Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

An Evaluation Of Rural Access To Education, Caroline Ackerman, Kera B. Ackerman

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

In Kentucky, educators serve over 100,000 students who qualify for special education services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Given Kentucky's topography, and the designation of 86 of the Commonwealth's 120 counties as rural, it's essential to understand how the socioeconomic and geographic qualities of the state impact the students being served. Previous research has indicated that nearly a quarter of children in Kentucky live in poverty, with the highest rates existing in rural Eastern Kentucky counties. This statistic, compacted with the knowledge that high-need children in poverty are more likely than their peers to have a disability …

Lessons Learned: Considerations For Enhancing Principal Preparation Programs With Inclusive Special Education Practices, Ellen G. Casale, Stacy Leggett

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

Western Kentucky University has a long-standing history in preparing principals. Recognizing the ever-growing importance of explicit training in supporting students with disabilities, we applied for and received a minigrant from the Kentucky Excellence in Educator Preparation to enhance our curriculum to address this need. In this article, we provide an overview of the context for this need and provide considerations for principal preparation programs considering enhancing their own curricula. Implications are provided.

From The Editors, Michele H. Koomen, Thomastine A. Sarchet-Maher, Jessica Williams

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

JSESD remains a venue for the dissemination of research and practice related to the education of students with disabilities in the science classroom and laboratory since 1998. Volumes #1 through 11 were published in a print format. Starting with Volume #12, the journal has been published online and Open Access. Having JSESD in the Open Access format maximizes access for readers and authors and allows the journal to remain economically sustainable. JSESD is proud to now be publishing articles in both PDF and HTML formats (the HTML versions can be accessed through a link from the main articles’ web-page).

Inclusive Settings In Belizean Primary Schools: A Focus On Teacher Practices, Katherine A. Curry, Jentre Olsen, Ed Harris, Candy Garnett, Dian Danderson

Journal of Global Education and Research

Educators in Belize are charged with ensuring that all Belizeans are given an opportunity to acquire a quality education that promotes personal development and productive citizenship. Consequently, Belizean law now requires all children from ages five through fourteen to attend at least eight years of primary school. Students with special needs have historically not received accommodations in the education system, so many teachers struggle with meeting the needs of students with learning disabilities in these inclusive settings. This qualitative case study explored teaching strategies and contextual factors in inclusive primary classrooms in Belize and was conducted in the form of …

Your Story, Your Life, Your Learning: Autobiography Reveals Basis For Supporting Personalized, Holistic Pedagogy, Michael Maser

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

Each person ongoingly experiences the world uniquely through vital processes shaping their subjectivity, personhood and sense of self. Learning, an innate characteristic or modality of each human life, of living, likewise arises subjectively or idiosyncratically. In this paper, a phenomenological lens is applied to auto/biographical excerpts concerned with various learning experiences to help reveal essential, subjective characteristics of emergent learning. The insights help establish a basis for challenging the primacy of objectivist learning evaluations. The insights also confirm the importance of personalizing learning as a pedagogical gesture nurturing and enfranchising student learning in significant ways beyond conventional educational approaches …

6 Strategies To Increase Your Classroom And School’S Culture And Climate, Stacey Keown-Murray, Rob Carroll, Kristi Livingston

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

Creating a positive culture and climate in the classroom and school environment is crucial for fostering student engagement, well-being, and academic success. This article presents six effective strategies that educators can implement to enhance the culture and climate within their classrooms and schools. The strategies focus on promoting a sense of belonging, establishing clear expectations, fostering positive relationships, celebrating diversity, empowering student voice, and encouraging collaboration and teamwork. By implementing these strategies, educators can cultivate a supportive and inclusive environment that nurtures the holistic development of students and promotes a positive learning experience. The abstract provides a concise overview of …

Letter From The Editor In Chief, Jeffrey Lee

Transform

The TRANSFORM journal is a space for leaders, mentors, researchers, and practitioners of transformational leadership to be seen, heard, and valued; it is a place for making connections. Relationship-building is central to transformational leadership at all levels of an organization; this fundamental truth is a trending topic in literature. Otherwise, however, leadership can be an isolating experience.

