Accessibility Commons^™

Becoming A "Still Point Of Grace": Identifying Obstacles Faced By Catholic Elementary School Teachers In Meeting The Needs Of Students With Generalized Anxiety In The Classroom, Kerry Smigielski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the midst of a mental health crisis in the United States, teachers in the Diocese of Cityville need to be equipped to serve elementary students who experience anxiety within an authentic Catholic context. The purpose of this study is to begin improvement research on classroom supports for students with generalized anxiety in the Diocese of Cityville elementary schools. Journey lines and a focus group discussion were conducted within a causal systems analysis to respond to the central research question: “What obstacles do Catholic elementary school teachers in the Diocese of Cityville face in meeting the needs of students with …

From Classroom To Community: Why Age-Friendly Initiatives Matter For The Next Generation, Sarah Cole

D.U.Quark

No abstract provided.

Perceptions Of Communication And Collaboration Between Special Education And Career And Technical Education Teachers, Alexander Novickoff

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the communication and collaboration between Local Education Agency’s (LEA) special education staff and Career and Technical Center (CTC) staff in supporting students with disabilities (SWD). Given the critical role of effective interagency communication in providing comprehensive support to SWD, this study seeks to identify the perceptions, methods, and frequencies of communication between these entities. The research is set within the context of non-comprehensive CTCs in Pennsylvania, where students split their time between their home schools and regional CTCs. Through a quantitative approach, consisting of a detailed survey distributed to both LEA and CTC staff, this study examines …

The Educational Experiences Of Children And Adolescents With An Ryr1-Related Disease, Jeremy Armann

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This paper investigates the educational experiences of children and adolescents diagnosed with RYR1-related diseases, a spectrum of congenital myopathies affecting muscle function. Despite these conditions typically sparing cognitive abilities, they profoundly impact physical capabilities, presenting challenges in school environments such as participation in physical activities and social interactions. The study utilizes data collected through the RYR1-Related Disease Educational Impact and Satisfaction Survey (RDEISS) and the Behavioral and Emotional Screening System (BESS) from 49 parents of 51 children aged 3-18 years. Findings reveal prevalent classroom difficulties including handwriting issues and written expression difficulties, with 78% of children receiving special education services, …

Changing The Face Of Reading Instruction: Do Culturally Relevant Passages Increase The Effects Of The Repeated Reading Intervention For Middle School Black Girls With Reading Difficulties (Bgrds)?, Olajumoke Edith Oshokoya

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research has shown that fewer studies have focused on improving the reading abilities of middle school Black girls (Morris, 2007). As BGRDs progress through K – 12 grades, they increasingly rely on basic and advanced reading skills (i.e., oral reading fluency [ORF] and comprehension) to learn. Providing BGRDs with engaging reading passages that are relevant to their prior knowledge, background, interests, and experiences, is more likely to motivate them to read, and eventually improve their reading skills (Cartledge et al., 2015). While there is a growing body of literature focused on Black students’ experiences, currently no study has explored the …

Teaching Problem-Solving Skills As A Soft Skill For Employment To Individuals With Autism And Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities Using Video Modelling In A Virtual Learning Environment, Cliff Oliech

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Individuals with Autism (ASD) and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) exhibit poor post-secondary education employment outcomes compared to their disabled and non-disabled peers (Shattuck et al., 2012; Taylor et al., 2015). In addition, due to the COVID-19 pandemic school closures, students with ASD and/or IDD in post-secondary transition programs may have lost crucial instruction time, possibly putting them at risk for unemployment and underemployment. Consequently, this research study sought to establish through multiple-baselines across participants design how effective VM can be in teaching problem-solving skills as a soft skill for employment to post-secondary transition education students with ASD and/or IDD …

Does Speech-To-Text Assistive Technology Paired With Graphic Organizers Improve The Written Expression Of Students With Traumatic Brain Injuries?, Kayla Cuifolo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) can range from mild to severe and can cause debilitating outcomes that require children to need specialized medical or educational services post-injury. Outcomes vary and are dependent on the location of injury, age, severity, and environmental factors. Some common deficits that happen as a result of a brain injury are fine motor and executive functioning skill difficulties. Fine motor and executive functioning skills are an important component of written expression. Therefore, this current study utilized a brief experimental analysis in order to determine the effects that speech-to-text assistive technology along with a graphic organizer has …

Use Of Video Technology To Support Soft Skills Acquisition For Enhancing Employment Opportunities For Individuals With Autism, Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Cliff Guya Oliech M.S.Ed., Edith Olajumoke Oshokoya Ma.Ed.

