Instructional Program Is an Effort

¶ … instructional program is an effort to aid struggling readers. Created in response to the Carnegie Corporation and Alliance for Excellent Education, this program is meant to help the 8 million or more youths through the twelfth grade currently struggling to read at grade level. The research problem investigated is whether the Read 180 can effectively address the needs of individual students through adaptive and instructional software, direct instruction and high-interest literature for populations of students with special needs.

Scholastic reports the program is effective for providing "multi-functional support" for students with special needs, by providing access provisions and individualized software and approaches for special education students. However, the question remains as to whether this approach, including promotion of active participation of special education students and a repetitive model instruction program truly helps students with special needs. Because the data gathered thus far reflects only Scholastic's reviews, more objective analysis is needed to assess student achievement and learning using this model.

Literature Review The literature review provides a review of data significant to the Read 180 computer-based reading program from Scholastic. The emphasis is on how Read 180 improves reading levels among special needs students. Relevant literature dating no more than 10 years provides critical information about the tools most useful in promoting excellence among special needs students. Also evaluated are the various groups or categories of special needs students one must consider when evaluating a program like Read 180 in the classroom.

Rieck & Wadsworth (2005) suggest that accommodations in instructional strategies, such as those presented by Read 180 and assessment protocols are vital for students with special learning needs. The authors provide an analysis of six years of research of students with special needs from five different schools. They discover two misconceptions exist among general educators about special needs. First, educators often feel accommodations for special needs students suggest "lowering the standards" for these students, and second, the authors suggest educators "inappropriately equate assessment with paper-and-pencil tests" (p. 105).

Using this line of thinking, Read 180 may provide a more useful tool for assessing and accommodating the needs of students by encouraging them to hold high standards for achievement, and assessing students using alternative rather than traditional means. Many researchers note that the passage of No Child Left Behind has facilitated a movement to help students with special needs excel in the general curriculum, requiring new forms of assessment and accommodation for all students (Venn, 2000).

The reasons for assessment are varied, but include determining whether schools are meeting their objectives, including the objectives for Read 180 programs, and assessing whether the Scholastic Aptitude Test truly is a new and innovative approach to assessing and accommodating the needs of special needs students (Venn, 2000; Rieck & Wadsworth, 2005). There is evidence as presented below that adaptive and instructional software, when coupled with individualized teaching or approaches to learning, may prove beneficial for most special needs students (Westwood, 2003).

What is lacking in the research is evidence as to what specific populations of special needs students would benefit from this approach. There is no clear evidence suggesting all students with special needs would benefit from a multi-tiered approach, though one may conclude this by summarizing the literature conducted on integrated learning approaches. Westwood (2003) brings to light the importance of considering special needs students individually, rather than categorizing them uniformly.

One cannot assume Read 180 will have the same effect on all special needs students, because like regular students, each special needs student demonstrates unique and distinct needs. Westwood (2003) notes that children with special needs differ in their physical and intellectual capacities, thus classroom teachers and administrators must adopt a multi-faceted approach to learning, such as that proposed by Read 180 to enable better student achievement.

Further, the researcher notes that children with special needs should be integrated into ordinary classroom settings rather than segregated, a though confirmed and supported by multiple researchers including Rea, McLaughlin & Walter-Thomas, 2002. Inclusive schooling suggests special education teacher's work with regular teachers to adopt approaches to education that circumvent the disabilities any child faces (Wearmouth, 2001).

There is ample evidence supporting programs including Read 180 that are not restrictive, and those that provide settings with alternative curricula and support services including the use of multi-purpose learning structures and computers to help facilitate greater knowledge acquisition in students (Westwood, 2000; Dymond & Orelove, 2001; Kauffman & Hallahan, 2000). Other factors contributing to the success of students with special needs include: (1) the ability of the school to provide adequate leadership and direction.

(2) the commitment of educators and administrators to creating a policy within the school that is supportive of new programs like Read 180. (3) positive and upbeat attitudes shared among staff, educators, administrators, parents and children alike, including those without special needs. (4) Commitment among those involved in programs like Read 180 to work collaboratively with one another, enhance their expertise, and share common knowledge so mutual support becomes ordinary and standard in the classroom.

(5) Regular and routine use of classroom aides to assist special needs students in learning, including human aides, and aides in the form of programs including Read 180. (6) Consistent and continual training for staff and other professionals to keep the abreast in the latest on goings and progress of special needs students, so they can adapt curricula as necessary to accommodate individual student needs (Westwood, 2003; Fisher & Frey, 2001; Hammill & Everington, 2002).

Of the research available, there is much support for multi-purpose instruction, individualized instruction and even repetitive learning for students with special needs (Rieck & Wadsworth, 1999; Fisher & Frey, 2001). Students with special needs will require individualized approaches to learning however, as not all students with special needs can be categorically defined or assess. As Westwood (2003) notes, generally students with special needs must be categorized into three primary groups. This first group includes students with "identifiable disabilities and impairments" which may include physical impairment (Westwood, 2003:2).

The next group includes students with learning difficulties that one may not attribute to a defined disability or impairment (Westwood, 2003:2). Finally, the last group includes students who have special needs related to socio-economic, cultural and linguistic disadvantages (Westwood, 2003:2). When considering the success and utility of Read 180 following these parameters, educators and administrators instantly realize that the utility of Read 180 may not work for all three subgroups of students with special needs (Westwood, 2003).

There is however, the potential for greater achievement among all of these groups if educators are willing to collaborate to adapt the Read 180 program to meet the specific needs of each of these subgroups. For this to occur, educators and administrators must identify how Read 180 affects each subgroup and population, and what adaptations are or may be necessary to promote adequate achievement among students with varying special needs (Wearmouth, 2001).

The groups most likely to benefit from a multi-purpose approach to education through the Read 180 program include students in the first two categories, those with physical or emotional impairments or disabilities, and those with learning disabilities that may require curricula adaptation and multiple-format learning to succeed (Wearmouth, 2001).

For the latter group, special needs students who are economically, culturally or otherwise disadvantaged, educators must work with parents, community members and administrators to collaborate and identify the policies that are most likely to best meet the needs of this subgroup in the classroom environment (Wearmouth, 2001). Research Questions There are three primary research questions to be addressed in the study. These are listed as follows.

(1) What effects does Read 180 have on students with clearly identifiable disabilities or impairments? (2) What effects does Read 180 have on students with learning disabilities not associated with traditional disabilities or impairments? (3) What effect would adaptations to Read 180 have to assist students with special needs arising from cultural, socio-economic or other factors that may impede learning? Rieck & Wadsworth (1999) suggests assessment questions should focus on a rubric consisting of four considerations.

These include: (1) whether information supplied by the assessed group is sufficient, (2) whether the information assessed is appropriate, (3) whether the information supplied is correct, accurate and indicative of student achievement and lastly (4) whether the students individually and in a group context are able to respond appropriately to inquisition (23). Collection of this information will help determine whether the information gathered from each of the three core groups of special needs students is appropriate and sufficient to evaluate the full utility of the Read 180 program.

Collection of data will require in classroom observation and some form of standard testing or measurement to examine student progress before implementation of Read 180 and.