Case Study: Russian Jack Elementary

Tommy R. is a 6-year-old boy and a kindergarten student in a K-8 combined elementary and junior high school in the San Jose greater metropolitan area. There has been a meeting requested by his educational team and parents to talk about his behavior in school and cognitive abilities in the classroom. School staff have been receiving complaints from Tommy’s teacher and classroom staff about not following direction and non-compliance. Tommy also struggles with completing some classroom tasks as well.

Yanni is a 9th grade student who has difficulty keeping up with classmates of the same age in a developmentally appropriate learning environment. Yanni has extreme difficulty with comprehending what he reads. Since he doesn 't monitor his comprehension when he reads, he doesn 't recognize when he is "getting it" and when he is not. He works at a much slower pace than other students and requires extra time to complete certain tasks; he never forgets to do his homework and has no difficulty with planning. Yanni has a hard time remembering information - memorizing is very difficult for him. This leads to poor recall of facts, as well. Yanni prefers math to ELA. However, he continues to need encouragement in math. He often gets confused in math and cannot communicate his thinking. His basic math facts are not yet in

Tommy Martin is finding it hard to interact with other children and his educators at school. He is in grade 4 now and has had this problem since kindergarten. He lacks interest in the classroom and he is difficult to work with. Often times he is sent to the principal’s office because of inappropriate behavior. He does not keep friend for lengthy periods of time. He is physically aggressive and very emotional, even about seemingly innocuous things. He does not like sympathy during these emotional times. Frequently he behaves like he is depressed. During these depression episodes he tends to stay by himself. He has a difficulty understanding and subsequently remembering material taught in class. NOTES: He lacks interest in the classroom and

Off-task behavior for Ralph is concerning to the teacher because he is interfering with others ability and his own learning. With his disrupting/inappropriate behaviors, harassment/threats/bullying, disrespect/insubordination, and swearing/inappropriate language as well as leaving the school building, Ralph was suspended and had to attend Four Oaks. Being removed from the general education class and unable to return, results in Ralph missing quality instruction. Ralph received small group instruction in a level 2/3 special education classroom for direct instruction and behavior interventions. He will also receive direct instruction of sixth grade general education material provided by the general education teachers. Ralph is one-on-one with an adult, he is progressing rapidly with the full attention he is receiving and the limited

Jon Cassell, at the age of 11, has been enrolled in a West Brunswick public school in New Jersey. He lives with his mom and a brother in small apartment. Jon has been enrolled in special education program and diagnosed as Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and getting speech therapy since he started going to school. For reading and writing he is pulled out from general education classroom to get individual and small group instructions as well as in-class support for the other subjects during the day.

Anthony also began developing significant academic difficulties. For the most part, he was approaching benchmark expectations in Language Arts and, specifically, he struggled with demonstrating competencies within the writing domains. Likewise, he was having some difficulty in Mathematics, approaching benchmark expectations across measured domains. Specifically, Anthony was having significant difficulty with geometry (e.g., investigating characteristics of 2- and 3-D geometric shapes and applying transformations and symmetry). In Grade 4, academic problems in Mathematics persisted and Anthony was approaching benchmark expectations with regard to Language Arts. Notably, he continued to struggle with using a writer’s notebook and the writing process. He also had difficulty demonstrating competencies in spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Issues with producing quality work (e.g., using legible handwriting and producing work that was neat and organized)

Brandon is a middle grades student with special needs, who is on occasion placed in a Special Education classroom and program during school hours. He has always struggled in school with in-classroom assignments, but seems to struggle more when being place in a general classroom setting. When asked to do course work, Brandon ignores the teacher on purpose and does what he wants, and think that he can get away with it because of his special needs.

“While some argue, cursive writing belongs in the archives and common core ushers it out of schools, the evidence shows we need it as much as ever.” says Jennifer Doverspike. Some people may question why it is still necessary for cursive to be taught in our schools. Especially when we are no longer in the 21st century. Where we have now entered the new age where technology is constantly on the rise, and tablets and iPhones have taken over. This drastic change has allowed our children and adults to take the easier route. Although the electronic world has taken over and has added new elements to the writing world. Researchers have found a strong connection between writing by hand, the mind, language skills, memory and artificial thinking.

