Volume: 29.3
Year: 2014

Directions:

1. Select articles from one of the following issues:
Year 2014 Volume 29 Number 3
Year 2014 Volume 29 Number 2
Year 2014 Volume 29 Number 1
Year 2013 Volume 28 Number 3
Year 2013 Volume 28 Number 2
Year 2013 Volume 28 Number 1
Year 2012 Volume 27 Number 3
Year 2012 Volume 27 Number 2
Year 2012 Volume 27 Number 1
Year 2011 Volume 26 Number 3
Year 2011 Volume 26 Number 2
Year 2011 Volume 26 Number 1
Year 2010 Volume 25 Number 3
Year 2010 Volume 25 Number 2
Year 2010 Volume 25 Number 1
Year 2009 Volume 24 Number 3
Year 2009 Volume 24 Number 2
Year 2009 Volume 24 Number 1
Year 2008 Volume 23 Number 4
Year 2008 Volume 23 Number 3
Year 2008 Volume 23 Number 2
Year 2008 Volume 23 Number 1
Year 2007 Volume 22 Number 3
Year 2007 Volume 22 Number 2
Year 2007 Volume 22 Number 1
Year 2006 Volume 21 Number 3
Year 2006 Volume 21 Number 2
Year 2006 Volume 21 Number 1
Year 2005 Volume 20 Number 2
Year 2005 Volume 20 Number 1
Year 2004 Volume 19 Number 2
Year 2004 Volume 19 Number 1
Year 2003 Volume 18 Number 2
Year 2003 Volume 18 Number 1
Year 2002 Volume 17 Number 2
Year 2002 Volume 17 Number 1
Year 2001 Volume 16 Number 2
Year 2001 Volume 16 Number 1
Year 2 Volume 28 Number 2013

2. Click on [more] at the end of the abstract of the article you wish to read

Title Year Vol. No. Size
A PHENOMENOLOGICAL EXAMINATION OF THE INFLUENCE OF CULTURE ON TREATING AND CARING FOR HISPANIC CHILDREN WITH AUTISM 2014 29 3 206 KB
Lynette Estrada
University of Miami
Aaron A. Deris
University of Minnesota

Researchers have found that cultural factors may lead to lower rates of diagnosis in Hispanic children with autism and that parents lack the knowledge of therapies and practices used in the treatment of the autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Five research questions guided this phenomenological study. The focus of the first two questions was how culture may affect families seeking assistance; the third question queried how professionals play a part in the choice of therapies ; the fourth question dealt with how do families choose a therapy to aid their child with ASD. The focus of the last question was the involvement of other family members. The major themes included professional influences, concerns for children’s futures as adults, parental involvement, and personalismo/familismo. The outcomes of the study demonstrate the influence professionals have on the families and the choices families make to aid their children with ASD. These findings will assist professionals to understand the Hispanic culture as it may relate to having a child with ASD and thus assist families to understand how to acquire the services needed. ... [more]


AT-RISK YOUTH IN AUSTRALIAN SCHOOLS AND PROMISING MODELS OF INTERVENTION 2014 29 3 266 KB
Therese M. Cumming
Iva Strnadová
Leanne Dowse

University of New South Wales

The largest population of youth at risk for involvement in the juvenile justice system are those with disabilities and mental illness. There has been scant research into the pathways that these students take from home, school and the community to involvement in the justice system in Australia. This paper utilises insights from critical disability studies, critical criminology, disability studies, and special education to identify the complex intersections of individual, social and systemic experiences for this group and to examine risk and success factors in the educational domain. Suggestions are offered for improvement, based on evidence-based practices and promising programs. ... [more]


BAHAMIAN TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF INCLUSION AS A FOUNDATIONAL PLATFORM FOR ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAMS 2014 29 3 301 KB
Norrisa Newton
Yvonne Hunter-Johnson
Beulah L. Gardiner-Farquharson
Janelle Cambridge

The College of the Bahamas

Despite the paradigm shift globally regarding the adoption of inclusive education, teachers still have varying preconceived misconceptions about its successful implementation and practices in the general education classroom. This qualitative study focused on teachers' perception of adapting inclusive education policies and procedures in The Bahamas and its implication for adult education. The participants of the study were teachers (n-18) in the K-12 educational system in The Bahamas. The findings from this study revealed that there was a vast misconception of the definition of inclusive education. Secondly, five overarching factors that influenced teachers' perception of inclusive education were (a) lack of training, (b) insufficient resources and (c) administrative support, (d) teachers’ attitudes and (e) inadequate /misconception of information regarding inclusive education. The study further provides an overview for implications for education and training of general education teachers charged with the responsibility of accommodating children with disabilities in regular/inclusive classrooms. ... [more]


BOOK REVIEW_EDMUNDS AND MACMILLAN’S LEADERSHIP FOR INCLUSION: A PRACTICAL GUIDE 2014 29 3 158 KB
Maria Rapti
University of Leeds

