Learning Disabilities

1
Learning Disabilities Science Education A
tremendous mismatch
2
Importance of Science

• Science is pragmatically important
• Science is a major cornerstone of everyday life
  (McClerry, Tindal, 1999)
• Pre-college science education helps students to
  develop thinking problem-solving skills needed
  in life (Bybee DeBoer, 1994 Mastropieri
  Scruggs, 1992 Woodward, 1994)

3
Importance of Science (Cont.)

• Science education is required
• Stringent national academic curriculum
  standards govern science education in k-12
  schools in U.S.
• National Committee on Science Education
• National Assessment of Educational Progress
• National Academy of Sciences
• Legislation such as NCLB specifies that students
  must achieve solid understanding in classroom
  instruction of high-level scientific conceptual
  knowledge the methodology behind rigorous
  scientific inquiry reasoning

4
The Problem (Cont.)

• Butscience ed. fails students with LDs
• Among H.S. students, students with LDs score
  significantly lower on science tests
• One report by Donahoe Zigmond (1990) showed
  that 69 of students with LDs earned a grade of D
  or lower in 9th grade science
• Another report by Mastropieri et al (1997) found
  that 35 of students w/ LDs were unable to infer
  a general rule of physical science after
  observing many instances of the rule in action
• In contrast, 95 of general ed. students made
  this inference

5
The Problem (Cont.)

• This problem is also apparent in math
• Woodward and Baxter (1997) found that when
  students w/ LD were taught in general ed.
  settings w/ a math curriculum based on NCTM
  standards, they obtained minimal levels of
  achievement

6
Possible Reasons for Problems

• Gersten Baker (1998) assert that students w/
  LDs need to become fluent w/ essential factual
  conceptual knowledge before they are able to
  engage successfully in inquiry-based science
• Woodward Noell (1991) Mastropieri, Scruggs,
  Butcher (1997) suggest that students w/ LDs
  require significant coaching before they can
  engage productively in the reasoning needed for
  inquiry-based science activities

7
Helping students w/ LD to learn science

• Two phase study
• Part I will investigate the exact problems
  experienced by students w/ LDs in science
  instruction using
• qualitative ethnographic contextual observation
  methods involving students with various learning
  disabilities learning mathematics
• empirical controlled trials to determine the
  significance of each important factor from the
  qualitative observations
• Hyp 1 Specific, analyzable factors cause
  students with LDs to learn less in science than
  students without LDs

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• Part II will involve developing instructional
  technology and curricula that resolve the
  problems found in Part I testing the software
  on students using empirical controlled studies
• Hyp. 2 Students with LDs who use educational
  software that addresses their particular
  difficulties will learn more than students who do
  not use this software

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Participating Schools Classrooms

• The investigations will be conducted at several
  high schools and middle schools in
• State College, PA
• Pittsburgh, PA
• Morristown, NJ
• Students and classrooms for the studies will be
  randomly selected from varied backgrounds, levels
  of socio-economic status (SES), etc.