This paper describes the outcomes of a study that investigated the competencies of 49 special educators on a set of 35 skills identified by the Council for Exceptional Children as important for professionals working in the area of special education. The self-reported competencies of special educators were compared with the competencies on the same…

This book is designed to help the individual acquire skills in life planning. Part 1 focuses on achieving the most from use of the book. It discusses personal responsibility, personal goals, and possible uses of the book. Part 2 contains the procedures to follow. It begins by listing benefits from setting goals. Exercises that follow assess…

This manual on stress management is designed to help graduate students whose performance and continued progress in their academic program is impaired by various stressors. The manual contains instructions and materials for selection and training of staff, initiating an intervention, and evaluation of the program. Suggestions based on the authors'…

In a search for effect dissemination methods for parent training programs, a videocassette program was developed as an alternative to traditional, professionally led programs to train parents in teaching self-help skills to their developmentally disabled children. Effectiveness of the videocassette approach was tested when 55 families in Los…

Effective schools have staffs that stress the importance of educational goals and have a well-defined mission. They also clearly communicate the expectation that all students can and will reach the stated goals. Reviews of studies of exemplary schools find that the principals express high expectations for both teacher and student performance,…

Since the identification of stress and the relationship of individual stress responses to physical and mental health, medical and behavioral professionals have been training individuals in coping strategies. To investigate the possibility of teaching cognitive coping skills to a nonclinical population in an academic setting, 41 college students…

The document is designed to provide practical information for teachers, parents, group home workers, work activity personnel, and others interested in developing social interaction skills and appropriate social behaviors in developmentally disabled adolescents and young adults. An introductory section discusses social problems of the…

The two part presentation presents information on specific conditions of developmental delay and suggests intervention approaches. Three causes of mental retardation (Down's syndrome, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and cerebral palsy) are identified and described in terms of definition, incidence, characteristics, and educational implications. Part II is…

A therapeutic approach, including transactional analysis, assertiveness training, personal causation and modeling theories, was effectively incorporated into the Wilderness Experience Program (WEP) for problem youth, to meet the goal of developing an emancipated individual who could assume responsibility, develop realistic self-expectancies and…

This curriculum is the product of a project between the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and the National Juvenile Detention Association to develop and implement a 40-hour, core training curriculum for line staff in education programs in juvenile confinement and custody facilities. The curriculum is primarily intended…

Evaluated the effectiveness of a combined behavioral-reflective parent-training program with high school seniors (N=24). Lectures, films, class discussions, role-playing exercises, and examinations were used to teach concepts of behavioral and reflective child rearing. Data analysis indicated that the parent-training course produced significant…

Examines the efficacy of alcohol education programs. This study (N=83) found that recency of exposure to alcohol education classes and discussion of alcohol advertising in those classes predicts adolescent cognitive resistance (counterarguing) to persuasive alcohol advertising for months or even years. Suggests greater attention to critical…

Offers a social ecological analysis of health promotive environments, emphasizing the transactions between individual or collective behavior and the health resources and constraints that exist in specific environmental settings. Directions for future research on the creation and maintenance of health promotive environments also are examined. (JB)

Six young children with cerebral palsy received motor skills instruction across two conditions: adaptive positioning and behavioral teaching procedures, and the same procedures plus computer assistance and response-contingent toys. The computer-mediated package increased the children's general level of engagement and motor skills and brought about…

Describes a five-step process by which preschool teachers can meet the individual needs of all children, including those with disabilities, while maintaining a group instructional format. The process links assessment to curriculum, has planned teacher-directed individualized group instruction, implements behavior management techniques, and…