CASE STUDY

Description of Child

Pseudonym: Colton Powers

Age: 13

Sex: Male

Disability: Specific Learning Disability in the areas of math, reading comprehension, and

listening comprehension.

Program Type: -Placement: Itinerant (inside the regular classroom 80% or more of the day);

Colton will participate in the regular classroom for all activities except for pull-out English and

Language Arts instruction in the learning support classroom.

-Support: Colton will receive learning support. He will have his tests read aloud

to him in a small group setting, and he will receive adapted tests (no more than three choices, fill

in the blank: no more than two extra answers in word bank, matching: chunked in groups of five

or less, written response: adapted to individual student ability). Colton will also receive extended

time for tests and quizzes (up to 100% of the time allotted), as well as projects (up to two

additional days). In addition, he will be able to obtain assistance with notes (printed notes,

guided notes, and/or adapted notebook checks), as well as preferential seating. Colton must be

given clear, repeated directions, as well as the use of a calculator and graphic organizer. Colton

will have the opportunity for second chance learning (second attempts to be given for

test/quizzes and graded assignments failed on the first attempt), and he will take the PSSA and

Keystone Exams with accommodations. While completing the PSSA, Colton will have

permissible test items read aloud to him in a small group setting. He will also be allowed

extended time to complete his tests, and he will be allowed to use a calculator for both the math

and science tests.

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Profile of Child

Current Abilities/Strengths:

Colton is very good at taking direction, and he follows directions well. He does not talk while

the teacher is talking, and he always sits still and quiet with his full attention on his teacher.

Colton is also able to think logically through steps piece-by-piece, even if he does not have a

solid background of something. Colton has efficient functional reading skills. He is able to get

from point A to point B. Colton’s writing is also proficient as he is able to express himself well

independently. Colton is also grade driven. He takes pride in his grades, and he always strives to

do better. If he does poorly on an exam, he will take advantage of his opportunity for second

chance learning if he needs to, and he will make arrangements to re-take it.

In addition, Colton has a wonderful personality. He is a hard worker and exceptionally

resilient. He is able to bounce back from a tough situation, and he has a good attitude in doing

that. Colton can always be seen to have a smile on his face. Colton is very polite, and he wants to

please adults. He values other people’s input, including his teachers and parents, and he works

very hard to make them proud. Colton is also very friendly, and he has a good rapport with the

other students. He is never involved in any kind of drama, and he is always willing to lend a

helping hand.

Lastly, Colton is very organized. His school work is always in place and he is rarely

misplacing his assignments. Colton is also very attentive during class. He wants to work to get

better, and he pushes himself to do his best. He does not hesitate to ask questions or for

assistance, and he seeks for a solid understanding. Colton is also very well-behaved, and he does

not act out. He does what is asked of him, and he does not let other students distract him from
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learning. Colton gets to each of his classes quickly and prepared, and he gets on task at the

appropriate times to do so.

Current Needs/Weaknesses:

Colton struggles to complete math facts without a calculator. He feels more comfortable with

a calculator on hand, and he will participate more actively if he has one. Colton also struggles

with strict memorization. He has to learn how to do something, or how to use something, in order

to remember it. Colton also struggles with reading comprehension. He has trouble digging

deeper into a text to find what the author’s purpose is, determine a theme, etc.

Moreover, Colton needs extra assistance in order to display the concepts that he understands.

Although Colton’s processing skills are there, they are slower. He needs more time to process

things, and he may need help applying things in order to form an understanding. If Colton is

asked a question it may take him a few extra seconds to give an answer, but when he does it is

usually correct and well stated. Additionally, when taking notes, Colton may need to listen to the

examples first before he can begin to write them down. The teacher may also need to re-word a

question for Colton in order to help him process a proper response.

In addition, Colton is on the quieter side. He will engage when someone talks to him, but he

typically will not initiate the conversation. Colton also does not usually initiate active

participation in the classroom. He will participate if he is asked to or if he is called on, but he

typically will not volunteer.

Finding and Conclusions

Colton is monitored through IEP goals in reading comprehension and math, but

accommodations are made to assist him with listening comprehension. After some hours of

observing Colton, I have found that although he is a role model student who does what is asked
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of him, he deeply struggles with the ability to process information coming in and going out.

