Education Commons^™

Empowering All Students To Participate: Utilizing Aac To Respond During Lessons, Robbie Cromwell

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Previous research indicates that frequent and active participation of all students (including diverse student groups) improves student outcomes, as does using a variety of methods to respond during classroom instruction. Current research is limited in examining two key areas: 1) Increasing active participation of AAC users by encouraging engagement through frequent response opportunities during instruction and 2) Utilizing a variety of response methods to enable participation during instruction. Given the gaps that exist in the research, the purpose of this study is to examine whether incorporating a variety of opportunities to respond has an impact on AAC user’s engagement and …

Development Of Secondary Special Education Science Assessments And Curriculum Map, Heather Thompson

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This project explores and develops science curriculum for secondary students with severe special needs. It identifies why science is important for this demographic as well as what students and teachers need to improve science instruction within that setting. The project provides a curriculum map with leveled access to each of the Essential Elements detailed by the state throughout an academic year. It also provides leveled common assessments to us in conjunction with that map in order to facilitate a continued share from success growth mentality.

Teaching In The Digital Age: Creating A Student-Centered Classroom, Becca Huber-Jackson

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This portfolio compiles the work of the author during her time as a student in the Master of Second Language Teaching (MSLT) program at Utah State University (USU). It highlights her personal pedagogy as well as provides supporting research. The different components of this portfolio are separated into two sections: teaching perspectives and research perspectives.

In the teaching perspectives section, she introduces her desired professional environment, outlines her teaching philosophy statement, and provides an analysis based on teaching observations. Research perspectives consist of two research papers and an annotated bibliography written throughout the course of the program that support the …

Exploring The Impact Of Musical Mnemonic Strategies On Student Achievement And Engagement In Inclusive Science Classes, Zinna Eaton

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Students with disabilities often struggle with comprehending material and performing at grade level, and teachers often find new ways to help their students comprehend the curriculum. A common challenge for special education teachers is incorporating different learning styles and various instructional strategies to better assist their students. One teaching strategy and resource that many teachers incorporate is the use of music in their instruction. This research project examines how incorporating music teaching strategies into daily instruction impacts the level of engagement and the academic achievement level of sixth-grade students with and without mild/moderate disabilities within inclusive science classrooms. The study …

A Survey Of College Students With Learning Disabilities And Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder To Identify Their Relationship And Use Of College Disability Resource Centers, Telia M. West

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

College students with learning disabilities (LD) and/or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) complete college at lower rates than their non-disabled peers (Newman & Madaus, 2015). Colleges receiving federal funding are required to have a disability resource center (DRC) that provides and coordinates accommodations for students with disabilities. This project examined the factors that led students with LD and/or ADHD to initially contact their college DRC. This project examined data from 61 college students pursuing an undergraduate degree with LD and/or ADHD who had already contacted their DRC. A survey was sent to those students asking about circumstances surrounding their …

Values, Mushfaking, And Literacy In Disability: Applying James Paul Gee’S Discourse Theory To The Deaf And Mental Health Communities, Adrienne Griffiths

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The disability community has been a historically marginalized group and continues to be. Many advocates for inclusive language feel uncomfortable around the disability community because they are uncertain how to act and speak. There are two forms of language syntaxes that people primarily use to refer to someone with a disability: People-first language and Identity-first language. People-first language identifies someone first, then refers to their disability, such as “person with autism.” The second framework, Identity-first language, includes referring to someone’s disability first, then by another attribute. In other words, “autistic person.”

Both forms of language syntaxes have many reasons as …

Parent Perspectives On Transition Services And Expectations For Transition-Age Students With Disabilities In A Virtual School Setting, Heather Raithel

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Students with disabilities often experience difficulties as they transition from school to adult life. This project examined the perspectives of parents of transition-age students with disabilities enrolled in a full-time virtual school setting. The first dependent variable was parent satisfaction with transition services for students in the virtual school including relevancy and quality of student and parent trainings and information on transition, inter-agency collaboration, community-based learning experiences, staff knowledge and communication, transition specific courses, and appropriateness of the IEP transition plan. The second dependent variable was parent expectations for students as they exit school in regards to independent living, post-secondary …

Development And Preliminary Evaluation Of A Transition Planning Guide, Shalee Thompson

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Transition planning for students with disabilities is often a difficult process for students, their families, and their teachers. Families are often unsure of how best to help their student and often feel unheard by the professionals with whom they are working (Defur, Todd-Allen & Getzel, 2001.) Teachers are also unsure of how to best implement transition planning strategies in the classroom (Thoma, Pannazzo, Fritton & Bartholomew, 2008). Transition planning is often poorly aligned with the desired end outcomes for students (Thompson, Fulk & Piercy, 2000) and parents and teachers lack systematic guidance in decision making for transition planning.

