Abstract
There is a lack of research demonstrating self-determination skills being taught at the elementary level. This pre-post design study examined the impact of implementing a self-determination curriculum unit to two groups of fourth graders, ages nine to eleven years old, who receive special education for various diagnoses, including specific learning disability, speech and language impairment, other health impairment, and autism. Eleven students learned about self-determination (i.e. self-awareness, self-advocacy, choice making, and goal setting) through 28 lessons which included the use of role playing, hands-on activities, and literature. All participants, students, their parents, and their teachers, completed the AIR Self-Determination Scale before and after the curriculum intervention. Researcher reflection notes, student responses to post-intervention motivation scales, responses to research supplemental questions on pre- and post-surveys from parents and teachers were additional data sources. The findings indicate that overall, there were examples of growth in students’ self-determined behaviors. In particular, the capacity scores from the AIR measure showed an increase in perceptions of students’ self-determination skills, based on parent and teacher surveys. In discussions during the unit lessons, all students were able to articulate their goals and recognize the meaning of key self-determination terms in various aspects of the curriculum. Recommendations for practice include implementing the curriculum unit with a larger number of students, including students in general education and those with more significant disabilities. Further research should be conducted to identify more long term effects of elementary-level self-determination curriculum for students with disabilities.