Interpreting Evaluation Results and Identifying Characteristics of Disabilities

Interpreting Evaluation Results and Identifying Characteristics of Disabilities
[WLOs: 1, 2, 3] [CLOs: 2, 3]
Researchers have identified multiple potential causes as well as suggested interventions for children who have been identified as having specific disabilities. These strategies may include environmental, instructional, behavioral, and psychological approaches within the classroom or school setting. This information can be instrumental in the decision-making process, specifically for the IEP team, when developing a student’s individualized goals and services. Using research-based interventions along with the student’s present levels of performance, background and cultural influences, for the purpose of developing an individualized plan are the recommended procedure for supporting a student’s needs.

Assessments are one important measure of a child’s level of functioning. They can measure a variety of areas including academic performance, processing abilities, language comprehension and usage as well as many others. There are many types of informal and formal assessments that contribute to the overall picture of a student’s abilities, which help to determine the gaps that need remediation. Whether conducted by a teacher or school psychologist, a report is written to explain the findings, which include current levels of functioning, strengths, and weaknesses.

After reviewing Henry’s Evaluation Report, you will use this data to respond to the prompt below. See attachments

Prepare

Prior to beginning work on this assignment,

· Read Chapters 1 and 4 in your text.

· Read Special Education Policy, Response to Intervention, and the Socialization of Youth

· Review The IEP Team ( webpage https://www.parentcenterhub.org/iep-team/

· Review the course and weekly learning outcomes.

· Carefully read the assignment instructions, which includes the case study and evaluation results for Henry.

Review the Week 6 final paper (Resource Manual for Educating Students With Exceptionalities) description to see where this artifact fits into your final paper.

Reflect

This assignment provides an opportunity to read and interpret evaluation results for a specific student (Henry). This case study includes a comprehensive breakdown of all relevant sections of an evaluation report. After reading and analyzing this information, you will use the presented data to drive your decision-making process to best meet Henry’s individualized needs. This assignment also provides an opportunity to identify and communicate common characteristics associated with high-incidence exceptionalities.

Take Action

Content Instructions

Part I

· Within your paper,

· Identify characteristics of three disabilities: learning disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, and intellectual disabilities.

· When defining and identifying characteristics of learning disabilities, include how dyslexia impacts reading and related language-based processing skills and aligns with the parameters of learning disabilities.

· In this section of your paper,

· Define each disability using IDEA.

· Identify characteristics for each disability that are commonly seen in the educational environment.

· Describe how these characteristics adversely impact educational performance and academic progress.

Part II

· In this section of your paper,

· Identify the category of eligibility and specific disability you would give Henry based on the data in the evaluation report.

· Justify your decision with a comprehensive rationale. This should align with Henry’s deficit areas and testing results.

Part III

· Recommend evidence-based practices and interventions to meet Henry’s individual needs and foster academic progress once you have determined that Henry qualifies for special education services under a specific category (disability).

· In this section of your paper,

· Recommend at least three potential evidence-based interventions or instructional strategies to support Henry (support with scholarly research and literature).

· Summarize each intervention thoroughly (support with scholarly literature).

· Justify your decision with a comprehensive rationale. This should align with Henry’s deficit areas and testing results.

· Discuss the potential impact these interventions and instructional strategies will have on Henry’s academic success.

Create a document using this Week 2 Assignment Template to submit your assignment that includes a title page, headings for each section of the assignment, and your reference list.

Next Steps: Review and Submit the Assignment

Review your assignment with the Grading Rubric to ensure you have achieved the distinguished levels of performance for each criterion. Next, submit your document no later than Day 7.

ePortfolio and Assignment Submission Instructions

· Submit Your Assignment: You will need to submit your assignment to both Waypoint and Folio.

Part 1: Submit Assignment to Waypoint

Submit your assignment to Waypoint using the Assignment Submission button (within your classroom).

· For more detailed instructions, refer to the Submitting Assignments Through Waypoint (Links to an external site.)

Part 2: Add Assignment to Folio

A part of this assignment is adding your work to Folio. Folio is your free digital portfolio tool to visually showcase your academic and professional accomplishments and experiences. You can access Folio by clicking on the “Account” link in the global navigation of this course, and selecting “Folio,” or, by clicking the button in your classroom.

To learn more about setting up your Folio account and adding future assignments, view Setting Up and Using Folio (Links to an external site.) .

