Teaching Exceptional Students: IEP Project

Step 1: Case Study

Monique Czaczkowski
0488464
Dr. Kaefer
EDUC 4418
November 6, 2014
Blake Cedar is a grade 11 male student attending St. Patricks High School in Thunder
Bay, Ontario. His courses this semester include college level math, college level science, college
level manufacturing technology, and guitar. He displays similar behavioral characteristics to that
of other grade 11 males. Like most teenagers, school is something he has to do rather than
something he looks forward to doing. Blake enjoys socializing with his small friend group and
participating in activities such as recreational hockey in the winter and baseball in the summer.
He likes playing video games and in addition, he maintains a part-time job at Shoppers working
in stock while going to school.
Blake shows initiative towards his academic obligations and demonstrates general
intellectual ability. He prefers hands-on activities such as manufacturing and/or playing an
instrument but he can successfully read and comprehend concepts, allowing him to succeed in
courses that are heavily material-based including science. Blake does not experience any
problems in relation to visual analysis. His is able to read accurately, spell, and express his ideas
in writing. In addition, Blakes math skills are developed successfully to resemble a collegedirected student. He does not show difficulty with mastering number sense, number facts,
calculations, or mathematical reasoning. This is sufficient for Blake, as his future aspirations
involve programs offered at the college. Blake is able to build and maintain personal
relationships as a product of his developed social skills and cooperation. He has a close group of
friends that have been together since childhood. They understand each other and share the same

interests. Blake does not violate social norms and he is able to pick up on nonverbal
communicative behaviours used during social interactions. Blake is generally happy and does not
display excessive fear or anxiety. He is relatively laid back and obeys the laws of society with no
persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactive-impulsivity.
Blake listens when spoke directly to and does not have a diminished auditory response to
sound. Although he is not hard of hearing, he experiences problems with following verbal
instruction. He does not like answering questions out loud or talking excessively in the
classroom. Blake can say speech sounds and words but has trouble speaking fluently without
hesitating or leaving out words. This affects his ability to get his message across to others in the
form of verbal communication. Furthermore, he has difficulty understanding what others say
verbally but can understand when they convey their message in writing. His impairment is more
visually pronounced in courses such as English, which relies heaving on communication.
In 2006, Blake underwent his first psychological assessment. The doctor concluded that
Blake displays a specific learning disability in the areas of general language development and
auditory memory. When first diagnosed, Blake participated in speech training conducted by a
speech pathologist to help him properly articulate words. Since then accommodations have been
made each year to help Blake succeed in a normal classroom environment. For the purpose of
adapting his pre-existing Individual Education Plan (IEP) to this current academic year, Blake
underwent the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT III) in April of this year to determine
areas of strengths and weakness as directed by the Internal Placement Review Committee.
Discussions involving Blake, Blakes parents, his teachers, and the IPRC, along with the results
from the WIAT III, formulated his IEP for the first semester of grade 11.

Teaching Exceptional Students: IEP Project

Step 3: IEP Explanation
Blake Cedar has been successful at meeting previous grades curriculum expectations
with varying accommodations. Now entering his first semester of grade 11, his courses consist of
college level mathematics (MBF3C), college level biology (SBI3C), college level manufacturing
technology (TMJ3C), and guitar (AMG3O). Because he was diagnosed with the specific learning
disability at a young age and participated in previous training directed by a speech pathologist,
he has learned how to adapt in order to meet the curriculum expectations each year. At his
current age, he only requires accommodations rather than modifications and can participate fulltime in a regular classroom with indirect support.
According to the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT III), Blakes word reading,
reading comprehension, pseudoword decoding, numerical operations, math problem solving,
spelling, and sentence composition were average according to the standard score. On the other
hand, his listening comprehension and oral expression were below average in comparison to the
standard score. These results confirm that Blakes exceptionality is a communication disorder
involving auditory processing and a language impairment. Auditory processing involves your
brains ability to recognize and interpret the sounds around you. In his situation, something is
adversely affecting his ability to process and interpret verbal information but not written
information. Blake has difficulty understanding what other people have said and experiences
problems following directions that are spoken to him. This is known as a receptive language
disorder. Furthermore, he has difficulty finding the right words when talking and often uses
placeholder words such as um, impacting his ability to get his message across to others. This is
known as expressive language disorder.

Accommodations can be implemented in the IEP to limit the amount of instructions given
verbally and/or assessments requiring oral communication for all four subjects. These include
additional time, computer technology, duplicated notes, quiet or calm setting, strategic seating,
verbatim reading of instructions/questions, verbatim scribing of responses, reduction in the
number of tasks used to assess a concept or skill, and visuals to support oral information. The
verbatim reading of instructions/questions will provide Blake with an opportunity to see the
material numerous times and in a variety of ways include orally, using visuals, or in writing.
Simply printing out the notes and/or instructions and giving it to Blake prior to teaching will help
provide him with the opportunity to relate what he has heard to what he can read. This will also
help him practice understanding oral communication and strengthen his understanding of the
concepts. The use of computer technology is also encourage as Blake can record what the teacher
is saying and then listen to it repeatedly while pausing it after short intervals to understand what
was said. The computer can also be used to scribe Blakes responses, as he is able to express his
ideas through writing more efficiently and effectively compared to orally.
Quiet or calm setting will make it easier for Blake to listen to the teacher and focus on the
meaning of the message. A calm environment limits the energy Blake would have to redirect to
inhibit attending to other tasks and reduces the anxiety and frustration he may feel if the class is
too loud and does not understand what is being said. It is also important that Blake sits where he
learns best in the class to limit distractions but also close to extra support if he needs it (i.e. a
teacher or close friend that understands his impairment).
In terms of assessment, it is important that Blake receives more time to answer a question
orally and to complete a task. This extra time will allow him to form questions if he needs help
and get clarity on what it is asking of him. Because it may take him more time, it is important to

reduce the number of tasks used to assess a concept or skill. Also, written modes of assessment
such as posters or tests should be used to test Blakes knowledge rather than oral forms such as
presentations. In subjects such as math and science, this is not difficult as most forms of
assessment are written such as tests and lap reports. Lastly, Blake does have access to a special
education teacher in the resource room if he feels he requires one to complete a task or needs a
quieter environment. These accommodations will help Blake learn the concepts he needs to
know in order to meet the curriculum expectations in grade 11.