By participating within the educational setting in making decisions about their lives that reach beyond choice-making, students with disabilities who acquire the skills of self-determination may express interests and goals through their own authentic voice. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to describe the experiences and participation of two high-school students labeled with intellectual disability or autism at their Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings following participation in the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (SDLMI). Student participation in the IEP process provides an avenue through which self-determined qualities emerge, and verbal and nonverbal participation can occur in a meaningful way. Connections, patterns, and insights were examined to create an overall picture of the essential characteristics and component elements of self-determination displayed by the participating students, and through self-determination reports as expressed by the participating educators and parents.
Previous research has shown that direct instruction informing students about the IEP process and incorporating skills such as decision-making, problem-solving, goal-setting, self-advocacy, and self-awareness is predictive of self-determination. Findings from this study demonstrated that incorporating the essential characteristics and component elements of self-determination into classroom instruction through the SDLMI were reflected in student participation in their IEP meeting, and reinforced the role that adult members of the team can have in the co-construction of information. Both classroom instruction and co-construction of information are important steps in ensuring that students are participating in, and not simply attending, their IEP meeting. Implications for future research and educational practice were explored.
","abstract_html":"<p>By participating within the educational setting in making decisions about their lives that reach beyond choice-making, students with disabilities who acquire the skills of self-determination may express interests and goals through their own authentic voice. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to describe the experiences and participation of two high-school students labeled with intellectual disability or autism at their Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings following participation in the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (SDLMI). Student participation in the IEP process provides an avenue through which self-determined qualities emerge, and verbal and nonverbal participation can occur in a meaningful way. Connections, patterns, and insights were examined to create an overall picture of the essential characteristics and component elements of self-determination displayed by the participating students, and through self-determination reports as expressed by the participating educators and parents.</p> <p>Previous research has shown that direct instruction informing students about the IEP process and incorporating skills such as decision-making, problem-solving, goal-setting, self-advocacy, and self-awareness is predictive of self-determination. Findings from this study demonstrated that incorporating the essential characteristics and component elements of self-determination into classroom instruction through the SDLMI were reflected in student participation in their IEP meeting, and reinforced the role that adult members of the team can have in the co-construction of information. Both classroom instruction and co-construction of information are important steps in ensuring that students are participating in, and not simply attending, their IEP meeting. Implications for future research and educational practice were explored.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Gross, Trudy Ruth"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Learning and Instruction","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Emily Nusbaum","Nicola McClung","Noah Borrero"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:44:13Z","subjects":["autism","high school","individualized education program","intellectual disability","self-determination","transition planning","Special Education and Teaching"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://repository.usfca.edu/diss/344","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Emily Nusbaum","Nicola McClung","Noah Borrero"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Gross, Trudy Ruth"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2017-08-30T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Learning and Instruction"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["autism","high school","individualized education program","intellectual disability","self-determination","transition planning","Special Education and Teaching"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://repository.usfca.edu/diss/344"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["By participating within the educational setting in making decisions about their lives that reach beyond choice-making, students with disabilities who acquire the skills of self-determination may express interests and goals through their own authentic voice. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to describe the experiences and participation of two high-school students labeled with intellectual disability or autism at their Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings following participation in the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (SDLMI). Student participation in the IEP process provides an avenue through which self-determined qualities emerge, and verbal and nonverbal participation can occur in a meaningful way. Connections, patterns, and insights were examined to create an overall picture of the essential characteristics and component elements of self-determination displayed by the participating students, and through self-determination reports as expressed by the participating educators and parents.
Previous research has shown that direct instruction informing students about the IEP process and incorporating skills such as decision-making, problem-solving, goal-setting, self-advocacy, and self-awareness is predictive of self-determination. Findings from this study demonstrated that incorporating the essential characteristics and component elements of self-determination into classroom instruction through the SDLMI were reflected in student participation in their IEP meeting, and reinforced the role that adult members of the team can have in the co-construction of information. Both classroom instruction and co-construction of information are important steps in ensuring that students are participating in, and not simply attending, their IEP meeting. Implications for future research and educational practice were explored.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Role of Self-Determination and Co-Construction to Support Meaningful Student Participation in an Individualized Education Program Meeting in High School"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Emily Nusbaum","Nicola McClung","Noah Borrero"],"dc:creator":["Gross, Trudy Ruth"],"dc:date.available":["2017-08-30T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["By participating within the educational setting in making decisions about their lives that reach beyond choice-making, students with disabilities who acquire the skills of self-determination may express interests and goals through their own authentic voice. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to describe the experiences and participation of two high-school students labeled with intellectual disability or autism at their Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings following participation in the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (SDLMI). Student participation in the IEP process provides an avenue through which self-determined qualities emerge, and verbal and nonverbal participation can occur in a meaningful way. Connections, patterns, and insights were examined to create an overall picture of the essential characteristics and component elements of self-determination displayed by the participating students, and through self-determination reports as expressed by the participating educators and parents.
Previous research has shown that direct instruction informing students about the IEP process and incorporating skills such as decision-making, problem-solving, goal-setting, self-advocacy, and self-awareness is predictive of self-determination. Findings from this study demonstrated that incorporating the essential characteristics and component elements of self-determination into classroom instruction through the SDLMI were reflected in student participation in their IEP meeting, and reinforced the role that adult members of the team can have in the co-construction of information. Both classroom instruction and co-construction of information are important steps in ensuring that students are participating in, and not simply attending, their IEP meeting. Implications for future research and educational practice were explored.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://repository.usfca.edu/diss/344"],"dc:subject":["autism","high school","individualized education program","intellectual disability","self-determination","transition planning","Special Education and Teaching"],"dc:title":["The Role of Self-Determination and Co-Construction to Support Meaningful Student Participation in an Individualized Education Program Meeting in High School"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Learning and Instruction"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:44:13Z"}