Shannon K. Stuart

A Collaborative Planning Framework for Teachers Implementing Tiered Instruction.

The recent reauthorization and regulations of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA 2004) encourage the use of schoolwide interventions including response to intervention (RTI; Bradley, Danielson, & Doolittle, 2007). RTI refers to a multi tiered system ihat addresses the academic needs of all students by using evidence-based instructional practice, progress monitoring, and data-informed instructional problem solving (Fuchs & Fuchs, 2006; Rinaldi & Samson, 2008), A tiered system is an educational model that delineates three or more levels of instructional interventions based on gaps in student skills. A tier is a level in an RTI system thai includes interventions and supports for a clearly defined group of students. RT! is highly encouraged as it ensures high-quality instruclion and universal screening of all children, addresses the needs of struggling learners by providing interventions at increasing levels of intensity, and significantly decreases the number of inappropriate referrals to special education (Vaughn & Ortiz, 2008), As a result, a significant number of public schools in the United States are in the planning and implementation stages of this initiative. In this article, we present a collaborative planning framework for educators implementing RTI. The framework addresses how educators can use universal screening and progress tiionitoring data to plan for instruction al all tiers as well as evaluate the responsiveness of interventions provided at the Tier 2 and Tier 3 levels within the RTI model. The results are a feasible support system by which educators can improve service delivery lo all slu-

The Impact of PBL Technology on the Preparation of Teachers of English Language Learners.

This article presents qualitative results of the instructional usefulness of a Web-based multimedia problem-based learning module designed to simulate the special education referral process. The multicultural special education (MUSE) module uses three interactive phases to highlight the complexity of determining the nature of academic difficulties when a student has English language limitations. Interviews with instructors and pre-service teachers indicated that the multimedia components of the module created a realistic portrayal of the special education referral process. Furthermore, the group work within the module provided a unique opportunity for pre-service teachers to begin to collaborate with a team to make educational decisions for students they will likely encounter in their future professions.

Reading and Written Language Competency of Incarcerated Youth

This article explores the reading and written language competency of incarcerated youth and examines the role that literacy plays in recidivism. Suggestions for practice include reading and written language curricular strategies that have empirical validation with this population.

Connecting with Families: Parents Speak up about Preschool Services for Their Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Autism is a developmental disability that significantly affects a student’s verbal and nonverbal communication, social interaction, and educational performance, according to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (34 C.F.R., Part 300, § 300.7 [b] [1]). Autism’s characteristics include engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change, and unusual responses to sensory stimuli. Autism is a severe form of a broader group of disorders referred to as pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR; American Psychiatric Association, 2000). However, researchers and clinicians are increasingly calling for the use of the term autism spectrum disorders (ASD; Lord & Risi, 2000; Wetherby & Prizant, 2000). The terminology shift recognizes that special education services are often appropriate for individuals with ASD beyond autism and acknowledges that few absolute distinctions may exist between the broader (ASDs, PDDs) and narrower (autism) definitions (Wetherby & Prizant). Regardless of the term used for identification, autism is defined by a triad of deficits in social reciprocity, communication, and repetitive behaviors or interests, each of which can occur at different levels of severity. At the less impaired end of the spectrum, individuals may lead fairly typical lives but have inappropriate social skills and may be bothered by certain sensory disturbances (e.g., some people are unable to wear certain kinds of clothing because of disproportionate discomfort). At the other end of the spectrum, individuals may display repetitive and stereotypical behavior (e.g., rocking, twirling objects, waving fingers in front of face), have little ability to initiate social interaction, and possess no verbal communication skills. Before a child has gained communication skills, however, it is difficult to determine where on the spectrum she or he will fall. Further, the best indicator for a positive prognosis seems to be intensive early intervention. In fact, a panel assembled by the American Association of Pediatricians (2001) recommended 25 hr per week of therapy beginning at the time autism is first suspected. Paired with lack of insurance coverage for therapy and lack of public school support, however, this recommendation poses an enormous financial, emotional, and temporal burden on families. Having a child with autism can severely disrupt family life. Parents may experience emotional stress, anxiety, fear, and guilt (Gray, 2002). They may have to rearrange their way of life to accommodate their child, and such problems as the absence of language or the presence of behavioral difficulties are likely to exacerbate parental stress levels. Furthermore, the lack of any cure

Choice or Chance: Career Development and Girls with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders.

