Disability and Equity in Education Commons^™

Related Services Research Project To Support The Education Of Students With Deaf-Blindness: Final Report., Michael Giangreco

College of Education and Social Services Faculty Publications

This Final Report documents the activities and products of the . Related Services Research Project to Support the Education of Students with Deafblindness, a four-year research project funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. This report provides an introduction to the project followed by: (a) the project's objectives; (b) a conceptual framework and description of VISTA; (c) the research questions and studies conducted by project staff; (d) a bibliography of other project products; (e) major findings and continuing concerns; (f) dissemination and impact; (g) ongoing activities; and (h) an assurance of distribution.

The Impact Of Early Screening On Preschool Children Attending Camden City Head Start, Beverly M. Clement

Theses and Dissertations

Extensive published research supports comprehensive preschool programs for children and their families, especially for "At Risk" populations often found within inner cities. Programs such as Head Start prepare children for school entrance, provide them with a caring and nurturing environment and empower families with the skills and resources necessary for successful living. The Camden County Council On Economic Opportunity (CCCOEO, Inc.), grantee for the Camden County, New Jersey Head Start Program, provides comprehensive services for "At Risk" preschool children, ages three to five.

Starting in September 1998 to March 1999, sixty-seven preschoolers attending various CCCOEO Head Start Centers were given …

Middle School Teachers Perspectives On Inclusion: A Qualitative Study, James M. Cooney

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Historically, research has placed considerable emphasis on developing a systematic body of knowledge about education in which little voice has been given to teachers themselves. The critical role that teachers play in this generative process such as reflecting, acting and theorizing upon practices that shape life in the classroom has largely been ignored in favor of technical innovation and organizational procedure. As schools straggle to reform and restructure, an understanding of how teachers interpret their practices in context and how the culture of schools influence, constrain, or encourage these practices become critical aspects of school success or failure.

This study …

Institutional Changes And Discretionary Value For Property Rights In Drylands’ Farming Of The Sudan, Professor Issam A.W. Mohamed

Professor Issam A.W. Mohamed

Research on land tenure and use control and the socioeconomic sets of regulations in the agricultural rainfed sub sector of Sudan, come to focus for many reasons. Anthropogenic pressure, expanding animal population and migration led to accelerated impacts on both the ecological systems and land yields. Conflicts between governmental regulations and indigenous rules contribute to generate inconsistencies on who have the right to till the land and hence own it. With such transformation logically, more intensive commercial farming took place and land intake exponentially increased. Private or collective property rights of land are procured through traditional tenure, prescription, settlement or …

An Analysis Of Grade-Level Expenditures Of At-Risk Funding Among Districts Of Different Economic Status In The State Of Michigan, Benard A. Meyer

Dissertations

Many of the recent financial reforms failed to address the needs of at-risk children. Effective solutions to the problems of the educationally disadvantaged must include changes within the schools, how the schools are funded, and how the schools spend their funding. Michigan’s 1994 finance reform included a funded plan for “unequal treatment of unequals” directed for the support of at-risk students. This fund was called Section 31a Program for At-Risk Pupils and involved a 230 million dollar compensatory education funding allowance for students at risk of school failure. This study presented here will determine if there is a relationship between …

Cochlear Implants, A Study Of Children Implanted Prelingually And Postlingually: What Age Best Facilitates Oral Language Development, Lisa A. Stillwagon

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the most appropriate age for young hearing impaired children to receive a cochlear implant that would best facilitate oral language development. The study compared the oral language skills of five hearing impaired preschoolers, before and after implantation. Information was obtained through student case files including both formal and informal records and reports. Records included: progress reports, IEPs, audiological evaluations, and speech and language assessments.

