Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

Middle School Transition: Faculty And Parent Perceptions Of The Academic, Procedural, And Social Changes That Occur Between Elementary And Middle School, Barbara Mckeon

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of parents and faculty regarding the transition from a private special education school to the middle school environment. Research was conducted using a mixed methods design to investigate the attitudes and perceptions of those directly involved with the transition process. Seventeen participants, nine parents and eight faculty participated in both the interviews and questionnaire processes. Social competence, academic competence, procedural challenges, maturational readiness and program planning were dominant themes in this study. The study examined the academic, procedural and social changes that occur in middle school from the stage-environment fit ...

An Analysis Of Pre-Service Versus Experienced Special-Education Teachers’ Perceptions Of Attrition, Derek M. Kreider

Master of Education Theses

In this quantitative study, I assessed the presence of factors related to attrition in pre-service special educators. I surveyed 23 pre-service special educators regarding various attrition factors identified in the research literature and then compared their responses to the perceptions of 32 seasoned special educators to test for statistical significance. Participants were located at a large, public university in the southeast United States and the largest public-school system in proximity to the university. The results of the study indicated that attrition factors may be evidenced in pre-service educators and therefore detectable prior to entering the teaching field. The study also ...

A School System And University Approach To Reducing The Research To Practice Gap In Teacher Education: A Collaborative Special Education Immersion Project, Christine R. Grima-Farrell, Jan Long, Robyn Bentley-Williams, Cath Laws

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This research is a response to the call for more effective practice based knowledge on ways to build inclusive cultures that assist the translation of research-to-practice. It reports on the factors identified in literature as being significant to the successful translation of research-to-practice and seeks to identify important sources of influence from an undergraduate teacher perspective.

By investigating a collaborative school system and university generated Special Education Immersion Project, specifically designed for undergraduate teachers, a number of factors are presented as contributors to the gap between research and practice. They include the importance of linkages between teacher preparation programs and ...

Masters Of Speech-Language Pathology Program Receives Accreditation News, Rhea Paul

Rhea Paul

The speech-language pathology (SLP) Program at SHU was awarded candidacy, the first stage of accreditation conferred by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA) of the American Speech, Language and Hearing Association (ASHA).

A Phenomenological Study Of Inclusive Environments From The Perspective Of Rural Middle School General Education Teachers Of Students With Emotional And Behavioral Disorders, James Barr

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study explored the shared experience of rural middle school general education teachers of students diagnosed with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) in inclusive classrooms. The study began by examining related issues associated with inclusive environments. Data analysis was structured around phenomenological organizational methods: that there exists within the phenomenon a descriptive experience, and within that experience there are voids of possible explanation and interpretation. The research incorporated observations, interviews, and documents as forms of data collection. This inquiry sought to uncover the ways in which general education teachers who serve students diagnosed with emotional and behavioral disabilities find ...

Becoming An Inclusive Educator: Applying Deleuze & Guattari To Teacher Education, Loraine M. Mckay, Suzanne Carrington, Radha Iver

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

New ways of thinking are required in teacher education to promote beginning teachers as change agents in education. Twenty years after the Salamanca Statement (UNESCO, 1994) that called for schools to provide equitable opportunities for all children, teaching practices in many classrooms are informed by the deficit view of learning. Beginning teachers need to be prepared to challenge the ideological influences that operate in schools. Deleuze and Guattari’s (1987) model of the rhizome is used to report one beginning teacher’s journey as she learnt to negotiate structural and personal obstacles to create an inclusive learning environment. Data from ...

Universal Design And Cognitions Of Choice: An Integrated Approach To Effective Substance Misuse Treatment Efforts, Clarissa E. Steffen Ed.D.

Faculty Scholarship (COE)

Having the ability to exercise critical thinking at a conscious level of choice versus impulsively responding may support the difference between health and continued substance misuse during periods of vulnerability. Cognitions of Choice offers twenty four critical thinking skills that are connected to three levels of developmental choice that engages self-dialog between automatic thinking, meta-thinking, and conscious thought patterns. By the time many individuals make their way into treatment and recovery programs the likelihood of their presenting with physical disabilities and mental health conditions is heightened. Incorporating the principles of Universal Design into program development allows for full access for ...

