Prior to beginning work on this assignment, be sure to have read all the required resources for the week.Locate a peer-reviewed qualitative research study in the Ashford University Library on the topi

2017, Volume 83, No. 1, 41-49Journal o f Rehabilitation Volume 83, N u m b er 141 Perceptions of Literacy Instruction and Implications for Transition and Employment Outcomes for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Qualitative Study Linda M. Pavonetti Oakland University Darlene A . G. Groomes Oakland UniversityYeaton H. Clifton Oakland Universityx The goal of education for a student with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is to help the person achieve a productive and independent life. This paper discusses the results of qualitative research that examine how educators in some Midwestern school districts de­ scribe the development of basic literacy skills by high school students with ASD. Important findings include the school districts’ perceptions that (a) legal regulations often hamper the efforts of professionals who wish to impart literacy skills to students and (b) school districts’ perceptions that parents have limited interest in literacy skills. Recommendations include suggestions about how laws could be modified and how pairing vocational rehabilitation counselors with professionals who work with students with ASD in public schools could improve the quality of life for students with ASD.

Youth with disabilities take on the challenge o f em­ ployment as a means o f support upon exiting high school; approximately one in seven young adults in the United States is out o f school and not working (Jain, Con­ way, & Choitz, 2016;Shattuck, P. T., Narendorf, S. C., Cooper, B. P., Sterzing, P., Wagner, M., & Taylor, J. L., 2012). The decision to pursue higher education is less common. Although data suggest that youth with disabilities who no longer attend school have more time for work, hold positive attitudes about their current positions, and are earning more than $9.40 per hour, they struggle more than their peers who are not disabled to obtain gainful employment. Additionally, for those with au­ tism, 69% compared to 86-90% for those with hearing impair­ ments or other health impairments, were likely to have been engaged in employment since high school (Sanford, New­ man, Wagner, Cameto, Knokey, & Shaver, 2011). Research suggests there is a 7.3% unemployment gap between work- Dr. Linda M. Pavonetti, D epartm ent of Reading and Language Arts, Oakland University, 2200 N. Squirrel Rd., Rochester, MI 48309.

Email: [email protected] people with and without disabilities; for youth, the unemployment rate isl 1.5 percent (n = 2.6 million), showing little change from the previous year (Erickson, Lee, & von Schrader, 2012; U.S. Department o f Labor, Bureau o f Labor Statistics, 2016).

While disparities remain across disability types, research­ ers’ contemporary focus is on vocational outcomes for indi­ viduals living with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) (Cedur- land, Hagberg, Billstedt, Gillberg, & Gillberg, 2008; Howlin, Goode, Hutton, & Rutter, 2004; Interagency Autism Coor­ dinating Committee, 2014; Shattuck, P. T., Narendorf, S. C., Cooper, B. P., Sterzing, P., Wagner, M., & Taylor, J. L, 2012).

Because o f the above-noted unemployment gap, it is import­ ant to explore what academic preparation best readies those with ASD for the world o f work. Taylor and Seltzer (2010) have noted a decline in students with ASD phenotypic behav­ iors after exiting school. This may imply that many students with ASD are somewhat prepared for independence through social skills training. Social skills also improve the employ­ ment prospects o f people with disabilities (Campbell, Hensel, Hudson, Schwartz, & Sealander, 1987; Orsmond, Shattuck, Cooper, Sterzing, & Anderson, 2013). However, Howlin, Goode, Hutton, and Rutter (2004) found that reading and writ­ ing skills are also valuable for people with ASD who wish to gain employment, implying that both literacy skills and social skills are valuable for improving employment prospects.

