IES Staff
Akilah Nelson
NCSER
About
Transition to Postsecondary Education, Career, and/or Independent Living; Families of Children with Disabilities; Systems, Policy, and Finance
Associated IES Content
Grant
Effects of CIRCLES on the Provision of Transition Services and Resulting Transition Outcomes for Students with Disabilities
The purpose of this project is to evaluate the efficacy of the Communicating Interagency Relationships and Collaborative Linkages for Exceptional Students (CIRCLES) intervention for improving student, teacher, and community agency personnel outcomes. Research indicates that interagency collaboration models are needed to address gaps in the services provided to students with disabilities to ensure a successful transition from high school.The CIRCLES intervention aims to increase positive tran...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A230240
Grant
TAGG-MS: Development and Validation of the Transition Assessment and Goal Generator (TAGG) for Middle School Students with Disabilities
The purpose of this project is to develop the web-based transition assessment, Transition Assessment and Goal Generator-Middle School (TAGG-MS). Although the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act mandates that transition planning for students with disabilities begin by the age of 16 years, most states begin transition planning earlier than the federally required age. However, no existing transition assessment for middle school students with disabilities measures behaviors associated wi...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A210143
Grant
Exploring relationships between college and career readiness, self-determination, and transition planning among adolescents with and without disabilities
The purpose of this project is to establish measurable constructs of college and career readiness (CCR) using extant data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 (NLTS2012). Although CCR is identified as a necessary outcome of secondary special education and transition, is not well defined for adolescents with disabilities. The research team will explore the interrelationships with previously established constructs of self-determination and transition planning, as well as school...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A210245
Grant
Developing and Refining a Parent Training to Improve Outcomes for African American Children with Autism
The Principal Investigator (PI) will conduct a program of research for improving outcomes for African American children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families. The PI will also participate in mentoring and training activities to develop expertise in community-engaged research with underrepresented populations, randomized controlled trials and single-case designs, and grant and publication writing. African American children are less likely to be diagnosed with ASD than White c...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324B210003
Grant
College Ready: Reading and Writing to Learn
The Principal Investigator (PI) will conduct a program of research for improving the reading and writing abilities of high school students with or at risk for high-incidence disabilities. The PI will also participate in mentoring and training activities to develop knowledge and skills related to the iterative development of interventions, effective professional development, multilevel modeling, and grant writing. Increasing the reading and writing capacities of students with high-incidence d...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324B210014
Grant
Build the FRaME: Using Feedback, Reflection, and Multimedia to Teach Evidence-Based Practices for Effective Classroom Management
Teachers nationwide report feeling underprepared to manage classrooms that include students with disabilities or students who demonstrate problematic behaviors that escalate to class wide disruption. Teacher candidates and novice teachers report significantly lower self-efficacy concerning their ability to affect student outcomes and behaviors compared with experienced teachers. The research team will address this need by developing a feasible and sustainable multimedia intervention that, wh...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A200061
Grant
Addressing Emergency Certification in Rural Education Settings (Project ACRES)
The purpose of this project is to develop and pilot test a professional development intervention focused on evidence-based and high-leverage practices (EBPs and HLPs) to enhance the behavior management capabilities and self-efficacy of emergency certified special educators working in rural school districts. Special education personnel shortages are chronic and widespread, particularly in rural schools. Schools rely on new, emergency certified teachers to address this shortage. Emergency cred...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A200038
Grant
Supported College and Career Readiness (SCCR) for Secondary Students With Emotional and Behavioral Problems
The purpose of this project is to develop and pilot test a multi-componentprogram that augments typical school-based college and career readiness (CCR) activities. In recent years, there has been an increase in initiatives to ensure students are adequately prepared for college or career. Research suggests, however, that high school age students with or at risk for EBD, are neither prepared for college or career nor sufficiently benefiting from CCR activities. The current project aims to fill...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A200097
Grant
CTE Teachers and Long-Term Outcomes for Students With Disabilities
The purpose of the proposed research is to provide a first look at career and technical education (CTE) teacher effectiveness for students with disabilities (SWD). We measure effectiveness based on estimates of teacher effects on various non-test and long-run student outcomes (e.g.postsecondary enrollment, employment), and we also assess whether effectiveness varies according to teachers' licensure, pathway into teaching (e.g. traditional vs alternative), and prior work experiences. This is ...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A200092
Grant
Possible Selves and Self-Determination: Improving Transition Outcomes for High School Students with Learning Disabilities
