EDET300 AT2 CASE STUDY

1.Describe the learner and their specific condition;

2.Identify the learner’s strengths and barriers to learning;
3.Analyse the demographic and academic context;

It is estimated that nearly 3 percent of children younger than 18 years are blind or
visually impaired (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). Addison is a
prime example of a Kindergarten Student at a Suburban state school that has
impaired vision due to ocular albinism. Both her visual acuity is impaired 6/10 and
her visual field (10%). She also has nystagmus and is considered legally blind. In
reference to her visual acuity being 6/60, this means that she is only able to see at 6
metres what the regular healthy eyesight can see at 60 metres, and is unable to see
detail. The visual field is all that the eye can see in central and peripheral vision
when focused on a single location without moving the head. By Addison’s visual field
being 10%, this means she is unable to see the side (peripheral vision) when she is
focusing her eyes on a central point. Any person who has 20 degrees or less of
visual field remaining is at the level to be considered legally blind. The visual
condition Nystagmus also affects Addison's vision as it is a condition where one
cannot control their eye movement. The eyes tend to make uncontrolled, repetitive
and involuntary movements that occur from side to side, in a circular motion or up
and down (Vision Australia, 2022).

Students with low vision / visual conditions may encounter various barriers to their
learning. It is critical that educators learn how to change the environment or alter
objects so that their students with low vision can see them more easily. Addison’s
condition will provide barriers to her learning and education as she may be unable to
process information in comparison to her peers. Due to her visual condition, she will
be unable to read, see or visualise information presented on the board or given to
her. As a result, she will require special adjustments as well as assistance within the
classroom. It is therefore the teachers as well as other professionals responsibility to
provide the necessary modifications to assist all students including Addison to
maximise their visual ability.

Regardless of her condition, Addison has many strengths that can assist her towards
her learning and everyday life. For example, it is stated that she does well in school
and is a popular student, this is a benefit for her as it means that she isn't falling
behind or lacking towards her education, and has many friends. Another benefit is
that she lives across the road from school which is highly convenient for her as she
doesnt have to travel far to attend school. Her passion for sport is also a strength for
her as well as an interest that contains many health benefits. In reference to her
school being located in a high socio-economic area, this provides extra assistance
specifically for her and other students who have impaired vision as the school has
the ability to pay and provide. The most beneficial aspect of all is that her disability
itself is verified for funding. This means that the school is able to accommodate her
condition by providing extra support, further resources which gives her the
opportunity to access materials to allow her to succeed. Her parents working in the
medical field as medical professionals is also beneficial as they are experienced with
her condition and are able to assist her further at home and for the rest of her life.

4. Identify relevant and contemporary Australian legislation that protects and

supports the learner’s access, participation, inclusion, and learning;

Students with disabilities have the same educational rights as other students who do
not have disabilities. The law that abides by these rights stems from the "Disability
Discrimination Act, 1992," which requires education providers to follow the "Disability
Standards for Education, 2005" (ACD, 2022). Inclusion is a fundamental human right
as well as a legal entitlement for everyone. Both sections of the Discrimination act
help students, schools, parents, and professionals understand the significance of the
Disability Standards and guarantee that students with disabilities both engage and
experience education on an equal level as children without disabilities. The 'United
Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities' (UNCRPD) is an
international Human Rights treaty that establishes the fundamental human rights of
all people with disabilities. The aim of this Convention is to promote, defend, and
ensure that all individuals with disabilities have full and equal enjoyment of all human
rights and basic freedoms, as well as to encourage respect for their inherent dignity.
This is also emphasised in “The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the
Child” (UNICEF, 2022), which discusses the relevance of Children's Rights in
particular, and that they all have equal rights regardless of who they are, whether
they have a disability or not. The Convention defines children, their rights, and
governments' obligations. All of the rights are interconnected, equally vital, and
cannot be taken away from children.