The results of the study indicated that the development of oral language skills in hearing impaired preschoolers who received cochlear implants at ages 3 and 4 varies due …

An Evaluation Of The Efficacy Of The Glass Analysis Method Of Word Decoding With Second And Third Grade Disabled Learners, Leanne Bernosky

Theses and Dissertations

Glass Analysis for Decoding Only is one of the many methods available for teaching decoding skills to students with disabilities. This study was designed to examine the effectiveness of Glass Analysis for Decoding Only on the reading achievement of primary age students with learning disabilities. A convenience group of eight second and third grade students receiving instruction in the self-contained special education classroom served as subjects. For a period of five months, students received Glass Analysis as the primary method of decoding instruction. Research examined the effect of this instruction in the areas of word recognition, reading comprehension, listening comprehension, …

A Study Of The Effectiveness Of A Direct Instruction Program In Mathematics, Jennifer A. Laurrell-Klotz

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to determine if participation in a year long mathematics direct instructional program would accelerate the rate of mathematical achievement in a group of learning disabled children. The subjects of this study were comprised of five eleven-year-old fifth grade students who were classified as Learning Disabled. Outcome measures utilized included teacher assigned report card grades, a basic skills test, a two-step word problem assessment and the Key Math Diagnostic Arithmetic Test-Revised as a functional measure.

The results of this study indicate that, when utilizing formal and functional measures, students make greater progress acquiring facts and …

An Evaluation Of The Effects Of Project Read On The Reading Achievement Of Primary Age Disabled Learners, Susan L. Pennock

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a multisensory approach to reading being used in the West Windsor-Plainsboro School District's Special Services Department. Project Read, developed by Language Circle Enterprises, is being used to teach phonology, comprehension, and written expression to students with learning disabilities. A pull-out approach is used with the second and third grades in one elementary school. Students are mainstreamed for homeroom, lunch, science and social studies. They are pulled out and sent to a Learning Center in the school for reading, language arts, and math. Reading scores were used from the previous …

At Risk In The Writing Classroom: Negotiating A Lesbian Teacher Identity, Irene G. Meaker

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

"Education is a fearful enterprise," says teacher and philosopher, Parker Palmer. Student-centered/ processoriented pedagogy asks teachers to step out from behind the relative safety of the teacher mask and to enter the risky arena of learning. For the writing teacher, a special challenge is to help students negotiate the risks inherent in the act of writing and in sharing writing with the "Other."

To prevent fears from dominating our students, teachers must model risk-taking and risk negotiation. In my own teaching, my fears around students' reactions to learning my sexual identity meant that I more often reinforced fears than dispelled …

The Effectiveness Of The Use Of The Picture Exchange Communication System (Pecs) On The Development Of Functional Communication Skills In Preschool Children With Autism, Patricia M. Martin

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the use of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) on the development of functional communication skills in four preschool children with autism. The students involved in this study were enrolled in two preschool disabilities-autism classrooms. The classrooms were very similar in the routine and schedule they followed in addition to the teaching and behavioral techniques that were used with each student. Three students were pretested in September 1998, the fourth student was pretested in November 1998. All four students were posttested in March 1999 to measure their individual growth …

Acquiring Automaticity Of Basic Math Facts And The Effect That This Has On Overall Mathematic Achievement, Sandra S. Robinson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to prove, through a systematic approach, that teaching addition facts to mastery would improve the mathematics scores of second grade students. This study attempted to demonstrate that if a desired level of automatic recall of basic facts was achieved students would show improved scores on a nationally standardized test.

Basic math facts were taught to a group of students over several months and they were tested daily on speed and accuracy. Standardized test scores were then compared from the end of first grade (prior to the intervention) and end of second grade scores (after …

State Should Support Equal Marriage, The Maine Campus Editorial Position Board

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Yesterday, we heard both sides of the same-sex marriage debate making their case in Augusta. Those arguments have convened us that marriage equality, as it is proposed in Sen. Dennis Damon's bill, LD 1020, poses no threat to Maine's straight marriages or to its religious faithful.

Equality And The Miss Usa Pageant, Rhiannon Sawtelle

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Here is my embarrassing admission for the week: I watched the Miss USA pageant last Sunday. My roommate and I criticized the women, picked our favorites and hoped one of them would trip on stage. We made it through the swimsuit competition, the evening gown walk and held our breaths when the time came for questioning. Miss California, a blonde Barbie® look-alike, took the stage and by the luck of the draw was questioned by Perez Hilton, a gay gossip-queen blogger. He asked her if she believed same-sex marriage should be legalized in every state.

