Education Commons^™

Implementing Graphic Organizers In A General Education Earth Systems Classroom, Jennifer P. Slade

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Previous research has shown that implementing graphic organizers and giving the needed instruction to use and study content information increases academic gain of students with learning disabilities. In the present study students actively engaged in using graphic organizers, which helped them demonstrate their learning on multiple choice questions. On the multiple choice test, the overall mean gain for the experimental group was 45%. The control group's overall mean gain on the multiple choice test was 30%. While the posttest scores for students in the graphic organizer group were significantly higher than posttest scores of students in the control group, few …

Mathematics Achievement Of Regular Education Students By Placement In Inclusion And Non-Inclusion Classrooms And Their Principals' Perceptions Of Inclusion, Loretta Rodgers Hartfield

Dissertations

This study examined mathematics achievement of fourth and fifth grade students in Mississippi and principals' perceptions of inclusion.

A sample of 462 students from eight separate elementary schools was selected for this study. Fifteen principals completed the Principal and Inclusion Survey regarding inclusion education. Eight of the 15 principals were interviewed with 10 open-ended questions regarding their perceptions of inclusion.

Data were analyzed using an independent two-tailed t test and Pearson product moment correlation. The independent two-tailed / test was used to determine differences in mathematics achievement for fourth and fifth grade students in inclusion classrooms compared to non-inclusion classrooms …

Preservice Teacher Attitudes And Intentions Toward An Inclusive Educational Environment: An Application Of The Theory Of Planned Behavior, Julie Jones

All Dissertations

The purpose of this research project was to identify preservice teacher beliefs, attitudes, and intentions toward the inclusion of students with disabilities in a predominately general education environment. A survey instrument was created based on Ajzen and Fishbein's theory of planned behavior and disseminated to three universities in South Carolina. This study improves upon existing studies of preservice teacher attitudes because it takes place at more than one institution and is grounded in a theory that explores the many- layered aspects of attitude.
Preservice teacher attitudes were moderately positive on all measures: behavioral beliefs, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. …

Race, Power, And (In)Equity Within Two-Way Immersion Settings, Martin Scanlan, Deborah Palmer

College of Education Faculty Research and Publications

Two-way immersion schools provide a promising model for service delivery to students who are English language learners. With the goals of bilingualism, academic excellence, and cross cultural appreciation, these schools are designed to build bridges across linguistically heterogeneous student bodies. Yet while empirical evidence demonstrates that the two-way immersion model can be effective in these regards, we know little about how such schools address other dimensions of diversity, including race, ethnicity, class, and disability. This study contributes to filling this gap by critically analyzing these dimensions in the areas of recruitment and retention in two two-way immersion schools.

An Analysis Of Reading Instruction For Fifth Grade Students With Disabilities Served In Inclusive Elementary Classrooms, Elizabeth Dragone

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative case study was designed to identify and analyze instructional strategies used by fifth grade teachers to meet the needs of students with disabilities receiving reading instruction in inclusive settings. Seven participants in a large suburban school system were chosen through purposeful, criterion-based sampling. Semi-structured interviews were used to gain information about how teachers use data related to student readiness, interests, and learning profiles to design differentiated instruction. Observations were used to gain information about how the teachers implemented differentiated content, process, and products in the classroom. As more students with disabilities are served in inclusive settings, teachers are …

Are Today's General Education Teachers Prepared To Meet The Needs Of Their Inclusive Students?, Kate Rosenzweig

NERA Conference Proceedings 2009

As a result of a push towards inclusion in recent years, Brownell et al. (2006) shows how general education teachers "play a primary role in the education of students with disabilities...[but] often they report feeling unprepared to undertake this role," (p. 171). This is true for not only current general education teachers who are experiencing first-hand the changes that are occurring throughout the national education system, but even pre-service teachers who are in the process of completing their masters program still believe that they are not learning the skills needed to successfully teach in today's classroom environment. This paper researches …

Perceptions Of Agriculture Teachers Toward Including Students With Disabilities, Monica D. Giffing

