The purpose of this research was to explore how experienced Special Olympics (SO) coaches attempt to integrate the development of life skills into their coaching practice and how the coaches learned these strategies. Merriam’s (2009) basic interpretive qualitative approach was used to guide this research. Six experienced coaches from Ontario participated in this study. Data were collected through two sets of semi-structured interviews, non-participant observations, and document analysis. Data were analyzed both deductively and inductively using thematic analysis. Camiré, Trudel, and Forneris’s (2012) study on how high school coaches help athletes to develop life skills was used as a framework for life skill development strategies. The analysis uncovered that coaches use the following strategies: (a) having a coaching philosophy aimed at helping athletes to develop, (b) understanding athletes’ pre-existing makeup, (c) providing athletes with opportunities to show their skills, (d) modeling, (e) taking teachable moments, (f) using keywords, and (g) and volunteerism. Two inductive strategies were also found: (a) building strong coach-athlete relationships and (b) being stern and direct with athletes. Trudel, Culver, and Werthner’s 2013 chapter on coach learning was used to frame the learning pathways section of this study. Results from this portion of the study indicate that coaches learned through a variety of different means, including their experiences and through mediated and unmediated learning situations. As one of the first studies to explore the coach’s role in assisting Special Olympics athletes to develop life skills, we feel that this study makes a valuable contribution to the literature on coaching science, sport for people with disabilities, and athlete development. This study also highlights new areas for research that could further expand our knowledge of this topic.

This thesis explores the use of adapted Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) with individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (ID/D). DBT is a multi-modal psychological intervention that aims to increase skills in interpersonal effectiveness, distress tolerance, emotional regulation and mindfulness. It was initially developed for individuals who presented with parasuicidal behaviours, and is recommended for the treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). This thesis is presented in five papers; a systematic literature review, three empirical papers (a, b &c), and a critical review and reflection of the research process. The systematic literature review provides a narrative review of published research regarding the adaptations and outcomes of DBT for individuals with ID/D. Seven studies were reviewed using the Evaluative Method for Determining Evidence Based Practice (EBP) (Reichow, 2011). The findings detail the adaptations, results and critical appraisal of the research to date. The empirical papers consider the outcomes of adults with ID/D who received adapted DBT in a community psychological therapies service. The papers present different methodologies, and combined produce a consilience of evidence regarding the suitability of DBT for this population. Paper 2a found significant reductions on measures of depression, anxiety and anger, and increased mindfulness skills amongst 18 participants following DBT. Paper 2b uses repertory grid technique to explore the psychological changes that occur following DBT for seven participants, and found overall changes in personal construing and improvements in self-esteem. Paper 2c considers the psychological changes that occur in further depth through the presentation of two case studies. The case studies consider the complexity and idiosyncrasy of the individuals and gives consideration to the use of repertory grids to identify implicative dilemmas as part of clinical assessments. The final paper provides a critical review with personal reflections of the thesis. The author considers the research and clinical implications of the study.

Syftet med studien är att belysa några lärares syn på och resonemang kring sitt arbete med bedömning i grundsärskolan i årskurserna 7-9, samt vilka bedömningsmaterial som används. Studien har för avsikt att besvara tre forskningsfrågor: På vilket sätt arbetar och resonerar lärare i grundsärskolans inriktning ämnen med bedömning av elever?, Vilka olika bedömningsmaterial använder sig lärarna av i sitt arbete med bedömning?, Vad är lärarnas erfarenhet av bedömning? Studien utgår ifrån en kvalitativ forskningsmetod  och utgörs av intervjuer med fyra lärare på två olika skolor inom samma kommun i Sverige. Samtliga lärare arbetar inom grundsärskolan och har mentorskap. Studiens teorival utgörs av fem bedömningsteoretiska begrepp. Studiens resultat visar att samtliga lärare i studien anser att bedömning av elevernas kunskaper är viktigt men vissa svårigheter finns då elevernas kunskapsutveckling är väldigt ojämn.  Lärarna återkopplar till eleverna och följer upp deras kunskapsresultat regelbundet. Resultatet visar även att lärarna bland annat har skaffat sig erfarenhet av bedömning genom olika kurser och i diskussioner med kollegor. Samtidigt visade studien på att samtliga lärare påvisade en avsaknad av relevant bedömningsmaterial riktat mot grundsärskolan. / The purpose of the study is to highlight some teachers´ views on and discussion of assessment in special school, and what assessment materials used. This study intends to answer three research questions:  The way in which teachers work and reason about their work with the assessment in compulsory schools, what assessment materials teachers use in their assessment work, and what experience the teachers have of assessment. The study is based on a qualitative research and consists of interviews with four teachers at two different schools within the same municipality in Sweden. All teachers working in special school and mentoring. The theoretical part of the study consists of five concepts in assessment. Study results show that all teachers feel that the assessment of students´ knowledge is important, but there are some difficulties when pupils´ progress is very uneven. Teachers feedback to students and monitor their learning outcomes regularly. The result also shows that teachers among others have gained experience of assessing through various courses and in discussions with colleagues. The study also showed that all of the teachers showed a lack of relevant materials targeted at special school.

