Youth in foster care interact at the intersection of multiple systems. Experiences and relationships within each system may facilitate or hinder youths’ trust. Importantly, trust has been identified as a potential contributor to improved school and life outcomes for youth in foster care. This explanatory sequential mixed methods study used surveys and focus groups to examine levels of trust and barriers or facilitators to the development of trust across systems for high school foster youth with and without disabilities. Rasch model item statistics revealed low levels of trust in the legal system (foster care system, courts, and police) and relatively low levels of trust in the education system. Youth reported high levels of trust in family and friends within their social networks. Black male youth with disabilities reported the lowest levels of trust overall. Focus groups with youth revealed experiences that created barriers to trust, such as school, foster care system, and court personnel being dishonest, not allowing youth to engage in decision-making, and unfair treatment. Interactions that facilitated trust included demonstrating care, advocating for youth, and being a consistent presence. Implications for practice and future research are provided.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 was highly disruptive to the ways in which students and teachers experienced school. While nearly all schools responded to the start of the pandemic by shifting to virtual instruction, the return to in-person and hybrid learning formats was highly variable across states, schools, and school stakeholders, particularly for students with disabilities and their teachers. Motivated by intersectional professional vulnerability theory, we documented nuanced differences in special and general educators’ working conditions, particularly as related to their experiences of learning modality and instructional experiences, in spring 2020 (i.e., the onset of the pandemic) and the subsequent 2020–2021 school year, depending on the schools in which they worked and the students their schools served. Using descriptive and regression analyses with nationally representative data from the National Teacher and Principal Survey, we found that special education teachers had different experiences of their roles during and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to general education teachers, though these differences did not translate into observed differences in satisfaction.
How are children researched and represented in the literature on early intervention and early childhood special education (EI/ECSE)? Utilizing DisCrit and Disabled Childhood Studies as analytical frameworks, we addressed this question through a multi-stage systematic review of the three selected EI/ECSE-focused journals from 2015 to 2023. A total of 136 articles were reviewed, including 32,987 children under the age of 6. Our findings, based on reported sociodemographic characteristics, indicate that the prevalent image of the published child is that of a White, male, monolingual English speaker and a non-disabled or child labeled with autism. Analysis of participant characteristics in studies that reported race/ethnicity and gender revealed an overrepresentation of boys, Black, and multiracial children. Furthermore, 95% of the studies employed a quantitative research design, including single-case designs, which signals the devaluation and underutilization of qualitative and mixed-methods research. Understanding how children are studied in EI/ECSE is crucial, as journals and researchers serving as epistemological gatekeepers may create distorted cumulative knowledge about children, affecting practices and policies. Our review also enabled us to document the cyclical, interconnected nature of deficit-based epistemic frameworks, which influence what is perceived as problematic and subject to intervention. We advocate for action throughout the research-to-practice and research-to-policy pipelines, urging the EI/ECSE field to promote the equitable and dignified development of cumulative evidence regarding children’s learning, development, and participation in research.
Access to published, peer-reviewed articles in special education is important to researchers and practitioners alike. However, much of the published literature base lies behind paywalls, inaccessible to many potential consumers. Although researchers can make their published work openly accessible in multiple ways, there is limited information on (a) the prevalence of open-access publishing, (b) predictors of open-access publishing, and (c) the costs of and options for accessing paywalled articles in special education. To address these gaps in the literature, we conducted a bibliometric analysis examining articles published in 2022 in 43 special education journals ( n = 1,678). In all, 55% of articles were openly accessible; results of a series of two-level logistic regression models indicated that funding for research, non-U.S. corresponding authors, and journal impact factor were positively associated with open-access publishing; and the average cost to access a paywalled article was approximately $36. Implications for equity, scientific progress, and the research-to-practice gap are discussed.
We conducted a systematic review of missing data handling and reporting in a 1-year cross-section (2020) of group design special education intervention research. We identified 121 intervention studies. Of these 72 (60%) reported missing data at the case, variable, or item level. Few studies examined the mechanism underlying their missing data and most handled the missingness with either complete case analysis (listwise) or pairwise deletion. We discuss the implications of these findings and offer recommendations for improved reporting and handling methods.
