Online ISSN: 2325-7466
2006
Triannual
National Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET)
United States

Articles

Common Purpose, Uncommon Results: A Literacy Collaboration for a Preschooler with Down Syndrome

  • Chelsea T. Morris, Ph.D. (Author) University of Miami image/svg+xml
    Chelsea T. Morris Chelsea T. Morris recently completed her Ph.D. in Teaching and Learning at the University of Miami. She received her M.Ed. in Early Childhood Special Education from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. She was an infant educator in a children's hospital for six years prior to becoming a preschool special education teacher. Her research and teaching interests focus on agreement between teachers and parents on children's ratings of problem behavior and the implications of discrepancies in those ratings on outcomes for young children. She is now an Assistant Professor of early childhood education at the University of West Georgia.
  • Rachel J. Chidester, M.S. (Author) Crozet Speech and Learning Center
    Rachel J. Chidester earned dual Bachelor of Arts degrees in Elementary and Special Education from Geneva College in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. She went on to earn her Master of Science degree in Special Education and Autism Spectrum Disorders specialist certification from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She started her teaching career in Albemarle County, Virginia teaching middle school special education. In 2015, she joined the team at Crozet Speech and Learning Center in Crozet, Virginia where she serves as their Autism Spectrum Disorders specialist and Behavioral therapist.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.64546/jaasep.365
Abstract
This paper describes a single-case study that focused on an intervention to teach sight words to a preschool student with Down syndrome through a collaborative approach in which responsibility for design and implementation was shared by the child’s parents and her early childhood special education teacher. The intervention was consciously tailored in response to available research regarding the neurodevelopmental profile of children with Down syndrome. The aim of the intervention was focused on challenging deficit perspectives in special education and highlighting the importance of parent-teacher partnerships. Results indicated positive literacy outcomes, with the student retaining 14 of 22 (63%) sight words introduced as part of the intervention. Recommendations for future literacy interventions for children with Down syndrome and increased home-school collaboration are discussed.
Keywords
Down Syndrome, Early Childhood Teachers, Emergent Literacy, Family School Relationship, Intervention, Parent Teacher Cooperation
References

Al Otaiba, S., Lewis, S., Whalon, K., Dyrlund, A., & McKenzie, A. R. (2009). Home literacy environments of young children with Down syndrome: Findings from a web-based survey. Remedial and Special Education, 30(2), 96-107. doi:10.1177/0741932508315050 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0741932508315050

Annamma, S. A., Connor, D., & Ferri, B. (2013). Dis/ability critical race studies (DisCrit): Theorizing at the intersections of race and dis/ability. Race Ethnicity and Education, 16, 1-31. doi:10.1080/13613324.2012.730511 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2012.730511

Anastasiou, D., Kauffman, J. M., & Michail, D. (2016). Disability in multicultural theory: Conceptual and social justice issues. Journal of Disability Policy Studies, 27, 3-12. doi:10.1177/1044207314558595 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1044207314558595

Appleton, M., Buckley, S., & MacDonald, J. (2002). The early reading skills of preschoolers with Down syndrome and their typically developing peers: Findings from recent research. Down Syndrome News and Update, 2, 9-10. doi:10.3104/updates.157 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/e496082004-001

Byrne, A., MacDonald, J., & Buckley, S. (2002). Reading, language and memory skills: A comparative longitudinal study of children with Down syndrome and their mainstream peers. British Journal Of Educational Psychology, 72, 513-529. doi:10.1348/00070990260377497 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1348/00070990260377497

Colker, R. (2013). Disabled education: A critical analysis of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. New York, NY: New York University Press. Collins, K. M. (2013). Ability profiling and school failure: One child’s struggle to be seen as competent (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.

Dehghan, M., Yadegan F., Shirazi S, & Kazemnejad A. (2004). Effect of teaching reading and traditional methods of language therapy on grammatical quotient of children with Down syndrome. Zahedan Journal of Research in Medical Sciences, 16(5), 54-58. Retrieved from http://zjrms.ir/article-1-1047-en.html

Down Syndrome Education International (2017). Development and learning. Retrieved from https://www.dseinternational.org/en-us/about-down-syndrome/development/

Fidler, D. J., Lawson, J. E., & Hodapp, R. M. (2003). What do parents want? An analysis of education-related comments made by parents of children with different genetic syndromes. Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, 28, 196-204. doi:10.1080/1366825031000147120 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1366825031000147120

