Disability and Equity in Education Commons^™

Swimming For Inclusion, Alexa Draman

The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research

This paper attempts to demonstrate how disabilities are portrayed to children through Walt Disney's popular film Finding Nemo. Through this film, children are exposed to inclusiveness which can then transfer to their overall impressions of disability in society. This film ultimately spins the negative connotation associated with disability and portrays it positively as an exceptionality.

Movin' On In Montana: Year Two: Summer 2016 Replication Guide, Kaitlyn Page Ahlers, Bronwyn Troutman, Martin E. Blair, University Of Montana Rural Institute

Education

Movin’ On in Montana was a four-day, three-night on-campus experience for high school students with disabilities sponsored by the University of Montana, specifically the Rural Institute for Inclusive Communities, Disability Services for Students, and Vocational Rehabilitation. The purpose of Movin’ On in Montana was to introduce high school students with disabilities to the college experience with the intent of helping students recognize that college (e.g., university or technical college) is a possibility if they choose to pursue postsecondary education. Further, Movin’ On in Montana provided students with disabilities with critical information regarding resources and supports to increase their likelihood of …

Ilhan, Nura, Radwa, Ziagull And Children, Ilhan, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Ilhan, his wife Nura, and their children resided near Kabul, in a region where both the Taliban and ISIS were active. As Shias, Ilhan’s family faced numerous menaces, including threats from ISIS that they would be beheaded if they did not display ISIS flags. Ilhan’s sister Radwa, who is deaf and mute, was forced to marry a regional leader. In addition to being threatened on religious grounds, Ilhan’s family was also threatened by an elder of their town. Out of desperation, Ilhan’s family sold their house appliances, escaped Afghanistan, and arrived at the …

Impression Management Strategies Of College Professors With Disabilities, Chelsie Gaspar

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This qualitative study examined how college instructors with disabilities utilize impression management strategies in order to enhance their ability to teach more effectively in the classroom. Eight instructors from mid-size universities and community colleges across the United States were interviewed. A thematic analysis approach was used to identify emergent themes pertaining to the ways in which college instructors with disabilities use impression management in the classroom. Results showed that instructors in this study use a wide variety of impression management strategies in order to influence how they are perceived in the classroom and to improve their teaching effectiveness. These strategies …

Focus On The Journey, Not The Destination: Digital Games And Students With Disability, Susan Main, John O'Rourke, Julia Morris, Helen Dunjey

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

The way in which technologies support students with disability has been widely explored in recent times. Much of this research has focused on computer programs specifically designed to teach social and academic skills to students with disability. In the research reported in this paper we examined how students with disability could use technology designed for the general market. The impetus for the study was the principle of normalisation, which espouses that people with disability should have the opportunity to share in experiences of their same-aged peers. In previous research we demonstrated the benefits of using the commercially available hand-held games …

A Design Thinking Approach To Professional Development In Reasonable Adjustment: A New Methodology For Trainers In The Vocational Education And Training Sector Of Western Australia, Russell Thom

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research has demonstrated that design thinking (DT) could be used as a professional development (PD) methodology for Vocational Education and Training (VET) trainers in understanding and applying reasonable adjustment (RA). The use of design thinking has the further benefit of raising the trainer’s empathy and understanding of the impact of injury and disability upon a person’s life and the significance of RA outside of the training context.

A workshop (PD session) was designed and conducted to explorer the relevance and success of the PD framework and the use of design thinking in developing an understanding and applying RA. The …

The Bridges And Barriers Model Of Support For High-Functioning Students With Asd In Mainstream Schools, Wendy Holcombe, Margaret Plunkett

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

National statistics indicate the ongoing challenge of catering for the unique needs of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) within the context of inclusive education. Higher rates of difficulty and poorer outcomes are experienced by this cohort when compared to both the general population and others within the disability sector. The perspectives of educators from a variety of roles were examined to identify factors impacting upon the educational experience of high-functioning students with ASD to determine how they could be supported more effectively. Findings indicate despite extensive educational experience and considerable knowledge of ASD, many educators lack an understanding of …

Student Service Members/Veterans Programs In Erie County Colleges And Universities: Analyzing Programs For Removing Barriers And Facilitating Identity Transitioning, William E. Langer