The purpose o f this paper is to present results from qual­ itative research that presents a portrait o f what happens to students with ASD who are transitioning to adulthood. The researcher interviewed a number o f professionals in several Midwestern high schools to learn how these professionals per­ ceive the development o f literacy skills that might best pre­ pare individuals with ASD for the world o f work. In knowing what skills students with ASD need when entering the labor market, special education professionals might be well-served if they collaborated with vocational rehabilitation counselors who could help to facilitate the transition to employment. The new Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act mandates creative partnerships across core federal programs: adult ed­ ucation and vocational rehabilitation administered through the Department o f Education and workforce development and employment services administered through the Department o f Labor (United States Department o f Labor, Employment and Training Administration (DoLETA, 2014). There exists a critical need for understanding the relationship between literacy instruction and independence. We begin with a brief overview o f previous research on literacy among students with ASD including a discussion o f evidence-based practice.

Simpson (2005) found that evidence-based practice is import­ ant for students with ASD. Weiss and Riosa’s (2015) research on thriving in youth with autism spectrum disorder updates this perspective and asserts, “ Positive youth development, and more broadly positive human development, has emerged as a promising frame-work with which to study thriving” (P.

2475). Subsequently, we will describe our research method­ ology before providing a discussion o f findings and implica­ tions. The participants in this study discussed both teaching functional skills and reading and writing skills.

Literacy and Adult Outcomes for Students with ASD While research is available on the more general question o f how students with ASD transition to adulthood, few papers specifically describe their transition to independence (Law­ rence, Alleckson, & Bjorklund, 2010; Interagency Autism Co­ ordinating Committee, 2014). Cameto (2005) determined that 30% o f former special education students with ASD find em­ ployment, a percentage that is lower than what he identified for other students with disabilities transitioning to adulthood.

Clearly, a better understanding o f this critical transition is nec­ essary i f we hope to facilitate the independence o f students with ASD. O f the limited research available, Howlin, Goode, Hutton, and Rutter (2004) identified literacy skills as among the important variables correlated to success in the work place for people with ASD. Likewise, a survey o f employees with disabilities and their employers found that a majority o f both groups believed literacy skills were important for their jobs, which is further evidence that development o f social, read­ ing, and writing skills could facilitate employment (Campbell, Hensel, Hudson, Schwartz, & Sealander, 1987; Orsmond, Shattuck, Cooper, Sterzing, & Anderson, 2013).In addition to the dearth o f information about the transi­ tion process for students with ASD, research on the process o f teaching literacy to students with ASD is limited too. When Chiang and Lin (2007) reviewed the literature on ASD and reading ability, they identified 11 experimental studies that involved a total o f 49 students with ASD. Only one o f the studies involved high school-aged students. Regardless o f the limited research, most o f the studies identified poor reading skills among students with ASD.

Use of Evidence-Based Practices and Students with ASD The No Child Left Behind Act (No Child Left Behind Act o f 2001, 2002) (NCLB) makes several references to ev­ idence-based practices. “Evidence-based practice (EBP) is a process that involves “the conscientious, explicit, judicious use o f current best evidence in making decisions about the care o f individual patients” (Sackett, Rosenberg, Gray, Haynes, & Richardson, as cited in Spring, 2007).

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that students with disabilities be prepared to read, but as Lanter and Watson (2008) have pointed out, a number o f common strategies used in that instruction are not based on research. Hess, Morrier, Helfin, and Ivey (2008) demonstrate that the use o f non-evidence-based methods can be ineffec­ tive or even harmful. However, studies that address whether instructors could identify evidence-based methods o f instruc­ tion for students with ASD found that the majority could not (Bain, Brown, & Jordan, 2009; Hess, Morrier, Helfin & Ivey 2008; Morrier, Hess, & Heflin, 2011). Interpretation o f this information is not straightforward because there is limited un­ derstanding o f how instructors actually select methods or how they understand the idea o f evidence-based practice. There is also limited information about how the language o f the NCLB affects choices made by instructors when selecting instruc­ tional methods.