Adaptive Behaviors In Toddlers Under Two With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Rhea Paul, Rebecca Loomis, Katarzyna Chawarska

Speech-Language Pathology Faculty Publications

The Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale was administered to 54 children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) before age 2, and a matching group of 18 toddlers with developmental delay (DD). The group with ASD was more impaired on all scales of the Vineland than DD peers. When 18 ASD/DD pairs very closely matched on age, verbal and nonverbal development were selected, differences were found only on Vineland Receptive Communication and Daily Living. Correlation analyses to explore connection of these areas of difference with cognition and autistic symptoms suggested that Vineland Daily Living scores were significantly correlated with nonverbal ability ...

Call For Papers - Book Of Readings On : Approaches To Early Childhood, Literacy And Special Needs Instruction In Developing Societies, Dr Williams Emeka Obiozor, Dr Ngozi Anyikwa

Dr Williams Emeka Obiozor

CALL FOR PAPERS Approaches to Early Childhood and Special Needs Instruction in Developing Societies By Williams Emeka Obiozor, EdD. Ngozi E. Anyikwa, PhD. Faculty of Education Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka - Nigeria For book Chapters…..Forward/Submit your ABSTRACTS & FULL PAPERS to: onestreetprojects@gmail.com, and copy ngozianyikwa@yahoo.com Submission Deadline: August 30, 2013. Publication date: January 2014.

Virtual Coaching In Guatemala: Can It Be Effective For Changing Targeted Teacher Behaviors?, Ruby Owiny

Theses and Dissertations--Early Childhood, Special Education, and Rehabilitation Counseling

The education system in Guatemala struggles to meet the needs of students with disabilities. There are often not enough trained special educators to meet the demand. In addition, general educators are often not trained to adequately meet diverse needs in their classrooms. Thus, schools are often unable to fully meet the needs of students with disabilities. This study sought to identify a method by which teachers could be virtually trained on a teacher behavior (i.e., specific praise) that could help meet diverse student needs. A multiple probe design across participants was used to determine if virtual training could be ...

The Effects Of A Simultaneous Prompting Procedure To Teach Math Skills During Play Time To Young Children With Developmental Disabilities, Abby Evans Mccormick

Theses and Dissertations--Early Childhood, Special Education, and Rehabilitation Counseling

This study was done to evaluate the simultaneous prompting procedure when teaching math skills during play time to young children with disabilities. The research included 5 students who participated in a special education resource classroom and general education classroom. The researcher used a design similar to a multiple probe design. The study found all participants who began intervention met criterion. The research also found students who participated in maintenance and generalization met criterion during those stages.

Supporting Students With Psychiatric Disabilities In Postsecondary Education: Important Knowledge, Skills, And Attitudes, Scott I. Kupferman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Students with psychiatric disabilities are the largest subgroup of students with disabilities enrolled in postsecondary education. However, their high enrollment rate does not equate to a high retention rate. Approximately 86 percent of students with psychiatric disabilities withdraw prior to degree completion. As a result, calls for improved disability services in postsecondary education have been plentiful. In an effort to take a step toward answering these calls, the current study began the exploratory process of identifying knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are important for disability service professionals to possess in order to provide beneficial services to students with psychiatric disabilities ...

Including Nontargeted Information When Teaching Multiple Exemplars Of Shapes With The Constant Time Delay Procedure, Samantha D. Matthews

Theses and Dissertations--Early Childhood, Special Education, and Rehabilitation Counseling

Five elementary age students with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities were taught shape identification. A multiple probe design across behaviors, replicated across participants, was used to determine the effectiveness of constant time delay to determine the effectiveness of Constant Time Delay to teach shapes. Nontarget information was included in praise statements. All students met criterion on target information of shape identification. All students increased their ability to identify shape words, spell shape words, tell the number of sides of the shapes when presented and tell the number of angles of shapes presented. Generalization occurred during daily walks through the school ...