Success Tip: Start preparing now for the Week 6 Final Assignment!

· The Week 6 assignment involves creating a resource manual for Mr. Franklin. Preparation for this assignment must begin early to make certain you are thinking ahead and saving your work. Review the full instructions for the Week 6 assignment for more information.

The Interpreting Evaluation Results and Identifying Characteristics of Disabilities paper,

· Must be three to four double-spaced pages in length (not including title and references pages) and formatted according to APA Style (Links to an external site.) as outlined in the Writing Center’s APA Formatting for Microsoft Word (Links to an external site.)

· Must include a separate title page with the following:

· Title of paper

· Student’s name

· Course name and number

· Instructor’s name

· Date submitted

· Must utilize academic voice. See the Academic Voice (Links to an external site.) resource for additional guidance.

· Must include an introduction and conclusion paragraph. Your introduction paragraph needs to end with a clear thesis statement that indicates the purpose of your paper.

· For assistance on writing Introductions & Conclusions (Links to an external site.) as well as Writing a Thesis Statement (Links to an external site.), refer to the Writing Center resources.

· Must use at least two scholarly, peer-reviewed, or credible sources in addition to the course text.

· The Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.) table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a particular assignment.

· To assist you in completing the research required for this assignment, view this Ashford University Library Quick ‘n’ Dirty (Links to an external site.) tutorial, which introduces the Ashford University Library and the research process, and provides some library search tips.

· Must document any information used from sources in APA Style as outlined in the Writing Center’s APA: Citing Within Your Paper (Links to an external site.)

· Must include a separate references page that is formatted according to APA Style as outlined in the Writing Center. See the APA: Formatting Your References List (Links to an external site.) resource in the Writing Center for specifications.

Carefully review the Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.) for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.

Review the Following Excerpts from Henry’s Evaluation Report

Biographical Information

Name Henry _________

Date of Birth __/__/______

Gender Male

Age ___ years old

Grade ___

School or Learning Center _______________

Parent’s Phone Number (___)___-______

Parent’s Email Address ___________@______.____

Reason for Referral

Henry is a transfer student to the school who enrolled approximately three weeks after the start of the

school year. His previous school did not send past school records. Henry is currently in an inclusive

classroom that is being co-taught by Mr. Franklin and an educator representing special education.

Henry is a quiet young man who sits near the back of the classroom and is reluctant to participate in

whole-group discussions. When asked to read aloud, Henry will comply; his verbal expression is

restrained, but he is unable to decode each word. While reading silently during independent practice, he

struggles with answering grade-level comprehension questions that require higher-level thinking skills. In

group-work settings, Henry will listen and doodle to avoid peer requests for his involvement.

Parent concerns:

• Academic

• Attention

• Spelling

• Reading

• Written language

• Schoolwork/homework

• Memory

Response to Intervention

(Image credit: polo.k12.mo.us, n.d.)

PAST INTERVENTION:

Henry has received extra remediation in the below academic areas:

Reading Intervention:

Reported by Parent: Henry has been receiving individualized reading tutoring one hour per week for the

past two years from a registered tutor.

Reported by Mr. Franklin: Henry has received Tier 1, 2, and 3 interventions since entering his classroom.

Writing Intervention:

Reported by Parent: Henry has been receiving individualized writing tutoring one hour per week for the

past two years from a registered tutor.

Reported by Mr. Franklin: Henry has received Tier 1, 2, and 3 interventions since entering his classroom.

Spelling Intervention:

Reported by Parent: Henry has been receiving individualized spelling tutoring one hour per week for the

past two years from a registered tutor.

Reported by Mr. Franklin: Henry has received Tier 1, 2, and 3 interventions since entering his classroom.

Mathematics Intervention:

Reported by Parent: Henry has not required any additional remediation in the academic area.

Reported by Mr. Franklin: Henry has received Tier 1 interventions for story problems and written

instructions since entering his classroom.

https://polo.k12.mo.us/StaffPages/WestoverA_web/response_to_intervention.htm
PAST INTERVENTION SUMMARY:

Based on the above information, parents and instructor report evidence of Intensive, Individualized Tier 3

intervention implemented for the following areas: Reading, Writing, and Spelling.

