The purpose of this study was to examine how communication between Latino parents and special education teachers influenced collaboration and involvement in the development of the Individualized Education Program in Southern California. The study used Ogbu's (1992) cultural ecological theory and Epstein's (1995) six steps types of parental…

As more and more students enter public schools with culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds that require services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, facilitators must be more sensitive to the needs, especially in the area of communication. Augmentative and alternative communication devices and other assistive…

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), schools and families collaborate to determine educational decisions for children with special needs. However, successful collaboration occurs when special education practitioners and families build strong partnerships. This study employed a mixed-methods action research design to…

This qualitative phenomenological design study explored the parental role in special education advocacy and support of early childhood learning needs of pre-K to 2nd grade elementary students receiving special education services, based on parental perceptions of whether they have adequate know-how and resources to advocate and support the early…

Since the passage of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) of 2004 there has been an ongoing debate in the field of special education on the relative importance of students with significant cognitive disabilities participation and progress in the general education curriculum. Some researchers have argued that the core…

As the current number of special education students continues to increase throughout the United States, so does the number of students who currently identify as Latinx. With this increase, it is important to consider what the experiences are for these students' families as they learn that their children qualify for special education services as…

Over the course of the past three decades, largely due to advances in technology, there has been growth in the fields of early intervention (EI) and pediatrics for infants/toddlers with special health care needs (SHCN). This growth has also brought about a change in the relationship between pediatricians and EI service coordinators, creating an…

The purpose of this qualitative study was three-fold. First, the purpose was to identify instructional strategies implemented by a virtual public high school to serve students with disabilities. Second, the purpose of this study was to show how the curriculum for students with disabilities developed in a virtual public school in a southeastern…

This qualitative semi-structured open-ended protocol research study provided information on middle school general educators' perceptions of barriers impeding completion of training on the FBA/PBIP, and the methods they perceived that could remove the barriers from the perspective of general educators as self-directed adult learners. The…

When a paraeducator accompanies students receiving special education support across settings, students are at increased risks of decreased engagement and interaction with certified teachers (Giangreco et al., 2001). When paraeducators are tasked with implementing, it is critical they be prepared to monitor students' progress accurately and…

After the passing of the Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2004, many schools began to use a Response to Intervention (RtI) model instead of the discrepancy model when identifying students with specific learning disabilities (National Center on Response to Intervention, 2011). When elementary schools adopted the RtI model, it was shown to be…

The Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2004 allowed schools to use a Response to Intervention (RtI) model as opposed to the discrepancy model to qualify students as learning disabled. The incorporation of the RtI model provided earlier interventions for students and reduced avoidance of special services and false diagnosis. With the success of…

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 2004 have directly contributed to an increase in students receiving inclusive specialized instruction within the general education classroom setting. To accommodate these students, many schools have implemented the practice of co-teaching, or…

The disproportional representation of Black students in special education has been an issue of concern for many years in the United States. A review of the literature illustrates the struggle of African American children in the American educational system: from the Civil Rights Movement and desegregation to the re-segregation of these same…

Education reform has been on a new path over the last 15 years; a path that leads to more accountability, more choice for students and parents, highly qualified teachers, as well as, best practices in instruction. In an effort to move along the path of reform and as a result of previous reform, the 2004 reauthorization of IDEA reviewed the field…