Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

Steps Toward Success: Mentoring Novice Teachers, Megan Thompson, Megan Elizabeth Thompson

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Abundant empirical research points to the positive outcomes of teacher retention rate when having mentor teachers. When looking at the mentoring program the research has shown a decline in teachers leaving the teaching field when they have a mentor for one to two years. States have started implementing their own mentoring programs with different requirements. There is not a standard set of requirements that multiple states have adopted. There is not law requiring first-year teachers to have mentoring. Research however has been inconclusive on the exact patterns that have been the underlying predictor of the program’s success. They have some …

Using Telehealth To Teach Caregivers Mand Training Using A Speech Generating Device, Sara Jeppson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Children with ASD often have struggles with social communication and developing a functional vocal output. Alternative and augmentative communication (AAC) can be used in different modes such as speech generating devices (SGDs) to help these individuals develop a vocal output. Caregivers are optimal to aid their children in learning these communication skills. Past studies such as Suberman and Civindini-Motta showed that behavioral skills training (BST) can be effective to teach caregivers communication training using an SGD. The current study aimed to replicate the procedures of Suberman and Civindini-Motta but extended it by adapting the procedures described using telehealth.

Evaluating Implementer Preference For And Correspondence Between Structured Descriptive Analysis And Trial Based Functional Analysis, Kacy Rodamaker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Determining the function of maladaptive behavior aides in the creation of effective intervention measures to change that behavior. Three assessments that are used to determine behavioral function include the trial based functional analysis (TBFA), structured descriptive analysis (SDA), and antecedent-behavior-consequence (ABC) recording. In the present study, we compared the time it took to conduct each of these assessments as well as the similarity between the functions identified by each assessment. Additionally, we compared procedural acceptability and implementer preference between the SDA and TBFA by collecting survey results from a staff participant who implemented the two measures with the support of …

Effect Of Delay On Reinforcer Preference As Measured By A Paired Stimulus Preference Assessment, Emma Preston

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Behavior interventions often utilize rewards to increase appropriate behavior. Current methods for identifying potential rewards only use immediately available items, however rewards in school or clinic settings are often delayed due to circumstance. Delay can decrease the value of a preferred stimuli. We propose and evaluate a method for considering delay to delivery of a preferred item when selecting a potential reward by asking children 8-11 to pick between a moderately preferred item immediately available or a highly preferred item that was delayed. 4 out of 5 participants increased selection for the moderately preferred item as delays to the highly …

Exploring Early Childhood/Early Childhood Special Education Personnel Preparation For Teaching Social Emotional Skills And Addressing Challenging Behavior, Melissa Yarczower

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Social emotional development is crucial for all young children. Children who develop age-appropriate social emotional skills engage in positive peer relationships, establish friendship skills, and have competent problem-solving skills. Without adequate social emotional skills, young children are at risk for detrimental long and short-term consequences such as academic failure, exclusionary practices, and school dropout. Interventions and support from well-trained teachers are essential for young children to acquire these skills. Using an explanatory mixed method approach, this study investigated how early childhood (EC) and early childhood special education (ECSE) teachers were trained to teach social emotional skills and address challenging behavior. …

“Why Did Devon Just Leave The Classroom?”: Disability Studies In Education-Informed Related Service Provision, Katie Newhouse, Laurie Rabinowitz

Excelsior: Leadership in Teaching and Learning

Public schools often schedule related services by using a mix of pull-out and push-in instruction, referred to as service delivery models. This poses challenges because the transitions to and from services are obvious to other students and can influence student identities and result in a loss of academic instructional time. This article shares inclusive approaches for novice teachers to learn how to organize related service provision in ways that strengthen student identities as individuals with disabilities. By focusing on how our previous teaching and research experiences inform our pedagogical design in our teacher education courses, we seek to open the …

An Analysis Of The Statewide Shortage Of Aba Professionals In New York, Leanna S. Mellon, Noor Syed, Lauren Lestremau Allen

