Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-gb8f7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-30T23:44:17.620Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Transition Into and Out of Special Education Services by Young Australian School Children Between 2006 and 2010

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 July 2014

Ian Dempsey
Ian Dempsey*
Affiliation:
Special Education Centre, University of Newcastle, NSW, Australia
*
Correspondence: Ian Dempsey, Special Education Centre, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The extent to which school students continue to receive special education services over time is largely unknown because longitudinal studies are rare in this area. The present study examined a large Australian longitudinal database to track the status of children who received special education support in 2006 and whether they continued to access such support over a 4-year period. Nearly two thirds of the children receiving additional assistance in 2006 did not receive such assistance 4 years later. There were substantial variations in the principal reason for providing special education services to students over this period, and the relative academic performance of the students who received special education support across the 4 years substantially declined. The findings have ramifications for the way we consider changes in the needs of young children as they progress through the primary school system.

Keywords

special education transitionspecial education servicesspecial education outcomes
Type
Original Articles
Information
Australasian Journal of Special Education , Volume 38 , Issue 2 , December 2014 , pp. 115 - 127
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2012). National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy. Retrieved from http://www.naplan.edu.au/Google Scholar
Australian Government Productivity Commission. (2002–2011). Report on government services 2000–2009. Retrieved from http://www.pc.gov.au/gsp/rogsGoogle Scholar
Australian Institute of Family Studies. (2011a). Growing Up in Australia: The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. Retrieved February 18, 2011, from http://www.aifs.gov.au/growingup/Google Scholar
Australian Institute of Family Studies. (2011b). Publications: Technical papers. Retrieved February 18, 2011, from http://www.growingupinaustralia.gov.au/pubs/technical/index.htmlGoogle Scholar
Australian Institute of Family Studies. (2011c). Survey instruments. Retrieved February 18, 2011, from http://www.aifs.gov.au/growingup/Google Scholar
Australian Institute of Family Studies. (2011d). Accessing LSAC data. Retrieved October 5, 2012 from http://www.growingupinaustralia.gov.au/data/dataaccessmenu.htmlGoogle Scholar
Australian Institute of Family Studies. (2011e). Summarising children's wellbeing: The LSAC Outcome Index. February 18, 2011, from http://www.aifs.gov.au/growingup/Google Scholar
Beauman, R., Wheldall, K., & Kemp, C. (2007). Recent research on troublesome classroom behaviour: A review. Australasian Journal of Special Education, 31, 45–60. doi:10.1080/10300110701189014CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bond, T.G., & Fox, C.M. (2007). Applying the Rasch model: Fundamental measurement in the human sciences (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.Google Scholar
Daley, T.C., & Carlson, E. (2009). Predictors of change in eligibility status among preschoolers in special education. Exceptional Children, 75, 412–426. doi:10.1177/001440290907500402Google Scholar
Dempsey, I. (2003). Disproportionate representation in Australian special education. Special Education Perspectives, 12 (1), 17–30.Google Scholar
Dempsey, I., & Davies, M. (2013). National test performance of young Australian children with additional educational needs. Australian Journal of Education, 57, 5–18. doi:10.1177/0004944112468700CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dunn, L.M. & Dunn, D.M. (2007). Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test – Fourth Edition. San Antonio, TX: Pearson Education.Google Scholar
Entwisle, D.R., Alexander, K.L., & Olson, L.S. (2005). First grade and educational attainment by age 22: A new story. American Journal of Sociology, 110, 1458–1502. doi:10.1086/428444CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Flynn, K.S. (2012). Stability of special education eligibility from kindergarten to third grade: Are there variables from fall of kindergarten that predict later classification status? (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). The Florida State University, FL.Google Scholar
Ford, J. (2007). Educational supports for students with disabilities and significant behavioural challenges: Teacher perceptions. Australasian Journal of Special Education, 31, 109–127. doi:10.1080/10300110701704978Google Scholar
