“Education is more than a luxury; it is a responsibility that society owes to itself.”
-Robin Cook (British politician, MP)
Approaching special education from an international perspective requires consideration of a wide variety of factors that we may take for granted within an American school setting. An international educator attempting to deliver on his/her responsibility to society is influenced in unique ways. Taking into account some of these factors, we see that the responsibility for delivering meaningful education to students with disabilities at the international level relies on individual teachers within the general classroom. We look at the issue in three parts: learning disabilities related to literacy, reasons why they are problematic in international school settings, and some practical strategies used to accommodate them at the administrative and classroom levels.
The Issue
Special education within an international context is potentially problematic. In the United States, students with disabilities are guaranteed access to education through the Individuals with Disability Education Act. Educators within an American context have a reasonable understanding of the challenges and support structures they are likely to encounter at an American school.International education encompasses such a wide variety of contexts that support for special education is unpredictable. International schools do not necessarily operate under legislation that protects the rights of disabled students or guarantees an education.We can’t make any general assumptions about the policies that international schools have in place. With these uncertainties in mind, an effective international educator should be generally acquainted with issues regarding students with disabilities and informedabout strategies to meet their needs within their classroom.
As of 2005, 5.4% of all students in American schools and nearly half of all students with disabilities were described as having a learning disability (Friend,161). The disability itself eludes a precise definition but learners described as having a learning disability are characterized by a wide range of strengths and weaknesses(ibid,161). Actually, the ambiguity of the definition itself presents educators with challenges. Students with learning disabilities are a heterogeneous group and there isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ intervention for their challenges.The general definition describes a student with a discrepancy between his/her potential and demonstrated level of achievement. Students with learning disabilities are commonly presented with significant literacy challenges (ibid, 162). The high incidence of LD (Trainor, Morningstar, Murray, Kim, 1) suggests that most educators are likely to teach an LD student and would benefit from information about the disability and possible interventions.
Reading and literacy disabilities present students with enveloping challenges that affect their entire education. Students with reading disabilities are vulnerable to extended poor performance because 'as the complexity of academic tasks increases, students who are not proficient in reading and writing cannot keep pace with the increasing academic expectations of school settings (Friend, 162).' This creates a potentially dangerous cycle where students continuously underperform because they lack the foundational skills necessary at each stage of the curriculum. Literacy skills are vital for success across school disciplines. It is possible that students with literacy disabilitieswill be asked to run before they know how to walk.
The situation is exacerbated by the expectation that all learners, including those with LD will meet curriculum standards in both national and international schools. This is exemplified bythe standards set forth by the International Baccalaureate. In a survey of the International Baccalaureate’s Vade Mecum, the procedures manual for coordinators and teachers for its diploma programme, students with disabilitiesare considered but explicit pedagogy is not provided(IB, 2006-7). In the International Baccalaureate Organizations’ Candidates with Special Assessment Needs manual, specific accommodations for students with disabilities are set forth for examinations but ‘there is no intention to provide guidance on teaching methodology or resources (IB, 2007, 1).It is problematic when the leading international curriculum developer has ‘no intention’ of guiding educators on special education pedagogy. Of course, the IB isn’t the only international curriculum and undoubtedly many international schools have competent systems in place to meet the needs of LD students. We can conclude that at the international level, special education is treated ambiguously. This indicatesthatresponsibility forimproving the literacy skills of students with LD will often fall upon the shoulders of individual teachers.
Intervention Strategies
So far we’ve taken a look at a few aspects of special education in an international setting. First, we looked at the potential areas of concern for educators working in settings with a variety of possibilities regarding special education. Next we defined learning disability and established its prevalence in American schools, using that as a model to inform our practice. Finally we looked specifically at challenges that students with literacy specific disabilities face in an international setting. Now we’ll consider specific strategies that administrators and teachers can take to address special education as a whole and literacy specific development in an international context.
As we’ve seen, international contexts leave an opportunity for a leadership vacuum when it comes to delivering special education. Administrative policy and leadership is essential in creating a school culture that makes curriculum accessible to all students and values learning differences. Administration can ensure service that occurs in four keys way. First, they can ensure that funding is directed to special education faculty and that appropriate professional development is provided for all teachers. Second, they can ensure that professional development is based on ‘research-based interventions’. Third they can assure that attention to special education is firmly incorporated into the school culture. Finally, administrators can make provisions for special education in documented vision and motto statements (Deshler, Schumaker, Lenz, Bulgren, Hock, Knight, Ehren, 105). At the same time, practices need to be implemented which ensure LD students acquire the literacy skills required to achieve quality of life after graduation, particularly living and economic independence (Faggella-Luby, Dehsler, 77).
