Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

An Ecobehavioral Study Of Elementary Students With Disabilities In An Inclusive Classroom, Neal Reid Lieberman

Special Education ETDs

This study is part of a wider study funded by the New Mexico State Department of Education (NMSDE) entitled the Pilot Study of Service Delivery Models in Special Education in New Mexico (Keefe, Ware, & Blalock, 1997). The purpose of this study is to compare inclusive and non-inclusive models of education with regard to student outcomes. The literature review will show how this project adds to the research base on outcomes. This portion of research was chosen because it was able to describe the relationship between ecological variables and student outcomes in a school committed to providing and supporting students …

Deliberate Response Falsification On Corresponding Subtests Of Two Tests Of Intelligence: Indicators For Simulating Mental Retardation, Denis William Keyes

Special Education ETDs

Among concerns inherent in psychological testing is the possibility that examinees might perform less than accurately or honestly when responding to test items (Lezak, 1983). In context of some legal proceedings, individuals may stand to gain by performing poorly on physiological tests (Anastasti, 1988). For example, defendants could attempt to falsify their answers to impersonate an individual with mental retardation for the purpose of raising issues of incompetence to stand trial, nonresponsibility, or mitigation. In some states, a finding of mental retardation may mean the difference between a life sentence and execution for a defendant convicted of a capital crime. …

Resource Room Intervention: Nature Of Rate Of Reading Achievement Of Elementary Students With Learning Disabilities, Joyce F. Blasi

Special Education ETDs

Statement of the Problem: This study investigated the nature of the rate of reading achieve­ment demonstrated by elementary students with learning disabilities who were served in the resource room for all or the major portion of two academic years.

The Relationship Between Locus Of Control Of Elementary Teachers And Their Perception Of Problems With Pupil Control And Aggression, Jolene H. Maes

Special Education ETDs

This study was designed to examine the relationship between the locus of control of a group of elementary teachers and the proportion of their pupils whom they perceived as control problems or overly-aggressive. The sample consisted of 47 elementary teachers and the 1,248 students in their classrooms. Each of the teachers completed two instruments: the Rotter Internal-External Control Scale (I-E Scale) and the Pupil Rating Scale (PRS). Their scores on the I-E Scale, along with their ratings of pupils on the PRS, formed the basic data for the study. Neither the relationship between teacher locus of control and the proportion …

Oral Language Structures And Responses In Children With Reading Difficulty, Lorna Idol-Maestas

Special Education ETDs

Oral language structures and responses of 120 children from second, fourth and sixth grades were analyzed. The subjects were randomly selected from the Santa Fe School District in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The subjects were comprised of a group of children with reading disabilities receiving special education services for reading and a control group receiving reading instruction in regular classrooms. The subjects were divided evenly representing females and males. The ethnic origins of the subjects were Spanish- American, Anglo-American and Spanish/Anglo-American.

Rorschach Responses In Learning Disabled Children : A Developmental Approach, Louis Ritz-Londis

Special Education ETDs

This study assessed the effects of age, sex, and learning disabilities on the direction of Rorschach ratio developmental level scores when controlling for intelligence. Also, under investigation were the relationships between the ratio developmental level score and intelligence, the overall developmental level score and intelligence, and the relationship of the ratio and overall developmental level scores to one another.

The subjects were 48 children, 19 of which were learning disabled and 29 of which were normal children. In the learning disabled group, there were 16 boys and 3 girls; in the normal group, there were 14 girls and 15 boys. …

Analysis Of A Generalization Technique In Manual Training For Trainable Mentally Handicapped Children, Kathleen Doherty Puma

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the performance level of three trainable handicapped children would be significantly different when tested by their own classroom teacher and a research teacher from outside the classroom. The specific hypothesis was that the children would perform significantly better when tested by their own classroom teacher.

