A Case Study: Allison

Allison is an 8-year-old girl classified as having a mild intellectual disability. She is presently enrolled in Mrs. Riley's self-contained special education classroom. Allison has been progressing nicely in Mrs. Riley's class for the past 2 months. She has demonstrated particular growth in mathematics. However, Allison is a timid child who has difficulty functioning in large groups. She becomes easily distracted and anxious when surrounded by more than a few other children. She needs extra support and encouragement to interact with her peers.

Allison's mother, Jane Miller, has been very impressed with her daughter's recent achievement in mathematics and suggested to Mrs. Riley that Allison be mainstreamed into a general education classroom for math. In response to her suggestion, Mrs. Riley said that although Allison has demonstrated significant improvements in mathematics, she has difficulty functioning in large groups and may need more time to strengthen her self-confidence and social skills. Mrs. Riley thought that Allison would eventually be ready for mainstreaming, but that it was premature to consider it at this stage.

Disappointed by Mrs. Riley's response, Mrs. Miller met with the Director of Special Education and expressed her strong belief that Allison should be mainstreamed for mathematics. She then asked the director to schedule a meeting of the multidisciplinary team to discuss the situation.

The meeting was scheduled within the week, and Mrs. Miller presented her suggestion to the committee. "I am very pleased with Allison's progress in mathematics," she said. "I am also aware that Allison has difficulty socializing: however, I believe that Allison would benefit, both socially and academically, from being mainstreamed in math. She would have the perfect opportunity to strengthen her social skills with a greater number of students, while getting the more sophisticated math instruction she needs."

Mrs. Riley responded, "Mrs. Miller, I am as pleased as you are with Allison's progress in math. I am not concerned with Allison's ability to succeed academically; in fact, Mrs. Armstrong's first-grade class is covering the same math concepts that Allison is working on. I have considered Mrs. Armstrong's class as a possibility for Allison to eventually be mainstreamed into. At this point, though, J strongly recommend that Allison remain in my class where we can work on her self-esteem and improve her social skills. I am afraid that mainstreaming Allison at this point would be too overwhelming. Allison has a tendency to cry when she is surrounded by a group of children, and it is very difficult for her to function appropriately, let alone do her best, in such an environment. Let's wait before we subject Allison to an environment for which she may not be ready."

Mrs. Miller forcefully explained, "If Allison were mainstreamed, it would be a parent's dream come true. It would go a long way to reducing the stigma of Allison's having an intellectual disability. IDEA requires that a child be educated in the least restrictive environment. Let us at least do Allison justice and give her the opportunity to work in a regular classroom with regular kids! We cannot possibly know that Allison would not be able to function in a regular classroom until we give her a chance."

The decision was finalized at the meeting. Allison would be mainstreamed into Mrs. Armstrong's classroom for mathematics beginning the following Monday. It was agreed at the meeting that a student from Mrs. Riley's class would walk Allison to and from Mrs. Armstrong's class until Allison felt comfortable walking by herself.

On Monday, Allison arrived at Mrs. Armstrong's class with her classmate Jenny. Mrs. Armstrong welcomed Allison warmly and introduced her to the class. One of the students in the class said, "Hi! You can sit next to me. My name is Tracey." Allison held tight to Jenny's hand and didn't take another step. Jenny said, "Come on, Allison. You're going to sit here," and began walking Allison to the empty seat next to Tracey. Allison sat down apprehensively, and Jenny returned to Mrs. Riley's class.

Five days had passed when the following scene took place. It was a scenario that had become common in Mrs. Armstrong's classroom:

Mrs. Armstrong asked, "Tracey, could you please share your crayons with Allison?" Tracey replied, "I'm not sharing my crayons with her-she never gives them back and she puts them in her mouth!"

Peter added, "Yeah, and she always cries like a big baby when you want your stuff back!"

Allison, with tears in her eyes, pleaded, "Let me go back to Mrs. Riley's class-please, let me go!"

Learners with Mild Disabilities: A Characteristics Approach, Enhanced Pearson 5th Edition By Eileen B. Raymond Published by Pearson, p. 280 – 281.

Copyright © 2017 ISBN-10: 0-13-382711-9; ISBN-13: 978-0-13-382711-8

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