Disability and Equity in Education Commons^™

Teacher Expectations Of Bilingual Education Students In Mainstream Classes, Diana C. Rodriguez

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if regular education teachers have lower expectations for bilingual students who have been in bilingual programs than for bilingual students who have not. Also, will the expectations of the teachers change as the teacher becomes more familiar with the student?

The sample consisted of twenty elementary classroom teachers from five different elementary schools. A teacher rating scale was devised to identify student behaviors in the following areas: Educational, Social Skills, Behavior, and Home. During the second week of school, each teacher was asked to complete the rating sheet on two students. One …

A Study In The Effectiveness Of A Developmental Kindergarten In Promoting Academic Achievement In Pupils Identified As Developmentally Not Ready For School, Lynn A. Wildrick

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to determine if participation in a year long developmental kindergarten prior to school entry would prove beneficial in promoting academic achievement. A screening of all kindergarten-age eligible children the spring prior to school entry, utilizing the Childcraft DIAL-R Screening Test, identified students considered to be developmentally young. The subjects in this longitudinal study were comprised of identified students that either participated in the developmental kindergarten prior to school entry or, due to parental objections, chose to go directly into the traditional kindergarten. Outcome measures utilized included teacher assigned report card grades as a functional …

Does Mainstreaming Positively Influence Academic Achievement And Self-Concept At The Elementary Level?, Tracy L. Morse

Theses and Dissertations

Within the past decade and a half, considerable discussion has occurred regarding the most appropriate setting within which to educate students with disabilities.

This study looks at classified students in two different settings. It will compare the academic achievement levels and self-concept of students who are classified P.I. and receive instruction in a regular class with in-class support to those students who are classified P.I. and receive instruction in a self-contained classroom.

There are 12 participants in this study. Seven of the participants are in a self-contained classroom. All are of 3rd or 4th grade level. Two participants are in …

A Longitudinal Assessment Of The Educational Status Of Children Enrolled In A Title I Preschool Program, Mary L. Corriveau

Theses and Dissertations

This study attempts to determine if children who have been through the Title I Preschool program require less special services than the rest of the district in subsequent years. The sample consisted of children who had been through the Title I Preschool program during the 1991-1992 school year through the 1997-1998 school year and are still currently enrolled in the Gloucester Township School District. Computer records were used to check the number of children who had received the benefit of the Title I Preschool program and were receiving services as of Oct. 15, 1998. The percentage of Title I students …

Academic Achievement And Divorce, Christine M. Neilio

Theses and Dissertations

Divorce is a major crisis in the life of a child and can lead to a decline in academic achievement. Numerous studies indicate that children of divorce show lower academic achievement than those from intact families. Studies have shown that children from one parent families score lower on achievement tests but the reasons for the test scores vary based on the individual situation.

Educational systems can play an important role in helping children of divorce deal with their problems. Teachers and counselors are very important to the success or failure of children in coping with problems associated with divorce. Since …

An Investigation Of The Effectiveness Of Behavioral Strategies Applied To Students In Inclusive Education Settings, Theresa Thum Gerber

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to develop strategies for regular education teachers to use in order to control the behavior/attention problems exhibited by some classified students included in their classrooms.

The study consisted of five regular education teachers, grades three through seven, and twelve classified students from Southampton Township Schools, New Jersey. The teachers were obtained through a letter which asked for teachers to volunteer who had classified students exhibiting behavior problems.

Success of the implemented strategies were measured through a pretest, posttest design using the Conners' Teacher Rating Scale-28 (CTRS-28). Analysis of the pretest results and teacher input …

Specific Strategy Instruction To Enhance Revising And Editing Skills For The Learning Disabled, Barbara J. Stubbs

Theses and Dissertations

For years, research and replications of research have supported the findings that grammar taught in isolation is at best ineffective. As a result, some teachers have abandoned grammar instruction altogether. Other teachers are unaware of the findings or simply choose to ignore them. With so many mildly handicapped students being placed in regular education classes, these curricular decisions are having an impact on their success in producing correct written communication.

