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Publication Effects of Structural Coupling and Expectancy Climate on the Effectiveness of Learning Strategies Interventions: A Pilot Study to Establish Reliability and Validity Estimates(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1982-06-01) Miskel, Cecil; Bloom, Susan; McDonald, DavidSuccessful implementation of the learning strategies model proposed by Alley and Deshler (1979) depends on high levels of interactive planning and effort by learning disabilities teachers, regular classroom teachers and administrators. In this context, structural coupling and expectancy climate become important intervening variables by defining mechanisms and norms that influence how individuals interact and the level of effort expended. The purpose of this pilot study was to establish structural coupling and expectancy climate levels with interview and assessment instruments. Over 155 educators drawn from several schools participated in the study. Results of the study showed that these assessment instruments demonstrated high reliability and adequate validity levels.Publication Predictive Validity of Vocational Entry Measures and A Vocational Education Summative Criterion for LD Adolescents' Success in Vocational Programs(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1982-06-01) Wilcox, Daryl J.; Alley, Gordon R.Historically, adolescents with specific learning disabilities (SLD) have been denied entry into vocational education programs due to vocational educators' negative assumptions about such students in terms of: (a) career choice, (b) academic skills, and (c) social behavior. In the present study, three instruments were administered to 21 SLD and 21 nonhandicapped students to measure their entry-level skills in these three areas. Entry scores were compared to summative grades earned in a regular vocational course. The results indicated that there were no significant differences between the mastery and non-mastery groups on entry scores. The ma.thematic scores on the Basic Skills Assessment and the Career Maturity Inventory score were found to be significantly related to the vocational course grade for the nonhandicapped group. Although confidence intervals for the proportions of each group who reached mastery showed that a smaller proportion of the LD group reached mastery, the confidence bands of the two groups overlapped to a great extent. Thus, it was concluded there was no significant difference between the proportion of SLD and the proportion of nonhandicapped students who reached mastery levels in a regular vocational course. That is, once LD secondary-level students enter vocational training programs, their success appears related neither to their academic deficiencies nor to their classification as LD.Publication An Epidemiological Study of Learning Disabled Adolescents in Secondary Schools: Performance on a Serial Recall Task and the Role of Executive Control(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1982-06-01) Warner, Michael M.; Schumaker, Jean B.; Alley, Gordon R.; Deshler, Donald D.Success on tasks requiring deliberate memorization depends, in part, on a student's ability to exert appropriate executive control during the learning session. Executive processes are invoked whenever an individual is required to match a specific mnemonic strategy to the requirements of a given task. Deficiencies in executive control are increasingly being implicated in mildly handicapped students' failure to transfer and generalize what they have learned. Very little data exist which describe the executive functioning of adolescents. The present study investigated the executive performance of learning disabled (LD) adolescents using a self-paced, serial recall task. LD adolescents' performance was compared to that of a group of low-achieving and a group of high-achieving adolescents. Both in terms of accuracy of recall and use of an appropriate memorization strategy, the high-achieving group outperformed a combined group of low achievers and LD students. With one exception, the performance of low-achieving and LD students did not differ when achievement was statistically controlled. For all three groups, accuracy of recall was significantly correlated with degree of use of an optimal mnemonic strategy. Finally, a large proportion of the LD adolescents were found to employ an appropriate executive strategy and, thus, could not be characterized as demonstrating deficient executive functioning.Publication An Epidemiological Study of Learning Disabled Adolescents in Secondary Schools: Classification and Discrimination of Learning Disabled and Low-Achieving Adolescents(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1980-01-01) Warner, Michael M.; Alley, Gordon R.; Deshler, Donald D.; Schumaker, Jean B.In recent years, professionals in the field of learning disabilities have begun to address the impact of learning disabilities on adolescents and young adults. Although substantial attention has been directed to the manifestations of learning disabilities in elementary school age populations, the significantly different and increasingly complex demands on adolescents both in and out of school necessitate the development of systematic research on this population. The University of Kansas Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities has collected a broad array of data to form an epidemiological data base on LD adolescents and young adults. Data have been collected from learning disabled, low-achieving, and normal-achieving adolescents as well as from their parents and teachers. In addition, information from the environmental setting of the LD adolescents which pertains to interventions applied on behalf of the student, relationships with others, conditions under which he/she operates and support systems available for his/her use has also been