Digital Commons Network^™

Reading Instruction For Students With Intellectual Disabilities:Inservice Teachers' Perceptions, Agatha Lee Gibbons

Theses and Dissertations

Students with intellectual disabilities have at times been overlooked and denied effective reading instruction. Teachers tasked with instructing such students are often limited in the training, resources, and support necessary to effectively instruct these students in reading. These problems are further compounded by the fact that students with intellectual disabilities have historically been misperceived, often by the very educators tasked with instructing them, as either being unable to learn to read or that the prospect of teaching them to read is simply too daunting and complicated to be of sufficient worth (Aldridge, 2014; Kluth & Chandler-Olcott, 2008). Such misperception may …

Secondary School Administrators' Preparation As An Lea Representative In South Carolina, Chastity B. Evans

Theses and Dissertations

Prior research has suggested that many principals are underprepared and that some lack any background from coursework and field experience which may be required to exert strong leadership in special education (DiPaola & Tschannen-Moran, 2003; DiPaola, Tschannen-Moran, & Walther-Thomas, 2004), but the number of students receiving special services is on the rise. The purpose of this research study is to determine how secondary school administrators are prepared to make legally and ethically defensible decisions as the authorized LEA representative.

If school administrators are expected to be effective in their role as the authorized LEA representative, it is vital that they …

Serving Students With Moderate To Severe Disabilities: Perspectives Of Career And Technical Education Teachers In Mississippi, Patricia Kellie Fondren

Theses and Dissertations

Positive postsecondary outcomes have become a social issue as the gap between typical peers and students with disabilities grows for employment or postsecondary education. Using evidenced-based instruction strategies to create effective transition instruction has become a required and successful means of improving postsecondary outcomes for individuals with moderate to severe disabilities. The career and technical programs have been identified as an environment that currently implements evidence-based practices that have shown promise of improving instruction. However, participation is limited among individuals with moderate to severe disabilities in the career and technical programs. Through this study the researcher sought to understand how …

A Study Of The Collaborative Strategies Of General Education And Special Education Teachers In The Inclusion Classroom In An Urban High School, Angela Mcdougall

Theses and Dissertations

This study expands on prior research on the benefits and strategies implemented in an inclusion classroom with the general education and special education teacher in an urban high school. The collaborative strategies that both teachers implement are critical to ensure a high level of instruction delivery to the special education students and the general education students that are placed together in the inclusion classroom. The general education teacher and the special education teacher both have their respective roles in the inclusion classroom.

General education teachers, ICS (in class support) and special education teachers who instruct in self-contained classrooms were interviewed …

The Person Dimension Of Alternate Assessment Examined Using Achievement Results And Student Characteristics, Nicole Adams

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the Person Dimension of validity by expanding on previous work (Kearns, Kleinert, Kleinert, & Towles-Reeves, 2006, Kopriva, Thurlow, Perie, & Lazarus, 2016; Thurlow, Wu, Quenemon, Towels, 2016; and Towles-Reeves, Kearns, Kleinert, & Kleinert, 2009) using data from the Learning Characteristics Inventory, which includes data on different aspects of students’ disabilities, and comparing those characteristics to level scores on state standardized assessments. There are aspects of students’ disabilities that have the potential to impact the validity of an assessment. The sample under analysis includes students in grades 4-8 (ages 9-13), eligible to take alternate assessment. Students with three …

The Effect Of The Precision Request On Compliance In An Elementary Classroom For Students With Emotional Behavior Disorders, Marcie Carol Calder

Theses and Dissertations

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of the Precision Request as a behavior intervention on the compliance behavior of students in a self-contained class for students with emotional-behavioral disorders. The Precision Request is an intervention commonly used by teachers to decrease noncompliance. The study took place in an elementary school behavior unit classroom. The participants included one special education teacher and the eight students in his class. A single subject reversal design was used to track student percentage of compliance, latency to compliance, as well as teacher use of praise and reductive consequences as part of the Precision …

Critical Thinking Skills And Teacher Effectiveness Of Pre-Kindergarten Special Education Teachers, Nancy Jean Sim

