St. Catherine University SOPHIA Master of Arts in Occupational Therapy Theses and Projects Occupational Therapy 12-2019 The lived experience of parents who homeschool a child with disabilities in accessing and utilizing Occupational Therapy services Ruth Chase St. Catherine University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://sophia.stkate.edu/ma_osot Recommended Citation Chase, Ruth. (2019). The lived experience of parents who homeschool a child with disabilities in accessing and utilizing Occupational Therapy services. Retrieved from Sophia, the St. Catherine University repository website: https://sophia.stkate.edu/ma_osot/23 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Occupational Therapy at SOPHIA. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master of Arts in Occupational Therapy Theses and Projects by an authorized administrator of SOPHIA. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Homeschool and Occupational Therapy The lived experience of parents who homeschool a child with disabilities in accessing and utilizing Occupational Therapy services Ruth Chase, OTS A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Occupational Therapy, St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota December, 2019 Thesis Advisor: Dr. Paula Rabaey Ph. D., OTR/L Thesis Readers: Dr. Kristi Haertl Ph. D., OTR/L, FAOTA and Jess Smith, LMFT Occupational Therapy and Homeschool 2 Acknowledgements I am immensely thankful for my thesis advisor, Paula Rabaey’s guidance, feedback, and mentoring throughout this entire process. The research design, methods, and data analysis have all been impacted and shaped by the perceptive guidance of Paula. This incredible opportunity to experientially learn and apply qualitative research methodology would not have been possible without the initial support of pursuing a student-led thesis by Jennifer Hutson, and the subsequent encouragement and approval of this topic by Karen Sames. I would also like to thank my readers, Kristi Haertl, and Jessica Smith and the members of the thesis committee for their insightful feedback and suggestions. I would also like to acknowledge the advice, perspective, and support that I have received from my good friends and research role-models, Becky Busanich and Margo Straka. This research study has been a deeply meaningful aspect of both my personal development and professional graduate studies and I couldn’t have achieved this goal without all of your support and involvement. Thank you! Occupational Therapy and Homeschool 3 Dedication To the only person who knows just how deeply important this research study is to me on both a personal and professional level ---my dear husband, Jesse. I couldn’t have done any of this without your consistent support and encouragement every step of the way. You have never once doubted my capabilities. You have consistently anchored me in the present moment whenever I have been overwhelmed by shadows from the past or anxious about the unknowns in the future. The completion of this project truly is a full circle from where my education began, and I am immensely grateful that I have a person in my life who has so faithfully championed and celebrated my success. This is the end of one chapter and the beginning of a new one for us, and I can’t wait to see what is next. To my dear children, Caden and Macy; I have been in school for your entire lives, and now I am finished and so excited to continue to learn and grow with you! The two of you continuously inspire me with your curiosity and zest for learning and exploring. You two are my greatest gifts and I hope that my pursuit of education is a gift in your lives that opens doors to big dreams and endless possibilities. Thank you both for your precious words of encouragement and all the invitations to take a break from my studies to come and play with you. The two of you have made this season a joyous and life-giving one. Occupational Therapy and Homeschool 4 Abstract Over the past 20 years, there has been a continuous increase in the number of families choosing to homeschool their children, and a significant number of these families are homeschooling children with disabilities (Redford, Battle, & Bielick, 2017). Occupational therapists work with children who have disabilities in a variety of practice settings, including home-based, clinic-based, and school-based practice areas. However, there has been no research regarding the unique considerations of the lived experiences of homeschool families and occupational therapy services. The purpose of this pilot study was to explore the challenges and supports related to accessibility and utiliZation of occupational therapy services among parents who homeschool a child with a disability. A phenomenological qualitative research methodology was used to construct a set of focused and open-ended research questions. A total of five participants were recruited through purposive sampling via fliers distributed to facilitators of homeschool support groups who had their information available online. All interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim and then coded and analyzed in alignment with a phenomenological process. The findings of this study resulted in five themes which included: (1) you have a voice, (2) I had to fight for it, (3) pieces of the puzZle, (4) does this work at home, and (5) help is out there. The participants' experiences confirmed that there are many unique challenges that parents who homeschool a child with a disability face throughout their process of accessing and utiliZing occupational therapy services. It is important for occupational therapists to be aware of these challenges in order to provide more family-centered services to this increasing segment of the population. Specific recommendations to OT include the importance of increasing awareness of services in primary care settings and the critical factor of including parents throughout the therapy process. Occupational Therapy and Homeschool 5 Table of Contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................ 2 Dedication .............................................................................................................................. 3 Abstract ................................................................................................................................. 4 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 7 Literature Review ................................................................................................................... 9 Overview and History of Homeschooling .......................................................................................... 9 Types of Homeschooling ................................................................................................................. 12 Current Homeschool Trends and Demographics ............................................................................. 14 Homeschooling Regulations in the United States ............................................................................ 16 Perspectives About Parents Who Homeschool Children with Disabilities ........................................ 18 Parent’s Perspectives on Homeschooling a Child with Disabilities ................................................... 20 Overview of OT Services for Children with Disabilities .................................................................... 21 Qualification Process for Children with Disabilities to Receive OT Services ..................................... 23 Context of Traditional School Settings and Children with Disabilities .............................................. 23 Opportunities for OT Among Homeschool Families ......................................................................... 25 Methodology ......................................................................................................................... 26 Research Design ............................................................................................................................. 26 Population, Participants, and Sampling Technique ......................................................................... 28 Table 1 .............................................................................................................................................................. 29 Demographics of research participants ............................................................................................................ 29 Interview Procedure ....................................................................................................................... 30 Data Analysis Procedure ................................................................................................................. 30 Data Triangulation .......................................................................................................................... 32 Results .................................................................................................................................. 33 Theme 1: You have a voice ............................................................................................................. 33 Theme 2: I had to fight for it. .........................................................................................................