Impact of Information and Communication Technology on Academic Achievement for Exceptional Student Education Inclusion Students

Students with disabilities are less likely to graduate from high school and tend to score lower on standardized tests than their general education peers. Although use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) can improve these outcomes for traditional students, it has been unclear whether its use positively affects learning gains for the inclusion student. The purpose of this study was to determine if the academic test performance of 5th grade ESE inclusion students was enhanced by implementing ICT as a curriculum resource in their classrooms. Two frameworks provided structure for this study: the theory of social constructivism and the capability approach. The study population consisted of all 5th grade ESE inclusion students in 74 school districts in one southern state. Data sources were the state\u27s annual assessment scores for English language arts (ELA) and mathematics. Data were analyzed using 2 Mann Whitney U tests to compare ESE inclusion students\u27 assessment scores in the 2nd year of testing as compared to the 1st year of testing (2015-2016 as compared to 2014-2015). The findings of the study revealed no significant difference between the ESE inclusion students\u27 scores in the 1st and 2nd years for ELA and math scores even with ICT used as a resource. This outcome impacts social change by answering a question about whether ICT made a difference as used, and indicates that other studies must be done to better understand why ICT was not successful or how it can be used to significantly improve inclusion student outcomes