Education Commons^™

A Framework For All: Building Capacity For Service Delivery In Catholic Schools, Michael Faggella-Luby, Christie Bonfiglio

Journal of Catholic Education

The challenge to include students with disabilities in Catholic schools requires a comprehensive system of service delivery to meet student need and avoid pathologizing individuals as problems. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), a framework for organizing resources, delivering services, and measuring success that directly addresses the mission of Catholic Schools to truly serve all students. MTSS is a research-based and systematic service delivery model that provides tiered supports based on individual learner need. MTSS is defined and contextualized to address both academic and behavioral supports for all students. A …

Inclusion In Catholic Schools: From Inception To Implementation, Christine Bonfiglio, Karen Kroh

Journal of Catholic Education

Inclusion of students with diverse learning needs, including those with disabilities, in Catholic schools is becoming more prevalent. Despite a long history of the call to serve all learners, Catholic schools have been slow to welcome students who are academically and behaviorally diverse. Meeting the needs of all learners requires understanding the concept of inclusion, removing barriers, and implementing inclusive educational practices. This article defines inclusion and its prevalence in Catholic schools in comparison to national trends in the public domain. Identified barriers to successful inclusive education are identified and described. Additionally, effective practices are outlined and illustrated using a …

Success In Transition Preparation For Post-Secondary Students With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Sophie Scrimgeour

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Students with disabilities face a wide range of barriers in their transition from school-to-work that their family and community can help them to overcome. The transition from school-to-work has become a heightened topic of interest, especially when it comes to the transition of a student with a disability.

Through The Funnel: A Critical Policy Analysis Of Educational Policy Relating To The School-To-Prison Pipeline., Jesse V. Hall

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of the present study involved analyzing the policies of the Trump administration to determine the ways it impacted the school-to-prison pipeline. The focus of the study included the Departments of Education and Justice. The findings revealed educational policies and deregulatory practices that maintained and intensified the school-to-prison pipeline.

The Effect Of High School Disability-Based Peer Mentoring On Perspectives Toward People With Disabilities, Caroline Jacobs

Honors Theses

Negative perspectives towards people with disabilities have been shown to lead to discrimination, prejudice, and an overall decreased quality of life. One way to possibly improve attitudes and interactions with students with disabilities could be implementing peer mentoring programs for special education students in high school. Research presented in this thesis examines the difference in perspectives toward people with disabilities between people who have or have not participated as a mentor in a disability-based peer mentoring program in high school. Data were collected through an online survey that assessed peer mentoring experiences as well as a scale to measure comfort …

Project-Based Learning Instruction For A Student With Disabilities: Experiences Of A Student And Teachers, Robert C. Shauger

Special Education ETDs

Students with disabilities have been underrepresented in research examining the implementation of project-based learning (PBL) instruction. This qualitative case study described the experiences of a student with a disability in an inclusive classroom where teachers used PBL instruction. I used interviews, observations, audio recorded conversations in class, and analyzed teacher-created curriculum documents and student artifacts. Thematic analysis generated four primary themes including: Supporting students, student buy-in, teacher and student interactions in PBL are complex, and student demonstration of learning. Recommendations for classroom practice to support students with disabilities in PBL instruction included extensive teacher collaboration, individualized instruction, and teaching students …

The Culture Of Learning Disabilities, Race And Athletics: An Examination Of Student-Athlete Experiences In Predominantly White Institutions Of Higher Education’S Division One College Football Programs, Ashley L. White

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Students’ educational experiences vary. The differences in these experiences can be attributed to a variety of factors, including but not limited to geographic location, socio-economic status, age, gender, race, ability, and individual experiences before and during schooling. In this study, the researcher examined the intersectionality of race and disability in the context of postsecondary education and student-athletes through the experiences of participants who identified themselves within select categories, namely as Black/African American and student-athlete. Of equal importance, participants struggled to meet normalized standards of learning during their P-12 educational experiences and/or were identified with a categorical learning disability. As will …

Students’ Perspectives On Their Learning Experiences Within An Inclusive Secondary Mathematics Setting, Cleopatra Sorina Iliescu

