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Essay Subject: A literature review on issues related to moving African-American special education children into ...... More...

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Paper Abstract: A literature review on issues related to moving African-American special education children into post-seconadry school or work programs, with an emphasis on parental involvement and empowerment. Paper Introduction: Literature Review African-Americans Students Parents Special Educationand the Transition from High School IntroductionStatement of Purpose It has long been understood that the American public school system hasnot succeeded in providing truly equal educational opportunities for allstudents Oakes Most likely to be underserved or poorly served bythis system are the children of the poor members of minority groups andstudents with special needs Most American public school systems have beenengaged in reform and restructuring for more than thirty years designed toameliorate this situation and Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Many parents in thesepopulations experience difficulty in interacting with educationalauthorities due to fear of authority, uncertainty about their rights to beinvolved in schooling, or in the belief that they and their children aredevalued by the educational authorities; consequently, creating numerousopportunities for varied types of parental involvement is a challenge foreducators and school administrators. Manyexpress concerns, said Lareau (2 3), that their input will not be valuedor tolerated. & Rose, H. Students' perceptions of inclusion and resource room settings. Zhangand Benz (2 6) suggest that as parents of such children become lessuncomfortable with serving as advocates for their offspring, and morecomfortable interacting with the educational system, transition programmingtends to improve. Rethinking inclusion. This can be a daunting task one for which the student and his or her family need to be prepared.Thus, transitioning the special needs African-American student out of highschool is a team effort in which parents are meant to be as involved aspossible. Transition services are intended to prepare students to make the transition from the world of school to the world of adulthood. 32 - 37.Minke, K.M. Sucha plan must make available to parents opportunities to assist in assessingschool and student needs, developing and delivering programs to meet thoseneeds, and evaluating school and student performance. Inequality in educational attainment. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.Lewis, A.C. Academic Exchange Quarterly, 6(1), 162-168.Sparks, S. Journal of Special Education, 32(2), 79-89.Zhang, D. Other parents believe that they do not have a great deal tocontribute to their students' education or, alternatively, that it is theresponsibility of the school system and its staff to ensure that studentslearn. (2 3). (2 5). Local schoolcouncils or other mechanisms have largely replaced the PTA as the vehiclethrough which parents become engaged in education. Inclusionrefers to the process of placing the special needs child in the educationalsetting or environment that is least restrictive while still appropriatefor the child's IEP. Education, 115(3), 373-377.Sireci, S.G., DeLeon, B., & Washington, E. Lareau (2 3) pointed out, for example, that many parents from pooreducational and socioeconomic backgrounds are themselves intimidated byschool authorities, including teachers and administrators. Standards and testing. In recent years, educators have attempted to identify idealstrategies for meeting the complex web of intellectual, emotional, andpsychosocial needs of special needs students. 437-463.Vaughn, S. (2 5). General educationclassrooms are those classroom settings serving, for the most part,students who are not identified as having any special needs (Zhang, 2 1). Empirical literature described by Minke and Anderson (2 5) supportsthe assertion that students whose parents take an active role in theireducation are less likely than other students to experience behavioral oracademic problems, less likely to drop out before completing a secondaryprogram, and more likely to exhibit positive attitudes toward schooling andlearning. New York: MacMillan.Jencks, C., Smith, M., Acland, H., Baine, M.J., Cohen, D., Gintis, H., Heyns, B., & Michelson, S. Similar comments were advanced byLewis (1999) who believes that standardized tests do not fully capture thelearning or the knowledge exhibited by many American students, includingthose from racial and ethnic minorities and from poor urban and ruralcommunities where schools are limited in terms of resources.How extensive are the educational differentials to be observed based onrace or ethnicity? High school dropout rates are another indicatorof educational deficits. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 7(3), 181-185.National Dissemination Centre for Children with Disabilities. Students whose parents are involved in their education and inthe school community, regardless of family background or income, or raceand ethnicity, are more likely to earn higher grades, be promoted, showimproved behavior, and enroll in post-secondary programs. TheIndividualized Education Program (IEP) is the end result of a thoroughassessment of a child's level of development, personal educational andsocial needs, plan of instruction and service, and desired as well asexpected learning and other outcomes (Sailor & Roger, 2 5). The "least restrictive environment (LRE)" is legally defined as thatphysical setting in which the special needs child will most thoroughly beintegrated into general education programs and given opportunities to learnand socially interact with non-disabled peers (Sailor & Roger, 2 5). School-parent partnerships remain a work in progress. Phi Delta Kappan, 86 (7), 5 3-5 9.Shepard, R. (2 5). African-American Students and Special Education Under Public Law 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Childrenand subsequent amendments, Congress sent a message to the schools that theywere required to conclude early assessments and evaluations