Low-incidence Disabilities Research Articles

Increasing Teacher Retention and Supporting Students With Low-Incidence Disabilities Through University Partnership

The shortage of teachers is amplified in rural areas where educators work with students with low-incidence disabilities (LID; visual or hearing impairment; significant cognitive impairment; any impairment for which a small number of personnel with highly specialized skills and knowledge are needed for children to receive early intervention services). This scarcity is closely linked to the lack of accessible knowledge for these teachers. Both a high attrition rate and lack of expertise negatively affect the educational outcomes of students with LID. We propose school–university partnerships (SUPs) to alleviate these challenges. This position paper presents the critical elements of a comprehensive SUP by synthesizing programs reported in the literature, including the following elements (a) instructional, assessment, and online resources; (b) mentorship; and (c) professional development. We specifically identify how these elements can improve outcomes of students with LID and alleviate the rural special education teacher shortage. Finally, we discuss the implications of this proposed SUP and implications for practices, policy, and research.

Inequities at the intersection of race and disability: evidence from community colleges

ABSTRACT We track the academic progress of students who had special education designations in high school as they enroll in and persist through community college, irrespective of disability disclosure. We disaggregate outcomes by disability incidence and race/ethnicity, and use critical quantitative methods (QuantCrit) and DisCrit as frameworks to explore how racism and ableism intersect to produce inequitable outcomes at college entry and as students persist in college. Despite similar prior academic achievement, Latina/o/x students with disabilities were more likely to be placed in developmental English, and Black students with low-incidence disabilities (e.g. visual, hearing, and physical impairments) were less likely to complete coursework. We discuss how institutionalized racism and ableism work together to create these outcomes.

Special Education Student Teachers’ Reflections on Skills and Observed Practices

Over the course of five consecutive fall and spring semesters, 119 undergraduate and graduate candidates in a special education initial teacher licensure program from a large Midwestern, public university participated in a study to examine their reflections of their student teaching experiences. Specifically, candidates reported their a) knowledge of and b) ability to effectively implement skills associated with their teacher education program and Council for Exceptional Children standards and c) the extent to which they observed the effective implementation of these skills during student teaching. Candidates reported highest scores in areas related to professionalism and collaboration and lower scores in designing functional behavioral assessments and interventions for students with low incidence disabilities. Conclusions for educators are included.

Guidelines for Facilitating Direct Instruction of Generalized Social Behavior: Teaching the General Case.

Social deficits are a common feature in individuals with low incidence disabilities. Current solutions used to teach social skills are not always effective, especially when it comes to generalizing these skills to novel contexts. General case programming (GCP) is an instructional methodology founded on the science-based tenets of Direct Instruction, designed to clearly communicate the multiple contexts and response variations a learner is likely to encounter in their complex social environments. The purpose of this article is to describe how GCP can be utilized to help program for generalization of social skills.

Why does this matter? The value of intersectionality

In this commentary, I explore and elaborate on themes in Maggie Renken, Jessica Scott, Patrick Enderle, and Scott Cohen’s (this issue) manuscript ““It’s not a deaf thing, it’s not a black thing; it’s a deaf black thing”: A study of the intersection of adolescents’ deaf, race, and STEM identities.” Using my own research and experiences, I present a case on the importance of working with students with low-incidence disabilities and how scholarship focused on related student groups can inform and illuminate problems of practice in an underexplored research area. Additionally, I posit that using a lens of intersectionality can help address issues of educational inequality experienced by multiple communities. I conclude with a consideration of how Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Maslow, Psychol Rev 50:370–396, 1943) must be considered before addressing students’ STEM identities.

