Education Commons^™

Investigating Special Education Teachers’ Knowledge And Beliefs Of Learned Helplessness In Students With Mild To Moderate Disabilities, Jennifer Engemann

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This research study investigated educators’ knowledge and beliefs of learned helplessness in student with mild to moderate disabilities. Prior research indicates that students with disabilities are more prone to developing the learned helpless condition in comparison to their non-disabled peers. Studies provide evidence of a direct correlation between school failure and learned helplessness. A quantitative descriptive research method was used to collect and analyze data. A survey design method was used to assess special educators’ perceptions of the learned helpless condition. There were 40 special education teachers from suburban Chicago high schools who participated in this research study. Based on …

Special Education Instruction And Its Effect On Student Efficacy, Melissa Bonavia

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The key idea that is studied for this research is self-efficacy among special education students. The purpose of this study to look at the relationship of self-efficacy and special education students in both the general education classroom and the instructional classroom. There were a total of 28 special education students who participated in the study. They completed a survey on self-efficacy. The results found that special education students in the instructional classroom had slightly higher self-efficacy than the special education students in the general education classroom. Discussion and implication regarding education and further research is provided.

The Efficacy Of Structured Repeated Reading As A Method To Increase Reading Fluency, Ryan Capriotti

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Since reading is such a significant component of student success, it is important to perform research to determine which reading strategies and approaches are most effective. The purpose of this study was to explore Structured Repeated Reading as a beneficial reading strategy, in particular with students diagnosed with a reading disorder. There were eight students that participated in the study, all with similar reading difficulties and all that have been diagnosed with a Specific Learning Disability (SLD) in the area of Reading. Specifically, four of the students were educated in an instructional, resource room setting (I), and four of the …

Improving Phonics And Fluency Skills Using A Multisensory Language Intervention, Lisa M. Davi

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The purpose of this single case design study was to examine the efficacy of multisensory language instruction, specifically the Wilson Reading System, on the phonetic analysis skills and reading fluency of a single student identified as dyslexic. Data was collected for a period of eight weeks and analyzed using visual representations to determine participant growth in all areas assessed. Data showed growth of 20 words read correctly per minute (WCPM) with a projected gain of 16 WCPM according to Hasbrouk and Tindal's (2006) reading fluency normative chart. The education implications of the study are discussed and recommendations for further research …

Beyond An Aide: Perceptions And Attitudes Concerning The Self-Efficacy Of Paraprofessionals In Special Education, Nicolas Jones

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This action based research study was conducted to examine the self-efficacy of paraprofessionals working with students in special education in a specific school district (School District A). The study used a survey design and the paraprofessionals were currently working with students from grades 9-12 in a Chicago Area, south suburban high school district in Illinois. The study was conducted in fulfillment of the requirements for the Multicategorical Special Education program at Governors State University in the spring of 2016.

Determining Whether Classroom Dojo Will Decrease The Number Of Behavior Referrals, Venessa Martinez

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This is a quantitative study that uses A-B design to determine whether the use of classroom management behavior intervention Classroom Dojo would decrease the amount of behavior referrals. This intervention was implemented in a special education classroom in the south suburbs of Chicago with 8th grade students that attend an alternative school for behavior issues that were exhibited while at their district school. All of the students were exposed to the intervention while two students with the highest number of behavior referrals were progress monitored on a weekly basis using a data collection system called SWIS Data. This data collection …

Planning For Transition In Special Education, Esther M. Crockett-Love

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The purpose of this study is to investigate special educators’ perceptions of transition plans for students with disabilities. The research also investigated parents’ perception of transition plans for their students’ with special needs. The researcher examined the barriers that can effect transition planning. Previous research indicates that parents of diverse learners feel unprepared for this time period after post-secondary education. Educators may feel ill-equipped to prepare students for this time. Additionally, previous research indicated that the severity of the disability has a direct correlation to the success or lack thereof of student transition after post-secondary education. Furthermore, research indicated the …

