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215 Pages·2016·1.11 MB·English
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SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS’ LIVED EXPERIENCES IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE IPAD AS AN INSTRUCTIONAL TOOL FOR STUDENTS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES by Takisha Salander Epps Liberty University A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Education Liberty University 2016 2 SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS’ LIVED EXPERIENCESIN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE IPAD AS AN INSTRUCTIONAL TOOL FOR STUDENTS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES by Takisha Salander Epps A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Education Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA 2016 APPROVED BY: Angela Marguerite Smith, Ed.D., Committee Chair James Swezey, Ed.D., Committee Member Harold Thompson, Ed.D., Committee Member Scott Watson, Ph.D., Associate Dean, Advanced Programs 3 ABSTRACT The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the lived experience of 11 special education teachers, who implemented iPads as an instructional tool for elementary students with intellectual disabilities. This study was conducted in a North Carolina school district. The theories, which guided this study were Vygotsky’s (1978) sociocultural theory and Piaget’s (1954) cognitive development theory. Within the study, one central question and three sub-questions were used to guide the study. The research questions focused on special education teachers’ experiences, as they implemented the iPad as an instructional tool for students with intellectual disabilities. To address these questions about the lived experiences of these special education teachers, data were collected via: (a) face-to-face interviews, (b) observations, and (c) focus groups. Analysis of data was conducted with the use of Moustakas’ (1994) procedures, in order to analyze the data provide a full description of the phenomenon through the analytic techniques of: (a) bracketing, (b) horizonalization, (c) clusters of meaning, as well as (d) identification of textual and structural descriptions. Creswell (2013) noted that use of this process allows the author to determine the essence of the phenomenon. During this procedure, the technique of triangulation was used to increase the reliability of the study; in addition, reflexivity, external audit, and member checks were used to support the findings from the data analysis. Keywords: intellectual disabilities, iPads, instructional tools, technology 4 DEDICATION I thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for guiding me through this educational journey. He has been my guiding light, endowing me strength and love to be successful. Throughout this progress, the Lord provided me daily wisdom and grace, believing “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13, King James Version). I give Him the upmost glory and honor for teaching me that all things are possible in His name. I dedicate this dissertation to my mother, who taught me the value of education and the importance of working for the things I desire in life. Her encouragement and motivation instilled in me a love and passion for learning and provided me a strong work ethic. Genetha Epps, thank you for believing in me and providing me confidence to do my best and to seek my ambitions. Mother, without your steadfast love, support, and inspiration, I would have never achieved this milestone in my life. 5 Acknowledgments I would like to extend my appreciation and gratitude to the many instrumental people in my life who provided me guidance and support upon achieving this academic milestone. First, I would like to acknowledge my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ who guided me through this process. To my mom and dad, thank you for providing me solid advice and supporting my dream to earn my doctoral degree. My dad (Lonza) powered the process for me to begin this educational journey. I am grateful for his prayers and encouragement. He would have been proud to see all my hard work come to fruition. Thank you daddy for believing in your little girl. Daddy, may you rest in peace (November 12, 2015) and I love you. To my dissertation committee, Dr. Angela Marguerite Smith, thank you so much for chairing this study. I greatly appreciate your guidance, leadership, constant feedback, and motivation through the dissertation process. Dr. Smith, your scholarly wisdom and unfailing encouragement were very inspirational to my research. I am honored that you devoted your valuable time to coach me through the dissertation process. To my committee members, Dr. James Swezey and Dr. Harold Thompson, thank you for your willingness to serve. Dr. Swezey, I truly appreciate you, serving a dual role as a research consultant and a committee member of my dissertation committee. Thank you for your influential direction and guidance, which initiated from Education 919. I genuinely appreciate your wisdom and knowledge of qualitative research as you provided clarity and direction in this study along with inspiring me to become a leader and a better writer. Dr. Harold Thompson, thank you for serving as my local committee member for my dissertation. Your notable contributions to education and educational knowledge was advantageous to my research. I profoundly appreciate your incredible patience and generosity of time as you kept me focused, 6 ensuring I achieved my dissertation requirements and deadlines. Your input and feedback helped propel this study to a completion. Additionally, many family and friends showed me with invaluable support and encouragement in writing this dissertation. I would like to provide my cousin, Cheryl Henderson, a special thanks for continually encouraging me to pursue a doctoral degree. Thank you for always believing in me. To my aunt, Dorothy, thank you for supporting me with daily prayers. Your love and support during this process truly strengthened me. I am very blessed to have such a supportive family. I would like to extend a special acknowledgement to Karen Thompson. Karen, thank you for providing me tremendous support, educational advice, editing recommendations, writing strategies, and constructive feedback, which greatly influenced this study. Karen, I gratefully appreciate you serving as a continuous source of support and guidance with my dissertation. Your support has inspired me to achieve this milestone. To my friend Stacy, thank you for your Sunday phone calls, ensuring I was working on my dissertation. I sincerely thank you for being a pillar. In addition, I truly appreciate my pre graduation gift (an iPad), which was critically needed and profoundly used for my study. To my friend Loretta, from the first day we met during an intensive class, you have supported me through moments of laughter and tears. I appreciate and thank you for the many hours of conversation, advice, and kindness. No matter when I called or texted, you were always available to listen to me. I truly believe your presence was orchestrated by God. You have been such a blessing. Thank you for being inspirational to me throughout this entire process. 7 To my friend, Dr. Crudup, thank you for your telephone calls on each holiday to encourage me to take an advantage of the extra time to work on my dissertation. Finally, I would like to extend my gratitude to the school district that approved for me to conduct my research in their schools. I truly appreciate all the special education teachers who dedicated their time as participants. Your participation helped me to collect a wealth of data that was very important to complete my dissertation. This research would not have been possible without your willingness to participate throughout my study. Thank you for sharing your experiences and knowledge. In closing, I would like to extend my gratitude to thank everyone that was not individually mentioned in this section. Through a united effort of my parents, dissertation committee, family, and friends, I was able to earn a doctorate degree in education. I give each of you thanks for reminding me to center all on God. 8 Table of Contents ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................................3 Dedication ......................................................................................................................... 