English for Special Education
Speaking
1. Common topics for classroom discussion and presentation
- What are the pros and cons of using pharmaceutical drugs for some SEN students that require medical care? Are there any practical alternatives?
- Is including SEN students in mainstream schools and classrooms the best arrangement? What are the prerequisites for its success?
- Can technology be used to improve learning for children with special needs? In what ways is it helpful?
- Parents’ role in educating SEN children
- How can teachers let SEN students with giftedness in certain aspects shine out?
- How may the (class) teacher avoid or reduce the labelling effect against SEN students studying in a mainstream class?
- Merits and limitations of different methods for supporting SEN students, e.g. arranging them to study remedial/ special classes (for all or selected subjects), tiered assignments, learning buddy programmes, individual in-class support
- Adjustments for SEN students in examinations: their effects and side-effects
References
https://topicsbase.com/thesis-topics-in-education.html
https://chalkypapers.com/topics/disabilities-education-research-topics/
2. Coordination with schools
What is the role of school counselor?
Implementation of Individual Education Programme (IEP)
Apart from academic issue, what kind of support (e.g., practical, social) can be offered to SEN students?
3. Design of a successful presentation
Design slides like academic paragraphs using PEE:
- Point – As the title of your slides
- Evidence – As the points of your slides
- Explanation – As your speech in the presentation
Make the evidence visual:
PowerPoint is a visual medium; its purpose is to help an audience visualise what the speaker is saying. The purpose of a presentation should not be information transfer, it should be about enabling understanding and encouraging further action or research.
The best way to make your slides more visual is to use images and diagrams as the evidence to support or illustrate your main point (your slide title). For example, if you want to show the results of a survey, pie charts or line charts are useful figures to display such information.
Microsoft has offered several templates for academic presentation. They are available at this link.