Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

Implementation Of Previous Research On Competency-Based Practicum In Special Education At Usu, Clifton W. Jenkins

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

There is a very real need for exploration and development of alternative approaches to special education (Lilly, 1971). Some have questioned the necessity of teachers receiving preservice training at teacher education institutions (Popham, 1971). Schwartz (1971) suggested that teachers need special training before being placed in a diagnostic-prescriptive teaching situation.

The recent trend is to integrate the special student into the regular classroom. This requires that special educators be trained to perform specialized assessment and provide remedial instruction for a variety of exceptional children in a way that is compatible with regular classroom routine and procedure (Burrello, Tracy, and Schultz, …

An Evaluation Of Special Education Majors' Attitudes Towards Exceptional Children And Knowledge Of Techniques And Services., Maria Elena Berghmans Pynn

Special Education ETDs

The main questions dealt with in this thesis revolve around the attitudes of undergraduates and graduates in Special Education towards exceptional children, as well as their knowledge of instructional techniques. Special emphasis was placed on the determination of the role of Special Education 450 (Adaptive Instructional Techniques) in the acquisition of attitudes towards these children. Five groups of students were tested in order to ascertain whether differences of attitude existed between them and to test for the types of attitudes acquired in Special Education 450. Two of the groups consisted of graduate level students, the third of beginning students, the …

Educational Opportunities For Pregnant Students In Selected Utah Schools, Pearl Bergeson

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Education of women has been neglected in many ways throughout history. In recent decades educational opportunities for women have been greatly expanded. Women have become leaders in education and compose the majority of public school teachers. In spite of these strides in women's education, and growing educational provisions for both men and women, some special groups remain neglected.

This investigator is particularly concerned with one special group: School-age girls who are pregnant. Special educational needs of most school-age pregnant girls are not being met. These young women often face insurmountable difficulties in the schools.

Objective Evaluation Of A Treatment Program For Severely Maladjusted Children, Thomas I. Shikoski

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of Teacher Attitudes And Certain Other Variables In Three School Settings For The Educable Mentally Handicapped, Claudia Todd Jacobs

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

[Development Of A Program To Teach Ruler Skills To Problem Learning Students At The Junior High Level], Stuart L. Wittwer

All Graduate Projects

The objective of this project is to develop a simple to read, easy to use, low cost program to teach ruler skills to one-fourth (1/4) inch. The program is one that the students are placed into and can progress at their own learning rate-child directed. Also, the program is to be of a manner that is straight forward and easy to follow so the reader does not have to spend time sifting through non-essential materials. The project is to be designed for problem learning students at the junior high level. However, the materials within should be applicable to any child …

Using Special Education Students As Cross-Age Tutors, Judith Pearl Graham

All Master's Theses

The topic of this study is the use of Special Education students as cross-age tutors. Ten students, third through sixth graders, were trained to be tutors. Ten first and second graders were proteges. The experiment was divided into three eight week session. The E tutored all Ss for Session I. During Session II the tutors tutored their proteges. The E continued to tutor the tutors. Session III was the same as Session I. This research indicates that children in Special Education classes can benefit academically from being a cross-age tutor.

A Comparison Of Competencies Required By Special Education Prevocational Teachers In The State Of Washington, George Edward Harris

All Master's Theses

This study is a report of an attempt to identify the competencies which are important for teachers in special education prevocational programs in the state of Washington. The competencies, as listed by the authorities, were placed in rank order and then compared with their rank order as listed by the teachers, using the Spearman rank order correlation coefficient. The correlation of .284 was considered to be significant, therefore the null hypothesis was rejected.

Personal characteristics also were listed and rated as to whether they were more or less important to special education teachers than to regular classroom teachers. Three characteristics …

Do Seating Arrangements Affect Academic Learning In A Positive And Negative Classroom, Geraldine R. Offrink

All Master's Theses

This study compared the effectiveness of seating arrangements with academic learning in a positive and negative classroom. It was found that the relationship between the seating arrangement and academic behavior in the positive room was statistically significant, but not in the negative room. This study was limited by a small sample, one week durations of each seating arrangement, a test that had not been used previously, and possibly the "Hawthorne effect."

