This dissertation focuses on the intersection of law and pedagogy in special education classrooms as constructed in the discourse of special education teachers. The fitful and sometimes merely symbolic implementation of the prescriptions of school reform laws in individual classroom settings is well known. This dissertation seeks to unpack this…

Four years following the decimation of the New Orleans Public Schools by Hurricane Katrina the city has been described as the center of a unique urban public school reform effort. This effort is a combination of events that transpired just before the storm and those that have occurred as a result of it. In particular some claim that the emerging…

The reauthorization of the Individual with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 strongly encourages the use of a response-to-intervention (RtI) model to reduce the number of students identified as learning disabled, to increase student achievement, and to close learning gaps between subgroups of students. RtI is based on the systematic assessment of…

Over the past two decades, community organizing has emerged as an effective force for school improvement. In the context of shrinking education funding, stubborn opportunity and achievement gaps between low-income and wealthy children and between children of color and White children, and polarizing debate on school reform, community organizing…

Response to Intervention (RTI) was encoded into the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, and is being adopted on a wide scale as an alternative approach to identification of students with learning disabilities. For RTI to be an effective mechanism for addressing disproportionate representation of culturally and…

School psychologists who are savvy about state and federal policies benefit in that they have enhanced their potential to participate in school reform and are better able to facilitate the inclusion of special-needs students in their programs. Presents an overview of state and federal reform legislation, organization, and activities, and ties…

Raises the questions of where school psychologists fit into school reform and whether they have the organizational knowledge and skill to contribute to this comprehensive process. Critical to success of programs is the use of a collaborative problem-solving consultative model, which incorporates a four-stage process: problem identification,…

Restructuring of schools by means of revising the school calendar from the traditional 9-month calendar to a year-round calendar is one reform idea proposed to meet the diverse abilities and needs of students. Considering the sweeping changes influenced by No Child Left Behind and the trend toward excellence in education, this research focused…

Explosive changes in social, demographic, economic, and ideological factors in America require public education to respond with its own changes to assure competent citizens for the 21st century. School psychologists play an active role in school reform. Too frequently, school psychologists have been limited to testing to the exclusion of other…

With the release of "A Nation at Risk" in 1983, Americans focused on the report's declaration of "a rising tide of mediocrity" in the schools, which suggested unacceptable results in the education of America's children and youth. Concurrent to the missives levied at schools' lack of progress with academics and other…

The fabric of educational leadership is changing. Murphy (2001) has suggested three new metaphors for educational leaders: moral stewards, builders of communities, and educators for school improvement. However, shifting priorities and contradictions between these metaphors could result in fragmentation within the field. This article discusses…

This guide provides suggestions for planning and implementing inclusion programs to enhance education for all children. Recent laws supporting the rights of children with disabilities are considered, along with the confusion regarding how to meet the needs of all children in the schools. Variations in inclusion practices among states and districts…

This policy brief addresses the issue of issue of whether or not current federal funding policy under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) should be changed from an identification system to an overall population-based system. The current federal funding policy is described, in the context of the legislative history of IDEA.…

This book examines the history of education of students with disabilities and the impact of educational reform. Section 1, "The Separate Special Education System," examines the current system; the limited outcomes for students; racial, social, and gender inequities; costs of special education; parental advocacy; the disability rights…

Twenty-seven categorical and topical reports by nationally preeminent scholars comprise this report, intended to provide background information for Congress in reauthorizing the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). An introductory synthesis addresses principles of the IDEA, evidence of the Law's effectiveness and the effectiveness…