Language abilities and progress in a direct instruction reading program for students with learning disabilities

Direct instruction reading programs have been found to be a successful way to teach reading to many, but not all, students with learning disabilities. This study investigated whether reading improvement for students with learning disabilities receiving reading instruction through a direct instruction reading program might be related to their language abilities. The reading progress of 26 students (19 male, 7 female), 7 to 10 years old, was measured over 2 years. In addition, phonological and syntactic abilities were assessed. The results indicated that phonological ability was related to progress in word attack skills and that syntactic ability was related to improvement in comprehension skills. These results have implications for the reading instruction of students with learning disabilities.     

‘What can I do to help?’: Postsecondary students with learning disabilities' perceptions of instructors' classroom accommodations

This qualitative research report adopts a critical pedagogy perspective to examine the provision of classroom accommodations for postsecondary students with learning disabilities. Although instructors in the United States are bound to abide by disability rights laws, we also believe instructors can act in ways that allow students to feel comfortable in disclosing their disabilities and in requesting and accessing accommodations for these disabilities. We engaged the voices of 10 university students living with learning disabilities through a series of semi‐structured interviews. These students offered a variety of statements on the ways that their disabilities were accommodated or not by their instructors. We classified these perceptions into three kinds of accommodation perceived by university students with learning disabilities: non‐accommodation, formal accommodation and accommodation for all students. We discuss the implications that these types of accommodations have for pedagogy and offer recommendations for effective techniques for accommodating for all. We hope the voices of these students will serve to enhance communication between students with learning disabilities and their professors.     

Piagetian cognitive functioning in students with learning disabilities

This study investigated the cognitive abilities as measured by the Inventory of Piaget's Developmental Tasks (IPDT) (Furth, 1970) of male and female fourth and fifth graders with learning disabilities. In addition, their cognitive abilities were compared to their reading and mathematics achievement, as measured by the Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT) (Dunn & Markwardt, 1970). A two-way analysis of covariance revealed a significant mean difference in cognitive ability between students with learning disabilities and nondisabled students. No significant differences existed in performance between males and females. Multiple regression showed that a linear combination of reading and mathematics achievement yielded a significant positive correlation to cognitive ability.     

Academic Self‐Perceptions,Effort, and Strategy Use in Students with Learning Disabilities: Changes Over Time

This study investigated changes in teachers' and students' perceptions of students' effort, strategy use, and academic difficulties when strategy instruction was infused into the classroom curriculum. The sample consisted of 201 students with learning disabilities, 210 average achievers, and 57 teachers from Grades 4–9 in two urban and suburban communities. After six months of classroom‐based strategy instruction, students with learning disabilities reported more consistent use of strategies with their schoolwork and perceived themselves as struggling less in reading, writing, and spelling. Teachers perceived the students with learning disabilities as more strategic and as applying more effort to their schoolwork. Teachers also perceived their students as showing significant improvements in spelling, regardless of whether they had learning disabilities. These findings extended the results of previous investigations and indicated the small, positive impact of classroom‐based strategy instruction. Further investigations are critical to evaluate the generalizability of these findings.     

地方高校学生学习动机与学习倦怠关系研究

采用整群抽样的方法对三地三所地方高校的500名学生进行了问卷调查,以了解地方高校大学生学习动机和学习倦怠之间的关系。结果发现,男女大学生在成就感低上差异显著（P〈0．01）,体艺专业与文科专业学生在行为不当、情绪低落上差异显著（P〈0．01）;不同年级大学生在能力追求、情绪低落、行为不当、成就感低等维度上差异显著（P〈0．01）;学习倦怠与求知兴趣、能力追求、利他取向及内外学习动机总分呈显著负相关（P〈0．01）。研究表明,学习动机是学习倦怠的有效预测变量。激发大学生的学习动机能减少大学生学习倦怠。     

Depressive symptoms in and type of classroom placement for adolescents with LD

This study investigated the relationship of depressive symptomatology to type of classroom placement in a sample of adolescents with learning disabilities who attended an urban public high school. Fifty-two students, half of whom were in self-contained classrooms and half of whom were in general education classrooms with resource room, self-rated their depressive symptoms. Their guidance counselors also rated these students' depressive symptoms. Self-ratings of depression did not differ depending on classroom placement. Guidance counselors rated students with learning disabilities who were in general education classrooms as more depressed than students placed in self-contained classes.     

