Running head: INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES STUDENT PROFILE 1

Individual Differences Student Profile

Tracy Mahoni

Instructor: Natalie Raass

EDUC 205: Development/ Individual Differences

Spring 2016
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Individual Differences Student Profile Essay

I had the joy this semester to observe Eliana (not her real name) in her

Kindergarten classroom in the Vallivue school district. Eliana is on an IEP (Individualized

Education Plan) for ADHD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder). At first, I was not

even aware that she was different from her classmates. She seemed engaged, excited, and

involved in her environment. After weeks in the classroom, I started to notice a few of her

struggles. She was incredibly smart and was able to do all that was asked of her. I was

really surprised that she was on an IEP but in this case I believe it was more for the social

development than for anything else.

General Information

Eliana is in Kindergarten so I am assuming that she is 5 or 6. She seemed average

height and size as compared to her classmates. She is Caucasian and very boisterous. I

am not aware of her family configuration or of her daily life schedule outside of the

classroom. Her school day schedule is 7:55am-2:30pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, and every

other Wednesday.

Physical Development

Eliana is thin but of average height compared to her peers. She has brown hair and

brown eyes. She appears to be in good physical health. She loves recess and was

disappointed one day when she had to stay in for 5 minutes of recess because she had

been mean to the other kids. When it was time to go, she ran to the playground! She was

active, running, and playing during recess. Her gross motor skills are normal. Gross

motor refers to the large muscles of the body used for walking and running. (Gross

Motor Skills)
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She doesnt seem to have distinguishing physical characteristics except that she

constantly has a runny nose. I did not notice any problems with her vision or hearing.

One day when I was observing the janitor brought in a special desk just for her. It

was placed away from the other students. As the janitor talked to her about how great this

seat was going to be for her, she said, I hate school! I want to go home. After she was

settled into this new seating arrangement she refused to do her work. At this point her clip

had already been moved down the behavior chart and the next step was the principals

office. I overheard the teacher and aide talking about maybe putting her in the hall first

before she went to the principals office. I decided this was my cue to step in and see if I

could help. I pulled up a chair beside her new desk and we began to chat. The scowl on

her face slowly softened and we began to work on her assignment together. She seemed

very bright when she wasnt being defiant. I watched her use her right hand for cutting,

writing, and gluing. She did really well with her fine motor skills. She cut could cut,

glue, and write well. Fine motor skills are the control over small movements of the

hands and fingers. (What are Fine Motor Skills)

Cognitive Development

She is with her general education classmates all day. On the first day that I

observed, she was often blurting out answers and she was correct! She knew all of her

letters and letter sounds and even did better than some of her general education peers.

As I came back, week after week, I saw that she had no impulse control. She was

often mean to her classmates and did not play well with others. She was loud and

talkative. She often talked without raising her hand because she was so excited to answer

the question.
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She participated in class activities, in fact, at one point I saw her trying to do the

little girls paper next to her. Another day I saw her lack of motivation when she got into

trouble. She crossed her arms across her chest and refused to do the work even though

she was entirely capable of doing the work easily.

Eliana is in the preoperational stage of Piagets theory of cognitive development.

According to this theory, the child uses symbols to represent objects, makes judgments

based on appearances, and believes that everyone has the same viewpoint as she does.

(Berns, 2013, p. 172)

Her language is good and she is able to explain clearly her point of view. During

Math time, she understood the concepts of adding and subtracting. She can do the work

but she often distracts those around her by talking. When she is on task, she does well.

According to our textbook, Exceptional Learners, lack of impulse control is

common among ADHD students. This means that they have trouble regulating their

behavior. Dr. George F. Still, wrote a scientific account in 1902 saying that these

children lacked the ability to inhibit or refrain from engaging impulsively in an

inappropriate manner. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 152) This seemed to fit the girl that I observed.

She was academically smart and able to do whatever the general education students were

doing. She just had trouble regulating her behavior.

Also according to Dr. George F. Still, many of these children have normal

intelligence. This is what I observed with Eliana. In 1956, it was termed, minimal brain

injury, which meant that the children had normal intelligence but were inattentive,

impulsive, and hyperactive. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 153) The term changed in the 1960s to

hyperactive child syndrome. Some exhibited attention problems without excessive

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movement. This applied to Eliana, she did not seem to be bouncing off the wall. She was

able to sit and maintain her position better than some other students were not diagnosed

with ADHD.

According to Exceptional Learners, there are three categories of ADHD:

1. Predominately inattentive type

2. Predominately hyperactive-impulsive type

3. Combined type

I think Eliana was more of the inattentive type than the hyperactive type. She was

able to sit in her designated spot on the rug for the entire time of story-time. She was

even relatively engaged with the story.

For the inattentive type, they have trouble paying attention to details and

sustaining attention. They have problems with organization and are very distractible. For

the hyperactive type, they are constantly fidgeting. They leave their seat at inappropriate

times and talk excessively. For the impulsive type, they have problems waiting ones

turn and often interrupt others. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 154)

Eliana is diagnosed with ADHD along with some brain injury from birth. At birth

she suffered from periventricular leukomalacia and tracheomalacia. Periventricular

leukomalacia is the death of white matter of the brain due to softening of the brain

tissue. It is caused by lack of oxygen and blood flow that results in loss or death of brain

tissue. Tracheomalacia is weakness or floppiness of the walls of the windpipe or trachea.

(Tracheomalacia-congenital) (NINDS Periventricular)

Socio-emotional Development
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I noticed that she struggled with the social aspect though more than anything. To

Eliana, friendship is of utmost importance. She was constantly stating loudly who was

her best friend and who was not. She was really trying hard to make friends and keep

friends.