The Effectiveness Of A Gestural Cue Language Program For Children With Severely And Profoundly Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Meredith Jean Nicholls

All Master's Theses

This study proposed to teach a group of institutionalized children with profound intellectual and developmental disabilities, functionally non-verbal children a gestural-cue language system.

Techniques of shaping and imitation were employed in the training of the subjects. Daily assessments were taken and recorded on 6 cycle logarithmic graph paper.

Of the 17 subjects involved in the study, 3 showed measurable progress and retention and were retained in the gesture program.

Recommendations included studies to further investigate the "sign" language medium as a means of communication for the severely and profoundly intellectually and developmentally disabled population.

An Experimental Study Of The Effects Of Perceptual-Motor Training On First Grade Achievement, Susan Paul

All Master's Theses

Two matched groups of first grade students, one of which received a perceptual-motor training program, were compared by a series of tests to determine whether those children having received such training had higher achievement than those with no training.

In overall achievement, non significant differences were found between the two groups. Significant differences were found as the I.Q., perceptual-motor ability, and rating on teacher rating scales with the experimental group making higher gains. The average and slow children of the experimental group did show significantly higher gains in overall achievement than the control group. No differences were found with the …

Analysis Of Content Of Four Reading Programs For Students With Moderate Intellectual Disabilities, Susan D. Peters

All Master's Theses

This paper presents a content analysis of four reading programs being used by the moderately intellectually disabled in three Intermediate School Districts in the state of Washington. The four programs analyzed were Distar Reading I, Edmark Reading Program, Language Master Card Programs, and Programmed Reading--Webster. The learning characteristics defined for this educational group were perception, discrimi­nation, mediation, retention, concept learning, generaliza­tion, transfer, problem solving, and motivation. Each program was analyzed as to its incorporation of each of the specified learning characteristics.

A Multi-Sensory Approach To Teaching Spelling To Learning Disabled Children, Judith M. Meuleman

Master's Theses

Problem

Learning disabled children are receiving increasing attention, for despite an intelligence quotient within the normal range, they are not achieving in school as well as their peers. The reasons offered for this phenomenon seem to relate to perceptual problems. Specific learning disabilities occur in reading, arithmetic, spelling, handwriting and other motor coordination areas. This study investigates the effect of a multi-sensory method of teaching spelling to learning disabled children using sandpaper letters to utilize the tactile and kinesthetic sensory modalities.

Method

Unfamiliar spelling words were taught to 40 learning disabled children, 38 boys and 2 girls. The children were …

The Role Of The Language Sample And Short Term Interventions In The Differential Diagnosis Of Mental Retardation., Jane Blumenfeld

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of the study was to determine the role of the language sample and short-term interventions in diagnosing retardation in primary grade Spanish surnamed students from low socioeconomic level homes. The study also explored methods of programming for language development and their value in keeping target population students in the mainstream of public education

Television Viewing Habits Of Selected Special Education And Regular Education Children In Five New Mexico School Districts., Jose E. Cordova

Special Education ETDs

This study was conducted to determine:

1) what the different viewing habits were of children in special education and regular education programs,

2) what the different viewing habits were of children from different ethnic backgrounds, and

3) what the different viewing habits were of children living in different population settings.

It was known that commercial television had Statewide coverage through one or more channels. The initial survey of the study sought to determine the range and use of the educational channel. Educational television capability was reported in approximately half of the school districts in the State. A review of the …

The Relation Of Visual Fixation And Pursuit To Posture In Four Month Infants, Nancy M. Fieber

Student Work

The frozen posture of a young child as he visually attends to something of interest, or the very young infantTs wide open eyes and mouth as he fixes on a stimulus, illustrate dramatically the close relationship between the visual system and the total action system. The two appear to be inseparable and interdependent.

