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Case Study for J.R.

Nicolette Edenburn

Oklahoma State University—Tulsa Campus

Abstract

This case study will analyze a gifted 2nd grader at Zarrow International School in Tulsa, Oklahoma, named J.R (for these purposes). J.R. has shown precocity since Kindergarten, especially in the areas of math and technology. Though not seemingly at risk of underachievement, plans need to be put in place so that teachers in the future are held accountable to his extreme academic needs.

Keywords: math, technology, PEP, gifted

Case Study for J.R.

The case study for J.R. will analyze J.R.’s needs in the core subjects and in technology. It will also address J.R.’s social-emotional needs. Other academic and humanities areas will be addressed as well. J.R.’s love of learning, especially in his exceptional areas, is a gift that his teachers need to work to preserve. It appears that J.R. could easily qualify for grade skipping. However, due to bureaucracy within the district and state, at this point in J.R.’s schooling, grade skipping may not be an option. However, plans need to be put in place in order for J.R. to continue learning and avoid boredom or underachievement at school.

Background of Zarrow International School

Zarrow International School is a Spanish Immersion magnet school in the Tulsa Public School district. In Kindergarten through the first semester of second grade, all regular instruction is in Spanish. Humanities classes for all grades are taught in English. Starting in the second semester of second grade, some instruction in English is integrated. In third grade, about 70% of instruction is in Spanish and 30% in English, with English reading beginning to be part of regular instruction. Fourth grade is 60% Spanish, 40% English. In fifth grade, 50% is taught in Spanish, and 50% is taught in English. While that is the goal of the school, it is up to the individual teachers to adhere to that structure.

J.R.’s Gifted Identification

In Kindergarten, J.R. showed obvious signs of giftedness, especially with technology. He told his teacher that “the pixilation was probably off” on her Smart Board when she was having difficulty. On the parent gifted program application form, J.R.’s parents indicated that he “can create an environment using software,” “can multiply and has a high level of reading and comprehension,” and “has great problem solving skills.” They also marked “great deal” on many of the observation topics involving academic advancements. Dr. Linnea Van Eman tested J.R. in September of 2011, earlier than most kindergarteners were tested, using the computer-based NNAT2 (Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test 2nd Edition). With the standard error of measure added, J.R. scored a 125, placing him in the top 95th percentile. At the time, this qualified him in the gifted program under the multicriteria category. However, he was retested in April using the OLSAT (Otis-Lennon School Ability Test), which is a paper-pencil test until third grade. It integrates both verbal and nonverbal comprehension and reasoning. J.R. answered every question correctly, placing him in the 99th percentile, meaning J.R.’s status went from identified multicriteria to identified academic category one in the top 3%.

Art, Music, and Physical Education

In these areas, J.R. does not show weakness, but he does not show the need for acceleration or enrichment. In first grade, his teacher, Carolyn Williams, noted that J.R. would sit by himself and read at recess. Playing sports with his classmates was not a priority. However, his physical education teacher, Francie Hamer, has never noted that he shows extreme weakness in her class. J.R. participates in his classes for the arts, but he does not participate in any extracurricular activities that go with the arts. He receives satisfactory grades in each of these subjects.

Science and Social Studies

J.R. receives exemplary grades for Science and Social studies with Jury Sanchez in second grade. However, J.R. is a good student and focuses on his studies while in school. Also, J.R. is a gifted reader, and many of the assignments dealing with these two subject areas incorporate reading. In first grade, one of the differentiated lessons Carolyn Williams put together had to do with classifying objects and interpreting and communicating data collected. J.R. had two weeks to complete an assignment where he went to a museum or found a speaker on space and presented information gained in a project of choice. J.R. never turned the project in. However, in J.R.’s gifted and talented class, he is working on creating an invention that could be realized within the next twenty years. Although he was absent the day of brainstorming, and his partner and he struggled to come up with an idea the week he returned, they had a light bulb moment and have worked together to catch back up. They both brought materials needed to build a model for their project. While previous instances make one question if in upcoming years, J.R. will be able to keep up with projects outside of class, his current grades and participation do not cause worry. However, at this time, the focus for J.R.’s acceleration does not need to be in Science and Social Studies.

Reading and Language Arts

J.R. is an avid reader and was reading at a fifth grade level in preschool, according to his teacher, who is currently a gifted and talented coordinator at a different school in the district. His parents chose Zarrow, because they wanted the challenge of the Spanish literacy for J.R.. J.R. excels in reading, even in Spanish, however he does not show as much interest in Spanish reading as in English. His current DIBELS score indicates he is reading at 102 words per minute, when the requirement for second grade is 40 words per minute. He also shows high comprehension for what he is reading. In first grade, he was participating in the highest tiered activities in reading as well. It will be interesting in third grade to see just how high his reading ability is when the school is able to give tests on reading ability in English. As of now, normal differentiation with the Spanish is most likely sufficient. J.R. should be in one of the higher reading groups in his regular classroom and should be encouraged to try Spanish chapter books in the library. However, in future years, J.R. may qualify for Explorer groups in reading outside of his normal reading curriculum. Future tests, such as the SRI, MAP, and OCCT will show if his English reading comprehension is still growing from what it was in preschool.

Computers

J.R. is a technological prodigy. He usually has a device in his hand when not in school. In computers last year, he enjoyed being able to go above grade level or to advanced levels on educational software or websites. He is also a fast learner when it comes to formatting projects. We began basic keyboarding practice, and when he played a game that was difficult for him, he got excited that something was difficult for him. He saw it as a challenge that he was getting negative points and continued playing the game until he was scoring above zero. Other students who tried the game quit quickly and went back to one of the less challenging games. It is apparent J.R. needs acceleration in his computer lessons. However, for this year, a teacher’s assistant is in charge of the computer classes. The other Humanities teachers are in charge of creating lessons that integrate their subjects using the computer. It is doubtful that his technology needs will be considered in their lesson planning. However, he will be participating in a keyboarding program called Dance Mat Typing, which he can go at his own pace. It is likely he will be able to complete that before his peers and move on to more challenging timed typing challenges. In future years, his regular classroom teachers will be in charge of computer lessons, and they can tailor the lessons to be more challenging for him.

