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The American Psychological Association (APA) conducted the online 2005-2006 Teacher Needs Survey wherein 52% of first year teachers, 28% of teachers with two to five years of experience, and 26% of teachers with 6 to 10 years experience ranked classroom management as their greatest need. Difficulty managing student behaviors leads to higher stress and burnout for teachers (Smith & Smith, 2006) as well as less instructional time, lower grades, and poorer performance on standardized tests for students (Shinn, Ramsey, Walker, Stieber, & O'Neill, 1987). When teachers are charged with managing their own classrooms in the field, they are often inadequately prepared (Bergeny & Martens, 2006) and professional development workshops and inservices on classroom management are often ineffective (Allen & Forman, 1984, Fixsen, Naoom, Blasé, Friedman, & Wallace, 2005). The focus of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a checklist of evidence-based classroom management strategies both by itself and coupled with feedback and an action plan. Effectiveness was measured by the percentage of strategies from the checklist that were implemented by the teacher as well as the percentage of disruptive behavior by students in the classroom. The checklist consisted of 17 evidence-based classroom management strategies that were divided into three areas: Beginning of Class; During Instruction; and Responding to Student Behavior. The study consisted of four conditions: Baseline; Checklist; Checklist, Feedback, and Action Plan; and Maintenance. During the Checklist condition, the investigator and teacher read through evidence-based classroom management strategies on the checklist and reviewed examples and non-examples of the strategies. During the Checklist, Feedback, and Action Plan condition, the investigator and teacher reviewed the graphed data on the teacher's use of the strategies during Baseline and Checklist conditions. After reviewing the data, the teacher and investigator identified a maximum of three strategies from the checklist to implement and an action plan for how to implement those strategies was created. Then, after each observation, a checklist scored by the investigator was given to the teacher. During Maintenance, the teacher no longer received a scored checklist following the observations. Three elementary, self-contained classroom teachers of students with emotional and behavioral disorders participated in the study. During Baseline, the teachers used an average of 20% to 30% of the evidence-based classroom management strategies and the percentages of disruptive behavior ranged from an average of 60% to 90%. During the Checklist condition, the level of the data immediately increased for percentage of strategies used and the level of the data for disruptive behavior decreased, for two of the teachers. The changes in level for both percentage of strategies used and percentage of disruptive behavior, however, did not remain. One teacher returned to baseline levels for both percentage of strategies used and percentage of disruptive behavior. The other teacher showed a slight increase from baseline levels for percentage of strategies used, but the percentage of disruptive behavior returned to baseline levels. For the third teacher, no significant change in level was observed for percentage of strategies used and percentage of disruptive behavior. All three teachers, however, demonstrated increased use of the strategies and decreased percentages of disruptive behavior, when the checklist was coupled with feedback and an action plan. From Baseline to the Checklist, Feedback, Action Plan condition, the average percentages of strategies used were: Teacher A, 24% to 93%; Teacher B, 23% to 93%; and Teacher C, 33% to 88%. During Maintenance, Teacher A used an average of 92% of evidence-based classroom management strategies and Teachers B and C used 94% of evidence-based classroom management strategies. From Baseline to Maintenance, the average percentages of disruptive behavior were: Teacher A, 76% to 17%; Teacher B, 91% to 13%; and Teacher C, 64% to 12%. All three teachers found the intervention to be acceptable. Specifically, the teachers reported that: this intervention would be beneficial and appropriate for a variety of students; they were likely to use this intervention in the future; they liked the procedures used; and they were more likely to stay in their current teaching position after using this intervention. / Educational Psychology

The purpose of this experimental research study was to investigate the effects of using academic science-term vodcasts to provide vocabulary instruction, and more specifically, comprehension support in science to middle-school adolescents with and without LD. A total of 105 suburban middle school students, of which 17 presented with LD, were randomly assigned to one of two conditions, with direct instruction occurring over a one-week period. The two experimental conditions; the first which required students to use a traditional “dictionary approach” to learning and studying a list of prescribed science terms, and a second condition which required students to use a vodcast strategy to learn and study the same list of prescribed science terms. The vodcast strategy included the student viewing a researcher-constructed vodcast; a multimedia construction which employs the tenets of CTML, focusing on a prescribed grade-level vocabulary list, drawn from current curriculum, and evidence-based practice as presented in a mnemonic graphic organizer, for the recording of fundamental components of vocabulary acquisition; e.g. the term, it’s definition as delivered in the vodcast, its correct usage in a sentence, and an example of the prescribed term. The results indicated all students, with and without LD, performed better using the vodcast strategy, when compared with their peers, who used a dictionary-focused approach, with writing down the same components for term acquisition as the vodcast strategy. Anecdotal information in the form of a student satisfaction survey, completed with each class orally indicated an almost universal preference for the vodcast strategy over the more traditional approach to science-term vocabulary acquisition exercises. / Special Education

