Accessing and Implementing Assistive Technology in a K-4 School

Assistive technology (AT) has been proven to improve both functional and academic performances of students with disabilities. Jones, et al. (2021) highlighted that AT supports students in the classroom by providing accommodations where it is needed to help the success of those using the tools. Robitaille (2010) stated “Assistive technology devices can help improve physical or mental functioning, alleviate a disorder or impairment, prevent the worsening of a condition, improve a person\u27s capacity to learn, or even replace a missing limb” (p. 3). With the goal of helping foster a sense of independence in students, a team, including general education teachers, should determine the need for specific assistive technology to help students successfully navigate their learning environment and be engaged in the learning community. Creating this engagement and independence by requiring AT that is developmentally appropriate for the student should always be considered and offered (MDE, Assistive Technology). It is in the best interest of all students that educators have training on tools involving AT, have knowledge of the variety of resources available for navigating AT, and understand how to implement AT (Marsh et al., 2021). To support this, the researcher conducted a review of the literature and created an educator training module designed to further develop educator’s knowledge of assistive technology (AT) as a whole; it included information of the challenges and benefits of AT within an educational setting and the collaborative process used for assessing and determining a student’s need for AT. The training also highlighted a variety of tools that can support students in gaining access to learning as well as support educators in accessing such tools within the state of MN

Focus Groups: Perceived Stress and Stress Management Techniques of Speech-Language Pathology Graduate Students

This qualitative study examined the stress that occurred, and strategies used to alleviate stress during the first semester of Minnesota State University Moorhead Graduate Speech-Language Pathology Master program. Participants were assigned into focus groups of 3-4 individuals and asked open-ended questions and prompts regarding stress encountered during their time in the program but not exclusively related to course work and degree requirements. Students had the opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings about stress experienced during their first semester of graduate school as well as efforts they used to manage stress. Focus group sessions were recorded and transcribed into typed statements for further analysis. The investigators formed themes and subthemes regarding the experiences shared by the participants. The participants may be invited to participate the following Fall to go through the same process described above during the beginning of the second year of study. This study added to the limited information available on the stress and stress reduction strategies experienced by SLP graduate students and could lead to further studies of a larger population of students

The Plague of Athens

The purpose of this study is to use historical analysis, biology, and linguistics to evaluate the reason one of early humanity\u27s greatest civilizations fell. 449 BC marked the end of the Greco-Persian War and the crowning of two new dominate city-states in the Mediterranean, Athens and Sparta. The tensions of these two ideologically different civilizations rose for eighteen years before the two clashed in the bloodiest conflict the world had ever seen at the time. Led by the great Pericles, Athens struggled to resist the most powerful land force of the time, causing him to retreat into the city walls. Within those walls, Athens would be destroyed by a plague so deadly, even the Spartans turned and ran. The plague of Athens led to a Spartan victory and dominance over the Mediterranean, changing the course of history. Using the works of Thucydides, DNA analysis, and pathology it can be concluded that the mysterious plague that destroyed Athens and changed the course of history was Typhoid Fever

The Effect of Melodic Intonation Therapy on Language Recovery in Patients After Stroke

This project is an examination of literature discussing the effects of Melodic Intonation Therapy (MIT) on language recovery in patients after stroke. The role of MIT after stroke is to encourage language recovery and promote overall well-being. Nine studies are summarized pertaining to the importance of MIT for individuals after stroke and the generalization of this approach. The existing literature supported MIT as a consistent intervention approach that positively impacted stroke and language recovery. Additionally, this review explored implementation options and the importance of each method. The importance for future research and synthesis is impactful across settings. Overall implications predict that MIT intervention is an important intervention program for individuals who have experienced chronic stroke and need language recovery

The Speech Language Pathologist\u27s Role in Intervention for Parkinson\u27s Disease

This literature review explored the available intervention techniques utilized by Speech Language Pathologists (SLPs) when treating individuals with Parkinson\u27s disease (PD). Parkinson\u27s disease affects six million people worldwide and is expected to double by the year 2040. Deficits associated with PD manifest themselves into motor and non-motor symptoms that show varying benefit from pharmacological approaches alone. For this reason, SLPs provided comprehensive treatment approaches to address the challenges related to dysarthria, dysphagia, and cognitive linguistic skills. Treatment consisted of behavioral techniques, diet modifications, compensatory strategies, muscle strength training, and restorative training. While some techniques demonstrated benefit to more than one area, others lead to decreased quality of life in certain individuals. Positive SLP treatment outcomes consisted of proper implementation and modification of techniques to ensure the individual\u27s safety and quality of life throughout the disease progression

