School leaders and special educators are expected to be experts on all levels and types of special education law and services, types of disability, and aspects of academic and functional programming. With the increasing demands of the job and the ever-changing legal and educational climate, many administrators and teachers are overwhelmed, and few…

Ongoing, strategic family-school partnering (FSP) is an essential component of every educational community. FSP is a multi-dimensional process in which schools, families, and communities engage in shared actions to ensure a child's academic, social, and emotional success. With this text, the authors intend to offer a practical guide that…

The increasingly diverse nature of today's schools and the need to increase the achievement of all students, no matter their background, requires 21st-century teachers to develop critical cultural competence. Looking at data is not enough. We have to know who our students are! This book shows you how to provide professional development that…

The book is a highly readable integration of the latest assessment policies, and includes valuable information regarding young children with special needs and English Language Learners--topics that have rarely been touched upon in other textbooks. Focusing on practical applications of key concepts, this text provides a knowledge base of what every…

This manual describes a parent involvement program on the elementary level. Although the primary aim of such a program is to broaden the learning opportunities of each child through increased personal attention and support, there are also many advantages for the teacher, the school, and the parents. The teacher has more time to devote to the…

Noting that volunteer programs succeed only with careful forethought and maintenance, this book is designed to provide information necessary to create and operate a successful volunteer program in an elementary school setting. Steps in thinking about volunteers in innovative ways, recruitment, training, maintaining program effectiveness, and…

Presented are 14 articles or monographs which focus on educational strategies involved in the integration of handicapped children into Head Start projects. Two introductory articles describe classroom techniques Head Start teachers should use in integrating handicapped children into regular classrooms and discuss the nature of handicapping…

This handbook serves as a guide for state, district, and school leaders to organize and implement positive and permanent programs of school, family, and community partnerships. The book's eight chapters offer step-by-step strategies to improve school-family-community connections. Chapter 1 summarizes the theory and research on which the handbook…

The 13 readings in this book offer guidelines for designing and developing programs for gifted students. An introductory chapter by the editor considers the benefits of special programs for gifted students and the challenges of their development. The following chapters are: (1) "From Needs and Goals to Program Organization: A Nuts-and-Bolts Guide"…

Noting that the demand for day care has consistently outpaced supply, this book explains how to capitalize on the economic opportunities available and turn a child care center into an attractive and lucrative business that will at the same time benefit the community. Following an introduction, Part One covers the basics of planning a child care…

Despite strong agreement on the importance of parent involvement, most schools, districts, and states still need help in developing comprehensive programs of school, family, and community partnerships. This revised handbook translates lessons learned over 20 years of research and fieldwork into practical solutions for program development. The book…

Noting recent research showing the considerable benefit in having carefully structured systems for parental involvement in reading, this book presents a review of past and current successful practices in this field. The chapters in the first part of the book discuss the context of international trends in parents' involvement in their children's…

This book discusses the educational philosophy, accessibility, administration, staffing and other related aspects of day care services in Cuba. Chapter I identifies three long-term goals which form the philosophical basis of early childhood programs in Cuba: the liberation of Cuban women from the exploitation and chauvinism of the past; the…

This guide provides suggestions for planning and implementing inclusion programs to enhance education for all children. Recent laws supporting the rights of children with disabilities are considered, along with the confusion regarding how to meet the needs of all children in the schools. Variations in inclusion practices among states and districts…

The issue of central interest in this book is not how many new policies have been approved or how many restructuring efforts are being undertaken, but rather what has actually changed in practice--if anything--as a result of change efforts. The book is divided into three main parts. Part 1, "Understanding Educational Change," provides an overview…