Advance notice, a warning of an upcoming demand or transition, is a common antecedent intervention used to reduce problem behavior and to increase compliance in educational settings. However, research conducted in the past decade has failed to uphold the efficacy of advance notice with either typically developing or developmentally disabled children. This study analyzed the frequency of noncompliance and problem behavior associated with transitions in two preschool children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder by applying advance notice, guided compliance and social praise, and advance notice combined with guided compliance and social praise during consecutive treatment phases. Compliance increased for all participants during phases including an advance notice component; however, problem behaviors increased as well, suggesting that while advance notice may increase compliance for some learners, it may also occasion problem behaviors. / Applied Behavioral Analysis

Thesis (M.Litt.) - University of Glasgow, 2008. / M.Litt. thesis submitted to the Department of Education, University of Glasgow, 2008. Includes bibliographical references. Print version also available.

With over 6 million children receiving some form of special education in the United States, and federal legislation mandating that all disabled students be provided with a free and appropriate education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE), school districts are facing the daunting task of providing individualized services for a growing percentage of special education students. Unfortunately, it is well established in the research literature that special needs students who "belong" to racial and ethnic minority groups and/or are from low Socioeconomic Status classes have traditionally been over-represented in special education. Disturbingly, not only are minorities over-represented in special education classification, they are also under-funded. While research contends that the actual level and quality of service received by members of the above groups tend to be sub-standard to those of their white and/or higher income counterparts, parent perceptions regarding this may or may not align with this fact. This leaves the potential for a gap to exist between what objective measurements and observations uncover and what the parent holds to be true. This also raises the question of ethics in equity of information access for those with limited cultural or social capital. This qualitative study examines the perceptions parents from various demographic groups have regarding the special education services their children receive. Interviews with parents of special needs children who are from the Philadelphia and surrounding areas serve as the primary data source. Additionally, information gathered while assuming the role of observer participant in a local support group serve as a support source of data for my study. A variety of sources were used to gather data on parent perceptions for this study. The parents of twelve special needs children were interviewed for this study. Each parent was asked a series of questions regarding their experiences with their child(ren)'s special education including, but not limited to, identification of the disability; ease/difficulty of obtaining services; design of education program offering; initiation of services; IEP implementation; and goal attainment. Several characteristics of the participants were focused on to identify commonalities among participants that determine likenesses in perceptions of various aspects of interest relating to special education services. Participation/observation in a support group for parents of special needs children, in addition to the literature distributed at that session also served as data sources for this study and that led to the study findings. Survey quantitative data, and information from limited IEP review, were also contributors to the pool of data that ultimately led to the study findings and recommendations. The conduction of a focus group was planned and attempted on more than one occasion during the study period, however, the recruitment of an acceptable number of willing participants proved to be an insurmountable challenge. One major area of interest in the study included determining if the participants believed there were differences in the special education services received by different students and if so, why. Interestingly, all of the respondents answered yes and identified eleven "major contributors" to the differences. The four considered most significant by a majority of the participants include Parental Persistence, Time Availability of the parents, the Connectedness/Access to Information maintained by the parents, and belonging to a high SES. After studying the content of all of the interviews, noticeable likenesses in the characterizations of the mindset of the participants regarding special education emerged. This commonality was so strong that it led me to give this phenomenon or theoretical concept a name - Framing Mindset. Each participant, as a result of her experiences over an extended period of time with the "universe of special education" develops a certain "casting point" where the parent's attitude becomes "set" and future decisions regarding special education programming for that child follow similar thought patterns. Thus, the parent has adopted one of three "mindsets" that serve as the "framework" from which all of their educational choices are built. Finally the study looked at the question: "How does a special needs parent's current stage of grief (Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance) relating to having a son or daughter with a long term, often lifelong disability, influence the perception of the variables (quality, appropriateness, timeliness, comprehensiveness) comprising his or her child's educational programming?" According to the responses given by the study participants, the majority of the respondents had a connection between the stage on the Kubler-Ross' Grief Cycle and their satisfaction level with special education services; a small number of respondents did not have a connection between the stage on the Kubler-Ross' Grief Cycle and their satisfaction level with special education services; and for less than one quarter of the respondents it was not possible to determine if there was a connection between the stage on the Kubler-Ross' Grief Cycle and their satisfaction level with special education services. The results of this study have implications for advocacy/parent education, professional support group/facilitator training, and education policy. First, the results of this study, tell us that a large majority of the participants believe that access to information is key to determining the composition of the special education program received by their child. Knowing this, the role of the advocate can become much more critical to both newly diagnosed parents and parents who are not well connected. Second, the literature, interview participants, and support group participants affirm that seeking out and attending support groups is often one of the first things the parent of a newly diagnosed disabled child does to both obtain information and relieve stress. Unfortunately, the participants also indicated their frustrations with the formats and content of the groups - enough so that most did not return. Therefore, it is recommended to be the most helpful to parents of special needs children through the support group venue, training for the potential facilitator and a quick survey to potential attendees to assess their interest, preferred format, and needs should occur first. Finally, the implications of information from the study for education policy relate to the both the implementation of special education law and the oversight of the implementation of special education law. All of the interviewees asserted that there are differences in special education services among special needs. As a result of this remarkable finding, I recommend that changes to education policy include a provision for local oversight or "watchdogging" of the process of special education service provision; tougher sanctions be developed for districts and private schools who fail to provide appropriate services to a disabled child or are found guilty of providing inequitable services; and that parent surveys about their home district be distributed annually with the district and private school's scorecard partially based on the survey scores. / Educational Administration

