{"id":40,"date":"2020-02-20T14:18:22","date_gmt":"2020-02-20T19:18:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/setleaders\/?page_id=40"},"modified":"2021-07-24T18:47:40","modified_gmt":"2021-07-24T22:47:40","slug":"about-oset","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/setleaders\/about-oset\/","title":{"rendered":"About OSET"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

We are a group of researchers dedicated to making research accessible and meaningful
\n to practitioners. This project is the result of extensive collaboration across research organizations. Project
\n personnel include individuals with substantial experience teaching students with disabilities and conducting
\n research about teaching quality.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Nathan D. Jones, Ph.D.<\/h5>\n
Principal Investigator Associate Professor, Boston University<\/h5>\n

Nathan Jones is an Associate Professor of Special Education at Boston University. In his research, Dr. Jones focuses on teacher quality, teacher development, and school improvement, with a specific
\nemphasis on measuring teaching effectiveness as well as teachers\u2019 work. Dr. Jones previously worked as a
\n middle school special education teacher in the Mississippi Delta. View Full CV<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n \"\"<\/p>\n
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Courtney Bell, Ph.D.<\/h5>\n
Professor and Director of Wisconsin Center for Educational Research<\/h5>\n

Courtney A. Bell is a Professor of Educational Psychology and Director of the Wisconsin
\n Center for Educational Research (WCER), a center committed to the improvement of educational outcomes for students of all ages through innovative, interdisciplinary, justice-oriented educational research. Dr. Bell\u2019s research collaborations focus on the measurement of teaching and how measures of teaching are understood and used to improve teaching. Previously, Dr. Bell was a rowing coach, high school science teacher, and teacher educator.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n \"\"<\/p>\n
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Mary Brownwell, Ph.D.<\/h5>\n
Professor, University of Florida<\/h5>\n

Mary Brownell is a Professor of Special Education at the University of Florida and Director
\n of the Collaboration for Effective Educator Development, Accountability and Reform (CEEDAR Center), an OSEP
\n funded project designed to improve the preparation of teachers and leaders working with students with
\n disabilities. Dr. Brownell studies issues related to teacher education, teacher assessment, professional
\n development, and teacher attrition.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n \"\"<\/p>\n
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Hannah Morris Mathews, Ph.D.<\/h5>\n
Assistant Professor, University of Florida<\/h5>\n

Hannah Morris Mathews is an Assistant Professor of Special Education at the University of
\n Florida. Dr. Mathews’ research focuses on special educators’ experiences of professional socialization\u2014the
\n process by which individuals integrate the knowledge, norms, and values of a profession into their
\n identity\u2014and how this process influences practice. Prior to this, she worked as a secondary social studies
\n teacher and then as an elementary special education teacher for 14 years.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n \"\"<\/p>\n
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Kristabel Stark<\/h5>\n
Doctoral Student, Boston University<\/h5>\n

Kristabel Stark is a doctoral candidate in special education at Boston University. Her
\n research explores educators\u2019 working conditions as well as their emotional responses to the work of
\n teaching. Previously, Kristabel worked as a special education teacher in Chicago and a GED\/HISET instructor
\n in Boston. View Full CV<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n \"\"<\/p>\n
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Yi Qi, M.A.; CAS<\/h5>\n
Research Project Manager, Educational Testing Services<\/h5>\n

Yi Qi is a Research Project Manager in ETS\u2019s Student & Teacher Research Center. She joined
\n the organization in 2008. Yi completed her Master\u2019s degree at University of Missouri-Columbia, majored in
\n Education Administration and received a Certificate of Advanced Study (CAS) in Instructional Design,
\n Development & Evaluation at Syracuse University. Currently, Yi\u2019s work centers around policy and evaluation
\n issues related to teacher education and how best to understand and measure teaching practices. She also
\n manages research projects in student learning and assessment. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

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We conduct research on students with disabilities access to learning opportunities across
\n general and special education settings in K-12 public schools. We know that access to high-quality learning
\n opportunities is not just a matter of an individual teachers\u2019 skills, but of the ways their schools are
\n organized. The instruction provided to students with disabilities is shaped by teachers\u2019 experiences within
\n their schools, including teacher evaluation. In this project, we offer resources to help practitioners \u2014 in
\n particular, observers \u2014 think about and evaluate instruction, and to improve teachers\u2019 professional learning
\n experiences. Our goal is to use innovative methods to share our work with teachers and administrators so that
\n the observation experience better reflects and responds to the instructional needs of students with
\n disabilities.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

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Despite decades of research in special education, students with disabilities consistently lag
\n behind their peers in their rate of academic growth. Research shows that the type of instruction students with
\n disabilities receive \u2014 including the content addressed and the practice used to address that content \u2014 is
\n associated with improved academic outcomes. In short, when instruction is sufficiently systematic,
\n individualized, and explicit there are big payoffs. Yet, many of the observation systems used in K-12 settings
\n don\u2019t clearly target the need for this type of instruction.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, emerging research suggests that many administrators feel they lack the knowledge
\n and skill necessary to serve as a resource regarding the instructional needs of students with disabilities. When
\n the tools used to evaluate instruction are not aligned to the evidence base and administrators and other
\n observers operate from an impoverished knowledge base, we miss an important opportunity to improve instruction
\n and academic outcomes for students with disabilities. We believe that rigorous research is an important part of
\n changing policy and practice and that finding creative and efficient ways to share our research could be one way
\n to support these changes. Project OSET is one way we hope to share our research.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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To conduct high quality research, we depend on K-12 practitioners, including
\n teachers, principals, and district administrators, to participate in research. Our research is all confidential
\n and voluntary; we protect participants’ information, and they can choose to withdraw from research at any time.
\n When practitioners participate in research, policy makers and other education leaders gain a better
\n understanding of how they can better support effective instruction for students with disabilities.<\/p>\n

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