Running head: INDIVIDUAL DIFFRENCES PROFILE 1

Individual Differences Profile Essay

Jacob Mcleod
Instructor: Dr. Egbert
EDUC 205: developmental Differences













Individual difference profile 2
Individual Difference Profile Essay
All kids are different in some way. They all have physical, cognitive, and cultural
differences. Thats what is so great about America is because, there are so many different
people, and no one is the same. All students come from different backgrounds and all
students have a different thing going on in their lives. In this profile I will talk about the
physical, cognitive, socio-emotional development of this student.
General Information
Amanda is a 14-year-old Caucasian girl. Amanda lives with her mother and her
father, she also has a younger brother and a younger sister. Her brother is 3 years younger
than her and her sister is a year younger than her. Amanda is like any other student she
has a routine where she goes to school for 7 hours a day. She goes to all her classes.
School starts at 8:30 in the morning and gets out at 3:30. Her mom works from home so
when Amanda gets out of school there is no need for her to go to a day care, she can go
straight home. Her father works out at the mine so he leaves early in the morning before
the kids are up and gets home around 4 oclock in the afternoon.
Physical Development
Amanda is a 14-year-old girl with long blonde hair, and blue eyes and her skin is
white. When she is with her peers her physical appearance is a little different but she is
almost the same as her peers. Amandas general health is very good she doesnt have to
go to the doctor for anything different than most kids do. She has good vision so she
doesnt have to wear any glasses. She is in good physical fitness and she does things that
help her stay in shape. Her large muscle development is good, she plays basketball on a
town team in a league called P.A.L. and she is also apart of a traveling team. She has fine
Individual difference profile 3
small motor skills; she can write with a pencil and pen, she also has good enough hand-
eye coordination to take notes with an IPad.
Cognitive Development
Amanda is in the 7
th
grade and is placed in a regular classroom. She has inclusion
with the normal kids. About 80% of her classroom time is spent with an aide, which is a
person who goes around with her helping her with her class work. She goes to class in the
following subjects: science, mathematics, writing, reading, history and social studies.
When she is in all of these classes she is allowed to take notes on an IPad that her family
has provided her with. When Amanda is in class her academic behaviors are like her
peers, although she has a shorter attention span than her peers, her aide that is with her in
her classes helps her focus and participates in-group activities. Her favorite and her best
subject is math, she seems to always focus better in math that any of her other subjects.
When I asked her mom what she thought about Amandas school work she said that it has
steadily gone up each year, especially in math.
In Piagets stage of cognitive development Amanda is in the formal operational
stage. Through Informal methods of assessment I was able to see the stage she was at.
The reason I was able to see this is because she was able to use deductive reasoning in
math and analogical reasoning. Amanda was able to use these things in math.
Socio-Emotional Development
Amanda does some interacting with peers, she has several friends, but when It
comes to making new friends she is shy and not very talkative. Even when she is with her
friends she does not talk and do the normal things that a 14 year old girl should with
friends. When it comes to interaction with adults she only has scripted communication
Individual difference profile 4
which is when the child only talks when they are asked question or when they need
something. Amanda has some self-concept of herself but not as much as a normal child
would. Her self-esteem is not very high and that is because it is hard for her to talk about
herself and hold conversation with others.
In Eriksons stages of physiological development Amanda is at the identity vs.
role confusion she knows that she is not the same as her peers. When she is playing
basketball she knows that she is not at the same level as her peers athletically but she still
plays which is good for her.
Summary, Conclusions, and Implications
The summary of this data collection is that Amanda has had a great support
system around her, her entire life. Her parents have handled her disability very well. The
people that they have surrounded her with are really a great group of people they have all
helped her keep up with her peers. All the aides that have been with her during school
have done a great job keeping her included with everything.
Amandas is not at a typical level her cognitive domain is she has done well in
math and she has gotten better in math as she gets older. She also doesnt talk very often,
when she was younger she would only talk in the 3
rd
person so Amanda is hungry , she
worked with her aides and speech pathologists to talk normally. She also uses aides in
80% of her classes. She is the same physical domain as her peers she is the normal size of
a 14 year old girl and she is in good health and she likes to play basketball with her peers
on her team. Her socio-emotional domain is not the same as her peers she does not talk
very much with her peers and she only talks to others when they ask her questions.
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Amanda has strengths and weaknesses just like every other child. Medically
Amanda is in good health and doesnt have to go to the doctor for any medical problems.
Educationally she has been very lucky in the area that the schools have been very
accepting of her and given her everything that she needs. Emotionally it is hard to tell
because she does not talk very often so it is hard for her parents and the people around
her how she is feeling. There is a lot of stress put on the parents because of everything
that they have had to deal with, Amanda has been blessed that she does not have any
serious medical problems. There is still a lot of stress put on the parents.
There are learning strategies that will be able to help Amanda grow in her
academics. She could be taught math through applied behavior analysis. The aides are a
great way for Amanda to stay focused and get her schoolwork done. Amanda has social
needs because she doesnt have the social skills others do. Inclusion lessons are a way
that we could put her with other students and have her work with other people.
No child is the same; all kids have a different problem of their own weather it is
physical, cognitive, or socio-emotional. This profile assignment has opened my eyes to
how teachers have to be open minded to different things because a child with disabilities
such as Amanda can still do great thinks and so we as educators have to try and find a
way to bring out the full potential in students.