Current State of High Stakes Teacher Evaluation for Special Education Teachers
Robin A. Snyder1 and Lisa A. Pufpaff2 1Berrien RESA, Berrien Springs, MI 2Department of Special Education, Ball State University Abstract: Education reform legislation has led to an upwelling of mandatory teacher evaluation for all elementary, middle school, and high school educators, including those who teach special education. While this reform effort aimed to improve overall teacher effectiveness and student learning outcomes, the teacher evaluation for special education is a retrofitted version of the general education teacher evaluation model and yields little meaningful information and increased stress levels for both the special education teacher and their evaluator. Before this problem can be rectified, the barriers standing in the way to a meaningful special education teacher evaluation need to be identified. This article examines existing literature related to special education teacher evaluation to identify those barriers, so progress can be made to improve the delivery of special education instruction and outcomes for students with disabilities. Keywords: teacher evaluation, special education teacher, barriers, special education teacher roles, student growth, evaluator knowledge of special education
Using Picture-Based Task-Analytic Instruction to Teach Students with Moderate Intellectual Disability to Email Peers without Disabilities
Victoria K. Benson, M.Ed, BCBA
Shawnee Y. Wakeman, Ph.D.
Charles L. Wood, Ph.D., BCBA-D
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Reem Muharib, Ph.D., BCBA
Texas State University
Abstract: This preliminary study investigated the effects of using picture-based task analyses and an iPad to teach students with intellectual disability how to send and reply to emails. Three middle-school-aged students with intellectual disability as well as three peers without disabilities participated in this investigation. The intervention consisted of two 15-step task analyses: one for sending an email, and the second for replying to an email, least to most prompting, and constant time delay. Results showed students’ improved ability to send and reply to emails on an iPad with the support of picture-based task analyses. Implications for practice and future research are discussed. Keywords: email, picture-based task analysis, intellectual disability
Using Social Stories™ on the iPad to improve classroom behavior for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A pilot study
Samantha Bordoff-Gerken, M.S.
Kristie Asaro-Saddler, Ph.D.
University at Albany
Abstract: Reviews of the literature have confirmed that Social Stories™ can be an effective intervention for individuals with ASD. Recently, researchers have begun to investigate the presentation of Social Stories™ using technology, with results suggesting that Social Stories™ presented through technology are a promising avenue for practice and research.
In this study, a multiple baseline across participants design was used with four male 7-9 year old students with ASD to determine whether an iPad-based Social Story™ would decrease the number of teacher redirects required by the participants in order to attend to a group lesson. Effect sizes were calculated using PND, PEM, and Tau-U. Results of these analyses generally indicated that overall that the intervention was effective, with the exception of PND for three participants; all other effect sizes indicate an effective or very effective treatment for all participants. Results indicate that iPad-based Social Stories™ can help decreasing the number of redirects required for students with ASD to attend to a group lesson. Keywords: autism spectrum disorder, Social Stories™, technology, iPads, behavior
Interdisciplinary Collaboration Practices between Education Specialists and Related Service Providers
Mary K. Sisti, MA
San Dieguito Union High School District
Jodi A. Robledo, Ph.D.
California State University San Marcos
Abstract: Students with moderate to severe disabilities benefit most when interdisciplinary teams collaborate to deliver individualized instruction, supports and services. This research study seeks to capture a description of education specialists’ collaborative experiences working with interdisciplinary teams composed of speech language pathologists, occupational therapists, adapted physical educators, school psychologists and school nurses. The central question that guided this study asked K-12 education specialists to describe how they collaborate with their interdisciplinary teams in four domains of assessment, curriculum development, instruction, and progress monitoring. A descriptive mixed methods approach, which included surveys and interviews, was used to explore this experience. Overall, education specialists reported that teams collaborate most frequently in the areas of assessment and IEP goal development. Findings indicate that teams respectfully share resources, knowledge of students and behavior support expertise, but lack consistency and a shared systematic approach towards collaboration, especially in the areas of instruction and progress monitoring. Implications for practice and research will be described. Keywords: Students with moderate to severe disabilities, Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Education Specialists, Related Service Providers, Progress Monitoring.
