Observations
I observed the school psychologist testing a student with a suspected learning disability. First, the psychologist had to identify the issue’s existence in the student. This step involved assessing pre-determined signs of a learning disability, be it an instructor or a parent concerned about a student’s performance. Some of the signs assessed included limited attention period, poor memory, difficulty in sequencing, poor reading, writing and arithmetic capacity, and poor coordination and organization. The screening was conducted since the psychologist identified that the student had a low attention span, arithmetic capabilities, poor coordination, and disorganization.
Secondly, a screening assessment was conducted to determine if the student required additional assistance in learning. The analysis assisted in identifying the learning challenges and strengths of the student in learning. However, the psychologist had to be consented to by the parent following the screening laws. Screening assisted in ruling out other potential causes of learning challenges such as hearing or vision associated with low capacity to remain attentive during learning, poor communication and coordination, and inability to complete tests. A trained healthcare provider carried out screening of the two impairments. Moreover, factors such as students’ background and language barriers were assessed. The student did not have any visual or hearing and could read and write in the language of instruction.
The fourth step involved evaluation, a comprehensive carried out by a specialist to identify the cause of the student’s learning disability, rate severity, and outline possible remedies. This information will assist in developing an Individualized educational program and create specification of a learner’s educational progress. The psychologist used various tools to assess the student to evaluate the learner’s motor skills, academic performance, health, vision and hearing, communication skills, and general knowledge. The information sources used in this section included an interview with the learner’s instructor and the student, case history, standardized tests that were cultural and language-sensitive, and curriculum-based assessments. Notably, evaluation was conducted by a student psychologist and the caregiver team. Also, the evaluation was consented to by the learner’s parent and lasted for two months.
Fifthly, the psychologist labeled the student as having a learning disability. The learner and the family were placed on an awareness program concerning the learning disability; the psychologist instructor explained that the action would ensure that the learner did not suffer from self-esteem and was tolerant to any form of stigmatization exposed to her due to the disability. Also, the students in the same program as the learner with the identified learning disability were introduced to the awareness program to lower the chances of peer rejection and stigmatization. In addition, instructors were also trained concerning the students’ issues to ensure that the learner was not exposed to low expectations or denied required assistance due to the condition.
Lastly, the student was placed in a Push-in Model. The model allowed the learner to receive special education services in a general education class and would be instructed in a class with peers who do not possess a learning disability. However, the general and special needs instructors would be required to work collaboratively to ensure that the learner received the required assistance to meet set academic goals.
Conclusions
The steps align with the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities (NJCLD), which emphasizes comprehensive assessment and evaluation of learners with learning disabilities by a multidisciplinary team to determine and diagnose learners with learning disabilities. According to NCLD, comprehensive assessment of individual learners must exploit multifold data sources such as observations, learner’s and teachers’ reports, parent observations, and others (LD, n.d.). In addition, the student must be exposed to diverse assessment criteria that are student-oriented to avoid misdiagnosis.
Screening, which was the second step in the procedure, protects the learner from existing misconceptions that may affect academic performance negatively. The process involves the identification of disability signs in a learner to determine whether there is a probability of a disability (Lombardi, 2021). To avoid misdiagnosis, these symptoms must be assessed against other factors such as vision and hearing and vision impairment and environmental and background issues. According to Hayes et al. (2018), not screened students are often labeled as lazy, less intelligent, less likely to succeed, and cursed. These beliefs affect the student’s capacity to receive health, lowers self-esteem, and may suffer from stigmatization by peers, instructors, among other community members. In contrast, students exposed to screening attain academic assistance for exceptional need learners and are likely to succeed more compared to non-screened individuals.
Additionally, labeling learners with learning special needs must be conducted along with an awareness program. According to Demetriou (2020), the practice protects learners from stigmatization, rejection by peers, and low self-esteem. Parents, students, and instructors understand the issue and facilitate the affected students’ learning. Labeling learners without an awareness program exposes them to the risks mentioned earlier. Based on a case study, learners labeled in absences of an awareness program perform poorly due to teachers and parents’ reduced academic expectations and peer rejection.
Further, Push in’s applied model is more convenient than the Pull-Out model. Whereas the former emphasizes teaching learnes with disabilities in a general education classroom with a special need instructor, the latter focus on separating learners with learning disabilities from fellow peers. According to Barton (2016), the Pull-Out model is often associated with low self-esteem and stigma. Also, a student’s performance is impacted by the sudden transition from general education to exceptional need learning. This research assessed the outcome of learners exposed to both models as part of an intervention to learning disability showed that more than 91% of learners in the Push-in model performed on average and above average in language arts compared to those in the Pull-Out approach where 67% attained similar results. Further, class attendance in the Push-In technique was higher than in the Pull-Out. The conclusion made from the behavior was that students were more comfortable attending general education classrooms, which boosted their social life and inclusion. Therefore, utilizing the Push-In model by the school psychologist will benefit the learner with a learning disability.
Generally, the psychological teacher conducted the testing in a step-wise approach. The steps included identifying a learning disability, screening, comprehensive evaluation, labeling, and an intervention to facilitate learning. The steps aligned to the NJCLD requirements. In addition, empirical research supports the psychological teacher’s approach such as screening, labeling, and Push-In learning technique.
References
Barton, K. (2016). Pull-out or push in? Impact on students with special needs social, emotional and academic success (master’s thesis). https://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1336&context=education_ETD_masters
Demetriou, K. (2020). Special educational needs categorisation systems: To be labelled or not? International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1080/1034912x.2020.1825641
Hayes, A. M., Dombrowski, E., Shefcyk, A. H., & Bulat, J. (2018). Learning Disabilities Screening and Evaluation Guide for Low- and Middle-Income Countries Research Triangle Park (NC): RTI Press; 2018 Apr. Copyright and Permissions. https://doi.org/10.3768/rtipress.2018.op.0052.1804
LD. (n.d.). Comprehensive assessment and evaluation of students with learning disabilities. LD OnLine: The world’s leading website on learning disabilities and ADHD. https://www.ldonline.org/article/54711/
Lombardi, P. (2021). Assessment. In The Roles and Responsibilities of the Special Educator. Granite State College. https://granite.pressbooks.pub/edu606-701/chapter/assessment/
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