Theses and Dissertations

The critical thinking skills of pre-kindergarten special education teachers needed for effective education of their students are currently not known. This study used a mixed methods multi-case study design to answer the question: What is the relationship between critical thinking and effective teaching for pre-kindergarten special education teachers? Vygotsky’s theory of social constructivism guided the study design and data analysis of standardized measurements of critical thinking and effective teaching, observations, and interviews of ten pre-kindergarten special education teachers. Findings of the study included that a) the HCTA may not be a good measure of teacher critical thinking; b) teacher discussion …

Early Educator Awareness Of Autism Spectrum Disorder In Preschool Hispanic Populations, Karla Cecilia Vidaurri

Theses and Dissertations

Christensen et al. (2016) highlights how "there are disparities by race/ethnicity in estimated ASD prevalence, particularly for Hispanic children, as well as disparities in the age of earliest comprehensive evaluation and presence of a previous ASD diagnosis or classification, suggesting that access to treatment and services might be lacking or delayed for some children" With an increase in autism prevalence and Hispanic population, there's a crucial demand for effective servicing and referrals for early identification of Autism.

The aim of this study was to analyze how prepared early educators are in identifying children that fall under the category of autism …

Aac Device Use In School-Aged Special Education Students, Vanessa Medina

Theses and Dissertations

This investigation analyzes how often AAC users typically utilize their devices throughout their day in their school setting. A survey method was implemented where elementary school educators were asked to report on their special education students use of their device during their school day. To identify special education educators' perceptions regarding the use of AAC devices in the public-school system, special education educators in the public-school system were contacted via email to conduct a survey in regard to current practice in their school setting regarding AAC use.

A letter of consent was obtained from the University of Texas Rio Grande …

Effects Of Online Program Vs. Handheld Flashcards On Multiplication And Division Fact Knowledge Of 4th Grade Learners With Exceptional Needs, Lindsay M. Siegman

Theses and Dissertations

This study utilized a time series design to investigate the effects of a computer-based math fact program called Xtramath.org vs. the use of traditional handheld flashcards. Students were given a baseline assessment before beginning the school district's method for learning basic math facts: Xtramath.org. They were tested again after 6 weeks and then began to use traditional handheld flashcards. Students were tested again to compare the results. Eight 4th grade students (5 male and 3 female) with special needs were included in this study. These students attend school in a wealthy, suburban area with a predominantly white population.

Fluency in …

The Impact Of Individualized Structured Reading Intervention On High School Students In Special Education: An Action Research Study, Nikki Clark

Theses and Dissertations

Reading skills comprise the following three categories: decoding, fluency, and comprehension. All three of these skills are necessary for students to become successful readers in and out of academic settings. Many students in special education read far below their grade level; difficulty reading is particularly challenging for such students because, in addition to limiting academic success, under-developed reading skills compromise students’ academic and functional independence. This study aimed to examine how a structured, individualized reading intervention may help high school students in special education – students who have been diagnosed with one specific disability or a combination of approved disabilities …

Competency-Based Clinical Supervision In Applied Behavior Analysis, Yulema Cruz

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation evaluated a new method that provided a systematic way of training and evaluating supervisors in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Using a single-case multiple- baseline across supervisors and supervisees research design, this study assessed the use of a modified behavioral skills protocol (BST) in the training of master’s and doctoral-level Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs/BCBA-Ds) in the supervision of DTT. Additionally, this study evaluated supervisee’s performances before and during the implementation of the modified BST protocol. Included in the new supervisor training curriculum outline (2.0) released by the BACB in 2019, BST is an evidence-based protocol whose efficacy …

Examining The Relationship Of Administrative Support On Early Career Special Education Teachers’ Retention Decisions, Cassandra B. Willis

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between administrative support and retention of early career special education teachers. Research has shown that there is a shortage of special education teachers; however, teachers leaving the field may be driving the shortages. Based on the work of Schein’s (2003) theory of organizational culture, this study identified how different types of support (i.e., emotional, instructional, technical, and environmental) can influence early career special education teachers’ decision to remain in their current position. Participants, including teachers and administrators from a suburban school division in Virginia, completed a modified version of the …