Date
9-17-2026
Department
School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Education (PhD)
Chair
Jerry Woodbridge
Keywords
learning disabled, student involvement, accommodations, universal design
Disciplines
Education | Special Education and Teaching
Recommended Citation
Delgado, Reuben, "Educational Involvement Experiences of Learning-Disabled College Students Enrolled in a History Program in a Southwestern State" (2026). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 8945.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/8945
Abstract
The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to understand the lived educational experiences of learning-disabled college students enrolled in a social sciences program at a southwestern university in the United States. Astin’s' theory guided this study on student involvement concerning learning-disabled college students. The research focused on whether student involvement in their college experience correlates with academic success when those students also have a learning disability. The Central Research Question is, how do learning-disabled college students enrolled in a history program describe their (inputs, energy, and effort) involvement in their educational experience? In this study, 10 selected participants were learning-disabled college students enrolled in a social sciences program at a southwestern university. Data were collected, and triangulation achieved by participant interviews, responses to journal prompts to describe their experience, and participation in focus groups. The data were grouped, coded, analyzed, and separated into themes. The essence of the phenomena has been grouped into larger themes of the shared phenomenon, which were examined from the participants' descriptions. The data collection and analysis described the phenomena from the interview transcripts, journal prompts, and focus groups. Emerging themes were identified, coded, defined, and synthesized. There were four themes identified in this study: a) Students were less involved in lecture-based history classes than other subjects and b) More involved in history classes with interactive professors, c) Personal goals and engaging professors motivated students with learning disabilities to put in extra effort needed to succeed, and d) Students were able to access and use accommodation or modifications in their history courses.
