U.S. schools are required to educate students in the least restrictive environment (LRE). The number of students with high incidence disabilities, including those with speech or language impairments (SLI), who spend most of their day in the general education classroom has increased in the last decade. Establishing classrooms that proactively…

One-teach/one-assist and one-teach/one-observe are the two most widely used co-teaching models. Special educators often take on the support role when these models are used. At times, co-teachers in the support role may be unclear about how to implement active instructional practices that engage students and improve student outcomes. In this…

The national focus on teacher accountability and the resulting emphasis on raising the bar for teacher evaluations challenge teachers of students with learning disabilities (LD) to rethink instructional design and delivery. In response to these challenges, this article introduces a two-part protocol for planning and teaching strategy instruction…

Reading comprehension is important for academic success and is a skill required for many activities in school and beyond. With the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), many teachers have reported feeling overwhelmed by the expectations that reading and writing skills should be emphasized, taught, and supported in the content…

There is a growing need for the inclusion of direct, explicit vocabulary instruction in the early elementary grades. Young children are entering school with a wide range of early literacy experiences, including vocabulary knowledge. Those students who are limited in their vocabulary knowledge are at a greater risk for later language and reading…

The coexistence of visual impairments and learning disabilities presents unique challenges. It is imperative that teachers be apprised of the characteristics of this population as well as instructional strategies targeted at meeting their unique needs. The authors highlight typical patterns of performance and provide suggestions for effective…

Despite the popularity of co-teaching and widespread professional literature describing exemplary co-teaching practices, this instructional approach has yet to realize its potential. One way to increase the effectiveness of co-teaching is for special educators to contribute meaningfully by assuming the role of strategy leader in the co-taught…

In this article, modified cognitive strategy instruction in writing (CSIW), a cognitive strategy instructional model is described. Modified CSIW was designed based on two effective instructional models: cognitive strategy instruction in writing (CSIW) and self-regulated strategy development (SRSD). Modified CSIW provides tailored instruction to…

Teachers working with students who exhibit problem behaviors need new tools to assist their efforts to effectively address challenging behavior. The "Behavioral Objective Sequence" (BOS; Braaten, 1998) is a user-friendly instrument that provides a developmental perspective for responding to these behaviors within an instructional model. The BOS…

This article presents an infusion model for integrating social and behavioral skills into the general curriculum for students with disabilities and presents the "Violence Is Preventable" project (Washington State) as an example. Discussion includes available curricula on school survival and social skills, the instructional model, and…

This article describes a peer coaching model implemented in two elementary schools that included the following steps: identify coaches and their needs; identify learning buddies with similar needs; set up a schedule; determine supervision process; plan lessons; implement coaching sessions; reflect on lesson; and evaluate the model. (Contains…

The Content Mastery program, which evolved from the synergistic model, provides instructional accommodations and teacher consultation and support that encourage the success of students with learning disabilities in regular classroom settings. Students remain in mainstream classes as long as they can profit from instruction and attend the Content…

Provides an operational definition of self-advocacy as it pertains to adolescent and adult learners with learning disabilities in postsecondary settings, describes model high school and college programs that teach self-advocacy skills, and discusses important follow-up and support activities essential to the effective use of these skills.…

Outlines the instructional design principles underlying the Direct Instruction Model and applies these principles to a variety of content areas. Urges the integration of curriculum design principles with effective teaching practices. Also offers criteria for evaluating and selecting curriculum materials based on direct instruction principles.…

This article describes a cognitive strategy, PEP (Person, Event, Place), designed to enhance middle school students' comprehension of social studies texts. The PEP strategy is intended to help teachers scaffold the reading and writing experiences of at-risk students. Evaluation indicated a significant increase in reading comprehension for all…