collected. These data have been considered in relation to data on specific learner characterisecs to gain a more complete profile of the older LD individual. Research results presented in Research Reports 12 through 20 detail findings from this comprehensive epidemiology study conducted during 1979-80 by the Institute. It is important for the reader to study and view each of these individual reports in relation to this overall line of research. An understanding of the complex nature of the learning disability condition only begins to emerge when each specific topic or finding is seen as a partial, but important, piece of a larger whole.Publication An Epidemiological Study of Learning Disabled Adolescents in Secondary Schools: Social Status, Peer Relationships, Time Use and Activities In and Out of School(1980-01-01) Deshler, Donald D.; Schumaker, Jean B.; Warner, Michael M.; Alley, Gordon R.; Clark, Frances L.In recent years, professionals in the field of learning disabilities have begun to address the impact of learning disabilities on adolescents and young adults. Although substantial attention has been directed to the manifestations of learning disabilities in elementary school age populations, the significantly different and increasingly complex demands on adolescents both in and out of school necessitate the development of systematic research on this population. The University of Kansas Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities has collected a broad array of data to form an epidemiological data base on LD adolescents and young adults. Data have been collected from learning disabled, low-achieving, and normal-achieving adolescents as well as from their parents and teachers. In addition, information from the environmental setting of the LD adolescents which pertains to interventions applied on behalf of the student, relationships with others, conditions under which he/she operates and support systems available for his/her use has also been collected. These data have been considered in relation to data on specific learner characteristics to gain a more complete profile of the older LD individual. Research results presented in Research Reports 12 through 20 detail findings from this comprehensive epidemiology study conducted during 1979-80 by the Institute. It is important for the reader to study and view each of these individual reports in relation to this overall line of research. An understanding of the complex nature of the learning disability condition only begins to emerge when each specific topic or finding is seen as a partial, but important, piece of a larger whole.Publication An Epidemiological Study of Learning Disabled Adolescents in Secondary Schools: The Relationship of Family Factors to the Condition of Learning Disabilities(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, Lawrence, KS, 1980-01-01) Schumaker, Jean B.; Deshler, Donald D.; Alley, Gordon R.; Warner, Michael M.In recent years, professionals in the field of learning disabilities have begun to address the impact of learning disabilities on adolescents and young adults. Although substantial attention has been directed to the manifestations of learning disabilities in elementary school age populations, the significantly different and increasingly complex demands on adolescents both in and out of school necessitate the development of systematic research on this population. The University of Kansas Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities has collected a broad array of data to form an epidemiological data base on LD adolescents and young adults. Data have been collected from learning disabled, low-achieving, and normal-achieving adolescents as well as from their parents and teachers. In addition, information from the environmental setting of the LD adolescents which pertains to interventions applied on behalf of the student, relationships with others, conditions under which he/she operates and support systems available for his/her use has also been collected. These data have been considered in relation to data on specific learner characteristics to gain a more complete profile of the older LD individual. Research results presented in Research Reports 12 through 20 detail findings from this comprehensive epidemiology study conducted during 1979-80 by the Institute. It is important for the reader to study and view each of these individual reports in relation to this overall line of research. An understanding of the complex nature of the learning disability condition only begins to emerge when each specific topic or finding is seen as a partial, but important, piece of a larger whole.Publication An Epidemiological Study of Learning Disabled Adolescents in Secondary Schools: Behavioral and Emotional Status From the Perspective of Parents and Teachers(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1980-01-01) Alley, Gordon R.; Warner, Michael M.; Schumaker, Jean B.; Deshler, Donald D.; Clark, Frances L.In recent years, professionals in the field of learning disabilities have begun to address the impact of learning disabilities on adolescents and young adults. Although substantial attention has been directed to the manifestations of learning disabilities in elementary school age populations, the significantly different and increasingly complex demands on adolescents both in and out of school necessitate the development of systematic research on this population. The University of Kansas Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities has collected a broad array of data to form an epidemiological data base on LD adolescents and young adults. Data have been collected from learning disabled, low-achieving, and normal-achieving adolescents as well as from their parents and teachers. In addition, information from the environmental setting of the LD adolescents which pertains to interventions