The adults in the classroom consisted of the teacher and one teachers aide.

Privately, they told me that she is just constantly mean to the other kids. She calls them

names and does not seem to be improving in being nice to others.

She seemed very confident especially about schoolwork. She was confident that

she was right and she usually was. The teacher often had to tell her to let others have a

turn. I would say she has a very positive self-concept and self esteem.

Lawrence Kohlberg believed that pro-social behavior to be a component of

moral reasoning and cognitive development. Kohlberg noticed that social interactions

gave the student the ability to take others perspectives and understand consequences of

behavior. He noted that whether an individual is self oriented or other orientated

influenced moral reasoning. This produced selfish or altruistic behavior. (Berns, 2013, p.

413)

After 20 years of research he found that morality is not be imposed. It has to be

constructed as a consequence of social experiences. (Berns, 2013, p. 418) Eliana would

be in level one or two of Kohlbergs stages of moral development. Stage One is that the

student does what is right to avoid punishment and the superior power of authority. Stage

Two is when the student does what is right to serve ones own needs or interests. Students

are usually in this stage until age 9 when they become more aware of others

perspectives.
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Eriksons Stages of Psychosocial Development place Eliana in the School Age

level (Age 6-Puberty) for Industry versus Inferiority. During school age students learn to

accept instruction and to win recognition by showing effort and producing. The child is

developing the capacity to work. In this stage it is important for children to be praised for

their work and effort to be motivated to achieve. Those who are ignored or rebuked tend

to give up and show helplessness. (Berns, 2013, p. 39)

One day, Eliana was having trouble putting on her jacket. She struggled then

asked other students to help and then the teacher to help. The teacher encouraged the

other children and Eliana that she could do it by herself. Eventually, she did manage to

get her coat on without help. I think this taught her a valuable lesson that day. The teacher

was showing them that they could take care of themselves to remove this sense of

helplessness.

ADHD students have difficulty with behavioral inhibition including the ability

to wait ones turn and recognize inappropriate responses. All of these characteristics

make it hard to make friends. According to our textbook, students may talk nonstop, blurt

out inappropriate comments, and show emotions without restraint. (Hallahan, 2012, p.

159) I also found that ADHD students act without regard for the consequences or have

difficulty waiting for things they want or waiting their turns in games. They often

interrupt conversations and others activities. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 159) The teacher I

observed was excellent in handling Eliana. She included her in the group and never put

her down. She called on her fairly with other children as well. She treated everyone the

same with respect and care.

Summary, Conclusions, and Implications

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According to our textbook, 9% of the school age population has ADHD. ADHD is

eligible for special education under the category, other health impaired. It is defined as,

in instances where ADD results in limited alertness which adversely affects educational

performance. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 155)

Strong evidence has been found about neurological abnormalities in the brain that

explain ADHD. The areas of the brain that are affected are the frontal lobes, basal

ganglia, and the cerebellum. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 156) The prefrontal and frontal lobes

control executive functioning and regulating ones behavior. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 156)

Heredity is also a major factor of ADHD. There is no single gene that causes

ADHD but multiple genes that can cause this abnormality. Eliana is at a typical level of

development in the areas of general, physical, and cognitive. Her struggle lies in the

social emotional domain.

For people with ADHD, their executive functioning and behavioral inhibition is

limited so they have a tough time controlling and regulating behavior. They have trouble

with mental flexibility that is the ability to adjust ones behavior to adapt to change in

others behavior or the environment. They know how to behave appropriately they just

are unable to do so. They make choices impulsively and overact emotionally.

So how do I as a teacher handle students with ADHD? First, I can create

classroom structure. I can reduce distractions. I can make a rigid and systematic schedule.

Most kids with ADHD are in the general education classroom so I can place their seat

closer to myself. I can be clear and consistent about the rules and routines. I could teach

the class to do self monitoring. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 166)

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Self Monitor means the ability to appraise a situation and consider alternative

ways of responding as well as possible outcomes associated with the various forms of

responding. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 167) If I could teach self management procedures so

they could monitor, record, analyze, and reinforce their own behavior it would help them

a lot. I could create a chart for self-management as well. I want to increase an individuals

self-awareness, self-management, self-control, self-reliance, and self esteem. (Hallahan,

2012)

I could check and reinforce academic engaged time. I could also give them

extended time for tasks and frequent breaks. (Hallahan, 2012, p. 178) Using these

techniques as a teacher, I can help ensure that all students can learn and progress. In the

case of Eliana, I would draw on her strength of being outgoing and wanting to make

friends by providing time and space to do this in an adult structured environment so that

she could learn what to do and not to do. She could see good behavior modeled and learn

how to incorporate that into her own life. I believe that every child can connect to

success.
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References

Berns, R. (2013). Child, Family, School, Community: Socialization and Support.

Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

Hallahan, D. P., Kauffman, J. M., & Pullen, P. C. (2012). Exceptional learners: An

introduction to special education. Boston ; Munich: Pearson Education.

What Are Fine Motor Skills? (n.d.). Retrieved April 27, 2016, from

http://www.ot-mom-learning-activities.com/fine-motor-skills.html

Gross motor skills. (n.d.). Retrieved April 27, 2016, from

http://www.healthofchildren.com/G-H/Gross-Motor-Skills.html

Tracheomalacia - congenital: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. (n.d.).

Retrieved April 27, 2016, from

https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001084.htm

NINDS Periventricular Leukomalacia Information Page. (n.d.). Retrieved

April 27, 2016, from

http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/periventricular_leukomalacia/perive

ntricular_leukomalacia.htm