Comprehensive Exams for Candidacy
Comp Exam Question 1: Research Methodology in Special Education: A 20-Year Perspective
What are some advancements in research design over the past 20 years that have contributed to improvement in research and practice of special education? How have these advancements led to changes in either research or practice and what impact has it had on the field? As part of your answer, select at least one type of research methodology and discuss how specific advancements have developed over time.
Abstract
The aims of this article are twofold. First, the author summarizes scholars’ fruitful labor in advancing special education research over the past 20 years. Second, the author hopes to provide practitioners and other nonresearchers a better understanding of how different research designs inform and develop instructional practices in the field of special education. The main take-away message of this article is that research designs in special education are evolving to be varied, sophisticated, and insightful over the past 20 years. Meanwhile, researchers are also devoting to refine research designs into higher quality, more transparent, and more open.
Comp Exam Question 2: Special Education Legislation and Policy in the United States
The most significant legislation in the history of disability education was the passage of Public Law 94-142, The Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975. While P.L. 94-142 was the landmark legislation for the education of students with disabilities, it has undergone a number of reauthorizations (1990; 1997; 2004). The Elementary and Secondary Education Act has also undergone two reauthorizations, once under the George W. Bush administration (No Child Left Behind) and the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of President Barack Obama. Trace the changes across the reauthorizations of IDEA, from P.L. 94-142 to the present time. This response should speak to specific changes in each new reauthorization from the previous authorization. Next, describe the impact of NCLB and ESSA on the field of special education. More specifically, how did the implementation of these changes to the Elementary and Secondary Education act have intended and unintended consequences for students with disabilities.
Abstract
Special education services have evolved significantly since the early attempts in 1970s at developing and codifying laws to ensure that all students involving students with disabilities had opportunities to receive an appropriate education. Teachers in general and special education classrooms, school administers, families, policy makers, and other relevant stakeholders all worked collaboratively on improving the educational rights of children with special needs over the past decades. Special education laws and policies have been evaluated consistently in order to seek high-qualified educational practices to help children with disabilities. A more inclusive classroom structure allows such students to learn in the general classrooms alongside with their typically developing peers. This article traces the specific changes of legislation from Public Law 94-142 to the Every Student Succeeds Act. The article also summarizes the impacts of each law implementation for students with disabilities.