The Perceived Usefulness of a Summary of Performance by Postsecondary Disability Service Providers

This study investigated postsecondary disability service providers' (DSP) perceived usefulness of an example of a well-developed SOP. This example SOP was included in a 22 question survey, administered electronically to DSPs who are members of the Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD). The participants (n=298) were asked to rate the usefulness of the test scores, rationale for accommodation, history of use or success of accommodation, report writer's recommendations, and student input included in the example SOP for making accommodation decisions. ANOVAs were used to determine if the perceived usefulness of the parts of the Model SOP varied as a function of the DSPs' highest degree, disciplines or fields of study, training for the interpretation of disability documentation, and/or years of experience in postsecondary disability services. DSPs with less than five years of experience (M=1.85, SD = .87) found the report writer's recommendations more useful than DSPs with greater than 10 years of experience (M=2.24, SD = 1.02). DSPs with 5-10 years of experience did not differ significantly from either of the other groups. Additionally, statistical significance was approached (p = .085) suggesting that DSPs with doctorate degrees compared to DSPs with a master's degree or a bachelor's degree may find the history of use or success less useful for accommodation decisions. Overall, the average usefulness ratings for all DSP groupings for the identified parts of the SOP were in the extremely useful or very useful range.

Name thesis:degree_name

PhD

Level thesis:degree_level

Immediate Access

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

School Psychology

Year dc:date.available

2011

Author dc:creator

• de Vries, Rebecca

Contributors dc:contributor

• Ara J. Schmitt
• Jeffrey A. Miller
• Elizabeth McCallum

• Association on Higher Education and Disability
• Disability documentation
• Education law
• Post-secondary disability services
• Summary of performance
• Transition

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/466

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dsc.duq.edu:etd-1479