Gss Debates Sending Wilde Stein To "Hostile" Territory, Mary Emmi

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Wilde Stein requested funds from the University of Maine General Student Senate April 21 for a bus to the Augusta hearing of the gay-marriage bill. It was a request that would send students to a "potentially hostile environment" if granted, Sen. Sean Rankin said.

State Debates Gay Marriage, Heather Steeves

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

The Maine Judiciary Committee heard more than 11 hours of testimony from ministers, lawyers, students, doctors, gay and lesbian couples as well as dozens of other Maine citizens to discuss two bills.

Sex Matters: In Honor Of "Pride Week" At The University Of Maine, Sandra L. Caron

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

This week our university is celebrating "Pride Week" in an attempt to educate and honor gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered issues. There are a number of programs planned throughout the week. This time provides us with an opportunity for education, as well as reflection and discussion. In his writing, "Homophobia on the College Campus," Brian McNaught (author of "On Being Gay," "Gay Issues in the Workplace," and "Now That I'm Out, What Do I Do?") provides us with a list of questions to prompt such a discussion. A sampling of these questions are listed below. As you read each one, …

Bodybuilder Recounts Struggles Of Being Gay, Debra Hatch

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Bob Paris' image as "Mr. Universe" and "Mr. America" depended on his masculinity, but it all changed when he announced he was gay. Paris had intended his statement to Ironman magazine to be one speaking about love and commitment, not to draw attention to himself and his sexuality. Instead it destroyed his career and four year run of popularity. No athletes in the mainstream have ever come out during their career to say they were homosexual.

Disabled Seek Understanding, Acceptance, Debra Hatch

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Rose-Marie has a hard time concentrating on the things she does and is easily distracted by her surroundings. Taking math tests in a room with calculators sounds like a construction site to her, and every pencil scraping paper rings as purely in her ear as if it were right next to it.

A Handbook For Students With Dyslexia Learning To Understand It And Learning How To Help Themselves, Vikki L. Dolman

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to expand upon a current workshop that taught students about positive self-esteem and how to self-advocate for themselves, by creating a handbook of information about dyslexia and some strategies to pre-expose them to the workshop content. The handbook includes an appendix with all required material to complete the workshop. The project also contains, a review of current literature and research related to dyslexia including the definition, diagnosis, testing, remediation, and self-esteem in regards to dyslexia was conducted.

Welcome, Patricia R. Renick Ph.D.

Electronic Journal for Inclusive Education

WELCOME to the second edition of the Electronic Journal of Inclusive Education. As you have read we are still under construction in several segments of the journal. However, the articles the editorial board has chosen for this edition reflect the growth of inclusion initiatives across the country and throughout the educational system.

Before you read further, I would like to direct your attention to the "C.L.A.S.S." logo on the cover of the journal. C.L.A.S.S. stands for Creating Laboratory Access for Students with Disabilities. Funded by the National Science Foundation, the purpose of this project is to prepare secondary science educators …

Kindergarteners' Acceptance Of The Social Behavior Of A Child With Special Needs, Colleen A. Finegan Ph.D.

Electronic Journal for Inclusive Education

Positive relationships between children are a concern in inclusionary classrooms. This naturalistic study examines the relationship between children's perceptions of their peer's capabilities and its significance in making friendship choices It was found that young children utilize verbal and non-verbal language skills as the basis of decisions about friendship.

Home For The Holidays: A Red-Flag, Carry-In, Reclaiming Intervention, John Hill

John W. Hill

No abstract provided.

Awakening Genius In The Classroom By Thomas Armstrong, Jacqueline Collier Ph.D.

