The purpose of this research project was to study the socio-economics of a controlled group of educable retardates who had completed their formal education. In 1965 the researcher investigated the mentally retarded students enrolled in the davenport, Iowa, Taylor and Marquette Schools and compared them to their parents and siblings. The pupil’s studies comprised three groups: (1_ a trainable group represented by pupils from 25 families; (2) a group of educable mentally handicapped students with known organic involvement represented by pupils from 165 families; and (3) a group of educable mentally handicapped pupils with no known organic involvement sufficient to account for retarded condition – commonly referred to as “familial retardation”. The results of the study supported the views that the background of the trainable and the educable children showing organic involvement was typical of that found in the general population of the United States and that the background of the familial, educable mentally retarded tended to correspond to that of lower class, underprivileged families. The data pertaining to socio-economic stats and the educational histories of the siblings supported these conclusions. For purposes of classification, the group studied in this project falls into the range Christine Ingram describes as “educationally mentally retarded” or “educationally mentally handicapped”. This researcher prefers the current term, “educationally mentally handicapped”, and refers to them as “EMH”. Their IQ range measured approximately 50-75, the lower 2 percent of the national school population in learning ability. The IQ score alone is insufficient for classification, however, suggesting that improvement can take place, accounted for by other factors. Many moderately retarded have few handicaps in addition to their mental deficiency. However, they are capable of expressing themselves adequately through language. Many, in fact, are capable of self-care and some of them are even capable of third grade level reading and mathematics skills. Hence, they find productive employment after completing their formal education. The EMH group selected for this project, Group 3 described on page 1 of this abstract, is within the range as defined above. The present study (1971-1972) investigated by longitudinal method the group numbered 3, the familial EMH. As the title indicates, the present study concentrated on the outcomes in the social and vocational areas for this group. The method used was questionnaire with door-to-door follow up to reach as many of the group as possible. The questionnaire was sent to 327 EMH within the age range of 16 to 24. A 30.5 percent feedback was received from 94 respondents.

Individuals with Intellectual Disability (ID) struggle to learn daily living skills (DLS) required for independent living. One specific skill set that is challenging for individuals with ID is grocery shopping. The current study is one of two investigations that have been undertaken entirely in the community and without the use of booster session simulations in a classroom. This study investigated the effects of using least-to-most prompting and mobile technology as a tool to assist 18 to 22-year-old adult students with ID to find six items from a grocery-shopping list. Dependent measures included the number of task steps completed correctly, selecting the correct items from the shopping list, and the duration of shopping. Sessions were conducted twice a week in a community grocery store. A single subject, multiple probe design across participants was employed. There were three phases in this study. The phases included: (a) teaching an initial grocery list, (b) teaching a re-sequenced grocery list, and (c) teaching a replacement grocery list. Overall, the participants demonstrated improvements in their ability to complete the task steps and locate grocery items during the intervention condition in phase one. Two of the three participants’ duration of shopping also improved over the course of the intervention in phase one. However, only one participant advanced to phases two and three of the study as the others did not meet the criterion of achieving 85% or better on the task analysis, which was needed to advance to the subsequent phases of the study. The results of this study suggest that the use of mobile devices used with least-to-most prompting can have a degree of positive effect on the acquisition of functional skills such as locating grocery items by 18 to 22-year-old students with ID. However, for some students either additional weekly sessions in the community setting or classroom simulations are needed. Alternatively, researchers and practitioners might consider pairing mobile technology with different prompting and prompt fading systems (e.g., most-to-least prompting) for students struggling to acquire this skill set in a community setting.

Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are enrolling in colleges and universities at an increasing rate. Although there is greater attendance in PSE settings, the graduation rate of this population is below the standard average. Improved services to help these students achieve their college and university goals are needed. Disability service professionals provide services to these students, yet oftentimes are not prepared to do so. In an effort to take a step toward addressing this concern, the current study began the exploratory process of identifying whether services provided by campus disability resources centers (DRC) align with the best practices that enhance the success of students with ASD. The current study began by asking an expert panel consisting of disability service professionals to develop and agreed upon a list of (a) barriers in providing academic accommodation (b) individual and systemic barriers faced by the student, and (c) supports that can help reduce these barriers. The final instrument identified 34 barriers to providing academic accommodation, 47 systemic barriers, and 37 individual barriers students with ASD experience in PSE settings. Additionally, DRC counselors identified 45 supports and services that would help address the identified barriers. Results of the study were discussed in the context of the literature related to identifiable barriers that prevent success in PSE settings as well as supports and services that can best benefit student with ASD. Additionally, implications, limitations, and recommendations for future research were discussed.

It is of utmost importance that students diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in the public school setting across the United States are receiving the best, most researched services and treatments. This study aimed to find out what services and treatments are most commonly being used for students with ASD in the public schools, to see whether or not those practices are supported by research, and to discover how involved parents and families are in the services being provided to their students. This study found that of the top 25 most commonly used practices, 17 of those were supported by and recommended by research, 3 are considered to have some research support, 1 was considered to not have research support, and 4 were undetermined to have research support. This study also found that overall, parents are aware of the services being provided to their students with ASD, but they do not feel like they are actively involved with majority of the services being provided.