Flynn, G. (2007). Increasing parental involvement in our schools: The need to overcome obstacles, promote critical behaviors, and provide teacher training. Journal of College Teaching& Learning (TLC), 4(2), 23-30. Retrieved from http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ899419 DOI: https://doi.org/10.19030/tlc.v4i2.1627

Frenkel, S., & Bourdin, B. (2009). Verbal, visual, and spatio‐sequential short‐term memory: Assessment of the storage capacities of children and teenagers with Down's syndrome. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 53, 152-160. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2788.2008.01139.x Gee, J. P. (2004). Situated language and learning: A critique of traditional schooling. New York: Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2788.2008.01139.x

Henderson, A., & Mapp, K. (2002). A new wave of evidence: The impact of school, family, and community connections on student achievement (Annual Synthesis). Retrieved from National Center for Family and Community Schools http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED536946.pdf

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 (2004)

Laws G. (2002). Working memory in children and adolescents with Down syndrome: Evidence from a colour memory experiment. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 43, 353–364. PMID:11944877 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1469-7610.00026

McLaren, P. (1992). Critical literacy and postcolonial praxis: A Freirian perspective. College Literature, 19(3), 7-27. Retrieved from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25111986

National Association for the Education of Young Children & International Reading Association (1998). Learning to read and write: Developmentally appropriate practices for young children (Position statement). Retrieved from the NAEYC website http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSREAD98.pdf

National Assessment of Educational Progress. (2015). Mathematics & Reading Assessments [Data interface]. Retrieved from http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_2015/#reading

No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110, § 115, Stat. 1425 (2002) Phillips, W. E., & Feng, J. (2012, October). Methods for sight word recognition in kindergarten: Traditional flashcard method vs. multisensory approach. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Georgia Educational Research Association, Savannah, GA.

Ricci, L. A. (2011). Home literacy environments, interest in reading and emergent literacy skills of children with Down syndrome versus typical children. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 55, 596-609. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2788.2011.01415.x Ricci, L., & Osipova, A. (2012). Visions for literacy: parents’ aspirations for reading in children with Down syndrome. British Journal of Special Education, 39, 123-129. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8578.2012.00547.x Senechal, M., & Young, L. (2008). The effect of family literacy interventions on children's acquisition of reading from kindergarten to grade 3. Review of Educational Research, 78(4), 880-907. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40071148

Topor, D. R., Keane, S. P., Shelton, T. L., & Calkins, S. D. (2010). Parent involvement and student academic performance: A multiple mediational analysis. Journal Of Prevention & Intervention In The Community, 38, 183-197. doi:10.1080/10852352.2010.486297 U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences (1992-2015). Reading Assessments. (National Assessment of Educational Progress Report). Retrieved from National Center for Education Statistics website: https://nces.ed.gov DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10852352.2010.486297

Vanalst, J. (2013, January, 28). Teaching sight words [Web log post]. Retrieved from blog.maketaketeach.com/teaching-sight-words

Vicari S., Bellucci S., & Carlesimo G. A. (2005). Visual and spatial long-term memory: differential pattern of impairments in Williams and Down syndromes. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology, 47, 305–11. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8749.2005.tb01141.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0012162205000599

Wenger, E. (2010). Communities of practice and social learning systems: The career of a concept. In Blackmore, C. (Ed.). Social learning systems and communities of practice (pp. 179-198). London: Springer. National Down Syndrome Society (n.d.). What is Down syndrome? Retrieved from http://www.ndss.org/Down-Syndrome/What-Is-Down-Syndrome DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84996-133-2_11

Ypsilanti, A., Grouios, G., Zikouli, A., & Hatzinikolaou, K. (2006). Speed of naming in children with Williams and Down syndromes. Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 31(2), 87-94. doi:10.1080/13668250600710872 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13668250600710872

There are 24 references in total.
How to Cite
Morris, C. T., & Chidester, R. J. (2018). Common Purpose, Uncommon Results: A Literacy Collaboration for a Preschooler with Down Syndrome. Journal of the American Academy of Special Education Professionals, 13(2), 56-70. https://doi.org/10.64546/jaasep.365

Spring/Summer 2018

Article Information

  • Article Type Articles
  • Submitted May 18, 2018
  • Published June 15, 2018
  • Issue Spring/Summer 2018
  • Section Articles
  • File Downloads 0
  • Abstract Views 0
  • Altmetrics
  • Share
Download data is not yet available.