- Introduction to Case Study
This case involves a youngster in k-2. Her name is Jocelyn Adams. She is born of a middle-class family residing in Oakland, California. The case study is meant to identify reading difficulties in this youngster. This case study is in a clinical setting. It is important to understand that young kids sometimes experience difficulties reading and writing. This does not mean that children experiencing such difficulties cannot improve their skills. Unlike older people, children can easily become better in their literacy capacities if they obtain the right motivation and facilitation (Ferguson, 1964). This case is conducted with the consent of parents of the youngster. It is important to note that this case study gives a recommendation about the necessary measures that need to be conducted in order to ensure that the child used in this case study is able to improve in his writing and reading skills. Parents are also informed that this study does not necessarily address all the literacy challenges for their child. They are informed that this is just a study that provides a remediation plan. The usability of this plan will be determined by the success the plan initiates in the child under study. This interview consists of 8 sessions which are 25 minutes. This meant to make sure that there is ample time between the researcher, the child care-taker, and the child. At the end of this exercise, vital information will be recorded in detail. This information will be important in making sure that an appropriate remediation plan for correcting the reading difficulties of the child under study is achieved.
- The purpose of a case study
The purpose of this study is to conduct a case study of literacy difficulties that face children in both k-I and k-2. This case is meant to establish the causative factors that are associated with literacy difficulties at early educational levels. By spending time with a child, as a representative sample, the behavioral patterns and social dynamics that influence the child’s literacy capacity is going to be evaluated. This case will conduct a diagnostic evaluation about some of the ways in which the child’s learning progress is affected by these socio-cultural dynamics. The information that is derived from this analysis is going to be fundamental to proposing the appropriate remediation for the literacy difficulties facing the child. In addition, it is worthwhile to understand that this child does not have an accurate memory or understanding of the learning process. This means that child caretakers will be used in this paper in providing vital information regarding the academic progress of the child being studied. This means that the purpose of this paper is to accurately identify the literacy difficulties of children in k-I and k-2 based on the child’s understanding of them and the evaluation of their caretakers that spend quality time with children. All this information will be important in creating an effective plan that will improve the literacy capacity of the child under study.
- Diagnostic Evaluation
In this study, the child that will be used as a representative sample is in k-2. The literacy capacity of this child has been considered by caretakers as being far below average compared to her peers. Unlike other underprivileged children, the child in this case study is from a well off family. Like many other parents, the parents to this child have provided her with the necessary tools and resources to effectively boost het literacy capacities. Despite these privileges, this child has not met the required standards. The first diagnostic approach that was adopted in this case study was the identification of clinical factors that might be contributing to the lagging behind for this child. During the first session, it was clear that the child was not mentally interested in reading and writing. The child preferred engaging in activities such as watching movies and playing music. From this approach, it was clear that the child had a strong ability in terms of listening. The child is able to effectively listen and watch the plot of a movie or a music script. The ability to listen is an advantage in the part of the child. This is because the child can be able to convert sound into writing and reading. This child does not have an interest in reading and writing because of the lack of the motivation and desire to do so. However, it is important to understand that if this child does not make timely progress in improving the standards of literacy their academic progress in upper academic classes is going to be in jeopardy. As a young child, this character is inflexible in terms of the willingness to make changes in life. This means that a child like this needs to be pushed to be able to accomplish some important task. Bearing this is in mind, the parents were asked to reduce the amount of time that is spent by the child watching movies and playing music instruments. This time was used to facilitate the child to learn more about reading and writing.
As an incentive, the faster and correctly that the child completed the literacy assignment, the more time the child would have doing some of the things that the child likes to do. The creation of incentives that prompt the child to spend more time learning to read and write increases the concentration of the child in the process (Fuller et al., 2007, p.114) During this moment of concentration caretakers were involved in guiding the child through the process of literacy assignment completion. It was evident that the process that the child is upset during the first three session. The child is not happy about the changes in the normal life of watching movies and playing music instruments. However, it becomes apparent that the child takes up the responsibility of learning more about how to read and write each session. This is evident due to the level of progress that the child has been able to attain by the fifth session. It is important to note that this is a study which is time bound. This means that the process of motivation and facilitation of the child is not the responsibility of the researcher. In the light of this, the responsibility of making sure that the child maintains the commitment to learning is not the responsibility of the researcher. This responsibility in the long run will remain with the child caretaker both in the school environment and at home. In this case, we asked the parent to try stepping in in making sure that the child spent her time wisely while at home. At the end of the eighth session, it was clear that the child had embraced the notion that reading and writing was part of her everyday life. During the last interview on the eighth session, both the caretaker of the child at school and the parents expressed their commitment of making sure that the child is able to use quality time to learn how to read and write in order to catch up with her peers.
- Identifying of difficulties
- Appropriate remediation/ remediation plan to correct the reading difficulties.
In this case, facilitation from both instructors in the classroom environment and parents at home is fundamental in building the interest of the child to improve literacy tools. Through facilitation, parents and instructors will be able to make sure that the students spends time learning how to read and right while at the same time finding time to do the things that the child likes. Striking a balance between these two things require the adherence to principle and the instillation of discipline to the kid in terms of time management. Parents should also play a key role in making sure that the emotion of the child is controlled. This child has a temper problem, which may in some cases impede the learning process. In order to avoid this, parents should talk to their child more often regarding the things that are bothering them, and also make sure that the child gets medical attention about how to relax their emotions.
References
Fuller, B., Bridges, M., & Pai, S. (2007).Standardized childhood: the political and cultural struggle over early education. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press.
Nutbrown, C. (2006). Key concepts in early childhood education & care. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
Saracho, O. N., & Spodek, B. (1998).Multiple perspectives on play in early childhood education. Albany: State University of New York Press.