Behavioral Observations during Testing

During the reading portion of the education assessment, Henry told the assessor that he didn’t like reading

because he “isn’t very good at it.” He also said that his mom takes him to the library once a week, but he

has a difficult time finding a book the he likes and usually ends up checking out a movie or CD instead.

Although Henry mentioned, several times, how he does not like reading, he was willing to try each

portion of the assessment and seemed to be putting forth his best effort. It is relevant to mention that after

each subtest, Henry asked the assessor if he did “a good job?”

Based on Henry’s overall performance on the education assessment and his academic history, the

evaluation results appear to be a valid representation of his abilities.

Sources of Information, Tests, and Procedures

Personal Observations and Interviews:

Henry (student)

Henry’s parents

Teacher reports

Classroom observation

Formal and Informal Assessments:

Woodcock-Johnson Test of Achievement

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V)

Wechsler Individual Achievement Test-Third Edition- (WIAT-III)

Curriculum Based Measurements (CBM)—Filed with Mr. Franklin

Student portfolio—Filed with Mr. Franklin

Test Results

Woodcock-Johnson, Education Assessment:

The following is a summary of Henry’s current performance in reading, math and language/content:

Letter-Word Identification: Henry was asked to read a list of words beginning at his level of

independence and gradually becoming more difficult. He scored within the low average range (standard

score: 88)

Word Attack: Henry was asked to decode (phonetically pronounce) a list of nonsense words using letter

patterns that gradually advanced in difficulty. He scored within the low average range (standard score: 87)

Passage Comprehension: Henry was asked to read a passage (beginning at his level of independence)

silently and then verbally provide the omitted word. This subtest measured Henry’s level of reading

comprehension. He scored within the low range (standard score: 77)

Reading Vocabulary: Henry was asked to provide the antonym (opposite) and synonym (same) for two

separate vocabulary lists, and then he was asked to complete analogies. He scored within the low range

(standards score: 76)

Writing Fluency: Henry was asked to formulate and write sentences comprised of three given words

along with a picture within a 7-minute timeframe. He scored within the low average range (standards

score: 82)

Writing Samples: Henry was asked to formulate sentences that combine visual and auditory information.

There is no penalty, in this subtest, for basic writing, spelling or punctuation errors. He scored within the

average range (standard score: 92)

Math Calculation: Henry was asked to complete basic addition, subtraction, multiplication and division

equations gradually advancing in difficult to more complex computations involving decimals, fractions

and geometry. He scored within the average range (standards score: 95)

Math Fluency: Henry was asked to complete simple addition, subtraction and multiplication facts within

a 3-minute timeframe. He scored within the average range (standard score: 90)

Conclusions

Strengths: Henry’s strengths are in math calculation and fluency where he scored in the average range.

He also excelled in completing the “Writing Samples” and “Letter-Word Identification” subtest that

requires visual and auditory information input.

Areas of Need: Based on the assessments administered, it is evident that Henry struggles in the areas of

reading and vocabulary comprehension. In the subtests that required “Passage Comprehension (standards

score: 78), “Reading Vocabulary” (standard score: 76) and “Writing Fluency” (standard score: 76), Henry

scored in the low range. These scores indicate an area of need in demonstrating vocabulary and reading

comprehension skills. Although considered low- average, Henry struggled with phonetics of non-sight

words in the “Word Attack” subtest (standard score: 87).

WISC-V COGNITIVE BATTERY ASSESSMENT:

WISC-V Indexes Composite Score

Percentile

Rank

95%

Confidence

Interval

Qualitative

Description

PRIMARY INDEXES

Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI)

Visual Spatial Index (VSI)

Fluid Reasoning Index (FRI)

Working Memory Index (WMI)

Processing Speed Index (PSI)

Full Scale Intelligence Quotient (FSIQ)

ANCILLARY INDEXES

Auditory Working Memory Index

(AWMI)

Nonverbal Index (NVI)

General Ability Index (GAI)

Cognitive Proficiency Index (CPI)

95

115

115

77

78

96

78

97

105

78

37

84

84

6

7

39

7

42

63

7

87-103

106-122

106-122

71-88

72-91

91-102

73-85

91-103

99-111

72-87

Average

High Average

High Average

Very Low

Very Low

Average

Very Low

Average

Average

Very Low

WIAT-III EDUCATIONAL BATTERY ASSESSMENT:

WIAT-III

Subtest

Standard

Score

95%

Confidence

Interval

Percentile

Qualitative

Description

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