High quality family-professional partnerships promote the personal, social, and academic growth of students with disabilities. However, due to systemic barriers, such partnerships can be difficult, especially for families from low-resourced communities. Using the Sunshine Model, the purpose of this systematic literature review was to characterize…

For over 50 years, providing relevant and individualized instruction for students with significant cognitive disabilities (SSCD) has challenged school systems because of the heterogeneity of the population and the complicated nature of their learning characteristics, warranting the implementation of specific instruction using targeted,…

Despite the relatively high incidence rates of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) in children and adolescents, few students qualify for special education services under the TBI category. Although many TBIs do not require specially designed instruction or related services, it is essential that students with substantive educational effects from TBI…

This dissertation research is an exploratory multiple-case study of special education transition program structures in three virtual public charter schools in a southern state in the United States. Virtual public charter schools are extensions of public school systems or districts that are required to comply with state and federal-mandated special…

The need for teachers who have both the knowledge and skills to teach students in special education, especially students who are emergent bilinguals, is more critical today than ever before. Assumptions about the assurances outlined in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) have led to practices that have limited the scope of…

The purpose of this collective case study was to understand how special education teachers interpret and navigate the concept of the least restrictive environment (LRE) standard in providing educational support for students with intellectual disabilities and autism. The guiding theories for this study were behaviorism and social cognitive theory.…

In the United States, children with disabilities receive special education services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which provides free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE). Evidence shows that parents of children who receive special education (SPED) experience conflict within…

Despite the repeated documentation of the positive outcomes for students with extensive support needs (ESN) when they are included in general education settings and receive access to state-adopted general education standards, there has been little systemic progress on the inclusion of students with ESN across most states. The purpose of this…

The current implementation fidelity narrative in education is one written in federal legislation (e.g., ESSA, 2015; IDEA, 2004) and peer-reviewed journals (e.g., Chu et al., 2020; Noell et al., 2014). While teachers represent a significant force for the implementation of evidence-based practices in schools, their experiences and wisdom are often…

The purpose of this survey study was to investigate the perceptions of music teachers in the state of Wisconsin about their use of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) in music classrooms. One hundred seventy-nine music educators completed the survey. Music teachers indicated that many of them do not have access to student IEPs and that…

This report contains the proceedings of a forum held on June 28, 2023 in New Orleans, Louisiana, to discuss issues surrounding meaningful accessibility of assessments. The forum was a post-session to the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) National Conference on Student Assessment (NCSA) and was a collaboration of the "Assessment,…

Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) experience lower levels of physical activity in comparison to the general population. While many factors contribute to this disparity, expanding appropriate and accessible programming in settings frequented by adults with IDD deserves attention. One such setting is post-secondary…

In 1974, the Education for all Handicapped Protection Act was signed into law by President Gerald Ford. This law which was renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1990, established a federal entitlement to special education for eligible students with disabilities. In 1982 and again in 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (2004) mandates parental participation in special education processes, yet families, especially culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) families, often face obstacles in their active involvement as an equal team member in Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings. Although there has been…

Educational leadership, including special education leadership, could benefit from learning sciences and advanced technologies used in other fields (e.g., psychology, medicine). Despite over 30 years of research, leadership preparation is not yet incorporating critical knowledge from the learning sciences to understand the expert versus novice…