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The inclusion of students with special needs in regular education classrooms has been required by federal law for more than three decades. However, much of the responsibility for successful accommodation of students with disabilities rests upon the shoulders of teachers. Previous research has indicated that successful inclusion of students with special needs is strongly influenced by the attitude of teachers involved. In this study, all secondary agriculture teachers in Utah were surveyed to determine their attitudes and perceptions related to their willingness and ability to include students with special needs in their classrooms and laboratories. Selected personal and professional characteristics …

The Perceptions Of Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints Full-Time Seminary Teachers Regarding The Inclusion Of Students With Disabilities, Reginald S. Slocombe

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Efforts to formally educate students with special needs have been ongoing for over 50 years in the United States. Teachers are on the front line of the work to include students with disabilities. Previous research indicates a correlation between the attitudes of teachers and successful inclusion of students with disabilities. Two-hundred and fifty-one full-time released-time seminary teachers for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Seminaries and Institutes of Religion (S&I, formerly the Church Education System or CES) in Utah responded to a questionnaire regarding their attitudes toward including students with disabilities in their classrooms. Selected personal and professional …

The Impact Of Initial Field Experience On Preservice Teachers’ Attitude Toward Inclusion., Peggy Gill, Ross Sherman, Cynthia Sherman

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

In the United States, up to 50% of new teachers leave the profession within 5 years (Smith & Ingersoll, 2004). This unacceptable level of sustainability of the profession is of concern to both teacher preparation institutions and the local education agencies. This paper looks at one factor that may impact the sustainability of current teacher preparation models: attitudes toward inclusion of students with disabilities in the mainstream classroom. Participants in the study were currently enrolled in 3 different phases of a teacher preparation programmes at a regional university in the United States. A survey was administered at the beginning and …

Scholarship In Action: Transforming Community And Higher Education, Nancy Cantor

Chancellor's Collection

Now is the time, as the Kellogg Commission has observed, for colleges and universities "to reshape our historic agreement with the American people so that it fits the times that are emerging instead of the times that have passed.” In the new world being forged by shared knowledge, universities are superbly positioned to transform themselves and their communities.We find ourselves on new ground, inspired by the possibilities for change, thinking about roles we can and should play in a new America. In this, we're invited by the social-legal theorist, Susan Sturm at Columbia to consider the “architecture of inclusion,” to …

Inclusive Learning Environments: An Analysis Of Early Intervention Service Options For Preschoolers With Special Needs, Mimi L. Heath

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In the quest to restructure educational programming toward higher student outcomes for preschoolers with special needs, professional educators are continuously challenged to provide with integrity a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restricted environment (LRE) as mandated by law. This study analyzed the effectiveness of an inclusive programming model for preschoolers with special needs by examining achievement gains in the developmental domains of adaptive, motor, and cognitive skills as assessed by the Battelle Developmental Inventory, Second Edition. Analysis of an inclusive learning environment for six preschoolers with special needs as guided by IEP committee recommendations occurred. In order …

Guiding Principles For Educational Programming, Randy L. Seevers Ph.D.

Electronic Journal for Inclusive Education

This article presents the outcome of a reflective study where pre-service teachers created visual representations of principles that guide their teaching in the inclusive classroom. Based on evaluations and reflections of the activity, results suggest that creating the visual representations served as an effective tool in helping pre-service teachers recognize and support children with disabilities in the inclusive classroom. Examples of the completed projects are included.

The Commitment Of Elementary School Teachers To Inclusive Education For Children With Disabilities, Margaret Cox

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the commitment of elementary school teachers to inclusive education for students with disabilities (SWD), and whether the commitment to inclusive education between general and special education teachers was equal. Measurements were based on Richard Clarke's Commitmemt and Necessary Effort (CANE) theory, severity of disability, and demographic factors including teaching assignment, number of students in class, number of years teaching and number of years working in an inclusive setting. A four-point Likert-type survey(Appendix A) adapted from a combination of Spencer Salend's (2008) "Teacher's Inclusion Survey and Interview Question to examine the Experience of …