学习困难学生自主学习策略研究

为揭示自主学习策略对学习困难学生的影响,并为学习困难学生的训练和矫正提供心理学依据,应用自主学习策略问卷,对小学5年级95名学习优秀学生和89名学习困难学生进行了自主学习策略比较研究。结果发现:学习困难学生自主学习策略明显低于学习优秀学生;学习困难女学生自主学习策略水平整体显著高于男生;影响学生学习成绩是多个自主学习策略因子共同作用的结果。     

Individual differences in an English learning achievement system: gaming flow experience,gender differences and learning motivation

Despite the growing interest in digital game-based learning (DGBL), there has been a lack of attention paid to the effects of individual differences, such as gaming flow experience and gender differences, in a reward-based achievement system. To this end, this study developed an achievement system with a reward mechanism to facilitate English learning. This study investigated how individuals’ gaming flow experience levels affected their levels of learning motivation, and whether any gender differences existed in gaming flow experience and learning motivation while engaging in the achievement system. The results showed that gaming flow experience significantly predicted learning motivation, whereby the students with high gaming flow experience were six times more likely to have high learning motivation than those with low gaming flow experience. Subsequent analysis showed that the female students had significantly higher gaming flow than the male students, but the male and female students showed similar learning motivation. Furthermore, the results indicated that the male students achieved more interactive rewards than the female students, but no significant differences were found in the male and female students’ achievement of other types of rewards. Based on these findings, the authors contribute to the literature by developing a framework which can be applied to support designers to accommodate individual differences in DGBL.     

Gender differences in high-school learning experiences,motivation, self-efficacy,and career aspirations among Taiwanese STEM college students

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to answer the following two questions: (1) Do significant differences exist in high-school learning experience, interests, self-efficacy, and career aspirations between male and female science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students? (2) Can high-school learning experiences, interests, and self-efficacy significantly predict career aspirations, and do differences exist between male and female STEM students? This study highlighted the gender gap between male and female university students who had already chosen STEM majors with similar academic ability. A total of 407 first-year students were surveyed at a 4-year research university in Taiwan. For the data analysis, a t-test and multiple regression analysis were used, and the findings indicated that male STEM students had greater family support than their female counterparts. The variable of task value could significantly predict STEM career aspirations for both male and female students, whereas the variable of STEM course self-efficacy could only significantly predict that of male students. In conclusion, the findings highlighted that the motivation of task value was a vital factor for predicting STEM career aspirations, whereas the factor of family support was the main gap between male and female STEM students in terms of their high-school learning experiences.     

Barriers to the implementation of specialized reading instruction in secondary co-taught classrooms: an exploratory study

ABSTRACT

This exploratory research underscores Bandura’s social learning theory on collective agency to investigate co-teaching partners’ collaboration regarding reading instruction for students with disabilities. Students whose Individualized Education Programs stipulate reading are dependent on special educators to deliver such instruction. In the current research, we investigate barriers to implementation of specialized reading instruction in co-taught classes. One hundred seven secondary special education co-teachers across the United States, who primarily teach students with learning disabilities, responded to a questionnaire about their co-teaching experiences and delivery of specialized reading instruction. Emphasizing the impact that co-planning has on barriers to the implementation of reading, our results indicate the moderating role of special educators’ perceived co-teaching benefits. Empirical findings are discussed, and implications for research and practice are offered.     

Gender bias and special education referrals

Referrals for special education determine who receives special education services. The most common referring agents are regular education teachers. Today, there is a large discrepancy between the number of females to males found in learning disabilities programs. However, studies have found the number of female and male students with learning disabilities in schools is more proportional than enrollment in special education suggests. The position of this paper is that gender bias among referring agents is a major factor in the unequal distribution of males and females in learning disabilities programs.     

