Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

Fostering Collaborations And Partnerships Through Osep Grants, Amy T. Parker, Katina Lambros, Carol Robinson Zanartu, Robert Wall Emerson

Special Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

Presenters from three universities discussed how Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) grant projects have fostered interdisciplinary collaborations and school/community partnerships. This session discussed the powerful lessons that have emerged from those collaborations, which have involved related services personnel in schools (e.g., school psychology, school counseling, special education, speech and language pathology, and school social work), as well as community partners (e.g., transportation specialists, urban designers, and geographers).

Effects Of Reciprocal Teaching In Guided Reading With Third Grade Students With Specific Poor Comprehension, Sharon R. Mclaren

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects that using the reciprocal teaching intervention method had on third grade students with specific poor comprehension skills within a guided reading setting. The study included ten third grade students - five boys and five girls. While all the students read fluently, they were identified with poor reading comprehension skills. The researcher conducted the reading groups with both the experimental group and the control group. The experimental group received the reciprocal teaching intervention. The control group received the standard guided reading lessons. Results from the study show that reciprocal teaching can improve third graders reading comprehension …

Effects Of Universal Design For Learning Math Menus On Seventh Grade Students, Mona L. Mauro

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to: (a) examine the effectiveness of UDL math menus in increasing the academic engagement of seventh grade students with disabilities, (b) examine the effectiveness of UDL math menus in increasing the academic achievement of seventh grade students with disabilities, and (c) determine if seventh grade students with disabilities are satisfied with the use of UDL math menus. The research was conducted using single-subject design methodology. The study followed an ABAB alternating baseline pattern. Student academic achievement was evaluated through daily assessments, while student engagement was evaluated five times per class, approximately every fifteen minutes …

Effects Of A Scripted And Intense Reading Intervention Program On The Reading Comprehension Of Fifth Grade Students With Learning Disabilities, Tracy Slater

Theses and Dissertations

This study focused on the use of intensive reading intervention programs in a fifth inclusion classroom setting. This has been a topic that is frequently discussed and how support for the special need students with comprehension deficits can be increased. These students deserve a fair, equal, and individualized learning plan in a classroom that accepts all children. Studies show how successful using intensive reading programs close the reading comprehension gaps with our exceptional students.

The purpose of this study is to show how using the intensive reading intervention program is crucial in the classrooms to support the special needs students. …

Effects Of An Ipad-Supported Phonics Intervention On Identifying And Generalizing Consonant Blends, Caitlin Kendrick

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear and manipulate the individual sound within words and is a crucial predicator of reading skills. Students with reading and writing difficulties often struggle with phonemic awareness tasks. Technology contributes to early literacy skills through providing means of communication, phonemic awareness instruction and comprehension skills. This study is an extension upon a previous study that evaluated the effectiveness of an iPad supported phonics intervention on identifying and generalization of consonant blends. A multi-element single case research design was used to address the following two research questions: 1) Is there a functional relation between the …

The Effect Of A Multisensory Approach To Spanish Instruction On The Foreign Language Proficiency Of Students With Learning Disabilities, Linda Chui

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of a multisensory approach to Spanish instruction founded in Orton-Gillingham on the (1) foreign language writing, and (2) foreign language reading comprehension of students with learning disabilities in the middle school Spanish classroom. Additionally, the study inquired about the students' satisfaction with the Orton-Gillingham approach to learning to read in Spanish. Four middle school Spanish students with SLD, three male and one female, participated in the study. A single subject ABAB design was used. During the baseline phases, students received Spanish instruction in the traditional mainstream classroom. During the intervention, …

Adapted Aquatics For Children With Severe Motor Impairments, Phillip Conatser, Eric James, Ulku Karabulut

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Available research clearly shows that more children who have disabilities, including those with severe disabilities, are participating in swimming programs as well as wanting to be taught in a regular aquatic class without being segregated. Aquatic instructors need to prepare lessons that include children both with and without disabilities. This means that aquatics instructors need to understand and be willing to implement unique teaching and managerial techniques that foster the safe and successful learning environment for all children. While the task of teaching children who have severe disabilities may seem difficult at first, with a little knowledge and experience, instructors …

Sentence Instruction Intervention On Elementary And Middle School-Aged Students At-Risk For Emotional And Behavior Disorders, Kayla Monique Ramos

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Researchers have found that students with emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD) typically struggle during all stages of the writing process and they are the most under-researched category of writers. A promising new approach to teaching sentence writing is Sentence Instruction. The present study investigated the effects of Sentence Instruction on students at-risk for Emotional and Behavioral Disorders. A single case, multiple probe design across three students was used. The intervention led to an increase in complete sentences and percent of correct word sequences.