Inclusion The IDEA encourages full inclusion o f students with disabilities in general education classrooms; however, the un­ derstanding o f how this affects education is limited because there is limited documentation and research. Many critical discourse analysts have studied the language o f inclusion o f special education students into general education classes. In these studies, the data consisted o f legislative regulations de­ fining a least restrictive environment. Liasidou (2009, 2011), Hodkinson (2012), and Pfahl and Powell (2011) found that the language o f special education legislation was vague to the ex­ tent that real improvement in education could not be expected.

When Murawski and Swanson (2001) reviewed experi­ mental and quasi-experimental studies o f co-teaching inclu­ sion practice with all students with special needs, they found only six papers, three o f which were not peer reviewed. The results o f all six studies were positive, which suggests both that more research on inclusion would be greatly valued and certain implementations o f inclusion probably do have posi­ tive results. Conversely, there is reason to think broad inter­ pretation o f laws would lead to a wide range o f diverse situa- tions, some o f which have no clear effect on learning (positive or negative).

Purpose of Research Our research intended to answer four questions, which examine the discourse on literacy and the transition to adult­ hood for students with ASD: (1) How are students with ASD prepared in terms of basic literacy skills to transition to adult­ hood; (2) How do professionals evaluate methods of devel­ oping literacy skills; (3) How is this influenced by the NCLB requirement for evidence; and (4) How do these professionals understand their contribution to the transition to adulthood?

The research was conducted in a suburban school district within 50 miles of a large metropolitan city. The district re­ ported the following ethnic breakdown: 90% white, 6% black, 0.6% Asian American, 0.5% Native American and 3.3% His­ panic. The median income was roughly $30,000. The location of the study was also selected for convenience.

This study was conducted in two phases, primarily be­ cause the narrative that emerged from the data in Phase One showed that students with ASD advance slowly in basic liter­ acy skills—often entering high school performing far below grade level. Students with ASD receive little remediation for this deficit at a high school level. With this information, Phase Two of the study focused questions on how students with ASD are taught literacy skills.

Because this article reflects the data collected in two stud­ ies, there is also a difference in the sites where interviews were conducted. The majority of the interviews were conducted in the schools where the participants were employed. One inter­ view was conducted in an administrative office and another participant requested that the interview be conducted in the researcher’ university office. The interviews were completely private. Several of the interviewees preferred to reply in writ­ ing to the questions, in which case the interview consisted in clarifying and expanding the responses. One person refused permission to audio record the interview, stating that being recorded made him/her nervous. All of the other interviews were recorded and transcribed. The researcher’s notes were added to the transcriptions.

Examination o f available documents with specific infor­ mation about the kind of literacy instruction provided to stu­ dents with disabilities who have poor literacy skills offered an account of how policy had evolved. Prior to the imple­ mentation o f the Michigan Merit Curriculum, students whose Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) scores in language arts were deficient were directed to a core skills class that was considered general education. The percentage o f students attending the core skills classes who had IEPs was found to be too high for a general education setting. The ad­ ministrators had a choice of either providing a special educa­ tion environment or finding another way to provide training in core skills; they decided to implement a peer tutoring system, and provide accommodations to mitigate the effects of various disabilities.Participants.

An email was sent to certain key employees of this school district. These included two high school English teachers who taught students with ASD, the Special Education Consultant who developed the curriculum for students with ASD, the Special Education Director who helped create the individu­ al education plans for students with ASD, and two Transition Coordinators who assisted the transition of students with ASD from school to independent life. The participants were select­ ed based on their willingness to voice their opinions and on their connection to a particular school district.

Permission was granted by the Director of Special Ed­ ucation to interview up to six professionals working for this school district, including him/herself. Of those identified, only four agreed to be interviewed. The first instructor was an ex­ perienced certified teacher, described by a colleague as hav­ ing a great deal of experience with students with ASD. The instructor had developed a number of Individual Education Plans (IEP) and was experienced teaching English to students with ASD. Later, the Special Education Consultant agreed to participate in the study. The consultant had a master’s degree in Special Education with a concentration in reading and more than a decade of experience. The Transition Coordinator was well qualified, having a master’s degree in Special Education.

