Ireland's system of special education has undergone unprecedented change over the last three decades. Following major policy developments in the mid-2000s which emphasised inclusive education, there have been changes to special education school personnel and funding structures which seek to include greater numbers of students with disabilities in…

The European Agency Statistics on Inclusive Education (EASIE) work focuses upon the collection and analysis of longitudinal, comparative national data related to inclusive education systems and learners with officially recognised special educational needs (SEN) among its 31 member countries. In this article, the EASIE work is discussed in relation…

Little is known about the curricular experiences schools provide English learner students (ELs) to meet the dual goals of attaining English language proficiency (ELP) and grade-level achievement. I introduce the concept of "Curricular Streams" to provide a more nuanced comparative analysis of four urban middle schools, focusing on: (a)…

This paper examines research findings concerning the loci of the pervasive academic underachievement among deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children and issues associated with interventions and instructional methods that could help to reduce or eliminate it. Investigators have hypothesised that at least 50% of the variability in DHH students'…

The terrain of inclusion studies in discussed in this paper from the perspective of policy discourses and teachers' constructions on student diversity. We start by discussing the concept of inclusion from normative and analystic perspectives. We then look at the kinds of discourses that can be found in the Finnish and Norwegian curricula, as well…

The review of the "Rainbow Connection Instructional Guide" stresses the guide's purpose in assisting the development of model transitional services for preschool handicapped students moving into less restrictive educational environments. Noted is the guide's attention to preparation of parents, roles of training and collaboration, and…

The study compared the physical fitness of 283 segregated resident, 64 segregated nonresident, and 137 integrated visually impaired subjects aged 10 to 17 years. Results indicated that educational environment (favoring the segregated environment) was a significant factor on four of the six items in the physical fitness test battery. (Author/DB)

The study examined motives and decisions of 74 German parents of handicapped children in choosing different preschool settings. Results indicated that choice of an integrated or segregated preschool is largely determined by family background and information seeking behavior and reflects specific family needs. (DB)

The study found that 74 seventh- and eighth-grade students with either high or moderate contact with hearing impaired students expressed more positive attitudes toward deafness than students who had no contact with the hearing impaired. A similar pattern was found when attitudes toward disabilities in general were evaluated. (DB)

The social acceptance of two groups of trainable mentally retarded students by both students and teachers was assessed by questionnaire in two elementary schools. (DLS)

The study compared teachers' ratings of the mathematics achievement of severely to profoundly hearing impaired Israeli students in special schools, special classes, and mainstream placement. When variables related to communication skills and intellectual potential were controlled, teacher ratings of student mathematical achievement was lower for…

This study compared perceptions of staff in self-contained programs and mainstreamed programs for students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) in a district committed to inclusion, interagency coordination, and staff training. Well-established self-contained programs were perceived as superior to relatively new mainstream programs in…

Thirty-five studies on the efficacy of special class versus regular class placement for mildly handicapped students were reviewed for the power of their statistical tests. Twenty-one studies had adequate power to detect a large effect size but the power to detect a medium effect size was no better than chance. (Author/DB)

Comparison of the efficacy of integrating 41 elementary school students with moderate mental retardation into either regular classes, a special class with a community-based program, or a special class with a traditional developmental program found that, after 2 years, no single program was superior to the other 2. (Author/DB)

Two elementary teachers rated 91 learning-disabled students (56 mainstreamed and 35 in self-contained classes) using the Weller-Strawser Scales of Adaptive Behavior. Results indicated that personality variables and problem behavior were related to teachers' perceptions of the ability of learning-disabled students to adapt to the classroom.…