of childrenthought to be at-risk because of actual or potentially disabling conditions(Oakes, 2 5). AsVaughn and Klinger (1998) noted, there has been a groundswell of enthusiasmfor the placement of students with disabilities in general educationsettings and classrooms. TheNo Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), in Section 1118, requires all Title Ischools to develop jointly with, and agree on with, and distribute toparents of participating children a written parent involvement plan. Education Daily, 38(59), 4-5.Valenzuela, A. Improving teachers of minority students' attitudes towards and knowledge of standardized tests. (2 2). A direct result of renewed interest in how parental involvementimpacts upon student achievement and socialization is the creation of newroles for parents. Literature Review: African-Americans Students, Parents, Special Educationand the Transition from High School IntroductionStatement of Purpose It has long been understood that the American public school system hasnot succeeded in providing truly equal educational opportunities for allstudents (Oakes, 2 5). (1972). Maduas (2 5) argued that by engaging parents of at risk students andspecial needs students in the IEP process from the beginning, thetransition out of secondary school becomes a routine aspect of suchparticipation in educational planning. 1 - 12. In Course Reader for Sociology 19 , pp. As Shepard and Rose have (1995) commented, theempowerment of parents is a key element in this transformation; schools arecreating numerous opportunities for parents to work alongside teachers andadministrators in developing or choosing curriculum, delivering services(e.g., tutoring, in-class assistance, and so forth) and interacting withteachers and students as classroom assistants and aides, serving on localschool councils, evaluating principals and other faculty members, andserving as advocates for children. 1): For students with disabilities, these choices may be more complex and may require a great deal of planning. 411-435.Glassman, B.S. The transition services themselves are a coordinated set of activities that are based on the student's needs and that take into account his or her preferences and interests. The MacMillan Visual Almanac. Planning the transition from school to adult life begins, at the latest, during high school. Don't believe the hype. Teaching Exceptional Children, 37 (3), pp. Unequal Childhoods. The student and his or her family are expected to take an active role in preparing the student to take responsibility for his or her own life once school is finished. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 32(1), 13-16.Maduas, J. A growing numberof studies show that when parents are participants in the educationalsystem, students respond by working harder and striving for excellence.Minke and Anderson (2 5) noted that this is the case even in schoolsserving low-income students who may be at-risk for academic failure or poorperformance due to environmental factors. Indeed, over the last decade, increasednumber of parents, professionals, and policymakers have raised concernsabout the appropriateness of educating students with disabilities insettings that were separate from the general education classroom. Navigating the college transition maze; A guide for students with disabilities. The Journal of Educational Research, 98(3), 164-175.Ferguson, A.A. Many feel thatthey (and, to some extent, their children) are devalued by educators. Education and Training in Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities, 36(4), 357-362.Zhang, D., & Benz, M. Other schools offer babysitting and transportation to make iteasier for parents with small children or limited funds to participate inschool activities. Self-determination and inclusion. & Bertrand, R. (2 6). Family-school collaboration and positive behavior support. Specifically, parental involvement can be instrumental inachieving a focus on an appropriate post-secondary placement, obtainingfunding for such placement, and modeling needed skills for ongoing success. (2 5). There are those educators, including Valenzuela (1999), who take adifferent approach to identifying the causes of this particular problem.Valenzuela (1999) suggests that standardized tests used to measure andassess learning and school achievement, as well as the assessments used toscreen young children for special education placement, are inherentlybiased against minority test takers. African-American youth are likely to beover-represented in special education programs as well, increasing theirrisk status for dropping out, failing to complete a secondary schooldegree, attend or complete college or even pursue vocational training afterhigh school (Sireci, DeLeon, & Washington, 2 2). & Anderson, K.J. (2 5). ReferencesDeslandes, R. (2 5). In planning what type of transition services a student needs to prepare for adulthood, the IEP Team considers areas such as postsecondary education or vocational training, employment, independent living, and community participation. This transition planning becomes formalized as part of the student's Individualized Education Program (IEP). W. (2 ). All of these varied issues may inhibit the ability or thewillingness of parents to become active participants in their children'sschools. Parental involvement in the classroom. (1999). These conditions range from physical disabilities such ashearing deficits, speech delays and disorders, visual problems, range ofmotion issues, and birth defects that create disability. Motivation of parent involvement in secondary-level schooling. (2 1). Most likely to be underserved or poorly served bythis system are the children of the poor, members of minority groups, andstudents with special needs. Glassman (2 ) states that as of the late 199 s,some 15 percent of African-Americans, 35 percent of Hispanic-Americans, and1 percent of white Americans dropped out of high school. Focus on Exceptional Children, 38 (9), pp. Transition services can include instruction, community experiences, the development of employment and other post- school adult living objectives, and (if appropriate) the acquisition of daily living skills and functional vocational assessment. However, schools must makeefforts to reach out to parents to encourage meaningful involvement. (1998). 