Ann Turnbull, Rud Turnbull and Michael Wehmeyer. Exceptional Lives: Special Education in Today's...

Ann Turnbull, Rud Turnbull and Michael Wehmeyer. Exceptional Lives: Special Education in Today's Schools, 5e. Copyright © 2007 by Pearson Education, Inc.

Chapter 2

Ensuring Progress in the General Curriculum Through Universal

Design for Learning and Inclusion


At the end of this chapter you should be able to:

• Describe how students with disabilities interact within systems of accountability

• Illustrate uses of universally designed learning • Differentiate among various placement opportunities • Recall key characteristics of inclusion• Explain the importance of progressing through the

general curriculum for students with disabilities

Chapter 2 Objectives

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Who Are Heather and Star Morgan?• Heather and Star are sisters; Heather is in the 3rd grade; Star is

in the 1st grade.• Both Heather and Star are adopted; both girls have mental

retardation to differing degrees.• Heather loves to read. In class, she reads in groups with her age-

appropriate peers.• Star is shy, yet shows a bright personality. She cannot speak

verbally, but uses sign language. The other first grade students can sign along.

• The school faculty is currently deciding if Heather will take the statewide assessment, and they will have to do this again when Star reaches third grade.

Case Study

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What does progressing in the general curriculum mean?

Assessing student progress:• Toward specified outcomes based on

standards in the general education curriculum

Progress in the General Education Curriculum

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For many years: • States and local education agencies did not have a

clear curriculum for all students• Teachers thought that students with disabilities

should neither participate in nor be expected to master the general curriculum

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Standards-Based Reform




• IDEA requires that students with disabilities participate AND show progress in the general curriculum

• The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) overcomes low expectations by:– Requiring states to establish content and

performance standards for ALL students

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• Academic Content Standards – Define the knowledge, skills, and understanding that ALL students should attain in academic subjects

• Student Achievement Standards–Define the level of achievement that students should meet in order to demonstrate proficiency in a subject

–States may establish alternative achievement standards • For students with significant cognitive disabilities• Must still align with academic content standards

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Connecting the Curriculum to the Standards

• Establishes content and achievement standards• Develops and implements a general curriculum

based on content standards• Assesses student progress in meeting the general

curriculum’s performance standards

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How does the general education curriculum benefit students with disabilities?


• IEP teams must consider any accommodations needed in the assessment process

• Accommodations that do not affect the content of the assessment include:– Changes in presenting information– Changes in responding– Changes in timing– Changes in setting

2-8

Making Accommodations in Assessments



• Alternative Assessments– Determined by the IEP team– For students who cannot perform on grade-level– Aligned with the state subject area standards– Serve the same purposes as the standard

assessments:• Accountability• Decision-making

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• Students from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds may be disadvantaged when it comes to assessments

• The research gives evidence that students from European or Asian backgrounds scored higher than African American and Latino students.

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• Comparable standards will result in higher expectations and higher levels of student achievement

• By being part of the standards process, students with disabilities will also be part of the education reform movement

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In Favor of Standards-Based Reform

Why is progress in the general education curriculum valued?


• Holding students to the same standards can conflict with IEP goals

• Students will become frustrated, discouraged, and drop out of school

Against Standards-Based Reform

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Why is progress in the general education curriculum valued?


How Do Supplementary Aids and Services Support Progress?

• Aids, services, and other supports are provided in general education classes or other education related settings to enable children with disabilities to be educated with non-disabled children to the maximum extent appropriate.

• Considered to be non-instructional modifications and supports

How to Support Progress?

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Supplementary Aids and Services (Figure 2–1)

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What is Universal Design for Learning and How Does UDL Facilitate Progress?

• Universal design seeks to make learning accessible to all students

• Promotes flexibility in:– Representing content (curriculum materials)– Presenting content (instruction)– Demonstrating content mastery (evaluation)

• NIMAS standards• Go to CAST for more information.

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• Increasing trend of including students with disabilities

• Students with milder disabilities are more likely to be included

• Elementary students are more likely to be included than high school students

How Does Inclusion Support Progress?

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Placement Trends (U.S. Department of Education Yearly Report)


Six Placement Categories (Figure 2–4)

• Special education outside the regular classroom for less than 21% of the day

• Special education outside the regular classroom for more than 60% of the day

• Public separate facility• Private separate facility• Public residential facility• Private residential facility

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Special Education Environments: 2003-2004, Ages 6-21 (Figure 2–5)

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• Residential/Home/Hospital settings• Special-school placements• Specialized-settings placements within typical

schools

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What Issues Are Related to Different Placements?



• Home-school placement• Principle of natural proportions• Restructuring teaching and learning• Age- and grade-appropriate placements

– Which includes:• Eliminating the continuum of placements• Increasing the amount of time students spend in

general education classrooms

What Is Inclusion?

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Four Characteristics of Inclusion


• Educators’ Perspectives• Parents’ Perspectives• Students’ Perspectives

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Research on Perspectives Toward Inclusion (Figure 2–7)

What Is Inclusion?


• Positive outcomes• Concerns• Issues with research

What Student Outcomes Are Associated with Inclusion?

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Student Outcomes


Facilitating Progress• The general education classroom is where the general

curriculum is most likely to be taught • Students can receive individualized education in the general

education classroom when UDL and the four characteristics of inclusion are met

• IDEA and NCLB have changed the focus on access to the general curriculum from “Where” to:– “What,” a focus on what the student is taught

(curriculum mastery) AND

– “How,” a focus on methods and pedagogy

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How Does Inclusion Facilitate Progress?


Individualized Education Program

• Assure individualization• The student’s right to participate• The student’s right to make progress in the

general curriculum • The student’s unique learning needs

How Does a Student’s IEP Assure Progress?

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Four “Must-Have” Components for IEPs

• Supplementary aids and services • Special education services and specially

designed services • Other educational needs that must be met in

order to make progress in the general education classroom

• Related services

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How Does a Student’s IEP Assure Progress?


IEP Decision Making Progress (Figure 2–8)

How Does A Student’s IEP Assure Progress?

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What Should Educators Do to Support Progress?

• Create learning communities• Design units and lessons

– Cognitive taxonomies• Implement school-wide instructional

strategies

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Supporting Progress

Ann Turnbull, Rud Turnbull and Michael Wehmeyer. Exceptional Lives: Special Education in Today's Schools, 5e. Copyright © 2007 by Pearson Education, Inc. 2-28

Case Study

• Heather can live on her own as an adult and be economically self-sufficient.

• She will have friends, the same opportunities as those friends to participate in community life, and have equal opportunities.

• Star will also live and work in the community, but with more supports.

• She may live in a group home with other adults.• She will also have friends in the community.• Continued access to the general curriculum will allow them to

live out these goals.

Looking to Star’s and Heather’s Future

Ann Turnbull, Rud Turnbull and Michael Wehmeyer. Exceptional Lives: Special Education in Today's...

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