102084 - INCLUSIVE EDUCATION: THEORY, POLICY AND PRACTICE

ASSIGNMENT 2 – CASE STUDY

STUDENT PROFILE

John Doe (pseudonym) is a thirteen-year-old Year 8 student who has been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome
and anxiety.

John’s strengths include his attention to detail, exceptional factual memory and rote learning skills. He excels at
drawing and Visual Arts, and demonstrates higher levels of engagement and participation in class when tasks
and activities include elements of imagery (eg. icons, photos, film, etc). He also has a strong interest in board
games and computer games, which he can talk about at length.

John has difficulties coping with environmental changes - including changes in classroom settings, class routines,
and sudden spikes in sound levels. He does not adjust well when the class is spontaneously moved to the library,
computer room or other settings around the school. Furthermore, he is vulnerable to overstimulation and is
known to become agitated by high-contrasting colours and the excessive level of noise caused by his peers when
they act up in class. His other areas of need relate to social skills as he has difficulties making eye contact with
others and a pedantic speaking style, which is also linked to difficulties with semantics and pragmatics of
language. Although he has expressed the desire to fit in, these areas of need make it difficult for John to develop
friendships with his peers.

At school, John has been placed in a mainstream class and attends all subjects with this same group of students.
Although he demonstrates an intelligence level which matches the students in his class, it is important for John’s
teachers to identify and acknowledge his strengths and weaknesses to be able to use the Universal Design for
Learning (UDL) when designing lessons and resources that allow for his learning needs to be effectively
addressed.

PART 1: USING THE UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING TO ADDRESS JOHN’S LEARNING
NEEDS

Asperger’s Syndrome (AS), also known as Asperger’s Disorder, was first described in the works of Hans Asperger
in the 1940’s. Asperger published his observations describing a group of children who demonstrated autism-like
behaviours and difficulties such as social awkwardness, a keen interest in specific topics, repetitive and habitual
behaviours, and a desire to uphold routines in conjunction with a strong vocabulary and language skills
(McCrimmon, 2018; Autism Society, 2018). His work was translated into English and became more widely known
in 1991, but many professionals dismissed it simply as a milder form of autism and often used the term “high-
functioning autistic” to describe people who had been diagnosed with AS.

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Characteristics and qualities which differ between classic autism and AS are most noticeable when observing
individuals’ social skills and language ability. While children with autism are frequently described as being aloof
and uninterested in others, individuals with AS usually want to fit in and have rapport with others but don’t
know how to achieve these interaction and sociability goals. Individuals with AS generally have varying levels of
social awkwardness, a formal manner of speaking, difficulty understanding social rules and difficulty
demonstrating empathy (Autism Society, 2018).

Other characteristics and qualities typical of individuals with AS include concrete and literal thinking, difficulty
comprehending abstract materials, low self-esteem and anxiety, poor coordination and balance, excellent
factual memory and rote learning skills, a rigid adherence to rules and routines, and hypersensitivity to their
environment (Gargiulo & Metcalf, 2017). However, these characteristics and qualities are generalisations.
Individuals with AS represent a very heterogeneous population and therefore individual cases may vary.

In John Doe’s case, his teachers must be mindful of his level of intellect, his heightened level of engagement
during activities which have incorporated images, his difficulties coping with environmental changes, and his
vulnerability to overstimulation which can be caused by sensory responses to strong colours and sudden spikes
in sound.

In the fourth edition of the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders (DSM-IV), AS was listed as a separate disorder from autism. A diagnosis of AS required an individual to
demonstrate four of five criteria including at least two indicators of a disability in social interaction (such as
difficulties forming relationships) and at least one indicator of restricted interest and stereotypical behaviours
(such as a rigid adherence to routine and a strong interest in a specific topic) (Safran, 2002).

Recently, there has been a controversial decision for AS and other pervasive developmental disorders to be
folded into the single overarching diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in the publication of DSM-5
(Skuse, 2011; Autism Speaks, 2018). Although DSM-5 no longer classifies AS as a discrete disability, teachers
must acknowledge that students with AS and students with classic autism will present different strengths and
areas of need. Additionally, no two students who have been diagnosed with AS will present the same strengths
and areas of need. Teachers are therefore tasked with the responsibility of identifying and understanding these
students’ strengths and needs to be able to address them by employing the Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

UDL is an educational framework which provides flexibility in the ways learning content is presented, the ways
students respond or demonstrate skills, and the ways students are engaged by reducing instructional barriers
and providing appropriate support and challenges which maintain high expectations for all students (National
Center on Universal Design for Learning, 2013).

UDL assumes that there is no “one-size-fits all” method of presenting content because this assumption
marginalises students, such as gifted and talented students and students with learning disabilities, who are not
considered the “average” (Gargiulo & Metcalf, 2017; National Center on Universal Design for Learning, 2013).
Therefore, the UDL framework is underpinned by the notion of creating a learning environment which addresses

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the learning styles and needs of all the students present within each classroom through adapted curriculums,
customised delivery of instruction, and assessments which allow students to demonstrate their mastery of the
learning content (Gargiulo & Metcalf, 2017).

