This study investigated the dynamics of complex interactions within inquiry-based (IB) discussions by visualizing patterns using social network analysis. Researchers explored network measures when learners participated in inquiry-based discussions with Practical Inquiry Model (PIM) and non-PIM questions while playing the weekly moderator's role.…

Establishing a communication-rich classroom can be difficult. This article describes the process and findings of a practitioner action research study addressing the question of how teachers can interact with their students while they are working in groups to encourage and enhance student-to-student communication. Recommended research-based teacher…

The social/verbal interactions of six employees with moderate or severe mental retardation and six workers without mental retardation were observed in restaurant settings. Among findings was that interactions between workers with mental retardation and the job coach correlated negatively with the workers' initiation of interactions with co-workers…

The study examined instructional consultation in terms of Argyrian theory by carrying out three specific tasks: (1) operationalizing the key Argyrian concepts of collaboration and bilateral control; (2) classifying and coding consultation behaviors on videotapes; and (3) drawing implications from the data for researchers and practitioners. The…

The social learning approach to marital and family therapy is a didactic approach calling for an active and directive therapist and a collaborative client. To examine the variability of therapist and client behaviors within sessions and across the course of treatment, 24 families, in marital and family therapy, participated in the study. Families…

An instrument, "The Teacher Student Interaction Analysis," was developed to supply direct observation data on the number and kinds of teacher/student interactions and display data visually. The paper describes the instrument, summarizes field testing procedures and outcomes, and illustrates analysis outcomes. (Author/DB)

This article describes the Language Interaction Intervention Program (LIIP) used in preschool classes for handicapped children in central New Jersey. Covered are the LIIP curriculum rationale, the LIIP model, the original evaluation study, and a replication study showing the program was effectively replicated with mothers appropriately changing…

Examines children's compliance to directives given by their peers, with particular interest in children's success with directives. Examines the roles of status, directive form, and politeness cues. Outlines four instructional objectives for teaching children to develop effective controlling strategies. (JMF)

In this study, 23 young children with developmental delays interacted with an adult, who conducted 2 play sessions using 2 interactive styles differing in the adult's use of topic-continuing wh-questions. Use of the questions supported child conversational continuations at all language levels. (DB)

Analysis of videotapes of training procedures with 12 developmentally disabled adults in a horticultural day work program found an overall staff emphasis on selectively attending to workers' successful behavior with evidence of both efficiency and effectiveness of this approach. (Author/DB)

This observational study of three preschool children with profound disabilities in an integrated setting revealed frequent opportunities for peer social interactions and indicated that subjects engage in interactions of comparable length to those of nondisabled peers. The importance of helping young nondisabled children understand and respond to…

This study examined the effect of various intervention contexts on the ability of young children (ages 3 and 4 years) with language impairments to effectively direct communications to a partner and to vary communicative intentions. The six children in the study were either nonverbal or in the early stages of developing verbal communication and all…

This study investigated verbal play, including teasing and self-mocking in a naturally occurring conversation, among four Chinese female friends. The study illustrates how these speakers engage in teasing activities and then discusses the implications and significance of verbal play. Examples are taken from a casual, playful conversation…

The paper describes an observation instrument originally developed as a research tool to assess both the special setting and the regular classroom. The instrument can also be used in determining appropriate placement for students with learning disabilities and for programming the transfer of skills learned in the special setting to the regular…

Reports a study of kindergarten children's strategies for acquiring and protecting status in interactions with peers. Focusing on children's negotiations of relative social standing in face-to-face interactions, discusses strategies children used to improve and defend their relative positions in the social structure of their peer group. (NH)