As an ethnographer, I believe the best way to launch an academic, peer-reviewed journal is to do what I do best: storytelling. I want to share my thoughts on transformational leadership through a story in the form of a letter to my younger …

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.

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.

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 …

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 …

Healing Racial Trauma From Public School Systems, Lisa Y. Collins

Journal of Research Initiatives

Oregon needs Black educators in the K-12 public school system. In 35 school districts throughout the state, the number of students of color has risen by over 40% in recent years (Oregon Chief Education Office, 2019). The number of educators of color in the state is under 10%. The number of Black educators is even lower. Research has shown that Black educators improve all students' academic, cultural, and social aspects, especially Black students. Nationally, Black educators were impacted by the Brown v. Board of Education ruling. At that time in history, Black communities fought for civil rights as they experienced …

Beyond Certification: Innovative Strategies To Tackle The Teacher Shortage, Abbigail Lp Morris

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

This article challenges educational leaders to look beyond alternative routes for teaching certification and more towards an increased collaboration between districts and universities to help alleviate the teacher shortage issue in Kentucky. It specifically highlights the works of Omaha Public School District and the University of Nebraska Omaha as a model for proactive teacher pipeline.

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.

Alternative Techniques For Blind Low Vision Students Enrolled In Coding Courses, Robert Jaquiss

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

BLV (blind low vision) students face difficulties when taking coding classes. Individual Development Environments (IDE) can be inaccessible which make it difficult if not impossible for BLV students to complete coursework. Alternative techniques are described which will allow a BLV student to successfully complete coursework. The author has found the Command Line Interface (CLI) is often a recommended alternative to a Windows based IDE interface. Many blind computer programmers use the Windows and Linux command interfaces which are described as part of this discussion.

Perceptions Of Leadership Styles In International Special And General Education Schools In The United Arab Emirates, Kaitlin M. Jackson

Journal of Global Education and Research

Given that school leadership styles are linked to educational outcomes, this study attempted to identify perceived leadership styles of school leaders in two types of schools in the United Arab Emirates (UAE): (a) international special education schools, which serve exclusively students with disabilities and (b) international general education schools, which serve primarily typically developing students. By utilizing primarily quantitative methods with supplementary qualitative analysis, this study also explored the influence of teacher demographic variables on perceptions of leadership styles. Results indicated a difference in perceptions of transformational and transactional leadership by school type based on teacher education level, as well …

Paths To Equity: Parents In Partnership With Ucedds Fostering Black Family Advocacy For Children On The Autism Spectrum, Elizabeth H. Morgan, Benita D. Shaw, Ida Winters, Chiffon King, Jazmin Burns, Aubyn Stahmer, Gail Chodron

Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

Racism and ableism have doubly affected Black families of children with developmental disabilities in their interactions with disability systems of supports and services (e.g., early intervention, mental health, education, medical systems). On average, Black autistic children are diagnosed three years later and are up to three times more likely to be misdiagnosed than their non-Hispanic White peers. Qualitative research provides evidence that systemic oppression, often attributed to intersectionality, can cause circumstances where Black disabled youth are doubly marginalized by policy and practice that perpetuates inequality. School discipline policies that criminalize Black students and inadequate medical assessments that improperly support Black …

A Conceptual Exploration Of Anti-Fragility In The Context Of Confucian Heritage Culture Education, Alwyn Lau

Journal of Research Initiatives

It is a common but not unrealistic stereotype of Asian students that educational success is a matter of personal identity and status. As such, achieving distinctions in as many subjects as possible (the popular target of becoming a ‘straight A’ student) is usually a non-negotiable objective nurtured by both parents and educators. Such an obsessive pursuit of academic excellence produces both laudable outcomes (e.g. the tendency of Asian students to outperform their counterparts) as well as dangerous ones (e.g. worrying rates of mental health problems). This theoretical paper hopes to apply the concept of anti-fragility developed by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, …

How Do They See Me? Examining The Experiences Of Faculty In The Context Of Classroom Whiteness Factors, Papia Bawa, Diantha Watts Dr.