At the classroom level, there are numerous strategies that an educator can implement to improve LD student’s literacy skills. In research for this paper, a number of sources were looked at but the one common theme found was the importance of explicit instruction in the improvement of reading comprehension ofboth students with LD, and neuro-typical students(ibid, 72). Comprehension improved when students focused on the habits of good readers: identifying narrative structure, finding word meaning and activating prior knowledge. Content comprehension improved when students were taught cognitive strategies such as summarizing, self-monitoring and questioning. Engagement was improved when students worked collaboratively (ibid, 72-73). We know that some students with LD do not learn incidentally and require direct and deliberate skill instructions (Petroff, 2014). Strategy instructions that are explicit ensure the greatest likelihood of improvement (Faggella-Luby, Dehsler, 73).
We’ve looked at a number of factors which influence the general education teacher in an international setting. We’ve established that having students with literacy based LD in your classroom is a real possibility and looked at the educational challenges that these students face. We’ve seen that LD is addressed in a variety of ways which may or may not provide adequate service. Finally, we’ve surveyed specific, tangible practices that can be implemented by administrators and teachers in the absence of national leadership. We can conclude that the ambiguities for special education at the international level require a proactive approach by individual educators in order to meet the needs of students with LD.
Works Cited
Friend, Marilyn. Special Education: Contemporary Perspective for School Professionals, 2nd
Edition.Pearson Education. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey. 2007. Print.
Trainor, Morningstar, Murray, Kim.“Social Capital during the Postsecondary Transition for Young Adults with High Incidence Disabilities.”The Prevention Researcher.Volume 20 (2). April 2013. 7-10. Web.
“General regulations: Diploma Programme, for students and their legal guardians”
© International Baccalaureate Organization 2006, 2007. Web.
“Diploma Programme: Candidates with special assessment needs”
© International Baccalaureate Organization 2007. Web.
Dehsler, Faggella-Luby. “Reading Comprehension for Adolescents with LD: What we Know; W What we Need to Learn.” Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 23 (2) (2008). 70–78. Web.
Deshler, Schumaker, Lenz, Bulgren, Hock, Knight, Ehren. “Ensuring Content Area
Learning by Secondary Students with Learning Disabilities.”Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 16 (2), (2001).96-108. Web.
Petroff, Jerry. "Social Skills and Social Network Development."The College of New Jersey.
Ruamrudee International School, Bangkok, Thailand. 8 July,2014. Class Lecture.
The Issue
Special education within an international context is potentially problematic. In the United States, students with disabilities are guaranteed access to education through the Individuals with Disability Education Act. Educators within an American context have a reasonable understanding of the challenges and support structures they are likely to encounter at an American school.International education encompasses such a wide variety of contexts that support for special education is unpredictable. International schools do not necessarily operate under legislation that protects the rights of disabled students or guarantees an education.We can’t make any general assumptions about the policies that international schools have in place. With these uncertainties in mind, an effective international educator should be generally acquainted with issues regarding students with disabilities and informedabout strategies to meet their needs within their classroom.
As of 2005, 5.4% of all students in American schools and nearly half of all students with disabilities were described as having a learning disability (Friend,161). The disability itself eludes a precise definition but learners described as having a learning disability are characterized by a wide range of strengths and weaknesses(ibid,161). Actually, the ambiguity of the definition itself presents educators with challenges. Students with learning disabilities are a heterogeneous group and there isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ intervention for their challenges.The general definition describes a student with a discrepancy between his/her potential and demonstrated level of achievement. Students with learning disabilities are commonly presented with significant literacy challenges (ibid, 162). The high incidence of LD (Trainor, Morningstar, Murray, Kim, 1) suggests that most educators are likely to teach an LD student and would benefit from information about the disability and possible interventions.
Reading and literacy disabilities present students with enveloping challenges that affect their entire education. Students with reading disabilities are vulnerable to extended poor performance because 'as the complexity of academic tasks increases, students who are not proficient in reading and writing cannot keep pace with the increasing academic expectations of school settings (Friend, 162).' This creates a potentially dangerous cycle where students continuously underperform because they lack the foundational skills necessary at each stage of the curriculum. Literacy skills are vital for success across school disciplines. It is possible that students with literacy disabilitieswill be asked to run before they know how to walk.
