Differentiated curriculum enhancement in inclusive middle school science: effects on classroom and high-stakes tests.

This investigation compared quantitative outcomes associated with classwide peer tutoring using differentiated hands-on activities vs. teacher-directed instruction for students with mild disabilities in inclusive 8th-grade science classes. Thirteen classes of 213 students (109 males; 104 females), of whom 44 were classified with disabilities, participated in 12-week sessions in a randomized field trial design. Experimental classes received units of differentiated, peer-mediated, hands-on instruction, while control classes received traditional science instruction. Results indicate that collaborative hands-on activities statistically facilitate learning of middle school science content on posttests and on state high-stakes tests for all students and that students enjoyed using the activities. Implications for practice indicate use of supplemental peer mediated hands-on activities may provide necessary review and practice for students with disabilities. Future research would help uncover additional critical instructional variables.

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As students move from elementary to secondary schools, the demands on their ability to learn academic subject matter increase dramatically. For many students, access to content area curricula such as science greatly improves their understanding of the world and how it works. They can assimilate this new knowledge, apply it to further their own educational aspirations, and become better informed and more productive citizens, perhaps pursuing careers in science or science-related fields. For other students--particularly those with disabilities--increased demands on content area learning can lead to frustration, academic failure, loss of access to the general education curriculum, and loss of future opportunities in society.

A substantial body of literature documents the academic problems of students with disabilities in middle school science. Using a data set from the National Education Longitudinal Study that included 1,946 eighth-grade students from 78 schools, Anderman (1998) reported that students with learning disabilities scored nearly 1 standard deviation (SD) lower on science achievement tests than students without learning disabilities did. According to the 2000 National Assessment of Education Progress Science Assessment, students with disabilities also scored nearly 1 SD lower than students without disabilities did at 4th-grade, 8th-grade, and 12th-grade levels (as cited in National Center for Education Statistics, 2005).

More recent evidence at the state level paints a similarly discouraging picture. Data provided by the Virginia State Department of Education (2005) revealed that, while 72% of fourth-grade students with disabilities (compared with 86% of all students) scored at the proficient or advanced level on the state Science Standards of Learning test in 2004, only 66% of eighth-graders with disabilities scored at these levels (compared with 88% of all students). Such data suggest that students with disabilities fall farther behind their peers as they progress from elementary to secondary schools. In high school end-of-course examinations, only 48%, 56%, and 63% of students with disabilities scored at the proficient or advanced level on tests of earth science, biology, and chemistry, respectively.

Students with disabilities underachieve in science for a variety of reasons. Cawley, Hayden, Cade, and Baker-Krooczynski (2002) suggested that there is a mismatch between the curriculum and the needs of students with disabilities. Results of quantitative and qualitative investigations by Scruggs and Mastropieri (1995), Scruggs, Mastropieri, and Wolfe (1995), Mastropieri, Scruggs, and Butcher (1997), and Mastropieri, Scruggs, Boon, and Carter (200l) suggest that students with mild disabilities exhibit some relative difficulty with inductive and deductive thinking associated with scientific reasoning. These students may require additional support and practice to internalize comprehension of relevant science concepts. Further, even in effective activities-oriented science learning environments, students with disabilities experienced difficulty acquiring relevant scientific vocabulary (Scruggs, Mastropieri, Bakken, & Brigham, 1993). Such findings underscore the need for additional practice and application activities to solidify relevant knowledge and skills.

In addition, learning from science textbooks presents a problem for students with disabilities. Several researchers (e.g., Armbruster & Anderson, 1988) have analyzed science textbooks and found them to be unfriendly for students. For example, often a discrepancy exists between reading level and textbook readability for students with disabilities (Kinder, Bursuck, & Epstein, 1992). The reading level of one section of a high school chemistry textbook used in the 10th grade was written on a level substantially higher than a 12th-grade reading level (Mastropieri, Scruggs, & Graetz, 2005). Furthermore, Eylon and Linn (1988) reported that more new vocabulary and terminology were introduced in a science unit than were introduced in a comparable unit in a foreign language course. These textbook characteristics can be particularly problematic for students with disabilities, most of whom exhibit difficulties in the areas of language and literacy (Scruggs & Mastropieri, 1993; Shepard & Adjogah, 1994).