Deakin University

Faculty of Art and Education

EEI322 – Teaching the Learner with

Special Needs in the General Educational
Classroom

Assessment Task 2 – Case Study

Due: Friday 16th September 2016

Monday 11am – 2pm

Claire Spicer and Kim Davies

Jade Pearson
215056457
Bachelor of Education (Primary)

1
Table of Contents

Part One – Introduction and Profile ..................................................... Page 3

Identification of the student ….......................................................... Page 3

Definition of the student’s special needs/disorder ............................ Page 3

Identified characteristics and there relevance to the disorder........... Page 4

Comprehensive identification of the students social, emotional and learning needs

…………………………………………………………………...... Page 5

Part Two - Classroom environment and observations ........................ Page 6

Illustration of the classroom environment ................................................ Page 6

Observation ……..................................................................................... Page 7

Interpretation of observation ..................................................................... Page 8

Part Three - Recommendations ............................................................... Page 8

Succinct recommendations for the student’s future social, emotional and learning
opportunities ....................................................................................... Page 8

Links to teaching strategies suitable for the selected student (in light of their special
needs) .................................................................................................. Page 8

The best physical environment for the selected student................... Page 9

Provision of school policy documents ............................................. Page 10

References ...................................................................................................... Page 11

Appendices .................................................................................................... Page 12

Appendix 2 - International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Program.

........................................ Page 12

2
Part One – Introduction and Profile
Identification of the student
As there was no placement this trimester, this case study focuses on a family friend’s
child. William (Will), a pseudonym, is a twelve year old boy who attends his local
independent, co-educational school where his mother teachers foundation. Will has
been at the school since prep and is planned to stay there till Year twelve as he has a
good small bunch of friends and an integration aide that he has a rapport with. He
lives in his childhood home where own room that is next to the spare bedroom where
all his history toys are with his parents, older sister, the two family dogs and his
chickens. Will was misdiagnosed with a hearing impairment however when six-years
old and when he started school he was diagnosed with Autism.

Definition of the student’s special needs/disorder

With autism, Will requires supervision all the time at home and help of an aide in the
classroom to assist him with his work. Between two classrooms there is a small room,
which is where the student goes if he needs time out that consists of toy planes and
Lego of history buildings. At school he receives help from a classroom aide to help
with him with his class work, help from a senior aide that helps refine his speech and
understanding which he attends two lessons a week in the learning centre. Will also
see’s the student wellbeing councils where they help him to connect with other
students and adults by playing games together that is offered when the other students
have integration class. Autism Speaks (2016) states regular speech and language
therapy, occupational therapy and psychology sessions are vital in helping a child
adjust and develop their social skills better which he attends 2-3 sessions per week
after school. Will is very hands on and visual with his disorder so lessons need to be
more focused on creating and less on writing. For Will to be able to understand and
keep to a routine to maintain his steady behaviour the use of Basic PECS visuals and
sentence steps (Autism Association of Western Australia. 2008) are used for him to
follow. There is no homework for him as he struggles to do it at home even with help
from parents as he see’s it as time for him to play in his own world hence the teacher
asks him to share what he had made or read that night as he loves to talk about his
hobbies.

Identified characteristics and their relevance to the disorder

3
William suffers from:
 Social interaction and communication
o Looks away when you speak to him
o Won't respond to you talking to him
o Does not return your smile
o Often seems to be in his own world
o Prefers to play alone
o Repetitive speech
o Doesn’t like to be touched by people he doesn’t have a relationship
with
 Behaviour
o Has unusual interests
o Has difficulty coping with change (prefers routine)
o Plays with objects in unusual ways such as repetitive spinning or lining
up
o Gets overwhelmed quite quickly
o Tantrum
o Anxiety
o Sleep problems
o Distracted easily

These characteristics contribute to Will suffering from autism and struggling at school
sometimes. Social interactions and communication are a major contributing factor to
autism as the child avoids social interactions therefore Will struggles to participate in
classroom activities and withdraws himself from other students. Will rather play on
his own with his history toys or read books which always are lined up along his table
and locker and other children are not permitted to touch them as most of the time it
leads to a tantrum and anxiety. Will needs to follow a routine hence there is no change
to the timetable as this causes great anxiety and his symptoms get worse however if
there is change for unforeseen circumstances he receives free play time with the aide
to take his thought process away to something he loves.

Comprehensive identification of the students social, emotional and learning

needs

4
Kluth, P. and Shouse, J. (2009), Larkey, S (2005) suggest:
 Social needs
o Encouragement to talk or play with others
o Sometimes help to deliver the correct words (depends on mood)
o Guidance to talk or play with others
o People to respect when he doesn’t want to interact
o Understanding from others – don’t judge or get frustrated but help him
o Take the encounter slowly
o Involve talking about his hobbies and interests
 Emotional needs
o Time to relax and take his mind away from the episode
o Help to get out of a fixed mindset
o Asked how he feels
o Support when having an episode
o A way to relieve the stress and anxiety
 Learning needs
o An Individual Learning Plan
o Student Wellbeing Service help
o Aide in the classroom and in playground
o PECS visual communication steps
o Safe space
o Individual help from teacher
o Support from peers
o Psychology assistance
o Speech and language assistance
o Occupational therapy assistance

5
Part Two – Classroom environment and observations
Classroom Environment

6
Observations

7
Interpretation of observation
Part of the disorder is being easily distracted by his surrounding, which can be seen in
the observations as he kept looking at the other students around him and the aide has
to bring his attention back to the task. When the aide explained the task again putting
the PECS steps in front of him and was helping him with the task he avoided eye
contact from her and the others around him, as he doesn’t understand the interaction
etiquette. When he is stuck or doesn’t understand he starts to repeat words more
frequently as his brain is trying to process his thoughts and produce the words he
wants to say. However he constantly looks towards the aide for rewards of his history
figurines when he feels he has produced enough work. Once he receives his reward
for his efforts he places them in alphabetical line at the top of his table and begins to
talk about his favourite characters. The lining up is another sign of Autism as it is a
‘repetitive and unusual behaviour’ (Kluth, P, Kasa-Hendrickson, C. 2003). In the
observations Will shows quite a few symptoms that are linked to Autism.

