Search

Fluent oral reading is essential for success in elementary school. In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of enhanced reading fluency instruction for struggling readers. In a response-to-intervention context, the effort represented a primary intervention available to all students but provided only to those judged likely to need additional more intensive instruction to achieve success in school. In this article, we describe the foundations for the intervention, share outcomes of implementing it in elementary school classrooms and compare them to those achieved with other more intensive pull-out instruction, and review lessons learned from our efforts to improve fluency within the context of response-to-instruction. We also provide guidelines for use in developing and using the intervention in other classrooms.

We report here the type of problems and solutions that 38 school teams reported during a randomized wait-list controlled trial of one problem-solving approach (Team Initiated Problem Solving [TIPS]). The experimental results from that analysis are reported elsewhere. The purpose of this article is to summarize companion descriptive data from this analysis and suggest implications for school personnel and education researchers. Data for this analysis come from direct observation of team meetings for 38 elementary school teams in Oregon and North Carolina as they each met on four different occasions over an 18-month period to manage the behavioral supports in their schools. Our focus was on the types of problems the teams identified, the precision with which problems were identified (what behavior, who, where, when, why), the features of solutions that were developed, the extent to which solutions were perceived as being implemented, and the extent to which solutions were perceived as resulting in improved student outcomes. The most common solutions focused on varying forms of changing organizational systems. Teams were not likely to measure if their solution had been implemented or was effective prior to receiving TIPS training.

Data-based problem solving is a hallmark of research-supported practices such as positive behavioral interventions and supports. In this study, we provided members of positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) teams from 38 elementary schools with professional development focused on a research-supported problem-solving model (Team-Initiated Problem Solving). We used direct observations to document procedures, practices, and outcomes before and after participating in the professional development workshop. Within the context of a randomized waitlist controlled trial, team members in the Immediate Group demonstrated greater improvement in (a) problem-solving procedures, (b) decision-making practices, and (c) meeting outcomes than did members of PBIS teams in the Waitlist Group. Our findings extend what is known about team-based problem solving and provide a framework for future research and improved practice related to decision making by school teams.

U.S. public education systems are required to provide free appropriate public education to students with disabilities in least restrictive environments that are appropriate to meet their individual needs. The practice of educating students with disabilities in neighborhood schools in age-appropriate general education classrooms and other school settings to meet this requirement has come to be known as "inclusive education." The long-standing interest in keeping students with disabilities in the same classrooms with their neighbors and peers has created a need for reform to establish equity in America's schools. Schoolwide Integrated Framework for Transformation (SWIFT) is a whole-system school reform model provided through a national technical assistance center that addresses core features of inclusive education support for elementary and middle schools, particularly those that are chronically low performing and those serving students with the most extensive needs. We describe the development and preliminary technical adequacy of SWIFT Fidelity of Implementation Tool (SWIFT-FIT) as a means to document the extent to which schools are implementing inclusive education. Findings provide preliminary support for trained assessors using SWIFT-FIT as a valid and reliable instrument to produce evidence that describes the extent to which schools install, implement, and sustain these evidence-based practices. Researchers and other school personnel can use these data to evaluate the impact of implementation on progress as well as important student and other outcomes.

Inclusion means that students with disabilities have access to high-quality and effective instruction, as well as specialized services as needed, within least restrictive environments. We believe there are no limits on who can or should participate in and benefit from inclusion and we were interested in perceptions resulting from professional development designed to support including young children with disabilities in classrooms with their natural neighbors and peers. We present reflections from application of a community of practice model in which university-based faculty worked closely and collaboratively with community college instructors to infuse ideas, concepts, and content from the field of special education into associate degree early childhood education coursework.

Given the rapid growth of diversity in schools across the country, teacher educators are turning to innovative ways to redesign their programs. In this article, we describe efforts of a dual licensure program in which undergraduate teachers-in-training acquired knowledge and skills in core content, as well as evidence-based pedagogy and discipline specific proficiencies in both special education and elementary education. A primary goal was to ensure that graduates entered teaching with the tools to effectively respond to diverse learners within urban and rural school districts. Systematic alignment of program foundations across coursework, clinical experiences, and evaluation was intentional. School partners provided insights into the extent to which graduates possessed the knowledge and skills necessary for teaching in inclusive settings. Outcome data suggest that graduates "perform" similarly to discipline-specific peers and bring strong collaborative skills in efforts to meet the needs of students in disabilities in all classrooms.

