In a southeast school district, students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are taught by elementary general education teachers despite their lack of training to meet the needs of such students. To provide effective education that supports the learning needs of students with ASD, exploration of the problem was needed. The intended outcome of this qualitative case study was to provide information to district administrators that could be used to develop interventions to help general education teachers meet the learning needs of students with ASD. The Iovannone, Dunlap, Huber, and Kincaid model of effective educational practices for students with ASD grounded the study. Research questions explored how general education teachers met students' individual support and service needs, academic needs, structured learning environment needs, communication and language needs, and disciplinary needs, as well as what supports and resources teachers perceived they needed to meet student needs. Ten elementary general education teachers participated in the study. Data were collected through interviews and analyzed using provisional coding and pattern coding. Six themes emerged from the analysis: (a) individual support and service, (b) academic needs, (c) structured environment needs, (d) communication and language needs, (e) disciplinary needs, and (f) teachers' perceptions of needed supports and resources. The results were used to create a professional development 3-day program from which teachers could strengthen their knowledge and skills in providing quality instruction to students with ASD. Such training may result in social change by improving the quality of education provided to students with ASD that will enhance their opportunities to live valued lives.

Low reading skills constitute a serious achievement problem. Although there are remedial support in schools, between 2% and 6% of the student population continues to show persistent reading difficulties despite intensive intervention. The research problem in this study addressed the lack of effective reading interventions for students who were in Tier III of the Response to Intervention (RtI) process. Piaget's cognitive development theory, constructivism, and Vygotsky's zone of proximal development theory made up the theoretical framework. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine the effects of Fountas and Pinnell's Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI) on reading achievement of students in Grades 2-5. Reading achievement was measured using Fountas and Pinnell's Benchmark Assessment System (BAS) and Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessments. A quasi-experimental design was utilized to compare pre-and post- intervention data for students in Grades 2-5 who did or did not receive LLI instruction and were in Tier III of the RtI process. The sampling size was determined by the number of students who scored below the grade level expectation on the Fall 2015 BAS and MAP assessments. The experimental group consisted of 72 students and the control group consisted of 64 students. Data were collected and analyzed using ANCOVA. The pretest was treated as a covariate. The results of this study showed reading achievement scores were significantly higher for the experimental group on both posttests. This study contributed to positive social change by improving the welfare of students by increasing their reading achievement.

There is a correlation between the professional development that teachers receive and student academic success. It has been shown that knowledgeable teachers have a profound impact on student achievement. Many general and special educators enter the field of education and are placed to teach in inclusive environments with little to no professional development related to inclusion. This placement often adversely impacts the success of students with disabilities on state tests. However, there is limited information on the types of professional development necessary for teaching in inclusion. Guided by Bandura's social cognitive theory, this study explored teachers' perceptions of the types of professional development beneficial for teaching in inclusion. The research questions examined participants' attitudes and perceptions toward professional development needs, professional development experiences, and instructional activities used in inclusion. A qualitative case study approach was used to purposefully select 5 general and 5 special education teachers who taught in inclusion classrooms. Data for the study were collected through individual interviews, which were recorded and transcribed, then analyzed and coded for themes. Teachers' perceptions showed there was insufficient training for new teachers, a need for ample planning time in their professional development routine, and a need to implement models of coteaching as described by Friend (2009). The potential for positive social change includes improved inclusion-based professional development for all teachers, which may increase the likelihood of student academic success.

Students with psychiatric disabilities are the largest subgroup of students with disabilities enrolled in postsecondary education. However, their high enrollment rate does not equate to a high retention rate. Approximately 86 percent of students with psychiatric disabilities withdraw prior to degree completion. As a result, calls for improved disability services in postsecondary education have been plentiful. In an effort to take a step toward answering these calls, the current study began the exploratory process of identifying knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are important for disability service professionals to possess in order to provide beneficial services to students with psychiatric disabilities in postsecondary education. The current study began with the developing of a survey instrument using (a) a three-round Delphi survey with expert panels consisting of disability service professionals and students with psychiatric disabilities and (b) a pilot group of disability service professionals. The final instrument with 54 knowledge, skills, and attitudes was rated by a sample of 402 disability service professionals who were members of the Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD). A principal components analysis was used to analyze the data. Five factors emerged: (a) Ethical and Legal Considerations, (b) Accommodations and Supports, (c) Disability Aspects, (d) Community Resources, and (e) Campus Considerations. A post-hoc analysis with a MANOVA and descriptive statistics was also conducted. Each factor was explored within the context of the literature. Further, differences between professional and student perceptions were highlighted. Lastly, implications, assumptions, limitations, and recommendations for future research were discussed.