This study compares eleven learning disabled seventh grade students taught in the mainstream with traditional grammar instruction to nine learning disabled peers taught in a resource center with specific strategy …

The Efficacy Of An Alternative School, Celeste Wilden

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines a self-contained day school for emotionally disturbed adolescents by evaluating whether changes produced by the intervention result in practical personally and socially worthwhile improvements. Such evaluation, often called social validation (Kazden, 1977) involves determining whether the changes have brought the student's performance within acceptable levels. Social validation deals with how closely the student's functioning fits expectations of appropriate performance in society (Haring & McCormick, 1990). This hypothesis was tested by the results of a questionnaire given to graduates from the program since DYFS withdrew its funding in 1983. Success was defined as having the ability to support …

Kindergarten Curriculum, Kelly-Ann Grossman

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to develop a kindergarten curriculum suitable for a rural disadvantaged full-day kindergarten program. This was accomplished by a review of literature including five major theories of curriculum: the enrichment curriculum, the directed teaching curriculum, the cognitive emphasis curriculum, the custodial care curriculum and the combination curriculum. A combination curriculum was decided on and specific curriculums were reviewed for further content and design. Curriculums from nearby schools were reviewed and blended with the textbooks and areas of content felt necessary by the school's kindergarten teachers.

Does Learning Style Instruction Have A Positive Effect On Academic Achievement In The First Grade?, Nancy D. Rosenberg, Pamela M. Hernandez

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of learning style instruction when implemented in a typical first grade classroom setting. The study was designed to determine if the use of several learning style methodologies would produce an increase in academic achievement.

Two regular first grade classes were used as the Study and Control Groups. Each student in the Study Group was surveyed to discover possible learning styles present within the group. For approximately six months, the Study Group received instruction which was modified, wherever possible, to allow for each student's individual needs. During this period, the Control …

The Impact Of An In-Class Support Program On Regular And Special Education Teachers, Cheryl A. Marino

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of an in-class support program on teachers. The subjects of this study were six pairs of teachers consisting of one regular educator and one special educator. To solicit participation, cover letters and a narrative survey instrument were mailed to each of the twelve educators. The responses were analyzed using content analysis. Most responses provided positive feedback on in-class support programs. There are some concerns for future implementation of these programs.

The Effectiveness Of Prereferral Interventions Through Pupil Assistance Committees On Academic And Behavioral Needs Of Students, Barbara G. Fletcher

Theses and Dissertations

The general purpose of the study was to determine if prereferral interventions, through a PAC team, were effective in adding to the ability of a school to respond to a broad range of students' academic and behavioral needs. The population of this study consisted of 31 students. These fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students were referred to their elementary school's PAC team for behavioral and academic needs. PAC records were analyzed for information including the problems and reasons for referral, the goals of the teachers, suggested interventions, the results of each meeting, and the success of the interventions. Both a …

Self-Recording Of Attention And Its Effects On Achievement, Harvey N. Gross

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine if self-recording of attention to task after cueing improves the performance of learning disabled students. Subjects were fifty-two students in two eighth grade American History classes. The experimental group (n=25) of students had within it a subgroup of thirteen students classified perceptually impaired with moderate to severe attention disorder. Another subgroup of twelve non-learning disabled students within the same class received intervention. The control group (n=27) were all regular education students. Both groups were taught the same lessons using similar formats. A serious limitation of this study is that a small convenience …

Effect Of Computer Assisted Instruction On Written Expressive Language Of Mildly Mentally Retarded Students, Vicki R. Newman

Theses and Dissertations

The effects of computer assisted instruction on the written expressive language of mildly mentally retarded students was investigated. The quality of written work samples produced using paper and pencil was determined and compared to the quality of the expressive language samples produced on the computer after computer assisted instruction was implemented. Attitude toward writing with both modes of expression was measured. The results indicated that computer assisted instruction improved the quality of written expressive language in the areas of product length, legibility and mechanical construction. It did not significantly improve the content, complexity or thematic maturity of ideas produced on …

A Study Of Characteristics In Learning Disabled Dropouts Who Have Returned To Adult Education Programs, Deborah A. Ciapanna

Theses and Dissertations

The first purpose of this study is to identify common characteristics in a sample population of learning disabled dropouts who have returned to an adult basic education program. The second purpose is to identify characteristics of this same population which are attributed to their success in an adult education program. If we examine the information as reported by those learning disabled individuals who have been unsuccessful in completing their education, warning signals may be identified for other potential dropouts. Intervention strategies could also be created to encourage learning disabled students to stay in school. In addition, strategies may be developed …

