Purpose: Researchers estimate the prevalence of developmental language disorder (DLD) in 5-year-olds to be between 7% and 12%. Current identification systems in public schools typically favor referral identification formats over targeted or universal screenings. Public schools face unique challenges when assessing the value of screening measures…

The success of universal screening for effective school mental health programs is dependent on the availability of usable measures as well as empirically based recommendations for use. The current study examined the long-term stability of a strengths-based social-emotional screening tool, the Devereux Student Strengths Assessment-Mini…

The National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) conducted a needs assessment to understand and describe early childhood services for preschool-age children with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) in the state of Connecticut. In collaboration with the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE), NIEER developed survey…

This article addresses the effects of 3-tiered comprehensive reading and behavior interventions on K-3 student outcomes in 7 urban elementary schools with a high prevalence of students considered difficult to teach. Specific features of each level of the implementation are described including screening and tier placement procedures, scheduling and…

By the end of the kindergarten, students are expected to possess early academic skills as well as the social maturity to be successful in first grade. Students leaving kindergarten without these readiness skills are sometimes held back in first grade or referred for a special education evaluation in later grades if they fail to make adequate…

The Bracken School Readiness Assessment (BSRA) was administered to all kindergarten students enrolled in two rural elementary schools in the fall of 2004. Eight months later, the reading portion of the Metropolitan Readiness Tests, 6th Edition (MRT-6) was administered. Teachers were asked to indicate whether they had concerns about each student's…

This study extends recent findings of a relationship between the relative age of students among their peers and their probability of disability classification. Using three nationally representative surveys spanning 1988-2004 and grades K-10, we find that an additional month of relative age decreases the likelihood of receiving special education…

This study involved a longitudinal analysis of academic skills and problem behavior through elementary school. The purposes of the study were (a) to explore the interactions between reading skills and problem behavior, and (b) to determine the value of regular screening assessments in predicting which students would not respond to school-wide…

This study provides descriptive data on the rates of office discipline referrals and beginning reading skills for students in grades K-3 for one school district that is implementing a three-tier prevention model for both reading and behavior support. Students in the district are provided a continuum of reading and/or behavioral support based on…