Public Administration Master’s Projects

Student Service Members/Veterans (SSM/Vs) served their nation in times of peace and in war and in doing so, are eligible for various educational benefits. To assist the SSM/V in adapting to their new role as a student and civilian, most postsecondary educational institutions offer services specifically tailored to the SSM/V population in order to support and assist them in completing their academic program. These services could include navigating benefit programs, financial aid, orientation programs and disability services as needed. In this transformative mixed methods study, a content analysis of the public websites of the schools was first conducted to determine …

Autism In Rural Areas: Lessons In Montana, Martin E. Blair, Ann N. Garfinkle, University Of Montana Rural Institute

Education

The poster highlights Montana's approach to planning for and providing autism-focused services in rural/frontier areas. We describe issues related to cultural diversity, geographic separation and challenges related to insufficient workforce.

School Climate Transformation: Using A Pbis Model In Indian Country, Martin E. Blair, University Of Montana Rural Institute

Education

In 2015, the Montana Office of Public Instruction received federal funding to implement a School Climate Transformation grant in schools on or near tribal lands. We describe the process of and highlight issues related to developing and implementing a PBIS model in a culturally sensitive manner.

Toward A Deeper Understanding Of Disability: Physical Therapy Educators’ Reflections, Clarence Chan, Debra Engel, Jacqueline Ross

Publications and Research

This article describes the unique journey both of a blind student in our Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) Program and of the faculty who taught him as they all navigated through uncharted territories. Despite the fact that the physical therapy profession trains practitioners to help clients with disabilities to maximize their physical function and teaches them how to adapt to the challenges of daily activity, we initially assumed that a blind student would not be able to complete the program or be able to become a self-sufficient practitioner. We were very wrong. This article describes our learning process over the course …

Overcoming The Loss Of Nonverbal Cues Encountered By The Adventitiously Blind: Reconstructing Relationships And Identity, Vernon Floyd Humphrey

Dissertations

In this study, couples shared their experiences adjusting to one of the members loss of sight. Through interviews, their narratives expressed their values, actions, inactions, successes, failures, needs, obstacles, and feelings. Participants explained their standpoint/perspective about vision loss, when it happened, how it affected them, how they reacted and responded, through hindsight how they thought they should have responded, and how they reconstructed a shared interpersonal relationship. Narratives about situations and events after the loss of sight revealed descriptions of their relationships and interactions with each other and other people in their circle. Through constant comparative analysis the individual narratives …

A Deeper Look, Jessica Spicer

Honors Projects

Individuals with developmental disabilities are not often given the chance to express themselves or tell the story of the lives they have lived. For this research I chose to interview numerous individuals with developmental disabilities. I was able to get their story out and tell the world how these individuals have lived and what they want the world to know about them.

The Disabled Teacher: A Memoir Of An Interrupted Pedagogical Career, A Life With A Chronic Illness, And An Encounter With Real Barriers To Inclusive Education, Dorothy M. Bossman

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

This dissertation is a narrative exploration of multiple themes relevant to education research: the relationship between the university and school, epistemology, teacher identity, disability studies, researcher subjectivity, and the retention of quality educators. This work of “autoethnography” (Ellis, Bochner, & Adams, 2011) approaches these topics through the tellings of a teaching career, the awakening of an education scholar, and the development of a chronic illness. While the focus of this inquiry often returns to the researcher’s pedagogical identity, the three storylines interact in myriad ways that relate to the larger field. Removal of one of these narrative threads would, metaphorically, …

Underlying Dimensions Of The "Physical Educators' Judgments About Inclusion" Instrument: Brazilian-Version, Samuel R. Hodge, Paulo José Barbosa Gutierres Filho, Justin A. Haegele, Francis M. Kozub

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

Background/Objective: The available information pertaining to the attitudes of Brazilian physical education teachers about teaching students with disabilities is limited in the extant literature base. Rationally, however, scholars argue that determining, analyzing, and theorizing about the attitudes of physical education teachers is important in the preparation and professional development of these teachers. It is therefore important to extend the research base using valid and reliable measures regarding teachers’ attitudes about inclusion and teaching students with various disabilities. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the underlying dimensions of the Physical Educators’ Judgments about Inclusion (PEJI) scale following translation …