4 Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................. 5 List of Tables……….........................................................................................................11 List of Figures ...................................................................................................................12 List of Abbreviations.........................................................................................................13 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................14 Overview............................................................................................................................14 Background .......................................................................................................................16 Situation to Self ................................................................................................................18 Problem Statement ............................................................................................................19 Purpose Statement..............................................................................................................21 Significance of the Study ..................................................................................................21 Research Questions ...........................................................................................................22 Research Plan ....................................................................................................................25 Delimitations and Limitations............................................................................................26 Definitions…......................................................................................................................27 Summary ...........................................................................................................................28 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW...............................................................................29 Overview ............................................................................................................................29 Theoretical Framework ......................................................................................................30 Related Literature...............................................................................................................37 9 Summary ...........................................................................................................................62 CHAPTER THREE: METHOD...................................................................................................65 Overview ...........................................................................................................................65 Design ...............................................................................................................................66 Research Questions ...........................................................................................................68 Setting…............................................................................................................................69 Participants.........................................................................................................................70 Procedures .........................................................................................................................71 The Researcher’s Role.......................................................................................................72 Data Collection .................................................................................................................74 Interviews...............................................................................................................76 Focus Groups.........................................................................................................81 Observations .........................................................................................................84 Data Analysis ....................................................................................................................85 Trustworthiness .................................................................................................................88 Ethical Considerations ......................................................................................................90 Summary ...........................................................................................................................90 CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS...................................................................................................92 Overview............................................................................................................................92 Participants.........................................................................................................................93 Results..............................................................................................................................104 Summary..........................................................................................................................144 CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS............146 10 Overview..........................................................................................................................146 Summary of Findings.......................................................................................................147 Discussion........................................................................................................................152 Implications......................................................................................................................160 Limitations ......................................................................................................................162 Recommendations for Future Research ..........................................................................163 Summary..........................................................................................................................164 REFERENCES ...........................................................................................................................166 APPENDIX A. Demographic Information………….................................................................179 APPENDIX B. Recruitment of Sites..........................................................................................180 APPENDIX C. Recruitment of Participants …………..............................................................182 APPENDIX D. Follow-up Recruitment of Participants.............................................................185 APPENDIX E. Consent Form ………………………………………………………………..187 APPENDIX F. Prospective Participant Telephone Contact ………………………………….192 APPENDIX G. Observation Notes Procedures..........................................................................194 APPENDIX H. Observation Protocol……………………………………………………….…196 APPENDIX I. Interview Questions............................................................................................200 APPENDIX J. Focus Group Questions ……………………………………………………….203 APPENDIX K. Interview Codes ………………………………………………….……..…….205 APPENDIX L. Focus Group Codes …...………………………………….……..…………….209 APPENDIX M. Observation Overview Caseload …………..………….……...……...……….212 APPENDIX N. Observation Overview, IPad Applications and Adaptive Devices …………...214

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