5. Plan for three SMART learning outcomes to overcome barriers to learning

for the selected learner;
6. Design differentiated teaching strategies to support your learner’s needs
and inclusion and ways to assess the student’s progress on achieving the
SMART outcomes;

Goal setting assists teachers and students in developing a vision for self-
improvement. There is no defined and agreed-upon learning path without specific
goals. It is important to ensure that the Goals being set are specific, measurable,
agreed, realistic and time based (SMART). By establishing SMART goals, it
motivates the teacher to push towards that goal and encourage them to ensure the
child achieves it.

In regards to Addison, it is crucial that SMART goals are made, as it allows the
teachers to set clear objectives to establish success which will therefore impact
Addison's education and allow her to overcome her barriers to learning.
Examples of SMART Goals for Addisson to achieve include:
 - Through using uncontracted printed Braille, Addison will read the letters of the
alphabet at 100% accuracy, by the end of Term two.
- Using her magnifier, Addison will read a children's book on a kindergarten
grade level with at least 80% accuracy by the end of Term three.
- At the end of each school term, after listening to her designated Kindergarten
grade level comprehension book, Addison will verbally dictate a reading
comprehension question to the teacher.

By creating SMART goals that are specific, yet realistic and achievable with clear
deadlines, it allows Addison to constantly progress and therefore accomplish the
objectives provided. Differentiated teaching strategies however, must be
implemented within the classroom, not only to support Addison's learner needs, but
to also promote inclusion and ensure progress.
Teachers can do this by implementing a Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
approach within the classroom to meet the needs of each and every student.
Schools must adapt to their students' diverse learning requirements by recognising
differentiated teaching strategies at all stages of planning. This assures that each
and every student is encouraged to participate and engage in the curriculum, which
results in continual progress to student success (The State of Queensland,
Department of Education, 2022).

In order to support Addison’s needs to achieve her SMART outcomes, lighting,

colour and contrast, size and distance, and time and space organisation must all be
taken into consideration. For instance, students with reduced visual acuity are
unable to see detail clearly, as a result, the teacher must control the light within the
classroom and reduce glare with curtains and blinds and ensure that Addison's back
is facing the window (Vision Australia, 2022).
A verbal teaching style must be implemented to communicate to the students who
are unable to see. For instance, the information written on the board or presented on
powerpoints must be read out, and instructions from the teacher must be verbalised
and as descriptive as possible to fill out visual gaps with words (NCCD, 2022).
Magnification is also important for students with low vision. For instance, Addison is
unable to see far distances, so as a result the teacher can provide more images,
maps and enlarged print. These students should also be seated at a closer distance
and moved closer to the board. One of Addison's goals consisted of using a
magnifier as a strategy to help her see items that are close to her, in order to
promote an inclusive teaching environment, the teacher can provide enlarged
versions of information as well as assisted technology such as a screen magnifier or
screen reading software to enable them to read (ACEDT, 2022). Utilising a braille to
read is also another goal of Addisons, the teacher must also provide extra space to
accommodate for devices. A method that can be used to allow Addisson to achieve
her goal in reading braille would be through the hand over hand method,which is a
tactic where addison will be taught to put one hand over another hand to learn to feel
the dots. The teacher will then explain to Addison that letter B consists of 2 dots, and
emphasise the amount of dots to teach her the letters of the alphabet in Braille. Once
Adison achieves her goal to read letters in braille, the teacher will provide Braille
Standardised texts and instructions as well as other aids such as tactile resources.
Overall, There are a variety of inclusive teaching and assessment practices that can
help all students learn, but there are several specific tactics that are beneficial when
teaching a group that includes children with vision impairment.

7. Explain strategies for how you would work collaboratively across contexts
with parents/ caregivers and other education and medical professionals

