Class 6: Case Study Celebrations!
- A. Ferguson
- Jun 19, 2017
- 15 min read
There is so much to be celebrated after learning about everyone's successes and lessons learned during the case study process. What was amazing was the progress the chosen students made in such a short amount of time. I worked with my daughter for my case study and the feelings of accomplishment and pride by her, as well as myself in the role of both teacher and mom was incredible. I can only imagine how the parents of these students felt to see such progress. It is truly amazing how much technology can accomplish, when matched correctly with users. I firmly believe all staff should be taught how to use some key programs.
Below are snapshots from each presenter I had the privilege of listening to during our last class. It is my hope that educators who may peruse my blog may find some insight and answers for their struggling students. As I listened to each case study, I could visualize one of my own previous students. Now I have some suggestions to try based on the information presented below for my future learners. Sharing is invaluable in our profession. I hope these case studies help, even if it is just one student...although I suspect many will benefit from the amazing work of my classmates!
**While I was trying to take note of all the valuable information during each presentation, I sincerely hope I did not make any mistakes in any of the information presented below.
Presenter: Christine
Case Study Subject: Female student in grade 3
Pertinent Information:
She has a strong personality, confidence, good reading and fluency skills, and great verbal skills. She struggles to regulate her emotions, has difficulty with fine motor skills, and struggle with organization, all leading her to be negative about her abilities.
Focus of Case Study:
To find out what she knows about grammar, adding detail, sentence structure and punctuation.
A.T. used:
Google Docs and STT for writing
Results/Take Away:
STT showed great results. Without it, she was able to write two lines of a story, and now, a whole paragraph. She was smiling the whole time and was able to pick out missing capitals that the STT program did not pick up for her. Her vocabulary was very expressive! Was aggravated at times when using during class as her classmates would distract her. A great A.T. tool for the student, and Christine has recommended it be used in grade 4. Always important for teachers to pass important information along. Hopefully her new teachers will know how to use this A.T.!
Presenter: Amanda
Case Study Subject: 17 year old female
Pertinent Information:
She transferred to Amanda’s school halfway through the school year from the Acadian School Board. Her first language is French. She is polite, courteous, and friendly and she takes feedback well. She wants to do well in school. She needs adaptations for extra time to complete assignments, her binder lacks organization, math is difficult, as is the writing process. She has daily access to a chromebook. A writing sample demonstrated writing, grammar and spelling difficulties.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if STT will help improve the writing process
A.T. used:
R&W for Google-STT
Results/Take Away:
STT showed increased vocabulary and more written text. She was able to get her thoughts out more quickly and it was easier for her to express her ideas this way. Since she struggles with multi-steps, she may need more practice with the program. Although she liked the STT, she was not comfortable using this in a school environment. She is happy to use it at home. Amanda posed an important question that I think many of us have or will face, especially with regards to using A.T.: “How can we make students feel more comfortable using AT in school”? Many students do not want to stand out, but I think the earlier students have access to necessary A.T., the more comfortable they will be using it when they are older. Also, if using a true UDL approach, this should not be as much of a concern for students. Amanda will be teaching her next year and will continue to use STT with her. Best of luck with continued and increased successes!
Presenter: Katie G.
Case Study Subject: Male student in grade 4
Pertinent Information:
He is from Argentina and Spanish is his first language. He is cooperative, helpful, and artistic and his readings skills are slightly above grade level. He is a great oral communicator, very social and he loves computers. His comprehension of what he reads is weak, as is his handwriting, written expression and spelling. Katie works with him as his EAL teacher and supports him mainly in writing workshops. He has had some resource support. A writing sample of a mystery story showed minimal detail. Writing makes him anxious and frustrated.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if STT will help improve the writing process
A.T. used:
R&W for Google-STT
Results/Take Away:
He re-wrote his mystery story using STT and word prediction. He was also provided a task list from the teacher so he could keep track of expectations. Although he didn’t need to use STT the whole time, word prediction was important to him increasing his detail and descriptive writing skills! He could revise and edit using R&W tools. His parents may buy him a chromebook for next year. Katie was very impressed with his results and is recommending he be given digitized text and a translator for next school year. The importance of transitions meetings are heightened, especially for students needing A.T. supports.
Presenter: Kareen
Case Study Subject: Female student in grade 11
Pertinent Information:
She is quiet, free-spirited, thoughtful, eager to please and comes from a supportive family. She is cognitively capable and is receptive to advice. She has a great vocabulary, is a rule follower and self advocates. She has challenges with being easily discouraged, class participation, long-term focus, and she spends much of her time with Kareen in the resource room. She always wants to know the point of completing activities and she needs extra time to process. Her comprehension is compromised when she has to listen as opposed to read. She was diagnosed with anxiety.
