Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

The Use Of Speech-Generating Devices For Preschoolers With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Jessica Miller

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The first of the following articles provides a review of the literature related to vocalizations among individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems, with special attention paid to speech-generating devices (SGD). After providing an overview of ASD, evidence-based practices (EBP), and AAC types and a brief history, this review evaluates studies that collected data on vocalizations in SGD-users, including both those that targeted vocalizations as a dependent variable and those that measured vocalizations as a collateral effect without directly targeting it. The goal of this review is to evaluate whether SGD use may …

The Impact Of Game-Based Learning In A Special Education Classroom, Mckenzi James

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

Every school has at least one student who has a learning disability or struggles with academics. Every school also has teachers with the ability to reach out to struggling students, using traditional and nontraditional approach to learning. Game-based learning is a nontraditional approach which introduces students to game-based learning instead of more traditional paper and pencil activities. Multiple researchers have found game-based learning raised test scores, allowed for hands on social skill lessons, and has helped generate a positive environment for students. A few researchers shared the negative impacts of game-based learning, including the lack of transferability of skills for …

Ecpse710:Curriculum And Instruction For Childhood Special Education, Suna Kim

Open Educational Resources

The overall objective of this course is to provide program candidates with strategies, tools, and techniques to design and implement meaningful educational experiences and opportunities for children with or at-risk for learning disabilities. The focus is on assuring and promoting access and participation in the general education curriculum and inclusive educational settings. Candidates within this course will be provided with experiences related to curriculum design, assessment, and instruction, as well as multiple opportunities to develop, modify, and evaluate curriculum; design informal assessments; and plan and teach direct instruction lessons.

Applied Behavior Analysis For The Treatment Of Autism: A Systematic Review Of Assistive Technologies, Fábio Junior Alves, Emerson Assis De Carvalho, Juliana Aguilar, Lucelmo Lacerda De Brito, Guilherme Sousa Bastos

Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling Student Research

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that may lead to significant impairment in social communication, repetitive patterns of behavior, and possible fixed and restricted interests. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is a well-supported and evidence-based treatment for the delays attributed to ASD. Assistive technologies, such as gamification, software apps, computer-based training (Web), and robotics; provide a standardized method of implementing ABA techniques. This review provides a synthesis of the main characteristics of these technologies. The assessed proposals focused on technologies such as Distributed Systems, Image Processing, Gamification, and Robotics. The primary objectives of these tools sought to improve social …

Special Education Services In Private Faith-Based And Nonsectarian Elementary Schools, Craig W. Bartholio

The Journal of Faith, Education, and Community

The purpose of this study was to investigate the existence of specialized support and services designed for students with disabilities in faith-based and nonsectarian elementary schools (n=57). An questionnaire was used to explore if there is a difference in how different faith tradition (Catholic, Protestant, Jewish) and nonsectarian affiliated elementary schools addressed the needs of enrolled students with identified disabilities. From 2006 to 2015, enrollment of students with a disability in a private school setting has increased from 1.0% to 1.4%. Faith-based schools overwhelmingly indicated a greater presence of special education type services: use of instructional aides, pullout …

Mothers Of Children With Dyslexia Share The Protection, “In-Betweenness,” And The Battle Of Living With A Reading Disability: A Feminist Autoethnography, Christine Woodcock

The Qualitative Report

In order to shed personalized light upon some of the confusions surrounding dyslexia, this study draws upon critical disability studies to share the stories of mothers of children with dyslexia. This feminist autoethnography shares the voice of the researcher alongside interviews with 5 participants, all mothers of children with dyslexia, who were in their 40s, and ethnically and socioeconomically diverse. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis, results illustrated that the children inhabited an “in-betweenness” in their disability, in the ways dyslexia was less visual and therefore misunderstood. Likewise, the children presented a great deal of resistance in their learning, which was later …

Effective Paraeducator Implementation Of Behavior Intervention Plans For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder: An Exploration Of Training And Support Needs, Kristen Nottle-Powell

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this convergent mixed methods study was to describe the training and support paraeducators who work with students with autism spectrum disorder received as they implemented behavior intervention plans based on the Browning-Wright, Mayer, and Saren model. Additionally, this study sought to describe the training and challenges experienced by paraeducators, as well as their training and support recommendations for paraeducators who work with students with autism spectrum disorder with a behavior intervention plan.