Excelsior: Leadership in Teaching and Learning

Support services for many Autistic students in schools is critical. Behavior analysts are one type of service provider who offer support services in and outside of school settings to Autistic students. As behavioral support services are increasing in educational settings, it is important to ensure there are a sufficient number of professionals trained to provide high quality and compassionate support. However, there may not be enough state licensed providers to meet the growing need of students across the state of New York (NY). The supply of state licensed behavior analysts (LBAs) was calculated for the state of NY, its six …

The Other Fifty Percent: Expressions From Special Education Teachers About Why They Persist In The Profession, Laron A. Scott, Christine Powell, Lauren Bruno, Christopher J. Cormier, Joshua P. Taylor, Katherine Brendli

Excelsior: Leadership in Teaching and Learning

We examined reasons special educators are motivated to persist in the profession despite challenges that often lead to attrition for this group. Participants were 21 special education teachers with six or more years of teaching experience across multiple grade levels. Data were collected via the Zoom virtual meeting platform with four focus groups. Semi-structured interview techniques were used, and data were analyzed using deductive coding procedures. Participants shared external, employment, and personal factors associated with Billingsley’s (1993) career decision framework that influenced their persistence, such as supports from school administrators with expertise in special education law, passion for students and …

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.

The Lived Experiences Of Elementary School Teachers Who Embedded Behavioral Support In Academic Instruction: A Hermeneutic Phenomenology, Christina Marie Anderson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this hermeneutical phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of educators who embed behavioral learning support into their academic curriculum and describe the meaning of the perceived influence on academic achievement and social development for elementary students in two elementary schools. What are the lived experiences of educators who embed behavioral support as a form of social-emotional learning (SEL) into their academic curriculum? Social constructivism was the interpretive framework used to guide this study, supported by Gagne’s and Vygotsky’s learning theories. Ten elementary school teacher participants in a metropolitan Atlanta area school district were selected using …

The Role Of School–Community Collaboration In The Inclusive Education (Ie) Practices Concerning Students With Special Educational Needs (Sens) In Public And Private Schools In Abu Dhabi, Hamdah Jibar

Thesis/ Dissertation Defenses

This dissertation investigates the multifaceted role of school–community collaboration in inclusive education (IE) practices for students with special educational needs (SENs) in Abu Dhabi’s public and private schools in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Over the past two decades, the UAE government has intensified its efforts to enhance the realm if special education, aiming to improve SEN students’ social, cognitive, and academic outcomes. National attention for these practices aligns with the broader aspiration to establish an inclusive and equitable society.
The primary objective of this study is to explore the intricacies of school–community collaboration in fostering inclusive education practices. In …

Improving Behavior In Middle School Classes With Hispanic And English Language Learners: A Study Of Class‑Wide Function‑Related Intervention Teams, Emily J. Warburton, Paul Caldarella, Howard P. Wills, Rebecca Winters

Faculty Publications

English language learners (ELL) and Hispanic students are at an increased risk for academic difficulty. Effective classroom management strategies may help these students, but teachers often report lack of training in such strategies. Class-wide Function-related Intervention Teams in Middle School (CW-FIT MS) is a researchbased intervention that has helped teachers increase students’ on-task behavior using group contingencies, rewards, and praise. We investigated the efficacy of CW-FIT MS in classes with high proportions of Hispanic and ELL students using an ABAB single-subject withdrawal design with maintenance probes. One middle school English teacher and two of her classes (language arts and language …

Development Of The Preschool Autism Checklist (Pac) For Teachers, Omniah Gharib Alqahtani

Thesis/ Dissertation Defenses

The study aims to develop a new assessment tool for teachers to identify the early signs of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in preschool children in the UAE. There are limited instruments available to assess Autism in preschool children based on reports from their teachers. The Preschool Autism Checklist (PAC) was developed with special consideration to the Gulf culture. The main objective of this dissertation is to help preschool teachers assess their Emirati students to indicate the cases at risk of ASD. The study investigates previous research on ASD in the UAE and other countries in the Gulf region for more …

Short Report: Initial Pilot Of A Brief Career Development Program For Autistic Young Adults, Samantha Cadondon, Meghan Dawson, Jeanne Anne Carriere, Amy Jane Griffiths, Jean-G. Gehricke

Education Faculty Articles and Research

Background

Many autistic young adults may struggle to progress to further education or employment after high school, highlighting the need for tailored career development programs. If provided with the proper resources and support, the obstacles faced by autistic youth in pursuing post-secondary activities may decrease.