Focus of Case Study:
To help student plan & complete a camping project for her Math 11 class (supporting communication and language skills)
A.T. used:
Adobe Spark
Results/Take Away:
The student was able to figure out how to use Adobe Spark on her own. It is a presentation program similar to the purpose of power point, but she can add topic specific pictures very easily and she had fun with it by showing her humour in the presentation. I was unaware of this program before today, but I think it sounds similar to Haiku Deck, which I love, so I will definitely look more into this. Kareen also recommended egenda as a next step. It is a way for students to keep track of their classes, assignments, job, etc. Sounds like a great way to help those with organizational difficulties!
Kareen also talked about another student, a male, who she worked with. He is a grade 11 student who has a hearing impairment and who has suffered some sports-related concussions. He has a great sense of humour, doesn’t do work at home, and loves to talk and debate. He does not use any technology…which I found fascinating for this day and age! Kareen wanted to introduce him to Voice Typing and embraced the technology with Kareen’s help.
Kareen learned during both of these processes to try not and introduce new A.T. during high-stakes assignments. Practicing them and becoming comfortable during regular in-class work may be of more benefit. I can see Kareen’s point. On top of completing an important project, learning a new A.T. could add to one’s anxiety. This is an important reminder for teachers!
Presenter: Teresa
Case Study Subject: Male student in grade 5 (her nephew)
Pertinent Information:
He is a bright, involved and an athletic 11 year old. To get a full picture of his strengths and challenges, Teresa interviewed him and his parents, as well as reviewed any documents his parents had at home. He has had minimal interventions in the past, but his parents have some concerns regarding his printing (really big) and his written output. He has access to technology.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if his pencil grip can be improved by trying various low-tech grips & to see if his written expression would improve by using R&W STT.
A.T. used:
Low-tech pencil grips and R&W for Google-STT
Results/Take Away:
STT did not work well for the student, as he does not have great articulation. She then tried word prediction while James typed. During a post interview, he indicated he like word prediction, as it was fun and helpful. It showed because his story ended up being 6 paragraphs long!
As for the pencil grip concern, Teresa felt that he would need a referral to OT. The grips she tried with him did not result in an immediate fix.
Teresa’s case study was important as it showed some trial and error to find out what worked best for him. It goes to show how important it is to match up the correct A.T. with each student. I hope he can get his OT referral!
Presenter: Cathy
Case Study Subject: Student A (grade 12)/Student B (grade 12)
Pertinent Information:
Student A has excellent social skills; reads people well and can be manipulative with his learned helplessness. Additionally, he has great oral testing skills. He has a LD, low comprehension, although he doesn’t think he does. There were attendance issues up until grade 9, but once he was able to pick subjects he was interested in, he started attending more. (There is something to be said for choice!) He is athletic.
Student B loves hands-on learning and wants to be a mechanic. His visual and auditory processing is average. He had same attendance concerns as Student A, but better now. His reasoning and cognitive processing skills are below average.
Focus of Case Study:
Cathy wants to help to prepare them for NSCC as she knows the same supports will not be offered there. They need to be able to use programs that will help them communicate ideas and knowledge. She is their resource teacher.
A.T. used:
R&W for Google-STT
Results/Take Away:
Student B was not as interested in STT, so Cathy focused her presentation on the results of Student A. Student A took 50 minutes to write 4 lines on his own. With STT, he wrote 4 times as much in 5 minutes! Wow! I like how Cathy stood her ground with them and got them to work with the technology. As she pointed out, and we as teachers know all too well, there is not enough time to read everything to students or scribe for them, especially if there is A.T. available to aid in this process. I also liked how Cathy is going to push her staff to create documents so they are compatible with A.T.! The more teachers on board, the more students will succeed. (Even though Student B did not make out so well with this A.T., Cathy does want to find out whyJ)
Presenter: Damion
Case Study Subject: Male student in grade 8
Pertinent Information:
He is very capable. He could have skipped a grade, but socially he was not ready. His brain works faster than his pencil and his writing is very messy. He likes to debate and often uses an iPad. He is color-blind. His spelling is weak, but has a large vocabulary. He is uncomfortable using technology as he thinks it makes him look weak, or that students will think he is ‘googling’ the answers. His parents are involved, but reluctant to let him replace the process of writing with A.T. Also, the student does not care about spelling and grammar in Damion’s Social Studies class because he knows it is not an outcome be can be marked on. Damion wants to instil the importance of proper communication skills at all times. Agreed!!
Focus of Case Study:
To see if STT will help improve the writing process
A.T. used:
Notes
Results/Take Away:
In a pre-writing sample, it took him 30 minutes to write one sentence. It was messy, making it hard to read. He then used Notes (with white on black to compensate for colorblind issues). He was able to complete the same task, but this time in 2 minutes. He still did not care about grammar, though. Damion has got the parents to agree to let their child use Notes as long as he handwrites it out afterwards…while other students are finishing their work. He tends to finish before all others. This is tough and I can identify with Damion’s struggle! I also teach Social Studies and it can be tricky to have students take the writing process seriously. If I teach them ELA as well, I usually attach the writing outcome to their Social Studies assignments, or I will ask their ELA teacher if I can give them a conventions grade and then forward those to her. It usually works out well!
