Mild Intellectual Disabilities

1) Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)

- Used to evaluate cognitive ability

- Measures perceptional, verbal and logical reasoning

- Also evaluates memory: working, long term, sort term, procedural, etc.

2) Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System (ABAS)

- Evaluates ability to cope and problem solve in every-day situations

Examples:

Functional Communication

Basic Living - Social interaction, etiquette

Problem Solving - How to respond in certain (potentially dangerous) situations

Self-control or Behaviour

The specific criteria needed for an MID identification can vary according to school board. Identification is determined by the IPRC panel. The Toronto District School board uses the following criteria for determination:

As determined by the IPRC giving consideration to the following:

1) Classroom documentation

2) Educational assessment

- academic and social performance below the range expected for age-appropriate placement

3) Professional assessment

- a psychological assessment indicating the student’s cognitive skills lie between the 1st and the 5th percentile

- adaptive skills lie at or below the 5th percentile in 2 or more of the following: functional communication, basic living skills, social skills, self-control or behavior

(TDSB's Special Educaiton Plan, 2014)

As MID students often have a lower sense of self-worth and self-confidence, it is important to provide them with opportunities to improve self-esteem.

One way is to provide the student with appropriate responsibilities within the school that take place outside the classroom. For example: helping with morning announcements, watering school/classroom plants, library help, computer or technology assistant.

This provides a means for the student to make meaningful and positive contributions to the school community and learning environment. As MID students often demonstrate lack of affiliation in school activities, these types of responsibilities can help to eliminate negative self-worth associated with contributions to school community.

Developing an alt program page in the IEP will help ensure that these practices continue after the student leaves your class.

Rosenberg, M S., D L. Westling, and J McLeskey. "Primary Characteristics of Students with Intellectual Disabilities." Education.com. N.p., 24 July 2013. Web. 2 Dec. 2014. <http://www.education.com/reference/article/characteristics-intellectual-disabilities/>

Watson, Sue. "Mild Intellectual Disability, MID/ Mild Mental Retardation." About Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2014.

<http://specialed.about.com/od/handlingallbehaviortypes/a/MID.htm>.

Weber, Ken, and Sheila Bennett. Special Education in Ontario Schools. Palgrave, Ontario: Highland Press, 2004. Print.

Toronto District School Board Special Education Plan 2014. Toronto, Ontario: Toronto District School Board, 2014. PDF file.

<http://www.tdsb.on.ca/Portals/0/EarlyYears/docs/SpecialEducationPlan.pdf>.

General Instructional Accommodations

Suggestions for Alternative Programming

What is it?

Common Characteristics

Strategies for Students with

Mild Intellectual Disabilities

1) Social Skills Development

2) Organization and Executive Functioning

3) Enhancing Self-Esteem

Mild Intellectual Disability (MID) is a learning disorder characterized by:

a) An ability to profit educationally within a regular class with the aid of considerable curriculum modification and supportive service;

b) An inability to profit educationally within a regular class because of slow intellectual development;

c) a potential for academic learning, independent social adjustment, and economic self-support;

Delays in Cognitive Development

Difficulties with Social Interactions

Low Confidence and Sense of Self-Worth

- Repeat instructions/directions frequently

- Ask student if further clarification is necessary

- Use simple, short and uncomplicated sentences

- Use checklists

- Reduce the quantity of work

- Break tasks into parts with accompanying time lines

- Be patient!

Ryan Day

(Weber, Bennett, 2004).

Delays in Cognitive Development

Students with mild intellectual disabilities (MID) learn more slowly than typical students. As a result, MID students are likely to be significantly delayed in learning to read and acquire basic math skills, leading to further delays in other academic areas that require the use of these skills.

The area where these delays have the most detrimental effect is reading. While MID students may be able to develop the ability to read individual words and implement strategies for reading comprehension, they will still struggle to comprehend what they have read due to weak verbal skills and vocabulary.

Students with mild intellectual disabilities also have difficulties generalizing information for use in other settings. For example, a student may be able to learn a multiplication algorithm but may then struggle to apply this information in a problem that requires the use of multiplication. Similarly, a student may learn a new word when reading material in one subject area but my have trouble reading the same word in other reading material.

These delays and struggles result in overall poor academic performance. While their intellectual development may be slow, MID students do have the potential to learn within the regular classroom given appropriate accommodations and modifications.

Social Skills Development

Difficulties with Social Interactions

How to I Implement it?

Areas of Need

Providing opportunities for role-playing as part of a classroom community building process can help MID students in your classroom better understand the intricacies of social interaction. Community building helps all students in the classroom, and contributes to a positive learning environment.

MID students will need help to develop appropriate social skills to support friend and peer relationships. Direct teaching of social skills is one strategy that may e used to address the social deficits of an MID child. This may be necessary since their limited cognitive and language skills prevent them from developing and understanding social norms through regular interaction with age-level peers.

The cognitive characteristics of MID students contribute to difficulty developing social relationships, and interacting socially. MID students have trouble understanding the content of verbal interactions and understanding social expectations, such when to listen and how to respond appropriately.

In addition, these students struggle to read social cues and interact successfully with peers. This leads to lower social status within the school and classroom. Alienation from peers can cause lack of involvement in school activities and contributions to school community.