The availability of online college and university courses have continued to grow, offering opportunities for education to students that may find attending in a regular classroom difficult, if not impossible. The number of students with disabilities enrolling in online courses is also growing. However, because of the mode of delivery (via computer/internet), blind and low vision college and university students can find it difficult to participate fully in an online course if it is not designed with accessibility in mind. Education is directly related to blind and low vision individuals becoming fully employed and independent. Blind and low vision college and university students who have previously taken an online course and used assistive technology devices to access the computer are aware of the issues of accessibility to online courses. The current study began by asking a group of blind and low-vision students to answer seven open-ended questions regarding their experiences accessing online courses at their college or university. The group responses generated 25 survey items and participants were asked to rate each item. Survey items were evaluated and participants were given the opportunity to re-rate their answers based on the group’s responses. The final results were evaluated and ranked in importance according to participant responses. Results were discussed along with the implications, limitations, and recommendations for future research.

This study examined how Florida administrative law judges (ALJs) constructed an appropriate education for students with disabilities in their final orders. This study utilized the Johnstone Method as a heuristic in analyzing the data. It examined the construction of an appropriate education from the implementation of PL 94-142 up to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Board of Education v. Rowley (1975-1978), after the Rowley decision (1983-1986), and after the reauthorization of the Individual with Disabilities Education Act in 2004 (2004-2007). Each time period was examined individually and then the results were compared. The data sources included six purposively sampled final orders obtained from the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings and the Florida Department of Education. Two final orders per time period have been examined. For each time period, one final order with the school district as the prevailing party and one with the parent as the prevailing party were selected. Immersive line-by-line coding, and grounding of claims in specific textual evidence have been utilized to establish trustworthiness. The results indicate that during the period pre-Rowley, ALJs constructed an "appropriate" education based on the needs of the child and the special education program proposed to meet those needs. Deference was not given to one party over the other and the ALJ used his or her judgment in helping to construct an appropriate education. After the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Board of Education v. Rowley (1982), experts were charged with constructing an appropriate education for students with disabilities. This decision established an epistemic hierarchy that gave deference to school districts over parents. Outcomes were not considered by ALJs in constructing an appropriate education post-Rowley. The purpose of special education as outlined in IDEA (2004) had no impact on the construction of an appropriate education for a student with a disability; instead the Rowley decision impacted the time period post-IDEA (2004). Throughout the three time periods, the ALJs all emphasized that school districts are not required to provide the "best" education to students with disabilities.

Algebra has been called a gatekeeper because proficiency in algebra allows access to educational and economic opportunities. Many students struggle with algebra because it is cognitively demanding. There is little empirical evidence concerning which cognitive factors influence algebra achievement. The purpose of this study was to test a cognitive model of algebra achievement among undergraduate college students. Algebra achievement was defined as the ability to manipulate algebraic expressions which is a substantial part of many algebra curriculums. The model included cognitive factors that past research has shown relate to overall math achievement. Other goals were to compare a cognitive model of algebra achievement with a model of SAT-M performance and to test for gender differences in the model of algebra achievement. Structural equation modeling was used to test the direct and indirect effects of algebra experience, working memory, 3D spatial abilities, and computational fluency on algebra achievement. Algebra experience had the strongest direct effect on algebra achievement. Combined direct and indirect effects of computational fluency were as strong as the direct effect of algebra experience. While 3D spatial abilities had a direct effect on algebra achievement, working memory did not. Working memory did have a direct effect on computational fluency and 3D spatial abilities. The total effects of 3D spatial abilities and working memory on algebra achievement were moderate. There were differences in the cognitive models of algebra achievement and SAT-M. SAT-M scores were highly related to 3D spatial abilities, but moderately related to algebra experience. There were also gender differences in the cognitive model of algebra achievement. Working memory was highly related to computational fluency for males, but was not related to computational fluency for females. This study adds to the large body of evidence that working memory plays a role in computational abilities throughout development. The evidence that working memory affects higher level math achievement indirectly through computational fluency and 3D spatial abilities provides clarity to conflicting results in the few studies that have examined the role of working memory in higher level math achievement.