Peer relationships are just as important for students with autism, intellectual disability, and other developmental disabilities. Through their interactions with peers across the school day, students develop new skills, encounter new perspectives, access needed supports, find camaraderie, develop social capital, learn prevailing norms, and elevate…

When regular class teachers and school staff realize that a gifted program can be of service to them, the program has the best chance for success. Among ways to create that ownership are involving staff in program planning and inservice, using their talents, and involving parents and community members. (CL)

Paraprofessionals may fulfill a number of roles with learning disabled students, ranging from assistance in diagnosis to individual instruction. State and local education agencies should prepare for the advent of paraprofessionals through inservice and supervision, being attentive to problematic areas of responsibilities, interpersonal…

Program development in gifted and talented education is the focus of the digest. Elements of a successful program, including statements of support for differential education, staff orientation, and multiple appropriate screening and identification procedures are listed. Beginning steps for planning committees are noted. Identification approaches…

Surveys completed by state consultants for handicapped students revealed that Ss ranked program evaluation as their most critical and time consuming job function. Funding activities, program planning, and technical assistance to local education agencies were other critical areas. Areas of training needs included curriculum development and…

The report examines services for the gifted in West Virginia and offers recommendations for improving those services. In chapter 1, "Study of Best Practices in Educating Gifted Children," Patricia Bruce Mitchell outlines findings from a literature and interview analysis regarding best practices in gifted education, including exemplary…

Available from Security World Publishing Co., Inc. P.O. Box 272, Culver City, California 90230; $2.00 single copy. (JG)

Guidelines for developing school programs for behaviorally disordered (BD) youth, including program descriptions, and program staffing are presented. It is suggested that four concerns need to be addressed in the development of an educational program: (1) developing a program philosophy and general program goals for BD students, (2) identifying…

As educators across the nation launch into frenzied efforts to "do something" in response to the various recommendations of commissions on educational excellence, many are forgetting that knowledge of how to implement change is available. This paper focuses on three concerns that educators must face when fitting general recommendations…

The roles of the school principal and the district program director in bicultural instructional programs are examined in this paper. The major responsibilities associated with both positions are defined. The role relationships between the two positions and between each position and the instructional staff are delineated. (Author/GC)

Teachers and staff as well as students are not immune to substance abuse. Presented are simple guidelines on what to look for in physical effects, what to do if someone is suspected, and how to get help. (SI)

These Colorado guidelines explain the purpose of vision screening programs in schools and draw a distinction between screening and a screening program. They outline types of screening to be carried out for students at each grade level. Screening procedures are then described in detail, including: history and external observations, distance visual…

Schools which have successfully implemented mastery learning (ML) programs show many similarities in their plans for ML development. These similarities stand out so strongly that knowledge of them can help all schools in planning for ML. The following program commonalities observed during visits to several schools in New York, Washington,…

The Flint (Michigan) Community Schools developed a four-phase School Improvement process model. In Phase 1 (Commitment), school district and administrative support were obtained and pilot schools were selected (one elementary and one middle school). The principals of these schools and one teacher representative from each received training in…

Effects of participatory planning on internal consistency within the special education referral, planning and placement process and the Individualized Education Programs (IEP) were investigated. A stratified representative sampling procedure was used to select 114 handicapped students enrolled in one district's special education program. Referral…