Student evaluations of college teaching have been endorsed and criticized for as long as they have been used as part of important decision-making practices in higher education. With the growth of distance education, the need for alternative approaches for these assessments has increased. We were interested in the extent to which outcomes were comparable across in-class and on-line course evaluations. We conducted a randomized controlled trial across 7 colleges, 25 departments, and 41 instructors at a large urban research university in the southeastern part of the United States. The distribution of ratings across demographic and comparison groups was similar. Response rates were lower for students participating online; however, none of the scale score differences between groups exceeded an effect size 0.21 and the estimated benefits were large. We discuss the advantages and disadvantages of alternative approaches for evaluating instruction in the context of past, current, and future research and practice.

As part of ongoing evaluation activities and continuous improvement, the Exceptional Children (EC) Division of the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction regularly reviews its efforts. This study was interested in documenting responsibilities, working conditions, and satisfaction of special education administrators as a basis for future planning and support. In addition to demographic information collected on participants, the survey addressed the following questions: (1) what are the responsibilities administrators of special education spend their time in a typical week; (2) what are the working conditions that administrators of special education rate as key influential aspects of their positions; and (3) what level of satisfaction do administrators of special education experience in providing leadership? The findings from this study suggest that administrators of special education generally focus most of their time on using data to make decisions and facilitating collaboration. Additionally, the working conditions of these professionals help them to be perceived by district and school personnel as experts, and they gain satisfaction from using their leadership knowledge and skills to provide effective programming for students, support for teachers and other professionals, and engagement of parents and community partners. Knowing that effective leadership in special education is critical to successful facilitation of supports and services received by students with disabilities makes studies similar to this research essential to future recruitment and retention of special education leadership personnel.

Conducting and supporting scientifically valid research activities and implementing evidence-based practices have driven recent hopes and efforts to achieve better outcomes for all students. In the context of ongoing internal review and continuous improvement, we were interested in how this evolution was reflected in empirical studies published in "The Journal of Special Education" ("JSE"). We coded key variables related to evidence-based research in articles published between 2004 and 2017. We found that most studies included elementary- or secondary-aged students with disabilities in general or special education classroom settings with teachers or researchers assessing the benefits of academic skill training interventions using single-case designs. We discuss implications for ongoing internal reviews and assessments as well as for comparisons, benchmarking, and evaluations within the field.

In an era of increased teacher accountability, teacher preparation programs across the country are faced with increasing pressure to adopt rigorous and high stakes performance-based assessments, such as edTPA, that provide data-based evidence that their candidates are ready to teach upon program completion. Furthermore, in response to new accreditation standards for teacher training programs established by the Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation, colleges of education are now required to demonstrate enduring and mutually beneficial partnerships with K-12 partners. Given the influence of the K-12 cooperating teacher (CT) on candidate classroom practice, providing professional development (PD) to CTs on edTPA represents a possible means of accomplishing both goals. This study examined the impact of an edTPA PD workshop designed specifically for CTs on CT practice and candidate edTPA scores. Results suggest that candidates placed with CTs who have received edTPA PD can benefit from increased CT knowledge about the edTPA assessment.

Community colleges are key providers of early childhood teacher and paraprofessional education, and their programs include content knowledge that helps future educators work effectively with young children with and without disabilities in inclusive environments. In this article, we describe the Advancing Community College Efforts in Paraprofessional Training (ACCEPT) Project, a multi-year collaboration to infuse special education content into four North Carolina early childhood workforce education associate degree programs. The goals of the project included creating a climate that fostered and encouraged ongoing community college and university faculty collaboration around the planning, delivery, and assessment of special education content infused within multiple early childhood program courses. Project objectives are presented within the framework employed by Murray (1995, 1998, 1999, 2000) that includes climate, structure, connections with rewards, faculty ownership, colleague support, and perceived value by administrators. Implications for practice include the importance of content, project standards, and faculty ownership.

