Case
Slow to complete Assignments

I have a student who has the potential to have one of the highest averages in the class. However, he is an incredibly slow worker. He understands the material presented to him which is why I do not understand why it takes him so long to complete assignments. He does not have a 504 nor an IEP. I allow him extra time to complete assignments if need be; however, this is happening on a constant basis. Almost every assignment is either incomplete or it takes him an extremely long time to finish it. As a result, it is causing him to have a lower average than he should, and I do not want this behavior to transfer over to his standardized testing. What should I do?

Posted on: 10/18/14 | Views: 944
Solution #1
I am having the same problem with a student. At first, I was giving him extra time to complete assessments; however, it was becoming excessive. I had a meeting with his mother and told her that, since he did not have a 504 or an IEP with accommodations that I could no longer give him extra time. Instead, I give him frequent reminders during assessments on how much time he has left. Since the meeting, he has become much better at completing his assessments.

That is a great idea. If it continued on a daily basis I would continuously remind him to stay on task and complete his work on time. Otherwise, I would have no other choice but to discuss it with the parents and possibly administration.

I agree that having a conference with the parents would be helpful. That way the parent could fully understand the problem and help me make the student more successful.

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Solution #2
Engange the student in a one-on-one conversation. Would he like to be challenged a little more? Is there an outside problem keeping him from doing his best? Perhaps the conversation goes a little further and gets Mom and Dad involved. I am a little more in the tough love category. Maybe he is taking a lot more time simply because it is given to him. However, I would definitely give the student positive feedbeck whenever possible.
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Solution #3
Create incentive for accomplishing assignments in short periods of time. Start small, "Oh, I love how Johnny has finished question #1 and is already working on question #2!" Place a skittle or M&M on his desk (his favorite kind). Little incentives like this will provide instant feedback for doing things in a quick an precise manner. The grades will go up, and eventually you ween him off of the instant reward and make it once or twice per week.
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Solution #4
I have had these students as well and didn't know what should be done. If you have an active board, I would suggest setting a time limit for each assignment and placing a countdown timer for the class to see. I started doing this for certain assignments and my kids work really hard to get it finished. Also, my slow workers even work faster.
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Solution #5
My suggestion would be to find something the student is interested in learning about and then use it to help them work faster. For example, if they finish the assignment and do a good job I would let them read on the computer or ipad about an animal they want to learn more about. I am using this in my classroom to keep a student on task during assignments. He is smart but takes longer than he should on assignments because he is playing. I tell him that if he stays focused and does his work well he can get on the ipad. He has written a report on gila monsters (a big lizard) and loved presenting his report to the class. You could also let the student get on an educational game site.
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