The DEC Recommended Practices provide guidance to families and professionals about the most effective ways to improve learning outcomes and promote development of young children, birth through age 5, who have, or are at-risk for, developmental delays or disabilities. "Family: Knowing Families, Tailoring Practices, Building Capacity" is…

For children with the most severe and persistent academic and/or behavioral challenges, parent and family involvement is vital. Student outcome data suggest that the current educational system does not adequately prepare students with the most intensive needs, particularly students with disabilities, for the world of college and work. Although the…

This article presents a detailed example of how faculty and staff at one middle school implemented team-based functional behavioral assessment (FBA) planning procedures with a student exhibiting recurring minor problems. Insets list tasks and considerations for an FBA, a sample formatted antecedent-behavior-consequence summary of team member…

This article shows how teachers can implement behavioral observation and assessment using a structured rubric narrative log format to understand a student's problem behaviors and find ways to encourage more positive behavior. Advantages of narrative observations for functional behavioral assessments are specified and include exploring one's own…

The process of "functional assessment" is recommended to establish a basis for individualized behavior management programing for students with special needs. The approach is based on identifying the functions of the challenging behavior and involves systematically collecting information about the behavior and developing an intervention…

This inservice training module was designed as part of the Child-Centered Inservice Training Project (Syracuse, New York) for use with paraprofessionals in educational programs for children with developmental disabilities. Use of the materials is recommended to encourage team problem solving, to practice new skills, and to provide ongoing support…

This paper presents a case for the need to individualize discipline as well as instruction. The selected review of the literature indicates that published information on classroom management currently does not provide such an individualized approach. A child-type by intervention technique interaction strategy is suggested with specific examples…

This article provides guidance on the use of functional behavioral assessment (FBA) techniques to identify the function of problem behaviors by recording antecedents and consequences of each behavior. It includes a case study illustrating application of FBA as well as a sample form for recording observations, developing a behavioral hypothesis,…

Guidelines are presented for individualizing daily schedules or routines to reflect better the preferred lifestyles of persons with severe handicaps. Four dimensions that can be systematically manipulated to address challenging behavior are presented, including timing of routines, form of the activities, pattern of succession of activities, and…

The inservice training module, developed as part of the Child-Centered Inservice Training Project (Syracuse, New York) is designed for use with educators providing services for students with developmental disabilities and behavior problems. The module comprises six units which incorporate theory, demonstration, practice, and feedback and is…

The individualized education programs (IEPs) of 107 junior high students with behavioral disorders were reviewed. An average of 2.4 behavior problems and 4 goals were noted per student, with a low correlation between problems and goals. (Author/DB)

The issue of suspension and expulsion of special education students is examined to assist state- and local-level administrators. Attention is directed to current local policies and practices and conceptual and legal considerations in the suspension and expulsion of handicapped students. Examples of problems and solutions documented by State…

Describes a 10-step process that educators can use when conducting functional assessments and developing Behavioral Intervention Plans required under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997 for students with disabilities with behavior problems. A case study is provided to illustrate the process. (Author/CR)

This document is designed to provide guidance to Illinois school administrators on positive behavioral interventions with students with disabilities. It begins with a description of the Illinois statute addressing behavioral interventions and then provides information on district policy guidelines on establishing and maintaining a committee to…

A Florida State Department of Education technical assistance paper on expulsion of handicapped students is presented. Contents are as follows: historical information on court decisions, issues questions and answers, brief summaries of seven court cases dealing with expulsion of handicapped students, and sample materials from three local school…