Colton is high functioning and academically capable of doing more than what most people would

expect him to be able to do. However, what holds him back is the fact that although he can

efficiently demonstrate what he has learned and understands, it takes him a little longer to be

able to do this. In addition, Colton’s i-Ready diagnostic results show that he was able to raise his

math score from a 4th-grade level to a 6th level during the 2018-2019 school year, which is a

significant jump. However, he remained at the 3rd grade level for Reading. Clayton also scored in

the basic range for Math and the below basic range for ELA on his 6th grade PSSA’s, which were

his last recorded scores on his IEP. Reading comprehension and applied math skills are still

academic needs related to Colton’s specific learning disability, but despite this, Colton’s present

levels of academic achievement show that he is able to achieve passing grades throughout the

school year. Moreover, Colton has set the goal to be able to graduate according to the Riverside

Beaver County School District’s standards in June of 2024. Colton would also like to attend

trade school after graduation and receive the necessary training to be competitively employed in

the field of machining or as a mechanic.

Colton’s needs are being met by the school because the school is providing him with

opportunities to increase both his applied math skills and his reading comprehension skills,

through classroom activities and assessments. In order for Colton to improve his reading

comprehension skills, as well as his applied math skills, clear, measurable annual goals have

been set in place for him. According to Colton’s IEP, when given a reading selection, Colton will

cite text evidence and demonstrate comprehension of craft and structure in both fiction and

nonfiction texts with 75% accuracy on 4 out of 5 assessments over the course of a 9-week period.

Also according to Colton’s IEP, when given a math assessment, he will demonstrate an
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understanding of operations with rational and irrational numbers with at least 75% accuracy on 3

out of 4 assessments over the course of a 9-week period. The school is also meeting Colton’s

needs when it comes to his inability to process things. Since Colton is granted an extended

period of time to complete his tests, he is able to have more time to process what is being asked

of him so that he can demonstrate what he understands. Being able to take his tests in a small

group setting has also helped him because he is more comfortable to ask questions or for

assistance. The school’s goal is to push for self-advocacy in the regular classroom, and exposing

Colton to more opportunities that enable him to comfortably ask questions has helped encourage

this goal for him. Colton’s goal of graduating on time according to the school’s standards, as

well as to successfully transition into a trade school, is also being accomplished through the

school’s attempts to provide him with environments that empower him to become more

confident in his academic abilities. Colton has shown a significant appreciation for the

accommodations that have been made for him, and since knowing that assistance is always there

if needed, he has been less anxious. Additional teaching strategies and accommodations that are

used for Colton are the modifications for him to be able to obtain the use of a calculator and to

have the opportunity for second chance learning. Since Colton is able to use his calculator at all

times, his basic math skills do not hold him back as much, and he is, thus, able to participate

more in class. Colton is also known to take advantage of his opportunity to re-take tests, and he

has been successful in doing so. On multiple occasions, Colton was able to improve his score one

letter grade after asking to re-take a test. The teachers being willing to give Colton clear,

repeated directions have also shown to be very beneficial. I saw this happening multiple times

throughout my observations. At one point during my observation, after a teacher re-worded the

question that he was asking Colton, Colton was able to quickly respond with an answer. Colton’s
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teachers have also willingly printed out his notes for him to have access to if he wishes. Colton

being able to have access to his teacher's printed out notes has been beneficial to him because

since it takes him longer to process things, he sometimes will not be able to get all the notes

down. This is also due to the fact that he typically will need to listen to the examples first before

he can start writing them down.

Furthermore, Colton’s family is significantly involved in his program, goals, and

services, which I believe has benefited Colton substantially because he knows that he has a

support system behind him. In fact, Colton stated during his transition plan interview that he

plans to live in a community with his family immediately following high school graduation.

Colton’s parents are actively involved in his IEP meetings, and they have also conveyed that they

support his future plans at this time. Colton’s parents will also express concerns that will be of

benefit to him when they feel it is necessary. His parents last noted concern was that Colton still

needs help completing study island for classes as he can get frustrated. During my interview with

Colton’s case-load manager, I also learned that his parents regularly communicate with her, and

check-in almost monthly. However, if there was ever a major concern, they would check in

daily.

