Special Education Administration Commons^™

Investigating The Relationship Between Emotional Intelligence And Burnout Among Special Education Teachers In Iowa, Erica M. Boettcher

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Emotional intelligence (EI) can play a critical role in the well-being of teachers and may significantly impact the risk of burnout. Teachers with higher EI are better equipped to manage stress, regulate their emotions, and navigate challenges of the classroom, with the intended result to reduce teachers’ emotional exhaustion. Conversely, teachers with lower EI may struggle to cope with the emotional demands of the job, leading them to burnout in the profession they spent years preparing for. Recognizing this connection helps educators understand the importance of supporting teachers in developing EI skills, which could enhance their resilience and overall job …

The Personal Is Political: School Board Members’ Motivation For School Governance, Andrew Lobdell

Dissertations of Practice

Understanding the motivation behind school board members' governance is crucial for ensuring the effectiveness of public schools. This research aims to analyze the motivations of five newly elected board members and compare them with past research on governance and motivation. The leadership qualities of school superintendents also impact governance and can influence board members' motivations for running and serving their communities. Similarly, board members' motivations can affect how superintendents lead their districts and prioritize different topics. The research is divided into three papers. Paper 1 reviews existing literature and is organized into three distinct sections that explore school board governance, …

Virtual Learning Walks Assignment Description, David Wolff

Open Educational Resources - Teaching and Learning

Learning Walks are structured walkthroughs with the purpose of professional development and growth. Learning Walks include multiple people so that immediate reflections may occur through collaboration. In higher education, model classrooms are not readily available for preservice teachers to practice and apply coursework knowledge. Virtual Learning Walks are a creative approach to resolve this challenge. This assignment asks preservice teachers to watch a recorded lesson with the mindset that they are visiting a colleague’s classroom to observe them for professional growth. Students take notes during the observation then analyze the observation for their own growth.

Exploring Perceptions Of Advanced Coursework Enrollment Practices: A Multiple Case Study, Tomika Ferguson, David B. Naff, Jenna Lenhardt, Amy E. Jefferson, Isaiah Moore, Andrea Herndon, Richard Ashburn, Jessica Harris, Jenna Conlee, Courtney Forstmann

MERC Publications

This report from the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium highlights findings from a multiple case study exploring enrollment practices related to advanced coursework matriculation in a suburban middle school and rural high school. In connection with the MERC Equitable Access and Support for Advanced Coursework study, this multiple case study included perspectives from students, parents, and educators as they reflected on the factors that support and inhibit access for advanced courses in their schools.

A Mixed Methods Study Of An Alternative Educational Program For At-Risk Students In South Carolina, Lucia K. Jacobs

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This research study focused on the theories that support and underpin the Nine Characteristics of High-Performing Schools. Much of the data presented about high-performing schools lack data about schools that are nontraditional; the nontraditional school, otherwise known as an alternative school or alternative learning placement, supports students who fail to thrive in the traditional school setting. The study employed a sequential explanatory mixed methods design. This design utilized an initial quantitative phase of data collection and analysis, followed by a qualitative phase of data collection and analysis. The purpose of the qualitative phase was to gain further insight regarding the …

The Role Of Special Education Job Design And Principal Support: A Mixed Methods Study In A Small North Carolina School District On Special Education Job Design And Principal Supervision Over Special Education Programs, Nicole Mccue

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This study focused on understanding special education teacher perspectives in a small, North Carolina school district, in terms of job design, as well as strategies principals use to supervise effective special education programs. Special education teachers were surveyed using Hackman and Oldham’s (1974) job diagnostic survey, which measured teacher perspectives on job design elements. Five school principals were interviewed and asked to provide insight on how they oversee their special education programs and support special education teachers. Special education teachers had motivating potential scores within the average range, meaning there is an average amount of job satisfaction and are neutral …

Call For Manuscripts, Todd Pagano

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Copyright, Todd Pagano

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Paraprofessional Training Materials, Program Implementation & Review, Breann Brewer

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

If ever you enter a special education classroom, you may encounter a few events. You may witness a classroom of impressive, almost automatic interactions, delivered in a way so eloquent that the students and staff seem to be in an effortless dance with one another. Or, you may witness a classroom that feels heavy with needs; needs of more staff, more help, more hands, and more time. This visual exercise demonstrates how the structure of a special education classroom sets the tone for student growth and success.

One pivotal part of a special education classroom is the paraeducators. Paraeducators, also …

Copyright

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Call For Manuscripts, Todd Pagano

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Copyright, Todd Pagano

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Adaptive Leadership: A Phenomenological Study On The Strategies Used By Special Education Directors To Build Adaptive Capacity, Amber Gallagher

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this exploratory phenomenological study was to identify and describe the strategies used by special education directors to build an adaptive capacity based on the five key characteristics of adaptive leadership identified by Heifetz et al. (2009).

