<p> This qualitative single case study explored how general education middle school teachers implement the three tiers of the Multi-Tiered Response to Intervention (MTSS/RTI) model while delivering differentiated core curriculum instruction. The conceptual framework included the differentiated strategies of Fleming and Mills&rsquo; (1992) Visual, Aural, Read/Write, Kinesthetic (VARK) model; Vygotsky&rsquo;s (1978) concept of Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD); and Wood, Bruner, and Ross&rsquo; (1976) concept of scaffolding. The sample group consisted of 11 general education middle school teachers in a single Central Florida school district. The data sources included an online questionnaire, interviews, and one focus group session. The macro-level research question that guided this study was: &ldquo;How do general education middle school teachers implement tier one, tier two, and tier three of the MTSS/RTI model while delivering differentiated core curriculum instruction?&rdquo; The analyzed data produced four themes: (1) tiered intervention strategies, (2) tiered progress monitoring measurements and frequency, (3) tiered documentation of responsiveness to interventions, and (4) tiered delivery of differentiated core curriculum instruction. The findings provide insightful perspective to general education middle school teachers, leading to an increase in the successful implementation of the three tiers of the MTSS/RTI model. </p><p> <i>Keywords:</i> Multi-Tiered Response to Intervention (MTSS/RTI) model and differentiated core curriculum instruction</p><p>

<p> While inclusion of students with disabilities has been a topic of debate for decades, uncertainty still exists concerning best practices for their participation in general education contexts (Carter et al., 2016). This study was designed to investigate teachers&rsquo; experiences and perceptions with inclusion in general education science classrooms. While students with disabilities are generally included in general education science classrooms today, statistics show students with disabilities are graduating from high school unprepared to major in science-related fields or to enter the workforce in science-related careers (Brusca-Vega, Alexander, &amp; Kamin, 2014). Therefore, the content area of science was targeted for the purposes of this study. Five similar school districts in southwest Missouri were selected for this study. Middle school science and special education teachers were interviewed to obtain perceptions concerning inclusion of students with disabilities in general education science classrooms. Information gathered was compared with the literature reviewed to identify themes, ensure validity, and ascertain conclusions. After analyzing the data, it was revealed all students benefit both academically and socially when effective inclusive practices are incorporated in general education science classrooms. These benefits are dependent upon teachers&rsquo; self-efficacy and attitudes and collaboration between and among special education and general education teachers. Paraprofessional support for students with disabilities can contribute to successful inclusion in general education science classrooms.</p><p>

<p> This exploratory and descriptive research intended to examine ways to engage a vulnerable young adult population in environmental and ecological education and in community planning and public participation processes. A goal was to understand how to be more inclusive in the decision-making process at the community level based on ethical principles prescribed within the practice of equity planning and environmental and social justice. Merging the methodologies of applied action learning and action research, nested case studies were developed. Three cases within environmental and ecological education encompassed community gardening, horticultural therapy, and community mapping. The three cases within community planning and participatory processes included participating in a general plan or comprehensive plan update, a federal public hearing, and applying to sit on a federal agency working group. This research found ways to invite uniquely abled people into public participation processes through adaptive surveys, novel meeting places, and engagement opportunities. A nexus exists between environmental education and understanding community such that vulnerable participants are able to become involved in public processes and participate at a level that demonstrates their ability to understand their community as well as their needs. Participating in experiential and informal learning, practicing and integrating skills, and demonstrating knowledge and abilities, uniquely abled participants were empowered toward building confidence in public speaking, sharing knowledge about themselves and their community, developing skills in self-reliance, and building social capital. Because of this vulnerable population&rsquo;s needs, they brought up problems and solutions that prompted other participants to realize they could also benefit from this population&rsquo;s input. Using GIS tools, limitations of public transportation were identified and now can be resolved through the planning process. As the participants became more involved at the community level, their interest in and knowledge of the environment increased. The systems of community participation and environmental immersion reinforced on the other much like a feedback loop, stabilizing an otherwise disconnected community, bringing about an equilibrium that provides an enriching and diverse environment where all its citizens are better connected and more equipped to live well in their environment. </p><p>