"Positive Unified Behavior Support" (PUBS) is a school-wide intervention designed to establish uniform attitudes, expectations, correction procedures, and roles among faculty, staff, and administration. PUBS is grounded in the general principles of positive behavior support and represents a straightforward, practical implementation model. When implementing PUBS, administrators, teachers, and other professionals teach behavior relentlessly by promoting similar attitudes, rewarding school and class rules and expectations with high levels of praise and prompting, using a unified correction procedure to address inappropriate behavior and adopting mutually supportive roles and responsibilities. While an ultimate goal of school-wide interventions is improved learning, documenting differences in how they are implemented is an important first step in continuing research related to positive behavior support. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of PUBS on key instructional variables: (a) frequency of teacher reinforcement, (b) frequency of teacher correction, (c) reinforcement/correction ratio, (d) degree of teacher monitoring, and (e) voice tone used during teacher correction, and (f) total rule violations. Within the broad range of systemic and individualized strategies that entail positive behavior support, there are a myriad of possible implementation approaches. This research provides evidence to support the operationally defined and replicable interventions within the PUBS model and evidence on key instructional behaviors associated with those interventions. This study illustrates the effects of using proactive strategies central to positive behavior support and highlights the differences in instruction that are evident in classrooms using instructional techniques that use and consistently enforce school-wide rules and procedures, reinforce positive behavior and teach alternatives, ensure that all staff members are "on the same page," and are relatively easy to implement and monitor. (Contains 1 table.)

The identification of students who are gifted traditionally has been grounded in criteria with an emphasis on unitary measures of intellectual ability. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the performance of elementary school children in a Southeastern state identified as gifted using an assessment process based on MI theory, the Problem Solving Assessment, with a comparable group of students referred for assessment but not identified as gifted. We compared scores on statewide end-of-grade reading and math tests to evaluate the performance of African American and Caucasian students. Although scores for African American students were below those for the Caucasian peers in both groups, the difference between the groups was smaller in reading and mathematics for students identified and placed in gifted programs. We discuss the implications of our findings as they related to identification and program development. (Contains 1 figure and 3 tables.)

Although it is widely agreed that there is no universally accepted definition for school climate, most professionals ground it in shared beliefs, values, and attitudes reflecting the quality and character of life in schools. In this article, we review and analyze measures accessible to school personnel charged with documenting and monitoring school climate. We document core features of four scientifically sound and comprehensive measures of school climate. We believe our work serves as a selective consumer's guide for school personnel engaged in important levels of decision-making related to monitoring and improving the quality and character of interactions that represent academic and behavior standards in schools.

Research on the effectiveness of STEM-focused (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics-focused) schools and other learning experiences (e.g., short-term camps) on student outcomes is sparse. This study documented perceptions of STEM content and careers for elementary, middle, and secondary school students participating in university-based summer camps focused on robotics. Attitudes before and after the camp experiences were compared across gender groups and grade levels. Middle school students showed greater growth on the surveys compared to their elementary and secondary school peers. Implications for the design and evaluation of STEM experiences include looking at longer, more intensive experiences.

Calls for accountability in America's schools have created increased responsibilities for educational leaders. In this article, we describe and discuss a study of elementary, middle, and high school principals' perceptions of the state-wide educational accountability program in North Carolina. The respondents indicated that the state's accountability program has had its greatest impact on how they monitored student achievement, aligned the curriculum to the testing program, provided student remedial or tutorial opportunities, assigned teachers to grades levels or subjects, and protected instructional time. Views of some components, such as measures of school effectiveness, school safety standards, expectations and promotion standards for students, and financial bonuses received by staff members in schools that meet expected achievement standards, were viewed favorably. In contrast, the No Child Left Behind Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirement (incorporated into the state's accountability program), testing requirements for Limited English Proficiency students and special education students, the sanctions applied to schools that do not meet expected growth, and the school status designation labels that are applied to schools based upon student achievement were perceived more negatively. The predictable and unpredictable outcomes of a mandated accountability program on the perceptions (and behavior) of school principals create important considerations which are discussed for policy-makers and other professionals dealing with standards-based reform. (Contains 2 tables.)

Perhaps one of the most long-standing concerns in special education is the over-representation of some groups of children in special education. In this issue, Fierros and Blomberg report that racial/ethnic representation of special education students in charter schools mirrors that in general education populations. These findings are not new and are easily reproducible; the position taken here is that illustrating that over-representation exists, or the extent of it, is misplaced effort. If special education worked, few would be concerned about the distribution (or "over-distribution") of services; but, special education does not work all that well for many children receiving it; and therefore, research, reassessment, and reform should be redirected to the quality of services students receive not who receives them. This also is not a new idea, but it is among the least long-standing actions taken in special education and the time for change is rapidly approaching a critical edge. (Contains 1 figure, 1 table and 1 footnote.)