69-82.Lareau, A. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.Sailor, W. Phi Delta Kappan, 81(3), 179+.Machen, S.M., Wilson, J.D., & Notar, C.E. Transition Strategies for the Population Transition outo cmes for special needs students served under IDEAvary greatly across racial and ethnic groups, although some differentialshave decreased in recent decades (Zhang & Benz, 2 6). Involvement can take different forms,including discussions about school, help with homework, and volunteering atschool. Teacher-student relations and the politics of caring. "Special Education"refers to educational programs and services targeting children identifiedby a professional assessment as having special needs, including learningand other disabilities that differentiate children from their non-disabledpeers with respect to developmental deficits, physical, emotional,intellectual and/or behavioral conditions, and so forth. Currently, aboutthree-fourths of all African-American students with special needs areidentified as completing high school; however, post-secondary programmingis lee likely to be accessed by these and other minority students. Available at www.nichcy.org/pubs/transum/ts1 txt.htm.Oakes, J. This involvement allows aprents andtheir children to work with school counselors to identify possible furthereducational or training options, to locate appropriate placements and tobegin early on the process of modeling and transmitting the skills neededfor success. In Course Reader for Sociology 19 , pp. (1999). (1995). Beginning in the 197 s and continuing to the present day,educators have focused on the inclusion of such students in what arethought of as mainstream classrooms, offering special education services onan as needed basis via such arrangements as pull-out programs and resourcerooms (Vaughn & Klinger, 1998). Most American public school systems have beenengaged in reform and restructuring for more than thirty years designed toameliorate this situation and to generally improve learning and otheroutcomes that are exhibited by at-risk students and even entire communities(Jencks, Smith, Acland, Bane, Cohen, Gintis, Heynes, & Michelson, 1972).Nevertheless, these reform efforts have not fully succeeded in creating thekind of level academic playing field that is so desperately needed toimprove schooling and enhance individual and group achievement (Ferguson,2 ). (2 7). Thesedifferentials clearly demonstrate that minority group students aresignificantly more likely to exhibit lower levels of academic achievementmeasured as completing a secondary school degree than white Americans.Additionally, Glassman (2 ) notes that while more and more African-Americans and Hispanic-Americans are entering colleges and are completingundergraduate degrees, their educational attainment numbers continue to lagbehind white and Asian students. Parental Involvement and Empowerment Many minority group students may also be at a disadvantage due to alack of parental involvement in their schooling or home assignments.Parental involvement in schooling is now understood as referring to theroles of parents in educating their children at home and in school(Deslandes & Bertrand, 2 5). Transition planning; A team effort. Of special significance, said Machen, Wilson, and Notar (2 5), isthe creation of programs that directly reach out to low income families andto families of students believed to be at-risk. At issue in this literature review are the related topics of howAfrican-American students in high school special education programs(incidence, problems and causes), empowerment of African-American parentsto assist their children in obtaining services, and the strategies forfacilitating a transition of these at risk special needs students to work,college, or a vocational education program upon secondary schoolgraduation.Definition of Key Terms Several key terms are relevant to the study. Additionally, as noted by the National DisseminationCouncil for Children with Disabilities (2 7, p. Until the late twentiethcentury, many special needs students were isolated in special educationclassrooms. Where once school provided a centralized source of education, guidance, transportation, and even recreation, after students leave school, they will need to organize their own lives and needs and navigate among an array of adult service providers and federal, state, and local programs. According to Glassman (2 ), the average whiteAmerican has 12.8 years of education, whereas the average African-Americanhas only 11.6 years of education, and the average Hispanic-American has1 .2 years of education. Some schools offer stipends for low-income parents who work in classrooms or administrative offices, whileothers provide parenting skill classes that are designed to assist parentsin learning how to help their children with homework and behavioralmatters. The power of parents: An empowerment model for increasing parental involvement. Enhancing self-determination of culturally diverse students with disabilities. Keeping Track. A large body of research has supported the assertion that for avariety of reasons, American public school students belonging to minoritygroups are at risk for academic failure, dropout, lower achievement levels,and special education placement. In Course Reader for Sociology 19 , pp. In any event, the consensus is that parental involvementin school activities is instrumental in bringing about positive learningand other outcomes for all students and may be especially important forspecial needs students and students wjho are otherwise at-risk for failure,low achievement or an early exit. & Klingner, J.K. (2 5). In fact, transition planning is required, by law, to start once a student reaches 14 years of age, or younger, if appropriate. & Roger, B. Parents who spend time on campus are seen by Sparks (2 5) as sendingstudents a vital message - that education itself is important and thatparents care about their children's progress. (Ed.) (2 ). 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