Mathematics

As of now, this is the palpable strength J.R. is showing at Zarrow International. He showed his kindergarten teacher, Emily Tamez, early on that he had an advanced grasp on what they were doing in the classroom. Dr. Linnea Van Eman, the gifted and talented coordinator at Zarrow at the time, gave J.R. End of Year math assessments from the Pearson curriculum Zarrow uses. He scored 19 out of 20 on the end of year first grade assessment, 18 out of 20 on the end of second grade assessment, and finally struggled with the end of third grade test, missing more than 20 of the 40 questions. J.R. began skipping kindergarten math and going to first grade for math lessons, which he did well in. In first grade, the plan for J.R. was to go to second grade for math. However, the follow-through with the plan was probably not ideal in hindsight. He went to Ana Chavez for math, but 2nd grade math was during 1st grade’s social studies time of the day. Ana Chavez did not turn in math grades for J.R. to his first grade teacher, so his first grade teacher made him complete first grade math assignments as well so that she could have grades to turn in. He also had to make up the social studies work he missed while he was gone. This did not seem to be the most positive environment, so changes were made to avoid burnout.

This year, J.R. goes to third grade for math. Most of the time he is gone is during second grade’s math time, but for the portion it isn’t, he works on math assignments for his third grade class or works on the online Think through Math program. He misses a portion of a different subject while he is gone, but Jury Sanchez makes sure he is able to catch up quickly when he returns. He scored higher than any other third grader on the end of third grade assessment at the beginning of the year. He scores high on almost every unit pretest as well. The teacher’s aide in third grade is great about working with J.R. one-on-one on the areas he struggles with, which mainly deal with math fluency. Since the Math Explorer group Resource Block for third grade would take J.R. out of another subject area in second grade, the teachers have decided to give him more differentiation during the time he is in third grade for math. The school has adopted an online math program called Think Through Math, which tailors a math curriculum for the student based on a pretest given. J.R. has already completed all of the third grade math concepts, but before he is changed to a fourth grade level status, the third grade teacher, Lianne Aubert Sanfeliz, wishes to have him work more with the standards he only received a 70% on.

As far as grades go, the district will not allow his status to be changed to third grade for only math. They say that poses too many problems in the future. Therefore, with the district gifted coordinator’s advisement, Jury Sanchez is giving J.R. all E’s (Exemplary) for math in second grade. In third grade, Lianne Aubert will give him all A’s in math even though he is going to fourth grade for math, etc. Our fifth grade math teacher, Jenna Buell, is also certified in middle school math, so she can continue his accelerated instruction when he gets to fifth grade. Should she not be in the school at the time, alternative plans will need to be discussed.

The topic has come up from Sanchez that she worries he will get burned out on math. J.R. continues to show he enjoys math, and he does not show any social struggles with his third grade math class or his second grade regular classroom. His teachers decided to continue the course but revisit the plan if he shows signs of disengagement or social struggles. His math assignments from third grade will also be sent home to his parents so they know what his strength areas are and also what areas of concern he may have. Should J.R. start to flounder in math at any time, the plan may be revisited as well.

Social-Emotional and Home Aspect

J.R.’s home life seems to be under a cloud of uncertainty. It appears J.R.’s parents have split up based on observations from the past two years. J.R.’s father came to a parent conference for gifted and talented this year, but his mother did not. J.R. has had two absences this year and five tardies. One of the tardies resulted when his dad’s car broke down, and J.R. said his mom had to come pick him up to take him to school. J.R. did not seem to be upset about it, and it has not impacted his grades. J.R.’s father shared that there may be some changes in J.R.’s life within the next year, and that he was open to creating a PEP for J.R.. However, he said that those changes may impact the plan, alluding that J.R. may not continue to be at Zarrow the entire length of his elementary schooling. In second grade, more assignments are sent home than in previous years, and J.R. is turning things in. This shows he still has the support at home he needs to complete his assignments.

As far as his interactions with his peers go, it does not appear to be concerning that he selects reading over playing with his peers. His peers show obvious respect and admiration for J.R., both in his regular classroom and in the gifted pull-out classroom. J.R. enjoys solitude and enjoys time spent learning on his own. He doesn’t seem to wish he was playing games at recess, so that may not be something his teachers need to push him to do. As he gets older, and students begin to form cliques, the school may need to monitor the situation more closely.

Final Thoughts

The plan in place for J.R. is working this year, due to the extreme support of his current teachers and his parents. However, a formal Personal Education Plan should be put in place so that future teachers have to adhere to it as well. The plan needs to be flexible in case J.R. begins to encounter problems with his peers or begins to feel any pressure from acceleration. The school wants him properly challenged without forcing him to burn out. The goal is for him to enjoy school and continue his love for learning. Professional development on the growth mindset for both teachers and students needs to happen so that everyone in the school is aware that each individual is on their own path for growth. That should help with any teasing that may begin to happen with J.R.’s acceleration. Based on how well he is doing, J.R. could skip a grade easily. However, with the Reading Sufficiency Act and OCCT testing, it is unlikely that grade skipping could happen at his current age. Should his family dynamic change in a way that takes him away from Zarrow, communication with his new school will need to take place so that J.R. can continue at the level he is at.

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