Finding Childcare For The Disabled Child: The Process And Decisions Through The Primary Caregiver’S Lens, Misty Dawn Torres

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

In this qualitative, Grounded Theory study, the researcher examined the process that primary caregivers go through when selecting a childcare placement for children who have special needs. Data were collected through participant interviews with primary caregivers (n=10) who responded to recruitment notices posted on (1) listservs by organizations directly affiliated with early intervention and child care services; (2) local Internet classified sites; and (3) through word of mouth. The research demonstrated that caregivers who learned of their child’s disability in a prenatal diagnosis or prior to an adoption identified with having a greater sense of choice and control over their …

Teacher's Attitudes Towards Instruction Of Students With Disabilities In An Inclusive Setting, Beverly Nunes

Master's Theses

According to some studies, there is a trend in inclusion of students with disabilities in general classroom. And the key element to deal with this special education issue is the general education teacher. The present research surveyed the variables that would predict teachers' attitudes towards inclusion of students with disabilities in inclusive settings. The variables include years of service, teachers' attendance to special education courses in their program preparation, differentiated instruction, and previous experience with inclusion. Eighty general education teachers from public schools in a very diverse area of Southwest Michigan, answered a survey with 31 questions involving the Scale …

Special Needs In The Community, William Lightle

Senior Theses

Currently, there are very few summer camps for children with special needs. I co-founded a special needs camp called Camp Chip and Love for children who have mild physical and mental disabilities. The camp was created to help give special needs children the opportunity to become involved in a summer camp and introduce them to golf, tennis, and arts and crafts. Starting a camp is very challenging. I was responsible for ordering supplies, t-shirts, trophies, obtaining medical releases for the participants, and registration of campers. I made this camp free of charge by going to different corporations and asking for …

In Defense Of Idea Due Process, Mark Weber

College of Law Faculty

Due Process hearing rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act are under attack. A major professional group and several academic commentators charge that the hearings system advantages middle class parents, that it is expensive, that it is futile, and that it is unmanageable. Some critics would abandon individual rights to a hearing and review in favor of bureaucratic enforcement or administrative mechanisms that do not include the right to an individual hearing before a neutral decision maker. This Article defends the right to a due process hearing. It contends that some criticisms of hearing rights are simply erroneous, and …

The Screen Speaks: Disability, Media & Schooling, Alicia S. Campbell

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

As society becomes more technological on a daily basis, we are heavily influenced by the steady influx of information we receive from various types of media. This dissertation will investigate the relationship between our investments with popular media, particularly film, and with teachers’ perceptions of students with disabilities in secondary schools. I will first look at how disability is viewed in society, discussing both the more traditional models that are moral, medical and rehabilitative in nature and the more contemporary social model. I will explore the history of disability in society, schooling, and film and uncover patterns that illustrate the …

Are Australian Pre-Service Physical Education Teachers Prepared To Teach Inclusive Physical Education?, Scott J. Pedersen, Paul D. Cooley, Keira Hernandez

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Abstract: Australian pre-service physical education (PE) teachers must be prepared for the reality of teaching in inclusive classrooms. Past studies have indicated that the amount of academic preparedness can affect pre-service PE teachers’ intentions to successfully teach in inclusive settings. The current study measured these intentions in a sample of pre-service PE teachers from two different universities. This modified survey required participants to respond to two separate scenarios: one teaching inclusive PE to a student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and one to a student with autism. All participants completed an adapted PE unit with an embedded practicum of different …

Not A Hearing Loss, A Deaf Gain: Power, Self-Naming, And The Deaf Community, David J. Thomas

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Self-naming has long stood as the primary assertion of power for disenfranchised communities in the western world. While person first language (e.g. person who is deaf) has been the preferred language of disability and disability services for the last 20 years, members of the Deaf community have asserted their cultural capital, and indeed, their Deafhood, or defining the experience of being ‘deaf in the world’, through the power of self-naming. This research examines attitudes toward language, self-naming, and disability in the Deaf community and seeks to move toward a more attentive, sensitive, and responsive language policy in the academy.

