Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

The The: The Definit(Iv)E Article On Idea, Mark Weber

College of Law Faculty

A wry look at the use of "the" before the acronym for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in the Supreme Court's special education law decisions.

Hobby Preferences And Physical Activity Participation Among Children With And Without Autism Spectrum Disorder, Scott M. Russell

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

BACKGROUND: Children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) exhibit low physical activity levels and are at an increased risk for health problems related to sedentary behaviors. Hobby preferences have been shown to influence physical activity participation. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to examine the hobby preferences of children with ASD and determine if there are differences depending on the children’s physical activity level and the nature of their preferred activities. A secondary purpose is to describe the hobby preferences of children with ASD. METHODS: Participants include 98 nine-year-old children (with and without ASD) from the National Growing up …

Podcasts Episode 07: Doug Trimble, Doug Trimble, Amy T. Parker

O&M On the Go

Doug Trimble is an experienced Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist who instructs children and adults in Washington state. Doug is a full time COMS at the Washington State School for the Blind who also contracts to serve adults, including older adults, who are blind or have low vision. In this podcast, Doug shared with Amy Parker at Portland State University about how he developed his skills and what he has learned over the years. As a COMS with a vision loss, Doug shares about non-visual teaching techniques that he models and uses with his students and clients.

https://www2.wssb.wa.gov/Content/oncampus/orientationmobility.asp

Image Credit: …

Podcasts Episode 08: Dr. Nora Griffin-Shirley, Amy T. Parker, Nora Griffin-Shirley

O&M On the Go

Dr. Nora Griffin-Shirley is a professor and the Director of the Virginia Murray Sowell Center for Research and Education in Sensory Disabilities at Texas Tech University. Nora coordinates the Orientation and Mobility Specialist and Sensory Impairments and Autism programs at Texas Tech University.

https://www.depts.ttu.edu/education/our-people/Faculty/nora_griffin_shirley.php

Music Therapists’ Use Of Visual Supports For Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Taylor Ruthann Chapman

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Visual supports, which provide information presented in a visual format to enhance achievement toward specific goals, can be very helpful for individuals who have autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Music therapists often use visual supports in their practice; however, research exploring how they do so is limited. In the present study, the researcher used a mixed-methods research design to explore music therapists’ use of visual supports for individuals who have ASD. The researcher e-mailed a survey to board-certified music therapists who opted to receive e-mails from the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT), 525 of whom completed the entire survey. Approximately …

Using Cartoons To Make Connections And Enrich Mathematics, Janet St. Clair

Proceedings of the Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (Archived)

The article discusses the integration of cartoons into a finite mathematics college course. However, cartoon integration is appropriate for any educational level STEM course. Students and the author used an online comic strip creator, MakeBeliefsComix.com, to create cartoons that connected concepts to the real world and history. Following Cho, Osborne, and Sanders (2015), students wrote a paragraph about their cartoon and its mathematics. In addition to connecting mathematics to art and writing and unearthing students’ creative side, cartoons helped show the humanistic side of mathematics and promote communication and excitement about mathematics. The author developed a rubric to evaluate students’ …

Critical Skills For Special Educator Effectiveness: Which Ones Matter Most, And To Whom?, Sara B. Woolf

Publications and Research

Special education teachers are expected to fulfill diverse teaching and non-teaching tasks in comparison to their general education peers. However, their performance is evaluated with measures that were normed for use with general education teachers. These specialty teachers are also routinely evaluated by professionals who may lack formal special education training or experience. These conditions render special educators vulnerable for inaccurate performance evaluation. Explicit research is needed to clarify the professional skills that are most critical to special educators’ professional effectiveness and ensure continuity of focus on these skills in preservice teacher education and employment contexts. This qualitative study builds …

Smarter Balanced Math Assessment: An Examination Of Its Construct Validity For Students With Known Reading And/Or Writing Disabilities, Dana A. Bailey

Education Dissertations

Abstract

For students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) in reading and/or writing, meeting standard on the currently mandated Smarter Balanced Math Assessment (Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction [OSPI], 2018; SBAC, 2018) presents unique challenges. On the Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA), students are expected to solve math problems that require language skills, specifically skills which are deficient in students with learning disabilities in reading and/or writing. In particular, Claim 3 (SBAC, 2018) requires students to explain your thinking, and construct and evaluate an argument. These are examples of test questions that, for a student with learning disabilities, may …

Exploratory Application Of A Sensory Activity Schedule In Head Start Preschool, Marian Perez, Elaine Wong, Michelle Perryman

Student Research Posters

Objective: The objective of this research is to determine whether the implementation of sensory activity schedule in a preschool classroom can increase the on-task behaviors of the students.