Methodology: A convergent mixed methods study was used to describe the training and support experiences, challenges, and recommendations, as described by paraeducators …

The Effectiveness Of A Jordanian Sign Language Training Program In Developing Signal Translation Skills Among A Sample Of Special Education Students Attending Sign Language Courses At The University Of Jordan., عنان ابو مريم, فاروق الروسان

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

This study aimed to test the effectiveness of a training program for the Jordanian sign language in developing the interpreting skills of a sample of special education students who are expected to work with the deaf students after graduation. The study sample is consisted of (70) students from the Special Education major in the University of Jordan who have joined the courses of sign language held by the Deanship of Students Affair at the university. The training program was applied to the sample and data collection using a test of sign language interpreting skills prepared by the researcher for this …

Summary Of Performance: Bridging The Transition From High School To Post-Secondary Education For Students With Sld, Julie D. Southward, Mariya T. Davis

Special Education Faculty Publications (Archived)

Transition for students with disabilities has been the focus of educational policies for several decades. Still, students with disabilities, including those with a specific learning disability (SLD), continue to experience difficulties transitioning to post-school environments, particularly post-secondary education (PSE). The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA, 2004) requires schools to provide a Summary of Performance (SOP) to students receiving special education services during their final year of high school. Although the SOP must include recommendations for helping students meet their post-secondary goals there is little guidance leading to inconsistencies across states. The purpose of this article is to review …

Reclaiming Joy: Finding Resilience In Families With Children With Autism, Nancy K. Hashimoto

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation used a convergent mixed-methods survey study to examine the key components in building resilience in families with a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study involved survey responses from 333 families via online media. Using an instrument designed by the author (Family Resilience Scale – Families with Autism Measurement (FRS-FAM), this work clarified how protective factors and positive psychology work conversely to the challenges and build resilience within individual family members and the whole family to celebrate the unique gifts and qualities of each family member. The quantitative results of this study established four statistically significant protective …

Gaps In The Mental Health System,Justice System And The Transition To Adulthood: An Analysis Of Unmet Needs, Maria Gremli Sanders

Dissertations

ABSTRACT More than two million adolescents and young adults are interconnected with the justice system every year. An alarming number of transitional age young adults (ages 17-25 years) in the United States justice system suffer with serious emotional problems that have at least one diagnosable mental health illness. The multiple needs for rehabilitation among these young adults have often gone unmet, and thus, they have become an extremely vulnerable subgroup in the justice system. The purpose of this study was to explore issues of disparity within mental health services, the justice system, and the unmet needs of transitional age young …

Mathematical Identity Formation: Preparing Students With Learning Disorders For Post-Secondary Education And Careers, Ravi Anil Shah

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

Formation of identity for individuals engaging in mathematical study influences the utilization and value of the subject matter. In curricular studies surrounding mathematics, a need for research pertaining to the development of mathematical identity for students with learning disorders continues to exist. In this transformative design study, a questionnaire-style instrument created for quantitative data collection provides detailed information about students with learning disorders and their identity formation related to achievement in mathematics. The quantitative aspect of this study helps to understand mathematical identity formation by analyzing levels of Confidence, Motivation, Anxiety, and Career Interest. The results show a statistically significant …

Naturalistic Instructional Approaches In The Early Childhood Inclusive Classroom, Maranda Martinez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

As a result of the new Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA), states are required to provide students with disabilities high quality education in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) to the greatest extent possible. Many students are now being educated alongside their general education peers in blended classrooms. Co-teaching has become a practical strategy to provide high-quality, individualized, and specialized education within blended classrooms. However, studies have shown that early childhood educators are not prepared to teach students with disabilities. Naturalistic instructional approaches are an evidence-based practice that can be utilized by early childhood inclusive co-teachers to teach important …

Ecpse 729: Ethics And Professionalism In Aba Syllabus, Lenwood Gibson

Open Educational Resources

No abstract provided.

Reading Robot, Gillian Watts, Andrew Myers, Sabrinna Tan, Taylor Klein, Omeed Djassemi

General Engineering

Presently, there is an insufficient availability of human experts to assist students in reading competency and comprehension. Our team’s goal was to create an improved socially assistive robot for use by therapists, teachers, and parents to help children and adults develop reading skills while they do not have access to specialists. HAPI is a socially assistive robot that we created with the goal of helping students practice their reading comprehension skills. HAPI enables a student to improve their reading skills without an educator present, while enabling educators to review the student's performance remotely. Design constraints included: physical size, weight, duration …

Examining District Administrators’ Professional Development Decision-Making Processes Concerning New Special Education Teachers, Sarah J. Bacalia

