Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

Administrator And Teacher Attitudes Toward Inclusion, Heather N. Lemay

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to examine the attitudes of teachers and administrators toward inclusion in the classroom. Specifically this study analyzed grade level, years of teaching experience, and levels of education to examine the manner in which these factors relate to attitudes of teachers and administrators toward inclusion.

Participants in this study were located in 3 school districts in East Tennessee. All data were collected through an online survey distributed to prek-12 teachers by way of email from school principals. The analysis of data was based on the responses of 183 teachers and administrators from these 3 school districts. Findings …

Effects Of Parent Training On Increased Knowledge And Changes In Perceptions Regarding Transition To Adulthood For Middle School Youth With Disabilities, Lauren E. Wright

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Parents of children with severe/moderate disabilities experience uncertainty and a lack of knowledge as their children go through the transition to adulthood. Research has shown parents play a key role in their child's postschool outcome success and that parent training and beginning transition preparation early are key predictors. This study examined the effects of parent training on parents' knowledge, expectations, and action towards their child's transition to adulthood. Participants consisted of parents of middle school youth with severe/moderate disabilities. The study measured parent knowledge, expectations, and actions. Procedures involved (a) a pretest administered to parents on their transition knowledge, (b) …

Teaching Social Skills To Students With Autism, Shylla Webb

Culminating Projects in Special Education

Teaching Social Skills to Students with Autism

Investigating The Use Of A Structured Self-Determination Curriculum With Students With Gifts And Talents, Rebecca Carolyn Norton

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of K-12 education in the 21st century is to graduate students fully prepared for college and careers. The skills necessary for a successful transition from postsecondary education to adulthood are the skills of self-determination. These skills include: (a) goal setting, (b) self-evaluation, (c) collaboration, (d) listening and communication, and (e) problem solving. Though elementary students with gifts and talents express an interest in career exploration, and often choose careers that require postsecondary education, they do not receive the guidance or skills to prepare them for life beyond school. No curriculum currently exists to teach these skills to students …

Using Mobile Technology To Increase The Math Achievement And Engagement Of Students With Disabilities, Dominique Marie Tetzlaff

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The advent of advanced technologies provides new opportunities for delivering instruction to students with disabilities. Many classrooms have access to mobile devices, such as iPads and Kindles, and educators utilize these devices to differentiate instruction and augment teacher-led instruction. This delivery method, known as blended learning, can create an enriched learning environment where students are exposed to individualized lessons that are self-paced and provide multiple modes of presentation. However, there is little empirical investigation into how students interact with digital devices or what components of online learning directly impact student learning and engagement with the content. In order to design …

Yoga And Mindfulness In The Inclusion Classroom, Maria Petruzzelli

Theses and Dissertations

This paper explores the effectiveness of implementing mindfulness and yoga techniques in two sections of fourth grade inclusion language arts classes. More specifically, this paper examines the effectiveness of yoga and mindfulness techniques on the frequency of off-task behaviors and academic achievement. It was hypothesized that off-task behaviors would occur less frequently and that academic performance in writing would improve after a yoga and mindfulness intervention was implemented.

Using a pre-post no-control design, thirty-six students, eighteen per class, from a public elementary school in Southern New Jersey participated in this investigation. Baseline and post implementation data were collected using On-Demand …

Transitioning Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders From High School To The Workforce: A Literature Review, Katie L. Karnik

Culminating Projects in Special Education

Transitioning Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders from High School to the Workforce: A Literature Review

Students In Foster Care At Risk Of School Failure: Addressing Multiple Needs, Dawn R. Segermark

Culminating Projects in Special Education

This paper examines the research literature on the school performance of students in foster care, and the implications for special education teachers in providing services for these vulnerable students. Students in foster care fall behind their peers on every measure of school success: academic achievement scores, behavioral referrals and disciplinary actions, identification as special education students, grade retention and graduation rates. Factors that contribute to school failure for foster students include multiple school transfers, attending low-performing schools, disrupted attendance, unmet need for mental health services, unsatisfactory communication between school and child welfare professionals, and high rates of poverty among foster …