Presenter: Sue
Case Study Subject: Female aged 7 and her daughter
Pertinent Information:
She is a grade 2 student who is very social, friendly and willing to help. She can get frustrated easily and has difficulty taking responsibility for her actions. She has the wrong pencil grip and has challenges with her written expression. In the past, she has had early literacy intervention and resource for writing. Her writing sample showed repetitive word usage and concerns with spelling and use of capitals. Writing causes her frustration.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if STT will help improve the writing process
A.T. used:
Siri-STT
Results/Take Away:
Sue analysed her daughter's writing by comparing it to a level 3 (grade level) writing sample from the Nova Scotia grade two assessments. I like how she analyzed her writing with the following categories: reasoning, communication, organization and conventions. This is a great way to break down her strengths and areas of need. Sue wanted to use STT with Siri to focus on her being able to communicate content and ideas. She was excited to use it. She had a great finished piece on her trip to PEI. It showed her ideas and organization clearly—and we did not see this in her initial written piece. Sue also asked her daughter her thoughts at the end, which I think is valuable for how to move forward. After all, students are the ones who know themselves best.
Presenter: Katie R
Case Study Subject: Male student in grade 10
Pertinent Information:
The student tends to rush through his work and does not like to work independently. Katie is his Career Access Teacher and will work with him through to grade 12. His printed font is varying sizes. Written tasks are problematic and spelling is a barrier for him. He does not like new experiences and it is hard to break his routine. He likes video games, and a free-write on ARC showed his writing is similar to that of a grade 2’s. His writing lacks detail, grammar and punctuation.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if STT on R&W & word prediction on co-write will help improve the writing process
A.T. used:
R&W for Google-STT, word prediction on co-write and STT on Pages
Results/Take Away:
When using R&W, he did not make use of word prediction, but he did on Pages. He was a bit more organized here. Word prediction on co-write showed more detail, but he did not edit for grammar. When he used Talk & Type on R&W, there was less writing, but his ideas were clearer. Katie helped him to write a cover letter. Beforehand, he used an exemplar to organize his ideas so he would know what to say in the STT technology. This helped. When reading about STT technology, it was very important students be prepared for what they want to say ahead of time. This seemed to work very well for him and his cover page looked great! A great real-world application for A.T. Good luck on the job hunt :)
Presenter: Sarah
Case Study Subject: Male student in grade 8
Pertinent Information:
The student is adopted and has very supportive parents. He has a LD in language. He loves basketball, cooking and Xbox. He loves to help out. He can get frustrated easily. He is bright, but lacks confidence and is disorganized. He has low self-regulation and attention, and is not confident in his abilities. He needs graphic organizers and one-on-one help to start and complete work. In the past he has had reading recovery, guidance sessions for emotional concerns and Oxford Learning support. He is on an IPP for all subjects. Sarah is his resource teacher.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if STT will help improve the writing process
A.T. used:
R&W for Google-STT—changed to word prediction partway through case study
Results/Take Away:
Sarah decided to try STT to help her student write a fairy tale, with a moral at the end. Prior to this, his routine would be to get started on work, with minimal effort, lose it, and then he’d have to start again. There was no commitment to task. She thought STT would help with his spelling, illegibility and minimalist ways. However; he spoke too slow for STT and the school’s Wi-Fi may have slowed down the typing part of the process. This left him frustrated. He just wanted to type it himself, so Sarah set up word prediction—this was much better for him! The more he used word prediction, the better his word choice ways. He liked R&W word prediction so much; he shared it with his friends. This is the real seal of approval! Unfortunately, he was denied A.T. Hopefully after this case study, there will be more evidence supporting his application!
Presenter: Jolene
Case Study Subject: MacKenzie* (grade 10 female)
Pertinent Information:
MacKenzie attends a school for those with LDs, among other learning concerns. In earlier grades, she took on leadership roles, was reading at the top of her reading remediation class with Jolene, had strong organizational skills, and was developing socially. Since 2011, MacKenzie has regressed in everything, for no apparent reason. She pulled away from friends and wanted to spend time with either older or younger people. She has debilitating anxiety and only attends two classes out of five each day—where she usually colors pictures to clam herself. She regularly sees a psychologist, and her parents are very involved and supportive. Everyone, including the school, is at a loss as to how to help MacKenzie. Even her pshyc. ed. tests show major discrepancies, making it difficult to put the appropriate adaptations and supports into place.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if one-on-one work with someone familiar to MacKenzie will help her produce some work
A.T. used:
Jolene had a variety of AT she wanted to try, including TumbleBook, Could Jr, R&W, BookCreator, Inspiration and CloudArt.
