This paper will briefly describe the targeted instructional setting that is the foundation for the discussion that follows. Then this paper will present the implications of several theories of cognitive development on the curriculum and instructional strategies used within the targeted instructional setting. These include the cognitive development theories of Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky, among others. Based on these theories, two recommended adjustments to the curriculum content for the targeted instructional setting will be presented along with a justification for the recommendations. This is followed by a recommendation of two instructional strategies for the targeted instructional setting and a justification for the recommendation.
Wy’east Middle School (Wy’east) is the targeted instructional setting for this paper. Wy’east is an urban middle school that serves grades six through eight. Wy’east is a Title 1 school in Step 5 of the school improvement process. Wy’east has a population of approximately 851 students comprised of 449 male and 402 female students. There are 18 different home languages spoken. Approximately 54% of the students qualify for the free and reduced-price lunch program. There are 84 students active in the ELL program (ELLs) and many more that have been exited from the program. There are 146 students in the Special Education program.
The school day runs from 8:15 a.m. until 2:45 p.m. Students attend core classes (English Language Arts,
Today’s classrooms are becoming more and more diverse with students that have disabilities and those that come from different cultures. It is important for educators to ensure that their teaching strategies are appropriate for all of the children in their classroom. When it comes to the classroom there can be many cultural challenges that educators will have to address to ensure that all students are growing and developing appropriately. Educators need to make sure that they are capable of addressing each of their
Jean Piaget is a key figure for development, focusing on cognitive constructivism – that being that we must learn from experience and development, building on knowledge that has already been developed. The strengths and weaknesses of Piaget 's cognitive development theory will be discussed.
By working in a public school setting, I hope to integrate aspects of assessment, counseling, research, and skill training to create individualized intervention plans, and provide an optimum learning environment for all students. After receiving the opportunity to work with children with exceptionalities at Camp MATES and the social skills groups, I was stunned to discover how underserved that population is. I was appalled by the obscene amounts of money parents pay for their children to receive services tailored to them and their exceptionalities and how difficult it can be to get into those programs. As a School Psychologist, I hope to make academic success more attainable for all students despite their socioeconomic background. My goal is to assess students who are struggling academically to find an educational method that suits their individual differences and be able to refer them to community resources if needed. My dream is to bridge the gap between home and school and promote supportive environments in both that migrate seamlessly. I hope to provide students with strategies, such as social skills training, they can use to be successful both in and outside of the classroom. I aim to learn more about Learning and Intellectual Disabilities and interventions that improve the academic success rate of students with those
San Bernardino City Unified School District houses one of the largest populations for students with moderate to severe disabilities within the Inland Empire. Over the past decade San Bernardino City Unified School District (SBCUSD) has sustained an influx of students who qualify for a moderate to severe special day classroom (SDC) setting and special education services. Effectively educating youth with moderate to severe disabilities is not a simplex task, as it requires multifaceted skillsets involving various special education professionals. Developing and executing a service delivery model that targets student’s individual needs, while simultaneously supporting students in strides towards life long goals is crucial. Carmack Elementary is one of fifty-two elementary schools within SBCUSD that only provides educational services to students with moderate to severe disabilities grades kindergarten through sixth. The community surrounding Carmack Elementary has been deemed high-poverty, indicating a vast majority of students who attend Carmack are presumed as low-income status. Lastly, a vast majority of students who attend Carmack Elementary qualify for the free and reduced meal program offered through the district.
Denise McKinley is from Tulare, CA. She attended College of the Sequoias in Visalia, CA where she got her Associates degree in Social and Behavioral Studies. Currently she is attending California State University, East Bay where she is working towards her Bachelor’s degree in Sociology with an option in Social Services. She is participating in this program because she wants to educate the youth. She hopes to gain a new experience, by working with a different grade level. In the past Denise has worked with 3rd graders. Where she interned for Wilson Elementary School in Tulare, CA. Her goal is to educate and learn from the community in which she serves. Denise is looking forward to serving Washington Manor Middle School in San Lorenzo, CA.