The fourth participant was the Director of Special Education.

To gather information regarding literacy instruction, tran­ sition, and ASD, the primary author interviewed all partici­ pants and was given permission to record the conversations.

Three interviews were conducted in person, in the setting where the participants worked. The Transition Coordinator preferred to be interviewed in the researcher’s office on the university campus, and answered three out of four questions in writing prior to this visit. This participant signed the con­ sent form and wrote an answer to the remaining question. The questions for Special Education Instructors, the Special Ed­ ucation Consultant, the Transition Coordinator, and the Spe­ cial Education Director were guided by our understanding of discourse analysis theory, and participants were permitted to view the questions before signing consent to the interview.

Examples of questions include, but were not limited to items such as:

1. How do you view strong literacy skills?

And how do these skills help in the real world?

2. How does the NCLB act influence your choice o f lessons? Name a method where this legislation affected your choices?

3. Reflect on your students’ efforts and how they achieve success: how do you help them?

4. Describe how your rate the success of your program, and describe how you rate instances of failure in your program.

5. Describe how legislation and regulations influence the way that you do your job?

How do these laws help and how do they get in the way? 6. Describe how you would identify a method o f teaching that is effective for promoting transition: give an example.

7. Describe a student who you consider a success.

8. How is literacy promoted in an IEP? How are independent living skills promoted in a n IE P ?

Data Analysis. The data were coded using G laser’s (1966) method o f constant comparison. The data, thus orga­ nized by codes, were examined in light o f critical discourse analysis (Rodgers, 2011). Critical discourse analysis is the study o f how communication affects empowerment, and the empowerment o f students is the major concern o f this study.

The codes were used to arrange data in a way that directed the data analysis to place information relevant to a particular question together.

Results o f Phase One Analysis o f Interviews Research Question One. How are students with ASD prepared in terms o f basic literacy skills to transition to adult­ hood? The narrative that emerged from the data is that stu­ dents with ASD advance slowly in basic literacy skills often entering high school performing far below grade level, and receive little remediation for this deficit at a high school level.

So, for the second phase o f this study, questions about how students with ASD are taught literacy skills remained a prior­ ity.

Research Question Two. How does the NCLB require­ ment for evidence-based practice affect instructor’s decisions about how and what to teach? Based on data collected through interviews in the first study, the participants demonstrated poor comprehension o f NCLB and its requirement for ev­ idence-based instruction, which may indicate that this topic has limited relevance to their day-to-day work. Other conclu­ sions could be inferred, but because the teachers had indicated that it was not relevant to them or their work, the question was dropped from phase two o f the study. The investigator believed that other topics that would provide better feedback might be better examined. Since the Transition Coordinator had emphasized the role o f parents in his/her definition o f suc­ cess, it was determined that this was a more useful direction o f inquiry (see research questions for Phase Two).

Research Question Three. How do professionals eval­ uate methods o f developing literacy skills? Two participants gave no information indicating education reform that required evidenced-based methods as improving methods o f instruc­ tion, The Special Education Director presumably was not able to enumerate such methods. The Special Education Director cited attending training sessions as a means o f obtaining ev­ idence-based methods. More details o f this will be discussed in the conclusions. The consultant did not give direct answers to questions about selecting methods and thus provided no ad­ ditional information. Since only one participant gave real in­sights into how to professionals select methods o f instruction in Phase One o f this study, the question remained a concern for Phase Two.

Research Question Four. How do these professionals understand their contribution to the transition to adulthood for students with ASD? Both the Instructor and the Consultant emphasized success in terms o f meeting benchmarks to earn a degree, and did not see their work in terms o f preparing the student for the transition to adulthood. The Transition Coor­ dinator understood his/her work in terms o f the transition to adulthood, but felt that the instructional system was failing the students and that this was beyond his/her control. The Consul­ tant saw success more in terms o f pleasing students’ parents than transition to adulthood.

