While the impact of inclusion has been researched and debated for years, less effort has been directed at assessing how those individuals responsible for implementing the practice perceive the effects. This research study was designed to determine the attitudes and perceptions of staff members at Western School Corporation concerning the current inclusion model. The census consisted of educators who held the role of general education teacher, special education teacher, paraprofessional (aide), or administrator. There were 196 staff members who were asked to complete a paper survey; 98 educators responded, which generated a response rate of 50%. The survey, The Inclusion Inventory: A Tool for Measuring the Implementation and Use of Inclusive Practices, was used. The Texas University Affiliated Program for Developmental Disabilities, the Education Service Center Region XIII, the Education Service Center Region 20, and Inclusion Works developed the instrument jointly. The results of the study indicated that the administration at Western School Corporation supports inclusion, but there are not ample resources in place to support the overall model. This was commensurate with the findings that the respondents did not feel that sufficient opportunities were being given for staff members to discuss inclusion issues. Overall, the staff members appear to have a fairly positive perspective of the inclusion model, as well as the effects of student success they have seen. Staff members are utilizing a variety of instructional strategies to promote an inclusive setting, but they must continue to be trained in these to recognize their importance. Possible reasons for these results were discussed and a need for further research was offered. / Department of Educational Leadership

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Teachers College, Columbia University, 1992. / Typescript; issued also on microfilm. Sponsor: Cynthia Johnson. Dissertation Committee: Dawn Person. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 104-115).

Thèse (M.Ed.) -- Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, 2006. / Bibliogr.: f. [94]-100. Document électronique également accessible en format PDF. CaQCU

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 2002. / Title from title page screen, viewed February 7, 2006. Dissertation Committee: Maureen E. Angell (chair), Jeffrey P. Bakken, Barbara M. Fulk, James R. Thompson, W. Paul Vogt. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 94-103) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 1994. / Title from title page screen, viewed March 17, 2006. Dissertation Committee: Pamela Wheeler, Thomas Caldwell (co-chairs), Lanny Morreau, Jerome Tillman, Ramesh Chaudhari. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 83-93) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 1997. / Title from title page screen, viewed June 7, 2006. Dissertation Committee: Toni McCarty, Lanny Morreau (co-chairs), Kenneth Strand, Ming-Gon John Lian. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 76-88) and abstract. Also available in print.

abstract: The purpose of this exploratory study was to determine which social-emotional skills may predict postsecondary enrollment for students with disabilities. Students with disabilities are less likely to enroll in any form of postsecondary education and in turn experience poorer post-education outcomes than their general education peers. Using data from the second National Longitudinal Transition Study (NLTS2), a classification tree analysis was conducted on teacher-rated social-emotional behaviors in an attempt to determine which social-emotional skills were the strongest predictors of postsecondary enrollment. Items assessing social-emotional skills were selected from the second wave of teacher surveys based on their alignment with the broad taxonomy of social-emotional skills created by Caldarella and Merrell. The results of the classification tree analysis showed that one of the selected social-emotional items, teacher rated ability to follow directions, was the most significant predictor of postsecondary enrollment for students with disabilities. In general, the results suggest that compliance and, to a lesser extent, peer-relations skills, in addition to family income, predict postsecondary enrollment for students with high-incidence disabilities. This finding suggests that social-emotional skills play an important role in postsecondary enrollment for SWD, providing support for the use of social-emotional skills interventions in improving postsecondary enrollment rates and potentially post-educational outcomes for SWD. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Educational Psychology 2011

Submitted by Suelen Reis (suziy.ellen@gmail.com) on 2013-05-07T17:27:56Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Teofilo Galvao.pdf: 3858894 bytes, checksum: 25105c00967201799fbd1b381dbe0e3e (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by NELIJANE MENEZES(rubi2276@gmail.com) on 2013-05-08T13:11:52Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Teofilo Galvao.pdf: 3858894 bytes, checksum: 25105c00967201799fbd1b381dbe0e3e (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2013-05-08T13:11:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Teofilo Galvao.pdf: 3858894 bytes, checksum: 25105c00967201799fbd1b381dbe0e3e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009 / Num mundo em profundas e aceleradas transformações, a Tecnologia Assistiva emerge como uma área do conhecimento e de pesquisa que tem se revelado como um importante horizonte de novas possibilidades para a autonomia e inclusão social dos alunos com deficiência. Na busca de entender e discutir como a “instituição Escola” tem percebido e vivenciado essas possibilidades em suas práticas e processos, principalmente os relacionados com a Educação Inclusiva, esta pesquisa estudou, através de uma abordagem de Estudo de Caso, o processo de apropriação e uso da Tecnologia Assistiva por escolas públicas de Ensino Básico do município de Salvador, Bahia, tecnologia essa necessária para a inclusão de alunos com deficiência em suas salas de aula. O estudo foi operacionalizado por meio de entrevistas realizadas em quatro escolas com os profissionais que vivenciam e gerenciam mais diretamente essas realidades, que são os seus gestores, professores, coordenadores pedagógicos e os responsáveis por Salas de Recursos. Nesse sentido, a pesquisa fundamentou-se no pensamento de Bronfenbrenner sobre o modelo ecológico de desenvolvimento, e também na perspectiva sócio-histórica proposta por Vygotsky, mais particularmente nos seus Fundamentos de Defectologia, além do suporte teórico sobre Educação Inclusiva encontrado em autores como Mantoan, Baptista, Miranda, Manzini, Rodrigues e outros, e sobre a relação das Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação com a educação, encontrada em Lévy, Papert, Silva, Pretto, Bonilla e outros. Como resultados da pesquisa, destacam-se, além da constatação dos avanços e conquistas verificados no processo de apropriação da Tecnologia Assistiva pelas escolas estudadas, também, e majoritariamente, as dificuldades e obstáculos encontrados nesse processo pelos profissionais entrevistados, juntamente com as demandas desses profissionais por ações mais efetivas das gestões centrais das redes educacionais públicas às quais pertencem, e por políticas públicas consistentes e sistemáticas que favoreçam uma maior agilidade e eficácia no processo de apropriação e uso da Tecnologia Assistiva necessária para a inclusão escolar de alunos com deficiência. Foi possível detectar e analisar, também, as contradições existentes entre o paradigma educacional tradicional hegemônico nas escolas e os princípios da Educação Inclusiva, contradições essas percebidas como desestruturadoras dos processos de apropriação e uso da Tecnologia Assistiva por essas escolas. A partir dos dados obtidos, analisados e discutidos, são apresentadas possibilidades concretas de novos horizontes, perspectivas e políticas públicas que favoreçam e viabilizem o avanço nesses processos, tal como a implantação de Centros de Referência em Tecnologia Assistiva e Acessibilidade, e a construção de ambientes telemáticos de aprendizagem favorecedores de práticas educacionais escolares mais inclusivas e compatíveis com as necessidades da sociedade contemporânea. / Salvador

