Some of the most critical soft skills (i.e., nontechnical, interpersonal skills that impact personal performance in an environment such as school or the workplace) that students must acquire as they mature are the skills to act or cause things to happen in their lives. Providing instruction to increase these skills--all part of…

There continues to be confusion among some educators and staff in State Education Agencies (SEAs) and Local Education Agencies (LEAs) about what is an accommodation and what is a modification. This confusion about accommodations and modifications happens in how these words are used in both instruction and assessment. The confusion is further…

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to immediate school closures resulting in online learning. Online learning under such circumstances has presented challenges for teachers of students with mild to extensive support needs. The current study interviewed twenty special education teachers about the strategies they used when teaching online and the…

As researchers and practitioners have increasingly become interested in what practices are evidence based and for whom in education, different sets of quality indicators and evidence-based practice standards have emerged in the field of special education. Practices are commonly suggested as evidence based, even without a best evidence synthesis on…

Research is needed to better understand the academic instruction needs of students with significant cognitive disabilities who are English learners and the classroom practices of their teachers. In this qualitative study, we interviewed 10 teachers to learn how they identify and meet the unique needs of this student subpopulation. Our findings…

The debate between progressivism and traditionalism has reached an impasse. Battles in curriculum are, according to Ackerman (2003), "manifestations of a fundamental debate between progressive educators and traditionalists" (p. 345) that has been going on for over a century (Pogrow, 2006). No educational institution exists that is purely…

Teaching methods that individualize and adapt instructional conditions to K-12 learners' needs, abilities, and interests help improve learning achievement. The most important variables are the teacher's role in the classroom as a guide and mentor and the adaptability of learning activities and materials. This Campbell systematic review assesses…

Background: Italy is internationally known as a Country with a longstanding "tradition" of inclusive education. Objective: Aim of the paper is to provide a frame on the educational policies that, since 1970s, have steered the school system according to a "fully inclusive" model, highlighting the instruments of teaching-learning…

Self-determination skills are a potential predictor of post-school success for individuals with disabilities. This study examined the perspectives of special educators of students in preschool through age 22 in one school district who participated in multiple professional development and coaching sessions on self-determination including the…

How do you ensure that your co-teaching strategies make the most of the time that you and your co-teaching partner have in the classroom? The answer is co-planning, which will dramatically and efficiently increase the effectiveness of your instruction. In "Co-Planning for Co-Teaching," author Gloria Lodato Wilson presents time-saving…

The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) is committed to the cognitive, linguistic, and socio-emotional development of all children in Illinois. ISBE's Multilingual Department is focused on ensuring that students with diverse linguistic repertoires and those who may benefit from additional support have equitable access to academic instruction…

"Humanizing Disability in Mathematics Education: Forging New Paths" is about enhancing the practices of mathematics teachers by extending the concepts of access, equity, and empowerment to include students living with all types of disabilities. These students are rarely thought of as mathematics doers and thinkers, and so are seldom…

The AEM Navigator facilitates the process of decision-making around accessible formats of educational materials for individual students. It assists teams in making informed, accurate, and multi-step decisions related to determining a student's need for accessible formats, selecting the format(s) needed, acquiring materials, and determining the…

When schools in Pennsylvania and across the nation were suddenly shuttered in March due to COVID-19, teachers were faced with an enormous challenge: how to effectively teach and engage their students remotely when the vast majority had never done so before. In order to meet this challenge, teachers turned to an array of digital tools-such as Zoom,…

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…