Critique of "Engaging Students with Disabilities" by Kirsten R. Brown and Ellen M.
Broido
1.0 Introduction
Special education is a discipline that involves ensuring that students who have learning
difficulties in school receive professional teaching interventions. Therefore, the fundamental
concept of special education is that every child, whether normal or a bit challenged, should be
given the chance to learn in an environment that allows him/her to learn effectively. In late
decades, much attention has been paid to the policy to universal education of disabled students,
which means integration of disabled students into ordinary schools and acceptance of diverse
learners by all students.
The strategies as to how to include students with disabilities into the class are described in
the article of Kirsten R. Brown and Ellen M. Broido titled “Engaging Students with Disabilities”.
In the article available in [insert publication information], the authors focus on analyzing the role
of student engagement in enhancing performance as well the wellbeing of the learners. Here,
Brown and Broido discuss different strategies that can be useful for classroom teachers in
establishing positive learning environment that encourages students with disabilities, and
different practices of effective interaction with them.
The purpose of this paper will be to provide a critique of the article “Engaging Students with
Disabilities” by Kirsten R. Brown, Ellen M. Broido and how it broken down different strategies
that engage the students with disabilities and its relevance in settings for special education.
Therefore, the strengths and weaknesses of the article will be discussed by a critical analysis of
the contribution of this article in the existing literature as well as the possible implications on the
special education policy and practice.
2.0 Summary of the Article
The article titled “Engaging Students with Disabilities” by Kirsten R. Brown, and Ellen M.
Broido propose fascinating information about the recipie of student engagement through the lens
of special education. Having pinpointed the concept of student engagement as complex, the
authors proceed to a literature review aimed at investigating the key multi-dimensionality of the
construct that plays a pivotal role in students’ academic outcomes as well as socio-emotional
development for students with disabilities. Based upon a wide range of literature consisting of
scholarly articles, empirical studies, and professional literature, Brown and Broido effectively
scrutinized several approaches and treatments for promoting increased student disability
engagement in class.
Closely related to this topic is the understanding of the extensiveness with which students’
involvement impacts success in education. Brown and Broido emphasize that students are the
key to their increased motivation, perseverance, and active contributions to the learning process,
which ultimately would increase achievement and enhance the concept of wellness. Furthermore,
the authors highlight that students with disabilities are at significant risk for experiencing low
levels of CBI [constructivism-based instruction], and meaningful participation, with educators
being in a critical position to provide targeted intervention and instruction and to lead the
intervention.
To make the narration more engaging, Brown and Broido base their account on the findings
of the vast special education literature that remains relevant in the present day context. These
strategies incorporate a wide spectrum of implementation including differentiation, adopting
multisensory learning hand, peer-based interventions and support of assistive technology. Thus,
addressing the differences in students with disabilities and their individual needs related to
instructional/teaching approaches and support services can enhance the creation of the learning
environments that embrace and empower all the individuals.
However, apart from presenting the specific ideas for the improvement of students’ practice,
the article gives the reader the idea of the potential positive impact of engagement of students
with disabilities. Brown and Broido are apt to stress the emancipative features of the inclusive
education in the framework of social justice, equity and diversity within specific schooling
systems. Through promoting learning activities and surfaces and adopting diverse and
differential practices, such as encouraging all the learners to participate, educators can create
learning environments that are welcoming and conducive for the disabled learners thus
enhancing the academic achievement of the learners with disabilities.
3.0 Critique of the Article
The article under the title of “Engaging Student with Disabilities” offers a rich analysis of
strategies applied to engage students in special education context. Analyzing the study by Kirsten
R. Brown and Ellen M. Broido, one should acknowledge that the authors provide extensive
information on the topic and the factors for improving students’ experiences and include
practical recommendations, but it is possible to identify several advantages and limitations that
are worth considering.
3.1 Strengths:
This review considers the most important strength of the article in the special attention to the
literature review concerning the student engagement in special context. While Brown and Broido
focus on critical reviews of empirical studies and relevant theoretical models and synthetic
literature, they present a comprehensive and balanced understanding of the current state of
knowledge. This is shown by the fact that the authors of this study have given an extensive
review of the literature, get to the root of the area of study and how they are able to pull evidence
together from various sources. Thus, with the help of integrating findings from multiple studies,
the authors are able to emphasize the significance of student engagement as the factor
influencing students’ success and personal-social functioning in education among students with
disabilities.