Discussion o f Phase One. Phase One o f this study was interesting because the participants affirmed that they were not teaching literacy skills. They further affirmed that this was in the interest o f meeting state benchmark requirements. Since this is a sample o f convenience, it is not supposed that this is common, but it does suggest that the laws could be written so that instructors would believe that improving the literacy skills o f students with ASD is the instructor’s job. It is also significant that the participants described a rational approach to meeting benchmarks. If exempting students from reading requirements is a rational way to meet benchmark require­ ments for state exams, then the participants are doing their job by using the exemption. The participants were under a great deal o f pressure from the state and school administration, and it may not be reasonable to expect them do anything other than meet the benchmarks efficiently. Three o f four partici­ pants wished the laws were different, implying that if the laws were written to clearly require remediation o f literacy prob­ lems for students with ASD, then the response o f the profes­ sionals would be to do exactly that.

Phase Two Study Statement o f Purpose Since the purpose o f this study was to illuminate the process o f teaching literacy skills to secondary students with ASD, the questions asked o f professionals were intended to provide information relevant to the research questions. Specif­ ically, they were intended to inform the following questions.

1) How are high school-age students with ASD taught liter­ acy skills that may facilitate their transition to adulthood by public school professionals (e.g., special education teachers, consultants, directors, and transition coordinators)? 2) How do public school professionals (special education teachers, consultants, directors, and transition coordinators) evaluate methods o f teaching literacy skills, i.e., reading and writing, for high school-age students with ASD? 3) How do these pro­ fessionals (special education teachers, consultants, directors, and transition coordinators) understand their contribution to teaching literacy skills and the transition to adult life for high school-age students with ASD? 4) How do these professionals (special education teachers, consultants, directors, and tran­ sition coordinators) report that parents influence decisions about teaching literacy skills to high school-age students with ASD?

Participants This study was conducted in three school districts in the same county. The county where phase two o f this study was conducted was different from the county where phase one was conducted. The scope was expanded to include the three school districts mentioned above, where six professionals in each district were interviewed by the same methods. We tried to gain access to professionals from each district including the Director o f Special Education in each district, the Special Ed­ ucation Consultant in each district, two Transition Coordina­ tors in each district, and two instructors from each district who have completed independent educational plans (IEPs) for stu­ dents with ASD. After obtaining access to the districts, it was found that there were only 13 professionals who met the cri­ teria who worked in the three districts. Each district had only one Transition Coordinator. Only District C had a Special Ed­ ucation Consultant. Each district had exactly two high school level instructors who met the criteria for the study. A total o f 13 people met the criteria for the study, and o f them, 11 agreed to be interviewed. One o f the two who did not agree to be interviewed responded favorably to an introductory email, but did not respond to later emails; another potential interviewee did not respond at all (one o f the instructors in District A and the Transition Coordinator in District A). However, obtaining the participation o f 11 o f 13 potential participants is an accept­ able response rate (85%).

Profile of the Participants All participants had m aster’s degrees in special educa­ tion; one had a Ph.D. All but two o f the participants described themselves as dealing with a very wide range o f abilities when it came to students with ASD. The two exceptions were found in a school district where there appeared to be a certain divi­ sion o f labor. The Transition Coordinator dealt with “ lower functioning” (the Transition Coordinator’s term) students who were earning certificates not diplomas, and one o f the Instruc­ tors described him /herself as only dealing with students who were “high functioning” enough to earn diplomas (the In­ structor’s terms), implying that the Instructor only dealt with students who would not be encountered by the transition co­ ordinator.