Graduate Student Research Symposium

Preparing individuals with Autism and Intellectual Disabilities for work is an accountability issue established through Indicators 13 and 14 of the State's Performance Plan in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (2004) (IDEA, 2004). Unfortunately, transitioning into jobs for individuals with Autism (ASD) or intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) has not been very successful to date because of the need for growth in their soft skills acquisition and use. The purpose of this systematic literature review was to establish the types of video technology (VT) used in teaching soft skills that may enhance employment opportunities for individuals with ASD and …

An Investigation Of Postsecondary Centers For Teaching Excellence Support For Universal Design For Learning, David Mcgeehan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The research examined factors related to support for Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in faculty professional development training programs offered by Centers for Teaching Excellence (CTE) in postsecondary institutions. The factors examined were: administrative support, staffing for CTEs, CTE staff characteristics, CTE level of use of technology, CTE directors’ educational backgrounds, and the espoused support for students with disabilities in university mission statements.

Universal Design for Learning is a pedagogical framework that can be used to design and retrofit curricula to reduce access barriers to course content and activities for all students, particularly students with disabilities. Students with disabilities is …

Supporting Biracial Students Through An Equity Lens: Multicultural Literature And Advocacy In School Libraries, Jacqueline Ahlborn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Biracial students make up a substantial allocation of the school population, and their demographics are only expected to increase within the coming years. With this emergence of a larger Biracial community, schools need to consider how they will implement equitable resources and practices to meet the needs for this unique population. School librarians, serving as instructional leaders, can provide the necessary materials and strategies to support their students who are Biracial in order to foster positive racial identity. The purpose of this study is to explore school librarians’ perspectives on the influence of multicultural literature on students’ acceptance and understanding …

Identity And Advocacy: The Missing Components In Promoting Social-Emotional Health And Self-Regulation For Multiply Marginalized Girls, Jovonne Tabb, Temple S. Lovelace, Mary Comis, Olajumoke Oshokoya

Graduate Student Research Symposium

Girlhood has been a topic of great interest in the last decade. As individuals have examined the lack of girls in STEM or the increase of bullying in girls, there has been a push to understanding the differential experiences along gender-based lines. In this study, the researchers highlight the results of the successful implementation of a group-based curriculum that utilized identity and advocacy as critical components in a treatment package focused on self-regulation. Using a pretest-posttest design, the researchers found a statistically significant difference in several key areas that are of key importance when supporting the needs of adolescent girls. …

The Impact Of Retention Efforts On The Collegiate Experience Of Students Of Color At A Predominantly White Institution (Pwi), Jeffrie Mallory

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explored perceptions of thirteen stakeholders who participated in the Minority Orientation Program, a pre-entry initiative focused on retaining students of color at a private, four-year university located in the northeast region of the United States. Situated in Vincent Tinto’s Theory of Student Integration and Critical Race Theory, the author qualitatively assessed the Minority Orientation Program’s impact on participating students of color and the program’s influence on their enrollment through the completion of their Freshman year. The study’s findings confirmed that the Minority Orientation Program affects the collegiate experience for students of color in several ways. Positive influences in …

The Inclusive Orchestra: Adapting String Instruments And Instruction For Musicians With Special Needs, Eric Baker

Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium

In recent years, there has been progress in strategies for teaching students to play string instruments in orchestra. However, special education in correlation with the string classroom is still lacking with useful information that can be used to aid our students and teachers. Due to this lack of information, it is difficult for teachers to have all their students feel involved in their class. After a thorough review of string special education literature, I compiled a list of resources that can be used to move this profession forward. These findings range from different teaching strategies to manipulating the instrument to …