J. Matt Jameson

A Comparison of One-to-One Embedded Instruction in the General Education Classroom and One-to-One Massed Practice Instruction in the Special Education Classroom

A single subject alternating treatment design was used to compare the relative effectiveness of one-to-one embedded instruction in the general education classroom and one-to-one massed practice instruction in a special education class. Four middle school students with developmental disabilities, their special education teacher, and paraprofessional participated in the study. The results indicate that embedded instruction is an effective instructional strategy for students with developmental disabilities being served in inclusive settings. However, the results indicate that there was some difference in the efficiency of the two instructional formats. Two students reached criterion more rapidly in the one-to-one massed instructional intervention while the one-to-one embedded instruction was more efficient for one student. There was no difference between the interventions for the fourth student. Finally, the study validated previous research that found that both special education teachers and paraprofessionals can, with minimal training, accurately implement embedded instructional interventions in the general education classroom. Implications for practitioners and researchers are discussed.

Guardianship and the Potential of Supported Decision Making With Individuals With Disabilities

Guardianship is a complicated legal concept, which is further complicated by differences from state to state in the framing and implementation of distinctly different forms. Few professionals explain the long-term consequences of obtaining guardianship or provide the range of alternatives available to support an adult with disabilities. This study reports descriptive data from a national survey on guardianship and people with disabilities. The results indicate that regardless of who provides information about guardianship, and regardless of disability classification, full guardianship is consistently discussed most frequently while other options are rarely discussed. We describe implications for practice and provide recommendations. Specifically, supported decision making is described as one potential alternative to legal guardianship that, according to these data, is the least frequently discussed with parents, but which has the potential to avoid many of the legal and social pitfalls that guardianship presents. Limitations and current research needs are described.

A Comparison of On-Campus and Distance Teacher Education Programs in Severe Disabilities

Distance teacher education programs employing videoconferencing technology and other online teaching tools are increasingly being used to prepare teachers of students with disabilities in rural and remote communities. This evaluation study compared the effectiveness of a distance and an on-campus teacher education program for teachers of students with severe disabilities. Teacher candidates in the distance cohort received the same program of study as candidates in the on-campus program except that the coursework was delivered through videoconferencing technology instead of traditional, face-to-face instruction. Instructional activities for candidates in both cohorts were supported through online instructional tools (i.e., Web CT) and on-site field supervision from university clinical faculty members and cooperating professionals from the local school districts. A variety of measures were used to assess candidates’ acquisition of content and their ability to apply the knowledge and skills acquired through the program of study. The results indicate that there were no significant differences between students in the distance and on-campus teacher education cohorts on the measures of learning. The implications of the findings for further research are discussed.

Going the Distance to Train Teachers for Students with Severe Disabilities: The University of Utah Distance Teacher Education Program

Research indicates that there is a significant and chronic shortage of highly-qualified special education teachers nationally. Although the shortages of highly-qualified teachers are pervasive across all disability categories they are particularly significant in the area of severe disabilities. This is especially true in rural and remote areas. The general conclusion of researchers is that the most effective way to address the chronic shortage of special education teachers in rural and remote communities is to identify, recruit, train, and support individuals from the local area. However, this necessitates the development and delivery of comprehensive distance education programs. This article describes the evolution of the distance education programs in the Department of Special Education at the University and the current program in place to help alleviate the critical special education teaching shortage in rural and remote areas.

Using an iTouch to Teach Core Curriculum Words and Definitions: Efficacy and Social Validity

Media scholars have long recognized the interaction between the medium that conveys the information and the information that is conveyed. This study examined the relative impact of different low- and high-tech instructional mediums (e.g., flashcards and the iTouch) on the acquisition of general education content-referenced sight words and definitions by students with significant cognitive disabilities. Results indicated that most of the students (three of the four students in the study) preferred high-tech instructional mediums during preference assessments prior to instruction. There was an increase in the tolerance for massed trials for preferred instructional mediums, but it was not meaningful. In spite of these data, there was minimal difference in the rates of skill acquisition or the social validity of the instructional mediums.

Including Students with Extensive and Pervasive Support Needs

Abstract Since the passage of Public Law 94-142, federal law has prioritized the education of students with disabilities with their non-disabled peers in the context of the general education classroom. This chapter examines the progress, and often lack thereof, with regard to educating students with extensive and pervasive support needs in inclusive settings. We examine current trends in placement, factors that contribute to those placement practices, and what IDEA says about the education of students with extensive and pervasive support needs. We examine what the research suggests happens in substantially segregated settings and then, in contrast, examine impacts and outcomes for students with extensive and pervasive support needs who are educated in inclusive settings. We also examine trends resulting from changing paradigms of disability that provide new opportunities for re-invigorating efforts to educate students with extensive and pervasive support needs in inclusive classrooms.