Self-Monitoring: A Behavioral Intervention For Children Attending Head Start, Samantha Riggleman

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Addressing the needs of preschoolers with behavioral problems is important, as these issues often have long-term impacts on the outcomes of students (Fox et al., 2002). Self- monitoring strategies and techniques have the potential to improve the outcomes of this population of children. Self-monitoring requires students to pay attention to a specific aspect of their behavior and record whether the behavior being monitored has occurred or not occurred (Amato-Zech et at., 2006). Although preschoolers are capable of self-monitoring (Otero & Haut, YEAR), it is not widely used in early childhood education settings for increasing compliance or appropriate behaviors. A component …

The Effects Of Using Digital Texts On Chromebooks On The Reading Comprehension And Academic Engagement Of Elementary School Students With Learning Disabilities In The Inclusive Classroom, Kimberly Michelle Milchanoski-Bach

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of digital texts on Chromebooks as an assistive technology to meet the needs of students with learning disabilities in an inclusive classroom. Specifically, the study examined (a) the effectiveness of using digital texts on Chromebooks on reading comprehension, (b) the effectiveness of digital texts on Chromebooks to improve engagement and on-task behavior of students with learning disabilities, and (c) student satisfaction using digital texts in the inclusive classroom. Students displayed variation in performance on comprehension and academic engagement throughout the intervention. Findings suggest that digital texts may hinder the comprehension …

The Effects Of Graphic Organizers To Identify Main Idea And Supporting Details In Informational Text On Students With Learning Disabilities, Heather Coombs

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of graphic organizers to identify main idea and supporting details in informational text on students with learning disabilities. The participants were eight 6th grade students classified with learning disabilities in reading. This study implemented an ABAB design. Data was collected during the Baseline (A1), Intervention (B1), Baseline (A2), and Intervention (B2) phases. The independent variable for this study was the utilization of a graphic organizer to assist in identifying main idea and supporting details, as well as reading comprehension. The dependent variables were student identification of main idea and supporting …

Examining The Effectiveness Of A Sentence Construction Intervention Combined With Self-Regulation Instruction Using A Regression Discontinuity Design, William Furey

Doctoral Dissertations

The Language and Writing strands of the Common Core State Standards place a heavy emphasis on sentence-level conventions including syntax/grammar and mechanics. Interventions targeting these foundational skills are necessary to support struggling writers as poorly developed sentence construction skills inhibit more complex writing tasks. This study examined the effects of a supplemental intervention on the writing skills of fourth grade students identified as struggling writers. The intervention used explicit instruction and the Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) framework to teach students a sentence construction strategy along with self-regulation procedures. A regression discontinuity design was used to test whether students included in …

Verbal -S Productions In The Structured Writing Samples Of Variable Aae-Speaking Fourth-Grade Students With And Without Language Impairment, Jacklyn High Felton

Doctoral Dissertations

Researchers in speech-language pathology and ethnolinguistics have worked to gain knowledge about typical and atypical language patterns of African American children who are identified as African American English (AAE) dialect speakers. Much progress had been made, but limitations in this field of knowledge have persisted, especially for AA children who demonstrate variable use of AAE, presumably through the process of assimilation in the school setting. Therefore, more information is needed to provide diagnostic markers for deviations in typical language development for variable AAE-MAE speakers. Prior empirical research has found that third- and fourth-grade AAE-speaking children with typical language development overtly …

Using Social Network Analysis To Investigate The Diffusion Of Special Education Knowledge Within A School District, Martha H. Von Mering

Doctoral Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to analyze the relationships that existed between the district-level special education leadership team and two elementary schools. The study used social network analysis (SNA) as the primary methodological and analytic approach to reveal the structural dimensions of the advice giving/receiving networks within the schools to delve more deeply into network relationships, collaboration, and knowledge impact. By mapping the existing network relationships through the lens of network centralization, reciprocity, and density, the study sought to analyze what, if any, link existed between the network properties and the extent to which leadership was distributed. The …

