Examining the Relationship of Variables Related to Litigation Regarding Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities

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Meier, I. (2010). Examining the Relationship of Variables Related to Litigation Regarding Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities. Unc Charlotte Electronic Theses And Dissertations.
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Abstract

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) contains procedural safeguard provisions for parents [20 U.S.C. § 615]. Among these safeguards are (1) dispute resolution, (2) mediation, and (3) administrative hearing. Getty and Summy (2004) contend that some district litigation could be prevented if districts were aware of the factors which may cause a parent to file for a contested case hearing. Best practice variables for students with significant cognitive disabilities were identified from the literature (Browder & Spooner, 2006; Snell & Brown, 2006), and legislative variables were also identified from IDEA (2004). Survey methodology was used to examine the relationship of the best practice and legislative variables and school district litigation. The respondents included 173 special education administrators from North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. The results showed little variability in the dependent variable resulting in a lack of statistical significance. While results did not indicate significance for variables affecting litigation, descriptive analysis revealed that respondents self-evaluated their systems much higher on legislative than best practice variables. Implications for practice indicated a need for professional development for special education administrators in the area of best practices for students with significant cognitive disabilities. Implications for future research included expanding the study to include more states or the possibility of a comparative case study focused on identifying variables associated with school district litigation for this population of students.

Details
Author

Meier, Irene

Title

Examining the Relationship of Variables Related to Litigation Regarding Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities

Physical Description

1 online resource (138 pages) : PDF

Date

2010

Degree Granting Institution

University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Abstract

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) contains procedural safeguard provisions for parents [20 U.S.C. § 615]. Among these safeguards are (1) dispute resolution, (2) mediation, and (3) administrative hearing. Getty and Summy (2004) contend that some district litigation could be prevented if districts were aware of the factors which may cause a parent to file for a contested case hearing. Best practice variables for students with significant cognitive disabilities were identified from the literature (Browder & Spooner, 2006; Snell & Brown, 2006), and legislative variables were also identified from IDEA (2004). Survey methodology was used to examine the relationship of the best practice and legislative variables and school district litigation. The respondents included 173 special education administrators from North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. The results showed little variability in the dependent variable resulting in a lack of statistical significance. While results did not indicate significance for variables affecting litigation, descriptive analysis revealed that respondents self-evaluated their systems much higher on legislative than best practice variables. Implications for practice indicated a need for professional development for special education administrators in the area of best practices for students with significant cognitive disabilities. Implications for future research included expanding the study to include more states or the possibility of a comparative case study focused on identifying variables associated with school district litigation for this population of students.

Genre

doctoral dissertations

Subjects--Topics

Special education

Degree

Ph.D.

Keywords

Disabilities
Litigation
Significant

Subject Area

Special Education

Advisor(s)

Browder, Diane

Committee Members

Flowers, Claudia
Edwards, Lienne
McColl, Ann

Degree Note

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 2010.

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Rights Holder Information

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Identifier

Meier_uncc_0694D_10101

Permalink

http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.13093/etd:1437