Aims

This pilot study aimed to examine the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a brief career development program consisting of a strengths and challenges intervention paired with a 12-week workshop intervention.

Methods and procedures

We studied the participants' changes in confidence and participation in pursuing post-secondary activities using a series of questionnaires in 20 participants, …

The Role Of School–Community Collaboration In The Inclusive Education Practices Concerning Students With Special Educational Needs In Public And Private Schools In Abu Dhabi, Hamdah Jibar

Dissertations

Strong school-community partnership has been found to play a critical role in the implementation of inclusive education. This dissertation investigates the multifaceted role of school–community collaboration in inclusive education (IE) practices for students with special educational needs (SENs) in Abu Dhabi’s public and private schools in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Over the past two decades, the UAE government has intensified its efforts to enhance the realm of special education, aiming to improve Students with SEN’s social, cognitive, and academic outcomes. National attention to these practices aligns with the broader aspiration to establish an inclusive and equitable society. In UAE, …

Counseling Practicum Students’ Experiences Working With Children With Learning Exceptionalities, Kathryn Babb, Viki Kelchner, Laurie O. Campbell

Teaching and Supervision in Counseling

School-based practicums provide opportunities for counselors-in-training to provide supervised counseling services to youth while providing authentic, immersive counseling experiences for the counselor. Children counseled may identify with or without exceptionalities. The researchers sought to understand the experiences of five counselors-in-training who counseled children with exceptionalities during a semester-long school-based practicum. In this phenomenological study, researchers thematically coded transcripts from a focus group about counseling children with exceptionalities. Three themes were identified: (a) counselors-in-training identity inclusive of anticipated counselor identity versus their practical identity, (b) acceptance inclusive of acceptance of self and acceptance of clients, and (c) worldview inclusive of culture …

A Divine Assignment: Church Supports For Caretakers And Children Impacted By Disabilities, Pamela Scretchen

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

How can the church provide leadership in the area of inclusion and offer families a place of refuge and support? How does the church care for and teach children with disabilities? As a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst, I have partnered with congregations to start programs for families impacted by disabilities. Here, we show how a family affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder challenged their church to provide a sustainable program. There is hope that the church can lead inclusion efforts and develop special needs support for caretakers. The article reveals one family’s journey in returning to worship with their autistic son and …

Institutional Impact Of The Build Program: Postsecondary Education For Students With Intellectual Disabilities, Mary Lindell, Jessica Daniels, Jodi Wolkerstorfer

Day of Scholarship

The current higher education environment is plagued with declining enrollment (Eide, 2018) and shrinking budgets (Doyle, 2020) while historically under-represented and under-served students, including those with intellectual disabilities (ID) (Thoma, et al., 2011), have traditionally experienced limited access to higher education (Thelin, 2011). The purpose of this study was to research the institutional impact of the BUILD program, one university’s effort to increase access to and the effectiveness of higher education for all students, including those with ID, while simultaneously expanding the prospective student enrollment pool. Through a qualitative case study analysis, this research explored and evaluated the implementation and …

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 …

Chatgpt And Other Generative Ai: A Game Changer For Special Education?, Jennifer J. Lesh

Faculty and Staff Publications & Presentations

Keynote session that involved the audience, had them engage in share outs and exploring, as well as provided open-ended thought provoking questions to share with other stakeholders.

