Examining the Impact of Promoting Student Self-Determination and Utilizing Teacher Coaching Supports in Inclusive, Secondary Classrooms

Abstract

The five chapters of this dissertation align with the overall theme of promoting student self-determination and examining the use of coaching interventions in inclusive, secondary classrooms, with a particular focus on how coaching can enhance general and special educators’ practices to provide all students with opportunities and experiences to enhance self-determination. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the construct of self-determination, coaching supports, and a brief introduction to goal setting and attainment in promoting self-determination for students with and without disabilities. Chapter 1 also introduces the research questions addressed across all chapters of this dissertation. Chapter 2 provides a review of coaching intervention research in inclusive, secondary classrooms. The results of this review demonstrated a critical need to expand the quality and quantity of intervention research on coaching supports provided in inclusive, secondary classrooms, including (a) a need for more studies that examine coaching interventions in inclusive, secondary classrooms, (b) improved reporting on the intervention context and associated outcomes, and (c) enhanced rigor in reporting the outcomes of coaching interventions on implementers (e.g., general and special education teachers) and students. As the research base grows on coaching interventions used in inclusive, secondary classrooms, further analyses can address gaps in the knowledge base related to characteristics of effective coaching interventions that lead to enhanced student and implementer (e.g., general and special education teacher) outcomes. Chapter 3 focuses on examining goals set by students with and without disabilities engaging in an evidence-based practice designed to promote self-determination, the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (SDLMI), in inclusive, secondary classes. In addition to examining the academic skills targeted across student-selected goals, Chapter 3 also explores the impact of disability status as well as the level of support provided to teachers to implement the SDLMI on goals set by students receiving SDLMI instruction. Specifically, the analysis in Chapter 3 utilized data from a large-scale randomized control trial (RCT) in which randomization at the school-level resulted in two implementation support groups: (a) teachers who received access to SDLMI online modules disseminated twice a month (i.e., online supports group) and (b) teachers who received access to the SDLMI online modules as well as in-person, monthly coaching from a trained SDLMI coach (i.e., online supports + in-person coaching supports group). Findings suggested that the vast majority of goals set by students in inclusive, general education classes focused on academic learning and minimal differences across goals set by students with and without disabilities and across teacher implementation support groups. Chapter 4 examines the impact of the SDLMI on student self-determination outcomes when implemented in inclusive, secondary core content classrooms as a universal (i.e., Tier 1) support across an academic year. The findings suggest relatively small change in overall self-determination during the first year of a multi-year study, but interesting patterns of change were replicated across students with and without disabilities. These patterns suggest the utility of adding a mid-year data collection timepoint in future research to allow for more nuanced detection of changes in self-determination. Chapter 5 provides a final discussion of overall findings and directions to inform future research and practice.