In October 2015, the Kansas State Board of Education announced a new vision for education in Kansas. The Kansans CAN Vision - "Kansas leads the world in the success of each student" - became the branded theme for Kansas education. This initiative motivated the creation of this document. Kindergarten Readiness is one of five Kansas State…

In October 2015, the Kansas State Board of Education announced a new vision for education in Kansas--the Kansans CAN vision. "Kansas leads the world in the success of each student" became the branded theme for Kansas education. The Kansans CAN vision for education calls for a more child-focused system providing support and resources for…

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…

Generally recognized as the standard work in its field, "Behavioral, Social, and Emotional Assessment of Children and Adolescents" provides a comprehensive foundation and guide for conducting conceptually sound, culturally responsive, and ecologically oriented assessments of student social and emotional behavior. It is aimed at graduate…

This book is a step-by-step, concise, and easy-to-read reference for school teams, providers, students, and parents to understand, design, and evaluate positive behavior support (PBS) plans for students with developmental disabilities. It provides a clear conceptual framework on PBS to think critically about how to approach a student's problem…

"A Parent's Guide to Assessment" is the fifth volume in the "Life Journey through Autism" series published by the Organization for Autism Research (OAR). It is intended to remove the mystery surrounding assessment, provide parents with a practical understanding of the assessment process, equip them as a parent with the…

This training manual for ethnographic research was developed for use in the Student Perceptions and School Behavior Project. The first part of the manual discusses project objectives and methodology. The major goal of the project was to gain an understanding of how adolescents perceived their world--school, home, and community; to analyze the…

Coaching behaviors can be modified to improve the coach-athlete relationship. Systematic observation can provide positive feedback to athletes/physical education students. Seven steps in the process of systematic observation include deciding what behaviors to observe, defining those behaviors, selecting appropriate coding techniques, determining…

This article discusses how to determine the learning style of a child with learning problems and how to use the information to maximize the child's potential. Assessing the child's learning style begins with close observation in a variety of settings, which provides a generalized idea of the child's behavior. This is followed up by categorizing…

This article offers a framework for assessing problem behaviors in classroom settings. It explains three prerequisite steps (identification, prioritization, and delineation of operational definitions) and three methods for formulating hypotheses (structured interviews, systematic observations, and experimental functional analyses). (DB)

Guidelines for assessing the classroom environment for optimal student performance cover physical environment, time/instructional management, behavior management, and teacher effectiveness. Vignettes illustrate classroom problems and suggest management solutions. A checklist identifies instructional methods and conditions that positively affect…

Issues related to the ecological assessment of students with mild to moderate disabilities are examined. The paper discusses targeting student behavior according to its context and in relation to present and future socioenvironmental demands; aspects of an ecological assessment model; and thoughts on incorporating aspects of ecological assessment…

This "Packet of Information for Families" (PIF) was developed for parents whose children are identified as both gifted/ talented and on the autism spectrum, or twice-exceptional. Parents of twice-exceptional children often search for appropriate and challenging enrichment programs for their child, but the dearth of information available…

Based upon the communications process model of teaching and learning, the Miniaturized Total Interaction Analysis System (Mini-TIA) establishes a conceptual framework for observing symptomatic classroom behaviors. It provides a means for the evaluation of classroom communication. Interpersonal communication is defined as either verbal (using…

In this study an observation schedule was developed and used to compare activities and behavior of 77 New Zealand children with disabilities who had been mainstreamed into special groups within preschools and play centers and 77 non-disabled peers. The development of the schedule is described, results are given, and advice is offered to…