It is crucial that teachers establish secure, respectful and reciprocal teacher-child

relationships in order to collaborate with families, parents, and other education and
medical professionals (AITSL, 2022). Collaboration recognises differing knowledge
and perspectives in order to meet the learners variability. The parent teacher
partnership approach is a theoretical approach that stresses the importance that
teachers and parents must work together to provide the child with the best education
possible (Keyes, 2016). The teacher child relationship fact sheet is a document that
provides strategies for building teacher child relationships in order for the teacher to
learn and understand the child's disability to assist the teacher to provide the best
education possible for the child (AITSL, 2022).
Teachers collaborating with professionals can also assist each other to efficiently
identify strategies to support students with special needs, in particular those with
visual impairments. For instance, teachers can gain assistance and extra information
about focus child Addison through a company called Vision Australia. Vision
Australia supports those who are blind or have low vision by working in partnership
with them to assist them through all stages within their lives and achieve all
possibilities. Teachers can either work collaboratively with Vision Australia by
receiving a brochure containing strategies or can be supported directly and work
collaboratively by the company as they are government funded and provide services
in schools (Vision Australia, 2022).

Family-school and community partnerships are also an effective strategy to

encourage and empower constructive parental involvement together while bringing
together family and community resources to improve student learning and well-
being. The Family School Partnerships Framework provides teachers resources,
supporting materials and practical advice to assist teachers in collaborating with
families (Department of Education, 2022).

Students who require additional assistance and support in the classroom are eligible
for an individualised education plan. Individual Education Plans (IEPs) ensure that
the goals and strategies for student learning are negotiated collaboratively as both
parents and guardians as well as healthcare professionals are important members of
the child education team. These individuals must work together to provide the child
with the best education possible and allow the child to succeed in school (AITSL,
2022). Overall, Collaborative partnerships with families are fundamental to achieving
quality outcomes for children and enhance children’s inclusion, learning and
wellbeing (ACECQA, 2022).

8. Identify ongoing professional learning that currently exists to support the

engagement, learning, and success of students with disability in inclusive
contexts;
9. Reflect on the broader implications of disability, inclusive learning, and the
teachers’ responsibilities and duty of care to meet these needs.

Effective Classroom teachers and support staff are the most critical resource in
providing the best possible outcomes and performance for students, including those
with disabilities and other learning support needs. A variety of continuous high-
quality professional learning strategies can assist teachers and support staff
members in meeting the educational requirements of their diverse students (NSW,
Government, 2022).

Professional development on how to assist students with disabilities is essential for

educators as it helps to guarantee that all students are accommodated for and that
educational settings are inclusive. The Disability Standards for Education provides a
free E-Learning course that further explains the Disability Standards in depth and
explores what the responsibility of schools and teachers are towards students with
disability (NSW Government, 2022).

There are also a range of Supported Online courses that assist classroom teachers
as well as support staff from the department’s high school, primary school, and
special schools. The NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) have approved
each of the courses. The courses cater to a wide range of disabilities as well as extra
learning and support requirements. Department employees can take the courses
with a certified instructor, in a learning group, or through independent online study
(NSW Government, 2022).

AllPlay Learn is another program that offers practical online material and courses to
assist in the development of inclusive learning environments for children with
disabilities. The AllPlay Learn website's educators area contains information about
the various disabilities, strategies for assisting children with developmental issues,
and resources for primary and secondary schools (ACD, 2022).

The “Inclusive Education: Teaching students with disability” is a website that

contains a resource list full of information and strategies that schools and teachers
can utilise to provide personalised learning and support as well as resources and
fact sheets that focus on inclusive education. Resources list number 3 provides a
number of support strategies to help teachers assess the needs of students with
additional needs. One strategy that teachers learn is to provide personalised
adjustments through adjustments to curriculum. Adjustments to curriculum are made
to enable students with disabilities to engage in education on the same terms as
other learners. Adjustments can be prepared by the student's support network and
implemented at the whole-school, classroom, and students' individual levels.
Adjustments will be made depending on the student's evaluated requirements,
available resources, and the school's environment (AITSL, 2022).

Overall, Quality and effective professional learning focuses on the basic components
of a successful teacher. It strengthens educators' awareness of the content they
teach and provides them with a variety of strategies to assist their students to learn
it. It is critical that teachers support these students in determining which methods
and strategies are most effective in attaining successful inclusion while also meeting
their unique goals and requirements.
Educators therefore must offer support networks and differentiation techniques for
those individuals, as well as a significant need for effective collaboration among
other educators in order to understand how to manage students with disabilities.
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