Capitol News

Michigan State University (MSU) researchers have conducted a study examining the effectiveness of teaching methods for students with and without disabilities. The study, involving faculty and doctoral students from MSU's College of Social Science and College of Education, provides new insights into how instructional effectiveness varies between these student groups.

The research, published in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, highlights the need for policymakers to consider separate teacher quality measures for students with and without disabilities. This approach could help schools make more informed decisions regarding student outcomes.

Scott Imberman, a professor with joint appointments in MSU's Colleges of Social Science and Education, emphasized the challenges teachers face in educating students with disabilities. "Most students with disabilities spend most of their school day in general education classrooms, but many teachers indicate they receive insufficient training and preparedness to educate these students," said Imberman. He noted that statistical measures could identify which teachers are more effective with these students.

The study used data from the Los Angeles Unified School District to create two value-added measures: one for evaluating teacher effectiveness for students with disabilities and another for those without. The findings revealed that some high-performing teachers for non-disabled students had lower scores when teaching disabled students, and vice versa.

Imberman pointed out an inequity where "some general education teachers do have specialized skills that make them more effective for students with disabilities," yet disabled students are often not matched with these educators. While the study does not provide solutions for better matching teachers to disabled students, it suggests that further exploration is needed by schools and policymakers.

The research team included Katharine Strunk from the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education; Nathan Jones from Boston University Wheelock College of Education; W. Jesse Wood from Abt Associates; Neil Filosa from MSU's Department of Economics; and Ijun Lai from Mathematica.

Imberman expressed hope that their methods will aid school officials in better matching disabled students to suitable teachers and identifying educators who may need additional training. "We hope that our methods can be used in the future to help school officials better match students with disabilities to the teachers who are best equipped to instruct them," he stated.