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of Possible Selves: Nurturing Student Motivation (PS)plus the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (PS+SDLMI) for improving the academic and transition outcomes of high school students with learning disabilities (LD). Research has consistently shown that students with LD demonstrate less college and career readiness compared to students without disabilities. For example, although the number of high school graduates with LD enteri...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A190011
Grant
Paths to the Future for Young Men
The purpose of this project is to develop Paths to the Future for Young Men (P2F-Young Men), a career development intervention to address the needs of adolescent boys with high-incidence disabilities.Adolescent males lag behind their female peers on a number of important academic and behavioral outcomes such as rates of high school graduation and college enrollment, and have greater risk for violence, suicide, and substance abuse. Males with disabilities also receive less support outside the...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A190104
Grant
Moving Transition Forward: Exploration of College-Based and Conventional Transition Practices for Students with Intellectual Disability and Autism
The goal of this project is to explore and compare critical aspects of two transition approaches-a college-based transition experience and a conventional high school or community-based transition experience-and examine the associations between involvement in those programs and student employment outcomes for students with intellectual disability and/or autism (ID/A). Historically students with ID/A have had one of the poorest college access and employment outcomes of all disability groups. T...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A190085
Grant
Exploring How Transfer-of-Rights and Guardianship Discussions May Affect Transition Outcomes for Students with Intellectual Disabilities
The goal of this project is to explore whether and how the information special educators provide to parents about transfer of rights and guardianship may either support or limit students' transition outcomes for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Special education regulations state that parental decision-making rights will transfer to students at the age of 18 unless parents of students with IDD obtain guardianship over their children. During transition planning...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A190114
Grant
Parental Involvement in Education: Comparing Academic Outcomes for High School Students in the General Population and Those At Risk for Emotional and Behavioral Issues
The goal of this project is to better understand associations between parental involvement and education outcomes for high school students at risk for emotional and behavioral disorder (EBD). As a group, youth with EBD experience high rates of dropout and juvenile arrest, and poorer academic performance when compared to youth without disabilities and those in other disability groups. While it has been widely documented that parental involvement plays an important role in the education outcom...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A190055
Grant
Addressing the Integrity of the Problem-Solving Process: An Empirical Analysis of Problem-Solving Teams to Improve Team Functioning and Student Outcomes
The purpose of this project is to adapt an existing problem-solving model, Outcomes: Planning Monitoring and Evaluating (Outcomes: PME)to support school problem-solving teams (PSTs) in their efforts to enhance team-based problem-solving and use of evidence-based practices (EBP), teacher intervention integrity, and student behavior outcomes. Within multi-tiered systems of supports,PSTs are integral to the selection and implementation of evidence-based interventions to address behavioral and a...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A190198
Grant
Understanding the Antecedents of STEM Career and Technical Education Coursetaking for High School Students with Learning Disabilities
The purpose of this project is to investigate whether participating in applied STEM career and technical education (AS-CTE) courses in high school is related to students with learning disabilities pursuing and persisting in STEM majors and/or careers. High school AS-CTE courses emphasize the practical applications of academic math and science concepts to job experiences by incorporating "hands on" quantitative reasoning, logic, and problem-solving skills. Although a significant number of stu...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A200233
Grant
College and Career Readiness for Transition (CCR4T): Development and Validation of a Student Measure
The purpose of this project is to develop and validate the College and Career Readiness for Transition( CCR4T), a measure of high school students' with disabilities perceptions of their own college and career readiness (CCR). College and career readiness is critical for youth with and without disabilities. While many students lack the necessary academic preparation to enroll and succeed in credit-bearing postsecondary courses, students with disabilities are especially underprepared for enrol...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A190170
Grant
Measuring Implementation of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS): Integrated MTSS Fidelity Rubric (IMFR)
The purpose of this study is to develop and validate the Integrated MTSS Fidelity Rubric (IMFR), a tool for measuring school-level implementation of integrated multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS). Integrated MTSS provides multiple levels of coordinated supports to meet the academic and behavioral needs of all learners. Although MTSS is being planned and implemented in schools around the country, there are several challenges related to the integration of academic (such as math and reading)...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324N190007
Grant
Multi-Tiered Systems of Support Research Network (MTSS-RN) Leadership Team
The MTSS Network Lead will provide the organizational structure needed to allow the Network to run smoothly, foster collaborative efforts across the Research Teams, and ensure that the Network achieves its research and leadership goals.
