course material

1. benchmark – language disabilities and assistive technology unit plan |
education
Understanding the development and individual differences of students with disabilities
allows special education teachers to respond appropriately during instruction, utilizing
supportive instructional strategies and technologies to meet student needs. Using assistive
technologies, such as alternative and augmentative communication systems, to support
instructional assessment, planning, and delivery, is essential to the language development
and communication of students with disabilities.Read the case study below to inform the
assignment.Case Study: StephanieGrade: 5thAge: 10Stephanie is a fifth grade student who is
intellectually disabled and also has a severe language disorder. She is 10-years-old and
spends a great portion of her day in self-contained settings. She receives speech therapy
from a speech pathologist for a minimum of 30 minutes, four days a week. The rest of the
time her language needs are supported by the special education teacher. She does attend a
general education fifth grade classroom daily for 60 minutes for English language arts
instruction, per her parent’s request. An instructional assistant accompanies her to
class.Stephanie’s oral expression skills are in the below average range. She struggles with
oral expression speech, expressive language, and meanings of words. Her speech is limited
and she usually has poor decoding and reading comprehension skills. Her reading level is at
a low first grade level, reading simple stories with a Lexile level of 275-400. Her favorite
book is If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff. Stephanie writes very little and
relies on the Picture Exchange System as her primary form of communication.Stephanie
attends the fifth grade English language arts class for exposure to more appropriate grade
level content and socialization. She requires frequent breaks and one-on-one support from
an assistant when participating in the general education setting. The special education
teacher and assistant work with the general education teacher and follow the modified
curriculum from the state department of education.For standardized grade-level testing,
Stephanie participates in the yearly Alternate Assessment. The assessment is administered
orally by the teacher and a proctor is present. The assessment is multiple choice and the
administrator can accept eye gazing, finger pointing, and verbal responses to answer
questions. The assessment is not timed and the teacher can apply the 10 response rule: If
the student does not respond after 10 questions, the teacher can end the
assessment.Assignment:Use the “ELA Mini-Unit Template” to complete this assignment.Part
1: Student GoalWrite a measurable reading comprehension goal for Stephanie’s IEP. Within

2. the goal, incorporate an alternative and augmentative communication system to support
her communication and learning.Part 2: Mini-UnitCompose a mini-unit of three ELA lesson
plans for the general education classroom that incorporates your ELA standards for
teaching reading comprehension to fifth graders.For each lesson plan include differentiated
activities and assessments for Stephanie that use the AAC system identified in Part 1 to
allow her to access the curriculum and address her measurable IEP goal.Part 3:
RationaleProvide a 250-500 word rationale that explains how your mini-unit instructional
choices are developmentally appropriate for teaching the content standards, and how the
differentiated activities and assessment will allow Stephanie to meet her goal and fully
access the curriculum. Address how your accommodations and differentiation create a
supportive learning environment that encourages self-advocacy, increases independence,
and emphasizes safe and ethical use of information and technology for Stephanie.Support
your rationale with 2-3 scholarly resources on best practices regarding semantics/language
disorders and the use of assistive technology.APA format is not required, but solid academic
writing is expected.This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the
assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.You are
required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical
Support articles for assistance.College of Education (COE) program competencies and
national standards assessed in the benchmark assignment:COE 2.4Create a supportive
learning environment that encourages self-advocacy, increases independence, and
emphasizes safe and ethical use of information and technology. [CEC 2.1; ICSI.2.K1-K4,
ICSI.2.S1, ICSI.2.S3, ICSI.2.S4, ICSI.2.S8, ICSI.2.S9; IGC.2.K2, IGC.2.K3, IGC.2.S2; InTASC 9(f);
ISTE-T 4a, 4b, 4c; GCU Mission Critical 4, 5]COE 3.3 Modify general and specialized
curricula to make them accessible to individuals with disabilities. [CEC 3.3; ICSI.1.K3,
ICSI.3.K2, ICSI.3.K3, ICSI.5.S15, ICSI.5.S21; IGC.5.S23, IGC.5.S24; InTASC 3(a); GCU Mission
Critical1, 2, 4, 5]COE 5.2 Use technologies to support instructional assessment, planning,
and delivery for individuals with disabilities. [CEC 5.2; ICSI.5.K2, ICSI.5.K3, ICSI.5.S7,
ICSI.5.S14; IGC.5.K1, IGC.5.K3, IGC.5.S1, IGC.5.S7, IGC.5.S23-25, IGC.5.S29; InTASC 6(g), 6(i),
6(r), 8(b); ISTE-T 2a, 2d, 2c; GCU Mission Critical 1, 4]COE 5.3Evaluate and select
appropriate augmentative and alternative communication systems and a variety of assistive
technologies to support the communication and learning of individuals with disabilities.
[CEC 5.3; ICSI.5.K2, ICSI.5.K3, ICSI.5.S15, ICSI.5.S19, ICSI.5.S20; IGC.5.K1, IGC.5.S7, IGC.5.S21;
InTASC 3(h), 8(g); GCU Mission Critical1, 4]COE 5.4Use strategies to enhance language
development and communication skills of individuals with disabilities. [CEC 5.4; ICSI.5.K2,
ICSI.5.S19; IGC.5.S13, IGC.5.S14, IGC.5.S16, IGC.5.S17, IGC.5.S18, IGC.5.S19, IGC.5.S23,
IGC.5.S24; InTASC 2(e); GCU Mission Critical 1, 4]