Graduate Program

Special Education

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Semester of Degree Completion

2007

Thesis Director

Rebecca Cook

Thesis Committee Member

Joy Russell

Thesis Committee Member

None

Abstract

Public reports during the last 20 years such as "A Nation at Risk," have criticized students' lack of knowledge and skills upon exit from high school with a diploma. As a result, federal policy initiatives spanning the last decade have focused on raising the nation's education standards. In 2001 the United States Congress enacted the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) as a significant education reform agenda to improve the quality of education and enforce accountability in the public schools. Mandates within the NCLB legislation have elevated standardized testing beyond a simple measurement of a student's skills to a broader means to evaluate the effectiveness of the schools and the extent to which all students are benefiting from their educational experience. Though not a NCLB mandate, an outgrowth of this legislation has been the enactment of high stakes policies tied to the standardized assessment outcomes. Most notably, and specific to this study, is the policy of denying a high school diploma to students failing to meet established proficiency levels as measured through standardized assessments.

This study explored the affects of a graduation examination policy in the state of Indiana; specifically examining the post-school outcomes for exiting Indiana students with disabilities by collecting data one year post exit and determining if exiting school with a diploma, certificate, or by dropping out played an integral part in the post-school success of former students. Results of this study indicated that high school exiting patterns play a pivotal role in post school success. The study's findings reveal that Indiana students with disabilities exiting school with less than a standard diploma experience lower employment rates, earn lower wages, and are less likely to participate in post secondary education.

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