'Shadow Children' Workshops Being Planned

They've been referred to as the "shadow children." The children appear to be normal physically, emotionally and mentally - but have difficulty learning. Teachers and parents describe them as lazy or unmotivated. The Washtenaw Intermedíate School District (WISD) is I participating in a partially I federally funded project to I help teachers and school perI sonnel deal with children who have learning disabilities. I n con junction with the I Downriver Learning DisabiliI ty Center, Wyandotte, the I Intermedíate School District I will be offering a series of I mini-workshops for teachers I on how to effectively work I with children with learning I disabilities. Dr. Harry M. Overline, diI rector of the center, reported I to the WISD Board of EducaI tion at the board's regular I meeting last night. This is the fifth year the I center has been in operation. I It is a federally funded proI ject under Tiüe III of the EleI mentary and Secondary EduI catión Act. This is the third and final yeaMtt federal funding. The results of the center's work may be used as a model for the state of Michigan, according to Overline. Currently the learning disability center is working with some 70,000 children in 12 school districts located south of Detroit. "We estimate 15 per cent of that population have learning disabilities, or four or five children in each classroom," Overline said. Until recently, few children with learning disabilities were identified. And w h e n they were identified, they were removed from the classroom for some special help. The learning disability center is stressing the training of classroom teachers to work in the classroom with the student through individualized learning experienees. Currently the WISD and I learning disability center is I offering a mini-course to 25 I teachers, four principáis and I 27 special service personnel I such as directors of special I education, diagnosticians and I helping teachers. The cooperative venture is a four-semester project with approximately 25 teachers scheduled to particípate each semester. The federal grant subsidizes 50 per cent of the cost of hiring substitutes for the local school district. The Intermedíate District would pay 50 per i cent of the cost of substitutes so classroom teachers could attend the workshops. The federal grant also covers 50 per cent of the cost for the workshops and materials. The WISD picks up the $1,000 tab for the other 50 per cent. Overline said it would take two years before the cooperative project could be evaluated. It will take that long for teachers to gain the expertise in diagnosing and planning for children with learning disabilities, he said. Thé project director es■ timated 65 to 70 per cent of the youngsters with learning disabilities in the 12 school districts have improved in achievement in areas of reading or math or have shown changes in attitudes and behavior after their teachers have been trained through the learning disability center. Kathleen Erdlitz, a consultant for the WISD in the area of learning disabilities, said as a possible follow-up to the work with the learning disability center, the WISD will help districts design programs, provide in-service - training on educational asI sessments of various skills, I help teachers with specific I academie techniques to inI dividualize learning for stuI dents, and serve as a clearing I house regarding learning disabilities for parents and I teachers. MM ■ ■ I