Contributing Factors to Special Education Teacher Burnout and Retention

Teacher burnout is an increasing concern as Minnesota state data indicates more teachers leaving the profession in the first five years of their career and fewer individuals emerging from teacher preparation programs. The area of special education continues to be an area of need as the state continues to report special education licenses as areas of deficit to meet the need across the state. The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a correlation between burnout and attrition in special education teachers and to analyze the factors contributing to these issues. A voluntary questionnaire was emailed to K-12 special education teachers employed in four public-school districts in southeastern Minnesota. The questionnaire contains the Maslach Burnout Inventory for Educators (Maslach et al., 1986) in addition to questions regarding job satisfaction and other related factors in relation to future retention. Correlations were run and determined a significant correlation between burnout domains and attrition. Additional exploration was completed on related factors contributing to attrition and burnout domains (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment). Determining the impact of contributing factors gives educational leaders specific areas to address in order to decrease burnout and increase retention of special education teachers employed in their districts

Understanding the Experiences of Secondary Students Identified as In-School Truant and Their Perceived Contributing Factors to Truancy: When and What Caused the Disconnection

A strong correlation exists between school attendance and positive school outcomes such as increased graduation rates, stronger sense of belonging, and a higher grade-point average (Churchill et al., 2021; Daily et al., 2020; Allensworth & Easton, 2007). Therefore, school administrators implement strategies that foster positive attendance behavior for students. Attendance data is quantitative in nature and, while quantitative data is needed for decisions related to policy and best practices, qualitative data may better identify root causes of truancy behavior. This study’s purpose was to identify perceived contributing factors that resulted in participants having high rates of in-school truancy, or going to school and skipping classes, compared to their peers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven high school students to understand their lived experiences throughout their educational career that led to their truancy behavior in high school. Attendance data were analyzed to identify participants with the highest rates of in-school truancy during a particular semester. Legal guardians of participants signed an informed consent letter and then participants provided assent prior to beginning the study. The Hemmingway Measure of Adolescent Connectedness (Karcher, 2005) is the guiding theoretical framework and guided interview questions. Participants remained anonymous by using pseudonyms and redacting identifying information. Data was analyzed with both deductive and inductive coding. Six major themes were identified: four connecting to the theoretical framework and two as emerging issues. These provide insights to educators as they focus resources to support positive experiences for students and ultimately increase school belonging and attendance rates

Self-Monitoring Intervention for Students with ADHD

This paper presents a case study of an elementary student diagnosed with ADHD who exhibits off-task behavior in the classroom. Through observations and consultations with the problem-solving team, it was identified that the student’s primary challenge was maintaining focus and staying on task. To address this, a self-monitoring intervention was implemented. The intervention involved several steps: defining clear behavior expectations, teaching the student to recognize when he was off-task, utilizing a MotivAider device to prompt self-monitoring, and providing rewards for meeting expectations. Over an eight-week period, the student showed significant improvement, reaching 100% accuracy in behavior when prompted. Progress monitoring through observations and checklists demonstrated consistent positive results. Fidelity checks ensured the intervention\u27s integrity.The study concludes that the self-monitoring intervention was suitable for the student’s behavioral needs and led to sustained improvements in on-task behavior

The Effect of Mindfulness on the P3 Event-related Potential

Mindfulness meditation and training have recently been recognized as a way of learning to control one’s attention and being present in the moment and without judgment (Norris et al 2018). Recent research has demonstrated the benefits of mindfulness in everyday life (Yakobi et al 2021; Deng et al 2019). The purpose of this study is to establish a physiological measure of mindfulness based on the P300 Event-Related-Potential (ERP) in the visual domain. This study employed an XO oddball paradigm to gauge the effect of a novel stimulus on the P3 ERP in relation to an individual’s level of mindfulness. In a previous condition, it was hypothesized that the participant\u27s P3 amplitude for the novel stimuli would not be significantly different from the P3 amplitudes of the common stimuli. The results of this condition found an insignificant difference in the P3 ERP amplitude when comparing the common (M = 0.034, SD = 0.027) and odd stimuli (M = 0.082, SD = .074); t(10) = -1.951, p = .0796. The current condition of this study recruited 21 participants to compare changes in the P3 ERP waveform component as they performed oddball and meditative breath counting tasks before and after a 4-month mindfulness training course. It was predicted that the P3 amplitudes elicited by the novel stimuli will decrease with training. In addition, it was hypothesized that experienced meditators would have more attentional control compared to novice meditators