“I Didn’t Even Think Of This”: Examining The Influence Of Student Disability Accommodation Training On Basic Course Instructor Attitudes And Self-Efficacy

Abstract

Despite the growing number of students with disabilities in the university setting, few resources are offered to teach instructors about specific disabilities or provide direction for how to accommodate these students. This study used quantitative and qualitative methods to examine the influence of accommodation training on basic communication course graduate teaching assistants’ attitudes and self-efficacy regarding students with disabilities. The training used attribution theory as a lens to examine stuttering, a stigmatized disability that can uniquely affect the basic course classroom, and explore the logistical requirements for accommodating students in postsecondary education. This study used pretest and posttest data from 12 basic course instructors who attended the training session and posttest responses from 27 basic course instructors who did not. Additionally, this study examined responses from three focus groups, totaling 13 instructors, to determine their perceptions 1 Author’s note: Thank you to Dr. Cheri Simonds, Dr. John Hooker, and Dr. Lance Lippert. Your input on this project was invaluable. 1 Joyce: “I Didn’t Even Think of This”: Examining the Influence of Student Published by eCommons, 2018 110 about the training session. Results suggest the training was effective in increasing self-efficacy and instructors are desirous of further training and resources to accommodate students with disabilities.