Advisors: Michael Hebert and John Maag

Indicators And Precipitators Of Special Educator Satisfaction: The Role Of Certification And Advanced Coursework, Jessica Spencer

Dissertations

Special education teachers are leaving the education field at a higher rate than other education professionals. The annual attrition rate for special education teachers is estimated to be between 8-10% of special educators across the United States. These attrition rates are concerning, as they contribute to the shortage of quality special educators. Considering that an estimated 50% of special educators leave their positions within their first five years, researchers have conducted studies examining criteria centered on teacher retention and attrition. This study examined the findings of such studies, and explored the role of how teachers' certifications and obtaining advanced degrees …

Beyond Replicative Technology: The Digital Practices Of Students With Literacy-Related Learning Difficulties Engaged In Productive Technologies, Aimee Frier

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, I present the findings from a qualitative case study of the digital literacy integration of a teacher and the digital literacy practices of three students with literacy-related learning difficulties within her classroom. As a researcher, I was interested in the ways students with literacy- related learning difficulties navigated digital tools in a technology-infused environment created by a teacher who has experience using digital tools for instructional and student-learning purposes. My research was guided by the following questions: (1) What was the context, content, and structure of the teacher’s technology instruction? (2) In what ways did the students …

Effects Of Using Fundations To Teach Phonics Skills With Fourth Grade Students With Exceptional Learning Needs, Jennifer Bishop

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects of adding Fundations reading program to the curriculum of three fourth grade students with exceptional learning needs to see if it can improve their fluency and comprehension. The students in the study were in a self-contained Multiple Disabled classroom, and had Individualized Education Plans. Disabilities represented in the study include Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, and Other Health Impaired. This educational setting had been chosen for them because it is the environment in which the students have shown the greatest success.

Baseline data was collected prior …

Enhancing A Middle School Student's Self-Management Skills In The Classroom, Lanie Jean Rudisill

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Self-regulation (SR) and executive functioning (EF) are important factors for successful student outcomes. Research suggests that executive skills facilitate the process of behavioral self-regulation. Well-developed SR and EF skills make learning more likely. Proper SR has the ability to improve attention levels and EF includes the use of working memory, both of which are essential components of the information processing system that students use continuously. One type of SR, referred to as self-management, involves a cycle of observing and recording one’s own behavior, then evaluating one’s self-assessments against those of an external observer. Self-management interventions have previously been found to …

The Effects Of Teacher Demographics, Self-Efficacy, And Student Gender On Behavioral Referrals, Morgan E. Hestand

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The current study examined the most common reason for behavioral referrals and the effects of student gender, teacher age, teacher experience, and school setting on reasons for behavioral referrals to the schools intervention team or the Individual Education Plan (IEP) team. Additionally, it examined the self-efficacy of teachers and compared the self-perceptions of teaching general education students with behavior problems with perceptions of teaching students identified as having an Emotional Disturbance (ED). Participants included 179 general education teachers, grades K-12, from the state of Kentucky and additional teachers recruited from Facebook from across the U.S. Participants completed a survey about …

Understanding “Other People’S Children” Through 21st Century Lens, Angela Farmer

Journal of Research Initiatives

Engaging in constructive discourse is perhaps one of the best ways to fully dissect a societal issue in the hopes of transforming it from what it is into what it could become. In Lisa Delpit’s 2006 version of “Other People’s Children” she does a remarkable job of leading the reader to the importance of developing the character of children. As a minority parent and educator who struggled with supporting her children amid the challenges they faced in institutionalized educational settings, the author confronts the realities of what many children still face today, as they attempt to assimilate to an environment …

The Effects Of Teacher Coaching In The Lincing Routine On The Vocabulary Knowledge Of Secondary Students With Disabilities, Dana W. Cho

Communication Disorders & Special Education Theses & Dissertations

A pretest-posttest time series design controlling for teacher coaching was used to evaluate the effects of the LINCing Routine to support secondary students with disabilities while increasing students’ vocabulary knowledge. Two special education teachers and 26 secondary students with disabilities participated in this study. Student performance was investigated in terms of increased accurate use of the LINCing Routine and overall improvement of vocabulary knowledge while controlling for teacher coaching. The dependent variable increased and remained stable throughout intervention. Pretest and posttest results were also favorable. Students reported average social validity while teachers reported high social validity for the intervention. The …

A Sentence Construction Intervention For Elementary-Aged Spanish-Speaking Language-Minority Students With Writing Difficulties, Tim Andress

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The present replication study used a multiple probe across participant single-case experimental design to measure the effect of a sentence construction intervention on Spanish-speaking language-minority students with writing difficulties. Participants were two males and one female, aged eight to ten. Dependent variables tracked were frequency of correct word sequences, incorrect word sequences, complete sentences, and incomplete sentences written in one-minute sentence construction probes. A pre-and post-test five-minute paragraph probe served as a secondary measure to determine whether sentence-level instruction improved paragraph-level writing. Results were an increase in frequency of correct word sequence and complete sentences for all participants, as well …