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324N180020
Grant
Exploring Predictors of Transition Planning Participation and Future Goal Aspirations of Secondary Students with Disabilities
The purpose of this project is to examine associations between student-, family-, and school-level factors, students' involvement in the transition planning process (as part of their Individualized Education Program [IEP]), and students' future goal aspirations for postsecondary education, employment, economic independence, and independent living. While research supports the connection between student involvement in the IEP process and post-school outcomes, there has been limited investigati...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A180178
Grant
Promoting Self-Determination for Students with Disabilities: A Goal-Setting Challenge App
The purpose of this project is to develop an interactive web application, the Goal-Setting Challenge (GSC) App, to enhance goal setting and attainment skills of adolescents with high-incidence disabilities. Self-determination skills, including self-regulated problem solving, goal setting and attainment, self-monitoring, and self-evaluation, are critical for successful transitions to post-secondary and employment settings. Existing self-determination interventions, such as the Self-Determined...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A180012
Grant
Factors Contributing to Academic, Social/Communication, and Behavioral Outcomes for Elementary Students with the Most Significant Cognitive Disabilities
The purpose of this study is to examine how educational placement affects academic, social/communication, and behavioral outcomes for elementary students with significant cognitive disabilities (SCD). The study will also explore student-, classroom-, and school/district-level factors as potential mediators or moderators of associations between placement and student outcomes. Although researchers have argued that educational placement makes a difference in the type of instruction students wit...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A180024
Grant
The Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction: Examining the Impact of Implementation Supports on Teacher and Student Outcomes
: This study will test the efficacy of varied levels of support for teachers implementing the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (SDLMI). SDLMI is a research-based program designed to promote positive transition outcomes for high school students with disabilities. Previous research indicates that students whose teachers participate in professional development (PD) around SDLMI experience improved access to the general education curriculum and self-determination outcomes (e.g., inc...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A170008
Grant
Exploring Multi-Level System Factors Facilitating Educator Training and Implementation of Evidence-Based Practices (EBPs)
The purpose of this study is to examine how system-wide (i.e., region, district, and school) mechanisms such as leadership support, training requirements, structure, collaboration, and prior education affect teachers' use of evidence-based practices (EBPs) and, in turn, how this affects outcomes for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Despite growing evidence for the positive effects of EBPs for a wide range of treatment targets in children with ASD, these practices are not consist...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A170063
Grant
TAGG-A: Developing, Validating, and Disseminating a New Secondary Transition Assessment for Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities Taught to Alternate Achievement Standards
The purpose of this project is to create a new transition assessment for students with significant cognitive disabilities (SWSCD) taught to alternate achievement standards, Transition Assessment and Goal Generator-Alternate (TAGG-A). TAGG-A is based on an assessment originally developed with previous IES funding that was focused more generally on students with disabilities to plan for life after high school. Federal laws require use of transition assessments to identify the needs of secondar...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A160160
Grant
Transition Outcomes of High-Functioning Students with Autism: How and When Students Learn the Skills Necessary for Self-Management of Daily Responsibilities
This project planned to (1) understand the programs and strategies that parents and special educators use to teach students with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (HFASD) how to manage daily life tasks and (2) examine how the ability to self-manage daily life tasks is associated with successful transition outcomes for these students. Research has shown that although students with HFASD have similar levels of academic achievement as their peers, they also exhibit significant impairme...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A160113
Grant
A Missing Link to a Better Tomorrow: Developing Health Literacy in Transition-Age Youth with High-Incidence Disabilities
The purpose of this project is to develop, modify, and evaluate the promise of a supplementary web-based intervention, Health Literacy Transition Curriculum, designed to improve the health literacy skills and health-related transition outcomes of secondary students with high-incidence disabilities. Successful transitions for youth with high-incidence disabilities from high school to independent living continue to be a struggle for educators, researchers, families, and youth. Traditional tran...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A160170
Grant
Project FOCUS: Exploring Response to Intervention with a Focus on Students Receiving Tier 3 and Special Education for Reading Disabilities
The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between schools' RTI (Response to Intervention) implementation and teachers' RTI knowledge and student outcomes. There will be a particular focus on students receiving Tier 3 interventions and students with reading disabilities in special education (i.e., students with IEPs in reading). Although RTI is widely used, research suggests that Tier 3 intervention implementation is highly variable and its relation to special education is inco...
Federal funding program:
Award number:
R324A160132
National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS2)
NLTS2 is intended to provide a national picture of the experiences and achievements of students in special education during high school and as they transition from high school to adult life.
Systems, Policy, and Finance
The Special Education Policy, Finance, and Systems (Policy/Systems) topic supports research that contributes to the identification of systemic processes, procedures, and programs that improve the education outcomes for students with or at risk for disabilities from kindergarten through Grade 12.
Transition to Postsecondary Education, Career, and/or Independent Living
The Transition Outcomes for Secondary Students with Disabilities (Transition) topic supports research that contributes to the improvement of transition outcomes (i.e., attainment of – and skills that enable students to obtain – employment, independent living, and further education and training) for secondary students with disabilities in Grades 6 through 12.
Families of Children with Disabilities
The Families of Children with Disabilities (Families) topic supports research that contributes to the identification of effective strategies for families and/or school personnel to improve family involvement for children with or at risk for disabilities in ways that improve education outcomes for these students from kindergarten through Grade 12.
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