Cultivating a Schoolwide Culture for the Successful Integration of K-5 Students with Significant Disabilities
Abstract
The intent of this study was to address a problem of practice in an elementary school setting in order to provide opportunities for students with significant impairments to be educated in the least restrictive environment. Three research questions guided the study: How effectively has Be Your Best Elementary School (BYBES) developed and implemented a quality program for students with significant impairments as measured by the New York State Autism Program Quality Indicators (APQI)? How have special area teachers adapted instruction for students in the 8:1:2 class? How inclusive is the school culture, and has the school culture been strengthened by the steps we have taken as measured by the inclusive climate survey? I employed the tools of improvement science with a mixed methods design to determine the extent to which achievement of the study’s purpose had the catalyzing effect we sought, which was to promote the integration of our students with the most significant impairments so that they could make adequate individual growth. I collected multiple data from different constituent groups (the team that supported the 8:1:2 class, special area teachers, and the faculty at large) utilizing the APQI, special area teachers’ coaching observations, semi-structured interviews, and an inclusive climate survey. The results suggested that the tools of improvement science can be put to effective use in building school capacity to provide more inclusive opportunities for students with multiple disabilities to be served well in the least restrictive environment.
Subject Area
Educational administration|Disability studies|Elementary education
Recommended Citation
Brown, Tashia A, "Cultivating a Schoolwide Culture for the Successful Integration of K-5 Students with Significant Disabilities" (2022). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI29257782.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI29257782