Results/Take Away:
Jolene volunteered her time for this case study to work with MacKenzie. She knew her from her elementary years and wanted to see if anything she learned in her A.T. would help MacKenzie. It was easy to tell how much Jolene cared for her and truly wanted to see her succeed. Many of the things Jolene wanted to try with MacKenzie did not work. For instance, she did not like using headphones, so TumbleBook did not work. She did not like STT or word prediction in R&W ands she found CloudArt too chaotic. Jolene thought MacKenzie could use BookCreator to make a project on LD—something that MacKenzie would be very familiar with. She would only insert pictures and would not type out any words. Seeing as she wasn’t getting very far with this topic, Jolene offered a topic change. MacKenzie welcomed this and chose ‘lipsense’. Not only did she add in pictures, she also used word completion on the iPad to add in text! I think Jolene felt a bit discouraged that this case study did not yield more positive results, but gains were made. There was trial and error and in the end MacKenzie did produce a project with words. This sounds like more than she has done in quite some time. Small steps can lead to big steps. I hope MacKenzie continues to have caring and invested individuals work with her to overcome her anxieties.
*MacKenzie is a name that was used for privacy
Presenter: Alison R.
Case Study Subject: K, a 9 year old male in grade 4
Pertinent Information:
At age 4, his psych ed assessment diagnosed him with a non-verbal learning disorder and ADHD. He is currently on an IPP for Math and social. Next year, he will be on one for ELA. He also has anxiety. K’s parents are very supportive and while he is generally well liked, he has not solid peer group. K has poor coordination and does not cope well with changes to his routine. He does not follow multi-step instructions and has sensory sensitivities. Written work shows spelling mistakes, but would rather hand-write than type. He won’t usually show signs on anxiety at school, but will at home.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if STT will help improve the writing process
A.T. used:
GAFE and R&W-STT
Results/Take-Away:
K enjoyed R&W most times. He did a project on the Mi’kmaq and a Google Slide presentation on the Seal Island Bridge. He still struggles with conventions and will copy and paste information, but he is getting more work completed. Outlines and checklists help support the process. K’s mom was hesitant to allow him to use A.T., but it does seem to be working for him. Hopefully with further gains, his mom will see the value of A.T.! After all, K was not anxious about using A.T. and his word choice did improve!
Presenter: Nick
Case Study Subject: Male Student in grade 5
Pertinent Information:
The student is a quiet boy who can get lost in the day-to-day. He has good oral language and is talkative, but struggles to get his ideas on paper. He wants to do his best, though. Over the years, he has had SLP support and used Seeing Stars and Earobics. He has some anger issues and low self-esteem. Organization is a challenge for him, as is verbal memory. He has an LD in reading, writing and math. He likes skating, video games and music. Initial focus in the past had him using ClaroPDF and ReadIris. There was little follow through. Nick used the WATI Assessment to see what Austin needed to succeed in school.
Focus of Case Study:
To see if STT will help improve the writing process
A.T. used:
GAFE STT
Results/Take Away:
His writing sample did not show his true ability. He did not take risks in ideas or vocabulary. He used STT to create a project on how to make French toast. They started with a graphic organizer. It was nice to see this was part of the beginning steps so he could organize these thoughts before communicating his ideas. With STT, the student was able to write out more ideas. Additionally, the fact that he was not using the A.T. that was introduced to him in grade 3 only further supports the idea that students must be monitored to be sure they are using the A.T. correctly and/or to see if it is in fact the correct A.T. for that child. As a child grows, the A.T. they may need may change.
Presenter: Alison MD
Case Study Subject: Male student in grade 4
Pertinent Information:
The student loves technology. He uses an iPad. He has a global cognitive delay along with a speech impairment and works with an Educational Assistant. He advocates for himself and uses PECS with success. He is at reading level A and can be inattentive. Auditory memory is a barrier. He can be quite difficult to understand if you do not know him. Alison took time to discuss her student's needs with his teachers before making an informed A.T. decision!
Focus of Case Study:
To build his vocabulary using the R&W picture dictionary function
A.T. used:
R&W Picture Dictionary
Results/Take Away:
Alison gave him a choice of environments to work in. He chose the computer lab. It was nice he was given choice, as it may have increased his comfort level. Alison created sentences outlining what they would be doing together by using the picture dictionary function. This was neat! She did not end up using it, but Alison said it reminded her to always use short and simple sentences when communicating with him. Alison worked with him for three days and she provided successes and struggles for each day. A great break down! Liam was able to work towards highlighting words to create pictures. I liked the quotes at the end of the presentation. A nice way to end the day :)
Some more inspiration for using A.T. in your classes!
Comments