Taking everything into account, I do believe that Colton is properly placed. Colton’s

various academic, social, and behavioral strengths show that he clearly qualifies for itinerant

services, in which he spends 80 percent of his day inside the regular classroom. Although Colton

has displayed significant academic skills, being in pull-out English and Language Arts is most

beneficial for him. Colton’s main struggles come as a result of his inability to process things

quickly. Therefore, being in pull-out English and Language Arts classes is functionally the only

way that Colton can get all the extended time that he needs. For example, having extended
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writing deadlines and extra time to make inferences about a text. Other than this, Colton has

shown that he is academically capable of being in the regular education classroom for every

other subject. At one point Colton was in pull-out math, but he was put back into the regular

education classroom after displaying that he was far ahead of the other students. This makes

sense as math is more of a cut-and-dry subject, whereas English and Language Arts classes

require students to make inferences and to further express themselves, something that Colton can

only efficiently do with more time. Colton’s case-load manager has expressed that Colton can

express himself just as well, if not better, than any other student, but he needs extended time to

be able to do this. I also saw this to be true during my observations of him. Colton has shown to

academically succeed when given extended time to do so. Colton’s behavioral and social skills

have also exhibited that he can effectively and appropriately interact with his peers and other

adults, even when he is in the regular education environment. For example, Colton interacts with

his peers, but he never does so in a disrespectful manner. He will engage in conversation at

appropriate times to do so, and he has never been a disruption in class.

Recommendations

After reviewing Colton’s IEP, speaking with his case-load manager, and observing him in

his academic environment, there are some recommendations that I can make for him over the

next twelve months. In terms of Colton’s placement and services, I agree with the itinerant

services that he is receiving. His IEP is very detailed, and he is receiving a sizeable amount of

accommodations. However, in terms of him getting pulled out for tests, I think there needs to be

more specific requirements for the type of learning environment that Colton has to be in. When

he is pulled out for tests, he is typically taken into one of the special education rooms or a study

hall. However, since there is not a consistent testing room specified on his IEP, the room he is in
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sometimes will have another teacher teaching in it or other commotion going on at the same

time. I do not feel that Colton will be able to concentrate, let alone be able to process information

if there are other distractions around him. Due to this, I feel as if he would be just as better off

back in the regular education classroom while he is testing because since everyone in the class

will also be testing, he is guaranteed to be in a still and quiet environment. If Colton is not in a

small, quiet environment while he is taking a test, I think the whole point for him to be pulled out

for his tests is contradicted. In addition, the group of students who are pulled-out with Colton are

not all guaranteed to work at the same pace. If students who process things faster are ready for

the second set of directions to be read aloud to them, but Colton is still on the first section, I

would imagine that he is going to get distracted or frustrated if the teacher who is reading his test

is reading the next section for the students who are ready to move on. Keeping this in mind, I

would recommend for the test being read to Colton to be more tailored to him as an individual,

rather than the test being tailored to a large group at once. For example, when Colton is pulled

out of math class for a quiz or test, there are more students who are pulled out than there are

students who stay. Therefore, the small group he is supposed to be in turns into an even larger

group than if he would have stayed in the regular education classroom to take his test. When

Colton is in a larger group that gets pulled out, I would recommend for the group to be split in

half with one half going with one test reader and the other half going with another. This way,

Colton would have the test being read to him in the small group that his IEP says he is supposed

to be in. I also would recommend for Colton to be guaranteed a quiet environment with no

distractions when he is taking his test. There should never be commotion happening from other

students or another teacher when he is trying to concentrate on his test. Since Colton has a harder
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time processing information, I believe that assuring him a quiet learning environment to take his

test in will guarantee him greater success in displaying the information that he understands.

Colton’s school has done a fine job of providing him with an individualized education

program that not only encourages his abilities and strengths, but also addresses and

accommodates his current needs and weaknesses. Colton’s main academic needs come from his

inability to process things as quickly as the rest of his peers. However, if the school keeps doing

what they are doing for him, and if the specifics to the environment that Colton takes his test in

are modified, I think he will continue to academically, socially, and behaviorally succeed not

only in school, but also in life afterwards.