A resource room is a type of support for students with disabilities in need of special education that allows them to be leave their general education classroom placement and go to another location for targeted instructional support. It is one of many support options for special education students around the world to help meet their needs[1] and serves as a transition stage between a self-contained classroom and a general education classroom for special education students.[2] In the resource room, students work with a special education teacher or aide in either a small group or individual instruction. [3]

Individual needs may be addressed in resource rooms as indicated in a student's Individualized Education Plan (IEP).[4] Special education instructors in a resource room focus on particular goals as mandated by an IEP and remedial general education curriculum. Some programs emphasize the development of executive skills, including homework completion and behavior.[5]

Rationale

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Depending on individual needs, students usually attend resource rooms three to five times per week for about forty-five minutes per day. Some research has suggested these classrooms are of particular benefit to students with language-based learning disabilities such as dyslexia.[6] Other research has indicated that students show growth in visuo-motor perception, arithmetic, spelling and overall self-perception through time in the resource room classroom.[7] At least one study has suggested students with learning disabilities in resource rooms have higher expectations regarding their academic success when they are in the class.[8] This may be due to the familiarity with the resource room teacher, small group direct instruction or confidence within an area they are comfortable in. Researchers believe that explicit instruction that breaks tasks down into smaller segments is an important tool for learning for students with learning disabilities.[9] Students often benefit from "reteaching" of core concepts taught initially in general education classroom and reinforced in resource rooms[10] via the small-group instructional model, which has been shown to lead to achievement in students with a multitude of educational disabilities.[11][12]

In multiple studies, research showed that special education students prefer resource rooms as opposed to having a special education teacher in their general education classroom setting.[13] Students thought the work in resource rooms was easier and more fun, their resource room classmates were more friendly, and resource room teacher was more supportive. In these studies, general education students were also surveyed about which method they prefer, and a majority answered resource rooms as well.

Resource rooms in various countries

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In Turkey, resource rooms, also called pull-out programmes, are used as an option for special education students who are in integrated classrooms. Students in resource rooms either work individually with the teacher or in small groups of students, and focus on reading, writing, and mathematics. These sessions can occur anywhere in the school and do not require a specific classroom or space, such as the library or a teacher's lounge.[1]

In China, resource rooms were created to support inclusion classrooms in the 1980's. Their purpose was to aid special education teachers in managing their students' evaluations, behaviors, academics, and more. China implemented the Guidelines for the Construction of Special Education Resource Rooms for Regular Education Schools in 2016 that required resource rooms and a resource room teacher if schools had at least five students with special education needs. [14]

In Jordan, a student is placed into a resource room if they are a special education student in a general education classroom, and if their teachers, parents, and principal approve of the placement. Only students in second through sixth grade can be placed in a resource room. The resource room is made up of either a small group of four to six students, or one student who learns one-on-one with the teacher.[15]

