Rural Special Education Quarterly

Language intervention using Direct Instruction (DI) has shown positive results. There is a growing body of investigation of Language for Learning (LL), a DI program, on the performance of students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and students with developmental delays (DD). There is need for replication and extension of research to include rural settings and students with ASD and DD. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of LL on the language of students with DD and ASD in a rural preschool classroom. Four preschool students with DD and ASD participated in 12 weeks of instruction, resulting in improved language skills.

This narrative illustrates a school-university partnership's attempt to prepare inclusive educators for working in inclusive classrooms. This partnership, located in a rural school located in the southeastern United States, consisted of collaboration between a variety of stakeholders, including school- and university-based educators and district partners committed to preparing a context for preservice teacher and inservice teacher learning. The narrative shares how the partnership's initiatives assisted in developing preservice teachers as inclusive educators, enhanced inservice teachers' capacity to teach in inclusive classrooms, created preservice teacher interest in working in rural schools, and improved student outcomes.

The purpose of this study was to compare the differences in rural secondary special and general education teachers' perceptions of their efficacy in teaching students in an inclusive classroom. The sample consisted of 148 rural secondary general education and 32 special education teachers. The researchers used an independent-samples t test to determine if there was a difference in the efficacy of student engagement for general and special education teachers. Results indicated there was a significant difference in the efficacy of student engagement for general and special education teachers. The researchers completed further examination using stepwise multiple regression analysis to determine the extent to which teacher characteristics predict efficacy in student engagement. Implications of the findings for policy and practice in rural schools are also discussed.

Research shows that transition planning for students with disabilities is an ongoing process that requires the collaboration of students, families, and teachers to ensure a successful adult life for students after graduation (Clark, 1996; Clark & Unruh, 2010; Gil, 2007; Kellems & Morningstar, 2010). This study examined the insights of the parents of graduates with disabilities regarding the individualized education program (IEP) secondary transition planning process and the postsecondary outcomes of the graduates. The graduates consisted of students who were enrolled in a special education program at a small rural southern school district who graduated in the year 2011. The results of the study indicate that many of the parents of the graduates perceived their children's IEP secondary transition planning process as inadequate in preparing the graduates for postsecondary success.