applied on behalf of the student, relationships with others, conditions under which he/she operates and support systems available for his/her use has also been collected. These data have been considered in relation to data on specific learner characteristics to gain a more complete profile of the older LD individual. Research results presented in Research Reports 12 through 20 detail findings from this comprehensive epidemiology study conducted during 1979-80 by the Institute. It is important for the reader to study and view each of these individual reports in relation to this overall line of research. An understanding of the complex nature of the learning disability condition only begins to emerge when each specific topic or finding is seen as a partial, but important, piece of a larger whole.Publication An Epidemiological Study of Learning Disabled Adolescents in Secondary Schools: Achievement and Ability, Socioeconomic Status, and School Experiences(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1980-01-01) Warner, Michael M.; Alley, Gordon R.; Schumaker, Jean B.; Deshler, Donald D.; Clark, Frances L.In recent years, professionals in the field of learning disabilities have begun to address the impact of learning disabilities on adolescents and young adults. Although substantial attention has been directed to the manifestations of learning disabilities in elementary school age populations, the significantly different and increasingly complex demands on adolescents both in and out of school necessitate the development of systematic research on this population. The University of Kansas Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities has collected a broad array of data to form an epidemiological data base on LD adolescents and young adults. Data have been collected from learning disabled, low-achieving, and normal-achieving adolescents as well as from their parents and teachers. In addition, information from the environmental setting of the LD adolescents which pertains to interventions applied on behalf of the student, relationships with others, conditions under which he/she operates and support systems available for his/her use has also been collected. These data have been considered in relation to data on specific learner characteristics to gain a more complete profile of the older LD individual. Research results presented in Research Reports 12 through 20 detail findings from this comprehensive epidemiology study conducted during 1979-80 by the Institute. It is important for the reader to study and view each of these individual reports in relation to this overall line of research. An understanding of the complex nature of the learning disability condition only begins to emerge when each specific topic or finding is seen as a partial, but important, piece of a larger whole.Publication Planning in the Face of Academic Diversity: Whose Questions Should We Be Answering?(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1991-03-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Schumaker, Jean B.; Deshler, Donald D.The goal of this investigation was to identify how regular high school and middle school social studies and science teachers approach teaching their most academically diverse class. Specifically, we sought to determine whether or not the typical special education model of individualization could be part of the framework of approaching academically diverse classes. Information from this study will serve as the basis for conceptualizing interventions that will enable regular classroom teachers to better plan and teach students with mild handicaps.Publication The Plans of Secondary Social Studies and Science Teachers for Teaching an Academically Diverse Class(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1992-08-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Kissam, Brenda; Roth, Janet; Bulgren, Janis A.; Melvin, JeffThe goal of this research was to learn how teachers plan for instruction of their classes made up of academically diverse students. We sought to identify not only what they plan to teach, but also what resources they draw on in their planning and what pedagogical methods they view as most effective with academically diverse groups of students.Publication Barriers to Planning for At-Risk students Implications for Teacher Planning(1992-08-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Kissam, Brenda; Roth, Janet; Bulgren, Janis A.; Melvin, JeffMost studies to date of teacher planning have focused on teachers at the elementary level. The research reported here seeks to expand our knowledge of teacher planning to include the experiences of secondary teachers planning for academically diverse classes. Specifically, we sought to identify barriers perceived by teachers in their planning of diverse classes which may include learning disabled and other at-risk students.Publication Meeting the Challenge of Academic Diversity: Actions of Secondary Social Studies and Science Teachers(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1992-08-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Kissam, Brenda; Melvin, Jeff; Roth, Janet; Bulgren, Janis A.The goal of this research was to identify what actions teachers take to include all students in learning in academically diverse secondary classrooms. Information was gathered through a collaborative project with 52 secondary social studies and science teachers. These teachers participated in a series of Cooperative Study Groups to answer questions about what actions they took to deal with academic diversity in their classes.Publication Obstacles to Teaching in the Face of Academic Diversity: Implcations for Planning for Students with Disabilities(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1992-08-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Kissam, Brenda; Bulgren, Janis A.; Melvin, Jeff; Roth, JanetThis