Three children, all functioning at the trainable mentally handicapped level, were selected from a self-contained elementary school classroom. The subjects were taught basic sign language each week by the classroom teacher using Peabody picture cards containing five nouns and five verbs. At the end of each …

A Comparison Of Retained And Special-Placed Children's Self-Concepts, Susan Theisen-Washburn

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to investigate and compare the impact of special-class placement and retention upon the self-concepts of children. The sample consisted of nine boys and four girls retained in the first grade and ten boys and three girls placed in special-education in the second grade. The retained students were found in four elementary schools and the special-placed were found in five elementary schools. All students attended schools in the East Area of Albuquerque. Self-concept was measured by the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale. The scale was individually administered to all twenty-six children. Seven null hypotheses were stated. …

A Follow-Up Study Of Educable Mentally Handicapped Work Study Graduates From North Area High Schools In Albuquerque, Paula Still

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to answer the following question: How many 1972-1976 educable mentally handicapped special education work study graduates of North Area high schools within the Albuquerque Public Schools have been employed since graduation? The sample population consisted of 32 educable mentally handicapped special education or study graduates, 16 male and 16 female. This study investigated only those graduates who had a full scale IQ scar of less than 75 and who attended the work study program for at least two years. Two phases were used to secure data. Phase one consisted of examining student records at …

A Follow-Up Study Of Learning Disabled Work Study Graduates From North Area High Schools In Albuquerque, Jane Marie Otto Marianetti

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to answer the following question: How many learning disabled individuals, who have graduated from a special education work study program in the North Area of the Albuquerque Public Schools within the past five years (1972-1976) are presently, or have been employed? The sample population was made up of twenty-nine learning disabled graduates of special education work study programs within North Area (nineteen males and ten females). Only those individuals who had a full scale IQ score of 75 or above and were in the work study program a minimum of two years were included …

Decreasing Self-Stimulative Behavior In Severely / Profoundly Handicapped Students By Pairing Incompatible Behaviors And Differential Reinforcement, Michael Thomas Ainsworth

Special Education ETDs

The primary purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness in decreasing self-stimulative behavior in severely/profoundly handicapped students by pairing incompatible behaviors and differentially reinforcing other appropriate behaviors. Self-stimulation is the frequent, almost mechanical, repetition of the same posture or movement of the body from which the individual through indulgence of such activities derives pleasure or a sense of well-being. For the purpose of this investigation, specific self-stimulative behavior shall be defined as finger flapping, head shaking, arm flapping, rocking, eye gouging, rubbing or scratching, mouthing oneself, mouthing objects, head banging, chin banging, biting, teeth grinding, fetal withdrawal, regurgitation …

A Comparison Of Behaviorally Disordered Childrens', Parents', Teachers', And Teacher Aides' Perceptions Of Pupil Behavior And Their Relationship To Pupil Self-Concept, Susan L. Rinaldi

Special Education ETDs

The specific purpose of the study was to compare the child’s perceptions of his own behavior with those of his parents and his teachers. Results would then determine whether any differences in perception existed between the three groups

A Study Of The Effect Of The Language Of Administration And Monetary Contingency On Ppvt Scores Of Work-Study Special Education Students, Janice Pauline Miller Sleeper

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to answer these two questions: Is there a significant difference in test results between the English and Spanish versions of the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT)? Second is there a significant difference when the test is administered with a monetary contingency? The sample population consisted of fifty Spanish surnamed high school work-study special education students from five high schools in the Albuquerque Public School system. Two trained examiners administered the tests individually to the students at their respective school locations. A bilingual Hispanic female administered the Spanish PPVT and an Anglo female administered the …

Resource Room Students' I.Q. Scores As A Factor In Reading Gains During And Following Treatment, Paul John Olivas

Special Education ETDs

Statement of the Problem

The purpose of this study was to compile and analyze reading achievement test scores and I.Q. test scores taken by students in a resource room program and in a one year follow-up period to determine if I.Q. was a relevant factor in sustaining long-term achievement gains.

The Qualifications Of Special Education Teachers In New Mexico, Carol M. Garland

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of training of the special education teachers in New Mexico in 1973-74, The certifica­tion files of the New Mexico State Education Depart­ment, Division of Certification were utilized to determine how many teachers were teaching on letters of authority and how many were fully certified.

The state was divided into four areas for comparison. The northeast region had 23.2% of the teachers under letters of authority; the southeast had 23.3% of the teachers under letters of authority; the southwest had 27.8% under letters of authority; and the northwest had 29.7% under …

The Effectiveness Of Reinforcement In Increasing Verbalization In A Selective Or Elective Mute, Ruby Dee Holloway

Special Education ETDs

This study was concerned with increasing the verbalization of a selective mute. Specifically, it sought to determine whether or not a stimulus fading procedure (1) is an effective technique by itself to instate verbal behavior with a stranger; (2) must be combined with other techniques to be most effective in increasing verbalization; (3) is a necessary condition to instate verbal behavior with a stranger.

