As school psychologists move from dichotomous categorizations of students as "gifted" or "nongifted" toward a more comprehensive approach to identification, their task becomes increasingly complex. In the present article, the authors outline practices at the planning, programming, and data collection stages of the identification process in hopes…

As a school leader, what do you need to know about Response to Intervention (RTI) and your role in leading instruction for struggling learners? In this article the authors offer guidance about the content of the RTI initiative based on policy, research, and practice. They provide a brief history of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act…

Factors effecting the success of preschool early intervention programs for children birth through age five are discussed. Specific issues covered include building a high quality program, maintaining quality instruction, integrating related services, providing the least restrictive environment, identifying participants, designing the delivery…

The article reviews the Diagnostic Assessment Procedure and related facets of the evaluation process within the Program to Develop Efficiency in Visual Functioning. Basic assumptions, rationale for development, administration, interpretation, and use of the program are considered. (Author/PHR)

The staff of the Young Adult Training Center, Columbia, Missouri, used Canfield's Learning Styles Inventory to select enrollees for its training programs and to modify instructional strategies based on learner needs. The three vocational skill training programs involved were retail sales, building trades, and data entry. (CT)

The application of curriculum-based assessment (CBA) procedures across five decision-making areas in special education is presented, including screening and referring, determining eligibility and classifying, planning programs, monitoring progress and modifying programs, and evaluating programs. CBA procedures are proposed as a feasible,…

Experiences from Sweden, United States, Netherlands, West Germany, and United Kingdom illustrate the construction and implementation of written individual plans for special education students. Experiences indicate the importance of translating diagnostic data on pupils into teaching decisions, teaching based on the plan, and using evaluation data…

This article delineates an organizational systems framework for exploring team utilization possibilities in schools and provides guidelines for deciding when and how teams might be utilized. (Author/PN)

Outlines procedures for integrating arts education into the individualized education program (IEP) written for each handicapped student under PL 94-142. Describes how art can provide diagnostic information on the child, teach academic and behavioral skills, and add an important aesthetic component to the handicapped child's life. (SJL)

One school district's effort to develop a specialized reading program for students with dyslexia is described. Discussed are: guidelines for diagnosing dyslexics; primary characteristics of 12 youngsters identified as dyslexic; and recommendations for other school districts concerning definitions, screening, referral, and service delivery. (JDD)

This article considers areas of general agreement and challenges concerning decision making about such educationally related services as occupational and physical therapy for students with disabilities. It offers guidelines in such areas as teamwork, educational program components, values that underlie decision making, functions of related…

A team programming approach that uses parents and professionals to select unified programming goals for severely/multiply disabled students, provide direct and indirect related services, integrate programming methods, and monitor student progress is described. Program philosophy and overall functional assessment-curriculum organizes team members…

Discusses methods for identifying potential college students with specific learning disabilities. Examines a systems approach to the diagnosis and remediation of such students, which involves analyzing the educational task, preparing criterion measures, designing behavioral objectives, and preparing instructional sequences. Offers guidelines for…

The designing of a remedial education program for a six-year-old boy is described. The process included several weeks of observation, selective diagnostic testing, test result analysis, consideration of the child's preferences and attitudes, and formulation of an individualized program. (MSE)

Several dimensions of early identification of disabling conditions are discussed, including the relationship between early identification and prevention. Preventative components are described for child find, screening, assessment, and program planning. Assumptions behind screening and assessment guidelines are discussed, emphasizing the assumption…