In the United States, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) protects students with disabilities by requiring placement in their least restrictive environment (LRE). The LRE varies depending on the student and falls on a spectrum beginning with a general education classroom and becoming more restrictive in a resource room, special education classroom, separate special education school, or a private placement.[16] Special education students in the United States can only be placed in a resource room if it is considered their LRE because their needs can only be partially met in a general education setting.[17] The full inclusion movement in the United States sometimes comes into conflict with the requirements of IDEA by aiming to place special education students into general education classrooms 100% of the time.[18] Less ideological inclusionists recognize that resource rooms can help support students with disabilities who may languish in general education settings without sufficient assistance.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Tan, Sema; Karal, Muhammed A.; Unluol Unal, Neslihan (2022-10-03). "Primary education teachers' experiences in resource rooms in Turkey: disability vs. giftedness". Education 3-13. 50 (7): 993–1007. doi:10.1080/03004279.2022.2059541. ISSN 0300-4279.
  2. ^ Speece, Deborah L.; Mandell, Colleen J. (February 1980). "Resource Room Support Services for Regular Teachers". Learning Disability Quarterly. 3 (1): 49–53. doi:10.2307/1510425. ISSN 0731-9487. JSTOR 1510425.
  3. ^ Thurlow, Martha L.; Ysseldyke, James E.; Graden, Janet L.; Algozzine, Bob (August 1983). "What's "Special" about the Special Education Resource Room for Learning Disabled Students?". Learning Disability Quarterly. 6 (3): 283–288. doi:10.2307/1510439. ISSN 0731-9487. JSTOR 1510439.
  4. ^ Lerner, Janet W. (May 1989). "Educational Interventions in Learning Disabilities". Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. 28 (3): 326–331. doi:10.1097/00004583-198905000-00004. ISSN 0890-8567. PMID 2661524.
  5. ^ Lamminmaki, T.; Ahonen, T.; Tolvanen, A.; Michelsson, K.; Lyytinen, H. (1997). "Comparing Efficacies of Neurocognitive Treatment and Homework Assistance Programs for Children with Learning Difficulties". Journal of Learning Disabilities. 30 (3): 333–345. doi:10.1177/002221949703000308. PMID 9146099. S2CID 12254600.
  6. ^ Hagaman, Jessica L.; Reid, Robert (July 2008). "The effects of paraphrasing strategy on the reading comprehension of middle school students at risk for failure in reading". Remedial and Special Education. 29 (4): 222–234. doi:10.1177/0741932507311638. S2CID 145614318.
  7. ^ Weiner, Lawrence H. (April 1969). "An Investigation of the Effectiveness of Resource Rooms for Children with Specific Learning Disabilities". Journal of Learning Disabilities. 2 (4): 223–229. doi:10.1177/002221946900200407. S2CID 145263246.
  8. ^ Renick, Mari J.; Harter, Susan (December 1989). "Impact of social comparisons on the developing self-perceptions of learning disabled students". Journal of Educational Psychology. 81 (4): 631–638. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.81.4.631.
  9. ^ Steele, Marcee M. (April 2005). "Teaching Students With Learning Disabilities: Constructivism Or Behaviorism?". Current Issues in Education. 8 (10).
  10. ^ Thorson, Sue (1995). "Macbeth in the Resource Room: Students with Learning Disabilities Study Shakespeare". Journal of Learning Disabilities. 28 (9): 575–581. doi:10.1177/002221949502800907. PMID 8530900. S2CID 31134468.
  11. ^ Marzano, Robert J.; Norford, Jennifer S.; Paynter, Diane E.; Pickering, Debra J.; Gaddy, Barbara B., eds. (2001). A Handbook for Classroom Instruction that Works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. ISBN 978-0871205223. OCLC 47785557.
  12. ^ O'Connor, Peter D.; Stuck, Gary B.; Wyne, Marvin D. (1979). "Effects of a Short-Term Intervention Resource-Room Program On Task Orientation and Achievement". Journal of Special Education. 13 (4): 375–385. doi:10.1177/002246697901300405. S2CID 146365083.
  13. ^ Vaughn, Sharon; Klingner, Janette K. (July 1998). "Students' Perceptions of Inclusion and Resource Room Settings". The Journal of Special Education. 32 (2): 79–88. doi:10.1177/002246699803200202. ISSN 0022-4669.
  14. ^ Xie, Zhengli; Deng, Meng; Zhu, Zhiyong (2021-08-20). "From regular education teachers to special educators: the role transformation of resource room teachers in Chinese inclusive education schools". International Journal of Inclusive Education. 28 (6): 857–874. doi:10.1080/13603116.2021.1968516. ISSN 1360-3116.
  15. ^ Al Khateeb, Jamal M.; Hadidi, Muna S. (2009). "Teachers' and Mothers' Satisfaction with Resource Room Programs in Jordan". Journal of the International Association of Special Education. 10 (1): 56–59. ISSN 1555-6913.
  16. ^ Carson, Cari (2015). "Rethinking Special Education's "Least Restrictive Environment" Requirement". Michigan Law Review. 113 (8): 1397–1426. ISSN 0026-2234. JSTOR 24770829.
  17. ^ de Bruin, Catriona L.; Deppeler, Joanne M.; Moore, Dennis W.; Diamond, Neil T. (2013). "Public School—Based Interventions for Adolescents and Young Adults With an Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-Analysis". Review of Educational Research. 83 (4): 521–550. doi:10.3102/0034654313498621. ISSN 0034-6543. JSTOR 24434221.
  18. ^ Murphy, Donna M. (1996). "Implications of Inclusion for General and Special Education". The Elementary School Journal. 96 (5): 469–493. doi:10.1086/461840. ISSN 0013-5984. JSTOR 1001845.
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