Background: To combat stereotype threat, several school-based field trials have leveraged self-affirmation theory (Steele & Liu, 1983; Liu & Steele, 1986), wherein affirming one's important beliefs and values can buffer against identity threats. Self-affirmation theory posits that individuals are motivated to maintain a positive overall…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) indicates students should participate in their Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings whenever appropriate (IDEA, 2004), yet many students are uninformed of the purpose of these meetings and are not meaningful or active participants in the development of their IEPs (Martin, Van Dycke,…

As colleges and universities seek to ensure accommodating academic experiences for all students, it is becoming increasingly clear that the concepts of diversity and disability extend beyond easily identifiable conditions but must also include invisible differences. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of college students…

Young people need a combination of academic skills and other key mindsets and behaviors to succeed in school and become healthy, employed, civically engaged adults. In recent years, there has been growing interest in the relationship between academics and social-emotional learning (SEL)--a broad set of competencies that includes, for example,…

Students with disabilities represent a relatively small but important group of students in U.S. high schools. The education of these students is heavily influenced by federal and state law as well as by longstanding beliefs about the purpose of education and the extreme heterogeneity of the population. Until recently, general educational policies…