This study investigated writing achievement in a Canadian cohort of school-aged deaf learners (N = 64). In the current context, in which most students are educated in inclusive settings and use hearing technologies, the goal was to establish whether outcomes approach those of hearing-age peers and identify demographic factors (e.g., gender, grade,…

While special education law has been amended several times since the statutory definition of a Specific Learning Disability (SLD) was created in 1968, there continues to be ambiguity within the field regarding the definition as well as the diagnostic criteria. This inevitably leads to a lack of consistency in diagnosis within states and among…

This quantitative, quasi-experimental research study was designed to determine the impact of a computer assisted reading instruction program on the fluency rates and comprehension skills of third and fourth grade students with reading disabilities at an Ohio suburban-metropolitan elementary school. Pretests established the participants' baseline…

Students with disabilities trail behind their peers without disabilities while in school, as well as in post-secondary outcome areas. Given that self-determination and enhanced academic skills are associated with improved post-school outcomes, one possible solution is to identify interventions that teach self-determination and academic skills…

Research suggests that self-determination skills are positively correlated with factors that have been shown to improve academic achievement, but the direct relationship among self-determination, self-concept, and academic achievement is not fully understood. This study offers an empirical explanation of how self-determination and self-concept…

Classification changes are common in special education. Using the first four years of the Pre-elementary Education Longitudinal Study data set (N = 3000), we investigated national trends in classification changes among young children with disabilities, the relationship between classification changes and children's demographic information, and the…

The research base on how to effectively intervene to improve the reading fluency of students with academic and behavioral disabilities at the middle school level does not provide a strong support for evidence- based practices with this age group. The purpose of this study was to extend the body of research on reading fluency interventions to…

Teachers of students with emotional and/or behavioral disorders (EBD) are less experienced and more likely to have emergency certification than teachers of students with other disabilities. Yet, to date, research has not examined the relation between the academic achievement of students with EBD and characteristics associated with highly qualified…

Helping struggling readers to learn history content in middle school can be difficult due to heavy reading demands. In this study, researchers taught poor readers with and without disabilities in eighth grade to generate main idea statements; create, compare, and contrast paragraphs; and identify cause and effect relations, along with relevant…

Helping struggling readers to learn history content in middle school can be difficult due to heavy reading demands. In this study, researchers taught poor readers with and without disabilities in 8th grade to generate main idea statements, create compare and contrast paragraphs, and identify cause and effect relationships, along with relevant…

Children with disabilities often demonstrate difficulties in code-focused and meaning-focused domains of literacy. Best practice indicates that skills within these domains should be taught together. The current study used principles of ABAB single-case experimental design to monitor the development of narrative retelling and phonemic awareness in…

The read-aloud accommodation (RA) is frequently provided to students with high-incidence disabilities to facilitate their access to learning opportunities during instruction and to allow them to demonstrate knowledge and skills during testing. Empirical support for this accommodation has been somewhat mixed, and has primarily focused on…

Using data from the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SRI International, 2002), this study estimated reading growth trajectories in a nationally representative sample of 3,421 students with disabilities ages 7 to 17 representing 11 federal disability categories. Reading achievement in all disability categories increased with age,…

The authors used data from a large, national sample to examine the interaction of various literacy measures among young children with disabilities. Using structural equation modeling, they examined the relationships among measures of phonemic awareness, decoding, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. Child and family factors, including sex,…

In the present study, we examined the effects of a fluency-building mathematics program called Great Leaps Math on fluency of basic addition mathematics facts zero to nine and word problem solving using a multiple probe design across participants. Three elementary students with challenging behaviors and mathematics difficulty participated in the…