2026 TASH Conference

In recent years, research has emerged in support of structured literacy, which involves systemic, explicit, and cumulative instruction in the components of reading. While some children will learn to read proficiently with mere exposure to literature, many children need direct instruction that breaks down the steps in reading in order to become proficient in literacy. While structured literacy programs are expanding access to literacy in many classrooms, some barriers remain. Literacy curricula, most of which is designed with typically developing students or students with learning disabilities in mind, remains inaccessible for many students with additional needs. Too often, educators wrongly assume that students with more significant disabilities are incapable of literacy. This assumption becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, as these students are denied access to quality reading instruction and adapted literacy resources. However, given the right set of tools and creative instruction, many students defy these low expectations and show that they are capable of literacy (Erickson & Koppenhaver, 2020). Visual Phonics is a strategy that can be used to support all students who are struggling with early literacy skills. In this system, each phoneme is paired with a unique hand gesture, providing an additional way for students to distinguish phonemes and connect phonemes to graphemes. The system was originally designed for Deaf students, allowing them to match graphemes with gestures representing spoken sounds. However, Visual Phonics can also support hearing students as they learn to read. The gestures add an additional kinesthetic element to help solidify the connections between letters and sounds, while providing a way for students with communication needs to participate nonverbally during literacy instruction. Because Visual Phonics is applicable for so many students, it can be used either as an intervention for struggling readers or added to the general education phonics curriculum to make instruction more effective and accessible for a wider range of students. Visual Phonics can support a wide range of students, including those with limited hearing, nonspeaking students who use AAC, and students with other extensive support needs, making it a way to broaden access to high-quality literacy instruction in inclusive classrooms. 

Compared to civilian families, military families often have unique experiences such as frequent moves, a strong sense of patriotism, perseverance, and grit. Military families of children with disabilities may benefit from their parents’ dispositions and diligence; however, they also may struggle with frequent moves which impact service access. In this study, we interviewed 10 military families of children with Section 504 plans. Using an a priori framework based on administrative burden theory (Herd & Moynihan, 2019), we examined their experiences with accessing education supports for their children with disabilities. Altogether, participants reported encountering learning (e.g., learning their rights), compliance (e.g., attending eligibility meetings), and psychological costs (e.g., frustration, disempowerment) in accessing Section 504 supports. These costs were compounded by frequent relocations due to military permanent change of station (PCS) orders. The costs generalized to military health insurance (i.e., navigating TRICARE). Implications for research and practice are discussed including the need to have explicit policy guidance that Section 504 plans should travel with the child, regardless of their state of residence.

Research increasingly demonstrates that schools, particularly secondary settings, engage in hyper-surveillance of neurodivergent students, often interpreting disability-related behaviors as defiance, disruption, or criminal misconduct (Hines et al., 2018; Kim et al., 2021; Losen et al., 2015; Yell et al., 2022). This surveillance disproportionately affects neurodivergent students (Haight et al., 2016, Losen et al., 2015, Milner et al., 2025). Prior work has documented how behaviors intrinsic to neurodivergence—such as differences in communication, emotional regulation, sensory processing, and attention—are frequently framed as behavioral violations rather than access needs. Black girls are underdiagnosed or diagnosed later than their male counterparts, increasing their vulnerability to punitive responses rather than supportive interventions (Annamma et al., 2023; Harvey et al., 2024Lovelace et al., 2021). This under identification is exacerbated in schools with limited resources, heightened security measures, and insufficient preparation in disability-responsive practices (Miller, 2023.This presentation examines how misinterpretations of disability-related behavior contribute to the criminalization of neurodivergent girls within educational systems and proposes actionable steps for embedding culturally responsive practices within teacher preparation for both special and general educators. Specifically, this presentation examines (a) the underdiagnosis and masking of neurodivergence in girls, (b) teacher preparation and educators’ reported readiness to support neurodivergent girls in general and special education settings, and (c) empirical evidence of disciplinary and criminalization disparities across lines of socioeconomic status, geography, and ethnicity. Findings reveal consistent patterns of heightened monitoring, behavioral misinterpretation, and reliance on exclusionary or punitive responses, with notable differences between rural and urban contexts. In response to those findings, this presentation also uses existing culturally responsive frameworks to propose actionable steps and key features within teacher preparation programs to combat the hyper-surveillance and, at times, criminalization of Black neurodivergent female students (Jenkins et al., 2022; Miller, 2023; Muhammad, 2023; Siwatu, 2007). Additional implications are included regarding policy and systems change as well as identifying directions for future research emphasizing the urgent need for disability-informed, gender-responsive approaches that disrupt pathways to criminalization and promote equitable educational experiences for neurodivergent girls (Jenkins, 2022; Wilson, 2013).

This qualitative study interviewed 17 special education teachers from a large urban school district in the Midwest to identify classroom practices that are in use for students with intellectual disability and identify practices that align with SAMHSA’s six principles of trauma-informed practices. Teachers ranged from preschool through high school and included teachers in both self-contained and co-taught settings. The study used an inductive coding strategy and thematic analysis to analyze the data. Classroom practices that were described by participants were identified as belonging within one of the six principles of trauma-informed practice (safety; trustworthiness and transparency; peer support; collaboration and mutuality; empowerment, voice, and choice; cultural, historical, and gender issues), neutral practices, and not trauma-informed practices. Results also include reflection on the participants’ beliefs about whether their practices are trauma-informed.