Methods: Three students were recruited to participate in a quantitative multiple single subject design with qualitative follow-up study. The participants performed sensorimotor activities before circle time and were monitored for frequency of their off-task behavior using a time sampling frequency data collection. Afterwards, the head teacher was interviewed to discuss the experience.

Results: Off-task behavior decreased from baseline on all three children, which supports the efficacy of sensory activity schedule in reducing …

Working Memory In School-Age Children With And Without A Persistent Speech Sound Disorder, Kelly Farquharson, Tiffany Hogan, John E. Bernthal

Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders: Faculty Publications

Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore the role of working memory processes as a possible cognitive underpinning of persistent speech sound disorders (SSD).

Method: Forty school-aged children were enrolled; 20 children with persistent SSD (P-SSD) and 20 typically developing children. Children participated in three working memory tasks – one to target each of the components in Baddeley’s working memory model: phonological loop, visual spatial sketchpad and central executive.

Result: Children with P-SSD performed poorly only on the phonological loop tasks compared to their typically developing age-matched peers. However, mediation analyses revealed that the relation …

College Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders And Their Knowledge Of Self-Determination: A Study To Inform Educational Practices And Policies, Tara Rowe

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The number of students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) attending postsecondary education has steadily increased in recent years. A need has been identified for campus administrators to better understand the needs of students with ASD (Becker & Palladino, 2016; Oswald, Winder-Patel, Ruder, Xing, Stahmer, & Solomon, 2017). In order to gain insight about students with ASD, research providing a foundation of understanding the unique characteristics and needs of this growing population must take place. By recognizing the need for further education and training, campus administrators may have opportunities to develop professional development trainings that could provide insight into understanding a …

Using Multiliteracies To Engage And Empower Students With Complex Support Needs, Sudha Vaghul Krishnan

Doctoral Dissertations

Using Multiliteracies to Engage and Empower Students with Complex Support Needs This dissertation is comprised of two studies:

• Creating New Learning Spaces Using Multiliteracies with Students with Complex Support Needs

• Transforming Narrative Identity through Multiliteracies

Students with complex support needs (SCSN) are frequently denied access to meaningful and challenging literacy instruction. These studies explore how student- authored narratives in the individualized education plan (IEP), implemented during a multiliteracies curriculum, can simultaneously engage and empower SCSN. These studies are based on the qualitative research that I conducted from November 15, 2018 to February 11, 2018 at a special day …

The Role Of Professional Development On Secondary Special Educators Self-Efficacy Regarding The Use Of Evidence-Based Transition Practices, Lauren P. Bruno

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine how transition specific professional development influenced secondary special educators’ knowledge and perceived self-efficacy regarding the use of evidence-based transition practices. Past research has suggested that secondary special educators enter the profession with limited knowledge and skills to provide effective evidence-based transition practices to students with disabilities. Based on Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, and Desimone’s framework for effective professional development, this study identified how different variables related to professional development can influence teacher self-efficacy in terms of delivering evidence-based transition practices. Specifically, a correlational research design was used to investigate teacher self-efficacy to …

The Use Of Outside Agents To Improve Special Education Service Delivery: A Mixed-Methods Analysis, Christine E. Young

Theses and Dissertations

Under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, states created statewide systems of support, in collaboration with existing agencies, to deliver targeted assistance to districts and schools identified as in need of support. With limited personnel and resources, state education agencies partnered with outside agents to address the needs of a growing number of low-performing schools. Support and services for low-performing schools were designed to increase opportunities for schools to meet academic content and achievement standards for all students. Strong outside agents (skilled in systems change, knowledge of interventions and capacity for relationship-building) have been shown to produce changes …

