Adapted Living Environment Lessons to Support All Students: A toolkit of strategies and scaffolds for teaching science to students with learning disabilities in an inclusive setting

Abstract

Students with disabilities continue to lag behind their non-disabled peers in academic achievement. Continued support is required to help them bridge this gap, and realize academic success. Increasingly, students with mild to moderate disabilities are spending the majority of their school day mainstreamed into integrated, inclusive classes. While there are potential benefits for all parties to this arrangement, it can present challenges to the educator trying to balance multiple interest levels, learning styles and ability levels in the same classroom. The vast majority of special education students don’t require classroom modifications, or changes to the content delivered or expectations; but many do need accommodations or adaptations, changes to how material is learned. This project reviews available literature to determine the most successful accommodations for helping special education students be successful in inclusive science classes, and investigates how the principles of universal design can be utilized to apply suggested strategies to lessons for all students. The final project includes sample lessons and activities illustrating the use of the most recommended strategies for accommodating special educations students in a high school living environment class unit on cells and genetics. There is a special focus on active learning and hands on activities.