Master of Science / Department of Psychology / Donald A. Saucier / Research has shown that attributions and behavioral reactions toward individuals may be based on their appearance; our studies examined how appearance-based assessments for individuals with intellectual disabilities (IDs) determined how others think and react toward a target individual. Two studies examined the effects of appearance and identification on perceptions (i.e., agentic and communal traits) and behavioral reactions (i.e, self-efficacy expectations, anxiety, willingness to interact) toward targets. Studies 1 and 2 demonstrated that individuals with atypical appearances were rated higher on communal than agentic traits. Study 2 revealed that greater self-efficacy expectations and lower anxiety were associated with individuals with atypical appearances and individuals identified as having an ID. These studies increase understanding of perceiver-focused and target-focused factors related to bias toward individuals with IDs.

Survey research was used to conduct a formative evaluation of Quality Indicators for Assistive Technology Services (QIAT) by 120 leaders in the field of assistive technology. Survey respondents represented five different types of assistive technology interest and responsibilities: consumers of assistive technology services and family members, district and regional assistive technology leaders, state and national assistive technology leaders, assistive technology leaders in higher education, and assistive technology policy leaders. Respondents reviewed QIAT and completed either print or online electronic versions of a survey in which they provided their perspectives on the need for quality indicators, the importance of each quality indicator contained in QIAT, the clarity of each accompanying intent statement, and the usefulness of QIAT to people with assistive technology interests and responsibilities similar to their own. Results of this investigation suggested that quality indicators are needed to guide the development and delivery of assistive technology services, that the 39 quality indicators contained in QIAT are important, and that QIAT would be useful to people with varied interests and responsibilities in assistive technology. The perceptions of the majority of the participants about QIAT were positive. Analysis of the rankings indicated that every quality indicator contained in QIAT was considered important by greater than 92% of the participants and every intent statement was considered clear by greater than 82% of the participants. Results also indicated that participants believed that some revisions in the wording and reordering of the items contained in QIAT would increase clarity and that the identification and development of training and products aligned to QIAT could aid in the development and delivery of effective assistive technology services. Proposed revisions were made in QIAT as a result of respondent recommendations. Implications for practice, future development, and additional research also were proposed.

The purpose of this study was to explore the feasibility of determining acculturation in a Deaf Navajo Indian through an assessment of art work, accompanying narratives, and interview data. It was concluded that the cultural characteristics of the subject examined in this case study were reflected in his art work and stories, with his Navajo identity revealed as the primary cultural affiliation. Interview data indicated the presence of a significant, albeit less predominant, Deafness cultural affiliation that was not notably reflected in the art pieces or accompanying narratives. Art therapy alone was not established as a reliable medium through which to assess acculturation. However, used in concert with the interview and the subject's own narratives, art therapy proved to be of value in the assessment of acculturation patterns in a Deaf Navajo Indian.