The Experiences That Promote Success For Students With Intellectual Disability In Postsecondary Education, Kimberly S. Handsome

Theses and Dissertations

This in-depth qualitative, phenomenological (Smith & Fowler, 2009) research study attempted to understand the experiences of young adults with intellectual disability who had completed a 2-year, inclusive postsecondary education program. 13 participants (4 former students with ID, 5 parents, and 4 Postsecondary Education staff members) participated in semi-structured interviews. Interviews were coded to provide themes amongst each individual group of participants. A document review was also conducted to better understand the program components and add validity to self-reports from interviews. Results were analyzed and used to provide implications for future research and program development.

Public School Principals’ Attitudes Regarding The Classroom Participation Of Students With Autism Who Exhibit Challenging Behavior, Taryn G. Traylor

Theses and Dissertations

Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) present challenges for principals supervising both general and special education teachers. Evidence-based practices designed to address the challenging behavior and academic needs of this population exists, but there are numerous contextual factors that affect the ability of principals to effectively assist their teachers in implementation. The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between principal leader’s demographic characteristics, the influence of contextual factors, and leadership attitudes that affect their development and priorities for their schools. The implementation science framework and collective impact theory was investigated as a conceptual framework to analyze these …

Exploring Stress For Novice Teachers' In Low Socio-Economic Elementary Schools Through Breathing Biofeedback, Angelica Fulchini

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Teachers who serve children of color in schools that support students from low socio-economic status have turnover rates reported to be as high as 70% (SES; Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2017). Numerous approaches to teacher retention in low SES settings have been discussed in the literature (Chester & Beaudin, 1996; Donaldson, 2009; Ingersoll & Kralik, 2004; Jacob, 2007; McKinney, Haberman, Stafford-Johnson, & Robinson, 2008; McLaurin, Smith, & Smillie, 2009; Siwatu, Frazier, Osaghae, & Starker, 2011; Sutcher, Darling-Hammond, & Carver-Thomas, 2016; Taylor & Frankenberg, 2009), but the use of emerging biofeedback technology is an unexplored territory. This type of technology could help …

Implementing Gameplay Skills To Increase Eye Contact And Communication For Students With Emotional Behavioral Disorder And Comorbid Disabilities, Celestial Wills-Jackson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was conducted to examine the effectiveness of gameplay activities using a structured social skills program to increase both eye contact responses and the number of verbal responses during peer relationships for students with comorbid disabilities in a clinical setting. This SEL intervention was modified for children with comorbid autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and emotional and behavioral disorder (EBD). A single-subject, multiple-baseline, across-participants design was used. Participants included adolescents (n = 6) with comorbid disabilities, predominantly ASD and EBD, their board-certified behavior analysts (BCBA), and six behavior technicians. The researcher established and maintained face-to-face reciprocal peer social engagements (communication) …

An Analysis Of Choice-Making As A Means To Decrease The Frequency Of Self-Injurious Behaviors In Students With Severe Disabilities, Melanie Olson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This single case multiple baseline research study examined choice-making as a means to decrease the frequency of self-injurious behaviors in six students with severe disabilities. Five males and one female between the ages of 14 and 21 participated in the five-week intervention. The following research questions were addressed: 1) Does the choice-making intervention reduce hitting, biting, and self-injurious behaviors? 2) How much time does the choice-making intervention add to the classroom teacher's preparation? 3) What costs are associated with the choice-making intervention during an average lesson? The choice-making intervention was associated with positive behavioral outcomes for all of the students. …

Assessing Reading And Mathematics Achievement Of Students With Disabilities In A Suburban Middle School, Terri Melissa Toomer

Theses and Dissertations

Co-teaching classrooms consist of general and special education teachers working together to benefit students with disabilities (SWDs). Many parents and teachers believe the content knowledge provided by general educators in the regular education setting, combined with the instructional service delivery model (SDM) expertise of special educators, will result in the greatest academic growth for SWDs. However, it is not known if SWDs served in one SDM progress at a faster rate than SWDs served in another SWD. Therefore, the focus of this study was to compare the reading and mathematics achievement of male and female middle school SDWs in two …