The subject in this study was a five year old boy. He had attended both pre-school and over six months of kindergarten prior to this study. He had not verbalized to his class teacher the entire …

The Relationship Of Divorce To Recidivism Of Adjudicated Juveniles In Bernalillo County, Audrey M. Lietzow

Special Education ETDs

Because educational treatment or educational provision will not always be predicated on etiology, this investigation has sought to provide inquiry into some of the reasons children may deviate. The education of the exceptional child is at times not complete as the cause of the emotional disturbance is not dealt with. The concern of this study is the home from which emotionally disturbed youngsters emanate. When underling reasons for the emotional disturbance have not been handled, often youngsters will deviate and come before the courts. If intervention is imposed in the school setting, but the basic problem has not been managed, …

Self Reporting Of The Student's Self-Concept Concerning His Academic And Social Interactions In The Boy's Correctional Institute Of New Mexico, Edgar Wayne Briggs

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between academic and social self-concept by means of a self-reporting basis among a sample of teenage boys, ranging from 13 to 18 years, in the New Mexico Boys School. The population was randomly selected from boys placed in the Materials Resource Lab for those functioning in at least one or more deficit areas below the fifth grade level. The diagnostic tests relied upon for placement in the resource lab were the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT) and the Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT). These boys came from all over the state …

The Efficacy Of A Systematic Eye Contact Program As Applied To A Class Of Trainable Mentally Handicapped Students, James D. Raborn

Special Education ETDs

The importance of an operantly structured eye contact program for the severely emotionally disturbed, trainable mentally handicapped, and profoundly mentally handicapped has been overlooked by researchers and teachers alike. Intensive literature searches reap but a handful of related material, of which only a few provide a viable means of teaching eye contact skills. One question that has been repeatedly neglected by researchers, and epeciall teachers, is “why” teach eye contact. The basic need of eye contact in communication is known to all of us. It must be realized that in most instances the young trainable mentally handicapped student requires eye …

The Academic Success Of Former Resource Room Children In The Regular Classrooms, Hisashi Richard Ito

Special Education ETDs

In order to assess the effect of the resource room (RR), it was essential to design a study to determine how successful former RR children are in maintaining or generalizing academic changes in other learning environments. Thus, the primary purpose of the study was to ascertain if the rate of academic gain made during part-time placement in a RR would be maintained following a year of full-time attendance in a regular class.

The Effects Of Teacher Vs. Pupil Applied Reinforcement On Arithmetic Response Rates In Upper Elementary Behavior Disordered And Regular Class Children, Peter Cutler Friedman

Special Education ETDs

Thirty-six upper elementary aged school children, 18 of whom attended classes for Behaviorally Disordered (BD) children and 18 of whom were based in Regular Classes, were divided into two groups of nine students each for the purpose of comparing the effects of Teacher-Applied Reinforcement and Pupil-Applied Reinforcement on academic responding. Following a Pretest of basic addition, which allowed the Regular Class students to be matched to the BD students on level of problem difficulty, all subjects underwent a nine-day baseline period. At every session during Baseline 1, each subject attempted to solve twenty addition problems at an individualized level of …

The Classroom Behavior Assessment Scale, Linda Beth Brooks

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this investigation was to test the predictive valid­ity of the Classroom Behavior Assessment Scale (CBAS). The CBAS, a be­havioral checklist, was designed to be used as a screening device for the detection of possible emotional/behavioral disorders in young chil­dren. The investigation was conducted using both mean and median CBAS scores of children who were recommended by the Educational Appraisal and Review committee of Albuquerque Public Schools for Special Education programs, and those who were not recommended for Special Education programs by that same committee. The hypotheses for this investigation were stated in the null form. Hypothesis 1. …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Of Ethnicity And Sex To Intelligence And Certain Dimensions Of Creativity, Viola Roberta Sierra

Special Education ETDs

This study was designed to investigate: (1) differences in certain dimensions of creativity between Anglos and Chicanos; (2) differences in certain dimensions of creativity between males and females; and (3) the relationship between certain dimensions of creativity and intelligence for (a) the total group, (b) for Anglos, (c) for Chicanos, (3) for males, and (e) for females.

