Individualized education programs (IEPs) reflect the spirit of individualized instruction that lies at the heart of special education. Quality annual goal statements, which propel the implementation of special education programming, use clear language to communicate measurable, meaningful, and standards-aligned expectations to all members of the…

The field of special education, and specifically the area of intellectual disabilities, has undergone dramatic changes in terminology, evaluation practices, service delivery models, expectations for learning, career development, and independent living opportunities. "Guidelines: Intellectual Disabilities in Educational Settings" is…

Alternative education programs (also called alternative schools) first appeared on the American landscape in the 1960s. Despite the proliferation of these programs, a generic description of what constitutes an alternative education program, historically, has been elusive. Most alternative education programs have the general criteria of serving…

African-American children are minimally represented in gifted programs due to misconceptions of giftedness, problems associated with standardized testing, perceptions of African-American students' low achievement, and lack of awareness of characteristics of African-American achievers. Individually focused identification of gifted African-American…

This digest, in question and answer format, summarizes what is known about effective ways to provide fully educational services for gifted students in the regular classroom. The following questions are addressed: What are the steps to full service? (educators need to plan environments in which all students can fully develop their abilities and…

The president of the Council for Exceptional Children urges special educators to respect students' varying cultural backgrounds; to differentiate between cultural differences, developmental delays, and true disabilities; and to use the individualized education program to provide culturally and linguistically appropriate programming. (DB)

The guidelines focus on procedures for determining eligibility for services of children with specific learning disabilities. A 13-step process is delineated from the classroom teacher's response to individual learner needs through multifactored evaluation team function to annual review and reevaluation. Throughout the process, special emphasis is…

Discusses a multifaceted social learning method of agression management. Reviews literature concerned with antecedents, related personal characteristics, and consequences of aggression in adolescents. Explains how treatment of aggression in school settings may invalue two levels of intervention: management through general program procedures and…

This booklet is intended to help parents and students better understand the nature of learning disabilities at the college level and to help faculty and staff involved with learning-disabled students in higher education programs. The personal story of a female college student with a learning disability appears on the left-hand side of each…

A review of learning disabilities in gifted children provides definitions of "learning disabilities" and "giftedness", a classification of gifted students with learning disabilities, the importance of a multidimensional approach to identifying students with gifts/learning disabilities, characteristics, programming guidelines, teaching strategies,…

This paper addresses considerations inherent in the augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) decision-making process which are important for teachers and related services personnel who participate on Individualized Education Program (IEP) teams for students with disabilities. Specific dimensions discussed include characteristics of the…

The guidelines discuss appropriate educational services for children with special health problems. An initial chapter considers the range of common needs of this population, including modification of daily schedule and health related services. Five suggestions are offered to support families, among them understanding needs and rights and…

This teacher's resource guide from British Columbia provides an overview of the needs of students with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). It begins by discussing the definition of FAS and fetal alcohol effects (FAE), characteristics of students with FAS/E, and steps for preparing to teach students with FAS/E (collecting information, making and carrying…

This document updates "Accommodations: Assisting Students with Disabilities. A Guide for Educators," published by the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) in 2003. This document is written to assist school district personnel and parents when making decisions about the use of accommodations by students with disabilities in instructional…

The guide provides an information resource for related and supportive services personnel (e.g., school nurse, physical therapist, speech language pathologist) in their interactions with emotionally handicapped (EH) students. Following a definition of EH students, the first of six brief chapters discusses student characteristics, presents three…