Efficacy Of Differential Negative Reinforcement Of Alternative Behaviors To Improve Reading Comprehension, Nicole Goehring

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This multiple baseline across participants design answered the question: is a differential negative reinforcement of alternative (DNRA) behaviors effective in improving reading comprehension accuracy. Students with emotional/behavioral disorders (E/BD) often display challenging behaviors during academic lessons, typically to escape tasks they perceive to be aversive or those for which they lack sufficient academic achievement. Several function-based interventions have been used to address misbehavior due to this function such as providing easier work or asking for a break. However, differential negative reinforcement of alternative behavior (DNRA) is an intervention that directly addresses escape from work for which students possess the requisite …

Effects Of Direct Instruction Flashcards And Reading Racetracks On Sight Word Acquisition And Maintenance For A Student With Autism, Chelsea Burton

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A student’s abilities in literacy can be indicative of his/her ability to live successfully in our society (Rinaldi, Sells, & McLaughlin, 1997). The ability to read is an area of difficulty, particularly for many students with autism spectrum disorders. Two fundamental cognitive processes required for skilled reading are word recognition and reading comprehension (Spector, 2010). Struggles with word recognition hamper the ability of students with ASD to work towards the goal of literacy (Spector, 2010). Browder and Xin (1998) argued that sight word instruction is important because that knowledge provides a foundation for other functional academic skills. The purpose of …

The Domain-General And Domain-Specific Profiles Of Computation And Problem-Solving Difficulties, Xin Lin

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of the study was to explore the domain-general and domain-specific profile of two important mathematics difficulties. Three domain-general measures (working memory, processing speed, reasoning), and three domain-specific measures (language comprehension, mathematics vocabulary, math fluency) were completed among 125 Chinese 4^th grade students. Of these 125 students, 28 were classified as students with only calculation difficulties (CD), 34 were classified as having problem-solving difficulties (PD), 20 were classified as students with calculation and problem-solving difficulties (CPD), and 43 were typically developing (TD) peers. Multivariate analysis showed that, compared to TD, CD was associated with weakness in working memory …

The Effect Of Choice Of Ipad-Delivered Math Independent Practice Of Elementary Grade Students With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Characteristics, Nora A. Altaweel

Communication Disorders & Special Education Theses & Dissertations

A choice-making strategy is an antecedent control that has proven to be effective for students with problem behaviors. Because students with Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) may display disruptive behaviors and show poor academic performance, it has been suggested that incorporating choice-making strategies into academic instruction could serve to increase academic engagement and task accuracy. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of iPad-based choice-making opportunities during math independent practice on each participant's task engagement, time required to complete task, task accuracy, and task completion, as well as the teacher and participants perceptions of social validity of the intervention. …

Transforming Inclusive Education: Nine Tips To Enhance School Leaders’ Ability To Effectively Lead Inclusive Special Education Programs, Cammy Romanuck Murphy

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

Principals and assistant principals, collectively referred to as school leaders, play instrumental roles in ensuring the success of inclusive special education in the schools they oversee. However, school leaders continually report they lack the knowledge and skills to effectively oversee quality inclusive special education programs. There are very few training programs available to school leaders that focus on leading inclusive special education programs. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to provide school leaders with nine tips, along with 11 immediately implementable practical strategies, to improve upon the inclusive special education programs in their schools. Topics include pertinent definitions, …

The Effectiveness Of The Keyword Method On Foreign Language Vocabulary For Students With Learning Disabilities, Jessica Anna Consiglio

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was: (a) to examine the effectiveness of the keyword mnemonic method to improve the foreign language receptive vocabulary of students with learning disabilities, (b) to examine the effectiveness of the keyword mnemonic method to improve the productive foreign language vocabulary of students with learning disabilities and (c) to evaluate student satisfaction and perceptions of the keyword mnemonic method intervention. Three seventh and eighth grade students, one male and two females, with a learning disability participated in the study. A single subject ABAB design was used. During the baseline phases students received instruction using rote memorization. …

The Effects Of Self-Monitoring Of Behavior On Academic Achievement, Meredith Keller

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines whether implementing a self-monitoring behavior plan will improve student achievement. Four students from a third grade inclusion classroom were taught to self-monitor their behavior for a period of 10 weeks. Each student was also tested weekly on reading comprehension using a standards-based ten-question assessment. During the 10-week period, the classroom teacher noted the number of prompts given to each of the students. A prompt was documented when the student was demonstrating inappropriate behavior. After the intervention was implemented, each of the four students demonstrated an overall decrease in the number of prompts required. Additionally, all four students …