Book Review ... [more]


INSTRUCTIONAL VARIABLES OF INCLUSIVE ELEMENTARY CLASSROOMS IN TURKEY 2014 29 3 388 KB
Nimet Bulbin Sucuoglu
Selma Akalin

Ankara University
Elif Sazak Pinar
Abant Izzet Baysal University

The purpose of this study is twofold: to determine the instructional variables of the inclusive classrooms in Turkey and to investigate to what extent the student behaviors change according to eco-behavioral characteristics of inclusive classrooms. The study group consisted of 44 students between the ages of six and 12 with mild disabilities who were placed in regular classrooms and their teachers. The Turkish version of the Code for Instructional Structure and Student Academic Response-Mainstream Version (MS-CISSAR) was used for data collection which was based on a momentary time-sampling. The results of molar analysis indicated that the student behaviors displayed the most were no academic response, no task management, and no competing response. Attention and academic talk were found to be the teacher behaviors displayed the most during instruction. In addition, some student behaviors such as no academic response, no task management, writing, and self-stimulation were not affected by instructional grouping while the attention behaviors of the students were found to be affected by no instruction, no task, no activity, and paper-pen activity conditions. On the other hand, the writing behaviors of the students increased in math and decreased in the discussion condition. All the findings were discussed based on the Turkish mainstreaming system along with the difficulties of the mainstreaming implementation. ... [more]


PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT IN THE INDIVIDUAL EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM FOR ISRAELI STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES 2014 29 3 253 KB
Orley Hebel
Levinsky College of Education

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study is to achieve an understanding of the perceptions and experiences of Israeli parents of students with severe disabilities about their involvement in the Individual Education Program (IEP) process. Data collection in this study involved interviewing 20 parents whose children study in special education schools in the Tel Aviv area in Israel. Through analysis of parents’ responses, two main themes related to the involvement of parents in the IEP process become apparent: A child-centered focus and parents’ self-efficacy. Positive parent-teacher collaboration enhanced the sense of parents’ efficacy with respect to the IEP process and resulted in plans that were individualized to students’ needs. The main conclusion of the research is parental involvement and the collaboration of parents with teachers is a process that teachers and parents must nourish daily. Parental involvement and effective parent-teacher collaboration in the IEPs of students with severe disabilities is founded on relationships of trust and positive communication between families and schools. ... [more]


PERCEPTIONS OF DISABILITY AND ACCESS TO INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN WEST AFRICA: A COMPARATIVE CASE STUDY IN DAKAR, SENEGAL 2014 29 3 246 KB
Elizabeth R. Drame
Kaytie Kamphoff

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Educating students with disabilities in an inclusive general education setting has been shown to increase academic achievement, increase peer acceptance, increase self-esteem, create a richer friendship network, and have positive lifetime benefits (higher salaried jobs, independent living). In addition, inclusion can have benefits for students without disabilities. The West African nation of Senegal has pledged to increase inclusive education for students with disabilities by 2015. Issues that affect inclusive education for all in Senegal are access to schooling, community and societal perceptions of individuals with disabilities, poverty, and teacher training and pedagogy. To increase inclusive education for all in Senegal the country must increase access to schooling through physical accessibility and decentralization, create community awareness campaigns that increase knowledge of disabilities, and develop teacher training that fosters a student-centered pedagogy. ... [more]


PREVALENCE, DIAGNOSIS, TREATMENT AND RESEARCH ON AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS (ASD) IN SINGAPORE AND MALAYSIA 2014 29 3 200 KB
Tina Ting Xiang Neik
SEGi University
Lay Wah Lee
Hui Min Low

Universiti Sains Malaysia
Noel Kok Hwee Chia
Arnold Chee Keong Chua

Nanyang Technological University

The prevalence of autism is increasing globally. While most of the published works are done in the Western and European countries, the trend in autism research is shifting towards the Asian continent recently. In this review, we aimed to highlight the current prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and research on Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in Singapore and Malaysia. Based on database searches, we found that the awareness about autism among lay and professional public is higher in Singapore compared to Malaysia. The special education system and approach towards autism treatment is also different between both societies although the culture is similar and the geographic location is close. Main findings and implications were discussed in this review. The lack of study on autism prevalence in this part of the world commands a critical need for further research. Perhaps more collaborative work between both countries could be done to expand the knowledge in autism. ... [more]


QUALITY OF LIFE OF STUDENTS WITH DISABILITES ATTENDING JORDANIAN UNIVERSITIES 2014 29 3 270 KB
Eman Al-Zboon
Jamal Fathi Ahmad

Hashemite University
Raied Sheikh Theeb
University of Jordan

In spite of increasing number of students with disabilities in universities, there is limited research on quality of life of these students. This study aimed to identify the quality of life level of undergraduate students with disabilities at Jordanian universities. The sample consisted of (147) students. A quality of life scale was constructed, then it was validated, and then it was administrated to the sample of the study. Results revealed that students with disabilities have a medium level of quality of life expressed in a total score of (3.48), meanwhile, the highest mean was for religious and spiritual domain (4.4) and the lowest mean was for cognitive / mental domain (2.93). Results also revealed no statistically significant differences in all domains of the scale and the total score due to disability type or severity. In addition, there are statistically significant differences in the total score due to gender in favor of females. ... [more]


TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL EDUCATION NEEDS IN CAMEROON SECONDARY SCHOOLS 2014 29 3 268 KB
Rosemary Oneke Arrah
Kristine D. Swain

University of Nebraska

This study examined teachers’ perceptions of including students with special education needs in Cameroon secondary schools. Teachers (N = 130) from five secondary government, denominational or lay private schools in Buea subdivision of Cameroon, Africa, completed a 26-item survey. The survey was analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, and ANOVA. The results show teachers’ perceptions of students with special education needs were favorable; however specific areas of concern were noted that included insufficient resources for special education, lack of training to work with students with special education needs, additional stress and anxiety when teaching students with special education needs, and preventing the learning of other students. The discussion focuses on future direction for research and creation of awareness of special education needs of students in Cameroon secondary school. ... [more]


THE EFFECT OF EMBEDDED TEXT-TO-SPEECH AND VOCABULARY EBOOK SCAFFOLDS ON THE COMPREHENSION OF STUDENTS WITH READING DISABILITIES 2014 29 3 329 KB
Michelle Gonzalez
Marywood University

Limited research exists concerning the effect of interactive electronic texts or eBooks on the reading comprehension of students with reading disabilities. The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a significant difference in oral retelling and comprehension performance on multiple-choice questions when 17 students with reading disabilities in third (n = 10) and fourth (n = 7) grade read eBooks under three different book formats. Participants read text presented in 3 formats with varying levels of built-in scaffolds including text-to-speech and vocabulary supports. Results of a Friedman’s Test revealed a significant effect of the different book formats on comprehension measured by oral retelling, but not for comprehension measured by multiple-choice questions. ... [more]


THE EFFECTS OF A SOCIAL STORY™ INTERVENTION ON THE PRO-SOCIAL BEHAVIORS OF A YOUNG ADULT WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER 2014 29 3 336 KB
Seda Karayazi
Patty Kohler Evans
Janet Filer

University of Central Arkansas

The use of social stories™ with a young adult with autism spectrum disorder was examined. The young woman in the study was completing her high school education in a clinical room on a university campus in the South. The primary goal of her program was to develop and expand her functional independence. The social stories™ were effective in improving the pro-social behaviors in two areas, greeting behavior and nose-wiping behavior.... [more]


THE EFFECTS OF EXPLICIT INSTRUCTION ON THE WRITING ABILITY OF A STUDENT WITH NOONAN SYNDROME 2014 29 3 334 KB
Kristie Asaro-Saddler
Bruce Saddler
Tammy Ellis-Robinson

University at Albany

In this study, we sought to determine the effectiveness of a sentence creation intervention on the sentence writing ability of a young writer with Noonan Syndrome. Noonan syndrome is an autosomal dominant condition characterized by shortness in stature, with neck and ear anomalies, hypertelorism, ptosis of the eyelids, low set ears, and instances of cardiac anomalies that may impact motor skills, language, attention and memory. As a result of these characteristics, children with Noonan syndrome may have difficulty with academic tasks such as writing. Our purpose in this study was to increase the quality and structure of the student’s sentences through practice with reading new words and applying those words within sentences. The intervention consisted of ten lessons that used sight words and picture prompts to help the writer create sentences that described the picture. Reassembly and copying tasks were also modeled and practiced. Two measures, sentence quality and construction, were used to document changes from baseline to post-treatment. A visual analysis of the means for holistic quality and number of words was used to compare baseline to post-treatment data for each student. In addition to this visual analysis, data were analyzed using the percentage of non-overlapping data (PND) procedure described by Scruggs, Mastropieri, and Casto (1987). Post intervention improvements in sentence quality and sentence structure were noted. Implications and recommendations for future research and practice are provided. ... [more]


THE WORK OF TEACHER AIDES IN AUSTRALIA: AN ANALYSIS OF JOB ADVERTISEMENTS 2014 29 3 197 KB
Jennifer Stephenson
Mark Carter

Macquarie University

Although teacher aides are often employed in schools to provide support for students with disabilities and special education needs, there is limited Australian research on their work and employer expectations. This article provides an analysis of advertisements for teacher aide positions, and compares the content of advertisements with role statements and teacher aide reports of their work. Employment for teacher aides is likely to be casual and short-term and qualifications are rarely required. A very wide range of criteria was identified and the most frequently mentioned criterion was generic, such as the ability to work in a team. Criteria relating to the actual work aides report they perform or to education department role statements were less frequent. Concern is expressed about the effects of generally poorly defined roles, the lack of required qualifications and the precarious nature of many positions on the education of students with special education needs. ... [more]