Implementing Talking Circles In A Living Learning Community, Shaniqua Jones

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Restorative Justice is a collaborative decision-making process that has been integrated as an alternative approach to historic means of justice systems globally for thousands of years. Restorative justice began to impact higher education in 1998 in order to strengthen student ties to their respective colleges and universities by enriching student voices and experiences in various areas of academic and student life, including living learning communities. Talking Circles are one of many restorative practices used to facilitate effective dialogue among shareholders because it fosters a similarity of integration, motivation, and values. The purpose of this research is to determine if the …

The Effects Of Online Professional Development On Teacher Behavior And Perceptions Of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art And Math Teaching Efficacy, Guray Joseph Taysever

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Background: Research shows that STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) curriculum improves student abilities to create relevant products and services. However, teacher support is critical when implementing a new, school-wide curriculum model and learning tools as teachers need easy access to online resources. Yet, online resources currently used in many schools do not inform the processes or the ideology of STEAM curricula through collaboration among all teachers in a private school setting.

Purpose: The focus of this quasi-experimental quantitative research study was to examine the impact of a 1-week online STEAM professional development course on teacher behavior and their …

A Model Of Segmenting A High-Cost Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design Initiative, Paul Adams

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This project aimed to create a working model worthy to include within Schneider, Walker, and Sprague's description of a five-stage process of parceling out high-cost Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) initiatives. In 2002, the Department of Education and Department of Justice sponsored Schneider as the lead author for introducing and promoting CPTED initiatives for the first time in schools. This project's funding mechanism was created to help assist with the procurement of a highly priced CPTED initiative (key-less card system) for Suburban College.

Suburban College had faced a reoccurring pattern of theft from its classrooms and common areas. The …

Identification Of English Language Learners In Special Education, Sonia George

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This study investigated the knowledge and opinions of teachers with regards to the identification of English language learners (ELLs) for special education services. The participants were 22 general education and special education teachers at two schools in a school district in the Chicago suburbs. The data collected included responses to a questionnaire. The questionnaire asked teachers to consider different factors that influence the placement of ELLs in special education. The results indicated that teachers did not believe there is a disproportionate amount of ELLs being identified for special education. On average, approximately 90% of the teachers surveyed believe that teacher …

Scaling The Maternal Wall: Factors Of Success For Female Chief Student Affairs Officers With Children Working At Public Higher Education Institutions, Shaelyn R. Wolfe

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The higher education/student affairs administration field has a significant number of women graduating from programs across the country, however those numbers do not translate to the most executive levels, like vice president of student affairs, within this particular field. Many women are placed in entry level and mid-level positions without ever rising to the most senior positions, and others leave the higher education/student affairs administration field for part time work, to raise a family or to go into an entirely different field altogether. While there has been a lot of focus on the leaky pipeline of women in higher education …

The Effectiveness Of Peer Support To Increase Positive Social Interaction For Students With Special Needs, Candace Pickens-Cantrell

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The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of positive peer support to increase social interaction of students with special needs. This study followed a teacher action research design with data collected on a single student in two different preschool sessions within the same school and classroom. The participants included two special education students, and two typically developing peer supporters and the student's teacher. Observations and a questionnaire were used to collect and analyze data. The results indicate that special needs students benefit from having peer support from peers to help increase social interaction. Both students progress supported …

Teachers' Perceptions Of Educational Barriers To Preschool Special Education Services, Carolyn Stone

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This study focuses on teachers' perceptions of educational barriers to special education services for preschool aged children. The purpose of this study was to determine what teachers saw as barriers to obtaining services for young learners. A review of related research was included in this study. A survey was electronically distributed to general education and special education preschool teachers in the area, and 22 were completed and returned. Overall, teachers identified many possible barriers to services in four (4) sub-groups; parents/families, administrative and support staff, process/procedure, and Early Intervention transition. There was at least one identified barrier in each of …

An Evaluation Of Suspension Days Between Students In Special Education And General Education, Richard Tarbunas

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The purpose of this study was to analyze the number of suspension days accumulated by students in general education compared to students in special education in a south suburban Chicago public high school. Data was collected from the school to determine if there was a large disparity between suspension days between the two groups based on population size. If a large difference was discovered, then a possible plan to remediate and resolve the issue would be proposed to the school's administrators.

