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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
First Major work to focus on block scheduling & IDEA student, October 13, 1998
By A Customer
If you are grappling with the complexities of teaching students with special needs in "the block" (That is block schedules) you may want to race out to your local bookstore and grab a copy of SUPPORTING STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL LEARNING NEEDS IN THE BLOCK.Authored by a trio of Unionville Chadds Ford, PA. teachers,the book was released in April and is the newest addition to the highly acclaimed Eye on Education series on block scheduling. Unique in its presentation of content and strategies for teaching and succeeding with students with special needs, the book is the first major work to focus on block scheduling and students covered by the national Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Lead author Marcia Conti-D'Antonio said the idea of writing the book, now in its second printing, grew out of a conversation she had with Robert Lynn Canady, a nationally respected education author and expert in educational restructuring. "We were engaged in our restructuring effort when our principal, Ed Spang, had Lynn Canady come in to meet with us" she said. As part of that effort, Conti-D'Antonio raised questions about special education in the block. "He told me that he had not addressed the issue and that he was not aware of any credible published work on the subject" she said. "He then asked me to consider writing a chapter (on the subject) for one of his upcoming books. I agreed to do that." Canaday liked what she had written so much that he asked her to write a book. While agreeing to take on that challenge, Conti-D'Antonio knew is was not a task she wanted to tackle alone. Instead she turned to her colleagues Joanne Eisenberger and Robert Bertrando. A 23-year veteran of public education, Conti-D'Antonio said she wanted to work with Eisenberger and Bertrando because of their extensive research-based knowledge and classroom experience. "I also consider Joanne my mentor," she said, noting that when she joined the Unionville-Chadds Ford teaching staff "I needed someone to be reflective with..." In writing their book, the trio drew extensively from their personal knowledge and experiences, research and professional literature, and their involvement with the school district's "Thinking Skills" project. Eisenberger explained that the project was designed to look at curriculum and to identify where higher levels of thinking could occur naturally. It also focused on giving students the kind of training they would need to help them use those higher-level thinking process. She said the project has been hugely successful in that it showed measurable improvent in student achievement for all participating students. Among the desired outcomes, Conti- D'Antonio and Eisenberger said they wanted the book to "present teachers with information and strategies that would result in more rigorous teaching and learning approaches than what could be achieved by lecturing for 90 minutes." Referring to the students in the Thinking Skills project, Eisenberger said "Our kids are very successful. We wanted to examine what we do that results in our students being successful and independent, and we wanted to present teaching strategies that could benefit all students. We didn't want to develop something that would be an add-on to what teachers already are expected to do. We wanted teachers to get better results by using content and strategies that are more effective," she said. Bertrando also noted that more and more "educators are being asked to think outside the box when meeting the needs of all learners." Block scheduling can help educators meet individual needs by providing more flexibility and more time to plan, teach, assess and monitor student progress. In the book's preface, the authors note that they had a threefold purpose for writing the book: . To show that school districts can successfully meet the challenges of inclusion in a block schedule; . To offer specific information on how the content teachers and support teachers can share the responsibilities inclusion demands; . To place in the hands of teachers specific, practical teaching suggestions that will increase achievement for all students. The preface also asserts that the book "will be a reference on the desks of all reflective educators" who believe that: * All students can achieve * Restructuring offers new and exciting opportunities . Varying instructional methodology promotes learning . Differentiating instruction allows all students to be successful . Cooperative planning and teaching enhances the delivery of instruction . Heterogeneity provides unique learning possibilities for all students In the book's foreword, Canady and collaborating author Michael D. Rettig, write: "We repeatedly have stated that if schools merely 'change their bells,' block scheduling should not be implemented. We also have contended that if teachers are not provided with extensive staff development, block scheduling will be a problem... "In this book, the authors demonstrate that block schedules provide opportunities for educators to address the needs of diverse populations of students." The UCF trio recently presented ideas from their book at the National Conference of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum in San Antonio and at a professional development workshop for teachers in upstate New York. "Being an educator has never been more exciting or challenging," said Conti-D'Antonio. "We hope that our book will make a significant contribution to the field of teaching as all teachers strive to meet the new national standards, the push for inclusion in content classrooms, as well as the anticipated demands of the 21 " century." (-review in PSEA-PACE)
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by Donald D. Gainey
by Robert Lynn Canady