A growing disparity between the mental health needs of children and their lack of treatment served as the basis of this study. To address this existent gap, I proposed that child-centered play therapy (CCPT), a holistic treatment that fosters children's emotional, developmental, and social growth would serve as a viable treatment. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of CCPT on problem behaviors among children identified with an intellectual disability. Specifically, a single case, A-B-A design (N = 2) was used to examine changes in participant's problem behaviors as measured on the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) across conditions. Trained raters used the ABC to rate participant's problem behaviors 3 times per week during the course of this study. Participants completed 2 weeks of a no-intervention phase, 5 weeks of play therapy 3 times per week, and 2 weeks of a no-intervention maintenance phase. Additionally, participants were administered the Gesell Developmental Observation to assess their maturational age during the baseline and maintenance phases. Parents also completed the ABC during two intervals: baseline phase, and maintenance phase. Analysis of results indicated that problem behaviors decreased for both participants. Results from the percent of non-overlapping data (PND), an indice for effect size further revealed that play therapy was a very effective treatment for participants. Follow-up interviews suggested that play therapy is a viable intervention for children with intellectual disabilities and problem behaviors. Clinical observations and implications for future research are presented.

Children with intellectual disabilities are often denied exposure to mathematical word-problem solving since it is believed to beyond their intellectual abilities. This study aimed to determine whether children with intellectual disabilities could be taught to solve subtraction word-problems. The underlying premise of this study was that the receptive mathematical language skills of children with intellectual disabilities needed to be enhanced so as to optimize their word-problem solving abilities. This was undertaken through the implementation of a mathematical aided language stimulation programme (MAiLgS). This programme aimed to maximise exposure to and understanding of the mathematical language of word-problems for children with intellectual disabilities through simultaneous exposure to spoken input and visual supports. Two strategies were combined to form the MAiLgS programme. The first strategy referred to Goossens’ (1989) principles of aided language stimulation whereby graphic symbols in the form of Picture Communication Symbols (PCS symbols) (Johnson, 1981) and spoken input were utilized to expound upon and clarify the vocabulary comprising word-problems. Riley, Greeno and Heller’s model of word-problem solving (1983) was used to structure the three types of subtraction word-problems and to provide visual support in calculating the word-problem solutions. Seven children with intellectual disabilities aged between 8;0 and 12;0 were taught to solve the subtraction word-problems in a small group format. A multiple baseline design across behaviours (three types of subtraction word-problems) replicated across seven participants was used. The MAiLgS programme entailed teaching each of the three types of subtraction word-problems over a period of three weeks, with one word-problem type being taught each week. Participants’ subtraction-word problem solving was monitored daily using probe tests. Three maintenance probes were conducted four weeks after intervention stopped. Four of the seven participants demonstrated improved subtraction word-problems solving for the three types of subtraction word-problems. The remaining three participants demonstrated minimal change in their ability to solve the word-problems. The results of this study suggest that a MAiLgS programme may be used in a small group format to teach word-problem solving to children with intellectual disabilities. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2015. / tm2015 / Centre for Augmentative & Alternative Communication (CAAC) / PhD / Unrestricted