When vision is impaired, control of posture may be impaired as evidenced by the typical delay in head righting in prone and all-fours postures of the blind infant. (Gesell and Amatruda, 1941; Gesell et al, 1949) In other children with severe visual impairment a peculiar head posture …

The Relationship Between Field Dependence And Self-Concept In Elementary School Children, Celia Shore

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between field dependence (Witkin, et al., 1954, 1962) and academic self-concept. The relationship between body concept and field dependence was further examined. The sample was randomly selected from the sixth grade population at a suburban New Mexico elementary school located in a predominantly white middle class neighborhood with some Black and Mexican-American children. Subjects were administered the Short Form Test of Academic Aptitude, the Group Embedded Figures Test, the Behavioral Q Sort, and the Draw-a­Person Test which was scored with the Witkin Sophistication Scale. The Group Embedded Figures Test was …

A Study Of The Appropriateness Of The Present Special Education Administrative Models Of Arizona, New Mexico, Utah And The Bureau Of Indian Affairs For The Provision Of Services To Navajo Handicapped Children., Gerald Roger Platt

Special Education ETDs

There are, at the present time, four major agencies providing special education services to Navajo children. These are: the states of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, and Department of Education of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Each of these agencies has its own special education administrative model and each of those mode is different. It has been the purpose of this thesis to determine the adequacy of those models for the provision of special education services to handicapped Navajo children. Where it has been determined that present guidelines and standards are not appropriate, new guide lines and standards have been …

Experiential Awareness: An Existential Approach To Group Psychotherapy With Adolescents, Rae Dezettel Perls

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to describe experi­ential awareness as an existential approach to psychotherapy with adolescents in groups. Integrated within the study were the critical issues of the nature and behavior of the therapist in the psychotherapeutic encounter with adoles­cents. Review of the literature on adolescent psychology pertinent to the practice of adolescent psychotherapy sug­gested that when adolescents experience "identity crisis," peer group therapy is appropriate. The major propositions, assumptions, and applications of experiential awareness therapy relevant to adolescent therapy groups were examined. The use of therapist journal notes was presented to illus­trate the therapist's experience in the …

Maternal Attitudes Toward Clinical Evaluation Of Learning Disability Children, Leanne Davis Johnson

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to survey the attitudes of two groups of mothers of male children with learning disabilities. Group I consisted of mothers of boys diagnosed as hyperactive and receiving medication at the time of the evaluation. Group II was the mothers of boys diagnosed as academically disabled and not receiving medication at the time of the evaluation. This study was specifically concerned with maternal attitudes toward: 1) the clinical evaluation at Lovelace Clinic, 2) the change in their child's home behavior, 3) the responsiveness of the school to each child's needs, and 4) the child's reaction …

Evaluation Of Placement Procedures For The Educable Mentally Handicapped In A Public School System, Eugene Delbert Valencia

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to determine how well diagnostic procedures in a public school system of New Mexico conformed to two major definitions of Educable Mentally Handicapped and to determine which components of the diagnostic process were regarded by the evaluators as most critical in labeling children as Educable Mentally Handicapped. The subjects for the study consisted of fifteen professional evaluators and twenty-nine recently placed Educable Mentally Handicapped students of a New Mexico public school system. The instruments used were a diagnostic rating scale and a questionnaire check list. The diagnostic rating scale was designed to determine which …

Relation Of Self-Concept And Values And Public School Achievement For Selected American Pueblo Indian Students Attending Public School In The State Of New Mexico, Winfred Bullard Senior

Special Education ETDs

This study was designed to investigate the self-concept and values and the achievement of selected Pueblo Indian students attending public school in New Mexico. The population consisted of Pueblo Indian students living in a particular school district and attending a public school in that district. The instruments used to conduct the investigation were the Tennessee Self Concept Scale, the Allport-Vernon-Lindzey Study of Values, a Sentence Completion, a Cultural Theme, Intelligence Tests scores, and the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills.

The Relationship Between Fifth Grade Children's Performance On The Goldman-Fristoe-Woodcock Test Of Auditory Discrimination And Ratings Of Attention Given By A Teacher Using The Devereux Elementary School Behavior Rating Scale, Carter Gordon Brower

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship of children's performance on the Noise Subtest of the Goldman-Fristoe-Woodcock (GFW) Test of Auditory Discrimination and ratings in Classroom Disturbance and in­attentive-Withdrawn from the Devereux Elementary School Behavior Rating Scale DESB.