Kyla received the National Leadership Award for research having a national impact from the Minnesota Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development in 2000. She holds a Master’s degree from the University of St. Thomas in special education-learning disabilities and a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in educational policy and administration. Wahlstrom’s article has strengths all the way through, she touches on a lot of key topics like student athletes, students health, and so much more. There were few to if no weaknesses in this article. This piece of writing is accessible for everyone, but if someone had to say it was to a specific audience it would be superintendents and principals. It would be intended towards this kind of audience because they are the ones who control the start times of schools, and if they see that kids will do better in school and it would be better for their health they would be the ones who could change
Cognitive development is the term used to describe the construction of thought process, including remembering, problem solving and decision-making, from childhood through adolescence to adulthood. In this essay I will compare and contrast the theories of Piaget and Vygotsky, both of which were enormously significant contributors to the cognitive development component to/in psychology. In addition to this I will also weigh up the strengths and weaknesses of each theory and outline how they can be applied to an educational setting.
Teaching students with exceptional abilities requires funding, training and planning. Being in a regular classroom with children from various cultures, ethnic backgrounds and intellectual ability help students learn how to work together toward a common goal: reduce discrimination and stereotyping people with physical and mental limitations. Instructional strategies that break the work down so everyone learns better can improve education as well as reduce cost. This is achieved by including special education students in environments that will allow them to develop normal social interactions as well as receive specific attention to their learning needs. ("What is Special Education”)
School should start at at least 8:30 a.m. and end at roughly 3:45 p.m. It wouldn’t make much of a difference to change after school activities
New Harbor North High School has encountered several complications within the operation of their public school. The school is simultaneously gaining students requiring special needs, while experiencing a decrease in diverse teachers that are capable of addressing these needs. New Harbor North is losing experienced teachers due to funding shortages over that have increased over the past four years. The school is greatly impacted by the economic changes that are currently causing budget cuts and poverty within the community. Although the school is encountering difficulty amongst the school’s operation, the students are managing to excel at high rates compared to the school’s district.
Students attend class twice weekly for 1 1/2 hours a day, Mondays and Wednesdays from 9:30-10:45.
Start times for school districts vary. Referring to the FWCS homepage, elementary schools start at 8:20 am. Middle schools begin at 7:20 am, and high schools begin at 9:20 pm. Based on this information, it seems that middle
Since the founding of the first Central Park East School (CPE) in 1974 it has grown to include three more schools p. 18. Each of the four schools offer a rich and interesting curriculum full of powerful ideas and experiences aimed at inspiring its students with the desire to know more, a curriculum that sustains students’ natural drive to make sense of the world and trusts in their capacity to have an impact on it. Well over half of the students has always qualified for free lunches and about 20 percent meet the state requirements for being labeled ‘handicapped”, therefore qualifying for special state funds. Even with statistics such as these CPE has managed to maintain an 85 percent
Chapter two describes the general education reform movement that has resulted in enhanced curriculum for all students. There has been a separate reform movement in special education that has also resulted in restructuring student placement and service delivery systems for these students. Most recently, the two reform movements are beginning to converge. The general education reform was started when a national commission report, A Nation at Risk, recommended educational improvements because U.S. students did not compare favorably in testing results with their counterparts in Japan and Germany. This has resulted in local school districts taking more direct responsibility for decision-making that would affect all students and has included a stronger parent role in advocating for change. Along with this type of school reform, there has been a focus on schools providing comprehensive services for students and families that face multiple hurdles so that families can have their needs met for social, mental and public health services and coordinated in a single point of entry- the school.
The modern classroom has many challenges that face it. Shrinking budgets, less parental involvement, higher expectations, and growing class sizes, just to name a few. If this list was not daunting enough you also have the special needs students that have an array problems in your classroom that need specialized attention, lessons and seating. There are many forms of diverse learners from students who suffer from ADHD to physical disabilities to students with autism to ones that are bullied in school. There are so many things going on in our students lives we sometimes forget they have lives, pressures and disabilities that affect their performance and attitude in our class that have a profound impact on how they learn. For this paper I