Setting Two o f the school districts were suburban and one was urban, and there were substantial differences. All o f the school districts in this study were within 35 miles o f a major met­ ropolitan city. The urban district’s students were 52% Black, 34% White, 2% Asian, and 6.2% mixed race. One o f the sub­ urban school’s demographic data reported students that were 66% White, 19% Black, 9% Native American, 3% o f Asian and the remainder mixed race. The other suburban school re­ ported 85% White students, 3% Native American, 6% Black students, and 6% Asians students. About 15% o f the students in the urban district could be described as Hispanic in contrast to about 4% in the suburban districts.Method of Data Collection.

The interviewer relied on note taking and an electronic recording device. The participants were asked whether they accepted the use o f the recording device and if so, the inter­ views were taped. Note taking was also employed to describe the participants’ facial expressions, tone o f voice, pace at which they responded, and so on. The data were immediately transcribed into a word document by the researcher. The re­ searcher’s notes were integrated into the transcription o f the electronically recorded notes. Examples o f interview ques­ tions for participants included:

1. What literacy skills do ASD student need? How do these skills help Students with ASD in the real world?

2. How do the parents o f Students with ASD influence your choice o f lessons?

3. What textbooks are best for imparting litera­ cy skills to Students with ASD? How do you determine this?

4. How do special education experts impart litera­ cy skills (reading and writing) to students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD)?

5. Describe how you rate the success o f your program. Describe how you rate instances o f failure in your program.

6. How do special education experts impart litera­ cy skills (reading and writing) to students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD)?

7. Describe a student whom you consider a suc­ cess.

The interviews took 10 to 25 minutes each, over a one- month period. Interviews were arranged via email and con­ ducted in the building where the participants worked. The par­ ticipants signed consent forms and were paid $25 before they were asked whether they would accept being recorded. Ten o f 11 participants agreed to be taped, and agreed to have the re­ searcher take notes while they answered questions. Instructor A1 asked to give his/her answers in handwriting because tape recorders made him/her uncomfortable. Two o f the other par­ ticipants gave handwritten notes on the answers to questions.

O f the ten times the interviews were conducted with a tape recorder, the full interview was captured on tape.

Data Analysis A meta-inquiry method (Carlson & McCaslin, 2003) was used to analyze the data in both phases o f the study. Meta-in­ quiry is the coding, clarification, and appreciation o f initial responses gathered through initial interviews from a small group o f participants o f similar credentials. The results from a meta-inquiry process create a composite, constructed from initial interview protocol data, which gleans analytical and in­ terpretative information (Carlson & McCaslin, 2003).

The primary author developed a coding matrix o f the type described by Scott (2004) and Carlson and McCaslin (2003).

Through a triangulation approach, using the analytical skills o f the two co-authors, codes were divided into seven domains to assure coding reliability and reduce theoretical conditioning (Strauss & Corbin, 1990). The research team selected each domain to reflect a particular question (i.e., method o f teach­ ing literacy skills, range o f severity o f disability). Each code was divided between a domain and dimension. The dimen­ sions described individual answers so that the theory could define the range o f responses made by participants (Bradley, Curry, & Devers, 2007). The matrix is shown in Tables 1 and 2.

Research Question One How are high school-age students with ASD taught liter­ acy skills that may facilitate their transition to adulthood by public school professionals (special education teachers, con­ sultants, directors, and transition coordinators)?

The most common responses described methods o f ac­ commodation, which involved gaining exemptions from in­ struction in the skills that reformers, such as the authors o f A Nation at Risk (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983), considered most important for the nation’s overall economic growth— math and reading. According to the study’s participants, the accommodations technically ful­ fill the legal requirements expected (i.e., the need for a specif­ ic percentage o f students to pass the tests). At the same time, providing accommodations such as reading a test question for a student with disabilities does not contribute to the students’ mastery o f basic skills. The participants who elaborated on accommodations did not consider them productive. Since the original motivation for reform was improvement o f basic skills, providing accommodations seems to defeat the purpose o f the test.

