Teaching for Exceptionalities

2. Spend a total of 15 hours, approximately 7.5 hours in two different grade levels. Each setting needs to serve students with mild to moderate disabilities.

2. During your initial observations of the student, take note of which modalities are strongest for the student (auditory, visual, kinesthetic, etc.). Also, note the curricular areas in which the student exhibits strengths and weaknesses.

2. Obtain a lesson plan that has been written by the teacher in a curricular area that is a challenge for the student (math, writing, reading, science, etc.). Make a copy of this lesson to submit with the Benchmark Assessment. Review the learning objective, activity/assignment description, and assessment (where applicable).

2. Write an Accommodation/Lesson Plan based on your observations and inclusive of the following. Ensure that you review the plan with the mentor teacher(s).

5. A brief description of the targeted student with a disability: (a) Age and grade level of student, (b) Areas of academic strengths/weaknesses, (c) Student’s preferred modalities of learning.

5. A learning objective that would be more appropriate for the targeted student with disabilities.

5. An activity/assignment that would match this objective and would be appropriate for the student based on his or her cognitive level.

5. An assessment for this activity that would be appropriate for the targeted student; consider and describe technologies and other instructional supports that would enhance the learning for this student.

2. Implement the modified lesson with the targeted student. Seek the mentor teacher’s feedback on your teaching.

2. Write a 1000-1250-word Reflective Analysis.

7. Consider the following. Ensure your responses are inherent in the essay, not simply short answers to these questions:

1. Which accommodations and modifications were successful?

1. If you taught this lesson again, would you do it the same/different? Explain.

1. What other accommodations/modifications might the student’s regular education classroom teacher make?

1. What other accommodations/modifications might the student’s special education classroom teacher make?

1. What other accommodations/modifications might related service specialists make (where applicable)?

7. Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the GCU Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

2. Ask the classroom teacher to complete the Classroom Teacher Evaluation Form. Include it, the classroom teacher’s lesson plan, your Accommodation/Lesson Plan, and your Reflective Analysis as the Benchmark Assessment submission to the instructor.

Scoring Tool/Guide (Rubric)

Teaching for Exceptionalities

Criteria	1: Unsatisfactory	2: Less than Satisfactory	3: Satisfactory	4: Good	5: Excellent
Description of the Targeted Student (15%) InTASC 2	Fails to include the targeted student’s disability description. No student strengths or weaknesses are described.	Includes one or more elements of the targeted student’s disability description, but without comment or detail.	Provides required description information that was obtained from observations, interviews, and a variety of sources. Description provides age and grade level, areas of academic strengths/weaknesses, and preferred modalities of learning.	Comments on elements of required description information are concise and well organized.	Description indicates that the observation skills of the student are finely honed.
Accommodations/ Modification Assessment Activities (20%) CEC 3,5	A learning objective appropriate for the targeted student with disabilities is not stated. The activity and assignment are not described.	A learning objective for the targeted student with disabilities is stated. The activity and assignment are described and somewhat align with the stated learning objective.	A learning objective, which is appropriate for the targeted student with disabilities, is stated. The learning activities and assignments are described and align with the stated learning objective.	The learning activities and assignments are clearly are appropriate for the student based on his or her cognitive level. Technologies or other instructional supports that would enhance the learning for this student are described.	Learning activities are engaging and well-crafted.
Assessment (20%) CEC: 4	An assessment technique is not described.	An assessment technique is stated, but is somewhat unrelated to the accommodations	An assessment technique is described in detail.	An assessment technique is clearly appropriate to assess the modified learning objective.	A rationale for use of the assessment technique is provided.
Reflective Analysis Content (35%) CEC: 4, 5	Because the lesson plan was not implemented, none of the components are described in the analysis.	Some components are described in the analysis. Insight from the special education teacher and related service specialist (where applicable) is not discussed.	All components are described in the analysis. Insight from the special education teacher and related service specialist (where applicable) are appropriately indicated.	Insight is provided by all professionals involved.	Student self-evaluated recommendations for improvement are persuasively explained.
Mechanics of Writing (includes spelling, punctuation, grammar) 5%	Surface errors are pervasive enough that they impede communication of meaning.	Frequent and repetitive mechanical errors distract the reader.	Some mechanical errors or typos are present, but are not overly distracting to the reader.	Prose is largely free of mechanical errors, although a few may be present.	Writer is clearly in control of standard, written American English.
Paragraph Development and Transitions 5%	Paragraphs and transitions consistently lack unity and coherence. No apparent connections between paragraphs are established. Transitions are inappropriate to purpose and scope. Organization is disjointed.	Some paragraphs and transitions may lack logical progression of ideas, unity, coherence, and/or cohesiveness. Some degree of organization is evident.	Paragraphs are generally competent, but ideas may show some inconsistency in organization and/or in their relationships to each other.	A logical progression of ideas between paragraphs is apparent. Paragraphs exhibit a unity, coherence, and cohesiveness. Topic sentences and concluding remarks are appropriate to purpose.	There is a sophisticated construction of paragraphs and transitions. Ideas progress and relate to each other. Paragraph and transition construction guide the reader. Paragraph structure is seamless.

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