The Retention And Persistence Of First-Year, First-Generation College Students At A Mid-Size Public University: A Mixed Methods Case Study, Tiffany M. Gethers

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Student retention is an intricate and multi-layered issue facing postsecondary institutions across the United States. Although a complex issue, one trend is clear, research on student persistence reveals that more students withdraw from their institution within the first year of college. An additional and continuing dilemma is the disproportional attrition of first-generation college students, particularly those from ethnic minority backgrounds. The purpose of this case study is to examine the transition of Governors State University (GSU) from an upper-division graduate university to a four-year traditional institution and its impact (in terms of curricular and co-curricular programs and services) on the …

Teacher Attrition, Retention, And Preservice Preparation, Kimberly Y. Wesley

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The purpose of this study was to investigate whether teacher preparation programs are equipping preservice teachers for responsiveness to principal leadership styles and the impact on teacher perceived organizational fit. Determining whether preservice programs prepare teachers for the dynamics of the school environment could be beneficial in improving retention and attrition. A qualitative design was utilized to gather data through interviews with instructors, students, and alumni of a teacher preparation program in the Midwest. Syllabi and coursework were analyzed for incorporation of preparation for responsiveness to diverse leadership styles.

Online Learning Center For Java, Sravankumar Reddy Mukkonda, Gopichand Pallepati, Sandhya Vani Pasam, Kartheek Punna

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In our project, we want to develop an online-tutorial which helps students to learn and practice basic program functions in Java. It includes learning the major features in Java language and practicing developing programs by online quizzes, code generating, debugging, executing, and verifying the result. In short our projects show a Java tutorial which includes learning materials and online Java compiler and interpreter to execute Java programs.

E-Classroom For An Underserved Institution, Bhanuprakash Madupati, Kaleem Danish Mohammed, Dilipkumar Pampana

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The E-Class Room system is a web based project. An educational institution in India is understaffed and has limited interaction among faculty, student and industry experts. The project is to provide an online platform for the students and faculty of the institution to enhance their educational needs and to share their learning with their fellow students, faculty or industrial experts. It aims to provide a platform for mutual cooperation between different kinds of learning. The new system will provide directional way for online learning between faculty, student and industrial experts.

The Effectiveness Of Content Retention When Using A Chromebook™ With A Student On The Autism Spectrum, Marykay Shropshire

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A student identified with Autism participated in a single case design study in which note taking was conducted in traditional and technological (Chromebook™) fashion. Participation is used on the general education curriculum and daily exercises completed in the classroom. This research was completed in two phases with the first phase collecting baseline data to be compared to the second phase of data that was collected during the intervention. Each phase lasted 3 weeks and was carried out in the special education classroom within the student's usual Extended School Year program. This research was conducted for the cumulative project at Governors …

Adult Initiated Transition Of Students With Autism And Self-Injurious Behavior, Courtney N. Quinn

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The purpose of this study was to discover if adult initiated transitions from center to center cause students with Autism self-injurious behavior. An ABC chart was used to gather data based on how many times the student inflicts self-harm upon himself, and what time of the day the self-injurious behavior occurs. With the data that was gathered on the student it was noticed that the most self-injurious behavior occurred when the student had to leave one center provided with adult initiation, and when he did not want to leave the activity of choice. As the behavior came more problematic, interventions …

Individualized Education Program: Members Attitudes On Collaboration And Communication, Maura Gallagher

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The purpose of this study was to explore professional's attitudes towards collaboration and communication in relation to the Individualized Education Program development and implementation. The one question that guided the focus of this study was: "How do IEP team members rate the skills needed for collaboration and communication in order to successfully implement an individualized education program?" The study was conducted as a quantitative study using a cross-sectional survey with a simple random sampling in conjunction with a snowball sampling in order to distribute the survey to possible participants. Certified staff members and parents that participate on an Individualized Education …

The Effect Of District Provided Training And Paraprofessional Self-Efficacy, Meredith Madden

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The purpose of this research study was to investigate the effect(s) district provided training, or lack thereof, had on paraprofessional self-efficacy. This study was a descriptive action research study using a survey design. The participants of this study were selected from a south suburban, Cook county high school district. All participants, when surveyed, were currently employed paraprofessionals working with students with disabilities in grades 9-12. This study was conducted as part of a Multicategorical Special Education graduate student culminating project at Governors State University in summer 2015.

