Education

a collage of faculty and staff at baylor smiling at a lecture

High-Quality Education

Our work focuses on establishing research-based practices, programs, and policies that ensure children and youth with disabilities can flourish academically and socially in their local schools. We are equipping and supporting teachers, related service providers, and school leaders to adopt strong values and wise practices that promote learning and growth for students with disabilities. To get involved in this signature area, contact Dr. Sarah Mire.

Example studies and projects include:

The PEAKS Project

The Preparing Educators with Autism Knowledge and Skills (PEAKS) program provides Texas teachers with specialized professional development in evidence-based practices for students with autism. Training is offered in a variety of formats to school districts and individual educators.

For more information, contact Dr. Tonya Davis.

Project LEER

This five-year interdisciplinary project with Texas A&M University and the University of Texas at San Antonio is funded through the Office of English Language Acquisition. It provides professional development and technical assistance to general, special, bilingual, and ESL teachers on evidence-based practices focused on improving the reading, social-emotional, and behavioral outcomes of English Learners with disabilities. It partners with high-need school districts serving a large proportion of English Learners at social and academic risk and with disabilities.

For more information, contact Dr. Mack Burke.

Project DIVERSE

Doctoral Scholars Implementing Socially Valid Evidence-Based Practices and Research for Improving the Language, Literacy, and Social-Emotional Outcomes of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Exceptional Learners.

Project DIVERSE will prepare doctoral scholars focused on developing expertise in evidence-based practices (EBPs) focused on academic language, assessment, and social, emotional, and behavioral support for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) Learners with disabilities.Project DIVERSE focuses on a "needs based" language and disability inclusive approach to special education that:

Cuts across disability areas
Emphases individualized intervention of learning and/or behavior difficulties within a prevention science framework
Focuses on evidence-based practices to improve special education services for CLD learners with disabilities.

Project DIVERSE represents an interdisciplinary collaboration between (1) Department of Educational Psychology at Baylor University (BU), (2) Department of Educational Psychology (Bilingual/ESL and Special Education Divisions) at Texas A&M University (TAMU), and (3) Departments of Interdisciplinary Learning and Teaching and Department of Bilingual-Bicultural Studies at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA).

For more information contact Dr. Mack Burke.

School Belonging Project

This study explores the pathways to inclusion and belonging in schools for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. We are exploring several questions: What does it really mean to belong? What are the practices and postures of communities that lead in this direction (or lead away)? What difference does belonging make for students with and without disabilities?

For more information, contact Dr. Erik Carter.

Enhancing Capacities Project

In their Enhancing Capacities project, Dr. Mire’s BU*sparc (School Psychology Autism Research Collaboration) research team is looking at ways to help school-based providers better integrate cultural factors into comprehensive evaluations when autism is suspected. We are working to understand gaps, as well as developing and testing ways to improve these processes at the individual provider and school district levels.

For more information, contact Dr. Sarah Mire.

ASD4ASD Project

This project, Academic Skill Development for Autism Spectrum Disorder, is a cross-institutional undertaking with the University of Houston. We are studying how to better measure academic skill development among autistic learners in efficient, technically adequate, and useful ways. Supporting school-based implementation and including parents as partners are important components of this project.