Despite vast improvements in language rights and educational equity afforded through the legacy of the Lau v. Nichols decision, emergent multilingual learners' educational trajectories often differ from those for whom English is a primary language. Prior research indicates that emergent multilingual learners are more likely to be placed into special education in later grades, compared to peers. There is, however, a paucity of research on how school context influences special education classification for those labeled as English Learners (ELs), and many studies cannot identify impacts over time. In this study, we leveraged longitudinal student data to analyze disproportionate representation of emergent multilingual learners, both in special education and in specific disability categories, given school contextual considerations, (e.g., school composition, presence of a school-wide transitional bilingual program). We found that emergent multilingual learners were underrepresented in special education in early years, compared to those not labeled as ELs, and twice as likely to be placed into special education-particularly for specific learning disability-in later grades. School context variables were salient predictors after controlling for student covariates. Together, these findings highlight the importance of context, policies, and school program offerings as important considerations for understanding special education risk for emergent multilingual learners.
States assess the special education services provided by each school district using various indicators, including Indicator 8, which measures how effectively school districts facilitate family engagement in special education. A multilevel analysis was conducted on a dataset of families ( N = 6,894) nested within school districts ( N = 109) to examine factors associated with Indicator 8. Families of older students reported lower Indicator 8 scores than those of younger students. Black families rated their schools’ engagement efforts lower than White families, while Multiracial families rated them higher than White families. Families of male students reported higher Indicator 8 scores than those of female students. A significant interaction was found between the racial composition of school districts and Black families when compared to White families. The findings highlight the importance of enhancing engagement strategies for older students, female students, and Black students, especially those who attend school districts with a higher ratio of White students.
Rural communities can serve as innovative contexts for preparing students with disabilities to transition toward their postsecondary goals, offering unique local assets that can and should be leveraged within secondary transition services. Nonetheless, the limited special education and transition research conducted in rural school communities has consistently highlighted inequitable limitations without consideration of these communities’ distinct local assets. This conceptual paper extends the Rural Cultural Wealth (RCW) framework by operationalizing its constructs within the context of secondary transition research to accomplish two purposes. First, we describe a six-step process that applies and expands upon the RCW framework to guide equity-driven rural transition research. Second, we employ examples of empirical data, procedures, and lessons learned from a recent study we conducted through a research-practice partnership to illustrate how rural cultural wealth strengthens transition scholarship to improve services and outcomes for rural students with disabilities. Finally, we offer guidance for researchers on collaborating alongside rural schools to harness the RCW constructs of “rural resourcefulness,” “rural ingenuity,” “rural familism,” and “rural community unity” toward transitioning students with disabilities’ postsecondary goals for working, learning, living, and thriving.
Despite decades of inclusive education reform, special education policy and practice remain dominated by compliance-oriented logics that prioritize placement, procedural safeguards, and individual remediation, often without attending to students’ lived experiences of belonging, participation, and recognition. Drawing on historical and contemporary scholarship in inclusive education, disability studies, DisCrit, ethics of care, and social network theory, this paper advances relational inclusivity as an integrative paradigmatic reframing of special education as a democratic and ethical project. Rather than positioning relationality as a new idea, the paper situates relational inclusivity within long-standing critiques of deficit-based and individualistic models, while offering a coherent framework for operationalizing relational justice in classrooms and policy contexts. Central to this framework is the conceptualization of educators as relational architects who shape classroom social ecologies through everyday pedagogical decisions. To support this work, the paper reconceptualizes social network analysis as part of a broader critical methodological repertoire that renders visible the relational structures through which inclusion and exclusion are produced. A case illustration demonstrates how ethically grounded, reflexive uses of social network analysis can support teachers in identifying relational inequities and designing more inclusive learning communities. The paper concludes by examining implications for democratic accountability, policy reform, and future research, arguing that relational well-being must be treated as a core educational outcome rather than a peripheral concern.