<p> Asthma is an inflammatory disorder (Koterba &amp; Saltoun, 2012) and a common chronic condition of childhood (McCowan, Bryce, Neville, Crombie, &amp; Clark, 1996) that can cause children to experience poorer academic outcomes (Stingone &amp; Claudio, 2006), a lower quality of life (Everhart &amp; Fiese, 2009), hospitalizations, and in some cases death (Center for Disease Control, [CDC], 2017). This mixed methods study explored the relationship of asthma, school attendance, grades in mathematics and reading, and the quality of life in predominantly minority children with asthma and in those without asthma. Data for this study was collected at the Children&rsquo;s National Health Systems (CNHS) in the District of Columbia. A total of 36 children without asthma and 30 children with asthma enrolled in the study at the hospital&rsquo;s Emergency Department (ED) and the Improving Pediatric Asthma Care in the District of Columbia (IMPACT DC) clinic. The children were in grades three to five, 8 to 11 years old, and attended schools in the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) during the 2015&ndash;2016 school year. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANCOVA, ANOVA, Spearman ranked order correlations, and hierarchical multiple linear regression were used to analyze the data. </p><p> The quantitative analysis indicated children with asthma visited the ED significantly more frequently than those without asthma (<i>p</i> &lt; .001, <i>d</i>= 0.8). The quality of life scores were lower for children with asthma compared to those without asthma. Further, as asthma severity increased, the quality of life scores decreased. In addition, children without asthma reported more unexcused days and absence from school than those with asthma. Lastly, children without asthma achieved a lower GPA in mathematics and reading than those with asthma. The findings indicate asthma impacts the quality of life scores in children, and that further research is warranted to determine how asthma impacts academic performance in children. </p><p>

<p> There is an evidence base supporting the use of positive behavior supports in schools; however effectively and efficiently transferring these interventions into classroom settings remains a challenge. Precorrection is a highly-regarded behavior support strategy that relies on antecedent prompting to reduce problem behavior and teach socially appropriate skills. This study examined how a brief training in precorrection and praise paired with regular feedback impacted the behavior of four Title I elementary school teachers and students. As a result of the intervention, the four teachers increased use of precorrection and praise, while concomitantly reducing their use of reprimands. Limitations and suggestions for future research are provided. </p><p>

<p> Along with the deinstitutionalization movement, supports for persons with Intellectual Disabilities (ID) have shifted to promotion of person-centered supports inclusive in the community. Although successes have occurred regarding physical inclusion, skill building and social inclusion have not fared as well for those with more significant disabilities. This study evaluated a 5-week intensive, behavioral, specialized training and skill-building program for transition-age youth and emerging adults with more significant intellectual disabilities in a community college setting that utilized Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and Positive Behavior Support (PBS) strategies. Eighteen persons with significant IDs participated in the study in a mixed methodology research design. Through voluntary sampling, eight participants received the intervention first, in Group 1, and ten participants received the intervention second, in Group 2, through a quantitative switching replications design. Results were analyzed with a sequential explanatory approach for mixed methodology research. The results demonstrated a statistically significant increase when participants were in the intervention group, as compared to acting as the control group, on the Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Program Plan (VB-MAPP), which measures social and communication skills. A similar pattern was trending towards significance on the Assessment of Functional Living Skills (AFLS). No statistically significant difference occurred on the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System (ABAS-3). Subscales on the San Martin Scale (SMS) for Quality of Life demonstrated statistically significant interaction effects for five of six subscales, when individuals were in the intervention group, but the treatment gains did not maintain after the intervention ended. The multiple-probe across-behaviors design demonstrated that participants were able to gain one to three skills while in the intervention, but, again, little carry-over effect was found on skills in baseline until the skill teaching was implemented. Further analysis demonstrated high satisfaction on the part of caregivers. Qualitative focus groups demonstrated a significant dichotomy between Theme 1, <i>Fitting into a System</i>, which did not meet individual needs, and Theme 3, <i>Learning is Meaningful</i>, which described successes and skill increases from the intervention as seen by caregivers. Results provided evidence that a short-term behavioral intervention can be effective in increasing skills, demonstrating satisfaction, and improving quality of life, combining a focus on behavior with one deriving from the disability rights movement.</p><p>

<p> The purpose of this qualitative action research study was to explore the benefits and challenges of e-mentoring an adult learner in a rural state school for the deaf that taught children with hearing loss to listen and speak. This school lacked the benefit of a spoken language programs for deaf children. This study focused on e-mentoring the Lead Teacher/SLP, in order to enhance her understanding of language development in children with hearing loss and improve her ability to use diagnostic teaching, in order to implement strategies that would allow the children in this specialized classroom to continue to develop spoken language. Through use of synchronous and asynchronous e-mentoring, I assisted the mentee as she developed a plan specifically focused on providing her with the skills needed to lead/direct the program independently, in order for it to continue successfully. The mentee and supervisory/administrative staff were participants of this study. The mentee participated in the e-mentoring process twice each month, for 30-45 minutes per session, for one academic school year. </p><p> The mentee typically guided the topic of the e-mentoring session by asking for assistance in a particular instructional area. On alternate weeks, I was in contact with the mentee via email, text, and/or phone. After e-mentoring, I completed a journal entry with my thoughts about the session and the mentee responded to questions about the e-mentoring experience. At the conclusion of the academic year, I conducted a focus group with the supervisors and administrators of the spoken language program asking for input about this new program. Secondary data were collected from vocabulary and concept tests on the children attending the program using. Results from the journaling and responses to questions and focus group were coded and analyzed for emerging themes. One major themes was Change, with subthemes of opportunities, e-mentoring the spoken language program, progress of the children, perceptions of the program, increase in enrollment, and scheduling. Other major themes included Andragogy and e-mentoring, Teaching Strategies, and Technology. The results of this study may be important to administrative personnel in state schools for the deaf, interested in initiating a spoken language classroom.</p><p>

