The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is the administrative law that governs special education services and how students with disabilities should be educated. When students are found eligible for special education and related services, the law states that the general education classroom should be the first placement considered where…

The neuropsychiatric paradigm has substantial impact on schools. The increase in the number of pupils being diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is an expression of the medicalisation of deviance. There is also an increase in educational classes specially designed to meet the needs of children with ADHD. This is contrary…

In the United States, Response to Intervention (RtI) is used to promote the use of evidence-based instruction in educational institutions, with the goal of supporting general and specialized educators and enabling these professionals to work together in a comprehensive, integrated manner. In doing so, RtI provides a protocol for identifying…

The paper recommends that young children with disabilities be placed in preschool classes with normally developing children whenever possible. Significant benefits are cited in the areas of social, emotional, and communication development when children with handicapping conditions are educated in settings with their nonhandicapped peers. Four…

The state plan outlines aspects of special education in Kansas. The initial section provides background information and outlines the needs in teaching positions (both professional and paraprofessional) and in the numbers of students receiving special education. The second section addresses the following state department operations: administration…

Provides a rationale for obtaining evaluative feedback concerning the perceived usefulness of school psychological reports and their impact on the development of individual educational plans. Research data and authoritative opinion support the need for feedback on a case-by-case basis. A working copy of a brief evaluation form is included. (Author)

Three outside consultants were asked to evaluate the validity of current special education placement procedures and policies in the Montgomery County, Maryland Public Schools (MCPS) to determine their effect on minority students. Procedures for obtaining information included mailing questionnaires to 396 families and observing in-service staffing…

The booklet presents regulations of New York's Education Law as it pertains to handicapped children. Fourteen topics are addressed: definitions; board of Education responsibilities; role and function of the Committee on the Handicapped; procedures for referral, evaluation, individualized education program development, placement, and review;…

This article describes the Laptop Computer Initiative (LCI), a program in a Delaware school district to enhance referral-to-placement practices and to develop individualized education programs for special education students. The six steps in the program's development are recounted and positive results of the LCI, such as increased staff efficiency…

The manual outlines Michigan's procedures in providing special education services to students with emotional impairments. The first section depicts the special education process, beginning with pre-referral intervention strategies and referral and proceeding to evaluation, the individualized educational planning committee (IEPC) meeting, delivery…

The Problem Solving Team (PST) is a school-based group that provides consultation and follow-up assistance to insure proper placement of students in school site programs and to help decrease the number of inappropriate referrals to special education and other programs. A PST Project identified and analyzed the characteristics of successful PSTs in…

A model for teaching physical education classes to handicapped children emphasizes individualized instruction in self-contained classrooms. In the two-stage developmental paradigm, one stage focuses on program organization with each class having its own physical education instruction. The second stage allows for the varying physical and…

The guidelines discuss the role of the New York Board of Education in the education of children with handicapping conditions. Specific sections address roles regarding relationship to the Committee on the Handicapped, identification of children needing special education, development of individualized education programs, assurance of…

The manual of policies and procedures covers special programs of the Ministry of Education in British Columbia. Noted in the introduction are ministry policies including mainstreaming, the use of the cascade model of service delivery, and the principles of least restrictive environment in student placement. Individual sections focus on the…

Provided are regulations for establishing the basic program parameters necessary to implement Article 3, Chapter 30 of Alaska Statutes requiring school districts and regional attendance areas to provide special services for exceptional children. Seven chapters cover the following areas (sample subareas are in parentheses): authority and…