Brain injury has become a more topical issue over the past decade, however limited research has been done on experiences of university students and few are specific to female students. The research question became: “How has having an acquired brain injury impacted the experience of female students within postsecondary education?” Narrative and auto-ethnographic methodologies were employed; semi-structured interviews with five participants were conducted, and text boxes were utilized to weave the researcher’s voice as a student with a brain injury into the narrative. Findings indicate brain injury has diverse implications depending on severity. Some participants spoke of accessing (dis)Ability resource centres, while others did not utilize formal accommodations. Findings revealed that participants navigate the academy in isolation yet wanted to connect with fellow students who have acquired brain injuries. Social workers can facilitate this process and provide counselling, challenge negative social implications and work toward building an inclusive educational environment.

Thesis (Ph. D., Education)--University of Idaho, April 2009. / Major professor: Russell Joki. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 275-291). Also available online (PDF file) by subscription or by purchasing the individual file.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 1998. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 295-304). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Open-ended interview questions were asked to ten college freshmen with learning disabilities (LD) to provide the primary source of data in this qualitative study that was done to explore personal experiences of these students in transitioning from high school to a large university. Student participants were chosen based on meeting the criteria of having a diagnosed specific learning disability, having qualified and received special education services in high school, and at the time of the study were receiving accommodations through the Disability Resource Center (DRC) at the University of Arizona (UA). Students were further identified as members of a "successful" group with a first semester grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher, or members of a "jeopardy" group with a first semester GPA of below 2.0 and the academic status of probation. This was done in order to ensure that I included the perceptions of students at the high and low range of academic status levels in this sample, not to compare or contrast the two groups. Interviews yielded information about student perceptions of barriers, attitudes, resources and assistive factors in the transition process. Data were analyzed to determine themes related to student success and difficulties. Suggestions for further research and information for future practice are offered.

This qualitative research study determined the effectiveness of Measuring Up, the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education's national state based higher education report card, as a tool for state leaders in developing postsecondary educational policy. The researcher interviewed state postsecondary leaders in Maryland, North Carolina and Virginia, including state government leaders and administrative officials. Interviews were conducted with nine participants.The participants in this study collectively identified the most pressing issues impacting higher education access. Affordability was identified as the predominant factor impacting access to postsecondary education; the preparation of secondary students was also identified as an issue of concern for policymakers and leaders. In addition, the participants cited policies and initiatives undertaken to address these as well as other areas of concern.Measuring Up was identified as helpful as a data resource in developing policy; however, participants expressed concerns over the methodology used in report development. The methodology used in developing affordability measures was of particular concern and interviewees felt the metrics did not accurately reflect state attempts to address the issue.Recommendations include implications for the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education (NCPPHE) and state governing/coordinating bodies. The NCPPHE should conduct conversations with state higher education leaders or representatives prior to the issuance of subsequent reports to enhance effectiveness and utilization by policymakers. State coordinating bodies need to be assertive in addressing the interests of its student constituents and aggressive in developing state data through assessments and research.

The purpose of this thesis is to determine assistive technology-based instructions in the area of Living for postsecondary education students with autism spectrum disorder and/ or intellectual and developmental disabilities for investigating the types of AT support in improving independent living skills. An electronic search was conducted using the following databases: ERIC (Education Source version), ERIC (EBSCO host version), ERIC (ProQuest version), PsycINFO, and Google Scholar. Seven peer-reviewed journals were searched between 2008 and 2018. The references identified and relevant articles were scanned to find additional relevant literature. Papers referring to an assistive-technology based intervention that targets the area of independent living and be taught within the postsecondary program were included. Participants were diagnosed with ASD and/ or IDD and were enrolled in a postsecondary program designed for individuals with developmental disabilities. Only single-case studies or experimental/quasi- experimental designed studies were included. A total of 155 articles were found. The references and abstracts were saved in Endnote reference manager software for the selection process. First, 19 duplicates were found and excluded. A selection process was then carried out with the remaining 136 articles. The articles were screened by title and abstract, and 32 articles were excluded. Subsequently, full-text screening was conducted, and eight peer-reviewed articles and two dissertations were left. To conclude, the types of assistive technology while teaching independent living skills to postsecondary students with disabilities were reported. The skills were taught by using assistive technology were diverse. Results indicated the positive effectiveness of using assistive technology-based instructional practices in teaching independent living skills.

Even with current transition practice and service delivery requirements mandated for students with disabilities by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) participation in postsecondary education and employment for individuals with autism remains low (Shattuck et al., 2012; Newman, Wagner, Cameto, & Knokey, 2011). The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (SDLMI; Wehmeyer, Palmer, Agran, Mithaug, & Martin, 2000). The intervention was designed to facilitate student development, and participation in community college course settings, increase academic and vocational goal attainment and self-determined behavior while decreasing support needs. The SDLMI has been shown to be effective for teaching students with disabilities how to access the general education curriculum and increase self-determination skills to achieve academic and vocational goals. A multiple probe design across participants with four college-aged students with autism evaluated the effects of the intervention for three different postsecondary education goals. Study findings show the extent to which the intervention affects participants’ ability to be more self-determined in their decision-making regarding the management of postsecondary educational goals and course requirements using self-directed learning. The SDLMI Teacher’s Guide for Model Implementation (Shogren, Wehmeyer, Burke, & Palmer, 2017) and teacher-facilitated procedures (National Technical Assistance Center on Transition, 2017) were used to ensure intervention implementation fidelity. The researcher and trained research assistant compared real time data in point-by-point agreement ratios to quantify the number of times the observers agreed about what they saw in each observation to determine differences during data collection. The baseline, intervention, and maintenance sessions lasted 13 weeks, and data were collected during all sessions. Results from the intervention effects showed a functional relationship (cause-effect) between the intervention and goal attainment. Participants increased their ability to use self-determined behaviors to attain goals through student questions, teacher objectives, and educational supports. Self-determined behaviors increased while support needs greatly decreased. Social validity data were collected through student self-monitoring using goal attainment scaling and parent perspectives to inform support intensity results. Factors related to self-determination, motivation, and expectations for future goals contribute to a better understanding of goal attainment through this research.

Misalignment between student preferences and instructor assumptions regarding feedback may impede student learning. Researchers have investigated postsecondary students' preferences for types of instructor feedback including written, audio, and video. However, postsecondary online students' preferences have not been explored in a large-sample study. This sequential explanatory mixed-methods study was conducted to describe postsecondary online students' preferences and the reasons for those preferences. Vygotsky's social-constructivist theory was used to frame instructor feedback as a scaffolding tool to promote self-regulation in student writing. A survey containing quantitative and qualitative questions was used to collect 93 responses from undergraduate and graduate students attending a large private online university; data collection also included interviews with a subsample of 4 volunteer participants who were selected using maximum variation sampling according to their degree program. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive frequencies; qualitative data were analyzed for emerging themes. Findings indicated that students preferred proximal, detailed, supportive feedback. Students' preferences were based on the desire to enhance their writing skills and understand point deductions assessed by instructors. Implications for social change include increasing instructor awareness of students' preferences and enhancing collaboration in the feedback process to promote writing skill development and improve academic outcomes among postsecondary students, especially those matriculated in online programs.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2002. / Restricted until October 2003. Bibliography: leaves 93-98.

Thesis--PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references.