Examination of K-12 School Administrators’ Perceptions of Their Preparation to Lead Special Education Programs

<p>Current research tells us that when school administrators are not prepared to lead special education, the result can be an educational detriment to the student involved and cause a costly fiscal impact to the school district. The researcher set out to ascertain school administrators’ perceptions of the skills necessary to effectively lead special education programs; it was also important to gauge school administrators’ preparation to lead special education programs based on their special education knowledge. Ball and Green (2014) state that it is the role of the school principal to develop teachers and related support within their buildings, while Pazey, Gevarter, Hamrick, and Rojeski (2014) find that schools where special education programming is improperly implemented are confronted with lawsuits at increasingly higher rates. This study utilizes qualitative research methods through the use of transcendental phenomenology by interviewing current school administrators about their knowledge pertaining to special education and their perceived ability to lead the special education programs within the buildings they support. The interviews were conducted with two school principals, two assistant principals, and two special education administrators. The results of this research are discussed in detail, and recommendations are offered regarding how to better equip school administrators to lead special education.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership for Learning Dissertations

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Educational Leadership

Year

2018

Author dc:creator

• Davies, Jaime

Contributors dc:contributor

• Dr. Chinasa Elue
• Dr. Nicholas Clegorne

• The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA)
• Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
• Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)
• Individual Education Plan (IEP)
• Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
• Leadership Preparation Programs
• Special Education
• School Administration
• Educational Leadership

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/educleaddoc_etd/16

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu:educleaddoc_etd-1018