ABSTRAKTInledning: På boende inom lagom om stöd och service till vissa funktionshindrade (1993:387) kan det förekomma det som kallas ”utmanande beteende”. Ett utmanande beteende kan visa sig i allt från ett självskadebeteende, till personer som skriker och biter sig själva och/eller sin omgivning. Beteendet utmanar oftast både personal och den enskilde själv. Orsakerna till beteendet kan vara olika, men det visar sig då personen har brist på verktyg för att hantera situationen. Personal använder sig av olika metoder för att hantera dessa situationer. Lågaffektivt bemötande är en metod vars princip är att personal ska stötta brukaren i att återfå kontroll i kravfyllda situationer. Problemformulering: När utmanande beteende förekommer arbetar personal för att hitta pedagogiska tillvägagångssätt som gynnar främst brukaren, men även personalen. Att hitta fungerande, individuella metoder kräver mycket av personalen, och i undersökningen framkommer det vilka resurser personalen behöver för att utföra ett arbete av hög kvalité. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur personal inom särskilt boende enligt LSS, arbetar och upplever arbetet med ett lågaffektivt bemötande i utmanande situationer. Metod: För att besvara syftet och frågeställningarna genomfördes tre semistrukturerade fokusgruppsintervjuer med personal på särskilda boende enligt LSS. Den insamlade empirin analyserades och delades in i teman och underteman. Resultat: Resultatet av undersökningen tyder på att personal känner en viss osäkerhet och oklarhet i arbetet med lågaffektivt bemötande, samt svårigheter i implementeringsprocessen. Slutsatsen av undersökningen är att personal är optimistiska till metoden och strävar enhetligt mot samma mål, men med brist på kunskap och handledning, känner personalen en osäkerhet och en bristande motivation. Vidare forskning: Resultatet tyder på att det finns mer behov av forskning om implementeringsmetoder av lågaffektivt bemötande, samt chefens roll i dessa. Med en bra implementeringsmetod hade man kunnat sprida kunskap om lågaffektivt bemötande, både inom andra yrken, men även till andra länder. / ABSTRACTIntroduction: In accommodations, within the act concerning support and service for certain disabled persons (1993:387), there may occur what is called ”challenging behaviour”. Challenging behaviour can show itself in everything from self-injury, to people who scream and bite themselves and/or their surroundings. This behaviour usually challenges both the staff and the individual him/herself. The causes of this behaviour may be different, but it appears when the individual lacks the tools needed to handle the situation. The staff uses different methods to deal with these situations. Low arousal approach is a method whose principle is that the staff should support the individual in regaining control in demanding situations. Problem: When challenging behaviour occurs, the staff works hard to find pedagogical approaches that primarily benefit the individual, but also the staff. To find individual methods that works requires a lot by the staff, and this study attempts to reveal what resources the staff needs in order to carry out high quality work. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate how the staff in the special accommodation according to LSS, work, and experience the work with a low arousal approach in challenging situations. Method: In order to fulfil the purpose and answer the questions, three semi- structured focus group interviews were conducted with the staff in special accommodations. The collected data was analyzed and divided into themes and subtopics. Result: The result of the study indicates that the staff feels some uncertainty and confusion in the work with the low arousal approach, as well as difficulties in the implementation process. In conclusion, this study suggests that the staff is optimistic about the method and strive unitarily towards the same goal, but with a lack of knowledge and education, the staff feels uncertainty and a lack of motivation. Further research: The results indicate that there is more need for research about implementation methods of low arousal approach, as well as the role of the manager in this. With a good implementation method, one would be able to disseminate knowledge about low arousal approach, both in other professions, but also to other countries.

Current state and federal legislation mandate public schools to provide a vast array of educational services for students with disabilities. Catholic high schools are, for the most part, exempt from laws requiring them to provide those same services. Although many Catholic schools attempt to assist students with disabilities, the students they are willing to accept and accommodate generally have learning disabilities categorized as mild to moderate, who may not need the scope and breadth of services available to them in public schools. However, they are bound by their identity as Catholic to include and embrace all members of the community. This qualitative study employed interviews of four administrators and eight teachers to assess the extent to which teachers and administrators at one coeducational suburban Catholic high school felt spiritually and professionally called to accommodate students with disabilities and to encounter the ways teachers and administrators at this school put the call of Catholic social teaching and the obligations of social justice into a relationship of care for students with disabilities. Findings indicated little formal preparation and infrequent professional development for teachers accommodating students with disabilities combined with inadequate resources. These deficiencies were countered by professionalism, passion, and a passionate call to care on the part of educators. The findings support the need for Catholic high schools to begin engaging in conversation surrounding the best ways to support and train administration and faculty to improve current accommodation practices and to expand their current offerings to students with disabilities.

