Students with special needs tend to show significantly lower achievement in science than their peers. Reasons for this include severe difficulties with academic skills (i.e. reading, math and writing), behaviour problems and limited prior understanding of core concepts background knowledge. Despite this bleak picture, much is known on how to significantly improve science achievement for students with special needs. A recent comprehensive meta-analysis indicates that inquiry instruction which infuses appropriate scaffolds and supports, can significantly improve science achievement for students with special needs. This article will delineate the types of supports and scaffolds that students with special needs require to be successful in inquiry instruction. It will also provide concrete examples of how these supports have been successfully applied in an inclusive third through fifth grade science approach (i.e. the science writing heuristic).

Science education for students with special needs

As a growing number of students with learning disabilities (LD) receive science instruction in general education settings, students with LD continue to perform significantly lower than their non-disabled peers. The shift from textbook-driven instruction to inquiry-based approaches to science learning supports students who struggle with reading. However, research continues to show that for students to fully access the science curriculum, it is critical to address effective ways to increase reading comprehension of expository science text. This meta-analysis identified 20 studies from 12 articles that evaluated the efficacy of such interventions. Effect sizes were calculated for each study. Across all studies, a mean effect size (ES) of 0.98 was obtained. Findings align with past research on reading comprehension of expository text indicating that students with LD benefit from explicit vocabulary instruction (ES = 1.25) and the use of multicomponent interventions (ES = 0.64) when reading science-related mat...

Reading Instruction in Science for Students With Learning Disabilities A Meta-Analysis

Background: It is a challenging task to teach students who get diagnosed with a specific learning difficulty Given that they can easily get distracted, they need more support than students without

Augmented reality technology in science education for students with specific learning difficulties: its effect on students’ learning and views

Students with learning disabilities (LD) often receive instruction in general education science classrooms. However, little is known about the academic success of students with LD in this setting. ...

Students with Learning Disabilities in Inquiry-Based Science Classrooms: A Cross-Case Analysis.

Special education teachers provide critical science instruction to students. However, little research investigates special education teacher beliefs and practices around science in general or the nature of science and inquiry in particular. This investigation is a cross-case analysis of four elementary special education teachers’ initial semester-long professional development experiences learning about and attempting to implement nature of science and inquiry instruction. Participants were purposively selected from a larger study of 61 pre-K–5 teachers from one mid-Atlantic urban school district. Data sources included pre/postsurveys, video recordings of lessons, teachers’ guided reflections through time, and a postcourse interview. Results demonstrated that all participants improved their nature of science conceptions, explicitly addressed nature of science tenets during instruction, and taught via inquiry. Further, they moved beyond simply mimicking course lessons they experienced by adapting them to student needs and even innovating new lessons. Teachers increased their attention to plans and instruction to meet the needs of students with special needs; yet most of the teachers made few references to specific Individualized Education Programs, individual student needs, or associated instructional decisions. Results suggest that nature of science and inquiry professional development can increase special education teachers’ expectations of their students with special needs. To improve outcomes, professional development should increase the explicit attention to planning and strategies to help meet specific student needs. Also, special and general education teachers in inclusion settings can benefit from support with the negotiation of their roles. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 9999:XX–XX, 2016

Special Education Teachers' Nature of Science Instructional Experiences.

Although science has received much attention as a political and educational initiative, students with learning disabilities (LD) perform significantly lower than their nondisabled peers. This meta-analysis evaluates the effectiveness of instructional strategies in science for students with LD. Twelve studies were examined, summarized, and grouped according to the type of strategy implemented. Effect sizes (ES) were calculated for each study. Across all studies, a mean ES of .78 was obtained, indicating a moderate positive effect on students with LD science achievement. Findings also align with past reviews of inquiry-based instruction for students with special needs, indicating that students with LD need structure within an inquiry science approach in order to be successful. Additionally, results suggest that mnemonic instruction is highly effective at increasing learning disabled students' acquisition and retention of science facts.

Science Instruction for Students with Learning Disabilities: A Meta-Analysis

Rudy is a 12-yearold boy with a learning disability (LD). This is his first year in middle school and, although he still has difficulty navigating the large school, he enjoys the increased freedom and responsibility. However, Rudy isn’t looking forward to Friday because midterm progress reports will be sent home to his parents. Despite his best efforts, Rudy knows he is struggling in his life science class. In elementary school Rudy enjoyed science, particularly learning about insects. Unfortunately, as the vocabulary and concepts have become more difficult for him to understand, he has withdrawn from participating and actively learning in his science class. (Please note that Rudy is a fictional character.) The middle school science curriculum used at Rudy’s school is inquiry based, which is much different from the traditional textbook instruction that was used at his elementary school. Because Rudy is not reading at grade level, this inquiry approach has reduced some of his previous anxiety associated with reading the textbook. Still, Rudy struggles with some of the procedural aspects of the scientific investigations. His teachers have also noticed that he is having a hard time synthesizing the information from the hands-on activities into main ideas as well as determining the meaning of many of the vocabulary words. Sometimes he also struggles with making basic decisions, such as how he should display the results he found from an investigation. Unfortunately, in his inquiry science classroom, Rudy now spends most of his time in science as a spectator while others are actively engaged. As a result, he has not gained a strong understanding of the course content.

Three Keys to Success in Science for Students with Learning Disabilities.

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Science Instruction for Students with Learning Disabilities: A Meta-Analysis

Three Keys to Success in Science for Students with Learning Disabilities.