Academic transitions are a necessary and important part of an ASD student's life. Parental involvement and perspective is a vital part of each transition planning process. The primary goal of this research is to identify trends in parent perspectives regarding ASD academic transitions through meta-synthesis of current research. The research also seeks to identify shifts in parent perceptions of the importance of specific transitional program elements during different academic transitional periods. Results indicate a clear trend within each academic transition category as well as trends throughout the transition periods. The main trend in parental perspective throughout the transitions is the de-structuration of the transition planning process and increased personalization with the advancement of each academic transition. Possible uses of research results to ease the transition planning process for parents are summarized and discussed.

Critical thinking has driven pedagogical development and captured the attention of educators for years and is now an important focus in classrooms today (Fahim, 2014, p. 141). Common core and STEM education are both impressive additions to the educational process and practice and exist to encourage students to ask questions, analyze information, and create their own solutions or ideas. During my time studying education at Arizona State University, I noticed that a majority of references to critical thinking were in conjunction to STEM subjects. In this study, I explore and defend the benefit of using classical literature to promote critical thinking in 21st century classrooms. Included in this study is a section of curriculum during a unit studying the novel The Great Gatsby that is centered around developing critical thinking and problem solving skills.

This qualitative, classroom-based study investigates how 24 middle school students engaged with grammar in an instructional approach that bridged “grammar in context” practices with writing transfer practices. This “transfer-minded” approach invited students to monitor and reflect on their grammar choices in writing as a way to foster metacognition; it also guided students to consider other and future writing contexts where they could use the grammar they were learning as a way to foster transfer and long-term writing development. The dissertation findings detail the role of individual factors on student engagement with grammar in this study. The findings also share how students thought about and used grammar in their writing. Finally, the dissertation reveals how students engaged with the instructional practices, helping map successful and promising areas for effective grammar instruction.