Incorporating Asynchronous Video Discussion Prompts To Observe Community Of Inquiry Within Online Undergraduate Courses, Bonnie J. Covelli

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Distance education, including online learning and e-learning, continues to increase in higher education. Research indicates that online learning supports a constructivism (or student-centered, collaborative) approach to learning, and the sense of community is important to students in the online setting. The Community of Inquiry (Col) framework further defines a sense of community as satisfaction in the teaching presence, social presence, and cognitive presence of learning. Using the constructivist approach and the Col framework, online instructors have the ability to use different techniques and tools with asynchronous discussion prompts to foster a sense of community in the online learning setting. Discussion …

Teacher Knowledge And Perception Of Students With An Adhd Label, Carrie Ballantine

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This descriptive, quantitative study utilized a cross-sectional survey to determine if there was a relationship between teacher knowledge of ADHD and their perception of students with the label, and it investigated the potential difference between general education and special education teachers. A three-part survey will be disseminated to participants. This includes demographic information, true-false questions about ADHD, and vignettes with a Likert scale measure of perception of the events described. A Pearson correlation may be used to analyze the degree of relationship between the level of teacher knowledge about ADHD and their perception of students with the label. T-tests were …

Parental Involvement And Academic Achievement, Rosie Thornton

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The parent-school relationship for families of students with disabilities is clearly prescribed by law and is one of the main systems of belief of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 2004. The purpose of the study was to focus on homework, parental involvement, parental involvement in homework, and parental involvement in homework of students with special needs. This study was designed to analyze parents and teachers beliefs on parent involvement in their child’s homework as it relates to higher student outcomes and achievement within a traditional urban elementary school setting. Participants consisted parents of primary grade level students in …

A Comparison Of Mathematics Content In The 2002 And 2014 Ged Test, Genice Cox

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As society changes and competition grows, the skilled worker becomes hard to find. For these reasons, secondary education is the starting point for pursuing college, a trade, and a career. For more than 60 years individuals have been given a second chance to complete their high school education by taking the General Education Development (GED) exam. This exam has been updated to correspond to changes in society and the workforce. As of 2014, the GED test was changed dramatically. This research project traced from past to present the intent of the assessment, teaching methods, curriculum, statistics, and overall preparation of …

Employers Attitudes Towards Hiring Individuals With Alternative Diplomas, Leah West

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Having career aspirations is a natural part of development. Many students dream of receiving their high school diploma and going on to enter the workforce. However, one must consider what happens to students who receive degrees of completion, certificates of attendance, or occupational diplomas. In order to examine the postsecondary job opportunities for students who hold alternative diplomas the researchers conducted an action based study which used the mixed methodology approach of surveys and interviews to examine employer’s attitudes towards hiring individuals with alternative diplomas. A total of 50 participants, who were part of a convenience sample, were asked to …

Gender Stereotyping By Regular Vs. Special Education Teachers, Annie Eyer

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This study explores the teacher perceptions of gender roles held by regular education teacher as opposed to special education teachers. The purpose of the study is to examine the differences in responses held by these two groups of teachers. An online quantitative, longitudinal survey was distributed to teachers in the Illinois Counties of Will and Cook. A quantitative analysis discovered no statistically significant differences between the two certification groups. However, the teachers free response questions obtained mixed results between all teachers surveyed. Future implications of the research suggest that the teacher preparation programs need better focus on the study of …

The Benefits And Drawbacks Of Behavioral Management Plans In Therapeutic Day Schools, Bruce A. Korensky

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Behavioral management plans were analyzed as to their effectiveness in helping students improve their behavior. The settings where the research was conducted were in five therapeutic day schools. Therapeutic day schools are schools that are designed to help students improve in their social emotional conditions so they can return to their regular schools. The students who were interviewed had behavioral and social/emotional conditions. In add ition, the administrators of the five schools were interviewed in regards to how effective they believe their selected behavioral management plans are.