Education Commons^™

Work Readiness And Job Satisfaction Of Youth With Intellectual Disabilities Participating In A Supported Employment Program, Hannah Branch

Undergraduate Research Journal for the Human Sciences

A summer supported employment program was provided by a vocational rehabilitation agency to prepare transition-aged youth with intellectual disabilities for the workforce. This study examined the views of youth with intellectual disabilities on their pre-post-program work readiness and job satisfaction using survey methodology. Although youth seemed satisfied with their jobs, they reported no significant change in their perceived job readiness, and their job coaches also reported similar perceptions.

As a summer program, the duration may not have been adequate to increase youth’s views of their work readiness. For summer supported employment programs, obtaining youth participant insight and feedback, although sometimes …

Semi-Public Speaking: How Virtual High School Debate Competition Increased Accessibility For Marginalized Students, Annie Goodson

The Advocate

The advent of online learning in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic radically altered the landscape of modern education. While most research has examined the socio-emotional and academic impact of the shift to online school, far less attention has been given to its effect on extra-curricular activities. This article examines the ways in which virtual learning effected competitive high school debate, and how a transition to an entirely virtual debate format radically altered students’ and coaches’ experiences within the activity. Drawing on empirical studies and real-world experiences, this article underscores how virtual debate made the activity more accessible for historically …

Effects Of State-Level Funding Systems On Identification Rates Of Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Michelle Powers, Brad Uhing

The Advocate

Identification rates of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have been increasing since the year 2000, while federal special education funding has remained stagnant. Researchers gathered data from states related to individual state funding systems, per pupil spending and identification rates of students with ASD to determine if state spending or special education funding methods affected identification rates of students with ASD. While specific funding methodology did not predict rates of identification or PPS, a correlational analysis of individual state PPS and ASD identification rates did have significant results. Spending amounts per pupil corresponded to rates of identification for ASD.

Characteristics And Predictors For Students Classified With Emotional And Behavioral Disorder Who Have Also Experienced Maltreatment, Richard E. Mattison, Gregory J. Benner, Skip Kumm

Educational Considerations

Though experiencing maltreatment (abuse or neglect) appears to be common in students with the special education label of emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), little research has been devoted to this topic by EBD educators. This paper uses archived file drawer data from 1992 that focuses on 149 students newly classified with EBD for whom a wide range of enrollment variables was collected, and who were subsequently followed up on an average of 8 years later to assess their educational outcomes. At enrollment, experiences of maltreatment were determined to have occurred in 57.7% of these participants. The group who experienced maltreatment …

Latinx Teachers Advocating And Providing Support To Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Students And Their Families, Pedro S. Espinoza, Kay Ann Taylor

Educational Considerations

This study explores how Latinx teachers engage in social justice agendas for their Culturally and Linguistically Diverse students, specific barriers and support systems these Latinx teachers encounter in their social justice work, and the educational strategies Latinx teachers value in their role as advocates in their social justice work. The following three themes emerged from participant data: (a) Tesoros from students and families, (b) Advocacy for CLD students: High expectations of all students, (c) Support system as pre-service and in-service teachers: hechale ganas/work hard. We briefly formulate each of these themes, providing fragments from participant testimonios as examples. After formulation …

Facilitating Racial Equity: Evaluating A Leadership Workshop Series For School Social Workers, Summer G. Woodside, Veronica Hardy

International Journal of School Social Work

This article provides an overview of a leadership training workshop series designed to provide professional development to Pre-K through 12th grade school social workers about racial equity and leadership. The series' objectives included promoting social workers’ understanding of and obligation to facilitating racial equity in schools, analyzing educational data through a racial equity lens, conceptualizing school social workers as influencers in addressing racial inequities in schools, and collaborating with school professionals of various disciplines to practice and implement evidence-based approaches for facilitating racial equity in schools. The authors conducted five workshops that were developed based on state school social work …

Judgment Doesn't Heal The Hurting, Kara Lasater

Educational Considerations

Judgment interferes with the development of all relationships. For students and families who have experienced trauma, judgment can be particularly devastating as it may further damage the survivor’s already compromised sense of safety, trust, and belonging. As educators, we must develop non-judgmental attitudes toward students and families, yet sometimes our lack of self-awareness and problematic ideological positions lead us to judge. In this essay, I describe my personal journey with families and the ideological shift I experienced as I became more self-aware and attentive to others’ stories. It is my hope that my experiences will challenge other educators to engage …

Examining Justice In Social Studies Research, J. Spencer Clark, Steven P. Camicia

Pedagogy & (Im)Possibilities across Education Research (PIPER)

Our article is an extension of a project involving a content analysis of two social studies journals, Theory and Research in Social Education (TRSE) and The Social Studies. We performed an analysis on all articles in these journals from 2006-2016. Our findings from the analysis indicated a narrow frame of perspectives related to epistemologies and methodologies, and an increasing interest in examining a range of researcher and participant positionalities. We interpreted the range of perspectives in social studies journals in light of the possible impact upon democratic education and social justice through Sen’s (2009) framework for theorizing justice. We illustrate …

Mind The Gap: Student Researchers Use Secondary Data To Explore Disparities In Stem Education, Nathan Bean, Amanda Gnadt, Nicole Maupin, Sherry A. White, Lori Andersen

Prairie Journal of Educational Research

Large data sets offer opportunities for graduate students to become involved in meaningful research, but also comes with a unique set of challenges. This paper seeks to examine that relationship through utilizing the High School Longitudinal Study 2009 – representative of US ninth graders in 2009 (n = 21,444) – to examine a set of research questions about STEM interest and preparation amongst secondary students. Student researchers identified gaps in plans and outcomes with regards to race, gender, exceptionalities, and socioeconomic status. Findings indicated inequities that affect STEM outcomes. A significant interaction was found between students education expectations by gender …