Professional Documents
Culture Documents
CLASSROOM
A Qualitative Research
Of
Medalla, Jamie D.
Villanueva, Raven D.
January 2018
Chapter 1
Introduction
Down syndrome today is much different than it used to be, it has advance
in many ways. It has enabled children who are diagnosed with it to keep working
hard because they can achieve anything if they set their mind to it. Down
diagnosed can still go on to live happy contented lives. The researchers chose
this topic because as of today some people look that a person with Down
syndrome, do not have the capability or potential to study and learn. We want to
show that every child especially with this kind of case, we want to investigate
whether parents of children with Down syndrome are finding it difficult to provide
treasures you can give a child. Most children with Down syndrome can learn to
read, though, like all children, each has his or her own learning styles and needs.
Different techniques are more effective with some children than others. "This
means that each child can learn depending on their own abilities. Every learner
who has Down’s syndrome is unique. Individuals differ across all aspects of
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understand their current skills, abilities, strengths and interests and who can
teach them the next steps through engaging teaching and learning activities.
and schools. The positive attitude of the whole school is fundamental: schools
need a clear and sensitive policy on inclusion with committed and supportive
governments agreed on the Dakar Framework for Action, Education for All:
six wide-ranging education goals by 2015. UNESCO initiated the EFA Global
follow in 2015. Despite all efforts by governments, civil society and the
international community, the world has not achieved Education for All. It aims to
especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children, ensure that by
2015 all children, particularly girls, those in difficult circumstances, and those
compulsory primary education of good quality, ensure that the learning needs of
all young people and adults are met through equitable access to appropriate
2015, especially for women, and equitable access to basic and continuing
education for all adults, eliminate gender disparities in primary and secondary
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education by 2005, and achieve gender equality in education by 2015, with a
focus on ensuring girls' full and equal access to and achievement in basic
education of good quality, and improve all aspects of the quality of education and
outcomes are achieved by all, especially in literacy, numeracy and essential life
skills.
and research into improving the quality of life for people with Down syndrome is,
syndrome inside the classroom. Thus, the researcher would like to conduct an
interview with teachers in different schools that have sped students to get
knowledge and more relevant information about children with Down syndrome.
For the researchers to propose an action plan that giving concern to the children
The researchers aim to find out the ways of learning of children with Down
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2. What are the difficulties of teacher on teaching students with Down
syndrome?
3. What are the potential of the children with Down syndrome to learn
more when given the opportunity and appropriate support from teachers?
their skills. This only includes teachers of the sped students at Gaudencio B.
Lontok Memorial Integrated School and Senator Claro M. Recto. We choose this
school because we know that they can give the information needed by the
researcher.
The study’s target respondents are the teachers of the sped children
between the ages of 20 and 40. The researchers conducted a series of survey(s)
selected schools in Lipa City, Batangas. The researchers deeply believed that the
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SPED Teachers. They will be able to know and learn other teaching styles that
Parents. They will know what else they can do to improve their children’s
communicative skills.
Society. They will know how to handle their reactions especially when they see a
guide in making their research. Also, they could replicate this study to a different
set of respondents. And lastly, this could be a source of information for their
studies, especially those that concern to the children with Down syndrome
Chapter II
unpublished materials as well as studies conducted in the past that has some
bearing or similarity with the present study, which helped and guided the
synthesis.
Conceptual Literature
books, past studies and other resources, which were relevant to the present
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study. The first part contained the conceptual literature, which served as the
basis of the study's framework. The second part was the review of the studies
related which gave the researchers deeper insights and ideas about the studies.