Cognitive Apprenticeship: Authentic Problem-Solving Experiences Challenges Traditional Isolated Learning Outcomes, Nancy R. Peterson

Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to determine if seventh grade basic skills and special education students who experienced different teaching styles would demonstrate an increased ability to solve problems on a criterion-referenced test. Pre and posttesting requiring multiple choice responses were given to a sample of 27 seventh grade students. The Control group consisted of 11 BSI students while the experimental group of sixteen students contained 6 classified, 2 ESL students, and 8 borderline BSI students.

A task performance project, Games-Recycled Math, in which students of the experimental group planned, designed, and constructed a mathematical game, was designed and implemented …

Determining The Educational Quality And Equity Among Students In Order To Set Goals As Part Of The Effective Schooling Process, Annie L. Justice

Theses and Dissertations

Two hundred-forty-seven elementary school students in selected school district in Georgia served as subjects for this study. The population mean scores on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills in Reading, Language Arts, and Math were used in the assessment. A four-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) model was used to determine the educational quality and equity among students in order to set goals as part of the effective schooling process. Significant differences were found at the .05 level as a function of gender and race.

Classroom Modifications For Learning Disabled Adolescents: The Effects Of Inservice And Follow-Up Consultation On Four Regular Classroom Teachers, Lynne Chalmers

Theses and Dissertations

This study asked the question: What are the effects of an inservice on classroom modifications for secondary learning disabled students on the teaching practice of four highly able teachers? A secondary question asked was: To what extent are teachers‘ behavior and attitudes affected by follow-up consultation? The participants were four secondary regular classroom teachers representing four curricula areas (English, social studies, health, and biology). All four had been recognized as having the ability to work well with learning disabled students. The procedure used for the study was a form of naturalistic inquiry, specifically participant observation. All four teachers participated in …

The Development Of Secondary Education For Black Students In Columbus, Georgia 1920-1930, Becky Matthews

Theses and Dissertations

Prior to the opening of William H. Spencer High School in 1930, the highest level of public education that Columbus, Georgia, provided for its black students was nine years of industrial schooling that was designed to prepare them for jobs as manual laborers or domestic workers. The process which led to the development of Spencer High School was complex and protracted and involved a variety of organizations and individuals, but the major impetus for the building of the school came from three sources. These include consistent pressure from black community leaders, the growth of the city's black population, and the …

A Curriculum For The Moderately Mentally Handicapped For Recreational And Leisure Skills, Krista S. Lee

Theses and Dissertations

As a teacher of moderately mentally handicapped. students, I often ask myself, am I doing enough for my students? Am I giving them all I can? My answer at·3:45 p.m., as I walk out of my classroom on tired feet, is an emphatic yes. And I think, even in my rested moment, that I am giving much to my students. We all are. As we look back to where we've come from, we can see the great advances we have made in education for the handicapped. They are being given better education than ever in the ·history of education.

But …

Prevalence Of Articulation Errors In Stuttering School Age Children, Laura M. Sartin

Theses and Dissertations

Sixty speech-1anguage pathologists throughout the State of Georgia' served as respondents for a survey of school age stutterers exhibiting articulation errors. The questionnaire requested that children between the ages of five and 18 be reported, that dialectal and developmental errors should not be reported, and that stutterers should have been enrolled in a speech therapy program for a minimum of six months. Of those stutterers reported, the following variables were requested: race, age in months, severity of dysfluency, severity of articulation disorder, and length of time in treatment.

Results indicated that of 151 stutterers reported, 45 exhibited articulation errors. Twenty-seven …

A Screening Test For Anomia In Children, Danni Odom-Winn

Theses and Dissertations

It is essential for success in American society that people speak, read, and write well. Educators are mandated with the early diagnosis and correct of problems that detract from these essential competencies. Inadequacies in the formative years, if not correct, become virtually irreversible in later years.

It is generally held that object-naming begins between 12-24 months of age (Bloom and Lahey, 1978). This is the corner stone of communication. A deficiency at this stage of development will severely limit a child's communicative skills throughout his or her entire life.