Running Header: INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES STUDENT PROFILE

Individual Difference Student Profile

Shaina Lynch

Instructor: Natalie Raas

EDUC 230: Intro to Special Education

Spring 2018
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Individual Difference Student Profile Essay

Ridgevue High School in Nampa ID has some exception students and teachers. It is a

brand new, modern structure with state of the art technology. Their mascot is the Warhawk, after

a WWII fighter plane. One of those students is Jay (an alias). I was able to sit in on a U.S.

Government class, one of my favorite subjects, and watch him interact with the young, bearded,

hipster teacher who was engaging and kept things relevant. I will share with you my observations

of Jay and the background I obtained for my research from Jay and his teacher.

General Information

Jay is a senior at Ridgevue High School and lives with his mother, stepfather, and

younger half-sibling in a single-family home. His older sister lives in California and goes to

college there. He has other half-siblings from his birth father’s first marriage, they are all in their

thirties. His birth father lives in California and has a positive but distant relationship with Jay.

Physical Development

Jay is a tall and handsome young man. He is seventeen years nine months old. He towers

at about 6 feet, and weighs about 220lbs. He has been diagnosed with a learning disability. He

has an audio processing disorder and attention deficit disorder aka ADD. He is right handed,

and has strong small muscle development. He draws and doodles, hold his pen correctly, uses

scissors, and plays on his phone. At lunch, Jay only eats plain foods, and a very limited variety.

No fruits or vegetables to speak of outside of corn and potatoes. Large muscle development

appears to be normal, he walks, eats, jogs, and reaches/lifts things with no issues. Jay says he is

not highly motivated to play anything since he is a bit on the clumsy side, mostly from not

paying attention to his surroundings. Jay mostly plays his Xbox, works at McDonald's, and goes

out when his family goes places.

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Cognitive Development

Jay’s academic history is a little vague, since I did not meet or observe any familial

interactions. My understanding is he was only in special classes when he was in elementary

school no later than grade 5. At that time, he went in the resource room for help in small groups

and when taking tests. Since then he has been in a general education class with a 504 plan in

place for ADD and Audio Processing Disorder. That was diagnosed around age 8. His current

academic behaviors leave a little to be desired. In class he seems to pay attention for a little

while, but the teacher is lax about having cell phones out during classwork time, and he goes

right for the phone and messes around. When a video is playing, he seems to pay attention, but

his closest neighbor is a chatty person who he seems to like to whisper with. He does take the

initiative during discussions, sometimes to make a little joke. When participating in groups he

always sticks to his closest neighbor who he chats with, not branching out. In the stages od

cognitive development developed by Jean Piaget, I would say he has developed normally to the

proper formal operational stage. When he reads, he uses a lot of inflection. He reads difficult

words easily, and understands what he is reading. He is not shy when asked to read out loud for

the class. This shows that he is comprehending the words and attributing the right emotions to

the story. He is failing miserably in math. He retains almost nothing regarding the steps and

procedures to solving math problems. This is because math builds on so many prior concepts,

and he can’t keep up (according to him). Hypothetic-deductive reasoning is required for math,

which he struggles with. Jay shows empathy for his teachers, and knows they try hard

interesting to him, but and math involved in the science is beyond his comprehension. Social

Studies interests him very much, but he loses interest if it is too technical. History is his favorite

and will go above and beyond when he must do a project with that topic. Although he is artistic,
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and likes to draw and create videos and comics, he does not do well with technical graphic

design, which he tried taking. There was too much math and shapes involved. Jay likes to

freestyle. He loves music and played the trombone for years, but has not in the last two years.

Socio-emotional Development

Jay does interact with peers sometimes, but most especially the girl who sits next to him.

They seem to help each other and when they work on Chromebooks and write notes. No other

students seem to interact much with him. He is not shunned by any means, but it does not seem

like he knows them and they all seem to know each other. I saw him get the attention of a girl a

few desks away and ask about a project form another class. She seemed surprised he spoke to

her, but did respond and it made her friend giggle. I saw one boy ask him if he enjoyed senior

skip day, and he just responded that he went to school. The student seemed eager to speak more

to him but Nathaniel just sort of wandered away.

Jay does speak up in class when appropriate, and the teacher smiles at him. He also will

ask for clarification at times. He gets distracted by his phone a lot, but the teacher does not seem

to say anything to him or anyone about that. The teacher plays videos, has the students use

Chromebooks, and shows presentations often. The student reacts well to him and there is no

issue with defiance.

Jay seems to believe he is doing fine, and does not seem shy or sad. He blends in well

with the group. Since he does speak up, I would say there is confidence there. He seems to enjoy

current news topics; the teacher often plays news clips. I do not get the impression that he (in

class anyways) feels embarrassed or behind anyone else.

He seems to be at a stage of Erikson’s Personality Development called “Identity vs.

Role Confusion” for people 12-18 years old. This is apparent because as most Seniors in High
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School he is discussing a lot of changes in his life, about moving to California with his dad, and

starting to go to school at a community college there. He lived there before, and wants to see all

of his peers and hang out with them all summer. He does not seem to have a real role model,

except for perhaps his sister who goes to the same college he wants to attend. Kohlberg’s Moral

Development lists a stage called Level 2-Concentional which describes making decisions to live

up to the expectations of others. It seems like the best description of him, he may be at the stage

where he’s the “good kid” but he doesn’t appear to care or notice if what he does appears

normal. He just seems to do what he feels like, and he just behaves naturally. He is 17 years old

and has a grasp if the golden rule and manners, and aside from ADD and AID would appear to

blend in anywhere as a typical young man.

Summary of Major Findings

In conclusion Jay is at a typical level if development at all but the cognitive domain. At

his age, and with his schooling, he should be able to grasp more mathematical concepts. There

should be a level of comprehension that simply is not there. He is physically able to ride a bike,

drive a car, and jog down a hallway. He has friends, has had a girlfriend, and is well liked by his

family, all signs of normal socio-emotional maturity. In general, being the child of divorced

parents and having a blended family is the norm these days, and he seems to have handled the

situation with no problem.

Jay needs to have one on one guidance and tutoring in mathematics. He also needs to be

reminded to stay on task while in class. His organization leaves a lot to be desired, so binder

checks and agenda checks would encourage him to be mindful of his classwork and homework.

His strength is his desire to try, his willingness to listen and do the right thing. Jay is excellent at
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reading and drawing, so of those could be incorporated into lessons he may find a niche. If these

things could be addressed, Jay would improve in his academics.

It was a pleasure to be a Warhawk for a couple of months, and a pleasure to meet and get

to know Jay and his teacher. It reminds me of why I am choosing secondary education as a

career. Jay will perform wonderfully in class with a few supports in mathematics and

organization, and will go on to success in California or wherever he chooses to go after

graduation.
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References

Hallahan, D. P., Kauffman, J. M., & Pullen, P. C. (2012). Exceptional learners: An introduction to special

education. Boston: Pearson Education.