Educational Evaluation

Name:LB

School: XXXXX

Grade: 10

DOB:XXXXX1999

Age: 16.5

Date of Evaluation: March-April, 2016

Examiner: Christopher Russell, MS. Ed., TVI

I. Reason for Evaluation:Mr. JB and Mrs. DBrequested an updated educational evaluation to provide additional recommendations supporting LB’s educational program, with an emphasis on supports specific to her visual impairment and full access to the general education curriculum. Mrs. DB reported a central goal of capitalizing on LB’s educational abilities by assessing the current provision and use of accommodations in school, and determining appropriate levels of support needs. This report provides functional recommendations based on: LB’s current performance and challenges in school, with specific emphasis on selected areas of the Expanded Core Curriculum for students with visual impairments (in particular, Self-Determination, Compensatory Skills, Visual Efficiency, and Assistive Technology); environmental and material adaptations and accommodations including the use of assistive technology (AT) needed to support LB’s success in academics; domains and goals supporting successful transition to post-secondary education and adult life; and, her own individual and family preferences and perspectives that help to shape her educational program.

II. Process:This evaluation is based on information obtained through:

  • Review of student records: Most recent Individualized Education Program (IEP) (2015-16); School Psychological Evaluation (07/2014); Education Services Assistive Technology Assessment (10/2015); Functional Vision Assessment (2014-15); Medical History/Developmental Assessment for ADHD (10/2015); School Report Card (02/2016)
  • Anobservation conducted on March 8th, 2016 in the school setting during: academic lessons in Pre-Calculus, Marketing, Choral/Music Class, and Chemistry; and, transitions between classes and routines in the school hallway including informal evaluation of Orientation and Mobility skills and organizational skills.
  • An informal interview with LB at the end of the school day on March 8,with questions targeted to provide input on self-determination, personal preferences, study/organizational skills, access to educational curriculum, use of assistive technology and low vision aids, transition and personal future planning.
  • A collaborative team meeting at the school with JD (LDT-C); ST (Case Manager); DF (Counselor); and MB (TVI); separate informal interview with MF (1:1 Aide) to obtain information on her role in providing accommodations and adapting materials for LB.
  • Use of selected assessment tools: Functional Vision Assessment, Learning Media Assessment; Transition Competencies Checklist (completed by LB and parents); Expanded Core Curriculum Needs Assessment (completed by LB and parents, educational team, and evaluator)
  • Phone interview with Mrs. DB, LB’s mother, and email correspondence with Mr. and Mrs. DB and LB’s educational team

III. Background Information and Review of Records:

A. Student Description and History

LBDB is a bright, quiet but sociable 16.5-year-old teenage girl with low vision who attends high school in a general education program at XXXX Public Schools. She has a history of Mitochondrial Disease (hereditary mitochondrial cytopathy), optic nerve atrophy and GI reflux, and has received an additional diagnosis of ADHD, for which she takes medication.

LB’s IEP placement category is “in the presence of general education students between 40% - 79% of the school day,” and she receives the following related services (2014-2015 IEP):

  • NJ Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired: 7 x Yearly (30 min, Individual)
  • Counseling Services: 2 x Monthly (30 min, Individual)
  • Teacher of the Visually Impaired (TVI): 3 x Weekly (70 min, Individual)
  • Nursing Services: 5 x Weekly (15 min, Individual)
  • Orientation and Mobility: 5 x Weekly (30 min, Individual)
  • Personal Aide: 1 x Daily (300 min, Individual)
  • Special Transportation: 5 x Weekly

Due to biophysical symptoms associated with her mitochondrial disease, LB requires a number of physical and environmental supports, all of which are listed on her IEP (including a temperature-controlled classroom, snack every three hours, regular fluid intake especially during hot weather, and a bus with tinted windows). LB takes medications related to her condition, and also has a history of asthma. There are many forms of mitochondrial disease, with a range of symptoms and manifestations; challenges with fatigue and a range of sensory input are common across types. Optic nerve atrophy is also a common comorbid visual impairment with mitochondrial diseases. See below in Functional Vision Assessment for a full description of her visual functioning and implications of optic nerve atrophy.

B. Academic Performance:

Academically, LB generally performs on grade level and does not have significant gaps in knowledge or skills preventing her from accessing the Core Curriculum, provided appropriate adaptations for her specific visual impairment. On her most recent report card (2/15/16), LB received grades in the A range for Marketing, Vocal Performance, and English; she received grades in the B range for Pre-Calculus, Lab Chemistry, Wind Ensemble, and US History; she received a C+ in Spanish 3.

Last year, LB was in honors classes for Algebra II, Spanish, and Chemistrywhich she had to drop this year, due to receiving poor grades. Mrs. DB reports that LB’s failure to meet high standards in the honors classes was due to a lack of access and accommodations, in particular, difficulty with materials in Mathematics, and difficulty with written testing in Spanish language (as opposed to spoken/aural Spanish). The educational team states that LB struggled with the content and workload in these particular honors classes, and benefits from greater success academically in the CP classes for Math, Science, and Spanish.