Social Failure in Students with ASD during Libyan Civil War-2: Challenges and Recommendations

Social failure and anxiety can lead to social confusion or challenging behaviors in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) if they don't receive appropriate support. This paper focuses on special education teachers and students with ASD in Libya. Libya challenges in supporting individuals with low incidence disabilities. As one of the consequences of the Libyan Civil War 2, the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA) could not assist individuals with special needs including those with ASD because of many obstacles. However, the Libyan Ministry of Education's Department tried to include special needs into the country's education system (Alshahid, 2018). Regarding my experience working with these individuals in Libya, I found that teachers and parents challenge teaching the necessary social skills to children and adolescents with ASD. Bellini (2008) confirms that individuals with ASD have difficulties with social skills that may interpret how they process social information or social cognition. To serve these individuals effectively, Libyan special education teachers need to be well prepared to implement some useful interventions. Being a successful special education teacher in one of the developing countries is not easy. Libyan special education teachers should be enrolled in different professional developments to support students with ASD significantly.

Teachers' Instructional Competencies for Including Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in General Education Settings

The inclusion of students with disabilities in general education settings has increased particularly since 2004 due to the least restrictive environment provisions outlined in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). However, research has shown that general education teachers are ill prepared to teach students with disabilities, especially those with severe or low incidence disabilities. The current study explored the knowledge and skills required of general education teachers seeking to include students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). We interviewed experienced teachers of students with I/DD to gain insight into such competencies. Participants were three educators (two teachers and one school director) in an elementary school for students with special needs. The participants discussed teaching methods and curriculum considerations relevant to including students with I/DD in general education settings. Data were analyzed utilizing pattern coding to generate categories and larger themes. Discussion and implications of these findings are offered.

The Impact of Federal Personnel Preparation Grants on Special Education Teacher Candidate Recruitment for Rural and Remote Alternative Teaching Pathways

This article describes rural and remote teacher training in low incidence (LI) disabilities through an alternative teaching pathway (ATP) and the efforts of one university’s ATP program to address the ongoing critical special education teacher shortage in rural and remote school districts. The impact of the federal investment in recruiting/training teacher candidates in LI disabilities in rural and remote areas is described, and critical features of a distance education ATP programs in LI are discussed. Lessons learned over two decades of distance ATP delivery in LI are shared.

PiCs: Telepractice coaching for a parent of a child who is hard-of-hearing

ABSTRACTServices for families of young children with low-incidence disabilities (e.g. deaf/hard-of-hearing, DHH) are expensive to deliver and may not be available in all geographic regions. Parents of children who are DHH may be taught and coached to implement strategies to encourage communication. The purpose of this single-case multiple-baseline design study was to implement and assess telepractice teaching and coaching of a parent whose child is hard-of-hearing. The parent was taught to implement naturalistic teaching strategies for communication using the Parent-implemented Communication Strategies (PiCS) protocols (Meadan, H., Angell, M. E., Stoner, J. B., & Daczewitz, M. E. (2014). Parent-implemented social-pragmatic communication intervention: A pilot study. Focus on Autism and other Developmental Disabilities, 29, 1–16. doi:10.1177/1088357613517504). Results varied across strategies, and the parent expressed satisfaction with the goals, procedures, and outcomes of the intervention. Implications include recommendations for practitioners and researchers.

‘Grip and Drop’ Physical Education to Promote Independent Participation for Children with Low-Incidence Disabilities

This article provides a useful activity for adapted physical educators to use when programming for students with low-incidence disabilities. The goal of the activity is to promote movement that is fun and builds upon skills needed for independence. With the help of a task analysis, the game “grip and drop” can help children develop grasping, releasing, reaching and midline crossing skills. These skills are necessary for children with low-incidence disabilities to succeed in tasks of daily living. Additionally, modifications and lesson extensions are provided for the development of a unit plan for learners served in either integrated or more restrictive settings.