Down syndrome
Named after John Langdon Down, the first physician to identify the syndrome,
implications and occurs in approximately one out of every eight hundred live
births (Roizen, 2007) in all races and economic groups. There are three types of
Translocation and Mosaic Down syndrome. In the case of Trisomy 21 there are
some cells which have three of chromosome 21 and others which have two
(Sherman et al., 2007). Characteristics which formed the basis of the diagnosis
of Down syndrome included the palmar crease on the hand, low muscle tone,
epicanthic folds on the eyes, a large gap between the big and the next toes, a
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small mouth in comparison to the tongue, and gold spots in the iris of the eye
syndrome. For this reason the following review focuses on research relating to
Given that collaboration with support staff and other colleagues’ facilities
support staff, and how they build and facilitate these relationships. Teachers who
range of strategies that they can implement to meet individual students' needs.
The language used to describe what changes are made differs, and includes
element however is the same and is built on a responsiveness to the needs of all
learners (Hoover & Patton, 2008). Ensuring curriculum is more engaging and
student and creating a community of learners who support and share in each
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(Tomlinson, 2003) involve teachers thinking about different ways lessons or tasks
can be presented which may meet the learners' needs in better ways.
Differentiation also takes into account the students' level of abilities, their interest
and their learning styles (Ferguson, 2001; Tomlinson, 2003). Teachers need to be
aware first of differentiation strategies, and second feel comfortable with using
them for students with disabilities with their classrooms. The current research
study contributes findings in this area. The decisions teachers make regarding
teaching a child with Down syndrome in their rates in the emotional, behavioral,
Bruil, & van Wouwe, 2011). Difficulties in social, attention and thought problems
challenges can build and assess realistic learning goals on an individual basis for
learners with Down syndrome which are relevant to their interests and learning
patterns.
helps provide learners with Down syndrome more optimal educational outcomes.
needs of learners with Down syndrome have been researched on a limited scale
with optimistic results (Buckley, 2008; Feeley & Jones, 2008). Interventions
associated with challenging behavior with children with Down syndrome need to
with Down syndrome. The area of social development when compared with their
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neuro developmental disorders is considered to be an identified area of strength
for children with Down syndrome (Davis, 2008). However, while children with
are not necessary held ( Guralnick, Connor, & Johnson, 2009). Combined with
this, social interactions and the pursuance of them may be at the disadvantage of
development for children with Down syndrome have been reported as high levels
Australia has shown that there are insufficient funds available for professional
development to up-skill teachers for working with students who have disabilities,
and also insufficient funds to cover teacher relief, travel and support (Shaddock
et al., 2007). For teachers working with children wth Down syndrome it is
children are included successfully within classrooms. Lewis and Norwich (2000)
investigated the pedagogy for children with learning difficulties, including children
with Down syndrome, and they concluded that what is successful for these
students, would in fact work for all students. Significant to the current research,
Lewis and Norwich suggested that teacher value pedagogies based on the
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recognition of individual learning needs which they called ‘unique differences’
(Lewis & Norwich, 2000). A similar study in the United Kingdom focuses on the
education (Corbett, 2001). Understanding that diversity exists not only within
approaches.
inclusive education. It has been argued that it is teachers themselves, and not
Keen, & Barrett, 2008). The recognition that teachers are critical to the success
teachers' experiences gives voice to the supports and challenges which enable
teachers to teach effectively. Literature has indicated the possibility that teachers
are not prepared enough for teaching in inclusive schools however, limited
research has been conducted in this area (Booth, Nes, & Stromstad, 2003;
Morton & Gordon, 2006). Additionally little has been reported on how well
teachers are prepared, or not, for having a student with Down syndrome in their
teaching children with Down syndrome, including what supports they have and
what challenges they face. Confusing pictures of how teachers feel about
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inclusive education generally are evident in the literature. For example, teachers'
attitudes appear to vary according to the type of disability of the child they are
teaching (de Boer, Pijl, & Minnaert, 2011). There is evidence that teachers hold
behavioral issues, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder but that teachers
are more receptive to the inclusion of children with mild disabilities, physical
consider are more complex needs (Avramidis & Norwich, 2002). Teachers have
effectively when teaching a child in their class with a disability, citing a reduced
capacity to tend to the whole class when focusing on a student with a disability in
their classrooms (Forlin, Keen, & Barrett, 2008). Furthermore, there is evidence
but would rather it was not them having to enact it in their classrooms (de Boer et
al., 2011). What is clear is that teachers are seen as key stakeholders in inclusive
With so little known about this area, it is necessary to ask teachers directly about
in their class, and how these experiences relate to the principles of inclusion.
