Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

An Investigation Of Practices To Address The Disproportionate Representation Of African American Students In Special Education Programs In Virginia, Stacia M. Barreau

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which practices to address disproportionality suggested by the professional literature are being implemented in Virginia public schools. It also sought to understand the perceptions of special education directors regarding the effectiveness of these practices in addressing disproportionality. Mixed methods were employed through the use of a survey instrument which was developed for this study and a content analysis of school division action plans.;There were two overarching research focus questions as well as six corresponding sub-questions investigated in this study. This study included 111 directors of special education who represent …