Background: According to Self-Determination Theory (SDT), motivation is inherently present in every individual, growing from amotivation via controlled to autonomous motivation, through fulfilment of the basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness. Peer relatedness has been found to influence motivation multimodally.…

This evaluation brief describes how a district in receivership (state takeover) invested in PBIS to (a) enhance their systems to support staff, (b) implement evidence-based practices to support students, (c) use data to guide their implementation, and (d) ensure equitable supports for all students, including students with disabilities, to…

In the SEND Code of Practice, the area of sensory and/or physical needs includes children and young people with sensory impairments such as those affecting sight or hearing, as well as multi-sensory impairment (MSI), which involves combined difficulties with vision and hearing, and physical disabilities affecting motor skills and coordination…

In recent years, there has been a push in the United States to teach about the contributions of people with disabilities in K-12 settings. The taken-for-granted assumption behind such initiatives is that teachers have the content knowledge and attitudes to teach about disability in anti-ableist ways. The present study explored the experiences of…

Assistive technologies (AT) are products and devices which are designed or adapted for people with disabilities. Within schools and colleges, AT is often deployed to support learners with a range of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). This report summarises published literature on AT training for education professionals, together…

Children identified with emotional and behavioral support needs often demonstrate varying levels of externalizing, hyperactive, and internalizing behaviors requiring diverse prevention and intervention efforts. The current study implemented a latent profile analysis (LPA) to explore meaningful differences in a Northwest U.S. sample of 180 children…

In the spirit of collaborative educational planning, this study attempts to bridge K-12 education, higher education, special education, literacy education, coaching, and the mental health professions, in an effort to better support students with dyslexia and mental health challenges such as anxiety, and the professionals who serve them. The…

Scholars, advocates, and policymakers have long expressed concern that programs subsidizing private education with a taxpayer-funded voucher would not serve children with disabilities in similar proportions as public schools. The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty in collaboration with School Choice Wisconsin published a report in January…

In the spring of 2020, schools across the globe closed as a public health measure to address the growing COVID-19 pandemic. For children and youth with special educational needs (SEN) who rely on specific additional supports and services, and who were more likely than their peers to experience a lack of school success even before COVID-19, gaps in…

Relatively little is known about the providers of early intervention (EI) special instruction in the United States EI system. To address this gap, this cross-sectional study used a national internet survey and public records search to gather information about the demographics of providers, the professional labels used by states to refer to special…

For undergraduate students interested in STEM fields, participating in a research lab with a faculty mentor is an important developmental step for their future careers. However, autistic college students often feel devalued in academic contexts in general and experience interactions with faculty members who know little about autism or how to be…

Background: Special education teacher shortages have been a systemic issue for decades (Bettini et al., 2020), with conditions deteriorating during and after the COVID-19 pandemic (Goldhaber & Theobald, 2023). The scope of this problem is nationwide, with 48 states reporting special education teacher shortages (NCES, 2022), resulting in high…

This article presents guidance for researchers planning school-based mixed methods research studies involving students with extensive support needs. The purpose of the article is to briefly summarize previous research in this area, identify common challenges that reflect the contexts in which this research can occur, and offer strategies to…

Mathematics achievement is critical to students' success (Claessens & Engelbut, 2013) but, in 2024, only 39% of U.S. fourth-grade students and 16% of those with disabilities were at or above NAEP Proficient in mathematics. Nye et al. (2004) demonstrated the importance of teachers for improving student achievement and postulated that increasing…

While faculty impact on students' utilization of social and navigational resources is generally well documented, research on this experience for disabled students is limited. The purpose of this research study is to explore faculty priorities and understanding of service provision for deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students to address the…