Dissertations

New special education teachers face an abundance of challenges from day one that directly correlate to student outcomes (i.e. classroom management, instruction, curriculum, school culture and operations, test preparation and administration, state standards, parent relations, and interactions with other teachers). District administrators, (i.e. superintendents, assistant superintendents, curriculum and instruction directors, directors of student services, special education directors, and special education supervisors) play an important role in determining how to best use their districts' professional development time and resources to support new special education teachers as they work to continually improve student outcomes. Therefore, professional development should be a purposeful endeavor. …

Building Engineering Awareness: Problem Based Learning Approach For Stem Integration, Abeera P. Rehmat, Kendall Hartley

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

Educators in the twenty-first century need to think of innovative ways to engage and prepare students for current and future challenges while cultivating an interest among students in STEM disciplines. This study sought to investigate the impact of problem-based learning on students’ content knowledge and critical thinking towards STEM. This study employed a quasi-experimental repeated measure design. Instruments such as STEM content assessments and a standardized critical thinking test were employed for data collection. Analysis was conducted using a mixed repeated measure between-within subject analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results revealed a significant difference (p < . 05) between problem-based learning and traditional learning groups in regard to their content knowledge and critical thinking skills.

Autistic Representation In Charter Schools: A First-Hand Experience Within A Michigan Charter, Morgan Selke

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

Since the 1990s, Michigan has had an overabundance of charter schools established within the state. In hopes that it would urge public school districts to improve. Michigan has become the state with the second-highest amount of charter schools in the nation (Zernike, 2016). There have been many controversial issues that surround the inclusion of charter schools in the public education sector. One issue that I wanted to explore more was the underrepresentation of autistic students and students with special needs in these schools--focusing on the resources and support available to these students. This article showcases my experience teaching, as a …

Data On Act Program 2020, Rebekka Jez

School of Leadership and Education Sciences: Faculty Scholarship

A Catholic university and local diocese partnered to address the shortage of teachers in Catholic schools and to train educators with skills to meet the needs of all learners. The Academy of Catholic Teaching (ACT) program is based on the three pillars of the University Consortium of Catholic Education: education, community, and spirituality. Based on a two-phase evaluation of the pilot program, stakeholders reported increased faith-based integration, coaching and mentoring support, and research-based, inclusive practices. This article is an analysis of the ACT End-of-Program Evaluation which identified six emergent themes: coaching, collaboration, community engagement, coursework, spiritual opportunities, and program improvements.

Developing Strategic Learners: Supporting Self-Efficacy Through Goal Setting And Reflection, Zoi A. Traga Philippakos

The Language and Literacy Spectrum

When students face academic challenges, when they receive poor grades on a subject, and when they see unchanged performance -even though they put effort on a task- they often develop the belief that they are not capable of overcoming challenges. Continuous underperformance affects students’ self-efficacy and belief that success is an achievable goal. The purpose of this paper is to explain the process of goal setting with continuous reflection to support students’ writing growth and persistence. The paper further comments on teachers’ goal setting for instructional and professional goals in order to support their instructional delivery and their growth as …

Beliefs And Self-Efficacy Of Parents Of Young Children With Hearing Loss, Sophie E. Ambrose, Margo Appenzeller, Alexandra Mai, Jean L. Desjardin

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

The purpose of this study was to learn more about the beliefs and self-efficacy of parents of young children with hearing loss. Seventy-two parents completed the Scale of Parental Involvement and Self-Efficacy - Revised (SPISE-R), which queries parents about their child’s hearing device use and their perceptions of their own beliefs, knowledge, confidence, and actions pertaining to supporting their child’s auditory access and spoken language development. Two beliefs were identified that related to parents’ action scores and one belief was identified that related to children’s hearing device use. Knowledge and confidence scores were significantly correlated with action scores and children’s …

Using Technology To Monitor Hearing Device Use And Linguistic Environments: Early Intervention Providers’ Perspectives, Margo C. Appenzeller, Sophie E. Ambrose

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

To optimize outcomes of children with hearing loss, early intervention professionals must work with families to optimize both children’s hearing device use and the linguistic and auditory features of their environments. Two technologies with potential use in monitoring these domains are data logging and Language Environment Analysis (LENA) technology. This study had two objectives: 1) to determine whether providers’ experiences, perspectives, and current practices indicate there is a need for tools to better monitor these domains, and 2) to gain a better understanding of providers’ experiences with and perspectives on use of data logging and LENA technology using an internet-based …

Odds Of Autism At 5 To 10 Years Of Age For Children Who Did Not Pass Their Aabr Newborn Hearing Screen, But Were Diagnosed With Normal Hearing, Shihfen Tu, Craig A. Mason, Deborah L. Rooks-Ellis, Patricia Lech

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Background: Research has found atypical Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) activity in some children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The current study examined whether an association may also be found between ASD and pass/refer results obtained via Automated Auditory Brainstem Response (AABR) screening. As stewards of large-scale AABR data, an AABR – ASD association may be of interest to EHDI programs.