Methodology: This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of special education directors serving in unified public school districts in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Bernardino counties in California. Purposeful, convenience sampling was used to identify the 10 participants who met the study’s criteria. The semistructured, open-ended interview protocol was developed by a thematic research team of nine peer researchers and …

The Knowledge And Utilization Of Trauma-Informed Care By Educational And Mental Health Professionals Who Serve Children In A Texas City, Mashelle D. Ancell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to understand the knowledge and utilization of trauma-informed care by professionals serving children within schools, social service agencies, or child therapy in a middle-sized Texas city. Previous studies acknowledged the prevalence of trauma and the need for systemic trauma-informed care in communities. The theoretical framework used to guide this study was attachment theory due to the emphasis on securely attached relationships, which is consistent with trauma-informed care. Data collection methods included an online open-ended questionnaire and semistructured personal interviews. Data analysis was completed using reflexive thematic analysis to develop themes from participant …

An Introductory Course In Electrical Circuits And Coding For Deaf And Deafblind Middle School Students, Becca Leininger, Christina Yang, Makayla Quinn, Jeffrey Jalkio, Rahaf Bahajry, Mellissa Ingabire, Annmarie Thomas

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

in is the first Deaf charter school in the United States, opening in 1993. The school serves students in the Twin Cities and Western Wisconsin from ages 2 to 21 who are primarily Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing students, often being visual and/or tactile learners. All students who attend have Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) and fall under the special education category, defined by the Minnesota Department of Education as students who “have a disability and need specialized instruction” (Minnesota Department of Education, n.d.). At , students are instructed in American Sign Language (ASL) and English is primarily taught through …

Supporting Emerging Bilingual Students In The Math Classroom, Karise Mace, Enock Yeboah

Education Faculty Research

Presentation at the meeting of the Pennsylvania Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Penn State University, October 13, 2023

The Sci – Dot: A New Dimension Of Scientific Innovation For Persons With Blv., Ashley N. Nashleanas Ph.D.

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Throughout history, students with blindness and low vision (BLV) have been vastly underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines with regards to both K-12 education and post-secondary endeavors (Burgstahler, 1994; Supalo, 2010). This underrepresentation of students with BLV in STEM is due to limitations in technology that allow them to access data in a laboratory setting, thus inhibiting their abilities to partake actively in data acquisition with their peers. The Sci-Dot, a multiline, refreshable braille and tactile graphics display capable of logging scientific data in real time with the support of Vernier Science Education’s (VSE) Go-Direct Bluetooth sensors, …

B/Lv Laboratory Accessibility Technology Adapted For Neurodiverse Chemistry Students, Christin B. Monroe

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Text-to-speech technology is a common accommodation available for students with disabilities. Despite the ubiquitous nature of text-to-speech, this technology has not been explored in laboratory settings for neurodiverse college students. This study explores the adaptability of laboratory accessible text-to-speech technology (originally developed for blind/low vision (B/LV) students) for neurodiverse students. Students were asked to provide general feedback about the usability and effectiveness of the technology using Likert surveys. The students also answered open-ended questions about how the technology could be adapted to be more neurodiverse friendly. Overall, more than 50% of the students found the technology useful but had specific …

The Relationship Between Parental Engagement In Early Intervention, Part C Special Education Services, And Parental Barriers To Engagement Through The Perspective Of Parents, Zach Selnes

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Parental engagement is a critical component to child development and an essential part to Early Intervention (EI). Parental engagement is especially important for EI services that provide an in-home parent coaching service delivery model. Without parental engagement between EI services, the child will have less of a chance to make gains in their social-emotional, adaptive, physical, language, and cognitive development. This research interviewed nine parents who have a child that received early intervention, Part C special education services, in a rural, southeast MN educational district. The educational district consists of 13 school districts that serve roughly 65 children between the …

The Impact Of Repeated Reading Intervention On Oral Reading Fluency For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder (Asd) In Saudi Arabia, Ahmed Al Naji

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The prevalence rate of learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has risen concurrently with their inclusion into public schools in Saudi Arabia. Being in schools, they face academic challenges, particularly in reading. This increased rate evokes the importance of implementing valuable strategies to keep up the academic skills of those students. These students require Evidence-Based Practices (EBPs), which have been demonstrated crucial for their reading development. Nevertheless, limited research has been done on examining the efficacy of EBPs used to enhance the reading skills of learners with ASD, especially their Oral Reading Fluency (ORF). This study used an effective approach …

Overview Of The Proceedings Of The 2022 Inclusion In Science, Learning A New Direction, Conference On Disability (Island), Cary A. Supalo, Jasodhara Bhattacharya, Daniel Steinberg

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

The 13th annual Inclusion in Science, Learning a New Direction, Conference on Disability was hosted by the Princeton Center for Complex Materials (PCCM), a National Science Foundation funded Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC), and Princeton University on September 16-17, 2022 at Bowen Hall. This annual conference included presentations that featured innovative research done by science educators in formal and informal education contexts, ranging from pre-K-12 to higher education, and science education researchers, access technology developers, and others interested in the full inclusion of persons with disabilities into the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) workforce. The 2022 ISLAND …

From The Editors..., Todd Pagano

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Equalizing Postsecondary Transition For At-Promise Youth Receiving Special Education Services: A Chance To Succeed, Karla R. Sanchez

Dissertations

Postsecondary transition can be difficult for At-Promise Youth Receiving Special Education Services (APYRSES). Special educators supporting postsecondary transition often manifest traditional and institutionalized forms of oppressive education while dismissing collective values and beliefs.