There are three guiding principles underlying the UDL framework: Principle I: provide multiple means of
representation, Principle II: provide multiple means of action and expression and Principle III: provide multiple
means of engagement (CAST, 2011).

Principle I has a focus on the ways students perceive and comprehend information and providing them with
multiple means of accessing information in learning environments. For example, students with sensory
disabilities such as blindness or deafness require lesson content to be delivered to them in methods which are
compatible with their respective disabilities. In John Doe’s case, this principle was applied to the attached lesson
by including visual elements where there were previously only textual prompts.

Studies show that people with AS prefer information to be visually presented rather than receiving information
verbally or written down (Shearer et al, 2006). For John, he comprehends information presented in visual form
or accompanied with visual elements more quickly and effectively than if the information was simply printed in
text. To address these needs, barriers of representation were reduced in the modified and differentiated lesson
plan attached by adding visual icons to activities. For example, icons have been included in the student-led
teacher greeting during ‘Housekeeping’ activities at the beginning of the lesson to represent each of the three
steps (standing, bowing/greeting, sitting). Icons have been included to the introduction of new vocabulary and
the student handout (to help distinguish each sport), as well as in the introduction of new set phrase sentence
structures (to visually present the meaning of each phrase). John can link these visual cues to the greeting
routine, new vocabulary words and sentence structures to assist his learning process.

Principle II focuses on the ways in which students can navigate a learning environment and express what they
know. It also considers the idea that strategy, practice and organisation are key to enabling student action and
expression (National Center on Universal Design for Learning, 2013). This principle assumes that there is no
single means of action and expression which is optimal for all students, and therefore students must be provided
options for action and expression. In this case, the activity which was previously designed to have students
simply write their own sentences using the new vocabulary and sentence structures has been reimagined so
that students will work in pairs to write sentences about the characters in short animated clips (eg. a happy
person playing soccer, or a sad person at the pool, etc).

Students with Asperger syndrome often find it difficult to develop friendships. They behave differently in social
situations and their skills for social interaction are often under-developed (Shearer et al, 2006). Not only does
this redesigned activity use animations and video, the additional effect of making it a pair-work activity allows
John to develop his social interaction skills and build the rapport with his peers that he craves.

Finally, Principle III focuses on the ways in which students can be engaged or motivated to learn and considers
factors such as student preferences for novelty and spontaneity, routine, individual work, pair or group work

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(National Center on Universal Design for Learning, 2013). This Principle demands certain considerations in John’s
case as he is highly sensitive to sensory triggers.

The first adjustment in the attached lesson plan was the implementation of a seating plan. Seating plans are a
classroom management technique which serves a multitude of purposes. John can become agitated when there
are sudden rise in noise levels. Therefore, the implementation of a seating plan not only gives John a sense of
routine but also aims to minimise class disruptions generally caused by groups of friends sitting together (Pinto,
2013).

In addition to this, the selection of a student to undertake the class-leader role in each lesson is no longer chosen
at random by a selection app at the beginning of each lesson. Instead, it will take place in the previous lesson so
that students can prepare for the responsibility. Students with AS generally prefer structure and routine (Shearer
et al, 2006). Therefore, this adjustment was made to reduce John’s anxiety and give him a greater sense of
predictability of what will happen during the next upcoming lesson. This kind of consideration would also have
to be taken if for example the teacher scheduled time in the computer room or library for the students to work
on assessments – the class would have to be notified in the lessons leading up to the move to a different
environment so that John feels prepared for the changes. Giving him notice is necessary as he does not cope
with sudden environmental changes and unplanned changes to his routine.

An extra step to list the lesson’s agenda (including activities and time limits) on the whiteboard has also been
added to ‘Housekeeping’ portion of the lesson. This step is also designed to assist John to establish the a sense
of predictability in the lesson ahead.

The final adjustment to the attached lesson plan was printing sheets on neutral blue/gray paper to reduce the
contrast between stark white paper and black ink text. This adjustment was made as John is also vulnerable to
strong colours or high-contrasting colours. These seemingly minor adjustments can have significant impacts on
a student with AS (Shearer et al, 2006). For John, strategies to break the barriers of engagement will assist him
to focus and remain attentive during class.