The general hypotheses tested were that: (1) there would be no significant differences between Anglos and Chicanos and between males and females with respect to composite creativity and the dimensions of fluency, flexibility, originality and elaboration as measured by the Torrance Test of …

The Effects Of Perceptual Conditioning Upon Decoding And Encoding Abilities Of Children With Low Achievement, James D. Hall

Special Education ETDs

THE EFFECTS OF PERCEPTUAL CONDITIONING UPON DECODING AND ENCODING ABILITIES OF CHILDREN WITH LOW ACHIEVEMENT

James D. Hall Department of Special Education The University of New Mexico, 1976

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of two decoding training procedures upon the decoding and encoding abilities of third grade children with low achievement. The methods studied were Perceptual Conditioning (Glass, 1971a) and Perceptual Conditioning with an added spelling step. An experimental group of 24 third graders, who pretested at or below the 3.8 grade level on the Diagnostic Reading Scales word lists, were randomly assigned to one …

Parent Intervention Program For Children With Severe Learning And Behavior Problems, Mindi Golnick

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect on parent attitudes and skills when involved in a parent training intervention program for children with severe learning and behavior problems. The intervention program was designed to train the parents to maintain, change and teach appropriate behaviors to their children while pro­viding them with the skills to extinguish inappropriate behaviors in their children.

More specifically the study attempted to answer the following four research questions:

1) Did the parents alter their attitudes toward child rearing in a positive direction as assessed on the Parent Attitude Scale (revised) after completion of …

Effects Of A Creativity Program On The Creative Thinking Abilities Of Behaviorally Disordered Elementary Children And Regular Elementary Children, Betsy Jaclynn Loewenherz

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to determine and compare whether a structured creativity program would improve creative thinking abilities in elementary behaviorally disordered children and elementary regular children. The study examined creativity as a process and contended that behaviorally disordered children would profit synonymously with regular children from learning to think creatively by increasing their repertoire of appropriate responses. The subjects were located in a special adaptation class for the behaviorally disordered and a regular classroom. Hereafter, the term regular children as it appears in the study refers to children undiagnosed for special needs and placed in the regular …

The Effect Of Parent Intervention On Academic Progress Of Learning Disabled Children, Carol Lee Byler

Special Education ETDs

This thesis project was designed to investigate the implications of involving parents of learning disabled children in on academic objective. Academic progress was measured through the use of continuous recording procedures. The main hypothesis, stated in null form, was: there will be no statistically significant difference in the mean scores of six learning disabled subjects on specified academic behavior before and after treatment involving parents as the intervention strategy.

The research results (analyzed by the mean-median/chi-square design, P < ·.05) indicated significant difference in the mean scores of four of six learning disabled subjects. Further analysis (analyzed by the Wilcox Sign and Rank Test, P < .05) indicated significant growth in the group as a whole. It was concluded that further research in a variety of settings with a variety of subjects is needed to substantiate these results and to gain further insights concerning the effects of parental involvement in the total school process.

Locus Of Control And Reading Achievement For Children With Learning Disabilities In A Self-Contained Class, Janie Stone

Special Education ETDs

Research concerning personality variables bas been expanding rapidly in the last few years. Locus of control is one of these variables; it is a developmental construct considered to be an important part of social learning theory. Locus of control refers to the degree to which a person believes that he controls his environment and reinforcements, or another person or force controls them. There have been many investigations regarding locus of control of normal and exceptional children in relation to motivation, anxiety, social desirability, success-failure attitudes, and achievement in the classroom. Specifically with students who are mentally retarded, orthopedically handicapped, or …

A Follow-Up Study Of Junior High Students Who Participated In The Monterey Reading Program, Barbara P. Warren

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the reading scores of students who participated in the Monterey Reading Program (MRP) and to determine the stability of gains if they did occur. The two populations studied represented special education students diagnosed as learning disabled with reading problems in the area of decoding, and non-diagnosed students with the same problem. All 14 students were at least two years behind in reading in terms of grade level placement. They were seventh-graders. The learning disabled sample was pre-, post-, and follow-up tested with the Wide Range Achievement Test. The non-diagnosed sample was similarly …

The Validity Of The Home Bilingual Usage Estimate In Determining Language Dominance, Richard F. Rodriguez

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to determine the validity of the Home Bilingual Usage Estimate, a test designed to determine whether English or Spanish is the dominant language spoken by and to the child. The Dos Amigos Verbal Language Scales, a teat which measures the ability of the child to express word opposites in English and Spanish was used as the criterion. On the basis of differences between English and Spanish performance a language dominance can be determined. Specific hypotheses were that: (1) the Home Bilingual Usage Estimate score of English Language usage will be positively and significantly related …