Doctor of Education in Special Education Dissertations

Students’ perspectives in learning mathematics are important considerations in education yet few studies document their insights. The current investigation used a case-study design and interviews, drawings, clarifying discussions, and focus group interview data collection methods to capture detailed perspectives of high school students with disabilities while learning mathematics. Document data was used to substantiate students’ achievement information and the impact of their disability, if any, on their experiences in learning mathematics. The sample of participants consisted of four self-selected high school students, from two inclusive Advanced Algebra classrooms. Three major tenets of Vygotsky’s (1978) framework were used to analyze the …

Disability And Belonging In One Intentionally Inclusive Christian Faith Community, Deborah Winn Huggins

Special Education ETDs

The voices of people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) are underrepresented in research examining their participation in faith communities. This qualitative case study examined the participation of people with IDD in one intentionally inclusive Christian faith community with a primary focus on the perceptions of faith community members with IDD. This community was unique in its theological stance toward inclusion, and in the steps the community had already taken to be inclusive. I conducted two types of interviews (in-depth individual and Photo-Voice) with people with disabilities who were active in the community and their family members to explore their …

Rockets: Reaching Our Community Through Kindness, Education, Togetherness And Stem – A Sustainable Communities Project In Sumter County, Georgia, Crystal Perry

National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference

This poster session highlights the ROCKETS program implemented in Sumter County Schools through UGA Extension. Through the ROCKETS Project in-school sessions, youth with disabilities are provided additional opportunities to belong to a larger group of youth through the Georgia 4-H Program. The ROCKETS Project focuses on Agricultural literacy and STEM education as content areas to cultivate, recruit and graduate the next generation of a highly-skilled diverse workforce.

Barriers To Accepting Special Education By Slavic Parents Of Children With Special Needs In The Sacramento County, Tatyana Kisel

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to investigate the experiences of Slavic parents of children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and their perceptions of special education. The researcher’s goal was to determine whether parents’ cultural beliefs and customs affected their willingness to participate in the IEP and testing process and what supports and barriers they had along the way.

Methodology: This is a qualitative phenomenological study. In-depth, face-to-face interviews with 15 participants allowed collecting the rich data, which was analyzed using coding and thematic analysis. In particular, the study explored the lived experience of parents with special …

Racism In A Broken Special Education System, Andrew P. Johnson

Elementary and Literacy Education Department Publications

This is an excerpt from my book, ‘Essential Learning Theories: The Human Dimension’ published by Rowman and Littlefield in 2021.

Disclaimer: The special education teachers I have had the privilege to work with over the years are making a difference lives of their students. However, they are often trapped in a system that is broken. This system puts limitations on what they are able to accomplish. In this chapter (article), I am referencing this larger system. I am not referencing any particular school, school district, university, or teacher preparation program.

A disability is not disorder or deficit; rather, it is …

Inclusive Schools For Students Served By Special Education: How Central Office Supports Principals, Lynn Reynolds Saltzgaver

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies: Doctoral Research Projects

Principals shape school culture and the teaching practices that students experience and engage with every day. Today’s leaders need regular access to learning and support that will influence their ability to lead schools for social justice for students identified with disabilities.

District leaders have a responsibility to develop and support principals to provide equitable and high-quality learning experiences for students who have been identified with disabilities. The purpose of this study was to analyze the Mountain Meadow School District’s role in supporting the development of leaders for social justice for students identified with a disability. This qualitative case study examined …

The Lived Experiences Of People With Disabilities And Their Families: Transitioning To Adulthood And The Role Of Independent Facilitation, Emily Christine Tang

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

ABSTRACT

Objective

Emerging adulthood can be a stressful life stage due to the many life choices available and is especially challenging for emerging adults with disabilities (EADs) who face additional barriers in accessing supports and information regarding adult opportunities. This qualitative study investigated the experiences of transitioning to adulthood, and the role of a person-directed facilitation service, for EADs and their families.

Methods

Fourteen participants were recruited through purposeful and convenience sampling. Data collection procedures consisted of background questionnaires and one-on-one semi-structured interviews which were then thematically analyzed. Field notes, member checks and triangulation were used throughout the analysis process …