Despite wave after wave of educational reform in the United States our students continue to lag behind their peers in other industrialized countries on virtually all measures of academic achievement. Effective professional development (PD) is seen as a key to improving instructional practice and therefore student learning, but traditional forms of…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a program using an inclusive model (e.g., course work in special education and special education liaison support) on the beliefs, practices, and skills of pre-service middle and secondary general education teachers (n = 26) regarding their preparedness to work with students with special needs. A pre- and…

This response to five case studies of inclusive practices for elementary students with learning disabilities evaluates the studies by standards that require prioritized objectives, adapted methods and materials, effective teacher presentation, and systematic monitoring. It finds that the case studies show shortcomings in all areas, which appeared…

This text contains 47 readings about gifted education grouped into sections on: (1) conceptions and identification; (2) instructional models and practices; (3) creativity, thinking skills, and eminence; (4) psychological and counseling issues; (5) populations of gifted; and (6) special populations. Some of the chapters are: "Issues and Challenges…

Differing attitudes of researchers and preschool teachers towards research in early childhood are discussed in this paper. These differences are seen as arising from causes such as the special training of each group and the nature of the work they do, the distribution of the sexes in each group and the social institutions which back them. The…