This study examined the career aspirations of young women with behavioral disorders and the life experiences that contributed to those aspirations. Data, including open-ended interviews and written questionnaires, were collected via qualitative techniques. A grounded theory methodology was used to identify, categorize, and connect themes. The study confirms the importance of career development for women with behavioral disorders. Three overriding issues stand out from these personal stories. First, school experiences are important to career development. Although most participants were disengaged with the academic components of their educational plans, they were highly engaged with their school-supported vocational experiences. Second, family cohesion had a significant effect on career aspirations. Third, participants believe they have little control over their lives, including their career choices. Implications for practitioners are discussed.

The Effects of Check-In Check-Out on the Academic Planning and Behavior of African American Males

The Check-in Check-out (CICO) program is a Tier II behavioral intervention that has received empirical support as an effective way to reduce problem behaviors (Hawken and amp; Horner, 2003; March and amp; Horner, 2002). The purpose of this study is to use an intervention that combined CICO with social skill instruction and academic planning with three African-American ninth-grade males identified with emotional and behavioral disorders. A concurrent baseline across participants design was used to evaluate participants’ performance on academic planning and behavior. Results indicate that the combination of social skill instruction and academic planning with the CICO mentoring program improved participants’ academic planning and behavior.,This study used a concurrent multiple baseline across participants design to determine the effect of the CICO mentoring program. CICO was combined with academic planning and social skills training to determine the effect on the DRC scores and the student’s educational success skills. This study included three phases: baseline, intervention (which included academic planning, social skills training and CICO) and maintenance.,All of the participants were below 50 per cent during baseline for points earned on the daily report card and the execution of steps for academic planning. During intervention, all of the participants had an increase in level and trend for both skills. Participants were able to maintain the skills two weeks after intervention.,This study has several limitations. First, the study was conducted in an urban setting; therefore, it cannot be generalized to other geographical populations, such as rural or suburban students. Second, the study is not generalizable to self-contained settings, resource rooms or other school environments. Third, the use of DRC data, as opposed to direct observations of behavior, is a strong limitation. Consequently, it is possible that improvements in DRC scores were because of changes in teacher perceptions rather than actual changes in student behavior.,The study presents several implications for future studies. First, researchers could investigate different service-level settings (e.g. self-contained or resource) and different settings (e.g. suburban or rural). Second, researchers could focus on varied populations that are targeted for inappropriate behavior or academic difficulties such as English Language Learners. Researchers could also examine the effects of tutoring with CICO and investigate if mentoring is generalizable to community settings.,Social validity outcomes from students, parents and classroom teachers who participated this study were positive. Although social validity measures do not add to data for our dependent variables, it is important to consider perceptions from our stakeholders. Students indicated that they found daily mentoring sessions helpful and beneficial. Based on student perceptions and performance and teacher feedback, components of CICO were effective in reducing disruptive behavior of African-American males at the high school level.,Not only does the study focus on African-American males in high school, but also contributes to the literature by focusing on the increase of students’ academic planning skills, social skills and the reduction of office discipline referrals. The version of CICO used in the present study included the use of FBAs. Few studies found in the literature even mentioned conducting an FBA before or during the implementation of CICO with successful results (Campbell and amp; Anderson, 2008; March and amp; Horner, 2002). The authors also monitored the positive gains of the student using Daily Report Cards (DRC). For this study, DRC is simply a method of reporting success to the mentor, student, parent and mentee.