Introduction
The major goal of today’s educational system is the assurance of equal educational opportunities and equal access to instruction in class and outside of the latter. As a part of it, the help to those children experiencing certain problems with any kind of curriculum subject should be unconditionally presented (Eryksson, 2006). In this paper I will focus on the ways I might implement to help overcome the mathematics problems experienced by a sixth-grader named Micki Long. Her health record and the history of the adjusting policies carried out for her in the kindergarten and at school allow speaking of the special lesson plans that should be developed in order to achieve both allow Micki stay in the general educational class and not to violate the needs of other students whose cognitive processes are somewhat faster and instruction requirements more extensive (Ma, 1999). With this purpose, the goals of the further presented program should be outlined, assessment criteria stated, and further program developments marked.
Maths Difficulties
Student Characteristics
However, the very initial step in this program should be the attentive and careful consideration of the student’s data including her background, health records, kindergarten and previous school performance, attitudes of her family members to her issues and their readiness to assist her in studying, etc (Ma, 1999). Thus, Micki Long is a student of the sixth grade of the general education class taking reading, language, mathematics, and other subject on a regular basis. Nevertheless, Micki’s actual proficiency in the majority of her school subjects equals the one of the mid-performer in the fourth grade. The problems that Micki faces in her study are numerous so far as to include cognitive delay, lack of organizational skills, self-control and motivation, inability to prepare properly for classes, forgetfulness, and lack of concentration in class and at home working on her assignments. But the major issue experienced by this student is her mathematical problems. Being able to solve the tasks in class correctly, Micki fails to explain the algorithms she used to achieve this (Nicolaou, 2007). Therefore, the conclusion can be made that the main problematic areas in math for Micki include two-digit times, two-digit multiplication, subtraction with regrouping, and division.
Measures and Assistive Devices
Thus, to clearly outline the measures that can be used to help Micki Long with her math problems, it is necessary to see what reasons there are for such problems. As Sharma (2008) argues, “children experience mathematics learning difficulties for a variety of reasons including: dyscalculia, dyslexia, cognitive delay, delay in the development of key mathematics milestones, poor preparation in prerequisite skills and inappropriate learning experiences” (Sharma, 2008). In Micki’s case, such factors cannot be overlooked as she was born premature, and was diagnosed as having a cognitive and a mild motor delay. In combination with her being left-handed, writing is a great difficulty for Micki, and the means to solve this problem can be computer typing. The method under which Micki will only dictate her thoughts for someone else to write them down or type should also be tried. The more detailed list of Micki’s needs and respective means of their meeting can be outlined in the IEP goals.
IEP Goals and Standards Alignment
Having certain experience of working with other children facing the problems similar to the ones of Micki, I have acquired the understanding of the fact that the involvement of the extensive number of people to the formulation of IEP goals and the large number of these goals on the whole can affect the study process negatively. Distributing his or her attention between all the people concerned about their academic performance, the child might feel oppressed and lose the interest in study: “Higher expectations coupled with the sluggish math performance of students with disabilities have led some special educators to question whether traditional instructional methods for students with learning disabilities (LD) are appropriate and adequate” (Bottge et al., 2007, p. 31). Drawing from this, the IEP goals for Micki can be limited to exercising better proficiency in the overall study and math as its integral part. Acquiring better skills in two-digit times two-digit multiplication, subtraction with regrouping, and division is also one of the IEP goals for Micki, which she has to achieve after the three lesson plan is implemented (Eryksson, 2006).
Lesson Plan
Components and Assessment Criteria
As it has already been mentioned, I have some experience in working with children having math problems. One of the children I worked with had difficulty in handling decimals in all the same aspects as Micki experiences difficulty with math on the whole. In other words, multiplication, subtraction, division, and addition of decimals were the problematic areas for that child, and the lesson plans I developed to assist his performance proved to be 100% effective (Newstead, 1992). Respectively, I believe that the similar plans used in Micki’s case can also prove efficient. In more detail, Micki will have to face several tasks in math each lesson and solve them after the initial explanations presented by the instructor and the review of the formerly studied material. After this, the results of Micki’s work will be compared to the performance she demonstrated before the lesson plan’s implementation, and respective conclusions will be made as for the efficiency of the plan and for the further assistance to this student (Sherman et al., 2004).
Further Initiatives
As for the further initiatives in respect of assistance given to Micki in her study, they all will be possible to shape after the plan outlined in this paper will be implemented and the results of its work will be properly analyze (Sherman et al., 2004). In case of the plan’s failure, the whole process of assistance should be started from the beginning in the sense that the plan should be restructured and made appropriate for Micki’s needs. The very ways of restructuring will also be seen only after the plan’s implementation. In case of the success of the mentioned plan, the further activities will depend on the extent of this success. Thus, Micki might need several additional lessons on the topics of subtraction, division, multiplication, etc. in order to back up the knowledge acquired during the three initial lessons. On the other hand, the 100% success of the plan will allow constructing new aims in Micki’s study and demand the absolutely new plan with another level of difficulty.
Conclusions
To conclude, children experiencing any problems in their study should provide with respective counseling and assistance for their in-class and outside progress. Micki Long, as the student having problems with math, can be assisted through the lesson plan that I have tried to outline in this paper. This plan includes the consideration of Micki’s background and constructing the activities matching her current performance in math and aiming for higher results.
References
Bottge, B. A., Rueda, E., Serlin, R. C., Hung, Y., & Kwon, J. M. (2007). Shrinking Achievement Differences with Anchored Math Problems: Challenges and Possibilities. Journal of Special Education, 41(1), 31+.
Eryksson, L.H. (2006). Concept-Based Curriculum and Instruction for the Thinking Classroom. Corwin Press.
Ma, L. (1999). Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics: Teachers’ Understanding of Fundamental Mathematics in China and the United States (Studies in Mathematical Thinking and Learning). Lawrence Erlbaum.
Newstead, K. (1992). Investigating Children’s Mathematics Anxiety: The Effect of Teaching Approaches. Department of Education, University of Cambridge, pp. 49 – 55.
Nicolaou, A. A., & Philippou, G. N. (2007). Efficacy Beliefs, Problem Posing and Mathematics Achievement. Focus on Learning Problems in Mathematics, 29(4), 48+.
Sharma, M. (2008). Diagnosis and Remediation of Maths Problems. Web.
Sherman, H. J., Richardson, L. I., Yard, G. J. (2004). Teaching Children Who Struggle with Mathematics: A Systematic Approach to Analysis and Correction. Prentice-Hall.
Wiest, L. R. (2002). Aspects of word-problem context that influence children’s problem-solving performance. Focus on Learning Problems in Mathematics, 24(2), 38-52.