The further use of evidence-based strategies is a major strength of the article under analysis
as well several major advantages can be identified in the article under analysis. Brown and
Broido have outlined key recommendations that educators can use to foster learning and
participation of special learners: diverse teaching methods for instruction, use of multi-sensory
learning approaches, and peer Augmentative and Alternative Communication methods. These
strategies are not only evidence-based, but they are also described in a basic language and with
considerations that allow practitioners to easily implement them. Concrete examples and specific
steps, presented to the reader by the authors, enable the teacher to create a welcoming
environment that positively impacts students with disability.
In the same respect, the article stresses the importance of social justice as inclusive education
brings about the change of injustices in the educational systems. Similar to Brown and Broido,
inclusive pedagogy in classroom practices, which aims at seeking ways to increase student’s
learning abilities by including all students regardless of their learning disabilities. Holding that
learning disability related difficulties can be mitigated through better support from teachers and
parents, and that developing supportive learning environments is a priority of education systems,
the authors articulate for progressive changes that can positively impact students with disability
and other marginalized students. The emphasis of pursuing principles of social justice and equity
is also justified given the cardinal societal vision that espouses equality in all facets of life.
3.2 Weaknesses:
Despite its numerous strong points, the article can be considered to have certain limitations
that are worth pointing out. One obvious limitation is the restricted emphasis on pragmatic
methods for encouraging the learner’s participation, and thus the proposed approach may not
consider institutional factors affecting students with disabilities. Despite outlining contemporary
trends and approaches to implementing classroom practices and instructional teaching strategies,
the authors do not give adequate space for addressing the contextual factors that strongly impede
full participation and academic achievement of students with disabilities in learning institutions.
A more rounded appraisal that encompasses not only micro-level matters of instruction and
assessment but also such macro-level factors as the culture and structure of the education system
would offer a more accurate picture of the difficulties that learners with disabilities encounter
while engaging in education.
Furthermore, the article may also have likely been subjected to some degree of bias or
assumptions that may be associated with the criteria used in embracing the research literature.
These sources are by Brown and Broido and all the citations are mainly from academic journal
articles and other professional literature focusing on specific learning disability, thus may
contain some bias or prejudices of the disciplinary backgrounds of their authors. In turn, the
article may exclude some of the valuable opinion or approach that would help to broaden the
existing conversation about the effective approach to engaging students and supporting inclusion.
If the theory of student engagement and disability in education is expanded and the ideas are
sourced from various academic disciplines including sociology, psychology, and critical
disability studies, the intricacies of the issues could be better addressed.
Moreover, there is a practical conclusion of steps educators should take to improve teacher
quality, but there is only a small part of the discussion that acknowledges the difficulties of
applying these strategies in an education system. Brown and Broido mention the factor of the
professional development of teachers briefly in which they embraced the idea of teacher training
for the provision of support to the enrolment of the inclusive practices but fail to expound on the
issues or difficulties that a teacher is likely to come across in the process of embracing
integration of the best strategies towards enrolling the necessary changes. More specific
consideration of the application of the suggested recommendations and discussion of potential
difficulties in that process when discussing student engagement in various contexts of education
would contribute to the increased practical utility and relevance of the article for practitioners
and educators.
3.3 The evaluation of the Article’s Influence on Practices and Practices of Special
Education
The article “Engaging Students with Disabilities” has the capacity to shape or argue about
Special Education policy and Special Education practice through providing the justification of
student engagement as one of the significant variables to influence the academic achievements of
students with disabilities. In light of the present practices that this article discourages, it promotes
the use of reasonable measures, such practices as prayers, which will enhance the learning and
participation of all the students. This focus is in line with modern approaches to educational
policies, which raise the issue of integrating learners with disabilities into mainstream
classrooms in order to develop fair learning environments for students with disabilities.
