Curricular Modifications for Elementary Students With Learning Disabilities in High-, Average-, and Low-IQ Groups

Abstract

Students considered gifted and learning disabled (G/LD) are those most at risk of not being adequately served in U.S. schools. This research compares delivery formats and Individual Education Plan (IEP) modifications offered to 1,055 elementary school students, grades 3–5, who qualified as having a learning disability (LD) at different levels on the intellectual spectrum. Archival assessment and IEP documents determined the proportion of students with LD who demonstrated high, average, and low intellectual abilities, and the modifications, accommodations, and services they were offered. Multivariate analyses examined group differences in identified modifications. Although current research indicates that children who are G/LD receive the same modifications as their average and below-average LD peers, students in the higher scoring intellectual group received significantly fewer modifications in two of the four evaluated categories (namely, delivery and evaluation). Modifications failed to address areas of strength and/or giftedness of students who were LD but also demonstrated high intellectual ability. Group differences in educational planning showed that students who had high intellectual ability and LD differed from their peers who demonstrated low and average intellectual ability with LD. However, it is not clear whether the resulting differentiated programming that occurred in practice was the appropriate educational approach for this group of children.