Children’S Attitudes Towards Peers With Disabilities: Associations With Personal And Parental Factors, Soo-Young Hong, Kyong-Ah Kwon, Hyun-Joo Jeon

Faculty Publications from CYFS

The purpose of this study was to investigate the following: (i) associations among children’s prior contact with people with disabilities and the three dimensions of children’s attitudes towards people with disabilities: children’s understanding of and their feelings about people with disabilities and their behavioral intentions to make inclusion decisions; (ii) the relation between children’s behavioral intentions to make inclusion decisions and the demands of activity contexts and the types of disabilities; and (iii) the association between parents’ attitudes and children’s attitudes. Participants included 94 typically developing four- and five-year-old preschoolers. Children’s understanding of disabilities ...

An Exploration Of Teaching Music To Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Samantha D. Jimenez

Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this grounded-theory qualitative study was to explore how music teachers successfully work with students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Many individuals with ASD are impacted daily by social and communication difficulties, sensory sensitivities, executive functioning challenges, and restricted or rigid behaviors. Current research, literature, media, and ASD and music circles support that music is a powerful medium for individuals with ASD. Benefits of music for individuals with ASD include therapeutic advantages, various improvements in skills, social opportunities, emergence of gifts and talents, and emotional outlets. Regular exposure to learning music in the U.S. is typically through ...

Elementary Students' Beliefs About The Causes Of Learning Difficulties: A Comparison Between Canada And Saudi Arabia, Huda Saleh Felimban

University of Western Ontario - Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In this cross-cultural comparison, students from inclusive schools in Canada and Saudi Arabia shared their beliefs about the causes of and factors associated with learning difficulties. Qualitative data were collected through interviews with 36 Canadian and 62 Saudi elementary students in Grades 5 and 6. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. Six categories emerged: Lack of Knowledge, Achievement, Academic Skills; Cognitive and Social-Emotional Barriers; Lack of Attention and/or Motivation and Behavioural Issues; Home and Parental Concerns; Teacher-Related Issues; and Physical/Sensory Disabilities and Innate Conditions. Results showed that participants from both countries had a general understanding of ...

Bullying Prevention In Schoolwide Positive Behavior Supports: A Review Of The Literature, Allen Garcia, Regina M. Oliver

The Nebraska Educator: A Student-Led Journal

The literature has suggested that problem behavior in the schools is an ongoing problem (Sugai et. al., 2000). This is a major concern for schools that want to provide a safe learning environment that promotes positive behaviors and academic learning. Such problem requires a systematic response, thus, School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) was created to target and prevent problem behaviors. Another form of problem behaviors in schools is bullying, and within the framework of SW-PBIS, there is limited research on targeting bullying. The current review examines and evaluates current research of SW-PBIS, and it’s application to bullying ...

A Mixed Method Study Investigating High School Teacher-Student Perceptions Of Teacher-Caring Behaviors, Patricia C. King

Dissertations, Theses and Capstone Projects

The teacher-student relationship, which sociologists believe to be the driving force of change in student learning experiences, has largely been overlooked and underdeveloped. As Noddings (2003) explained, in teacher-caring behavior, the carer must take on a dual perspective and see the world not only through the lens of the carer but also through the lens of the one being cared for.

In this study, a mixed-method approach was used to investigate what high school teachers and students perceive to be caring-teacher behaviors. The purpose was to gain a better understanding of the factors that contribute to the development of caring ...

Predictive Admission Criteria In Graduate Programs In Speech-Language Pathology, Mary Lloyd Moore

Dissertations

Speech-language pathology is a profession for which there is increasing demand as well as being one of the most desirable career paths in the United States. Graduation of qualified persons who can pass the Praxis exam is an essential outcome of all graduate programs in speech-language pathology. If predictors of competence could be identified before admission, graduate programs would be better able to select students who would maximize the expenditure of materials, energy, and expertise, thereby decreasing the potential failure for both students and universities. Therefore, this research addresses the extent to which selected variables may serve to predict success ...

Stakeholders’ Perceptions Of Special Education Induction Programs, Jeremy E. Vittek, Kim K. Floyd, Sharon B. Hayes

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study examined stakeholders’ perceptions of the challenges and supports provided for beginning special education teachers in a low attrition district within a middle Atlantic state utilizing qualitative methods. The findings from this study revealed a perceived need for varied supports for beginning special education teachers, the special education coordinator is seen as the main source of support, and the perceived role of induction programs to retain special education teachers and the impact these programs have on teacher retention. Based on the findings from this study, future research should examine the role of e-mentoring, district level support, and the role ...