This project …

Bridging Music And The Early Childhood Curriculum In Listening And Spoken Language Programs For Children Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing, Whitney Wright

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Music is an integral aspect of human life. Its impact weaves through arts, culture, communication, recreation, and education. In addition to benefits of enjoyment and entertainment, music is a vital component of early childhood educational settings. Educators routinely utilize music as an embedded component of instruction to meet both group and individual needs of young children in early childhood classrooms. In fact, specialized musical instruction can be particularly beneficial for children with disabilities, including those who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) (Gfeller, Driscoll, Kenworthy, & Van Voorst, 2011). Children who are DHH are at significant risk for speech, …

The Effects Of Instruction On Self-Determination On Transition Students' Levels Of Goal-Setting, Goal Expression And Action, Scott Charles Sorensen

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Students with disabilities in transition from school to adulthood often experience problems with self-determination skills, especially goal-related skills (e.g., goal setting, expression, and taking action). Instruction in these skills is needed. This project examined the effect of instructing portions of the self-determination intervention Whose Future is it Anyway? (WFA) dealing with goal-related skills and its effect on goal setting, expressing, and taking action. Participants included five students with disabilities in a transition program ages 18 to 21. Procedures involved a pretest using the ChoiceMaker Assessment and the Arc Scale, followed by the implementation of the WFA intervention, and posttests using …

The Incorporation Of Deaf American Culture And History In Secondary Education Classrooms, James B. Smith

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Bilingual-Bicultural Education (Bi-Bi) has a positive impact on language development and social-psychological development of Deaf children (Baker, 2011; Scott, 2010; Humphries & Humphries, 2010). This development is predicated on the child’s access to American Sign Language (ASL); however, the role of Deaf culture and history in Bi-Bi is not well-defined (Ladd, 2003). Children at Bi-Bi schools and programs often acquire cultural aspects through social interactions among their Deaf acquaintances rather than in the classroom. The socialization and cultural sensitivity of Deaf children does not constitute a formal instruction and mastery in all the elements of culture, as often believed in …

The Effects Of Direct Instruction On Completing College Application Forms Of Students With Learning Disabilities, Allyson White

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Students with a Specific Learning Disability (SLD) often experience challenges when transitioning to postsecondary education institutions after high school. A unique challenge involves filling out forms in order to registered for college. One of several components to a successful transition to postsecondary settings requires students to complete application forms. The purpose of this project is to examine the effects of direct instruction (DI) on increased performance of filling out college application forms of students with SLD in a special education classroom. Participants included eight high school students, ages 17 to 18, with a SLD. The intervention in this study involved …

Interagency Barriers And Facilitators In Transition Planning For Students With Disabilities, Deanna Lynn Taylor

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This study examined the barriers and facilitators identified by both vocational rehabilitation counselors and special educators in four states (Florida, Maryland, Oregon and Utah) regarding collaboration in transition planning. Two survey questionnaires were disseminated: one to vocational rehabilitation counselors and one to special educators in that requested information on perceptions of the level of knowledge on transition planning and activities, level of satisfaction, and open-ended questions for suggestions on how to improve collaboration between the two groups. The surveys were nearly identical and were designed to explore barriers that the two disciplines experience working with each other as well as …

Technology And The Self-Directed Iep: Improving Meeting Participation For Students With Severe Disabilities, Crystal Ann Stringham

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Students with a Specific Learning Disability (SLD) often experience challenges when transitioning to postsecondary education institutions after high school. A unique challenge involves filling out forms in order to registered for college. One of several components to a successful transition to postsecondary settings requires students to complete application forms. The purpose of this project is to examine the effects of direct instruction (DI) on increased performance of filling out college application forms of students with SLD in a special education classroom. Participants included eight high school students, ages 17 to 18, with a SLD. The intervention in this study involved …