Teacher beliefs about race and dis/ability1 are important in understanding how teachers educate and support students of color with dis/abilities. This is particularly critical because of the overrepresentation of students of color in special education, irrelevant curriculum, and poor post-school outcomes which continue to impact students of color…

Special education continues to be plagued with a shortage of qualified special education teachers (SETs). Novice SETs in their beginning years often do not have individualized mentoring support to grow as educators. However, educative mentors can provide scaffolded support and learning opportunities for novice SETs to develop their teaching…

The purpose of this narrative inquiry was to gain a deep understanding of the lived experiences of four special education technology integrators from personal, cultural, and institutional perspectives. Two semi-structured, recorded interviews were conducted with each participant, followed by a focus group with all participants. Data analysis…

Professionals who elicit the voice of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) have a commitment to ensure a person-centred approach to assessment, as per the Children and Families Act (2014). However, there are recognised barriers to eliciting voice that inhibit meaningful pupil participation within…

As the expectations for special education move from compliance toward academic performance, teachers must help students meet grade-level proficiency while remediating educational deficits. Special education teachers' attempts to fulfill the requirements of the Every Student Succeeds Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act are…

Teachers across the nation are leaving the profession at alarming rates. Teachers in specialized areas such as special education are leaving at higher rates than their peers in other certifications. School districts are constantly recruiting, hiring, and training new teachers which reduces the effectiveness of teaching and learning in the…

This study aims to describe the use of technology in learning for students with special needs during the transition period after the COVID-19 pandemic to the new normal. This study is descriptive research with a survey method. The survey was conducted with 41 special education teachers with variety of special needs students. Data is collected…

The outcomes presented in this dissertation were motivated by a scarcity of research that explores self-determination practices explicitly within inclusive classrooms. Three overarching goals motivated my research. The first was to understand what inclusion teachers know and do in relation to self-determination (Chapter 2). The second was to…

The problem at a Southwestern private school is that secondary teachers have insufficient training to apply personalized instruction (PI) with fidelity to meet the needs of students with severe to moderate cognitive impairments. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore the secondary teachers' perceptions of the training they need…

Research focusing on retention is vital for addressing the shortage of qualified special educators. In this phenomenological study, therefore, 21 early career special educators in Wisconsin were interviewed to investigate what factors most motivated them to continue in their profession. The study also examined how early career special educators…

Annual goals are an essential component of Individual Educational Programs (IEP), which are developed for students with disabilities, and which are informed by data. However, the methods and practices that special educators use to make sense of data to inform the annual IEP goals represent a gap in research literature. This qualitative study was…

This study investigated the impact of technology on students with special needs. Technology is increasingly becoming more embedded in education and is used to help support a wide variety of student accommodations. As technology usage in education increases, it is important that research on its impact on student population groups includes special…

The purpose of this study was to describe charter school special education teachers' perceptions of their level of preparedness, satisfaction with training, and frequency of implementation of specific transition competencies. Additionally, the study examined administrators' perceptions of preparedness to support the transition process for students…

This qualitative study examined perceptions of current special education teachers in one large school district outside a major metropolitan area and their willingness to stay in the field of special education. The number of fully certified special education teachers in U.S. schools has reached an all-time low. Special education teachers are more…

In March 2020, the educational system experienced an unprecedented event in modern history, the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic affected all grade levels and content areas, including special education, and how teaching was delivered to millions of students. The problem was during the COVID-19 school closures; special education teachers had…