Another important result is that in all three school dis­ tricts’ respondents indicated that a formal assessment should be performed prior to literacy interventions. The participants may have selected methods o f intervention by trial and error, but they believe there is a need to know the students’ perfor­ mance level by systematic evaluation.

Research Question Two How do public school professionals (special education teachers, consultants, directors, and transition coordina­ tors) evaluate methods o f teaching literacy skills, i.e., reading and writing, for high school-age students with ASD?

In both phases o f this study, legal mandates were seen as impediments to instruction in the areas that the professionals considered important. The largest numbers o f discussions o f how participants select methods o f instruction were the par­ ticipants’ assertion that they were using counter-productive methods because o f the need to meet certain legal mandates.

Research Question Three How do these professionals (special education teachers, consultants, directors, and transition coordinators) understand their contribution to teaching literacy skills and to facilitating the transition to adult life for high school-age students with ASD?It is significant that the two Transition Coordinators in this study as well as the Transition Coordinator in Phase One saw success in terms achieving independence and saw literacy as a key ingredient in that success. The Instructor in Phase One, however, saw literacy as an extremely important factor, but not as a part o f his/her job. By implication, that instructor did not see teaching literacy skills as an aspect o f his/her suc­ cess as an instructor. In general, those who saw independence as a goal also saw literacy as an important skill to teach; those who did not see independence as goal did not see literacy as an important skill to teach.

Research Question Four How do parents influence decisions about teaching litera­ cy skills to high school-age students with ASD?

Most o f the participants viewed the parents as advocates for students and viewed this in a positive way. The two par­ ticipants who discussed the relationship between parental in­ volvement and literacy stated that parents are often uncon­ cerned or do not consider it important. Parents may not be aware o f the importance o f literacy skills for independence.

Table 1 Domains Related to Research Questions One and Two.

D o m a in P la c e m e n t M e th o d C r ite r io n R e g u la t io n D im e n s io n s a. Inclusion; b. Resource Room; c. Certificate Programa. Accommodation; b. Assessment; c. Intervention; d. Non-Answera. Trial and Error b. Researcha. Impede; b. Facilitate; c. No effect M o d a l R e s p o n s eInclusion Accommodation Neither; both equal # W h o g a v e m o d a l r e s p o n s eFive Seven Two Three I n s ta n c e s o f M o d eSix Ten Two Seven M o d e I m p lie s The professionals saw inclusion as a preferred location for students with ASD.Accommodation is a strong concern for professionals who work with students with ASDMost o f those interviewed did not state a criterion for selecting a method.The largest number o f these professionals felt that regulations were often ill- conceived posing a problem for their work.

Table 2 Domains Related to Questions Three and Four.

D o m a in S u c c e s s P a r e n t s R a n g e D im e n s io n s a. Independence; b. Non- Independencea. Described their children’s interests; b. Advocate c. Describe intentionsa. Diverse b. Higher functioning c. Lower functioning M o d a l R e s p o n s e Independence Advocate Diverse # W h o g a v e m o d a l r e s p o n s eSix Five Nine I n s ta n c e s o f M o d e Seven Six Nine M o d e I m p lie s A large number of professionals do understand the goal o f their work is related to developing independent living for students with ASD.The most common response was to view parents as advocates for students.Most o f the professionals saw their work as dealing with students with ASD with a wide range o f disabilities. Limitations This paper describes qualitative research that examines how educators in some Midwestern school districts describe the development o f basic literacy skills by high school stu­ dents with ASD. The participants offered perspectives on their individual school districts, so results do not generalize to a universal state o f education, but only show how certain ideas can play out in individual instances. Further, the sample o f convenience most likely was made available because the di­ rectors o f special education believed that their programs had strong positive features. Since the data were largely gathered through interviews, some o f the participants probably be­ lieved they were making their roles appear overwhelmingly positive. The samples in the combined studies were limited to four school districts in two counties. These studies could be pointing to problems that exist in the local system, but that supposition cannot be generalized to presume that most school districts are similar to the ones studied here.