Teaching Science To Students With Disabilities Using Socio-Scientific Issues, Rachel Juergensen, Laura Zangori, Pat Friedrichsen, Troy D. Sadler

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities experience inequitable learning opportunities in science classrooms. To create equitable learning environments, science teachers must embed supports within their curriculum units. Teachers rely on their beliefs about the capabilities of their students, their role as science teachers, and the goals of science education to adapt their curriculum units. Curricular changes occur through their pedagogical design capacity (PDC) during lesson planning and enactments, in which their beliefs inform their PDC choices. Yet there is little research regarding science teachers’ beliefs about teaching students with disabilities and how they enact their science curriculum materials in general education science classrooms. …

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, …

Results Of A One-Day Seminar On Preservice Teachers’ Incorporation Of The Udl Framework In Lesson Design, K. Alisa Lowrey, Audra Classen, Peter Paprzycki

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

Students with disabilities are increasingly receiving their instruction in inclusive classrooms. General education teachers continue to report a lack of preparation to address their needs. This study examined the impact of a 6-hour professional development seminar on the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework to determine if preservice general and special education teachers’ overall performance in lesson design to reduce barriers, identified through increased attention to student variability, improved. Two lesson plans, preseminar and postseminar, from 242 participants were scored using a modified education field experience (EFE) rubric that included 19 evaluation criteria. A Rasch analysis was used to determine …

Aligning Classroom Management Strategies With A Social Emotional Learning Curriculum In Early Childhood, Jessica Kemp, Sara Whitcomb

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Traditionally, school-based preventative frameworks have been implemented in isolation with little consideration of alignment and integration of practices throughout the school day. The present study aims to address this gap by increasing school psychologists’ preventative involvement with consultation in early childhood school settings. Using an integrated approach through a multiple baseline design, four Head Start educators were trained in classroom management practices, to increase opportunities throughout the day for teaching, prompting, and reinforcing key skills taught through the Second Step Early Learning (SSEL) social emotional learning curriculum. Findings suggest that a brief professional development session (1-hour) followed by weekly performance …

Introduction To Part 2 Of The Special Issue: Helping Relevant Stakeholders Promote Behavioral Outcomes In Early Childhood, Kayla Bates-Brantley, Zachary Charles Labrot 7947921, Sarah Harry

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Early childhood is often referred to as a sensitive period of development due to the critical nature of skills a young child is expected to acquire across a short period of time. It is a time when foundational social-emotional and academic skills can set the trajectory for later successful outcomes. It is also a time when the lack of critical skill development can increase a child’s risk for future mental health and other long-term negative outcomes. Therefore, it is always pressing that early childhood institutions and stakeholders are abreast of evidence-based practices that promote the healthy development of a child’s …

Functional Communication Training In Inclusive School Settings For Students With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities: A Literature Review, Andy B. Masud, Virginia L. Walker, Megan E. Carpenter, Ashley Anderson

Publications

Functional communication training (FCT) is a well-established, evidence-based practice used to address challenging behavior among individuals across settings, ages, and disability categories. However, the research is limited on the implementation of FCT in inclusive school settings for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The purpose of this review was to summarize FCT intervention studies implemented in inclusive K–12 school settings for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. We synthesized studies to summarize study characteristics, quality, and intervention effectiveness. Our findings suggest that FCT was most often implemented as part of a multi-component intervention package and delivered by education team members. …

Using Reciprocal Teaching Strategies To Improve Reading Comprehension For English As A Second Language Students With Learning Disabilities, Hana M. Almohamadi

Theses and Dissertations in Early Childhood Education

Students who have problems comprehending textual material tend to experience failing grades, peer rejection, and even social isolation. Furthermore, students with poor reading comprehension demonstrate poor academic performance in all subjects, not due to difficulty in learning specific subject content (i.e., math, history, etc.), but rather their inability to comprehend reading passages related to that subject knowledge. Reciprocal teaching (RT) is an effective tool for teaching children with Learning Disabilities (LD) to improve their reading comprehension abilities. These multiple cognitive strategies can meet the needs of many students in terms of more deliberate, directed, and self-regulated learning through students’ interaction …

Improving Fact Fluency For Students With Learning Disabilities, Carrie Wall

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

The intent of this action research project was to assess the impact of fact fluency when implementing the Direct Instruction (DI) Flashcard intervention for students in special education using curriculum-based measurements. The participants were elementary students who all received specially designed instruction in the area of math due to their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) in that area. In addition to the body of research in place regarding fact fluency and the DI Flashcard intervention, this study also took into account the students’ initial skill levels as outlined in their IEPs. The intervention occurred over three weeks in a special education …