Special Education Teachers' Response To Consistent Changes In Curriculum Standards, Megan Fromme

Honors College Theses

This research explored how the changing standards have influenced special education teachers’ efforts to meet the needs of their students, and the teachers’ perceptions of the consistent changes in standards. A narrative, qualitative design was used, which involved eight participant interviews. In each interview, the participants answered questions pertaining to their level of comfort teaching the Common Core Standards and Georgia Standards of Excellence, whether or not they received professional development on the standards, and what they think of the new standards. Currently, there is a paucity of research regarding teacher’s perspectives on curriculum standards, and this research project fills …

Differences In English Language Proficiency Growth: A Possible Indicator Of Giftedness For English Learners, Myriam Lindo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The disproportionality of culturally and linguistically diverse learners in exceptional education is an ongoing issue (Bernal, 2002; Ford, 2012). One of these special populations is that of English learners (ELs), who are overrepresented in special education programs and underrepresented in gifted and talented programs (Ford, 2012).The extant literature suggests that a rapid rate of growth in English language proficiency (ELP) may be one of the characteristics used to indicate giftedness in English learners (Brulles, Castellano, & Laing, 2011; Harris, Plucker, Rapp, & Martinez, 2009). However, no studies have analyzed English Language proficiency (ELP) growth trajectories of gifted ELs. This study …

Deaf / Hard Of Hearing Preschool Students’ Acquisition Of Language Through Dyadic And Triadic Communication Contexts, Molly S. Herman

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness and efficiency of using dyadic communication with a teacher of the deaf (ToD) and a Deaf/Hard of Hearing (D/HH) student compared to a triadic communication with a general education teacher, sign language interpreter, and D/HH student. Four participants in a self-contained D/HH early childhood classroom participated in both comparison groups using dyadic and triadic communication to acquire vocabulary language skills for communication while playing a preschool game. An adapted alternating treatment design (AATD) for single case research was used to rapidly alternate comparison groups using equivalent games and counterbalanced across …

The Relationship Between Behavior-Based Goal Groups And Point-Based School Wide Behavior Systems, Ashley R. Walgren

Theses and Dissertations

This study evaluated six students between the ages of 14 to 17 years old who are classified with emotional disturbance and attending an alternative school in suburban New Jersey to determine the impact of individual behavior-based goal-oriented groups on student behavioral performance. The goals groups were crafted using goal theory and were designed to address observed target behaviors in the school's pre-established point-based school-wide behavior support system. Data collected via the schoolwide point-based behavior system for the 2016-2017 and the 2017-2018 school years were analyzed to identify student performance. Additionally, data collected from the student self-evaluation process was compared to …

Black Exceptionality In Academia: A Cultural-Historical Re-Conceptualization Of Black Male Students Identified With Learning Disabilities In Higher Education, Larry Love, Dosun Ko, Aydin Bal

Journal of Research Initiatives

The under-representation of Black male students identified with learning disabilities (LD) in higher education is a symptom of a larger social injustice, the racialization of educational opportunities and outcomes in the United States. We provided a critical review of literature to examine the structural and social barriers facing Black college students identified with LD in terms of access to adequate support services, refusal of funds of knowledge that Black students bring to higher education, and hegemonic organization of higher education. Following themes are explored: a) historical legacy of racial inequity in academia; b) systemic contradictions in institutional practices; c) absence …

An In-Depth Case Study Of A Prospective Black Male Teacher Candidate With An Undisclosed Disability At A Historically Black College And University, Julius Davis, Lynne Long, Sarah Green, Yvonne M. Crawford, Jeannette Blackwood

Journal of Research Initiatives

As scholarship of Black male collegians is growing, there is limited research attentive to Black males with disabilities and in teacher education programs. The research focused on pre-service Black male teachers with disabilities attending HBCUs and the federal laws impacting their education and supports is absent. This research study fills the void by examining the individual experiences of a Black male pre-service teacher with a disability attending an HBCU. The research team used Black males with disability theory and single-subject case study methodology to describe Christopher “CJ” Jackson’s journey navigating his program of study as an English education major. Four …

A Qualitative Study: How Northeastern Illinois University’S College Of Education Program Successfully Prepares Black Males With A Previous Individualized Learning Plan To Become Teachers, Sunni Ali

Journal of Research Initiatives

As Teacher College Programs throughout the country attempt to increase their numbers of quality educators entering a classroom, one abiding concern remains: how do universities attract and successfully transition black male educators to become K-12 teachers? Such a lasting question has caused several national programs to arise, specifically an initiative consortium (N.I.C) that involved several colleges of education programs to develop and sustain strategies to increase black male teachers in the profession.

This qualitative-interview based study reviews how a teacher college program located in Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU), applies N.I.C. external and internal mechanisms to engage black male students' …