This is a quiet rant. A request to revisit an article reprinted in this issue prompted it and I focus on context and purpose of the original article, lack of developments in the field since the article was published, and favored directions to take in the future related to the focus of the original work. [This classic article was indexed in ERIC in 1978 ("Behavioral Disorders," v4 n1 p48-52 Nov 1978--EJ196224.]

Most definitions of emotionally disturbed youngsters suggest that disturbances in the child's behavior patterns cause academic and social problems which affect the child and his peers. While the process of identification may be facilitated by operational criteria within a definition, these factors are noticeably absent from definitions of emotional disturbance. The State of Florida has adopted a definition for emotionally handicapped children which has potential for operationalization. That definition and its components as well as a discussion of implications relative to its use are presented here. [This classic article was indexed in ERIC in 1978 ("Behavioral Disorders," v4 n1 p48-52 Nov 1978--EJ196224.]

Studies investigating teacher candidate performance on traditional assessments of content knowledge place emphasis on just one of many skills needed to be an effective foreign language teacher; they also fail to explain why many teacher candidates with advanced oral proficiency struggle in the classroom and why some with less advanced language skills perform well. Using both quantitative data from Oral Proficiency Interviews, the Praxis Subject Assessment, and the edTPA scores for 21 native- and nonnative-speaking teacher candidates of French and Spanish, as well as qualitative data collected from teacher candidate interviews, the study investigated the types of content knowledge that are necessary to be an effective foreign language teacher. Results suggest four distinct types of content knowledge, each of which is critical to being an effective teacher, and on which teacher candidate performance may vary widely. The results have implications for the establishment of program completion, teacher licensure, and accreditation requirements.

"As the world becomes increasingly technological, the value of (the ideas and skills of its population) will be determined in no small measure by the effectiveness of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in the United States" and "STEM education will determine whether the United States will remain a leader among nations and whether we will be able to solve immense challenges in such areas as energy, health, environmental protection, and national security" (President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, 2010, p. vii). Research on the effectiveness of STEM-focused school and other learning experiences (e.g., short-term camps) on student attitudes and performance outcomes is sparse. In this study, we documented the influence of an intensive STEM summer program on high school students' attitudes toward STEM concepts and interests in STEM careers. Attending the summer program was associated with gains on students' attitudes toward some aspects of STEM as well as specific career interests. Notably, students reported statistically significant views of important aspects of STEM and their attitudes toward science and mathematics were more positive than their attitudes about engineering and technology.

Although there is a strong legislative base and perceived efficacy for multidisciplinary team decision making, limited evidence supports its effectiveness or consistency of implementation in practice. In recent research, we used the Decision Observation, Recording, and Analysis (DORA) tool to document activities and adult behaviors during positive behavior support team meetings. In this study, we revised the DORA to provide evidence of the extent to which the solutions that teams developed were implemented with fidelity and associated with improvements in student behavior. Using trained observers, we documented decision making at 18 meetings in 10 schools where team members discussed a total of 44 problems. We found that scores on the Decision Observation, Recording, and Analysis--II (DORA-II) were acceptable indicators for documenting problem solving during team meetings and that they provided technically adequate information on the extent to which teams were assessing whether they had implemented a solution and whether the solution made a difference for students. We believe the revised assessment tool has value in studying team-based problem solving, and we discuss our findings as a base for a well-reasoned research agenda for moving the process forward as evidence-based practice.

Inclusion or providing educational opportunities for all students alongside their natural neighbors and peers remains a highly valued goal for me. Ensuring that effective educational practices are available and provided to all students and that no cultural, ethnic, or other groups are disproportionately placed in ineffective education settings remains an equally important quest. Personal and professional concerns related to a continuing lack of progress in achieving these significant and important multicultural and inclusive goals are highlighted in this article.