Growing research indicates working conditions can facilitate or constrain special education teachers' (SETs) instructional quality. However, prior studies provide limited insight into how working conditions shape instruction-how SETs' responsibilities and resources contribute to their decisions as they plan for and provide instruction. We conducted a mixed methods study to explore how working conditions shape instructional decision-making among nine elementary SETs serving students with emotional/behavioral disorders. Using a convergent parallel mixed methods design, we brought together quantitative data on the quality of SETs' reading lessons with qualitative data on their working conditions and instructional decision-making. Our findings highlight the complexity of SETs' instructional decisions: When deciding what or how to teach, they were not simply identifying an evidence-based practice that matched individual student learning needs. Rather, each instructional decision required them to simultaneously navigate (a) students' complex academic and social-emotional strengths and support needs, (b) paraeducator availability and skill, and (c) available instructional resources. Their decisions were shaped by the interplay of these factors. Results have implications for how school leaders can support SETs to make more effective instructional decisions, and thereby improve instruction for students with disabilities.
This study investigates the causal effect of relative age at school entry on the likelihood of being identified with special educational needs (SEN) or diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in Germany. Drawing on representative data from the National Assessment Studies (IQB) for Grades 4 and 9, we use a two-stage least squares (2SLS) instrumental variable approach, leveraging exogenous variation in school starting age created by state-specific enrollment cutoff dates. Results indicate that relatively younger students within a grade cohort are significantly more likely to be classified with SEN, particularly in the domains of learning and developmental disorders, with effects being more pronounced in Grade 9 than in Grade 4. Similarly, we find robust evidence of a relative age effect on ADHD diagnoses in Grade 4, although this effect diminishes by Grade 9. The findings suggest that age-related maturity differences systematically influence assessment and diagnostic decisions. Our results highlight the need for developmentally sensitive and bias-mitigating assessment practices that do not rely solely on teacher judgments, in order to avoid misclassification and ensure educational equity.
Teachers work, teach, and learn in complex educational systems that have upheld white, colonial, and nondisabled norms. Shaped by this dominant culture, special educators often engage in work that strives to "save," "fix," or assimilate students who deviate from these norms. Using white saviorism and ableism as a conceptual framework, this critical qualitative analysis examined how white nondisabled special educators teaching in self-contained classrooms from one school district discussed their working conditions and how they reproduced and/or resisted white savior and ableist narratives. Working in contexts that normalized overwork and sacrifice, we found participants often oscillated between accepting and resisting these conditions. Further, invested in white savior logics, they upheld oppressive perspectives related to teaching and learning. Participants pitted people's needs against one another and exceptionalized teachers and students in special education when trying to make sense of these working conditions.
The current study involved 10 special education teachers and 10 students with disabilities who were receiving behavioral support services. The purpose of the study was to (a) explore potential predictors of special education teacher burnout, and (b) examine the impact of burnout on both teacher and student outcomes. A mixed-methods approach-specifically, a sequential explanatory design-was used to explore these research questions. Findings indicated burnout was strongly associated with role stressors, as well as behavior management efficacy. Further, results showed negative associations between teacher burnout and the quality of behavior intervention plans created for students. Special education teachers offered possible reasons for these statistical relationships, providing insight into the causes and consequences of burnout. Implications for practice and for future research are included.
There have been an increasing number of calls for the use of trauma-informed practices with young children with disabilities. However, the use of trauma-informed practices without an equity-oriented approach can cause further harm to children in schools. Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative study was to explore early childhood special education teachers' use of trauma-informed, equity-centered practices. Semi-structured interviews using photo-elicitation were conducted with 12 early childhood special education teachers in one state. Our findings indicate that while participants did share using trauma-informed, equity-centered practices, they also reported using practices that did not align with an equity-centered approach. The findings from this study have implications for research, practice, and policy related to supporting early childhood special education teachers' use of trauma-informed, equity-centered practices.
