scholarly journals A qualitative inquiry into social justice issues facing educators of students with autism spectrum disorders

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Adam John Stephens
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Phenomenological Study ◽  
School Personnel ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Qualitative Inquiry ◽  
Learner Outcomes ◽  
Social Justice Theory ◽  
K 12

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of various educators charged with the task of educating students with ASD within three public Midwestern school districts. Through the lens of social justice theory, this phenomenological study sought to further the understanding of the unique and varied needs of both the ASD student subgroup, and the multiple school stakeholders charged with providing equity within ASD education. The researcher examined the views and perceptions of special education administrators, special education teachers, and paraprofessionals with regard to challenges and obstacles to ASD equity, and methods used to overcome those obstacles. Participant responses demonstrated that the social justice principles of distribution, recognition, and opportunities (Hytten and Bettez, 2011), are reflected in the practices of ASD educators at varying levels levels. However, within certain school personnel, a lack of knowledge and valuation of students with ASD is still prevalent. Therefore, the implications of this study demonstrate a need for K-12 school districts and higher education institutions to offer more opportunities for educators of students with ASD to learn about their unique traits and strategies the study findings and research have shown improve learner outcomes for students across the autism spectrum.

Assessing Efforts to Diversify Kentucky’s K–12 Teacher Workforce: A Mixed-Methods Analysis of a Grow-Your-Own-Teacher Pathway

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Kyle Ingle ◽  
Stephen M. Leach ◽  
Amy S. Lingo
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
High School Students ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
School Personnel ◽  
Teaching Profession ◽  
White Female ◽  
School Students ◽  
Item Responses ◽  
K 12

We examined the characteristics of 77 high school participants from four school districts who participated in the Teaching and Learning Career Pathway (TLCP) at the University of Louisville during the 2018–2019 school year. The program seeks to support the recruitment of a diverse and effective educator workforce by recruiting high school students as potential teachers for dual-credit courses that explore the teaching profession. Utilizing descriptive and inferential analysis (χ2 tests) of closed-ended item responses as well as qualitative analysis of program documents, Web sites, and students’ open-ended item responses, we compared the characteristics of the participants with those of their home school districts and examined their perceptions of the program. When considering gender and race/ethnicity, our analysis revealed the program was unsuccessful in its first year, reaching predominantly white female high school students who were already interested in teaching. Respondents reported learning about the TLCP from school personnel, specifically, guidance counselors (39%), non-TCLP teachers (25%), or TLCP teachers (20%). We found that the TLCP program has not defined diversity in a measurable way and the lack of an explicit program theory hinders the evaluation and improvement of TLCP. Program recruitment and outcomes are the result of luck or idiosyncratic personnel recommendations rather than intentional processes. We identified a need for qualitative exploration of in-school recruitment processes and statewide longitudinal studies to track participant outcomes in college and in the teacher labor market.

scholarly journals "Look at Me:" Portraiture and Agency

2012 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet S. Sauer
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Young People ◽  
Observational Data ◽  
People With Disabilities ◽  
Qualitative Inquiry ◽  
Significant Disabilities ◽  
Social Construct ◽  
Research Paradigms

<p>Keywords: disability, methodology, portraiture, social justice, special education&nbsp;</p><p>Historically, the dominant research paradigms involving the study of people with disabilities involved experimentally designed studies or other medically orientated approaches. This paper examines portraiture as a form of qualitative inquiry offering emancipatory possibilities for children with significant disabilities and transformative positive reinterpretations of disability as a social construct for their teachers and other people in their lives.&nbsp; Three narrative portraits of young people with disabilities were created based on a year-long portraiture study involving the collection of observational data, informal interviews, artifacts, and discourse analysis to capture the &ldquo;essence&rdquo; of their humanness.&nbsp; Through an examination of this portrait study and others from across the humanities, this paper provides examples where the &ldquo;subjects&rdquo; asserted themselves in ways akin to Giroux&rsquo;s agency (1987) suggesting portraiture might provide a unique and credible avenue to respectfully study and learn more about people with disabilities too often left on the fringe of society.&nbsp;</p>

Teachers as change agents: social justice theory to practice

2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
AnnMarie Alberton Gunn ◽  
Susan V. Bennett
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Change Agents ◽  
Multicultural Literature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Justice Pedagogy ◽  
12Th Grade ◽  
Course Work ◽  
Literacy Course ◽  
Social Justice Theory ◽  
K 12

