Students With Special Needs

Assessing English Language in Students with
Special Needs at Two Chilean Schools
Soledad Saldías
Instituto La Salle & Liceo Teresa Prat de Sarratea

Abstract
Due to some changes in Chilean educational system, students with special needs have become part of public and subsidized schools. For that, specialists have designed extraordinary programs and have given some instructions toteachers to assist them in learning. However, guidelines for English language have not been very clear since there is an urgent need to know about the language and its methodology. That is why this research pretends in some way to know if schools do it and how frequent English teachers adapt assessments to students with special needs in public and state – subsidized schools. This is a descriptivestudy which uses a quantitative method and a closed – ended questionnaire to register the information. Moreover, a group of six teachers who belong to these schools will participate answering the questionnaire which will be represented through graphics. The implications of this study will be focused on the English language area, students with special needs and the Chilean curriculum. It will alsoreveal if public and state – subsidized schools are doing a good job.
Keywords: students with special needs, public and state – subsidized schools, English language, teachers and assessment.

Assessing English Language in Students with
Special Needs at Two Chilean Schools
In the present research project I will introduce a study concerning English language and students with special needs.The first part of the project deals with the problems found in Chilean educational system, the reason why the researcher chose the topic of the study, the general and specific objectives and the research questions. Then, you will find the theoretical framework which defines concepts such as special needs, assessment, public and state – subsidized education and English as a foreign language. Afterthat, the methodology and design of the project will be stated. In this part will also be the sample, the instrument to be used, the ethical code and how it would be applied. Finally, there would be some conclusions which will offer some implications and further studies.
Research Proposal
During our lives we spend most of our time receiving formal education in institutions which provide usbasic notions for the future. There are two important functions which Chilean schools have carried out since I entered to the educational system. One of them is to confirm the progress students have had during the learning process. The other is to make students achieve certain objectives which demonstrate their improvement in several areas. Both aspects can be demonstrated through different typesof assessments. Chilean schools normally tend to represent these results through a scale from 1.0 to 7.0. However, not only numbers can measure students’ progress (Astudillo, García, Ortiz, Vicencio, 2008, p. 7).
My experience of working at different schools has generated the urgent need of modifying assessments according to the students’ needs. One of the biggest challenges that teachers face iswhen it occurs in public and subsidized schools. This happens because these schools do not have already prepared curriculum for them. The ministry of education has not prepared special evaluation for students who need it, however, has decided to include them into these institutions.
Some years ago these students did not have the opportunity of being part of these schools, however, someauthorities decided to integrate them since equal education become a right for everyone. Normally schools receive these students and evaluate their integration and progress. If the students adapt well to this new environment, they can stay there until finish their studies. The idea of incorporating the students is that they achieve the same goals of the rest of the class (Centro de Estudios de Opinión...