This qualitative case study examined the beliefs and attitudes shared by three special education teachers after being introduced to a justice-focused, humanizing intervention to facilitate postsecondary transition for APYRSES. The conceptualized intervention was grounded in liberatory educational frameworks and drew from critical, culturally affirming, sustaining, and humanizing theories that foster cultural reciprocity, self-determination skills, and antiracist social–emotional justice learning to afford opportunities for APYRSES to succeed. The …

Improving Collaboration With Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Parents Of Students With Extensive Support Needs, Isabel Yates

Education | Master's Theses

The purpose of this research is to understand how to improve collaboration between schools and culturally and linguistically diverse parents of students with extensive support needs who receive special education services. Previous research defined collaboration as a conceptual construct in which principles of shared respect and responsibility are applied to practice (Emmons & Zager, 2018). The collaboration between families and schools is legally mandated but not explicitly explained to teachers or parents how to succeed in engaging respectfully with all families (Cheatham & Lim-Mullins, 2018). The increased complication of supporting nondominant, culturally and linguistically diverse families in addition to the …

Beginning Special Education Teachers’ Perceptions Of Impactful Self-Resiliency Skills: A Qualitative Study, Kjersten Skatvold

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Special educators are in high demand and greatly needed to meet the growing population of special education in public schools today. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to gain an understanding of how beginning special educators lived experiences and utilized their self-resilience skills which impacted their retention in the field of special education. With an increasing rate of attrition in the field of special education, exploring self-resilience factors that impact the retention of beginning special educators was imperative to understanding how to best support these early career educators. The increasing demands and pressures that beginning special educators are required …

The Principal’S Role As Mentor In New Teacher Attrition Rates: The Importance Of Teaching Teachers, William Dockery

Theses & Dissertations

Research Focus. Research tells us that it takes years of deliberate practice and ongoing coaching to become an “expert” in any field and that it can take from 3 to 7 years for a new teacher to grow into an effective educator. Yet, in America today, more than 50% of teachers quit in their first 5 years of service. In low performing economically disadvantaged schools, teachers leaving the profession in their first 3 years increases to 60%. The impact of highly effective teachers on students’ success can be seen through the increase in percentile on Math scores, moving the needle …

Factors Of Special Education Teacher Attrition Rates, Christopher Berry

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Special education teacher attrition rates negatively impact school districts, special education students, and parents. Replacing teachers is costly, inefficient, and leads to a constant turnover cycle that impacts student success. A quantitative research method was used to survey special education teachers in a large school district in southern California. Results indicated that administrative support was the most important factor teachers at both elementary and secondary settings reported,. Additionally, a comparison between novice and veteran teachers resulted in administrative support being the most important factor across all four categories. Future research should investigate using a mixed methodological design to gain a …

Special Education Teacher Attrition: K-12 Administrator Perspectives, Tia Alove Stevens-Hicks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Teacher attrition is a significant contributor to the teacher shortages, with preretirement attrition accounting for two thirds of all attrition. Special education teachers leave teaching at significantly higher rates than their general education peers. In addition, there is a greater demand for special education teachers due to the increase in public school students requiring special education services. As a result, many K–12 administrators and other educational leaders often fill vacant positions with unqualified or new teachers with less experience than their predecessors. Special education teachers have reported that teachers who remained in their positions reported high levels of administrative …

The Effects Of The Covid-19 Pandemic And Online Learning On Teacher Morale And What That Means For Students: A Systematic Review Of The Literature, Madison Thomas

Honors Theses

Teacher shortages have occurred in the United States over the past ten years and continue to rise (Darling-Hammond & Podolsky, 2019). Teacher shortages have continued to rise at an increased rate since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since 2020, multiple studies have addressed teacher morale and retention in the wake of a global pandemic (Matthews et al., 2022; Bill et al., 2022). Through a systematic review of the literature from the last three years, this review explored the factors most affecting teacher morale and retention in Michigan following the pandemic. The keywords used within the literature review were: teacher …

Analysis Of Disability Support Resources At Grand Valley State, Calle Faerber

Honors Projects

In order to receive support and accommodations in postsecondary education, students must self-report their disability to the institution they attend. Due to this policy, there are many barriers that students may face in their pursuit of these services. Barriers include fear of negative perceptions of disabilities by faculty or peers, negative perceptions of accommodations, and lengthy documentation requirements. This study aimed to determine the potential barriers for students at Grand Valley State University (GVSU) and what the university is doing to address these barriers. In this study, a total of 28 undergraduate students at GVSU were surveyed and one staff …