Overall, research covering access to education for students with disabilities is accumulating at a very slow rate, Lesotho is no exception. Such studies are important given the national and international commitments to equality and equity in education for all citizens. Access to education is based on four values which are central to inclusive education namely; presence, participation, acceptance and achievement. This qualitative case study must be understood as an attempt to close the gap in the literature and to provide a deeper understanding with respect to access to higher education for students with disabilities. The study uses the social constructionism and social model of disability as lenses to guide the investigation. Data collection involved various methods namely, analysis of documents (policies, internal memoranda, official letters, minutes of the meetings and pictures), individual interviews and focus group discussions with staff and students with various forms of disabilities. Data was analysed through the use of interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) which begins analysis with a single unit and builds meaning from the unit to reflect the general patterns of behaviour across units. Findings reveal that though admission at the university is considered non-discriminatory, it is on merit bases. All students compete equally for available spaces and the identity of students with disabilities is considered irrelevant to disclose during selection of applicants. If a student with disabilities competes with students who were not exposed to similar challenges at primary and secondary levels, admission should be viewed as unfair. Additionally, Students with disabilities have limited choice of courses or programmes due to poor administration of concessions, lack of educational resources, inflexible teaching methods and curricula. This problem conflicts with the capability principle that promotes students’ choice of desired functionings. Further, disability data is not used to secure either the academic or social support services for the students at the institution. Students with disabilities are excluded from the social and extracurricular activities of the university with some bullied by staff and peers alike. Finally, the support provided by SENA, year-level tutors and welfare personnel is inadequate and does not afford opportunities for students with disabilities to participate equitably in the university’s academic and social programmes. The study concludes that access to institutions of higher education for students with disabilities in Lesotho is problematic. They remained ignored and underserved. There is a need for fundamental transformation of policies, practices and programmes to afford all students opportunities to gain admission, participate, and succeed in education. / Inclusive Education / D. Ed. (Inclusive Education)

xi, 114 p. : ill. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / The primary purpose of this study was to develop and field test the ExCEL survey instrument, intended to measure faculty attitudes toward and perceptions about students with disabilities at four-year colleges and universities. A secondary purpose was to examine how demographic characteristics of the sample and prior disability-focused training experiences influenced these attitudes and perceptions. A cross validation study was conducted using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The exploratory factor analysis (EFA) resulted in an eight factor structure: Knowledge of Disability Law, Fairness, Invitation to Disclose, Willingness to Invest Time, Accessibility of Course Materials, Willingness to Adjust Course Assignments, Satisfaction with Campus Resources, and Willingness to Make Testing Accommodations. The confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was intended to confirm the factor structure but resulted in an inadmissible solution, potentially due to model misspecification. These findings show initial reliability and validity of the ExCEL survey and suggest item development as a crucial next step in the development process. Follow-up analyses showed minimal differences between faculty according to gender but significant differences according to faculty rank (e.g., tenured, tenure-track, and non-tenure) and department. In addition, group differences emerged according to prior disability-focused training, where faculty who had previous disability-focused training had greater positive attitudes and perceptions toward students with disabilities than did faculty without such training. These results will inform the field about important constructs to consider in instrument development for measuring faculty attitudes and perceptions toward disability, including knowledge of legal mandates and accommodations and knowledge of and willingness to adjust instruction according to the tenets of Universal Design. As well, the findings will inform four-year college and university administrations when planning targeted interventions for faculty members in disability awareness training. / Committee in charge: K Brigid Flannery, Chairperson, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Deborah Olson, Member, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Joe Stevens, Member, Educational Methodology, Policy, and Leadership; Douglas Blandy, Outside Member, Arts and Administration