Discussion Overall Results. A common characteristic o f the partici­ pants in the two phases o f this research is that all participants discussed accommodations. Some o f the accommodations were obviously helpful such as giving more time for tests, but many accommodations undermined the purpose o f the stan­ dards. It is reasonable to say that the participants were inter­ ested in accommodations that permitted them to help students achieve the required benchmarks for success.

However, it is even more significant that those partici­ pants who connected the success o f students to independence or employment saw their function as promoting the literacy o f students. Participants in both phases o f the study were aware that achieving benchmarks was o f little value to students who often were not taught independence or literacy skills.

The participants who discussed the effects o f legislation viewed most laws as hindrances to their work. One partici­ pant complained that the system does not permit work on real world problems such as teaching budgeting rather than ab­ stract math. Another participant complained about rules lim­ iting the amount o f time that he/she thought should be spent in the community learning real-life skills because students were required to spend more time in classes. Only once did a participant describe a law as positive; the law required that non-diploma students remain in school until age 26. This was a law unique to the state where the research was conducted.

The passage o f the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) occurred after the completion o f this research study; therefore, no data were collected that might speak to coordi­ nated efforts between educators and rehabilitation counselors (e.g., sitting on IEP team meetings together) who can foster collaborative goals for literacy success, integration into the community, and quality employment outcomes.

Hegemony and Education Reform. In critical discourse analysis, the term hegemony is used to describe ideas put for­ ward by leaders in either government or civil society that areviewed by many as simply common sense (unquestioned) and by others as a force that cannot be resisted (Lears, 1985) and this seems to describe the psychology that we observed. Some o f the participants viewed education reform as a force that is generally malevolent, against which they were helpless. In the Phase One study, one participant viewed education reform as something not to be questioned. However, Lears (1985) points out that people are usually less helpless than they believe themselves to be and ideas o f powerlessness can be changed.

In this study, while education reform will remain a persistent force for the foreseeable future, the aspects o f it that troubled the participants could possibly be modified for the better.

Recommendations. The following workable ideas pro­ vide positive improvement in literacy skills for students with ASD:

1. Vocational rehabilitation counselors should work with special education pro­ fessionals and parents to explain what skills the students will need when they enter the jo b markets. Pre-employment skills training opportunities will want to highlight the continued importance o f literacies within reading, writing, infor­ mation, digital technologies, and other occupational trends.

2. Evaluation o f secondary special education instructors and the schools where they work should be based on actual student improvement in targeted (literacy) skills, not simply whether the student passed an assessment.

3. While students with ASD may require assistance to pass state educational assessment tests, there should still be an assessment o f the students’ progress in basic skills. For example, if a student needs a writer to pass the educational assessment, there should be an addition­ al assessment o f progress in writing.

None o f the above implies that students with ASD do not need accommodations, but the accommodations should not hinder progress in basic skills.

Topics for Future Research. This paper highlights the need for research on the operations within public schools. It is based on information about the processes o f four different school districts, all o f which have unique cultures. To better understand the real world o f schools, qualitative research o f this type, accompanied by observational studies to determine what actually goes on behind closed doors, should be conduct­ ed in several schools in a broad sampling o f states.

As noted earlier, quantitative research on the progress o f students with autism spectrum disorders in literacy skills is lacking, particularly at a secondary level. This study certainly points to a need for such research. Further, it would be useful to have research on the tran­ sition from high school to independence that could determine more exactly what skills are useful for the process. The partic­ ipants in this study understood they could only speculate about transition because the districts had not collected these kinds o f data. Research on partnerships and best practices within rehabilitation counseling should be highlighted in schools to improve collaboration under the WIOA environment such as Pre-ETS partnerships. Such collaboration on literacy instruc­ tional strategies may lead to enhanced independence among students and young adults with ASD.

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