The situation is exacerbated by the expectation that all learners, including those with LD will meet curriculum standards in both national and international schools. This is exemplified bythe standards set forth by the International Baccalaureate. In a survey of the International Baccalaureate’s Vade Mecum, the procedures manual for coordinators and teachers for its diploma programme, students with disabilitiesare considered but explicit pedagogy is not provided(IB, 2006-7). In the International Baccalaureate Organizations’ Candidates with Special Assessment Needs manual, specific accommodations for students with disabilities are set forth for examinations but ‘there is no intention to provide guidance on teaching methodology or resources (IB, 2007, 1).It is problematic when the leading international curriculum developer has ‘no intention’ of guiding educators on special education pedagogy. Of course, the IB isn’t the only international curriculum and undoubtedly many international schools have competent systems in place to meet the needs of LD students. We can conclude that at the international level, special education is treated ambiguously. This indicatesthatresponsibility forimproving the literacy skills of students with LD will often fall upon the shoulders of individual teachers.
Intervention Strategies
So far we’ve taken a look at a few aspects of special education in an international setting. First, we looked at the potential areas of concern for educators working in settings with a variety of possibilities regarding special education. Next we defined learning disability and established its prevalence in American schools, using that as a model to inform our practice. Finally we looked specifically at challenges that students with literacy specific disabilities face in an international setting. Now we’ll consider specific strategies that administrators and teachers can take to address special education as a whole and literacy specific development in an international context.
As we’ve seen, international contexts leave an opportunity for a leadership vacuum when it comes to delivering special education. Administrative policy and leadership is essential in creating a school culture that makes curriculum accessible to all students and values learning differences. Administration can ensure service that occurs in four keys way. First, they can ensure that funding is directed to special education faculty and that appropriate professional development is provided for all teachers. Second, they can ensure that professional development is based on ‘research-based interventions’. Third they can assure that attention to special education is firmly incorporated into the school culture. Finally, administrators can make provisions for special education in documented vision and motto statements (Deshler, Schumaker, Lenz, Bulgren, Hock, Knight, Ehren, 105). At the same time, practices need to be implemented which ensure LD students acquire the literacy skills required to achieve quality of life after graduation, particularly living and economic independence (Faggella-Luby, Dehsler, 77).
At the classroom level, there are numerous strategies that an educator can implement to improve LD student’s literacy skills. In research for this paper, a number of sources were looked at but the one common theme found was the importance of explicit instruction in the improvement of reading comprehension ofboth students with LD, and neuro-typical students(ibid, 72). Comprehension improved when students focused on the habits of good readers: identifying narrative structure, finding word meaning and activating prior knowledge. Content comprehension improved when students were taught cognitive strategies such as summarizing, self-monitoring and questioning. Engagement was improved when students worked collaboratively (ibid, 72-73). We know that some students with LD do not learn incidentally and require direct and deliberate skill instructions (Petroff, 2014). Strategy instructions that are explicit ensure the greatest likelihood of improvement (Faggella-Luby, Dehsler, 73).
We’ve looked at a number of factors which influence the general education teacher in an international setting. We’ve established that having students with literacy based LD in your classroom is a real possibility and looked at the educational challenges that these students face. We’ve seen that LD is addressed in a variety of ways which may or may not provide adequate service. Finally, we’ve surveyed specific, tangible practices that can be implemented by administrators and teachers in the absence of national leadership. We can conclude that the ambiguities for special education at the international level require a proactive approach by individual educators in order to meet the needs of students with LD.
Works Cited
Friend, Marilyn. Special Education: Contemporary Perspective for School Professionals, 2nd
Edition.Pearson Education. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey. 2007. Print.
Trainor, Morningstar, Murray, Kim.“Social Capital during the Postsecondary Transition for Young Adults with High Incidence Disabilities.”The Prevention Researcher.Volume 20 (2). April 2013. 7-10. Web.
“General regulations: Diploma Programme, for students and their legal guardians”
© International Baccalaureate Organization 2006, 2007. Web.
“Diploma Programme: Candidates with special assessment needs”
© International Baccalaureate Organization 2007. Web.
Dehsler, Faggella-Luby. “Reading Comprehension for Adolescents with LD: What we Know; W What we Need to Learn.” Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 23 (2) (2008). 70–78. Web.
Deshler, Schumaker, Lenz, Bulgren, Hock, Knight, Ehren. “Ensuring Content Area
Learning by Secondary Students with Learning Disabilities.”Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 16 (2), (2001).96-108. Web.
Petroff, Jerry. "Social Skills and Social Network Development."The College of New Jersey.
Ruamrudee International School, Bangkok, Thailand. 8 July,2014. Class Lecture.