Goodman, R. (1997). The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire: A research note. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 38, 581–586. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.1997.tb01545.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hawes, D.J., & Dadds, M.R. (2004). Australian data and psychometric properties of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 38, 644–651. doi:10.1111/j.1440-1614.2004.01427.xGoogle Scholar
Hibel, J., Faircloth, S.C., & Farkas, G. (2008). Unpacking the placement of American Indian and Alaska Native students in special education programs and services in the early grades: School readiness as a predictive variable. Harvard Educational Review, 78, 498–528.Google Scholar
Hibel, J., Farkas, G., & Morgan, P.L. (2010). Who is placed into special education? Sociology of Education, 83, 312–332. doi:10.1177/0038040710383518Google Scholar
Hojat, M., & Xu, G. (2004). A visitor's guide to effect sizes: Statistical significance versus practical (clinical) importance of research findings. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 9, 241–249. doi:10.1023/B:AHSE.0000038173.00909.f6CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hosp, J.L., & Reschly, D.J. (2004). Disproportionate representation of minority students in special education: Academic, demographics, and economic predictors. Exceptional Children, 70, 185–199. doi:10.1177/001440290407000204Google Scholar
Kauffman, J.M., & Hallahan, D.P. (Eds.). (2005). The illusion of full inclusion: A comprehensive critique of a current special education bandwagon (2nd ed.). Austin, TX: Pro-Ed.Google Scholar
McCoy, S., Banks, J., & Shevlin, M. (2012). School matters: How context influences the identification of different types of special educational needs. Irish Educational Studies, 31, 119–138. doi:10.1080/03323315.2012.669568Google Scholar
Morgan, P.L., Frisco, M.L., Farkas, G., & Hibel, J. (2010). A propensity score matching analysis of the effects of special education services. The Journal of Special Education, 43, 236–254. doi:10.1177/0022466908323007Google Scholar
NSW Department of Education and Training. (2011). School Learning Support Program. Retrieved from http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/studentsupport/programs/schoollearning/index.phpGoogle Scholar
Parliament of New South Wales Legislative Council. (2010). The provision of education to students with a disability or special needs. Retrieved from http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/committee.nsf/0/47F51A782AEABBABCA25767A000FABECGoogle Scholar
Parrish, T.B. (2006). National and state overview of special education funding. Retrieved from http://csef.air.org/presentations/KS%20SE%20presentation%203-1-06.pdfGoogle Scholar
Rothman, S. (2009). The LSAC Academic Rating Scale score. Melbourne, Victoria: Australian Council for Educational Research.Google Scholar
Samuels, C.A. (2011). Special education costs seen as costly service. Retrieved from http://www.necn.com/01/19/11/Special-education-costs-seen-as-costly-s/landing.html?&blockID=3&apID=05de81391a6744739571a8ed24f265a1Google Scholar
Stiglitz, J.E. (2012). The price of inequality. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Co.Google Scholar
Tach, L.M., & Farkas, G. (2006). Learning-related behaviors, cognitive skills, and ability grouping when schooling begins. Social Science Research, 35, 1048–1079. doi:10.1016/j.ssresearch.2005.08.001Google Scholar
Thomson, S., De Bortoli, L., Nicolas, M., Hillman, K., & Buckley, S. (2011). Challenges for Australian education: Results from PISA 2009: The PISA 2009 assessment of students’ reading, mathematical and scientific literacy. Camberwell, Victoria: Australian Council for Educational Research. Retrieved from http://www.acer.edu.au/documents/PISA-Report-2009.pdfGoogle Scholar
U.S. Department of Education. (2012). Building the legacy: IDEA 2004. Retrieved from http://idea.ed.gov/Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. (2012). Early Childhood Longitudinal Program (ECLS). Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/ecls/Google Scholar
Waitoller, F.R., Artiles, A.J., & Cheney, D.A. (2010). The miner's canary: A review of overrepresentation research and explanations. The Journal of Special Education, 44, 29–49. doi:10.1177/0022466908329226Google Scholar
Winters, M.A. & Greene, J.P. (2007). Debunking a special education myth. Education Next, 7, 67–71. Retrieved from http://educationnext.org/debunking-a-special-education-myth/Google Scholar
Zhang, D., & Katsiyannis, A. (2002). Minority representation in special education: A persistent challenge. Remedial and Special Education, 23, 180–187. doi:10.1177/07419325020230030601Google Scholar