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Educational reform policies such as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) place a significant demand on teachers regarding teacher preparation using evidence-based instruction (Phillips et al., 2016). The need for teacher training has grown in recent years as professional expectations have increased (Kraft et al., 2018). The consensus among researchers is that one of the most promising approaches to helping teachers build their instructional expertise is using instructional coaches (Elish-Piper & L'Allier, 2011; Tanner et al., 2017). Instructional coaching plays an important role in improving teacher proficiency and supporting teachers as they learn and implement new teaching strategies (Lee, 2020). Providing teachers access to coaches supports the implementation of new practices and aids teachers in their attempts to improve instructional methods (Preciado, 2015; Sailors & Shanklin, 2010). Evidence indicates that providing teachers with coaching often leads to a positive influence on teaching practices and student achievement (Phillips et al., 2016). This study addressed the following research questions: (1) How do teachers rate the usefulness of having a relationship with an instructional coach in their school? and (2) How do teachers describe their experiences with instructional coaches? The purpose of this mixed-methods sequential explanatory study was to determine how instructional coaching experiences influence teachers' instruction. Participants (N=61) who taught Grades 6 through Grade 12 within a suburban school district in the Northeast were invited to voluntarily take part in this study. This study used a quantitative web-based, self-administered questionnaire, and qualitative semi-structured interviews of teachers to explore the research questions. A mixed method approach was used to measure if experiences with instructional coaches are useful to teachers based on self-reported data. The results of this study revealed that instructional coaches have a critical role in influencing teaching best practices. The data suggested that instructional coaches understand teachers' needs through collaboration and provide individualized professional development around new educational initiatives that help enhance the teaching of new content. Therefore, school districts, classroom teachers, and instructional coaches may use this research to aid in policy reforms around professional development utilizing coaches and how time is organized to allow instructional coaches to work with teachers. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEIA 2004) dictates that children with disabilities, ages 3-5, must be provided educational services through the public school setting. Like their peers ages 5 and older, these children are subject to the legal requirement of being educated in the least restrictive environment possible to meet their overall educational needs. This study addresses the issue of how school districts throughout the state of Texas meet this legal mandate for the provision of educational services in the least restrictive environment for preschool-age children with disabilities. Initially, the Preschool Program for Children with Disabilities (PPCD) consultants from each of the 20 regional education service centers in the state of Texas were contacted and asked to submit school districts in their region, as appropriate, for potential participation in the study. Selected district administrators were contacted for potential participation in the study. Once informed consent was obtained from interested administrators or administrative designees, they individually participated in an online survey. The results of the survey were analyzed in order to determine the success of the preschool inclusion program in the district, as well as any barriers that were determined to be a hindrance in the development of the preschool inclusion program. Analysis of the results of the surveys yielded information from the perspective of lived experiences of the individuals participating in the study. As the results were analyzed, themes emerged in relation to what is necessary to begin, build, and sustain a high-quality inclusion program for preschool-aged children with disabilities receiving a public school education in the state of Texas, as well as the barriers that school district administrators faced in building the inclusive program. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]