Jessica Toste

The purpose of this project is to conduct a systematic investigation of interventions for students with disabilities in kindergarten to 12th grade (K-12) that target the constructs in motivational, agentic, and self theories (MAST). Motivation theories seek to understand what drives humans to work towards particular goals. Agentic theories hold the view that humans are active contributors to, or agents of, their own behavior. Self theories focus on how humans view themselves, which shapes th...

The purpose of this project is to develop and test the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction for Reading (SDLMI-R) to increase self-determination and reading achievement among 4th and 5th graders with or at-risk for reading disability (RD). This newly developed program will adapt the research-based SDLMI (https://selfdetermination.ku.edu/), originally designed to support secondary students in transition planning, to address a critical need for self-determination interventions for upp...

The purpose of this project is to develop the EXPERT intervention, a professional development model for improving teachers' use of evidence-based decision making (EBDM) to effectively intensify interventions for students with reading disabilities (RD) in grades 3-5. Specific learning disabilities (SLD) are the most common disabilities in K-12 education, with RD being the most common form of SLD. Students with RD need intensive, individualized interventions in order to make measurable gains i...