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate how participation in a multicultural literature course impacted K-12th classroom teachers’ social justice pedagogy and classroom practices one to three years after completion of the course. Design/methodology/approach This study investigated the effectiveness on teacher practices of a graduate literacy course, which was redesigned within a framework of social justice pedagogy by focusing on critical analysis of texts, teacher inquiry and a literacy civic engagement project. The authors interviewed 20 teachers one to three years after they enrolled in this multicultural children and young adults’ literature course. The authors also explored their classrooms and kept a researcher’s reflective journal. Findings The authors describe how participants implemented social justice pedagogy and strategies with their K-12th grade students. Originality/value While many studies look at how teacher education programs integrate social justice education into their programs, few researchers follow their students into the K-12 classrooms to investigate if teachers are connecting higher education course work and theory into practice.

scholarly journals School Counseling Interns’ Lived Experiences Addressing Social Determinants of Health

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra C. Gantt ◽  
Kaprea F. Johnson ◽  
Judith W. Preston ◽  
Brittany G. Suggs ◽  
Megan Cannedy
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Determinants Of Health ◽  
School Counselors ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
Phenomenological Study ◽  
Determinants Of Health ◽  
Identity Conflict ◽  
Counselors In Training ◽  
Practice Gap ◽  
Social Justice Theory

This phenomenological study explores school counselors in training (SCITs’) experiences addressing social determinants of health (SDOH), the leading causes of educational and wellness inequities. Interviews with eight SCITs revealed three core themes: (1) professional identity conflict between awareness, skills, and action; (2) social justice knowledge to practice gap; and (3) recommendations for knowledge to practice gap resolution. Themes explained participant preparedness for responding to disparities. Participants were aware of challenges related to SDOH, though struggled with addressing those challenges due to lack of preparation or perceived role constraints. Participants also experienced difficulty practically applying their understanding of social justice theory to SDOH-related challenges. The researchers noted various recommendations for how SDOH may be addressed in the counselor education curriculum and in practice.

School Counselors’ Experiences With the Section 504 Process: “I want to be a strong team member…[not] a case manager”

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 2156759X2091937
Author(s):  
Emily Goodman-Scott ◽  
Rawn Boulden
Keyword(s):  
School Districts ◽  
School Counselors ◽  
School Counselor ◽  
Team Member ◽  
Phenomenological Study ◽  
Case Manager ◽  
Section 504 ◽  
Rehabilitation Act Of 1973 ◽  
Education Support ◽  
K 12

In response to a gap in the literature and to inform school counseling practice, we conducted a phenomenological study of school counselors in five states and 10 school districts, examining their experiences with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 in pre-K–12 schools. Overall, school counselors communicated challenges in their involvement with the 504 process including four themes: (a) time-consuming coordination/management; (b) relational strain with teachers, students, and families; (c) lack of expertise in Section 504; and (d) ambiguity of the Section 504 process. We discuss implications for practicing school counselors, school leaders, and school counselor educators centered on increased education, support, and advocacy.

Use of mobile technologies in special education: A content analysis

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Iskender Volkan Sancar ◽  
Süleyman Burak Tozkoparan ◽  
Hatice Ferhan Odabasi
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Great Majority ◽  
Social Science Citation Index ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Mobile Technologies ◽  
Or Education ◽  
The Usa ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Number Of Citations

This study represents a content analysis of scientific articles on the use of mobile technologies in special education. Within this scope, 19 out of 51 articles that are published in journals indexed in Social Science Citation Index and/or Education Resources Information Center were selected in compliance with inclusion and exclusion criteria. The content analysis was performed on the basis of the year published, countries where the research conducted, number of citations, age or level of the sample, sample size, research method, type of disadvantaged group and the mobile technologies used. Findings show that a great majority of the studies focused on disabilities, such as autism spectrum disorder, Down’s syndrome and intellectual disability. Most of the studies were conducted in the USA and focused on skill acquisiton/improvement. Further research on mobile technologies in special education is needed addressing K-12 or higher levels, for visual and hearing impaired individuals. As product design, usage or usability studies were scarce; product development-oriented studies are suggested.   Keywords: Special education, mobile technology, disabled children, content analysis, assistive technology.

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