Strain provides his perspective on four issues facing science and practice in early childhood and special education. He points to the need for (a) long-term functional research, (b) greater emphasis on the use of evidence-based programs in practice, (c) moving special education research back to the Office of Special Education Programs, and (d)…

The purpose of this article is to respond to the perspectives of Agran and colleagues concerning barriers to general education placement for students with significant support needs from an "on the ground" lens of participation in mediations and due process hearings, as well as conversations with parental inclusion advocates throughout…

Discusses the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and its implementation at the local level. Identifies barriers to implementation and outlines suggestions for transition educators who are instrumental in fulfilling the promise of ADA. (Author/JOW)

Three papers were commissioned to address ways of evaluating implementation of the due process procedural safeguards provision of P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. Milton Budoff presents a social science view in "Implementing Due Process Safeguards: From the User's Viewpoint." Donald Bersoff follows with an…

Reviews Congress's annual report on the implementation of P.L. 94-142, The Education for All Handicapped Children Act, and notes questions of local practitioners regarding numbers of students served, personnel, least restrictive environment, procedural safeguards, evaluation, fiscal and technical assistance, and procedural changes. Concludes that…

Outlines the need for interagency cooperation in the vocational development of the handicapped and disadvantaged and develops a futuristic model to be implemented. Discusses advocacy and its role in professional associations, potential barriers to organizational advocacy, and the role of professional associations in organizational advocacy. (CT)

Four commissioned papers on approaches to implement the least restrictive environment (LRE) provision of P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, are presented. The authors were asked to develop criteria applicable to the local level and appropriate to a variety of contexts. Papers are presented from the following authors:…

The Education for All Handicapped Children Act (P.L. 94-142) is used to illustrate policy implementation analyses. Significant barriers to policy implementation for this law include power relationships between parents and schools, classroom teachers' feelings of uncertainty resulting from changed role expectations, and economic problems. (Author)

The primary approaches of programs to prevent alcohol and other drug abuse are discussed, along with general problems of these programs. Key weaknesses of program evaluations are discussed, and suggestions and recommendations are made for special educators to implement prevention programs with their students with disabilities. (JDD)

This article focuses on early intervention implementation concerns and recommendations for addressing the needs of the wide range of infants and toddlers with disabilities and families to be served. It describes providing services in natural environments, as well as the issues of personnel preparation and models of service delivery. (Contains…

The United States Department of Education's tenth annual report on the implementation of Public Law 94-142 contains improvements but shows overdependence on reporting numbers of students without descriptions of evolutions in service delivery, and raises questions about the effectiveness of monitoring efforts carried out by the Office of Special…

The paper reviews international research on computer assisted learning (CAL) for special populations and examines the issue in terms of the Canadian policy perspective. Data collection techniques included interviews and field observations with researchers, manufacturers, and policy makers. A generic model is proposed for special education computer…

The article discusses the purposes of early screening for disabilities and examines some of the issues involved in implementing a successful program. Weaknesses in existing procedures are discussed and programs existing in the Canadian provinces are mentioned with brief reference to some existing practices in the lower mainland. (Author/CL)

Quality Implementation in Transition is a framework designed to guide transition specialists and administrators in the implementation of total quality management. The framework uses the tenets set forth by W. Edwards Deming and is intended to help professionals facilitate change within transition programs. (Author/JOW)

This paper discusses the importance of interagency coordination in developing services for young children with handicaps and their families. It suggests strategies to improve the functioning of interagency coordinating councils by considering council membership, role definition, goal commitment, vision of the early intervention system, and use of…