AIDE: LB receives the support of a 1:1 aide whose primary responsibility is to adapt materials (into large print) and to take notes for LBduring class to compensate for the visual information that she is not accessing effectively during instruction/lecture. In addition, the aide uploads these notes on a shared Google Drive (shared with LB and her teachers/educational team). It is LB’s responsibility to ask for these notes to be uploaded. The current aide, MF , attempts to be as inconspicuous as possible, recognizing that LB does not want to stand out from her peers and also prefers to have a minimal relationship with MF. This is appropriate due to LB’s age and educational placement, and furthermore, the hands-off approach that MF clearly exemplifies is the most natural support to bridge LB’s further development of self-advocacy skills related to independent use and requesting of accommodations. See further observation and analysis of the role of the aide throughout this evaluation, and recommendations for future educational planning.

RELATED SERVICES: LB reportedly feels “very strongly about not being pulled out of class” for related services or other meetings, and it has been a challenge in the past few years for the collaborative team to successfully implement recommended mandates for related service provision including TVI and O&M mandates. As LB has a very active and busy extracurricular life, it has also been difficult to provide after-school sessions in the past.

C. Cognitive Development:

LB was administered the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) in July, 2014, and received scaled scores in the 61st percentile for Verbal Comprehension (Average Range Standard Score), and scores in the 94th percentile for Working Memory (Superior Standard Score). According to the report (W, 2014), in Verbal Comprehension, “Her greatest strength was her ability to reason with abstract concepts… (75%)…her vocabulary was just a bit weaker, but still above average (63%). LB’s greatest relative weakness was her ability to reason in practical situations, which require insight and judgment of a nonacademic type.” In Working Memory, the evaluator confirmed superior-level skills in “Her ability to repeat and to reverse what was said to her (95%)…” and, “LB was able to sequence numbers and letters at the high average level (84%).”

In the same evaluation, LB received scores in the 77th percentile on large print word recognition, using the Wide Range Achievement Test-IV (WRAT-IV). The evaluator noted, “However, LB was able to read a number of complicated words for which she did not know the definition. It appears that her word attack skills are stronger than her knowledge of word meaning.” In Spelling, LB received a lower score in the 39th percentile, and in Arithmetic she received a score in the 58th percentile. At the time of this evaluation, LB’s reading scores were on grade level; specific information is available in the original report. In Statewide and District Assessments, during the period of time leading to her last IEP,LB received scores in the Proficient range for Mathematics and Language Arts Literacy.

Psychological evaluation (7/2014) reported LB functioning cognitively “within the average range, but just above exact average in verbal areas. LB shows relative strength in her ability to reason with abstract concepts, while her general fund of information is her greatest weakness. She is very significantly stronger in terms of working memory, which falls at the superior level.” The above finding of difficulties in general fund of information is likely related to exposure rather than cognitive ability. This is a common trend in youth with visual impairments who tend to have greater difficulty in accessing information independently, and tend to be more reliant on supported exposure from others to gain experiences and develop a comprehensive fund of general information. Furthermore, for a student with visual impairments to perform in the average or slightly above average levels on standardized intelligence tests also suggests strengths in the use of compensatory skills to make up for the impact of sensory challenges.

It was not deemed necessary to conduct further cognitive testing at this time, as this is not an area of concern for LB in accessing academic coursework commensurate with her age. The question of whether LB should be placed in advanced/honors classes is less a matter of cognitive ability than compensatory ability to succeed given the pace and intensity of coursework in specific content areas which are more challenging for her, such as Math, Chemistry, and Spanish. It may simply be that LB’s interests, strengths, and specific skill sets are not as developed in the areas in which she has struggled to maintain honors-level programming. LB’s difficulties in these areas are not due to a lack of access to accommodations and curriculum, although these challenges are exacerbated by not using available accommodations and assistive technology to support her visual efficiency.

LB has a history of difficulty sustaining attention and focusing, which is associated with sensory and biophysical implications of mitochondrial disease. LB’s challenges in this area have also been linked diagnostically with ADHD. Though this has been an additional area of concern regarding LB’s cognitive and general functioning in school and on academic tasks, Mrs.DB reported significant improvement in LB's ability to sustain attention and to focus, as a result of medication this year.

D. Social/Emotional:

As a teenager with a visual impairment and additional health concerns, despite being a well-adjusted and pleasant, bright, and sociable young woman, LB naturallyis faced with some significant internal social/emotional challenges. Youth with visual impairments who attend school in inclusive/general education settings often experience some level of difficulty in discussing their visual impairment and explaining its implications to others, including both peers and adults.