This aim is further refined in the current research which specifically questions
how teachers experience teaching a child with Down syndrome in their general
education setting. Research indicates that teachers have very real practical
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concerns about inclusive education (Burke & Sutherland 2004; Scruggs &
classroom.
Research Literature
This part of the paper presented the related studies gathered from various
unpublished thesis.
school. Twenty one children aged 7-12 years with Down syndrome were
memory tasks was significantly enhanced for children in their intervention group.
This improvement was sustained four months later. These results suggest that
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Attentional difficulties, both at home and in the classrooms, are reported across a
of early literacy, and then extend the analysis to social behavior. Participant were
young children (aged 4-9 years at Time 1) with either Williams syndrome (WS,
N= 26) or Down syndrome (DS, N=26) and typically developing controls (n-103).
(ADHD) than children with DS, but both groups had greater attentional problems
than the controls. Despite their attention differences, children with DS and those
with WS were equivalent in their cognitive abilities of reading single words, both
at Time 1 and 12 months later, at Time 2, although they differed in the early
predicted poorer subsequent literacy for children woth DS, but not for children
of early development. Overall, our findings highlight the need to investigate more
domains.
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in oral language, but it has been suggested that this domain may benefit from
spoken word learning with seventeen children with Down syndrome aged seven
seven years matched for reading ability. Ten spoken no words were paired with
novel pictures; for half the no words the written form was also present. The
spoken word learning of both groups did not differ and benefited to the same
extent from the presence of the written word. This suggests that compared to
orthographic support.
Synthesis
strategies that teachers use to support students with disabilities include peer
that inclusion is time consuming, simplifying lessons slows the pace for other
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lack of awareness of what to do, and a lack of training and school support for
teachers (Westwood & Graham, 2003). These identified areas appear to indicate
that teachers need more assistance in order to better support children with
carrying out inclusive education are focused on a range of strategies that they
describe what changes are made differs, and includes terms such as
is the same and is built on a responsiveness to the needs of all learners (Hoover
& Patton, 2008). Ensuring curriculum is more engaging and meaningful to the
student is a key facet, as is personalizing learning for each student and creating
involve teachers thinking about different ways lessons or tasks can be presented
which may meet the learners’ needs in better ways. Differentiation also takes into
account the students’ level of abilities, their interests and their learning styles
differentiation strategies, and second feel comfortable with using them for
students with disabilities within their classrooms. What strategies teachers use,
and how they have come to know and use them with regards to teaching children
with Down syndrome in the early years of schooling, is not known. The current
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This part discussed the relevance of the previously reviewed literature with
regard to their similarities and difference to the present study. It also included the
diversity impacts positively on all the students in the class. Alton-Lee (2003)
effective and sufficient, multiple task contexts to support learning, and aligning
student, teaching approaches that promote learning orientations, and the need
combine to build the conceptual framework which guides the research. The
the researchers’ background has provided impetus for the research. A visual
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children with Down syndrome. A number of key links are evident in the
different ways on how children with Down syndrome, learn. How teachers
children with Down syndrome it was necessary to use variety of sources with
accessed what teachers said about how they teach each student with Down
syndrome, what was observed in classrooms, and their reflection about teaching
Theoretical Framework
Way of
Figure 1
Theoretical Framework
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Input Process Output
The
difficulties
of teacher
in teaching
students
with Down Ways of
syndrome. learning of
children
Potential of
with down
the children
syndrome
with Down
inside the
syndrome
Interview classroom
to learn
with the Survey Action to
support improve,
from their educationa
teacher l outcomes
for children
Ways of
with Down
developing
syndrome
intellectual
skills of the
children
with Down
syndrome
Figure 2
Research Paradigm
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