Throughout my year of placement, I had the opportunity to experience teaching a student with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This boy called Kevin (Name Changed) who is 7 years old in a grade two classroom, he has to have a staff member observe him at recess and lunchtimes due to previous consistent behavioural issues in the yard. After receiving background information on Kevin, I was excited at the challenge of trying to connect with him and help him with his learning, as I had never had an ADHD student in any of my placements. Kevin also had a blue inverted tool on his seat that tried to prevent too much movement and restlessness. (Not that relevant Maybe you can talk about different strategies that you can use)

In a world of evolution, it is often found difficult to accept a new trade or skill that partially substitutes a skill so commonly used and accepted today. As generations pass, people discover new things that revival the beliefs of the past and handwriting is not exempt from this course of evolution. People have hit that critical point of rivalry between handwriting and its challenger typing. Handwriting is a skill known by people for centuries and even prior to handwriting people painted or carved to record information. In today’s world, typing keeps becoming more of a key player and triumphs over hand writing in many aspects. It is imperative to understand the importance of typing, as much of what college students and employees do

Cursive, a paramount form of handwriting, has been getting washed out by countless school systems. However, many recent studies well as numerous doctors, with degrees held in both philosophy and medicine, scholars, professors, authors, college students, physiologists, researchers, and numerous other credible professionals that have dedicated their live’s work to prove that cursive needs to be brought back to the masses and taught in elementary schools around in country.

The Student I choose for my mini action research has constant difficulties staying on task, during daily activities, and instruction. I noticed in the first week of observation, that my mentor teacher had to remind him to complete his daily work, instead of drawing in his notebooks. My mentor teacher stated, that she has tried several times to contact his parents regarding this matter, but has yet to receive a phone call back. I also was informed that he repeated the first grade, due to low test scores, and assessments given throughout the year. On a side note, the student is required to wear classes, yet he did not wear his glasses until the first two weeks of my implemented solution. When I asked the student if he just got glasses he stated “no I supposed to wear them, but I lost my other pair a couple of months ago.” This may have influenced his ability to stay on task during his assignments, if the visual impairment is great enough to impact his ability to read and write.

The student that I have been working with over the past six weeks is Brad Concordia. Brad attends Shiloh Hills Elementary School in the rural area of the Wilson School District. Brad is a first-grade student in Mrs. Detwiler’s classroom who suffers from brain damage and unfortunately he’s dealt with it since he was born. Brad is an energetic, positive kid who loves to tell stories and talk about Pokémon. He does not act up in class and he tends to be very polite and well behaved. Whenever the teacher gives him an activity to do he tries his very best to accomplish it without the help of an aid, but most times he is left with no choice due to his condition.

The school counselor described that every year Richard performed exceptionally well on standardized tests; however, he performed poorly on assignments and achievement tests and had terrible penmanship. His reading level was proficient, and he was talented in physical education and art. Yet, Richard was easily distractible, disruptive in class, and highly disorganized. Richard also struggled in mathematics and socially because he did not get along with his classmates. Although he remained in his seat in the fourth grade, Richard had difficulty remaining in his seat and touched his classmates’ belongings constantly in the first and second grade. Although isolation, structured classroom environment, and consistent negative consequences improved Richard’s behavior at school, the school counselor was concerned because he still performed at a level below what was expected of him. Additionally, his distractibility and difficulty following directions occurred in the classroom, at home, and during baseball. Thus, based on the wide variety of inconsistencies in his behavior, the school counselor may have suggested that Richard should receive

Kurtis’ classroom teacher ratings suggest he has difficulty maintaining necessary levels of attention at school. At times Kurtis might disrupt academic performance and functioning of those around him. He is restless and impulsive, and has difficulty maintaining his self-control. Socially Kurtis generally plays alone and has difficulty with social interactions in the classroom with peers his own age. Kurtis has difficulty comprehending and completing schoolwork especially when reading is concerned. When he is having a good day he is more willing to learn and treat others respectfully. Kurtis often struggles with understanding what is asked of him. He needs directions repeated and the teacher utilizes proximity and re-directing as needed to assist him in the classroom. Kurtis’ teacher expresses his concern about his inability to answer comprehension questions and expressing himself. Kurtis’ mother indicates that Kurtis plays with his younger brother and older cousins. During play he has appropriate social skills. At times, Kurtis’ mother, indicated he may struggle with attention. Kurtis’ mother reports that he generally exhibits adequate expressive and receptive communication skills and he is able to seek out and find new information when needed. They read books together and Kurtis is able to answer general comprehension questions. Kurtis is described as being thoughtful and helpful; however, he could always improve his listening skills.