term memory (STM): language comprehension, problem solving, and as a gateway to long-term memory. The role of language comprehension is to provide continuity in reading and listening. Some have questioned the role of STM in language comprehension. Individuals with impaired auditory-verbal spans due to brain damage are not necessarily impaired in coping with conversations. Some individuals with impaired verbal STM still hold demanding jobs requiring good language skills. A comparison position suggests that the phonological component of working memory acts as a sort of backup memory. When sentences are short or easily comprehended, it is not needed. With syntactically more complex or lengthy sentences processing may lag behind the input and so the representation in the phonological store needs to be consulted (Terry, 2006).
The second role mental problem solving requires attention, encoding, storage, and manipulation of information, all processes for which working (STM) memory is well designed. Working memory’s central executive is accorded a prominent role in problem solving. The central executive allocates attention to the submemory systems and is involved in planning and decision making. As the gateway to long-term memory STM must also decide what not to rehearse (Terry, 2006).
Terry, W. S. (2006). Learning and Memory: Basic Principles, Processes, and Procedures (3 ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
As an adult with learning disabilities, I know what is possible and often use myself as an example that success is a matter of finding out what works best for your own learning style versus the general population's learning approach. I try to incorporate as many different approaches to the material as possible and observe which students perk up with the change. I get several little assignments in as soon as possible to see a writing sample, a comprehension example and the ability to reason out a problem.
This quick quasi-diagnostic allows me to see quickly which students can benefit from additional assistance. We have tutoring available but I find these students are best assisted in the variance of the information delivery and the ability to assess in more than one way. I will speak with individual students about what works best for them and see if I can assimilate it into the daily curriculum. Often those students who share honestly about their struggles end up benefitting those students who prefer not to share their struggle. This approach also keeps the subject matter from becoming rote as I constantly have to tweak my delivery and come up with viable but varied assessments.
i alway take time to understand the students need and give them time to finish there work in the kitchen
I think this is a great idea. I will make sure I make note of this for future use.
Working as a job coach and having a boss with a learning disability, has taught me to be very patient, understanding, and willing to repeat myself several times. Thus, working with students with learning disabilities- I adopt these same ideas and practices .
Once a student has informed me of his/her learning disability, I ask about accomodations that were successful in the past. With modifications according to company regulations, I implement as many as can be used within the course. I check with the student at the end of each class to see if they need any additional clarifications/instructions.
I have had to teach a phlebotomy class to deaf students, and I had to understand their limitations and treat them as individuals and teach each one of them differently depending on their severity of deafness, and I needed to rely on my interpreters and had to slow my teaching down.
Great strategies Barbara that will go a long way. Especially acceptance & understanding.
Ryan
What are some methods that have been successful for you in working with students with learning disabilities?
I allow the student to discover the disability through conversation. I recently encountered a student that failed an exam, thus failing a class. I spoke to the student and discovered the he was a top high school football athlete and received a scholarship to a major university. As we spoke, I found that he rejected the schools offer to searched for a job. I learned that he had a learning disability and recommended him to seek assistance. This young kid found the help and is improving. He passed a test for a job and now is in training, using the techniques he learned. A disability never goes away one must learn how to cope, using methods and tools to gather, understand and retain information.
More time, quiet space to do tests and acceptance and understanding.