Methods: State EHDI data for 29,350 children born in Maine between 2003 and 2005 were linked with education records, including special education status, for the 2010/2011 and 2013/2014 school years.

Results: Children who did not pass their …

Interagency Collaboration In Local Partnership Agreements: A Qualitative Case Study Identifying And Describing The Perception Of Preparedness Of Transition Specialists Working In Workability I Projects, Barbara Boyd

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative case study was to identify and describe the preparedness of transition specialists working in WorkAbility I (WAI) projects as perceived by transition specialists using Kohler’s Taxonomy for Collaborative Transition Programming. In addition, its purpose is to explore the perceptions of transition specialists regarding interagency collaboration in local partnership agreements (LPAs).

Methodology: This qualitative case study identified and described WAI transition specialists’ perception of transition programming and interagency collaboration. It employed the use of semi-structured interview questions consisting of open-ended questions. Using this methodology promoted the extraction of high quality information from the transition specialists. …

Integrating Backward Design Principles For Course Curriculum Planning, Sang Seok Nam

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

The purpose of this project is to enhance curriculum planning by integrating backward design principles for a graduate course, ESPE 6662: Methods for Students with Moderate/Severe Disabilities. Backward design, a curriculum planning approach introduced by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe (1998), challenges college professors to begin their planning process by developing goals and outcomes for student learning. Backward design encourages instructors to establish the curriculum outcomes and goals before reviewing instructional materials. Therefore, backward design is an effective way of providing guidance for designing courses. Once the learning outcomes have been identified, the instructor is to develop assessments and instructional …

Factors Contributing To Young Men Of Color Dropping Out Of High School And Experiencing Incarceration: What Influenced Their Decision To Return To School And Graduate?, Justina C. Montoya

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

Dropping out of high school is an issue that disproportionately affects the lives of young men of color in New Mexico and across the country. While there are multiple reasons that impact a student's decision to drop out of school, it is often compounded by other factors that also lead to incarceration.

This study focused on young men of color who dropped out of school, experienced incarceration, and through this process made the decision to return to school and earn a high school diploma. This study was performed at a charter high school in a southwestern state. The mission of …

A Study On Early Intervention Referrals And Eligibility Of Prenatal Drug-Exposed Children, Holly Nelson

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to see what the developmental trend was among children who were prenatally exposed to drugs and early intervention services. There is not much research-based data that has been collected on this topic, even though in 2004 federal legislation was passed to improve early intervention service access for drug-exposed infants. This study was motivated by scientific evidence that maternal substance abuse and prenatal drug exposure has detrimental effects on the fetus and prolonged effects on children. This study collected data on how many prenatally drug-exposed children were referred for early intervention services and how many …

The Comparison Of Video Modeling And Task Analysis To Teach Daily Living Skills To Non-Verbal Students With Developmental Disabilities In A Transition Program, Kasey Anderson

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to examine the comparison of using video modeling and task analysis to teach independent living skills to students in a transition program. Two non-verbal students with developmental cognitive disabilities participated in this study. The students were taught daily living skills that are part of a functional curriculum (e.g., loading and unloading the dishwasher, brushing their teeth, washing their face, sweeping, and cleaning a table). The first student (Student A), was shown a pre-recorded video of the task being performed and asked to perform the task. The second student (Student B) was presented with a …

The Effects Of Multiple Accommodations On Student Engagement And Work Completion In Fifth Grade Students With Reading Disabilities, Allison Ternes

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of several accommodations that may benefit fifth grade students who have been identified with a reading disability in the general education classroom in order to increase engagement and work completion during English Language Arts instruction. Data was collected through teacher surveys, teacher interviews, and on-task/off-task observations. Surveys were conducted prior to the study, mid-study, and post-study. Teacher interviews were conducted at the planning meeting biweekly and observations were completed prior to the study, mid-study, and post study. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the study was not able to be conducted …

Math Problem Solving Discussions: Increasing Communication For Students With Autism, Anna Benson

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The purpose of this research study was to report the effect social scripts have on the ability to increase communication and understanding during partner work in math for students with autism. The study was made up of 9 participants, all of whom were enrolled in the same special education pull out math class. Data was collected through observations to identify the frequency of scripted and unscripted communicative questions and responses, along with understanding of the math activity. Data was also collected through a survey at the beginning and end of the study to obtain student feedback on social scripts and …