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PART 2: APPLYING THE UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING TO A LESSON PLAN
SUBJECT, STAGE (YEAR): Japanese, Stage 4 (Year 8) TOPIC: Classroom Instructions (Recap) + Sports LESSON DURATION: 55 minutes

Timing Teaching and learning actions

HOUSEKEEPING
1. Students are to wait outside the classroom in two lines, and are only allowed to enter once they are quiet. Students are to sit in their designated seating arrangement and
take out their books and pens in preparation for the lesson while the teacher marks the role. Students are to use previously learned vocabulary はい (present), いません
(absent) to respond.
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2. The teacher is to write their name (eg. アモアせんせい: AMOR sensei) on the board as a prompt for students to use the target language to address the teacher.
mins
3. Use random-selection app to select the class leader. The student who was chosen in the previous class to act as this lesson’s class leader is lead the class greeting to the
teacher. Using a projector, display icons and vocabulary of the three steps (きりつ: stand, れい: bow/greet, and ちゃくせき: sit) as a prompt.
4. Using a small portion of the whiteboard, the teacher is to write the agenda for this period including the activities and time limits. This section of the board is not to be erased
until the end of the lesson.
INTRODUCE VOCABULARY: SPORTS
1. The teacher is to introduce new vocabulary. Students are to listen and repeat each vocabulary word as per the teacher’s instructions. Use a projector to display an icon of
each sport and the Japanese word in both hiragana and romaji to assist students’ pronunciation.
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2. Once each new vocabulary word has been introduced, distribute sheets printed on neutral blue/gray paper to the students. The sheet has a table with a column for students
mins
to write the new vocabulary word in Japanese using hiragana and a column for students to write the English equivalent of each word beside the icon which represents each
sport. The teacher is to guide the activity by displaying the icon representing each sport using a projector, saying the vocabulary word in Japanese for the students to listen
to and repeat verbally, then write into the sheet using the displayed hiragana and romaji text as prompts.
NEW SENTENCE STRUCTURES: Saying “The sport I like/don’t like…” and “My favourite sport is…”
1. The teacher is to allocate parts for a comic strip in the textbook which introduces the new sentence structures. The comic is read together as a class. Discuss what the
students understood and/or inferred from the text.
20 2. The teacher writes the new sentences structures on the board with icons (two hearts = favourite, one heart = like, cross = dislike, two crosses = most disliked) to help
mins students distinguish between each structure. Students are to copy each structure into their books in hiragana.
3. The teacher is add the following list of questions in English on the board: What sport do you like? What sport is your favourite? What sport do you dislike? What sport do
you dislike the most? Students are to consider the questions and answer them about themselves in their books in Japanese using hiragana. Students will be put into pairs by
the teacher. Each pair is to work collaboratively to use the construct dialogues to match the simple Animaker/Powtoon animations displayed via projector.
RECAP + FAREWELL/DISMISSAL
1. The teacher is to use the activity list written on the board during Housekeeping to recap what the students have learned in this lesson. Link the lesson to the wider context
8 mins of the unit by linking the new vocabulary and sentence structures to the upcoming speaking task.
2. Select a student to act as the class leader in the next lesson.
3. The student acting as this lesson’s class leader is to lead the end of class thank you/farewell routine. Teacher is to dismiss the students.

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REFERENCES
Anderson, J. & Boyle, C. (2015). Inclusive education in Australia: rhetoric, reality and the road ahead. Support
for Learning, 30 (1), 4-23.

Autism Society. (n.d.). Asperger’s Syndrome. Retrieved June 25 2018 from http://www.autism-
society.org/what-is/aspergers-syndrome/

Autism Speaks. (n.d.) Asperger Syndrome. Retrieved June 25 2018 from https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-
autism/asperger-syndrome

CAST (2011). Universal design for learning guidelines version 2.0. Wakefield, MA: CAST

Gargiulo, R.M., & Metcalf, D. (2017). Teaching in Today’s Inclusive Classrooms. A Universal Design for Learning
Approach (3rd ed.). Boston, USA: Cengage Learning.

Horn, B.S. (2012). Educating Gifted Students with Asperger’s Syndrome: A Case Study of Three Students and
Their Classroom Experiences (Doctoral Dissertation). University of Central Florida, Florida, USA.
Retrieved from http://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/2139

McCrimmon, A. (2018, March 9). What happened to Asperger’s Syndrome? The Conversation. Retrieved from
http://theconversation.com/what-happened-to-aspergers-syndrome-89836

National Center on Universal Design for Learning. (2013). About UDL. Retrieved June 25 2018 from
http://www.udlcenter.org/aboutudl/udldefined

Pinto, L.E. (2013). From discipline to culturally responsive engagement: 45 classroom management strategies.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin

Safran, J. S. (2002). Supporting Students with Asperger’s Syndrome in General Education. SAGE Journals, 34(5),
60-66

Shearer, J., Butcher, C., & Pearce, A. (2006). Quality Educational Practices for Students with Asperger
Syndrome. Retrieved from www.macswd.sa.gov.au

Skuse, D. (2011). The Rise and Fall of Asperger Syndrome. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry,
82(8), e2-e2. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-
com.ezproxy.uws.edu.au/docview/904470630?accountid=36155

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