Computer-Based Instruction (CBI) Within Special Education

Computer-based instruction (CBI) has the potential to help stakeholders meet new expectations regarding the academic achievement and educational outcomes of students receiving special education services. Part of the optimism about CBI’s transformative role in special education has focused on its potential to provide flexible materials and practices surrounding academic curricula. This chapter focuses specifically on academic instruction as implemented within CBI and as it relates to the largest group of students with disabilities in public schools: students with mild to moderate, or specific, learning disabilities. We first identify some priority concerns for students in special education that may be addressed by digital tools and technology-based solutions. We then review existing research literature to determine when and how technology may support the cognitive processes and learning outcomes of students in special education. Finally, we summarize the research findings into a set of practical recommendations based upon currently available evidence.

Book Review: Evidence-Based Instructional Strategies for Transition Evidence-Based Instructional Strategies for Transition . TestDavid W. and invited contributors. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing, 2012. 146 pages;

In the series preface to Evidence-Based Instructional Strategies for Transition by Dr. David W. Test and invited contributors, the intent of this volume is contextualized with the reality that, for some students, BItransition has become a splintered concept, too weighed down by process and removed from building on the student’s aspirations and desires for a Fgood life_ (p. ix).[ All the data presented in the text indicate that the postschool outcomes for students with disabilities need to improve. This is particularly true if we define postschool outcomes through a lens focused primarily on college and career readiness. Dr. Test and his collaborating authors posit that one way to address the issue that many students with significant disabilities fail to achieve and, at times, even access the good life would be the consistent use of evidence-based instructional practices to support a seamless transition into adulthood. The authors also emphasize the need to provide a transition program that provides for continual individual change and evolution, as adulthood is an experience defined by perpetual change. To achieve the good life, students with significant disabilities need the skills, activities, and routines they have learned to contribute not only to measureable outcomes but also to prepare them for opportunities and challenges that cannot be imagined between the ages of 16 and 22. This is a complex and daunting task, and it is no surprise that the evidence base for transition instruction can be followed back to the beginnings of disability advocacy and research. This has also resulted in an evidence base that has been difficult to comprehensively evaluate. Evidence-Based Instructional Strategies for Transition takes on that challenge. As the authors state, the purpose of the book is to provide practitioners with a single source of information on evidence-based practices for teaching transition skills to students with disabilities. In the process, the volume also provides anyone involved in the transition process with numerous practical tools based on the values and the science of effective transition instruction. The tools are operationalized in a manner that makes them adaptable to meet the individual needs of students and professionals. In his keynote address to the 2011 TASH conference, Dr. Rob Horner stated, BTASH, at its heart, is the integration of science, values, and vision.[ At the core of this integration is the vision that all students in our schools should have the opportunity to achieve an enviable lifestyle through supported lifestyle change and measured by individually defined quality of life outcomes. The friends and families of individuals with disabilities have long emphasized the importance of instructional interventions that focus on lifestyle change and quality of life (Turnbull & Ruef, 1997). Quality of life was defined by Schalock (1996) as reflecting Ba person’s desired conditions of living related to eight core dimensions of one’s life: emotional well-being, interpersonal relationships, material well-being, personal development, physical well-being, self-determination, social inclusion, and rights.[ Unfortunately, it does not take the reader long to see the evidence that the quality of life outcomes for students with disabilities are yet to be fully realized on a broad scale. Throughout his career and as a co-director of the federally funded National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center (NSTTAC), Dr. Test has been integrally involved in the identification, evaluation, compilation, and dissemination of the evidence base on effective transition practices. Evidence-Based Instructional Strategies for Transition is the most recent product of this lifelong commitment to the transition process and outcomes. The text is framed by Kohler’s (1996) Taxonomy for Transition Planning and is rooted in providing supports in five major categories: (a) student focused planning, (b) student development, (c) interagency collaboration, (d) program structure, and (e) family involvement. The book’s framework and set of tools should be especially helpful for special education teachers, transition specialists, and other professionals involved with the transition process. It is an exhaustive compendium of practical and immediately applicable evidence-based instructional strategies that we know are effective in supporting students in the transition process. Practitioners involved with the transition process will appreciate Evidence-Based Instructional Strategies for Transition for the following: