Online Learning for Students with Disabilities: The Story Research is Telling Us

Project Co-Sponsors:KU Center for Research on Learning • CAST • NASDSE www.centerononlinelearning.org

Paula Burdette, NASDSESkip Stahl, CAST

Online Learning for Students with Disabilities:The Story Research is Telling Us

Bill East, NASDSE Diana Greer, University of Kansas

www.centerononlinelearning.org

Bill EastPaula Burdette

David RoseSkip StahlRachel Currie-

RubinMindy JohnsonSam JohnstonScott Lapinski

KU Center for Research and

Learning

Center on Online Learning and Students with Disabilities

Online Center Co-Partners

Don Deshler

James Basham

Diana Greer

Edward Meyen

Sean Smith

CASTNational Association

of State Directors of Special Education


Our Mission

To research how online learning can be made more accessible, engaging, and effective for K-12

learners by investigating approaches that address learner

variability within the range Of conditions under which online

learning occurs.


Goal #1

Identify and verify trends and issues related to

the participation of students with disabilities.


Goal #2

Identify and describe potential positive outcomes and negative

consequences of participation in online learning for students

with disabilities.


Goal #3

Identify and develop promising approaches for increasing the

accessibility and potential

effectiveness of online learning for students with disabilities.


Goal #4

Test the feasibility, usability, and potential effectiveness (or promise) of one or more key approaches.


What We Know


Online Learning Definitions

Fully Online Schools work with students who are enrolled primarily (often only) in the online school.

Blended learning is a formal education program in which a student learns at least in part through online and at least in part at a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home (includes Supplemental Online Programs) Taken from 2012 Keeping Pace in K-12 Online and Blended Learning (Evergreen

Education Group & iNACOL) and Classifying K-12 Blended Learning (Innosight Institute).


Total Online/Blended Students?

“The total number of students taking part in all of these programs is unknown, but is likely several million, or slightly more than 5% of the total K-12 population across the United States. We stress, however, that we estimate this by triangulating from close to a dozen sources. No single source is comprehensive.”

2012 Keeping Pace


The Center: First Year

• Policy Reviews

• Case Studies

• Small Research Studies

• Accessibility Work (VPAT)• Surveys distributed throughout the

country (state, district, teacher)


Preliminary Findings: Accessibility

• Accessibility and Universal Design:– Review of widely adopted online

systems reveals major accessibility gaps and a general lack of universal design options.

–Mandated online learning as a graduation requirement poses a significant civil rights issue.


The Foundation: Accessibility

• Statutory Mandates from ED & OCR:

• “As the use of emerging technologies in the classroom increases, schools at all levels must ensure equal access to the educational benefits and opportunities afforded by the technology and equal treatment in the use of the technology for all students, including students with disabilities.” May 26, 2011

Russlyn AliAssistant Secretary for Civil Rights

…Virtually no elementary orsecondary system hasthe capacity to retrofitdigital content for accessibility.


• So how do educators, parents & students know what’s accessible?

• Section 508 as a baseline• The Section 508 Voluntary Product Accessibility Template as a guide.• Not foolproof, but functional

The Foundation: Accessibility


The Foundation: A Sampling


The Foundation: A Sampling

Access for all Students


State Director of Special Education Survey

• 61 State Special Education Directors invited to participate

• 46 Responded



• Does your state education agency provide any publicly available guidance for educators, parents, or students related to the provision of online education?

Series1

Yes No

100

50

0

63%

37%


Does your state have data on which students with disabilities are receiving their instruction through an online environment?

– Online program• 24% Yes• 76% No

– Supplemental online course• 11% Yes• 89% No

– Blended program• 7% Yes• 93% No

– Related Services• 9% Yes• 91% No



State Directors Survey

100

80

60

40

20

0 43% 15% 30% 46% 33% 39% 26% 35% 43% 48% 39% 30% 28% 20% 46%

DE

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District Administrator Survey

• 40 states selected 3 districts - small, medium and large

• 10 states – Center selected small, medium, and large districts

• Calls were made to ensure appropriate contacts and to inform them of the survey.



0102030405060708090

100

Spec

ial Ed

ucati

on

64% 17% 7% 3% 9%

adm

inistr

ator

Who

le dis

trict

adm

inistr

ator

Gener

al Ed

ucati

on

adm

inistr

ator

Tech

nolog

y

adm

inistr

ator

Miss

ing

103 participants



• District offers online instruction (N=78)

• Yes (76%)– 56% have offered online instruction for 1-5

years – 41% have offered online instruction for 6-15

years

• Offer online instruction for SWDs (N=78)

• Yes (78%)– 56% have offered online instruction for SWDs for 1-5 years – 43% have offered online instruction for SWDs for 6-15 years



100

80

60

40

20

0 95% 86% 71% 96% 49% 27% Online options districts offer:

–Online Schools: HS - 95%; MS – 86%; ES- 71%

– Individual Courses: HS – 96%; MS – 49%; ES – 27%

Disability categories most represented online:–ED, OHI, SLD, Speech-Language, Intellectual Disabilities


Online Schools Individual Courses

HS MS ES HS MS ES



100

80

60

40

20

0 72% 51% 26% 26% 16%

Special education & related services provided online (N=61): 72% Content Instruction 51% Skill-based instruction 26% Assistive Technology Support 26% Speech Language Service 16% Social-Emotional/Behavioral Instruction


Content Instruction

Skill-based Instruction

Assistive Technology

Support

Speech Language

Service

Social-Emotional/Behavioral Instruction


District Administrator Survey: Challenges

• Challenges teachers face in teaching SWDs online

– 61% Knowing how to accommodate for students' disabilities

– 48% Knowing how to use instructional strategies in online settings

– 41% Knowing how to use specific technologies

– 25% Limitations in technology infrastructure within the district

– 20% Other



• 36% reported that their teachers are well prepared to teach SWDs online – 39% reported their teachers are not

well prepared – 25% reported they don’t know or did

not answer• 57% reported being prepared to

make decisions affecting the online instruction of SWDs


District Administrator Survey:

100

80

60

40

20

0 46% 39% 36% 30% 26% 26%

Top 3 instructional methods used to support SWDs online: 46% Activities/labs 39% Videos 36% Audio 30% Discussion 26% Text 26% Games

District Administrator Survey: Instructional Methods

Instructional methodsActivities/

labsVideos Audio Discussion Text Games


District Administrator Survey: Future

• District administrators reported that in the future, they anticipate that their district will:

• 3% Develop their own online courses• 25% Purchase vendor-developed

courses • 33% Develop and purchase vendor-

developed courses• 16% Don't know


Teacher Survey: Teacher Satisfaction

• Satisfied with teaching online (in general)– Satisfied: 72% Neutral: 11% Dissatisfied:

2%

• Satisfied with teaching SWD online– Satisfied: 60% Neutral: 16% Dissatisfied:

8%

• Adequate support to teach SWD online– Yes: 55% No: 11%

Sometimes: 19%

• 76% plan to continue teaching SWD for

at least 2 years


Teacher Survey

• Methodology: – District administrators nominated

teachers

– Purchased teacher distribution list from many organizations (e.g. ISTE, eSchool News)

– Organizations who volunteered (e.g CEC, iNACOL, NEA)


Teacher Survey cont.

• 110 Participants–89% taught for 6+ years

–31% taught online for 6+ years

–47% are certified to teach SWDs

–77% do not feel well prepared to teach SWDs online


Where they teach?

100

80

60

40

20

0 80% 95% 47% 86% 2% 71% 85% 96% 33% 49% 7% 27%

Teach:– Online Schools:

HS - 80%; MS – 47%; ES- 2% – Individual Courses:

HS – 85%; MS – 33%; ES – 7% Students with Disabilities :

– SLD, ED, Autism, OHI, Intellectual Disabilities, Multiple Disabilities

Where they teach?


Online Schools Individual Courses

HS MS ES HS MS ES


100

80

60

40

20

0 67% 72% 46% 51% 25% 26% 24% 16% 21% 26%

The following percentage of teachers reported that their students receive these:

67% Content Instruction 46% Skill-based instruction 25% Assistive Technology Support 24% Social-Emotional/Behavioral Instruction 21% Speech Language Service

Teacher Survey: Supports provided to SWD


Teacher Survey: Supports provided to SWD

Content Instruction

Skill-based Instruction

Assistive Technology

Support

Speech Language

Service

Social-Emotional/Behavioral Instruction


Teacher Survey: Instructional100

80

60

40

20

0 47% 39% 45% 46% 44% 26% 40% 30% 34% 36% 19% 26%

Teachers chose top 3 instructional methods to support SWDs: 47% Video 45% Activities or labs 44% Text 40% Discussion 34% Audio 19% Games

Teacher Survey: Instructional Methods

District Administrator Survey: Instructional Methods

Video Activities or labs

Text Discussion Audio Games


Teacher Survey: Challenges faced

• 40% Knowing how to accommodate for SWDs

• 30% Knowing how to use instructional strategies online

• 37% Limitations to the district technology infrastructure

• 23% Knowing how to use specific technologies


Teacher Survey: Challenges faced100

80

60

40

20

0 40% 61% 30% 48% 37% 41% 23% 25% 20%

The following percentages of teachers reported that their students receive these supports: 40% Knowing how to accommodate for SWDs 30% Knowing how to use instructional strategies online 44% Limitations to the district technology infrastructure 23% Knowing how to use specific technologies

Teacher Survey: Challenges faced

District Administrator Survey: Challenges

Knowing how to accommodate for

SWDs

Knowing how to use instructional

strategies online

Limitations to the district technology

infrastructure

OtherKnowing how to use specific technologies


Teacher Survey Correlations cont.

– Having a higher level of education or expertise was significantly associated with greater influence on decision making for SWD.

SE: (N=31) r (29) = .406, p < .05)• GE (N=60) r (58)= .340, p < .01)

– Being more satisfied with teaching online was significantly associated with being more satisfied with teaching SWDs online.

SE: (N=31) r (29) = .821, p < .01)• GE (N=60) r (58)= .635, p < .01)

– The more time teaching online was significantly associated with being more satisfied with online teaching.

SE: (N=31) r (29) = .365, p < .05)• GE (N=60) r (58)= .346, p < .05)


– The more prepared they felt to make decisions about SWDs was NOT significantly associated with feeling they had more influence on decisions effecting online programs for SWDs

SE: (N=31) r (29) = .261) GE (N=60) r (58)= .5, p < .01)

– The more support received to teach online was NOT significantly associated with being more prepared to make decisions for SWDs.

SE: (N=30) r (28) = .019 GE (N=48) r (46)= .408, p < .05)

– More support to teach SWD online was NOT significantly associated with being more prepared for teaching SWDs

SE: (N=30) r (28) = .2 GE (N=48) r (46)= .359, p < .05)

Teacher Survey Correlations cont.


Current Research Initiatives

• Strategic Inquiries– Textual Linguistics

Study– Parent Engagement– Big Data/Analytics– Peer-to-Peer

Interaction– IEP Decision Making– Persistence Study

– Learner Variability Studies

– Student Achievement– Teacher Quality– Online Assessments– Descriptive Studies– Executive

Functioning


North Carolina

Florida

Michigan

Washington

Kansas

Ohio

States we are working with:


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Contact us at: [email protected]

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Documents

Online Learning for Students with Disabilities: The Story Research is Telling Us