Journal of Research Initiatives

Today polarized attitudes and aptitudes have created a subtle but steady paradigm shift in the way equity, diversity, and inclusivity (EDI) issues are seen by stakeholders. As a result, focusing on critical aspects of equity relationships and the fallout from discriminatory attitudes towards marginalized groups has become ever more needed. While diversity issues exist in all societal, professional, and personal realms, its impact within educational institutions is perhaps the most deeply profound. This Hermeneutic Phenomenology study examines the experiences of six higher education faculty who teach predominantly white student classrooms to identify issues and recommendations with respect to their relationship …

An Administrative Approach For Special Educator Retention, Amanda Hall, Jennifer Fosbinder, Mary Elliott, Ginevra Courtade

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

Special education teacher attrition is an ongoing area of concern across the US. One factor that influences special educator attrition and retention is administrative support. Unfortunately, administrators often enter school leadership positions with little or no background in special education, thus making it difficult to provide the much-needed support. This practitioner piece provides information and resources for school-based administrators to use to support special education teachers and students within their schools.

Interaction Between Students With And Without Disabilities In An Inclusive Schools From Their Teachers Perspective., Dr. Basmah Alshahrani

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

The success of the inclusion of students with disabilities substantially depends on the collaboration of various social agents, including non-disabled peers, who play a substantial role in the lives of students with disabilities. Peers, as social agent, are responsible for the creation of a favourable social environment, in which one of the key factors is a positive acceptance. This research examined the reality of interactions between non-disabled students and their acceptance to peers with disabilities. A qualitative research approach was employed using interviews with Nine special education teachers. An overall positive attitudes were reported with non-disabled peers being reported as …

Adjusting/Modifying Assignments To Support Students With Learning Disabilities While Engaging In Ngss Science And Engineering Practices And Inquiry-Based Learning, Shannon Morago Dr.

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Effective science instruction involves opportunities for all students to do science, including engaging in the NGSS Science and Engineering Practices through inquiry-based learning. Many students with learning disabilities have the accommodation of shortened or reduced assignments in their Individualized Educational Programs to allow them equal access to science learning. Science teachers struggle to provide this accommodation. This practice brief provides examples of supports and strategies for implementing this accommodation during an inquiry-based investigation. A vignette is used to follow a science teacher and her students through an investigation; it details how she provides equal access to the learning objectives as …

Using Markup Languages For Accessible Scientific, Technical, And Scholarly Document Creation, Jason J.G. White

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

In using software to write a scientific, technical, or other scholarly document, authors have essentially two options. They can either write it in a ‘what you see is what you get’ (WYSIWYG) editor such as a word processor, or write it in a text editor using a markup language such as HTML, LaTeX, Markdown, or AsciiDoc.

This paper gives an overview of the latter approach, focusing on both the non-visual accessibility of the writing process, and that of the documents produced. Currently popular markup languages and established tools associated with them are introduced. Support for mathematical notation is considered. In …

Developing A K-12 School Leadership Plan, Marian E. Truehill

Journal of Research Initiatives

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to develop a K-12 School Leadership plan for public, private, and parochial educational institutions. The K-12 School Leadership plan will help principals, teachers, staff and students focus on how to accurately operate a successful school culture, climate, and improve academic performance at their educational institutions. I used a pseudonym JFK for the high school examined in this paper. Themes represented in this paper will include assessment of ineffective leadership style, assessment of school culture, climate and performance, school improvement areas, explanation of leadership style, most effective style to improve school performance, research-based leadership …

Trauma-Informed Practices For Test-Taking Anxiety At The Elementary Grade Level, Kate Campbell, Shalini Mathew

Journal of Research Initiatives

Test -Taking Anxiety (TTA) is a challenging experience for children of all ages. Childhood exposure to trauma and adverse experience has been increasing. Fortunately, trauma-informed practices, such as mindfulness activities have become more widespread in schools throughout the last few years. Existing school counseling literature offers limited perspectives on how school counselors can support elementary students for TTA. This conceptual article explores the effects of trauma-informed practices on elementary-age students' test anxiety and overall academic success in schools and offers implications for practice.