Incompatibility? Ethnographic case studies of "learning-disabled" students in a whole language classroom
Abstract
The purpose of this research was to examine the compatibility between the process of identification of learning disabled students and their literacy enactments as evidenced in a classroom that exemplifies the whole language philosophy. The researcher was a participant-observer in a fourth-grade classroom during the first semester of the school year. During that time, she collected data in the form of field notes, interviews, and artifacts. Two learned disabled children were present in the regular classroom. Each case was analyzed individually using the constant comparative method. Assertions which emerged focused on the process of identification, instruction and interactions in both the Resource Room and the regular room for the two learning disabled students, and the compatibility between the two contexts and sources of information. First, it appears that the selection of tests to determine special education identification and eligibility for services influences the basis for decisions and the decisions themselves. Interpretation by the examiner may also play a role. Second, Resource Placement provides support for one student so that she is able to participate on a more regular basis in the regular classroom. However, the other student is disenfranchised; his literacy learning is fragmented, and he is deprived of meaningful interactions and learning situations in the regular classroom. Therefore, in this case the impact of placement in the Resource Room varies with each student and is dependent on many factors. Third, information and evaluation provided by standardized tests is noticeably different from that obtained in the context of a whole language classroom. Remediation for learning disabilities is based on both results from standardized tests and on goals and objectives written on each child's Individual Education Plan (IEP); the special education instruction exemplifies a traditional, skill-based approach to reading and learning. A different portrait is created in the context of the whole language classroom. The two philosophies and approaches are not compatible.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
O'Brien, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Literacy|Reading instruction|Special education|Elementary education
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