While professional development is a requirement for all educators, many teachers have a negative opinion of PD. Districts have attempted to use professional learning communities and the presence of instructional coaches as an answer to the concerns of irrelevant professional development. This study examined educators' opinions of an opt-in…

About 1 in 20 K-12 students are suspended from school each year. Students from marginalized groups -- including Black and Latinx students and students with individualized education plans (IEPs) -- experience suspension much more frequently than their peers. Empathic Instruction reduces the racial gaps in suspensions, but it does not close them…

Good coordination among school staff and families leads to increased learning quality and academic success for students with special education needs and disabilities (SEND). This pilot study aims to investigate the use of mobile technology for the coordination of therapy and learning for students with SEND. This study first follows a participatory…

The purpose of this review was to synthesize research on the effect of professional development (PD) targeting data-based decision-making processes on teachers' knowledge, skills, and self-efficacy related to curriculum-based measurement (CBM) and data-based decision-making (DBDM). To be eligible for this review, studies had to: (1) be published…

This quasi-experimental study focused on 15 pairs of children with extensive support needs, matched across 12 characteristics based on their first complete Individual Education Program (IEP) in the school district. One child in each pair was included in general education for 80% or more of their day from their first IEP to the most current IEP at…

Alternative Individualized Education Program (IEP) dispute resolution models should respond to limitations of current options. An experimental IEP dispute resolution program provides parents and schools with an evidence-supported neutral perspective on what is needed for free and appropriate education (FAPE) and least restrictive environment…

The goal of the study was to better understand how instruction to students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) was delivered during remote learning this past spring and during the fall semester of the 2020-21 school year, and how these vulnerable students have been impacted. Research questions looked at special education teacher impressions…

Current Portuguese Public Law No. 3/2008 requires the use of the International Classification of Functioning, Health and Disability for Children and Youth (ICF-CY) as a reference framework to guide assessment and intervention procedures for students with additional support needs. This study explores whether the ICF-CY use fostered multidimensional…

Students with learning disabilities are spending more time in general education classrooms than at any point in history, yet there remain concerns whether general education teachers are receiving adequate preparation to support these students. Considering the rapid adoption of new accountability measures of teacher preparation programs (TPPs),…

This study examines the mentoring experiences of prospective and beginning special education administrators to determine whether on the job mentoring is a viable method of equipping the prospective and beginning special education administrator with essential knowledge and skills. Three research questions were asked: What is the attainment of…

The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) in the U.S. Department of Education funded the National Center on Intensive Intervention (NCII, or the Center) in 2011. NCII's mission during the first five years of funding was to build the capacity of local education agencies (LEAs) to support schools, practitioners, and other stakeholders in the…

This report presents a snapshot of selected features of the condition of education in Wisconsin in 2019. With support from the U.S. Department of Education's Institute for Education Sciences, and in collaboration with colleagues at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI), the authors set out to measure practices in PK-12 education…

The author is a special education teacher in New York and a mother of two children on the autism spectrum. The author's intimate involvement in the education system has made navigating the world of special education for her children easier in some ways, but also infinitely more difficult and heartbreaking in others. Since the passage of No…

The purpose of this study was to determine how an urban school district's code of conduct aligned with actual school/class behaviors, and how stakeholders perceived the ability of this document to achieve its number one goal: safe and productive learning environments. Twenty participants including students, teachers, parents, and administrators…

The Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD), asked the Council of the Great City Schools to review the district's services for students with disabilities and provide recommendations to improve performance and narrow the achievement gap between these students and their nondisabled peers. This report was designed to help SCUSD achieve its…