As LB’s visual impairment is not easily noticeable, and behaviorally she does not let it show, she is able to avoid, for the most part, having to identify as visually impaired throughout the school day and with her peers. According to her educational team, and confirmed by family as well as by LB herself in an interview, she prefers keeping this information to herself most of the time in the general education high school setting. While this is not inherently a negative choice, it does have a tangible impact on her access to information and instruction, as is described throughout the observations below.

LB does not readily discuss or divulge information about her visual impairment or specific support needs with the educational team, but she is able to express herself when she needs to or feels overwhelmed. Furthermore, the intensive focus from others on supporting her needs, however necessary and well-intended, provokes additional stress that would be a challenge for any teenager.

Mrs.. DB stated thatLB came home in tears the week prior to the evaluation, saying that she feels like no one understands that it is hard for her. LB’s social/emotional reaction is completely commensurate with age, but it is important to emphasize the specific impact of her visual impairment and health issues on her more general experience as a teenager.

It is important for youth with visual impairments to be able to discuss their specific condition, implications, and support needs openly, confidently, and in a variety of contexts. This skill is directly related to success in post-secondary life and career planning. Although this is a challenge for LB given her experience, the subtlety of her visual impairment (to others), and her own personality, she clearly has some understanding of the need to accept and develop comfort in discussing it in specific circumstances. Mrs. DB stated that just recently LB was selected for a role in a local theater production, and she shared with the group/director that she has a vision impairment. Mrs. DB recognized this as a milestone; LB’s family is supportive of this critical area of skill development.

MB (TVI) reported that she has engaged LB in discussion about her visual impairment, the importance of self-advocacy skills, and specifically her own role in making decisions about using accommodations including technology, and the role of her aide. MB reports that for the most part in these conversationsLB is quiet and agreeable, but also does not currently articulate, reiterate, or expand upon these matters.

LBis overall a well-adjusted teenager who has strong interests and is able to interact socially with peers and maintain the challenging components of high school life despite her visual impairment and health issues. Mrs. DB describes LB as “a girl who wants to do it all,” and this passion is evident when engaging LB in discussion about dance, music, and theater. In school, she tends to be quiet and serious, according to her educational team. Her aide, MF, reports that she has friends, talks with classmates appropriately and is not shy when it comes to interacting with her peers in class. Several times throughout the day’s observation, LB laughed and joked with friends and demonstrated rapport and strengths in social connections. MF reported that for the first time in school since starting work with her, recently she observed LB interacting in a much more vibrant and outgoing, talkative manner, during a vocal class.

COUNSELING: LB is offered counseling at school, but does not currently make use of this support. The educational team states that they are concerned about LB’s intrapersonal development, in particular her self-image as it relates to advocacy and ability to make decisionsin order to obtain the accommodations she needs to fully succeed both academically and in extra-academic areas.

E. Sensory Functioning

Vision: LB has a primary visual diagnosis of optic nerve atrophy, with distance visual acuity best corrected at OD: 20/125, OS: 20/250; distance visual acuity with pinhole OS: 20/100, OD: 20/100 (Dr. L, 11/082013 *See recommendations for updated ophthalmologic report). See Functional Vision Assessment below for a full description and evaluation of LB’s visual impairment and current visual functioning.

Hearing:No records indicate hearing loss or auditory neuropathy, so it is assumed that LB’s hearing is within normal limits. Although LB’s mitochondrial condition is not directly associated with hearing loss, regular audiology evaluation (every two years) is recommended.

IV. Description of School Observation

A. Pre-Calculus:

LB arrived at school just as her Pre-Calculus class was starting, entered the class and found her seat at the front center of the classroom without difficulty. She appeared comfortable and appropriately dressed for a teenager, and as she sat down, she turned to make eye contact with and say hi to a neighboring peer. Before the class began, the 22 students in the class watched a 5-minute segment of the school’s TV program run by peers (Wall HS TV) on the SmartBoard at 6-8’ distance from LB. She did not focus visually on the screen, but laughed and joked along with a friend to her right, commenting onthe video/audio. As an observing evaluator in a general education class, I attempted to be inconspicuous but also positioned myself so that I could be able to make specific observations on LB’s use of vision, at the front far side of the classroom roughly 15’ from LB. She looked over at me briefly, and made a comment to her friend. LB’s aide, MF, sat at the back of the classroom and worked on adapting materials throughout the class.

A “Do Now” quiz followed the video, and LB took out several large binders and papers, opened a binder and took out a pencil, then held the pencil 3-4” from her face apparently to check if it was sharp. The teacher provided LB with a large print version of the quiz on 11” x 16” paper (133% enlarged photocopy, roughly 18-point font). LB bent over her desk to focus on the text at 5” from the paper, and completed the written quiz on time and even before several classmates, writing at approximately 32-point font, somewhat messy but legible. She used the same scientific calculator as her peers to complete the work, holding it up to 3” from her face to read text on the screen (font size about 14-point). LB made eye contact with the teacher when handing in the assignment, and spoke quietly with her friend until the next activity began.