It is widely known that marginalized families of young children with disabilities have inequitable access to evidence-based practices within publicly funded systems of care, such as the Part C early intervention (EI) system. One factor contributing to this inequality is providers' limited cultural self-efficacy, which can be defined as the confidence and competence to engage effectively with families from different cultural or linguistic backgrounds than their own. However, little is known about how to assess cultural self-efficacy specifically among EI providers. Therefore, this study aimed to adapt and validate the Cultural Self-Efficacy Scale in Early Intervention (CSES-EI), a scale to assess EI providers' cultural self-efficacy when working with marginalized families. We used a modified Delphi method to adapt 32 items from an original scale into the CSES-EI. A total of 201 EI providers from diverse professional backgrounds completed the survey. Data analysis involved exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and multiple regression to assess the reliability, validity, and underlying structure of the scale. The CSES-EI demonstrated strong internal consistency (alpha = .91, omega = .94) and a three-factor structure accounting for 47.9% of the variance. Thematic analysis of open-ended responses revealed that EI providers emphasized family-centered coaching, cultural competence, and the need for flexibility when working with marginalized families. Findings underscore the importance of culturally responsive practices in EI and suggest that professional development targeting cultural efficacy is essential for improving service delivery with diverse populations. This validated tool provides a foundation for assessing and enhancing cultural self-efficacy among EI providers.
We conducted a conceptual replication efficacy study using a cluster randomized controlled design to examine the effects of two variants of a professional development (PD) intervention for preschool teachers known as Tools for Teachers (TfT). The practice-based focus of the PD was embedded instruction (EI), which is a recommended and empirically supported naturalistic instruction approach to ensure children with individualized education programs have equitable, intentional, and individualized learning supports. A total of 111 teachers in 78 schools and 327 children in these teachers' classrooms were assigned to one of three experimental conditions: TfT with on-site practice-based coaching (PBC), TfT with self-coaching, and business-as-usual (BAU) PD. We examined the fidelity with which the active ingredients of the two variants of the TfT intervention were implemented and the effects on teachers' EI knowledge and skills and children's learning outcomes. Results showed that on-site PBC TfT had more robust effects on the quality of teachers' EI learning targets and their instruction than TfT self-coaching or BAU PD. Children whose teachers participated in TfT with on-site coaching showed more advanced engagement behaviors, positive engagement with adults during child-directed activities, and frequent use of skills targeted for EI than children whose teachers participated in TfT self-coaching or BAU PD. Findings from this replication study are discussed and compared to those from an earlier randomized controlled trial of TfT. We offer implications for future research and practice focused on efficacious PD to support the implementation of EI and other effective practices in early childhood classrooms.
Recess is a critical opportunity for building social competence and friendships, but students with extensive support needs can only experience these benefits if they are meaningfully included. In this observational study, we found that 52 elementary students with extensive support needs experienced far fewer social interactions (d = 2.01), engaged in much lower rates of peer play (d = 2.34), and spent far less time in proximity to peers (d = 1.33) when compared to typically developing children. Many students (39%) did not consistently attend an inclusive recess with same-aged peers. Furthermore, students were poorly connected to their grade-level social networks based on a peer nomination task. These findings demonstrate that being present at recess-in the absence of support and intervention-is unlikely to translate into full participation and shared experiences. We urge schools to better support students at recess, and policymakers to hold schools accountable for equal access to inclusive recess.
Previous research in bilingual special education has called for the field to determine valid interventions, prepare bilingual special educators, and address issues of identification and disproportionality. We examined if these calls have been met through a systematic literature review of the research conducted within the past 24 years. Between May and June of 2024, we searched databases, references of literature reviews, and special issues to identify articles researching the intersections of bilingual and special education for students and their families in school settings. To be as comprehensive as possible, we included articles that address bilingual specialized academic instruction and related service provision such as speech therapy. A total of 203 articles were identified and analyzed to find patterns chronologically, in disciplines of journal publications, language use, context, and methods. Additionally, the research foci were coded and analyzed to examine the current focus within the field. Findings indicate that researchers have responded to calls to expand research in assessments and instruction of bilingual students with disabilities but have not continued to develop best practices in teacher preparation or family-school partnerships.
