Special Education

CAREER: Bridging the Digital Accessibility Gap in STEM Using Multisensory Haptic Platforms

Principal Investigator: 
Jenna Gorlewicz
This project investigates haptic (touch) technologies, like touchscreens, to create multimodal, STEM graphics and simulations that can be felt, heard, and seen. Working closely with individuals with disabilities, particularly students with visual impairments and blindness, and their teachers, we create multimodal, STEM learning experiences that elevate the sense of touch digitally, with a specific focus on moving beyond meeting access requirements to imagining multisensory, educational experiences for everyone.
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Discipline / Topic: 
Engineering
Mathematics
Broadening Participation
Educational Technology
Special Education
Target Audience: 
Middle School
High School

Leveraging Simulations in Preservice Preparation to Improve Mathematics Teaching for Students with Disabilities (Collaborative Research: Cohen and Jones)

Principal Investigator: 
Nathan Jones
Julie Cohen

The broader goal of our DRK-12 project is to develop and test whether simulated classroom experience with students with disabilities can improve elementary general educators' preparedness to support these students in mathematics. To support the tools' development, we have interviewed 22 leading mathematics and special educators to unearth tensions and points of convergence in how the respective fields conceptualize mathematics instruction. The poster will discuss implications of these findings for teacher preparation and development.

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Discipline / Topic: 
Mathematics
Assessment
Curriculum
Disciplinary Content Knowledge
Educational Technology
Special Education
Target Audience: 
Elementary School

Developing Preservice Teachers' Capacity to Teach Students with Learning Disabilities in Algebra I

Principal Investigator: 
Casey Hord

Project researchers are training pre-service teachers to tutor students with learning disabilities in Algebra 1, combining principles from special education, mathematics education, and cognitive psychology. The trainings emphasize the use of gestures and strategic questioning to support students with learning disabilities and to build students’ understanding in Algebra 1.

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Discipline / Topic: 
Mathematics
Broadening Participation
Classroom Practice
Pedagogical Content Knowledge
Professional Development
Special Education
Target Audience: 
High School

Strengthening Mathematics Intervention Classes: Identifying and Addressing Challenges to Improve Instruction for Struggling Learners

Principal Investigator: 
Amy Brodesky
The SMI project's goals are to: 1) study the current landscape of mathematics intervention classes at the middle grades, and 2) create PD to strengthen intervention teachers' practices for supporting students with mathematics difficulties/disabilities.
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Image of Poster
Discipline / Topic: 
Mathematics
Broadening Participation
Disciplinary Content Knowledge
Professional Development
Special Education
Target Audience: 
Middle School

CAREER: Fraction Activities and Assessments for Conceptual Teaching (FAACT) for Students with Learning Disabilities

Principal Investigator: 
Jessica Hunt

This poster describes the outcomes, dissemination, and scaling of project work from "Fraction Activities and Assessment for Conceptual Teaching (FAACT)." We describe the results of a pilot study for FAACT, free curriculum materials, and how the work has been translated to a new game based project, Model Mathematics Education (ModelME). A link to an intro video for ModelMe's game based curriculum will be shared.

Co-PI(s): Matthew Marino and Michelle Taub, University of Central Florida

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Discipline / Topic: 
Mathematics
Assessment
Broadening Participation
Curriculum
Special Education
Target Audience: 
Elementary School
Middle School

Design, Development, and Initial Testing of Asset-Based Intervention Grounded in Trajectories of Student Fraction Learning

Mathematics
Classroom Practice
Equity
Pedagogy
Special Education
Elementary

One of the most relentless areas of difficulty in mathematics for children with learning disabilities (LDs) and difficulties is fractions. We report the development and initial testing of an intervention designed to increase access to and advancement in conceptual understanding. Our asset-based theory of change—a tested and confirmed learning trajectory of fraction concepts of students with LDs grounded in student-centered instruction—served as the basis for our multistage scientific design process.

Access Link: 
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0731948720963589?casa_token=sPj8XuB...
Author/Presenter: 
Jessica H. Hunt
Kristi Martin
Andy Khounmeuang
Juanita Silva
Blain Patterson
Jasmine Welch-Ptak
Lead Organization(s): 
North Carolina State University (NCSU)
Year: 
2020
Short Description: 

One of the most relentless areas of difficulty in mathematics for children with learning disabilities (LDs) and difficulties is fractions. This article reports the development and initial testing of an intervention designed to increase access to and advancement in conceptual understanding.

Gina’s mathematics: Thinking, tricks, or “teaching”?

Mathematics
Broadening Participation
Cognitive Science
Learning Progression
Special Education
Elementary

Students with learning disabilities display a diverse array of factors that interplay with their mathematical understanding. Our aim in this paper is to discuss the extent to which one case study elementary school child with identified learning disabilities (LDs) made sense of composite units and unit fractions. We present analysis and results from multiple sessions conducted during a teaching experiment cast as one-on-one intervention.

Access Link: 
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0732312318301299
Author/Presenter: 
Jessica H.Hunt
Beth L.MacDonald
JuanitaSilva
Lead Organization(s): 
North Carolina State University (NCSU)
Year: 
2019
Short Description: 

This paper discusses the extent to which one case study elementary school child with identified learning disabilities (LDs) made sense of composite units and unit fractions.

A Handbook and Tool for Uncovering Children’s Conceptions of Fractions

Mathematics
Assessment
Broadening Participation
Special Education
Elementary
Middle

Understand students’ fraction concepts through interview tasks.  Includes tasks and guide to record student thinking.

Access Link: 
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iaZyzyuYMZF6swk-_2C1DdJ6lvaPt4dz/view
Author/Presenter: 
Jessica Hunt
Year: 
2015
Short Description: 

Understand students’ fraction concepts through interview tasks. Includes tasks and guide to record student thinking.

Initial Understandings of Fraction Concepts Evidenced by Students With Mathematics Learning Disabilities and Difficulties

Mathematics
Assessment
Broadening Participation
Special Education
Elementary
Middle

Documenting how students with learning disabilities (LD) initially conceive of fractional quantities, and how their understandings may align with or differ from students with mathematics difficulties, is necessary to guide development of assessments and interventions that attach to unique ways of thinking or inherent difficulties these students may face understanding fraction concepts. One way to characterize such conceptions is through the creation of a framework that depicts key understandings evidenced as students work with problematic situations.

Access Link: 
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0731948716653101
Author/Presenter: 
Jessica H. Hunt
Jasmine J. Welch-Ptak
Juanita M. Silva
Lead Organization(s): 
North Carolina State University (NCSU)
Year: 
2016
Short Description: 

This study extends current literature by presenting key understandings of fractions, documented through problem-solving activity, language, representations, and operations, evidenced by students with LD and mathematics difficulties as they engaged with equal sharing problems.

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