Readability of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part B Procedural Safeguards: An Update

Autor/inn/en	Gray, Sara A.; Zraick, Richard I.; Atcherson, Samuel R.
Titel	Readability of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part B Procedural Safeguards: An Update
Quelle	In: Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50 (2019) 3, S.373-384 (12 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0161-1461
Schlagwörter	Readability; Educational Legislation; Disabilities; Federal Legislation; Equal Education; Readability Formulas; Grade 5; Grade 6; Guidelines; Computer Software; Graduate Students; Individualized Education Programs; Barriers; Parent Participation; Literacy; Parent Materials; Health; Flesch Reading Ease Formula + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Lesbarkeit; Bildungsrecht; Schulgesetz; Handicap; Behinderung; Bundesrecht; School year 05; 5. Schuljahr; Schuljahr 05; School year 06; 6. Schuljahr; Schuljahr 06; Richtlinien; Graduate Study; Student; Students; Aufbaustudium; Graduiertenstudium; Hauptstudium; Studentin; Individualized education program; Individualisierendes Lernen; Elternmitwirkung; Alphabetisierung; Schreib- und Lesefähigkeit; Elternbrief; Gesundheit
Abstract	Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyze the readability of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part B procedural safeguard documents, as distributed by each of the 50 U.S. states. Results were compared to the 5th- to 6th-grade readability guideline for documents recommended by experts in health literacy and health communication. Method: A commercially available readability software, Readability Studio (Oleander Software, 2009), was used to assess document readability. Text-based files of each IDEA Part B procedural safeguard document were analyzed using four readability formulas: Flesch-Kincaid (Flesch, 1965), Gunning fog index (Gunning, 1952), Flesch Reading Ease (Flesch, 1948), and Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (McLaughlin, 1969). Results: No procedural safeguard document scored below an 11th-grade reading level. Seventy-four percent of these documents were found to be written at a graduate reading level--meaning these documents are written for a reader who is currently enrolled in a master's degree or higher education program. Conclusion: In an effort to decrease barriers to parent participation in the Individualized Education Planning process, those who administer IDEA Part B procedural safeguards should be sensitive to the potential mismatch between the literacy skills of the parent/guardian and the literacy skills needed to comprehend these documents. Developers of IDEA Part B procedural safeguards should account for estimated literacy skills of the general public as ongoing revisions to these safeguards are made. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. 2200 Research Blvd #250, Rockville, MD 20850. Tel: 301-296-5700; Fax: 301-296-8580; e-mail: lshss@asha.org; Web site: http://lshss.pubs.asha.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01