The sample consisted of a single fifth grade class in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The class contained 29 students, but nine of these were eliminated because of auditory discrimination problems as measured by the GFW Test of Auditory Discrimination. According to the school records, none of the subjects had any significant hearing loss.

Data were analyzed with the Spearman Rank …

Effects Of Parent Participation On The Arithmeticl Computational Skills Of Fourth Grade Students, Yvonne Hamburg

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of the is study was to investigate the effects of parent assistance upon academic achievement. The total I number of randomly selected subjects in the experimental group (parent participation) was 15. There were 17 subjects in the control group. Participating parents received instructions in the use of arithmetic materials. Sets of four tasksheets and flashcards in the basic facts of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, were sent home each week. In addition, participating parents were asked to complete a 10 item 91uestionnaire before and after the program in order to measure parental attitude toward assisting with academic tasks …

A Comparison Of First Grade Children With Kindergarten And Non-Kindergarten Backgrounds, Robert Gregory Walsh

Special Education ETDs

The entire first grade of an elementary school in Albuquerque was divided up into two groups; one group consisted of those who had attended kindergarten and the other group was made up of those who had not attended kindergarten. The hypothesis for this study was that kindergarten attendance would affect the academic achievement of first graders in Albuquerque, New Mexico, when tested at the beginning and end of each school year. The Wide Range Achievement Test (1965 Revised edition) was administered early in first grade and at the end of first grade. The test was designed to measure academic achievement …

An Experimental Study Of The Impact Of Clinical Psychodiagnosis, Diagnostic Concept And Dogmatism On The Perception Of Psychopathology., Jane Ellen Stilwell Smith

Student Work

The subject of psychiatric diagnosis and the ramifications of a person being labeled as "mentally ill" has attracted increased attention in the past decade. Personal testimony from psychiatric patients about the difficulty in securing employment, returning to familiar abodes, and re-entering a scholastic environment because of rejection by "normal" society, has been documented in confidential case files, witnessed by friends and relatives, and published for lay consumption (Rubin, 1960; Salinger, 1951; and Green, 1964). Other literature has been devoted to the apparently negative psychological aspects of being an in-patient in a mental institution (Caudwill, 1958; Goffman, 1961; and Gordon, 1971). …

Intervention Effects Of A Crisis-Resource Program In A Public School, Marcella A. Kerlin

Communication Disorders & Special Education Theses & Dissertations

No abstract.

Behavioral Characteristics Of The Ideal Student As Perceived By Engineered Class-Students, Regular Classroom Students, And Their Teachers, Michael Henry Stuart

Special Education ETDs

Perception of behavioral characteristics of the ideal student by three groups of elementary school pupils and their teachers was examined. In May, 1973, 5 students from an engineered classroom, 5 special education referral students, and l0 regular classroom students completed a behavioral Q-sort of 25 classroom related behaviors, describing the ideal student. The sorting of each student was correlated with the sorting of his teacher concerning the ideal student using an adaptation of the Pearson product­moment correlation coefficient formula. The Mann-Whitney U Test was then applied to determine significant differences in student-teacher correlations among the three groups. Significant differences were …

Effect Of A Feedback System On Word Recognition Of Primary Children In A Tutorial Project, Verlinda Parnell Townsend

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a feedback system on word recognition gain. The subjects were six primary students referred to the resource room for reading problems. A cross-age tutorial project was established in which the subjects were tutored, using flash cards, for two 15 minute sessions each day. The feedback system, in the form of daily rate measures and charts, included the manager, the tutor, and the subject. In the first session, Condition A, the subjects received feedback on a one minute rate sample of reading performance and were allowed to chart the number …

The Effects Of Auditory Training On Word Recognition Achievement Of First Grade Students, Nila Jaramillo

Special Education ETDs

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the efficacy of auditory discrimination and memory training on word recognition achievement of first grade students. First graders of ostensibly average intelligence and free of apparent observable organic deviations participated in this experiment. Twenty children were alternately assigned to the Experimental Group (n=10) and to the Control Group (n=10). Stimulus material consisted of commercially available instructional and program materials. While the series encompasses five sequential areas of development, only auditory discrimination and auditory memory were included for the purpose of this study. All subjects were administered the word recognition subtest from the …