Motivating individuals with autism can be challenging for clinicians and educators seeking to increase skills or decrease problem behaviors. Even when highly preferred reinforcers have been identified, they tend to lose their effectiveness over time. Over the years, several strategies have been developed to maintain the effectiveness of reinforcers. Reinforcer variation has been demonstrated to attenuate decreases in responding associated with repeated exposure to a single reinforcer. Another strategy that has been used to help maintain responding is allowing an individual a choice among reinforcers. Several researchers have suggested that providing choice among several reinforcers may produce the same effects on responding as reinforcer variation. Although these two procedures have been shown to maintain motivation in individuals with autism, they have not been systematically compared and evaluated against each other. In this study, we evaluated the effects of reinforcer variation as compared to reinforcer choice.

This dissertation was a discourse analysis study, drawing upon discursive psychology, poststructural understandings of discourse, conversation analysis, and a social relational model of disability. The purpose of this study was to explore how autism was performed as an interactional event among children with autism labels, the therapists who work with them, and their parents, in the context of a pediatric therapy setting. I interrogated how the participants’ everyday discursive practices were shaped and, at times, constrained by the social and political institutions that often work to define autism and the related, official plans of treatment. A total of 12 families agreed to participate, resulting in the participation of 12 children with autism labels, three to 11 years of age, six fathers, and 11 mothers. The participants included three speech therapists, two occupational therapists, one physical therapist, one teacher/social group facilitator, and one medical secretary/sibling support group facilitator. Data sources included conversational data from the therapy sessions of the participating children and their therapists, 14 parent interviews, eight therapist interviews, documents used within the therapy sessions, demographic surveys/information from the participating therapists and parents, and two interviews with a state advocate and clinical directors focused on qualifying for services. Findings from the interview data highlighted the varied meanings and performances of autism, while pointing to the related political and social conditions that make the naming and treating of autism (im)possible. Findings drawn from the therapy session data pointed to how the participants’ discursive practices worked to reframe “behaviors of concern,” and to transgress normative communication patterns. The following conclusions were drawn from the findings: (a) autism, as a construct, remains open to multiple meanings, while being inextricably linked to institutionalized practices; (b) in therapy talk, therapists and children with autism labels often co-construct alternative accounts of problematic behaviors; and (c) therapy talk can function to reframe non-normative communication and behavioral patterns, expanding what is constructed as “acceptable.” The findings point to the complexities of defining and performing autism labels, and highlight the ways in which therapy talk can function to reframe behaviors and communication patterns presumed to be pathological.

This paper aims to explore how shifting federal, state, and individual priorities have transformed public higher education from a bastion of quality higher education for the greatest number of people to a more privatized state that only provides access and choice to those who can afford them. Decreased public support and state appropriations for public higher education schools have led many institutions to privatize themselves through increasing tuition prices and enrolling more out-of-state and international students who can afford to pay the full sticker price. At the same time, federal financial aid programs have become more and more geared towards assisting middle- and upper-income families, rather than focusing their efforts on removing financial barriers for low-income students. Combined, these two trends have manifested greater socioeconomic inequality for students with low-incomes; public higher education institutions are slowly turning their backs on those for whom federally funded public colleges and universities were built.

There is little to no empirical research for sensory sensitivities of individual with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and coping strategies used in the workplace. Seven students with ASD were interviewed about sensory sensitivities experienced and accommodations used at the workplace. This study found that participants self-regulated sensory sensitivities, and not asking for or using accommodations. Future research is needed to focus on the sensory sensitivities of individuals with ASD who have been in the work force for several years.

The education system in Guatemala struggles to meet the needs of students with disabilities. There are often not enough trained special educators to meet the demand. In addition, general educators are often not trained to adequately meet diverse needs in their classrooms. Thus, schools are often unable to fully meet the needs of students with disabilities. This study sought to identify a method by which teachers could be virtually trained on a teacher behavior (i.e., specific praise) that could help meet diverse student needs. A multiple probe design across participants was used to determine if virtual training could be effective in training teachers to use new teacher behaviors. The results of the study are discussed, along with implications for future research.

The purpose of this project was to interview mothers of newborns who participated in early intervention services focusing on the implementation of a tool developed at the Family, Infant and Preschool Program (FIPP) in North Carolina. The intent was to examine the experience of mothers and home visitors employing the tool, which was designed to enhance the mother/infant relationship. However, a stronger focus on the relationship between mother and home visitor emerged throughout the interviews. Among some participants the relationship among practitioner and parent appeared to create a safe space to share, practice strategies and grow. Although characteristics of FIPP practices associated with the tool remained consistent among home visitors, the way in which services were implemented were unique to each home visitor and parent. Mothers participating in the project were identified as coping with numerous life stressors associated with poverty at the time of the interviews.