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EDUCATION FOR AT-RISK STUDENTS

Running head: EDUCATION FOR AT RISK STUDENTS

Education Models and Teaching Methods for At Risk Students

Felix Cruz

Fordham University

Foundations of Adult Education CTGE5925001

Dr. Kathy King

February 12, 2009

Abstract

This position paper explains my thinking and details my research in the area of education for at risk students. I have also analyzed school reform models that have been proposed to deal with the huge problem of optimizing the level of education for these special needs students. I will address the School Reform Models Supported by the National Institute on the Education of At-Risk Students (1998). I will also discuss the need for using technology and progressive programs in education for at-risk students.

Education Models and Teaching Methods for At Risk Students

The existing programs currently in place for students with special needs are ineffective and also create problematical situations. The present school system designates 50% or more of all students as special as “Special Needs” at some point between kindergarten and grade 12. These programs are not cost effective and are not achieving the implementation goals for the educational needs of the at-risk students. Achievement levels (based on standardized tests) for students below the 20th percentile or above the 80th percentile are identified as "low 20" or "high 20" groups for whom curriculum adaptation and/or intensive instruction are needed. Although standardized tests may not be the best way to diagnose the inability or ability of learning capacity for students with different learning styles, a 20/20 analysis may be useful in focusing the resources and manpower in the most probable groups of students who are at-risk.

Tools for Schools (April, 1998) analysis found the following: Approximately 80 percent of the students now served in "special" categorical programs such as Special Education, Title I, as well as others who are in a variety of remedial and compensatory programs, show poor achievement in basic literacy skills. Findings from research demonstrate quite clearly that these students do not need different kinds of instruction, but more intensive quality instruction. (20/20 Analysis: A Tool for Instructional Planning, ¶ 5)

Quality instruction is definitely needed to teach at-risk students but I believe that the integration of technology such as the internet, simulations, and collaboration technology would be beneficial to the development of not only academic skills but also of transferable critical thinking skills (Jonassen, et. al, 2008)

Government support for students with disabilities is evidenced when President Bush signed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, which reauthorized the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), on December 3, 2004. This support guarantees that funding is available for creative and progressive new programs that will incorporate the new technology and holistic educational ideas espoused by Snir. The use of graphics and images stimulates the higher order thinking skills in students. Visualization tools stimulate all the senses and are good for all learning styles. By using computer graphics, one can shift attention back and forth from the local to the global properties of the phenomenon and train the mind to integrate the two aspects into one coherent picture (Snir, 1995). Students with disabilities (at-risk) must be guided in such a way that they gain control of their mental models and can realize those models through the use of innovative teaching tools.

New York State Department of Education Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) established six goals for these students to meet. The main goal is that students receiving special education services will meet high educational standards. Another goal is that services provided by VESID will continually improve. This goal opens the door for holistic approaches to education such as the use of technological innovations. Adult educators are encouraged to take advantage of this situation.

Instead of treating basic skills as a hurdle that must be conquered before exposing students to more complicated and meaningful learning tasks, educators should give at-risk students the chance to learn and execute basic skills in the context of implementing authentic tasks (Means, Chelemer, & Knapp, 1991). At-risk students would be assessed on their ability to execute complex tasks and to use reflective thinking to describe the critical thinking that they experience rather than on their facility with multiple-choice tests. Research on classrooms that have used constructivist teaching and learning models into practice has shown that technology can improve student interest and productivity. Furthermore, technology raises the level of difficulty of the tasks that students implement, increases student motivation, and promotes changes in classroom roles and organization. Innovations in teaching with technology will impact the way that students learn and will affect them in developing transferable life-long learning skills.

As adult educators we should guide the students and lead them in a direction and to a point when the students become self-reliant and are willing to participate in collaborative learning tasks. We as educators must become facilitators and get away from the traditional pedagogical style of teaching. In promoting these educational reforms for at-risk students educators will not only become more reflexive teachers but will also affect the level of enthusiasm that these special needs students have in the learning process. Educators must exercise a great deal of patience and understanding for the conditions and situations that their students are in so that they can allow more time in their lesson plans.

References

David, J., Jane, H., Rose, M. M., & David, C., (2008). Meaningful learning with technology. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall

Office of Educational Research and Improvement, National Inst. on the Education of At-Risk Students (ED/OERI). (1998). Tools for Schools: School Reform Models Supported by the National Institute on the Education of At-Risk Students. Retrieved from Education Research Information Website: February 12, 2009, http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED418174&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED418174

Office of Educational Research and Improvement, National Inst. on the Education of At-Risk Students (ED/OERI). (1998). Tools for Schools: School Reform Models Supported by the National Institute on the Education of At-Risk Students. Retrieved from Education Research Information Website: February 12, 2009, http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED418174&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED418174

Perkins, N. D., Schwartz, L. J., & West, M. W., (1995). Software Goes to School: Teaching for Understanding With New Technologies. USA: Oxford University