International Journal Special Education

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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SPECIAL EDUCATION Vol 26, No: 3, 2011ParticipantsThe participants consisted of 17 birth mothers of adolescents and young adults identified as having alearning disability who responded to an announcement placed on the website of the Learning DisabilitiesAssociation of Ontario. The selection criteria were that their child had to have a diagnosis of a learningdisability and be enrolled in a high school or have recently graduated from secondary school. Six of theparticipants’ children had a diagnosis of LD, seven had a dual diagnosis, three had a triple diagnosis, andone had a quadruple diagnosis. They were most often assessed with attention deficit hyperactivitydisorder and/or giftedness in addition to learning disabilities. The adolescents and young adults wereeither in high school (9/17) or had graduated (8/17) and ranged in age from 14 to 27 years (see Table 1).Only one child had failed a grade (#9) and another youth left school without graduating (#1). There were13 males and 4 females. Most of the parents indicated that they became aware that there were problemsin the academic progress of their son or daughter in elementary school and they all had been advocatingever since.Table 1. Characteristics of Adolescents and Young Adults with LDPerson Sex Age Highest grade High school placement Parents Diagnosisaware1 M 20 Gr. 11<strong>Special</strong> class High school LD(working)2 M 25 Gr. 13Private school 7 yr. NVLD, gifted(university)3 M 15 Gr. 10 Regular class, basic level 6 yr. LD, language disorder4 F 16 Gr. 11 Fr.ImmersionGr. 2 LD, ADHD+accommodations5 F 27 Gr. 13Regular classGr. 3 LD(university) +accommodations6 M 17 Gr. 11 Regular class +resource Kindergarten LD, CAPDsupport7 F 25 Gr.12(university)Private school 6 yr. LD, ADHD, Scotopicsensitivity syndrome8 M 15 Gr.10 Regular classKindergarten NVLD, gifted+accommodations +resourcessupport9 M 16 Gr. 9 Adaptive high schoolprogram3 yr. LD, speech & languagedisorder10 M 14 Gr. 8 Regular class Kindergarten LD11 M 15 Gr. 9 Regular class1 yr. LD+accommodations +resourcesupport12 F 24 Gr.12 (working LD class Kindergarten LD+ college)13 M 19 Gr.12(college)Regular class Gr. 4 LD, ADHD, anxiety,Scotopic sensitivitysyndrome14 M 18 Gr. 12IB program to Gr. 11, regular High school LD, ADHD, gifted(university) class for Gr. 1215 M 14 Gr. 8 Regular classGr. 2 LD+accommodations16 M 21 Gr.12Regular classKindergarten LD, ADHD, gifted(university) +accommodations17 M 15 Gr. 9 Regular class+accommodationsGr. 3 LD, ADDData CollectionData were collected through questionnaires and individual interviews. The questionnaires consisted ofopen-ended items related to the four dimensions of parental advocacy, the assessment process, and theschool experience of their children (see Appendix A). Participants were invited to be involved in an indepthinterview to discuss their advocacy experiences further (Marshall & Rossman, 2006). Thirteen ofthe mothers told their stories in semi-structured interviews that lasted about 60 minutes each. During thattime, they were asked to elaborate on the questions to which they had responded in the questionnaire (seeAppendix B). A transcript of each interview was prepared and sent to the participant for approval. A few126
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SPECIAL EDUCATION Vol 26, No: 3, 2011of the participants corrected the grammar and added more details to the transcripts and only approvedtranscripts were used in the analysis.Data AnalysisThe quantitative data were analyzed descriptively; however, most of the data were qualitative and wereanalyzed inductively. The data from the interviews and open-ended questions were read repeatedly, textwas underlined, and notes were made (Miles & Huberman, 1994). They were organized into fivecategories of which four were the dimensions of advocacy. The fifth was the school experiences of thesons and daughters of the participants. The responses to the questions in each category were coded andexamined for patterns that emerged as sub-categories. The categories and sub-categories are shown inTable 2. The data in the sub-categories assisted the researchers in understanding the school experiencesand the specific activities performed by parents in each of the dimensions. The constant comparativemethod was used to saturate the sub-categories and interpretations were made using inductive reasoning(Patton, 2002). The analysis was done by hand to facilitate engagement with the data (Charmaz, 2000).CategoryAwarenessSeeking informationPresenting the caseTable 2. Categories and Sub-CategoriesSub-CategoryMothers observed delays in language, trouble learning, anxiety anddepression, similar characteristics in older siblingsTeachers observed academic difficultiesPsychological assessment, LD, policies and proceduresMostly websites (support groups, Ministry of <strong>Education</strong>)Frequency: continually or when there was a problemFormal meetings sometimes with education advocates but not lawyersInformal meetings – inservice the teachers, open communication,volunteeringElected as a trusteeMonitoringSchool experiences of theYouthChildren’s feelings about school, academicsSchool’s implementation of the IEPStrengths, needs, and accommodationsFactors contributing to successFactors hindering successTrustworthinessTo establish the quality of the study, the researcher must describe indicators that provide evidence thatthe information generated in the research is trustworthy and believable (Freeman, deMarrais, Preissle,Roulston, & St. Pierre, 2007). The indicators in this study were credibility and transferability.Researchers seek to ensure that there is a correspondence between how the participants view thephenomenon and how they interpret the comments of the participants (Guba & Lincoln, 1989).Credibility was established by doing negative case analysis and member checks. Transferability refers tothe extent to which readers assess the findings consistent or potentially consistent with their ownexperience or settings (Miles & Huberman, 1994). Transferability was enhanced by presenting much ofthe data supporting each category and sub-category, which would assist the readers to link the findings totheir own situations. Additionally, the data were analyzed independently by the researchers, who were inagreement with the findings (Mertens, 2005).FindingsThe findings of this study are reported in this section and they were organized under three broadheadings: school experiences of the youth with learning disabilities, the educational advocacy activitiesof the parents, and reflections on the advocacy experiences. The sub-section on reflections consists ofmajor points about advocacy that were beyond the scope of the four dimensions.127
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