The importance of sexual education for students with disabilities cannot be overstated. The United Nations states that students with disabilities should have access to the same range and quality of sexual education as their nondisabled peers (Holmes, 2021). Despite this, students with disabilities, especially those with moderate to extensive…

The appropriate selection of standardized tests is integral to establishing an accurate early diagnosis and providing timely treatment to optimize language outcomes in young children. However, clinicians sometimes utilize tests that are not validated for this specific purpose. This applied dissertation was designed to investigate the validity of…

One of the most important outcomes in a child's education is the ability to read proficiently, which can improve future academic progress and occupational success. Due to the impairments in social and communication areas of development for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), literacy provides the possibility of improved communication…

After being away from most social events, friend groups, and other gatherings since the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020, it was time for children and adolescents to head back to the classrooms that lay dormant, many for over 18 months. What was unknown was how students' mental health had been affected by the pandemic, subsequent…

The purpose of this dissertation was to use delay discounting to understand how teachers of students who engage in challenging behavior discount delays in behavioral treatment outcomes. Delay discounting is relevant to teacher decision-making because the length of time required to reduce challenging behavior through effective behavior…

The experience of a traumatic event can often result in posttraumatic stress symptoms such as an impaired ability to recognize facial expressions of emotion. Impairments in facial emotion recognition can lead to reduced interpersonal functioning and a subsequent difficulty maintaining supportive relationships. Such interpersonal challenges can be…

Previous educator occupational burnout literature has focused on how its presence compromises student outcomes, educators' occupational performance, and the quality and effectiveness of the learning environment, itself. To date, only a handful of scholarly articles have been published exploring or comparing educator occupational burnout prevalence…

Special education placement is a debate among parents, educators, and policymakers. The Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) is a federal law that provides a guiding principle to assist the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team with guidance when considering placement for a student with an exceptionality. Student placement decisions affect…

This qualitative phenomenological study sought to understand the implications for the inclusive natures of public-school settings. This study utilized Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycles paired with the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework as proponents of inclusive tools for special education teachers. Explicit training was provided to…

Education equality and the inclusion of students with disabilities have been a long-traveled journey. Though there has been an increase in this student population within the general education classroom, research suggests less of students with mild to moderate disabilities are mainstreamed. It is important to understand how any existing barriers…

School-based organization, time management, and planning skills-related (OTMP) interventions have been developed to address academic and organizational difficulties students with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder face (ADHD), especially when entering secondary school (DuPaul et al., 2012; Evans et al., 2018; Villodas et al., 2014). For OTMP…

Special education teachers who provide educational opportunities for students in low-incidence programs within a Southern urban public school system in the United States faced challenges when trying to promote independence. The purpose of this project study was to understand the perceptions of teachers and the approaches they seek to best support…

For decades students with hearing loss have been removed from their non-disabled, same age peers to be educated in separate settings. Segregated service delivery is fueled by several erroneous assumptions that can result in lowered expectations and quality of teaching. This Disquisition (a dissertation in practice model) details an improvement…

Student mental health issues on college and university campuses may affect not only the students but also a wider constituency across campus. The researcher utilized relational cultural theory (RCT), a theory rooted in mental health counseling, as a framework for the study. This study examined how the severity of mental health issues or symptoms…

The problem addressed by this qualitative case study is the lack of effective training for paraprofessionals to deliver systematic prompting to students with moderate-to-severe disabilities in the community setting. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the perceptions of paraprofessionals, families, and community-based…