<p> This study sought to understand how students who were enrolled in postsecondary education and received support through special education services understand their identity. It was influenced by developmental theories of identity development and the professional interests of this researcher. It utilized narrative theory as conceived by Dan McAdams (1985, 1993, 2001) as both the methodology and a way of conceiving identity. Data was collected through a series of individual interviews. Participants were found to relate their identity as a series of stories. Their conception of self-identity views special education status as a trait, but not one central to their identity. Their families were viewed as central to how they understand their identities. Individuals outside of their families also had a strong impact on how they viewed themselves. Participants view differences as common both inside and outside of the special education population. Participants indicated a desire to help others heightened by their own struggles. Goals were well-articulated and used for self-motivation during times of academic difficulties. All shared negative school experiences unrelated to identity without prompts about the quality of their educations.</p><p>

Research has found that, on average, deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) students graduate from high school reading at the fourth grade level (Allen, 1986). Additionally, DHH children of deaf parents (Charrow & Fletcher, 1974) and those with strong American Sign Language (ASL) proficiency (Strong & Prinz, 1997) tend to outperform DHH students without parents who are proficient in ASL. The Simple View of Reading (SVR; Gough & Tunmer, 1986) suggests that reading comprehension is a product of decoding and language proficiency. Many DHH students have limited auditory access, and may struggle to acquire English, especially the more demanding academic English characteristics of school texts (Mayer & Wells, 1996). Academic English has been identified as a strong predictor of reading comprehension among hearing children (Uccelli et al., 2015). Guided by a modified SVR model, in this study I investigate DHH secondary school students’ reading comprehension as predicted by receptive ASL proficiency, word reading fluency/decoding, and academic English proficiency. Guided by prior research on DHH and hearing students, I investigate the hypothesis that for secondary school DHH students enrolled in ASL/English bilingual/bimodal schools for the deaf, academic English proficiency is a significant predictor of reading comprehension alongside ASL proficiency. In this study, a sample of secondary school DHH students were tested in ASL proficiency, academic English proficiency, word reading fluency (a proxy for decoding), and reading comprehension. Using linear regression, an interaction between academic English proficiency and word reading fluency was detected, such that the lower the level of academic English proficiency, the higher the impact of word reading fluency on reading comprehension. ASL skills predicted reading comprehension across all models. Findings support a model in which socio-demographic factors, ASL proficiency, and word reading fluency are predictors of reading comprehension for secondary DHH students. This study is innovative in assessing three sets of language and reading skills essential for DHH students’ reading comprehension. The continued adaptation of instruments that target these constructs, as well as studies with larger samples, are critical to further explore the innovative theoretical model of reading comprehension for DHH students proposed in this study. / Human Development and Education

These three qualitative studies describe and analyze how and when young dyslexic people manage disability labels in talk. The theoretical framework informing this study includes post-structuralist approaches to analyzing talk about disability (Tremain, 2002, 2006; Goodley, 2011) and on-going debates about using discourses to model the relationship between impairment, disability and culture inside and outside social model of disability (Hughes & Paterson, 1997; Corker, 1998; Allan, 1999; Shakespeare, 2000; Corker & Shakespeare, 2002; Grue, 2011) and resistance against ableism generally (Gabel & Peters, 2004). The research design involved semi-structured interviews of twenty-six students with dyslexia (Seidman, 2006) who attended a specialized high school and a review of three documentary films. The three articles detail different approaches to the same phenomenon of navigating and describing dyslexia. The first article engages a primary analysis of how new discourses of the gifted dyslexic brain include persisting notions of a broken brain using Foucauldian discourse analysis (FDA) in educational documentary film. The second study reframes existing studies of conceptual metaphor among dyslexics moving discussion beyond dyslexia as a barrier to a dynamic range of metaphors including dyslexia as a journey, puzzle and even as existence. Contemporary studies of conceptual metaphor and disability continue to reveal how disabled students navigate the differences between impairment and disability. The third article relates long-standing theories of learning differences to the lack of claiming disability among dyslexic students. By exploring passing as able-bodied as a phenomenon, I theorize how schools, even specialized settings, as ableist institutions oppress, silence and foreclose the possibilities of group identity. This research contributes to discursive approaches to understanding dyslexia as disability and connects disabled identities in talk to work with dyslexic students in schools. Suggestions for future research include understanding neurodiversity movements in relationship to learning disabilities, continuing to examine conceptual metaphor use among dyslexics to build out a typology and the political and economic roots of the discourses of learning differently. / Human Development and Education