Promoting Self-Determination Skills Of Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities Participating In The Inclusive Concurrent Enrollment Initiative Programs Throughout Massachusetts, Lyndsey Nunes

Doctoral Dissertations

There are currently 15 Inclusive Concurrent Enrollment Initiative (ICEI) Programs throughout Massachusetts. Each program is different in its day-to-day planning but all adhere to the mission, full inclusion of students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The purpose of this evaluative research study was to examine and understand the functional components of postsecondary education programs that promote self-determination for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities and to differentiate programs that include or do not include these components. To answer the five research questions data were collected from Students, Educational Coaches, ICEI Program Coordinators, Transition Liaisons, Statewide Coordinator, observations, and record reviews. …

Special Education And Massachusetts Charter Schools: Examining Issues And Practices Associated With Enrollment, Placement And Compliance, Jennifer C. Baribeau

Doctoral Dissertations

Over the last ten years, charter schools have become a viable choice for parent’s seeking an alternative to traditional public schools. However, research shows this is not the case for students with disabilities. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine special education in charter schools and traditional public schools located in Massachusetts. I examined three key areas specific to special education; enrollment, placement and compliance, to determine if differences exist between charter schools and traditional public schools located in the state. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine differences between Massachusetts charter schools and public schools with respect to …

Maximizing Test Efficiency: The Effects Of Test Format On Nonsense Word Reading, Amanda Kern

Doctoral Dissertations

A repeated measures study was conducted to determine the effects of test format on accuracy and fluency performance on a computer-based, nonsense word, decoding task. Decoding is a phonics skill that is highly predictive of overall reading performance (Fletcher, Lyon, Fuchs, & Barnes, 2007). Therefore, identifying students who are struggling with decoding and providing instruction to remedy skill deficits is of high importance to teachers. A possible way for teachers to determine the instructional needs of their students is through testing (Hosp & Ardoin, 2008). However, time dedicated to test completion in classrooms limits the time available for instruction. Therefore, …

It’S Not All Sunflowers And Roses At Home: A Narrative Inquiry Of At-Risk Girls And Their Perceptions Of Their Educational Experiences, Jessica Aggeles Curtis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The population of girls being incarcerated continues to grow amid the decline of boy offenders. While society has seen an increase in violent offenses perpetrated by these girls, the majority are still detained on status offenses or for non-violent crimes. For many girls, school is a place to seek solace and safety. Yet, for a growing population of girls, the bond they once shared with school is disintegrating. This disconnect has proven to be a critical turning point in their lives. The purpose of this study is to give girls who have been removed from the general education setting a …

Learning Style Patterns Among Special Needs Adult Students At King Saud University, Abdulrahman Alshuaibi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Few studies of learning styles among adults with special needs exist worldwide. Even though there are large numbers of adults with special needs, this population in university education has been largely ignored in educational research. Therefore, this study aimed to gather and analyze learning styles of adult special needs students and to provide data for researchers interested in the fields of learning styles, adult education, and special education. This study examined the learning style patterns among special needs adult students at King Saud University as measured by the dimensions of the Index of Learning Styles, which include active/reflective, sensing/intuitive, …

The Effects Of Classical Music On Children With Learning Disabilities In A Sixth Grade Mathematics Classroom, Amy C. Mckeever

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this exploratory investigation were to (a) determine if sixth grade students would improve their math performance (in areas of staying on task, focusing, and completing work) while classical music was being played, (b) determine if students will report they feel differently and more successful in the mathematics classroom while classical music was being played, and (c) determine if students with learning disabilities will improve their mathematical performance (in areas of staying on task, focusing, and completing work) while classical music is being played. In this study, there were 19 students. The results show that classical music had …