A Gradual Effects Model for Single-Case Designs

ABSTRACTSingle-case designs are a class of repeated measures experiments used to evaluate the effects of interventions for small or specialized populations, such as individuals with low-incidence disabilities. There has been growing interest in systematic reviews and syntheses of evidence from single-case designs, but there remains a need to further develop appropriate statistical models and effect sizes for data from the designs. We propose a novel model for single-case data that exhibit nonlinear time trends created by an intervention that produces gradual effects, which build up and dissipate over time. The model expresses a structural relationship between a pattern of treatment assignment and an outcome variable, making it appropriate for both treatment reversal and multiple baseline designs. It is formulated as a generalized linear model so that it can be applied to outcomes measured as frequency counts or proportions, both of which are commonly used in single-case research, while providing readily interpretable effect size estimates such as log response ratios or log odds ratios. We demonstrate the gradual effects model by applying it to data from a single-case study and examine the performance of proposed estimation methods in a Monte Carlo simulation of frequency count data.

Methodological standards in single-case experimental design: Raising the bar

Single-case experimental designs (SCEDs), or small-n experimental research, are frequently implemented to assess approaches to improving outcomes for people with disabilities, particularly those with low-incidence disabilities, such as some developmental disabilities. SCED has become increasingly accepted as a research design. As this literature base is needed to determine what interventions are evidence-based practices, the acceptance of SCED has resulted in increased critiques with regard to methodological quality. Recent trends include recommendations from a number of expert scholars and institutions. The purpose of this article is to summarize the recent history of methodological quality considerations, synthesize the recommendations found in the SCED literature, and provide recommendations to researchers designing SCEDs with regard to essential and aspirational standards for methodological quality. Conclusions include imploring SCED to increase the quality of their experiments, with particular consideration regarding the applied nature of SCED research to be published in Research in Developmental Disabilities and beyond.

Effects of GO 4 IT . . . NOW! Strategy Instruction on Expository Writing Skills for Students With Disabilities

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 simultaneously. This study investigated the effects of GO 4 IT . . . NOW! strategy instruction on expository writing skills of five high school students with low-incidence disabilities. Using a multiple-probe-across-participants design, the authors measured the effects of strategy instruction on quality of expository paragraphs and quality and content of individualized education program (IEP) goal paragraphs. Results indicated a functional relation between the intervention and improved paragraph writing. Limitations, suggestions for future research, and implications for practice are discussed.

Including Students With Disabilities in Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports: Experiences and Perspectives of Special Educators

As interest in proactive and systematic approaches to supporting positive student behavior grows, important questions remain about the ways in which special education staff and their students participate in school-wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). We report findings from a statewide study of 849 special educators addressing (a) their involvement in their school’s PBIS framework, (b) the ways their students with disabilities participate, (c) potential barriers to such participation, and (d) the topics and avenues through which they desire professional development. Special educators rarely participated in school-wide PBIS teams, reported variability in the extent to which their students with disabilities participated in aspects of the school’s framework, indicated that they implemented some features of the framework in their classroom more than others, and highlighted salient barriers to student involvement. The views and actions of special educators working primarily with students with low-incidence disabilities differed from those of teachers working with students with high-incidence disabilities. We discuss implications for research and practice aimed at enhancing the implementation and impact of school-wide PBIS on students with disabilities.

Urban and Rural Preservice Special Education Teachers' Computer Use and Perceptions of Self-Efficacy

Despite the rapid and ongoing increase in the use and availability of computers and technology in and outside of public school classrooms, there is relatively little literature that has examined preservice special education teachers' perceptions of their own computer use and self-efficacy with new technologies or how these perceptions may impact their educational and professional practice. This study used a Computer Use and Self-Efficacy (CUSE) survey to examine current rural and special education teacher candidates' computer use, their perceptions of computer self-efficacy, and the impact on performance in a teacher preparation program for teachers working with students with low-incidence disabilities. Data indicate a difference in perceptions of self-efficacy for rural and urban teacher candidates. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Widening access to higher education for disabled students: the intersection of socio-economic background and impairment