Nonetheless there may be more pro-active measures to be taken to shift policy and practice
as suggested by this article that may have enrolment and completion rates of students with
disability in mind and address a range of systemic issues and structural barriers within tertiary
education institutions. It is important that the policymakers and educational leaders get a more
explicit idea concerning the differential interventions that are required in the classrooms, as well
as the systemic changes required for the support of the inclusive schooling appropriately. Thus,
while enlarging the gap between micro practices and macro policies, the article might offer more
practical implications to those policymakers who are in a search of better ways to make
education for disabled students more equitable.
To further expand on these points, the article could include discussions on the following
Challenges namely: Overcoming Institutional Discrimination and ameliorating Structural
Racism. Leaving an important area of the article unattended, this is the need to address structural
discrimination and systems of oppression regarding students with disability. As the authors
briefly discuss instructional strategies used on students with disabilities, they do not explore
details on social, economic and institutional issues that may hinder or promote students with
such disability to engage themselves in class and excel. Such potential factors may touch upon
the problems of school financing, availability of necessary materials and equipment’s, and the
view of the community towards the disabled individuals. Thus, by including such issues into the
article, it could provide a wider and potentially clearer picture of the difficulties faced by
disabled students and ideas for improvement on policies and practices could be sound. For
instance, funding disparities may require addressing the lack of funding for increasing the
recruitment of teachers for students with a disability. Likewise, changing the cultures on
disability within society may entail the adoption of measures that seek to educate the public of
disability issues among the educators, students and the entire public.
3.4 Integrating Interdisciplinary Perspectives
It may have also been useful for the author to incorporate more recommendations from
multiple disciplines to inform the readers of the subject in a more encompassing way including
student engagement and disability in education. The authors refer to a vast array of literature that
exists within the field of special education however, literature from related disciplines such as
sociology, psychology as well as critical disability studies are left unexplored. These fields can
provide different angles on the social and psychological components of students with disability
and how they participate in education that are beyond what conventional classroom structuralism
would present. For instance, implementation of psychology perspectives may assist in
understanding of the analytic and affective mechanisms driving student engagement, while
sociological perspectives may assist in understanding contextual factors, culture and social
relations affecting students with disabilities. Had the authors seized the opportunity and adopted
a framework from another field, then they could have enriched their content, meaning that their
recommendations for practice and policy would be broader.
3.5 Exploring the Implementation Barriers.
On the same note, the article gives actual suggestions that educators can apply when teaching
their students but it lacks deeper analysis of the issues that may be inherent in the realization of
these strategies in educational processes. Teachers across schools and classrooms reported a
variety of implementation challenges and barriers to implementing the approach including time
pressures, staff being overly busy, and resistance from faculty or principals to the change.
The article might have offered more pragmatic and realistic recommendations on how to get
round some of these hurdles by paying more attention to how these implementation challenges
manifest themselves. For instance, the authors could describe practices on how to avoid or
address implementation challenges, establish specific professional development, enhance unity
and coalition among educators, and engage in policy advocacy for the supportive policies and
procedures at the school district level. Furthermore, the authors can describe examples of
implementation that will draw reference from actual operating environments in education, to
increase effectiveness, and create an inspiring vision for teachers.
”Engaging Students with Disabilities” by Kirsten R. Brown and Ellen M. Broido is a useful
contribution to the series of articles devoted to the topic of students with disabilities and their
development This paper describes the significance of student engagement and offers a number of
useful strategies meant to help students with disabilities become more engaged in classroom
activities. The strong points of the article include a comprehensive synthesis of the literature on
the subject, the focus on research-based recommendations, and the call to implement the findings
of the research to support the education of students with LD and promote social justice and
equality.
The article could be enriched by considerations of broader system factors and systematic
predispositions, cross-disciplinary views, and the discussion of the applicative opportunities and
the difficulties and the obstacles that will be encountered should the above mentioned concepts
be implemented in the practice of education. To a greater extent the authors could help the
intended users of the study — educators, policymakers, and practitioners — by offering practical
suggestions on how to improve educational outcomes for learners with disabilities following a
broader and more balanced view.
3.0 Comparison with Other Research Works
A number of research articles and papers have been published to help teachers and educators
manage the integration of disabled learners in schools. For example, the study by McLeskey &
Waldron (2011) involving inclusive education indicates that differentiation and teacher teaming
are pivotal factors playing a significant influence on the students. Likewise, Wehmeyer and
Schwartz (1998) state that fostering self-determination and choice increases students with
disabilities’ participation and, therefore, academic performance.
