Special Education Case Studies

Justin (name is changed for the student’s protection) is a ninth grader enrolled in all inclusion classes. He is diagnosed with dyslexia and relies on the help of the special education teacher in the classroom. In classes where he is totally mainstreamed, Justin has only himself and the help of the general education teacher to complete his work. He does not have the ability to independently read the material required in the academic classes. Justin also has difficulty with note taking and keeping up with the general pace of the classroom. In addition, Justin is a 14-year-old teenager who does not want to be singled out as different. Appearance and image are important to him, therefore his disability has manifested itself in behavior issues, such as; defiance, refusal to do his work, anger and as the class clown. Justin will do anything to take the attention away from his disability of dyslexia. The child study team, teachers and parents want Justin to become more independent in the classroom. The team identified a software program called Kurzweil as an option for him to use in the classroom. Once the program was identified, the team and district supervisor met to discuss the pros and cons of purchasing the program for Justin and implementation for use in the classroom. The initial potential problems were cost of …show more content…
This case is a perfect example. The team was successful in creating a true partnership between the general education teachers, the special education teachers, child study team and parents. All stakeholders were in agreement of the value of using Kurzweil in the classroom for Justin. Training was successful and the teachers utilizing the features the software had to offer. Once the adults were in agreement and began to support Justin as a cohesive unit, behavior changed and academic growth was realized. Communication was achieved, not only by the team but by Justin and his learning