The objective of this dissertation was to conduct an evaluation of a knowledge mobilization process in a community-based organization that supports adults with intellectual disabilities. The aim of the project was to understand how stakeholders share knowledge, use knowledge, and collaborate to make decisions regarding practices to support friendships for adults with intellectual disabilities. We produced two literature reviews; one systematically documented the views of adults with intellectual disabilities with regard to their relationships, and the other examined existing literature on strategies to support friendships. We also conducted two primary research studies in which we documented and evaluated knowledge mobilization activities in community-based organizations. We used a mixed-methods approach and collected data from a variety of stakeholder groups associated with a community-based organization, including staff members and the organization’s director, adults with intellectual disabilities, and family caregivers. Additionally, we collected data from staff working in a variety of community-based organizations that support adults with intellectual disabilities. During our primary research studies, we produced a variety of knowledge mobilization outputs regarding friendship support, including an evidence brief, a conference presentation, online presentations in French and English, and an informational website in French and English. The results of the studies included in this dissertation, our recommendations regarding community-based knowledge mobilization, and the knowledge mobilization outputs we developed can be used to improve knowledge mobilization practices in community-based services. Studying knowledge mobilization to support individuals with intellectual disabilities highlights some of the complexities that should be considered within community-based services, such as working with a variety of stakeholder groups, and including stakeholders that are potentially vulnerable to social exclusion.

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) provides many individuals who have little or no functional speech with a means to enter the world of communication. Aided and/or unaided symbols are used as a means of reception and expression to create shared meaning. The selection of an appropriate symbol set/system is vital and iconicity plays a central role in this process. The Western-based symbol set, Picture Communication Symbols (PCS) (Johnson, 1981), is readily available and widely used in South Africa, despite little information existing on its iconicity to South African populations with disabilities. This study aimed to determine the iconicity of Picture Communication Symbols (PCS) for children with English Additional Language (EAL) and intellectual disability. A quantitative, non-experimental, descriptive design was used. Thirty participants between the ages of 12;00 and 15;11 (years; months) with EAL and intellectual disability were required to identify 16 PCS presented thematically on a ‘bed-making’ communication overlay in response to a gloss read out by the researcher. The results indicated that, overall, the 16 PCS were relatively iconic to the participants. The results also indicated that the iconicity of PCS can be manipulated and enhanced and that it can be influenced by other PCS that are used simultaneously on the communication overlay. The reasons for these findings are described. The clinical and theoretical implications of this study’s results are discussed, followed by a critical evaluation of this study and, finally, recommendations for future research are suggested. / Dissertation (Master of Arts)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Centre for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (CAAC) / unrestricted

Background: Children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities are at increased risk for peer victimization in schools. Due to the deficits in their social, cognitive, and adaptive skills, these children face greater challenges to stand up for themselves thus, facing continued victimization.   Aim: This systematic literature review sought to critically identify the existing literature on predictors and outcomes which are associated with peer victimization in children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities in a school environment using the Biopsychosocial model. Method: To conduct this study, a systematic search procedure was formulated to retrieve relevant scholarly articles from the chosen databases. Peer reviewed journals were searched to retrieve articles from education, psychology, and social sciences, published in English language between years 2000-2020. Only studies with children and adolescents ages 6 - 21 years were considered. A total of eight articles with five cross-sectional, two cohort, and one case-control studies qualified to answer the research questions. Results: Findings varied across the social and psychological aspects. Social predictors and outcomes were found to be dominant for peer victimization. Internalizing Behaviour Disorders as a whole was identified as a psychological predictor with low self-esteem and depressive feelings as individual predictors and outcomes of peer victimization. Conclusion: Children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities are vulnerable to peer victimization due to deficits in disability characteristics. Exposure to peer victimization can pose serious consequences on their social and psychological well-being. Implications for future research and methodological limitations of this study are also discussed.