Electronic Journal for Inclusive Education

In a world of inclusion and acceptance, of diversity and uniqueness, and of looking at the individual strengths of each child in an educational setting, it is only fitting that we look to the "genius" of each learner. The use of the term "genius" in this context redefines the usual perspectives and asks us to stretch our understanding to include the potential capabilities of every learner and what it is that they bring with them to make a unique individual worth developing. In his book Awakening Genius in the Classroom, Thomas Armstrong coaxes each reader to examine his or her …

Inclusion And Its Effects On Students, Kay E. Walker, June A. Ovington Ph.D.

Electronic Journal for Inclusive Education

Inclusion is being implemented in schools across the nation (National Study of Inclusive Education, 1994). Schools are restructuring their general and special education programs because performance in our nation's schools has been poor. Inclusion advocates believe that the inclusion philosophy will improve education for both the general and special education student (An Inclusion Talkback, 1996). However, there is much disagreement on the effects of inclusion on various categories of students and much confusion about what inclusion really means (National Study of Inclusive Education, 1994).

The conclusions made from research on the topic of inclusion depends upon the population being considered. …

A Model For Inclusive Teacher Preparation, Jerry W. Whitworth Ed. D.

Electronic Journal for Inclusive Education

Providing a quality education for all students in inclusive settings has been identified as perhaps the most challenging, yet most important, issue in education. There is little doubt, however, that inclusivity, rather than exclusivity, will characterize the schools of the next century. To be ready for that future we must prepare teachers who can teach in settings that are inclusive, meeting the needs of all students. This will require a different model of teacher education. This article describes one such model that incorporates what we know about inclusive educational practices into the preservice preparation of special and general education teachers.

Behavioral Problems In Schools: Ways To Encourage Functional Behavior Assessment (Fba) Of Discipline-Evoking Behavior Of Students With Emotional And/Or Behavioral Disorders (Ebd), Jo M. Hendrickson, Robert A. Gable, Maureen A. Conroy

Communication Disorders & Special Education Faculty Publications

Functional behavioral assessment (FBA) of aggressive and negative behaviors that lead to suspension and expulsion is mandated for students with disabilities in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1997. This legal requirement is problematic for many school districts as well as teacher preparation programs in that numerous barriers to effective application of FBA exist within our educational institutions. The present article discusses some of the major challenges school districts personnel face in implementing FBAs. A school improvement initiative, Success4, is presented to illustrate an approach that the state of Iowa is taking to overcome these challenges. Finally, …

The Cruelest Of The Gender Police: Student-To-Student Sexual Harassment And Anti-Gay Peer Harassment Under Title Ix, Deborah L. Brake

Articles

Title IX, like other sex discrimination laws, addresses discrimination that occurs because of an individual’s sex. Courts interpreting Title IX, like those interpreting Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, have struggled to demarcate a line separating discrimination because of sex from discrimination because of sexual orientation. This article constructs an argument for viewing anti-gay discrimination, and in particular anti-gay harassment between students, as a form of sex discrimination under Title IX. The article first explores why school inaction in the face of sexual harassment discriminates on the basis of sex. Although sex discrimination law generally has long …

Front Matter

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Editor's Message

Zen students, Charlotte Joko Beck tells us, have a job to do, "a very important job: to bring . . . life out of dreamland and into the real and immense reality that it is" (12). The goal and the way to the goal are the same: mindfulness, a return to the clear experience of the present moment, within which the artificial dualism separating self and object dissolves. To be mindful is to be aware, The American Heritage Dictionary says, to hold in the fullness of mind rather than to be destitute of mind or consciousness. Mindfulness is …

Jaepl, Vol. 5, Winter 1999-2000

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Essays

David Bleich. Learning from Everyone. In the teaching of writing and literature, it would be helpful to teachers and students to encourage students to overtake, use, and reuse one another's various uses of language in essays and other course work.

Lisa Tyler. Narratives of Pain: Trauma and the Healing Power of Writing. Writing about traumatic events is useful, healing, and meaningful, and such work deserves a place in the composition classroom.

Bradford A. Barry. Writer Motivation: Beyond the Intrinsic/Extrinisic Dichotomy. This article articulates and develops a much needed theory of communication motivation which shows how we …