Historically, …

School For Global Inclusion And Social Development: Expanding The Umass Boston Community On A Regional, National, And International Level, David Temelini, Institute For Community Inclusion, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The School for Global Inclusion and Social Development (SGISD) is the newest graduate school at UMass Boston. We are the first graduate program in the world to focus on wellness, disability, and economic development from an international perspective. The first students in our master's program will start classes in January 2014, with our PhD program to launch in September 2014. SGISD's emphasis is on groups of people who are excluded from communities here in the U.S. and abroad, due to disability or other conditions. Instruction will be delivered on campus, online, and through international exchange programs.

"All Areas Of Suspected Disability", Mark Weber

College of Law Faculty

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires school districts to assess children “in all areas of suspected disability.” It further provides that each child’s individualized education program (IEP) must contain measurable annual goals designed to “meet each of the child’s . . . educational needs that result from the child’s disability,” and a statement of special education and related services that will be provided for the child “to advance appropriately toward attaining annual goals.” Courts have strictly enforced these requirements in the last several years, remedying violations of IDEA when school districts fail to assess in all areas of …

"All Areas Of Suspected Disability", Mark Weber

College of Law Faculty

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires school districts to assess children “in all areas of suspected disability.” It further provides that each child’s individualized education program (IEP) must contain measurable annual goals designed to “meet each of the child’s . . . educational needs that result from the child’s disability,” and a statement of special education and related services that will be provided for the child “to advance appropriately toward attaining annual goals.” Courts have strictly enforced these requirements in the last several years, remedying violations of IDEA when school districts fail to assess in all areas of …

President's Message On Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion, Janet M. Riggs

Reports from the President’s Office

Last spring I announced that we would take time this year to focus some of our thinking and conversation on the topic of diversity, equity, and inclusion. There are many reasons for us to direct our efforts to this topic: the changing demographics in our society and the need to provide a welcoming environment to a diverse student body, faculty and staff; our responsibility to prepare students for living in diverse communities and working in diverse workplaces; and our desire to prepare citizens who will be sensitive to social injustices and motivated to right them. In addition, we cannot dismiss …

Is Classroom Management Possible For Disabled Teachers, With Or Without Accommodation?, Martha A. Hazen

Multidisciplinary Studies Theses

The central question of the thesis “Is classroom management possible for disabled teachers with or without accommodation?” is addressed through a review of the literature, a review of the legislation surrounding disabled employees and a discussion of reasonable accommodation, both as it is defined in the ADA and as it is applied in today’s public schools. In addition, general techniques of classroom management, traditional and current disciplinary techniques are discussed as they relate to the thesis’s central question. Finally, the similarity and contrast between classroom management techniques used by disabled and nondisabled music teachers is reviewed.

This thesis consisted of …

Navigation And Accessibility For Persons With Disabilities: An Anthropological Study Using Gis On The University Of Arkansas Campus, Deborah Jean Raiees-Dana

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The University of Arkansas was founded in 1871 on the top of a hill overlooking the Ozark Mountains, resulting in a campus that has steep slopes and numerous historical buildings that were not designed with ADA regulations in mind. This makes getting around campus especially difficult for students with limited mobility, and no campus maps exist that include handicapped accessibility features to help navigate the terrain and limited parking options. This study examines this issue using a holistic approach that explores cultural and technological factors to produce a map of the Historic Core District of campus.

Geographical Information Systems enable …

A Review Of Inclusive Education In New Zealand, Denise Powell Ed.D.

Electronic Journal for Inclusive Education

Inclusive education is a worldwide response to the belief that all children have the right to be educated at their local early childhood centre or school. New Zealand’s education system has undergone a series of transformations over the past 20 years, which has included modifications to how schools and their students are funded and managed, and the responsibilities various government departments have for ensuring all children receive the best possible education in a variety of environments. This article outlines those changes, suggests a way forward that will help ensure inclusive education practices in New Zealand match the current policies and …

The History Of Inequality In Education, Amity L. Noltemeyer, Julie Mujic, Caven S. Mcloughlin

History Faculty Publications

The purpose of this chapter is to consider a sampling of the critical events that demonstrate this history of inequity, with the understanding that they have contributed to the current status of American schools. To this end, we will explore relevant events related to the education of individuals of different racial, gender, language, and disability backgrounds. We do not intend to provide an exhaustive overview of the history of American education, nor will we provide a detailed account of the history of equity in the broader society outside of the educational sector. Rather, we will provide a cursory glimpse at …