Implementing research-based curricula and instruction in inclusion-oriented schools is helped or hindered by having coherent models of service delivery accounting for the full range of student diversity. The current investigation offers data from 174 participants in 32 schools, analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation, and hierarchical…

This 5-year multisite mixed-methods evaluation study chronicles the field-testing of the planning process Guidelines for Selecting Alternatives to Overreliance on Paraprofessionals in 26 schools (Grades K-12) in six states. Evaluation of the utilization and outcomes of the guidelines process was based on data from 472 study participants. Findings…

This study explores key indicators of special education service delivery based on responses from 92 special educators and 36 administrators in 19 Vermont schools. Special educators reported on their work, the work of paraprofessionals they supervised, and 103 students with disabilities who were receiving one-to-one paraprofessional supports within…

Giangreco helps teachers answer one of the hardest questions in including students with disabilities in mainstream classes: How can teachers include students who function substantially below grade level? Giangreco describes a teacher who must help a boy working at kindergarten level participate in the academic work of her 5th grade class. He…

The article focuses on a practical prioritization process as a method to bridge the gap between assessment and planning of individualized education programs for severely handicapped students. This prioritization process is based upon a set of criteria agreed to by planning teams which include educators, related service personnel, and families.…

Characteristics of individualized education programs (IEPs) of 46 mainstreamed students with multiple disabilities from 9 states were analyzed, revealing that IEPs are vague and inconsistent, list goals for staff rather than for students, and are discipline-referenced. The study recommends that IEPs include individualized learning outcomes,…

Two studies (with 78 experts in deaf blindness and multiple disabilities and 44 parents of children with deaf blindness) explored the content and social validity of an educational planning tool--COACH (Choosing Options and Accommodations for Children). Combined results provide initial validation that COACH is congruent with exemplary practice.…

An evaluation was conducted of an educational planning process for inclusive education called COACH (Choosing Options and Accommodations for Children), which was used with 30 elementary and secondary students who are deaf-blind. Interviews with 72 teachers, parents, and staff addressed effects on relationships between parents and professionals and…

This guidebook to developing programs which include children with disabilities in general education classrooms offers a step-by-step process, specific instructions, scheduling helps, and master forms. An introduction (Section I) describes the COACH (Choosing Options and Accommodations for Children) approach identifying such assumptions as the…