study was a collaborative project the incorporated the concerns and insights of 52 secondary science and social studies teachers in identifying the major obstacles in planning to teach academically diverse groups of students. These teachers participated in a series of Cooperative Study Groups (CSG ) to answer questions related to teaching and planning for their most academically diverse classes. The results of the first question posed at the CSG meetings are presented here. That question was "Thinking back on the last year of teaching, what would you say has been the most difficult obstacle that you have had to overcome in teaching science or social studies to an academically diverse group of students."Publication Factors Promoting Personal Growth When Teaching Academically Diverse Classes(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1992-08-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Melvin, Jeff; Kissam, Brenda; Bulgren, Janis A.; Roth, JanetThe study was conducted as a collaborative research project with 42 secondary science and social studies teachers in two school districts in eastern Kansas. Researchers and teachers met in a series of Cooperative Study Groups to discuss questions related to personal growth in teaching.Publication Factors Inhibiting Personal Growth When Teaching Academically Diverse Classes(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1992-08-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Melvin, Jeff; Kissam, Brenda; Bulgren, Janis A.; Roth, JanetThis study seeks to identify the factors that inhibit personal growth in teaching as teachers work to meet the needs of all students in academically diverse groups of learners. To identify these factors, researchers worked collaboratively with 42 secondary science and social studies teachers. Cooperative Study Groups were formed to discuss questions related to professional growth in teaching.Publication Efforts to Enhance Personal Growth When Teaching Academically Diverse Classes(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1992-08-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Melvin, Jeff; Kissam, Brenda; Bulgren, Janis A.; Roth, JanetThis study was undertaken to identify what kinds of professional growth experiences teachers value within the context of the challenge presented by academic diversity in their classrooms. The research was carried out With teachers participating in small Cooperative Study Groups discussing issues related to professional growth in teaching. Teacher responses were then analyzed to discern trends and patterns.Publication Characteristics of Good Collegiality Among Secondary Social Studies and Science Teachers When Teaching Academically Diverse Classes(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1992-08-01) Lenz, B. Keith; Melvin, Jeff; Kissam, Brenda; Bulgren, Janis A.; Roth, JanetThe purpose or this study was to explore with teachers the characteristics of good collegiality that would enhance teacher satisfaction and effectiveness in facing the challenges presented by teaching academically diverse classes. The study was carried out by working with groups of secondary science and social studies teachers in Cooperative Study Groups. These groups discussed issues related to teacher professional growth and collegiality with a view toward identifying what characterized good collegiality of these teachers.Publication Social Skills Training: A Generalization Study(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1982-08-01) Schumaker, Jean B.; Ellis, Edwin S.The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of role-playing as a device for assessing generalization of social skills training and to determine the extent to which LD adolescents generalize specific social skills to the natural setting following training. Results suggested that LD adolescents do not necessarily generalize recently learned social skills to novel role-playing situations and the natural environment. They also suggested that high performance in a novel role-playing situation does not necessarily indicate that a student will show a correspondingly high performance in the natural environment.Publication Identification and Intervention Procedures for the Learning Disabled in the Earle C. Clements Job Corps Report(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1982-08-01) Alley, Gordon R.; Brownlee, Jean E.; Deshler, Donald D.; White, Warren J.This report details the procedures and findings of a program to identify and to intervene with LD corps members at a Job Corps training- center. The findings indicate that a valid LD identification procedure was developed and implemented, and that a modified learning strategies intervention procedure was implemented that markedly enhanced the academic performance of identified LD corps members.Publication A Mandated Minimum Competency Testing Program and Its Impact on Learning Disabled Students: Curricular Validity and Comparative Performances(Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities, 1982-06-01) Meyen, Edward L.; Alley, Gordon R.; Scannell, Dale P.; Harnden, G. Mack; Miller, Kelly F.In this study, LD specialists, regular class teachers, and parents of LD students judged that the objectives of the Kansas Minimum Competency Specifications prescribed for nonhandicapped students were applicable to LD students. In addition, the Kansas Minimal Competency Test was administered to LD students under standard and oral conditions. Results showed that they did not perform as well as their nonhandicapped peers at any of the five grade levels. The test was then administered under two modified conditions. Learning disabled students' performance on some objectives at every grade level was not improved by either administering items orally or administering the test one grade level above that designated for nonhandicapped students.