工科专业本科生学习性投入的性别差异分析

本研究使用华中地区一所理工科院校的调查数据,分析工科专业本科生在学习性投入和学业收获中存在的性别差异,检验工科专业本科生学习性投入对其学业收获的影响是否因性别而存在不同。研究发现：工科专业女生在学习努力程度、课外拓展学习、学习意义感、学习动力及感知到的学术环境和人际关系等因素上均显著高于男生,但在生师交流互动、专业兴趣上显著低于男生;工科专业女生在校期间学习性投入程度更高,学习成绩更好,但对自我学习收获的评价相对较低;学习性投入各因素对工科专业男女生学业收获的正向促进作用也有所不同。对此,本文提出工程教育改革应重视工科专业女生的专业自信心和归属感的建立,以消除单一的男性主导的工科学习环境对女生学习及发展的潜在影响。     

Is contact with people with disabilities a guarantee for positive implicit and explicit attitudes?

In the past 50 years research on attitudes toward people with disabilities has repeatedly revealed negative attitudes by predominantly using self-report measures. The main aim of the present contribution was to develop an Implicit Association Test (IAT) to assess implicit attitudes toward people with disabilities. For this purpose 47 university students majoring in special education (11 male, 36 female) were asked to complete the IAT in addition to self-reported explicit attitudes (affective, cognitive, and behavioural component). Moreover, the students were asked about the amount and perceived quality of their contact experience with people with disabilities. Results showed that participants reported on average most negative explicit attitudes in the affective, followed by the cognitive and the behavioural component. On average, students were more likely to associate the category ‘disabled’ with the attribute ‘unpleasant’ on the IAT. Overall, explicit and implicit attitudes were only weakly correlated. The amount of contact significantly predicted the three components of explicit attitudes, but not implicit attitudes. The results and limitations of this study will be discussed with respect to their implications for the educational context.     

Is Inclusion an Illusion? An Examination of National and State Trends Toward the Education of Students with Learning Disabilities in General Education Classrooms

The inclusion of students with learning disabilities (LD) remains one of the more controversial issues in special education. Although research evidence seems to reveal that students with LD should spend most of the school day in the general education classroom, little data are available regarding the extent to which states are moving toward educating these students in less restrictive settings. This investigation was conducted to examine national and state data related to changes that occurred during the 1990s in educating students with LD in less restrictive settings. The results revealed that little change occurred across the United States as a whole, and that only 15 states moved toward educating students with LD in less restrictive settings during this time. The findings of this investigation further revealed that much of the apparent movement toward educating students with LD in general education classrooms is largely an illusion, explained primarily by the increasing identification rate for students with LD. The implications of these findings for future research and practice are discussed.     

Group composition and its effect on female and male problem-solving in science education

Background:?Cooperative learning may help students elaborate upon problem information through interpersonal discourse, and this may provoke a higher level of thinking. Interaction stimulates students to put forward and order their thoughts, and to understand the ideas or questions of their peer learner. However, partner gender is an important variable in cooperative learning. Previous research indicates that female students profit less than male students from mixed-gender cooperative learning in physics, especially where problem-solving is involved. Female and male students have different communication styles. For example, male students tend to give their opinions and explanations directly, while females tend to avoid presenting their opinion and are more likely to initiate cooperative problem-solving by asking questions.

Purpose:?The main aim of this study was to ascertain whether partner gender influences female students' learning to solve science problems and the role female communication style plays in the cooperative learning process.

Sample:?A total of 62 high schools students (31 female, 31 male) from three schools in the Netherlands participated in the study. Students were selected from three physics classes in grade 10, with a mean age of 15.6. Students came from various family backgrounds.

Design and methods:?An experiment was carried out to test the effect of group composition on female and male students' cooperative problem-solving in science. The students were randomly assigned to dyads and three research conditions: 15 mixed-gender pairs (MG); eight female–female pairs (FF) and eight male–male pairs (MM). Students were given training in how to solve a problem as a team, and how to complete the answer sheet. All students solved the same problems in four 50-minute sessions. In each session, students were asked to solve three new and moderately structured problems working together. Each dyad had a university student as an observer. The observer's task was to log the students' time on task and to document the interactions between the students. The observers did not interfere with the communication between the students during problem-solving.

Results:?Analyses of pre- and post-test performance revealed that female students in the MG condition did not learn to solve physics problems as well as male partners or as female students in all-female dyads. Analyses of interactive behaviours showed that female students in the MG condition devoted less time to actively seeking solutions and spent more time asking questions than their male partners.

