Browsing by Author "Davis, Samantha Nicole"

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A Case Study of the Lived Experiences of Elementary Teachers Working With Students With Disabilities
(2024-08) Davis, Samantha Nicole
The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (2019) mandates that educators provide students with free appropriate public education, resulting in inclusion opportunities for students with disabilities (SWD). Despite this progress, there remains a gap in preparing teachers adequately for the challenges of serving SWD in inclusive classrooms. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to address the lived experiences of elementary general and special educators working with SWD in an inclusive classroom and to identify the support necessary to meet the diverse needs of these students. This study was based on the theoretical framework of Vygotsky’s (1978) theory of instructional scaffolding, which suggests strategies to guide students toward their zone of proximal development. In this study, I employed thematic analysis to investigate the data gathered. The process involved conducting semistructured interviews in elementary school environments and transcribing, coding, and transforming the interviews into distinct themes. The data revealed that many teachers in inclusive classrooms did not understand what inclusion meant and its responsibilities. These findings underscored significant issues, such as the evident gaps in training, the critical shortage of essential resources, and the current inadequacies in addressing the diverse needs of SWD in inclusive setups. The study’s outcomes shed light on the challenges faced by educators and paved the way for the identification of three main themes: the varied needs present in inclusive classrooms, the insufficiency of training, and the pressing need for more accessible resources to support teachers in meeting their students’ requirements effectively.