Children With Developmental Challenges

Children With Developmental Challenges 3(2+1)

Lesson 19 : Instructional Programmes for MR Children

Approaches Used in Teaching Mental Retardation

1. Task analysis: It is a part of behavioural approach to instruction. In this a complex task or behavior is broken down in to simple units. MR children used have problems with reading, Speech disorders like articulation, additions, distortions disorders (stuttering), voice disorders and Language disorders such as limited vocabulary, slow development of language, grammatical and sentence complexity. So these children must teach each skill by using task analysis method.

Basic steps for conducting Task analysis:

• Select manageable and focused goals
• Identify the prerequisite skills for learning the task.
• Identify needed materials to perform the task.
• Observe a competent person performing the task and list the steps necessary for successful task completion in sequential order.
2. Cooperative learning
   • Useful in inclusive and integrated settings.
   • Cooperative learning encourages pupils with varying strengths and abilities to work towards achieving a common goal.
   • Cooperative learning is defined as an instructional technique in which small, heterogenous groups of learners are actively are acti8vely involved in jointly accomplishing an activity or assignment.
   • The teacher structures the task in such a fashion that each pupil significantly contributes to the completion of the activity according to his or her ability.
3. Unit approach
   • It is a traditional teaching method providing instruction in several different daily living skill content areas – health and safety, responsible citizenship, money management and vocational preparation.
   • Within each unit, teachers integrate specific academic skills such as arts, reading & arithmetic to particular unit under study.
   • Goals and activities are grouped according to chronological age or developmental level of pupils.
4. Scaffolding
   • It is applicable to mentally retarded children who are inactive or passive learners.
   • The aim of this approach is to help assist pupils become independent, proficient solvers.
   • Scaffolding is a cognitive approach to instruction.
   • In this teacher-directed strategy various forms of support are provided to students as they initially engage in learning a new task or skill.
   • As the student becomes increasingly competent the support or scaffold are gradually removed.
   • This method begins with what the pupil already knows and attempts to connect new information with previously learned material.
   • New information is presented in logical sequence building on the students knowledge base.

Other approaches include direct instruction and learning strategies.