Conclusions:?Difference in solution-seeking behaviour could explain an important part of the difference in problem-solving performance between the female and male students in this study. Female students in the all-female dyads did not differ in interactive behaviour or post-test performance from males. They had a more balanced interactive style than females in the mixed-gender dyads. Suggestions for further research are discussed. It would be interesting to examine if the findings of this study carried over to areas in which females are traditionally more comfortable, such as biology.     

Using a Self‐Advocacy Intervention on African American College Students’ Ability to Request Academic Accommodations

Due to an increase in enrollment of African American students with disabilities in postsecondary education, there is a need to identify strategies that may lead to improved transition and self‐advocacy skills for these students. These strategies include teaching students to request academic accommodations and to have an understanding of how their disability affects their academic learning. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to provide an in‐depth explanation of a self‐advocacy strategy that was used to teach three African American male college students how to request their academic accommodations. Results indicated this strategy may be a promising intervention for African American college students with disabilities.     

合作学习对转化小学"学差生"的实验研究

为探讨在我国小学课堂教学中以合作学习来转化学差生的可行性,本研究采用不等组实验组控制组前测后测实验设计,通过为期12周的教学干预,以《同伴关系问卷》、《自尊量表》和《儿童社交焦虑量表》为测量工具,考查合作学习对提高学差生学业成绩,改善他们的同伴关系、自尊和社交焦虑等社会性因素的影响。结果显示:与对照班相比,进行合作学习的学差生的学业成绩有较大提高,其中,数学成绩达到显著水平,同伴关系得到改善,自尊水平显著提高,社交焦虑水平显著降低。由此表明合作学习是转化小学“学差生”的一种可行的有效的方法。     

Introduction to “reflections”: An attempt to make our research reporting more personal

This study evaluated the effectiveness of students' self-recording of their teachers' daily expectancies, as measured by percentage of expectancies met. Two male and two female middle school students participated in the study, three of whom had learning disabilities. The fourth student received services for behavioral disorders. Students were given a schedule with headings for three of their general education classes, one special education class, and designated locker times. Listed under each heading were the expected behaviors for that class or locker visit, which were derived via consultation with the teachers. A multiple baseline across participants design was utilized to evaluate the effects of (a) carrying schedules without self-recording, and (b) self-recording whether the expectancies were or were not met. Self-recording was effective across students in increasing the percentage of teachers' expectancies exhibited, whereas carrying the schedule without self-recording had no discernable effect. Maintenance was evidenced across students. Subsequent exploratory mani- pulations were made, including an abbreviated schedule on which key words replaced each expectancy. The results of the study are discussed with respect to their applied implications, reactivity, stimulus control, and generalization. Directions for future research are discussed.     

Just for them to understand better: The impact of learning difficulties at university

Abstract

There has been much attention given to the needs of students with learning disabilities in Australian schools in recent years. The needs and experiences of university students with learning disabilities have received less attention. This article reports on the results of a small study of students who identified as having a range of difficulties with learning at one Australian university. Eight students across a range of discipline areas and year levels were asked about the nature of their difficulties, the kinds of adjustments they receive and their effectiveness, and for their suggestions about how these adjustments could be improved. The results pointed to the need for university lecturers to better understand the kinds of learning difficulties experienced by such students. Such an understanding can assist lecturers in knowing how to adjust their teaching and learning practices so these students can more fully participate and be successful in their university studies.     

The effect of task alternatives on vocabulary knowledge: a comparison of students with and without learning disabilities

This study used a two-part task format to (a) describe the vocabulary knowledge of 10- and 12-year-old students with learning disabilities and (b) assess the effect of task alternatives on their vocabulary knowledge. We addressed these research objectives by comparing the performance of 24 students with learning disabilities to an equal number of their normally achieving peers. Vocabulary knowledge was first assessed through a production task. In the even the student's response was inaccurate or incomplete, an identification task assessing the same vocabulary term was presented. Results revealed that, compared to normally achieving students, students with learning disabilities are (a) significantly less able to construct fully specified responses to production tasks, (b) comparable in their ability to use pictorial responses to demonstrate vocabulary knowledge not accessible in production tasks, and, (c) when equated in reading achievement, only 10-year-olds are significantly poorer in composite vocabulary knowledge.