This position makes Brown & Broido’s article congruent with those works by appealing for
‘mainstreaming’ and calling for effective research-based approaches with regards to students’
involvement. His focus on identifying the needs of students with disabilities and providing
differentiated instruction also conforms to the earlier studies that highlight the importance of
individualized and flexible approaches to teaching learners with specific difficulties.
To be more specific, the major theme, which can be found in most of the reviewed articles is
cultivations of inclusiveness and precursor and effective instructional methods while focusing on
practical approach and being enriched with lots of examples and references, Brown and Broido’s
article is most valuable in offering comprehensive literature review of the issue. Unlike other
works that focus on the discursive level or present only the hypothetical recommendations
regarding teaching diverse students, Brown and Broido give clear examples and practical
recommendations that can be introduced into the classroom practice.
There is an observable emphasis on individual experiences over the systematic and
systematic injustices endured by indigenous people. Some of the other works include Hehir
(2002) which explores the systemic disparities that affect the schooling process of the students
with a disability Artiles (2003) elaborate on how institutional barriers affect the students with the
disability. The incorporation of these wider viewpoints could add to the possible reasons for
decreased students’ participation in special education known from Brown-Broido’s article.
4.0 Research Gap
Although this article brings useful tips on how one can approach the students with disabilities
and how to include them, the article also found areas that need more studies to be conducted.
Hence, further research with a combination of different approaches investigating the
relationships between student engagement and disability and regarding equity for students with
disabilities is warranted. Moreover, it is necessary to conduct more studies that explore the
access and implementation difficulties that educators experience in the context of inclusive
teaching practices as well as the best approaches to fostering enhanced teacher learning and
professional development.
5.0 Personal Reflection on the Writer’s Point of View and the Usage of Personal Narratives
Among the perspectives studied throughout the course, the views presented by Brown
and Broido have a special significance for me, because I have academic experience working as a
special education teacher and I constantly observe many phenomena mentioned by the authors in
the classrooms. The focus on teaching instructional approaches that address individual learning
style is consistent with successful practices used to teach students with learning disabilities. The
article justifies the need for the design of suitable and encourages learning conditions for any
learner in any classroom.
The article has enlightened me on the need for students with specific disability to engage
in any course in order to excel. It has also outlined real life approaches and measures I can
embrace in my classroom to foster the involvement of students with disability to the class.
Moreover, incorporating the idea of professional learning communities and continuous
professional development of teachers as the means to promote better understanding and
enhancement of the inclusive approaches to the teaching learning process and supporting
students with disabilities’ needs.
As for future research directions, I am keen on examining the ecological context and
systems levels influencing student disability, as well as the experiences and outcomes of students
with disabilities. In this regard, through learning about these challenges, I am better placed to
support policies and practices that ensure that education needs for every individual are
adequately met. Moreover, to practice throughout the remaining of my tenure and beyond, I will
regularly read literature and update myself with research based best practice on teaching for and
with learners with disabilities.
6.0 Conclusion
The article “Engaging Students with Disabilities” by Kirsten R. Brown and Ellen M. Broido
offer an excellent overview of the potential intervention procedures that distinguish engagement
for students in special education. The authors emphasized the factors that foster student
engagement for academic success and social studies development in students with disabling
condition; and proffer instructional strategies for effective student engagement for such students.
In sum, the article is a useful and informative piece for the special education community
presenting empirically informed and classroom implementations for students’ engagement. It is
not entirely perfect, though since, for example, it only focuses on the classroom level and refers
to the problem rather briefly, mentioning possible systemic aspects only in passing Nevertheless,
for all its flaws, it is a good handbook for educators who want to address the LGBTQIA+
populations’ needs.
A wider perspective should be adopted in future research, and it is necessary to use theories
not only from the field of deficits but also from such fields as business administration,
psychology, social sciences, and public health to understand the phenomenon of student
engagement and disability in education. At last, the further research should also pay attention to
the enacting of the problematic of the practical application of the effective models of the
inclusive education for learning difficulties and child and educators’ barriers, to the identification
of the most effective type of the professional development model that could enhance the
application of the proposed measures among teachers.
