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GED 653!

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Fall!2012!

Case Study #4 Methods for Teaching Students with Brain Injury: Jennifer Point Loma Nazarene University

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Jennifer: A Grade 11 Student !Jennifer! is! a! 17,year,old! student!

who!was!involved!in!a!motor!vehicle!accident!during! the!spring!of!Grade!10,! on! March! 21,! 1999.! She!sustained!a! severe!brain! injury! and!was! in! the! hospital! for! six! weeks!(March,April! 1999).! She! was!transferred! to! an! inpatient!rehabilitation! program! for! four!months! (May,August! 1999).! She!was! an! outpatient! from! September!to!December!1999.!During! the! final!two! months! at! the! rehabilitation!center,! Jennifer! attended! part,time!at! the! center! and! part! time! at! her!school.!

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Planning! for! Jennifer's! return! to!school! began! as! soon! as! she! entered!the!rehabilitation!program.!Staff!from!the! school! and! school! board! were!part! of! Jennifer's! team! early! in! the!process.! Staff! from! the! school! were!invited! to! rehabilitation! team!meetings! and! were! kept! informed!about! Jennifer's! program! and!!progress.! Jennifer! was! anxious! to!return!to!school,!so!after!a!total!of!six!months! in! rehabilitation,! it! was!determined! that! Jennifer! needed! to!start!attending!school!on!a!part,time!basis! to! assess! how! she! would! cope!with! the!classroom!environment!and!academic!learning.!!

!!Teaching,! support,! and!administration!

staff!attended!an!educational!session!by!the! rehabilitation! staff! that! covered!basic! information! on! the! structure! and!function! of! the! brain,! brain! injury,! and!Jennifer's!specific!physical!and!cognitive!profile.! Strategies! to! accommodate!Jennifer!were!discussed!at!length.!

Jennifer's! peer! group! was!exceptionally!supportive!throughout!her!hospital! stay,! rehabilitation! program,!and! return! to! school.! They! attended! a!unique! education! session! that! focused!on! Jennifer's! accident,! !current!difficulties,!and!supportive!strategies.!

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Analysis and Program Plan !

GED$653$

Problems: • Fatigue!(cognitive!and!physical)!!• Decreased!balance,!co9ordination,!and!muscle!tone.!

•!Flat!affect!(showed!little!emotion)!!

•!Distractibility.!!

•!Decreased!attention,!memory,!and!organization!skills.!!

•!Difficulty!with!complex!language,!abstract!thought,!and!problem!solving.!!

•!Impaired!visual!perceptual!and!visual!motor!skills.!

•!Slowed!information!processing.

Analysis and Program Plan !

GED$653$

Medical Information: [Relevant to the education program]

• Passenger!in!a!motor!vehicle!accident,!March!21,1999.!

•!Injuries!included!a!severe!diffuse!traumatic!brain!injury.!!

•!On!seizure!medication.!

Analysis and Program Plan !

GED$653$

Assessment/Planning Info: •!Difficulties!with!fatigue,!balance/co9ordination,!visual!perceptual/visual!motor!skills,!language!skills,!information!processing,!attention,!memory,!organization,!and!all!areas!of!complex!thinking.!

•!Has!limited!insight!into!difficulties.!

•!Has!flat!affect.!

•!Poor!socialization.!

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Analysis and Program Plan !

GED$653$

School History: • Attended!Milton!Secondary!School!for!Grades!8,!9,!and!10!(until!March!1999)!

• Average/above!average!student!before!accident.!!

•!Involved!in!alt!aspect!of!the!school!community!(teams,!student!council).

Analysis and Program Plan !

GED$653$

Current Levels of Performance: Language:!Gates!MacGinitie!Reading!Test:!(Level!F,!Form!3):!Vocabulary:!25!percentile!!

Test$of$Written$Spelling:!>!Grade!11.5!!

Written$Language:!weak,!needs!review!of!all!basic!writing!skills,!has!decreased!written!organization!and!expression!skills.!Jennifer!has!difficulty!understanding!complex!language.!She!has!mild!word!retrieval!difficulties.!Jennifer's!language!is!affected!by!her!cognitive!difficulties.!!

Math:!Basic!computation!skills:!Grade!3/4!!

Word$problem?solving$skills:!Grade!5!

Analysis and Program Plan !

GED$653$

Student Strengths/Interests: [What areas can be built upon and used to support other areas of difficulty?]

•!A!co9operative!and!willing!student!!

•!Enthusiastic!about!returning!to!school!!

•!Has!had!a!successful!school!history!!

•!Has!excellent!spelling!skills!!

• Responds!well!to!material!that!is!organized!and!sequential!!

•!Has!a!supportive!peer!group!!

•!Has!a!good!sense!of!humour!!

•!Enjoys!interacting!with!adults!and!same9age!peers!

Analysis and Program Plan !

GED$653$

Student Weaknesses:

•"Fatigue"affects"both"cognitive"and"physical"performance.