Research has called into question the suitability of fully-online instruction for certain teacher preparation courses. Methodology coursework, in particular, has been singled out in research as ill-suited to online instruction. Recent research, for example, involving second language (L2) teacher candidates has demonstrated that aspiring teachers who completed online methodology instruction were less confident in their abilities to teach L2 learners than their counterparts who completed the same instruction in a face-to-face (F2F) setting. To address the limitations of online instruction, while still incorporating its associated strengths, the development and implementation of hybridized methodology coursework have been proposed. Following this recommendation, the researchers developed and implemented hybridized L2 methodology courses that mirrored their pre-existing online and F2F equivalents. Using a mixed methodology, the researchers then conducted a three-way comparison of instructional delivery modes (online, F2F, hybrid) to investigate their impact on L2 teacher candidate self-efficacy. Although the results demonstrated that all three modes of instruction can be equally effective at increasing candidate confidence, they also highlighted the potential of hybridized instruction to address the limitations of online and F2F instruction, while still including their strengths. The findings also emphasized that simply viewing or participating in live demonstrations of teaching strategies in post-secondary methodology courses is not sufficient. To feel confident in their teaching abilities, teacher candidates need opportunities in their coursework to apply what they have learned in K-12 classrooms. Offering numerous research-based suggestions to improve the design of hybridized methodology courses, the study also serves to inform the development of future hybridized methodology coursework.

"Closing the achievement gap" (i.e. reducing differences in performance across racial and ethnic groups) has been the rallying cry and holy grail for reform efforts in American education for some time. In addition to influences associated with school and teacher factors, researchers have now turned their attention to characteristics in family backgrounds that may create or correlate with variation in academic and social outcomes at school. Previous research suggests that community capital, with its financial, human, and social features, is associated with school performance. In the present study, we examined relationships between community capital, student composition of schools, and student academic achievement measured by state standardized tests. Strongest associations were evident for community capital and academic outcomes. We discuss our findings in the context of equal educational opportunity, cultural and linguistic diversity, and the dream of achievement representing what you do at school more than where to go to do it.

Multiple studies conducted over the past decade have suggested the motivational and proficiency-related benefits of commencing language instruction at an early age. Limitations in many of these studies, however, have prevented their results from being applied to the teaching of foreign languages in the United States. In response to calls for further studies examining the possible benefits of early-start foreign language instruction, the researchers used a mixed methodology to compare the oral proficiency and motivation of two groups of foreign language learners studying Level II French, German, Spanish, or Mandarin. One group consisted of primarily 14-year-old students who began their foreign language studies in middle school, and the other included 15- and 16-year-olds who postponed the onset of their foreign language instruction until high school. Quantitative and qualitative data collected from student surveys, tests scores, and individual interviews suggested both proficiency-related and motivational benefits of commencing language instruction at an early age. Equipped with these much-needed results, foreign language stakeholders should renew their argument to expand early-start foreign language programs in K--12 schools in the United States and to remove the optional nature of foreign language instruction at the middle school level.

Scaling of evidence-based practices in education has received extensive discussion but little empirical evaluation. We present here a descriptive summary of the experience from seven states with a history of implementing and scaling School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) over the past decade. Each state has been successful in establishing at least 500 schools using SWPBIS across approximately a third or more of the schools in their state. The implementation elements proposed by Sugai, Horner, and Lewis (2009) and the stages of implementation described by Fixsen, Naoom, Blase, Friedman, and Wallace (2005) were used within a survey with each element assessed at each stage by the SWPBIS coordinators and policy makers in the seven states. Consistent themes from analysis of the responses were defined and confirmed with the surveyed participants. Results point to four central areas of state "capacity" as being perceived as critical for a state to move SWPBIS to scale (administrative leadership and funding, local training and coaching capacity, behavioral expertise, and local evaluation capacity), and an iterative process in which initial implementation success (100-200 demonstrations) is needed to recruit the political and fiscal support required for larger scaling efforts.

The authors evaluated a reform program known as "Strategic Staffing" in which principals were given increased autonomy to modify the delivery of instruction without compromising academic content. The program's central feature was reassignment of school leaders and key staff members from settings in which they were successful to schools experiencing deep and chronic levels of low student performance. The authors used a causal-comparative design with schools matched on key demographic variables as well as qualitative analyses of key features of treatment schools. After 1 year of implementation, the authors found that achievement scores and other indicators were not statistically significantly different across turnaround schools. Participating principals reported similar concerns, plans, and challenges to those documented in previous studies. The authors discuss their work in the growing knowledge base addressing turnaround in chronically low-achieving schools.