ABSTRACT
Parents of children with moderate to severe disabilities face greater obstacles and challenges in life compared to parents of typically developing children. Life-course transitions for students with disabilities, such as the imminent transition from public school systems to adult life, often elicits stress-induced emotions and perceptions in parents and students. Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and Individualized Transition Plans (ITPs) are collaboratively developed with input from the student, family, and many different professionals in the school systems. Ensuring students and families are able to access proper supports aligning with postsecondary goals for familial quality of life necessitates collaborative input from all stakeholders. This study explored how parents of students with moderate to severe disabilities perceived the IEP/ITP teams and experiences with systems of support as their children transitioned from high school to post-secondary education. Quality of life domains and transition theory provided the conceptual lens to analyze the experiences and perceptions of 9 families with children who have moderate to severe disabilities and have transitioned their children to postsecondary education. This phenomenological study took place during an unprecedented time of the global COVID-19 pandemic;results illuminated unique stories of transition interwoven with the impacts of the pandemic. Findings from this study corroborate prior studies in transitions and quality of life of families of children with special needs. Self-determination, positive family outlook and perceptions of self, as well as culturally and familial sensitive strategies and supports appropriately initiated by IEP school teams, gleaned more seamless transition experiences for positive familial quality of life. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
ABSTRACT
School closure during the COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to students with disabilities and their families as parents struggled to support their students with disabilities during online learning. The researcher used a single case qualitative study to examine the perceptions of parents of students with disabilities regarding educators' compliance with the IEP during the online learning conditions that schools have implemented as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. A semi-structured interview with 15 parents of students with disabilities from the Special Needs Parents Support & Discussion Group on Facebook was conducted. The researcher also used a biographical questionnaire to gather pertinent data about the participants. The data was collected through Zoom and NVivo Analysis Software was used to determine themes and patterns. The themes indicated that overall, the parents believed that educators and service providers ensured that the IEP remained complaint by ensuring that the services and instruction were available and implemented as mandated by the IEP. Communication and collaboration between the parents and school personnel contributed to increased parent involvement in supporting their students with disabilities during online learning, that in turn, impacted their students' academic performance and participation. The implication of the study is that parent involvement in the IEP process, as well as the overall academic of their students with disabilities impact their perception of the compliance of the IEP. The first recommendation for practice is for school leaders and educators or service providers to provide opportunities for enhanced parent involvement. Another recommendation is that the school must improve communication with the parents. A third recommendation is that the attendance and format of the IEP meeting must remain consistent when conducted in-person or virtually. Lastly, the school needs to employ opportunities for the continued use of technology, as well as access to high-speed Wi-Fi for the delivery of instruction and services to students with disabilities. The first recommendation for research is to conduct a qualitative case study involving the perceptions of fathers and their involvement as a support system for their students with disabilities during online learning. Another recommendation is to conduct a qualitative case study that examines the perception of students with disabilities during online learning and the impact of parent involvement on their academic development. A third recommendation is to conduct a quantitative study with a larger sample to examine the relationship between parent involvement and academic achievement of students with disabilities during online learning. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)
ABSTRACT
Throughout special education history, students with disabilities have been denied appropriate services and excluded from their general education peers. While the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that all students with disabilities ages 3-21 have access to a Free and Appropriate Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), IDEA does not mandate that students have an active role in the planning and development of their FAPE. Instead, IDEA merely requires that students get invited to attend their IEP meeting at age sixteen. Previous research examines the degree to which older students attend IEP meetings;however, scarce research is available which analyzes the inclusion of students in the overall IEP process (goal development, progress monitoring, etc.). For this study, sevenparticipants (4 middle school special education teachers and 3 parents of middle school students receiving special education services) were interviewed regarding the successes and barriers to student inclusion in the IEP process and the acceptability/feasibility of utilizing a selfdetermination intervention to promote participation in the IEP process. Additionally, participants were interviewed about the educational impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Three mainconcepts were established from participant interviews: mandates guide student engagement in the IEP process, lack of self-determination instruction in the classroom, and perceived competence impacts student inclusion. Results are discussed in the context of implications for special education policy, education, and training. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)