This study empirically evaluated a classification schema based on symbolic communication level use with students with significant cognitive disabilities. Ninety-five teachers of students with significant disabilities rated students' level of performance on 10 academic tasks. Cluster analysis suggested a range of two to four clusters solutions.…

Explicit code and comprehension instruction is important for English learners (ELs), and several key findings from research on young ELs learning to read initially in English can offer guidelines for developing effective code-based instruction for these children. The authors of this column address comprehension instruction for ELs, suggesting…

Language involves the use of symbols in the form of words or signs that allow people to communicate their thoughts, ideas, and needs. Even without formal language, many children who are deaf-blind learn to communicate with gestures and object or picture symbols. Symbolic expression makes it possible to express thoughts and feelings about the…

In a bid to curb violence incurred via the abuse of teacher authority, some educators appear to denounce all forms of imposition. The author of this paper refers to this aversion to imposition and the romantic practices it promotes as "educational niceness". This essay is written to furnish a theoretical justification for educational imposition.…