Students' Participation in Classroom Activities

In contrast to teacher-directed aspects of the class, such as instructional groupings or materials used, the classroom participation of students with learning disabilities in general education academic classes differs from the participation of students in their class as a whole (figure 3). With the exception of working with a peer partner or group, teachers report that students with learning disabilities participate less actively than other students in their general education classes. For example, 37 percent of students with learning disabilities are reported by teachers to respond orally to questions often, whereas 66 percent are in classes in which their classmates often respond orally to questions. One in five (21 percent) of students with learning disabilities are reported rarely or never to respond orally to questions, whereas only 1 percent of their classmates are reported to respond to questions so infrequently. Half of students with learning disabilities are reported rarely or never to present to the class, compared with about one-third (38 percent) whose teachers report that classmates respond as infrequently.