An MID child may exhibit behaviour problems, be immature, display some obsessive/compulsive behaviours, and have difficulty following rules and routines.

At times, MID students may seek attention in inappropriate ways as they often have difficulty distinguishing between acceptable and improper standards of behaviour.

- Developing and Maintaining Friendships

- Conversational Skills

- Conflict Resolution

- Listening Skills

- Accepting and Giving Compliments

- Dealing with Embarrassment

Online Resource: Social Skill Lesson Plans for Middle School Students

http://www.cccoe.net/social/skillslist.htm

Low Confidence &

Sense of Self-Worth

Sources

Students with mild intellectual disabilities may have limited opportunities to interact with a-level peers in school, if they spend a large portion of the day in a separate setting. (ex: ISP, resource room) These children often have poor organizational skills, use simple language, and may need reminders about personal hygiene.

The variety of challenges they face can contribute to weak confidence and low self-esteem. MID students are easily frustrated and require opportunities to improve their sense of self-worth.

The Standards of Practice

Commitment to Students and Student Learning

Members are dedicated in their care and commitment to students. They treat students equitably and with

respect and are sensitive to factors that influence individual student learning. Members facilitate the development of students as contributing citizens of Canadian society.

Ontario College of Teachers

Students with mild intellectual disability possess a variety of strengths and needs. As educators, we must demonstrate dedication and commitment to developing appropriate programming and strategies to help MID students deal with the variety of challenges they face in every day of their lives. Our goal is to facilitate their development into contributing citizens of society by providing support and guidance to help them realize that potential.

Equitable teaching means that all students receive the right amount of support they need in order to be successful. For MID students, this means that we need to use alternative instructional strategies and alternative assessment methods in addition to practicing patience and assisting with coping strategies for challenges they encounter.

The Commitment to Students and Student Learning outlined in the Standards of Practice clearly dictates that educators are mandated to incorporate these practices into the way we program for MID students.

Organization and Executive Functioning

Alternative Program Strategies

Students who have mild intellectual disability will have a weaknesses in executive function. They will frequently struggle to keep track of the tools they need for schoolwork such as notebooks, handouts, homework, and even pencils and pens.

- Folders: use folders and binders; clearly labeled and colour-coded

- Sticky notes or index cards could be posted in the student's environment for reminders

- Monthly Calendars posted in a visible spot

- Daily organizer/schedule- Assist in remembering schedules

There are several tools and strategies to help students remember schedules and to locate materials.

Ideally for an MID student, these strategies should be part of an alternative program outlined in the IEP. This way they can be monitored, adjusted and consistently implemented throughout their academic career.

Enhancing Self-Esteem

Identification Process

Criteria for Identification

Step 1: The student would be brought to IST, where potential classroom strategies would be developed. Once the strategies had been implemented and there was minimal improvement in student achievement, the student would be brought back to IST to discuss the possibility of increased support within the school, and development of an IEP.

Step 3: If the student was referred for a psych-ed assessment, an educational psychologist would meet with the student and evaluate them to pin-point issue and rule out any other underlying causes that might affect their academic performance.

Two assessment tools that would be useful for determining if the child meets MID criteria are:

1) Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)

2) Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System (ABAS)

Step 2: If the issues and concerns continue, the student would be referred to SST where a Psycho-Educational Referral could potentially be made.

Assessment and Evaluation Strategies

Example Strategies for Language

Students with mild intellectual disabilities often require an alternative curriculum, which involves functional numeracy and literacy that focuses on life and workplace skills. The goal is to develop a basic skills that will lead to functional independence. Development of life skills for these students will help them become active and responsible members of society.

MID students, like all students have unique learning profiles with a variety of strengths and weaknesses. Some MID students will require greater support than others. Therefore, the assessment and evaluation strategies you will employ for a specific MID student will very much depend on what best fits the needs of the student.

Reading a Variety of Texts: The ability to read a variety of texts is an important life skill and as such would be part of the focus for the modified language program the MID student would receive.

Students with mild intellectual disabilities will encounter challenges with the meta-cognition curriculum expectations: making inferences and connections (text-to-text, text-to-self, text-to-world)

For any reading assessment, the teacher should select texts that the student will have some prior knowledge about, or a story the student will be familiar with. Avoid historical texts, or stories where the time line jumps.

Summarizing Texts: Providing a structured task such as a graphic organizer to summarize a text can be helpful for many students, however, MID students may require a task with greater structure.

To provide more structured task, the teacher could provide a summary of a text read in class but cut up the sentences using scissors. The student would have to put them together in an order based on a graphic organizer used.

After practicing this strategy, the next step would be to remove some of that structure by having the student work using the graphic organizer. If necessary, the teacher could provide sentence starters (e.g "This story is about.... Then this happened.... Next.... Finally) to assist with any executive functioning issues.

Assessment and Evaluation Strategies

Example Strategies for Math

Assessment and evaluations should focus on testing mathematical skills that would be useful in every-day life situations.

MID students will require highly structured tasks, to the point where they may need to be provided with a step-by-step procedure to follow and practice.

Evaluations should include concrete and literal examples of applications (rather than abstract ideas) Example: finding the length of a pencil (the student has in front of them) rather than using a scaled diagram to find the length of a soccer field.

The use of a manipulative and a calculator should be provided at all times.

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!