Part Three – Recommendations

Succinct recommendations for the student’s future social, emotional and
learning opportunities
The classroom teacher can offer more small group work to encourage social
integrations however this will depend on Will’s mood and behaviour on a daily bases.
The student is receiving every possible support and service that is accessible to him.
As he adjusts to the current arrangements and it becomes the regular routine, the staff
and services can slowly change the focus of his strategies and learning needs still
being based on his daily mood/behaviour.

Links to teaching strategies suitable for the selected student (in light of their
special needs)
The school have some teaching strategies in place for Will such as PECS
communication visuals where the have the timetable displayed and for each subject a
breakdown of what he will be doing. However when Will is in a bad episode he shuts
down so have a PECS that covers every aspect of his day such as saying ‘good
morning to the teacher, when to go to the toilet and what he has in his lunch’ (Autism
Association of Western Australia (AAWA), 2008) will help guide him to understand
the day's tasks and not get overwhelmed more. Larkey (2005) states keeping activities

8
and language concrete, natural and meaningful for the student allows them to stay in a
routine but also easy for them to follow and understand. The student needs to learn to
interact with other students so incorporating group work daily with smaller groups
and building up as the child becomes comfortable and also working towards
independence will build Will’s communication and innovative skills. An important
strategy is rewards and positive feedback as they keep the child motivated due to
being “functional, concrete and capable of immediate sensory feedback” (Larkey,
2005). Finally, Kluth (2003) states planning backwards can be helpful if you can’t
figure out what strategies the child needs. Start with the goal, what the child like and
can do and work back from there to find out the strategies to need to be used.

The best physical environment for the selected student

The best physical environment for Will, would probably be in a classroom that there
is a smaller number of students as he easily gets distracted by the students around
him. Having a smaller class will allow Will to not be so anxious and allow him to
form more relationships with his peers so they can learn from him and he can also
learn from them. Even having certain students work with Will more often will
encourage his communication and interaction skills to develop as he’s often quiet
when talking to other students. Larkey (2016) suggest having work stations around
the room where certain tasks are to take place as Autistic children struggle to sit still
for a long period of time so having them move around stimulates their minds. Where
Will sits also needs to be somewhere where he can’t see the whole class, students
walking past the window and door. He needs to be facing a direction where he can’t
see all these distractions but only the teacher, aide and whiteboard. Even a classroom
where all students participate in using PECS visuals where its placed on the board for
every student to see so Will isn’t so isolated and might feel more included with his
peers. Finally having the classroom more of a ‘cosy space where there are pillows,
couches and play area will be more welcoming’ (Kluth, P et al. 2009) for him as if he
gets to anxious at lunchtime he always goes to the wellbeing centre or library as its
more homely and he can play some games and relax where he is comfortable. For the
child’s best development their needs to be a high level of support and a safe,
welcoming area.

9
Provision of school policy documents and other relevant resources in the
appendices
The school employs the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Program
(appendix 2) that “focuses on the development of the whole child, offering a
framework to meet the academic, cultural, physical, social and spiritual development
of each person.” (The Friends’ School. 2016). The school offers student services
where children can come with any concerns or if they require help and student health
and wellbeing centre where students are identified if they need extra help through
school based assessment procedures based on behaviour, attendance and performance.
They also have a student health policy to help support student health needs, involves
developing and maintaining a stable and clear health plan and speech therapist present
2 days a week and a school councillor 5 days a week. Will also receives government
funding to help cover costs of the added needs and support he requires for his
disorder. The school recognises that ‘no two students with autism are the same’
(Shaddock, A et al 2007) and as they are not a specific disability school, they are well
equipped to hand the few disability students they have.

References:

10
  Autism Association of Western Australia. 2008. Supporting successful
transitions in students with autism. Subiaco, W.A.: The Association,
 Autism Speaks. 2016. What Treatments are Available for Speech, Language
and Motor Issues? Retrieved 20th September 2016.
https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism/treatment/what-treatments-are-
available-speech-language-and-motor-impairments
 Basic PECS visuals and sentence steps – Autism Association of Western
Australia. 2008. Supporting successful transitions in students with autism.
Subiaco, W.A. : The Association. West Australia.
 Kluth, P, Kasa-Hendrickson, C. 2003. You're going to love this kid: teaching
students with autism in the inclusive classroom. Baltimore, Md. : P.H.
Brookes Pub. Co
 Kluth, P, Kasa-Hendrickson, C. 2003. You're going to love this kid: teaching
students with autism in the inclusive classroom. Baltimore, Md. : P.H.
Brookes Pub. Co
 Kluth, P. and Shouse, J. 2009. The autism checklist. San Francisco, CA:
Jossey-Bass.
 Larkey, S. 2016. 10 Essential Tips For Understanding Autism Spectrum
Disorder (ASD) www.suelarkey.com 

 Larkey, S. (2005). Making it a success. London: J. Kingsley
 Shaddock, A. Giorcelli, L & Smith, S. 2007 Students with disabilities in
mainstream classrooms A resource for teachers. Canberra.
 The Friends’ School. 2016. The Friends’ School - All about our school. Date
retrieved: 28th September 2016. <www.friends.tas.edu.au>

Appendices

11
Appendix 1 – International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Program

12