The proportion of disabled students in higher education across the UK has increased over the last 20 years as a result of equalities legislation and widening access measures promoted by the Scottish Government. For monitoring and reporting purposes, disabled students have often been treated as a homogeneous group. Drawing on an analysis of administrative data published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), as well as student case studies, this paper identifies important within-group differences, questioning whether certain sub-groups of disabled students have benefitted from systemic expansion more than others. The main finding of the paper is that the increase in participation by disabled students mainly reflects the growth in the number of those with specific learning difficulties, who are disproportionately drawn from middle class backgrounds. By way of contrast, there has been only a very small increase in the proportion of disabled students from less advantaged backgrounds and with severe low incidence disabilities. Despite the fact that disabled students tend to be from more advantaged backgrounds than others, the case studies illustrate the types of barriers they encounter, which may be compounded by socio-economic disadvantage. The paper concludes by suggesting that, in the future, regulatory regimes might encourage institutions to undertake a more fine-grained analysis of the participation of disabled students in higher education, taking account of both type of impairment and social class background.

A National Snapshot of Assistive Technology for Students With Disabilities

Assistive technology (AT)—included in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act since 1990—supports students with disabilities. Yet, research repeatedly suggests an underutilization of AT. This study represents a secondary analysis of the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 focused on understanding issues of AT for secondary (i.e., high school) students with disabilities. The study presents the self-reported and educator-reported rates of AT receipt by secondary students with disabilities, both aggregated and disaggregated by disability group. The results suggest low rates of self-reported and educator-reported AT access and/or use for secondary students with disabilities but higher rates of AT for secondary students with more low-incidence disabilities than students with more high-incidence disabilities.

Between‐case standardized mean difference effect sizes for single‐case designs: a primer and tutorial using the scdhlm web application

Executive summarySingle‐case research designs are critically important for understanding the effectiveness of interventions that target individuals with low incidence disabilities (e.g., physical disabilities, autism spectrum disorders). These designs comprise an important part of the evidence base in fields such as special education and school psychology, and can provide credible and persuasive evidence for guiding practice and policy decisions. In this paper we discuss the development and use of between‐case standardized mean difference effect sizes for two popular single‐case research designs (the treatment reversal design and the multiple baseline design), and discuss how they might be used in meta‐analyses either with other single‐case research designs or in conjunction with between‐group research designs. Effect size computation is carried out using a user‐friendly web application, scdhlm, powered by the free statistical program R; no knowledge of R programming is needed to use this web application.

Special Education Teachers’ Experiences Supporting and Supervising Paraeducators

In recent years, there has been an increase in paraeducator supports, in large part because students with low incidence disabilities are being included more frequently in general education settings. As a result, special education teachers have been given additional supervisory responsibilities related to directing the work of paraeducators in special and general education settings. Many teachers, however, feel unprepared for this supervisory role. Therefore, to gain a better understanding of current practices in paraeducator supervision, the authors interviewed 13 special education teachers who were nominated by district special education administrators as exemplary supervisors of paraeducators. From the interviews, three themes emerged: creating effective teams, ensuring appropriate training and evaluation, and recommendations for the field. Practices for paraeducators working with students with low incidence disabilities in general education settings are noted in the first two themes. Implications for policy, practice, teacher preparation, and future research are also discussed.

Adapting Self-Regulated Strategy Development in Persuasive Writing for Adolescents Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

Within the special education community, research and policy focus on teachers implementing evidence-based instructional practices with fidelity. However, special education teachers may have to adapt evidence-based practices if the research supporting those practices has not yet included studies that represent populations in the classrooms (i.e., students with low-incidence disabilities). That is, there may be a tension for teachers between adopting evidence-based instruction and adapting lessons to meet the needs of students. This article describes one teacher's adaptations to an evidence-based practice in writing to meet the needs of her adolescent students who are deaf. Her experience models ways teachers can use professional wisdom to adapt evidence-based practices to meet the needs of students with disabilities.