Multidisciplinary collaboration is considered to be very important for the education of pupils with special educational needs and particularly those pupils with the most severe disabilities. This research adopts a multiple case-study design in order to understand collaboration and the integration of services and the effectiveness of these among…

An eight-step decision-making paradigm appropriate for guiding decisions regarding selection of instructional programming alternatives for visually impaired multiply disabled children is presented. Brief case studies illustrate the application of the paradigm. (Author/DB)

The CARES project (Coordinated Ambulatory Rehabilitation Evaluation Services) presents a model to provide multidisciplinary services for multiply disabled children in rural settings. Background, information about model components, and descriptive data are presented to illustrate project evolution and operation. Nearly 400 children with multiple…

A team approach for multi-handicapped children helps prevent fragmentary therapy or duplicated or conflicting programs. Successful social control in a rehabilitation center depends on staff/client relationship, the adaptability of the child, the program, staff orientation and role, attitudes of therapist and child, and acceptance of the child's…

The paper presents an overview of the interdisciplinary team approach for providing services to multihandicapped learners (3 to 18 years old). The model was developed to alleviate problems encountered by educational personnel serving the multihandicapped in a rural state. The model incorporates a local and a state interdisciplinary team. The two…

The Vermont Interdependent Services Team Approach (VISTA), a process to facilitate consensus decision making about type and frequency of support services, was tested by 11 educational teams serving seven students (ages 4-20) with multiple disabilities. Results indicate that support service decisions changed, specialists made different decisions…

This article presents a model for efficient assessment of young children with visual impairments or multiple handicaps. The approach has team members simultaneously observe various aspects of a child's functioning to gain an understanding of the child as a whole. (Author/DB)

This study examined the effectiveness of activities associated with transdisciplinary teaming and integrated therapy on targeted motor responses of three elementary age students with multiple disabilities during the general education classroom routine. All three students immediately increased and maintained their target motor responses under the…

Team approach methods in providing rehabilitation services are reviewed and a training method for rehabilitation teams is described, based on experience in a vocational rehabilitation facility for the mentally retarded. Practical suggestions for constructive team functioning and facility research results are also presented. (MF)

A study examined detailed data on 100 consecutive Special Populations Assessment and Rehabilitation Center patients and found the program to be successful in conducting interdisciplinary visual evaluations of those with multiple impairments. The types of adaptive-testing procedures used for visual acuity and visual field testing are described. (CR)

This article describes a process for customizing instruction for students with profound multiple disabilities that has been used to design instructional programs and maximize attainment of functional outcomes. The process focuses on collaborative teamwork and problem solving to design and implement instructional programs and includes five major…

A team programming approach that uses parents and professionals to select unified programming goals for severely/multiply disabled students, provide direct and indirect related services, integrate programming methods, and monitor student progress is described. Program philosophy and overall functional assessment-curriculum organizes team members…

To select an adapted mobility device for a 5-year-old boy with blindness and spastic diplegic cerebral palsy, a multidisciplinary team used 8-millimeter videography to evaluate the subject's joint angle during ambulation with one of three canes and with no cane. The I-style cane provided optimal posture and gait pattern. (Contains references.) (CR)

This study evaluated data from 73 educational team members who used an updated version of the Vermont Interdependent Services Team Approach (VISTA) to assist them in planning support services for 11 students with multiple disabilities in general education classes. The changes were perceived positively, especially the overall quality, practicality,…

Twenty-one papers on caring for children with cerebral palsy are organized into four sections, including: (1) cerebral palsy and the interdisciplinary team approach; (2) management of impairments related to cerebral palsy; (3) preventing disability by optimizing function of the child with cerebral palsy; and (4) preventing handicap by creating…