Sustainable Systemic Change: A District Case Study About Including Students With Extensive Support Needs in General Education Contexts

• In Event: Dismantling Educational Structures That Create Barriers for Students With Disabilities

Abstract

This case study investigated a school district’s multi-year experience facilitating the development of inclusive education services for students with significant cognitive disabilities (SCD).
Purpose. This qualitative case study investigated a school district’s multi-year experience with facilitating the development of inclusive education practices for students with SCD. This case study was developed to: (a) understand how one school district addressed sustainable systemic change related to the inclusion of students with significant cognitive disabilities in general education classes, and (b) understand the impact of those efforts on students, their parents, instructional personnel, and administrators.
Perspective. Due to the complexity of sustainable systemic change in education, case study methodology has been used because it assists in explaining systemic change efforts in the participants’ own words and interpretations of both the change efforts and their impact on practice. Merriam and Tisdell (2016) describe a case study as being a “bounded system” of information, with a case being an example of “some phenomenon, a program, a group, an institution, a community, or a specific policy” (p. 38). Case studies allow researchers to more deeply explain, explore, or describe how change is occurring within the context of the “case” or system (Hamilton & Corbett-Whittier, 2014).
Methods. The Principal Investigator used qualitative methods to conduct a case study of a school district engaged in a multi-year system change process to increase evidence-based inclusive education practices for students with SCD. Ethnographic methodology, thematic analysis, and the use of a validated observation tool were used.
Data Sources. This qualitative case study comprises data collected and organized by the state and district, such as Least Restrictive Environment data (LRE), and district and school levels, such as budget information, coaching notes, surveys, observations, a reflection tool used to create action plans for systemic inclusive practices (e.g., ROXIE), and work sample collection.
Participants in this study were instructional personnel, district personnel and administrators, and external partners. Instructional personnel were engaged in providing inclusive services for
students with SCD.
Results. The analysis of interviews with participants and district documents indicated major themes and 13 sub-themes. Each of these themes and sub-themes illustrate the changes efforts addressing sustainable systemic change related to the inclusion of students with SCD in general education classes during this case study, and the profound impact of these changes on multiple levels of the education system. The state, district, and school levels aligned their sustainable systemic change efforts towards inclusive education practices for students with SCD. Each theme assisted in understanding the change efforts at multiple levels of the education system, and their actions, words, and documentation to achieve sustainable systemic change for inclusive education.
Significance. This case study provides strategies to support success in systems change that align with and extend implementation science research. Primary findings include the need to
address changes across the multiple levels
engage in strategies to create shared ownership and build stakeholder ownership
engage external critical friends throughout the sustainable systemic change process
Include stakeholders across disciplines or contexts (i.e., special education, science classes)

Author

• Kristin K. Burnette, East Carolina University
  Presenting Author