The potential of multidisciplinary teams to control for possible errors in diagnosis, classification, and placement and to provide a vehicle for ensuring effective outcomes of diagnostic practices is illustrated. The present functions of the school-based multidisciplinary team (also called, for example, assessment team, child study team, placement…

To identify factors which facilitate and limit the successful implementation of pre-referral intervention systems in public schools, a survey was conducted of Maine Directors of Special Education who represented school systems using pre-referral systems. Forty-eight of 67 special education directors responded to the survey; 20 additional responses…

A consultation method for analyzing and improving college instruction is described, along with views about the program by 10 faculty participants. The method employs two consultants and is based solely on individual consultation, teaching observations, and detailed critique. An initial meeting with the instructor addresses the individual's…

There are training dilemmas which are characteristic of medical settings. Clinical psychology students interning in a hospital setting are unfamiliar with the hospital culture, and the demands of patient care require a practical active approach. Experiences with training clinical psychologists to consult with pediatricians are reviewed. Disparate…

Adopting perspectives based on applications of artificial intelligence proven in industry, this paper discusses methodological strategies and issues that underlie the development of such software environments. The general concept of an expert system is discussed in the context of its relevance to the problem of increasing the accessibility of…

This report describes the activities and outcomes of a pioneering Telehealth project in which clinical psychologists use state of the art satellite technology to consult with paraprofessionals who live and provide treatment settings to persons with the dual diagnosis of developmental disabilities and mental illnesses. The goal is to provide early…

A study in a small rural school district used district preassessment records of students referred for a comprehensive, special education evaluation to determine if preassessment practices had improved. The district was located in a midwestern state that mandated preassessment practices in the mid-1980s in an effort to control special education…

Collaboration between bilingual education and regular classroom teachers, drawing on research and experience in special education. Several models for consultation used in special education are outlined: process consultation, used to help the teacher clarify student needs and develop solutions through a prescribed set of activities; the…

This paper describes the use of an automated performance support system, the Mental Retardation-Expert (MR-E), in the training of 16 student clinicians to think "functionally" about undesirable behaviors of persons with mental retardation or developmental disabilities (MR/DD). The MR-E models human expertise in behavioral diagnosis and…

An Illinois elementary school district concerned about unnecessary referrals for possible special education designed and piloted a regular education assistance team system which brought about greater regular teacher collaboration and increased accuracy in referral for case study evaluation. The building level teams consisted of regular education…

Three case studies of interorganizational arrangements between public school districts and a college/university are used to illustrate how a state higher education agency (the Massachusetts Board of Regents of Higher Education) promoted voluntary, lateral relationships to strengthen local school educational programs. A within-case analysis…

Program improvement activities can be classified into four categories based on the source of the impetus and the locus of the change agent: systematic, symbolic, opportunistic, and pragmatic. This paper (1) describes the various approaches to implementing Chapter 1 program improvement activities at the state and local district levels in 13 western…

Governors State University (University Park, Illinois) includes a three-credit course in collaborative consultation in its Master's degree program in multicategorical special education. A survey of 72 program graduates sought to evaluate the effectiveness of the consultation coursework. Responses from 39 of the graduates indicated that the role of…