Nine British Further Education colleges serving individuals with severe learning difficulties were surveyed concerning design and content of language curricula, teaching methods, and assessment. The courses offered aimed to improve communication skills, students' independence, and social competence. Further work is recommended to link these aims…

Examined construct and discriminant validity of Classroom Adjustment Rating Scale with 169 normal, 125 learning disabled, and 48 emotionally handicapped elementary boys. Boys were rated by 69 teachers. Factor analysis identified three homogeneous scales: Acting-Out, Learning Problems, and Shy-Anxious. Discriminant analysis classified 77 percent of…

Presented is an introduction to laser videodisc technology, covering both hardware and courseware considerations and technological applications to special education. Described is the application of videodisc courseware to the teaching of fractions, and results of a successful program to teach fractions to eight mainstreamed students with learning…

The Reading Recovery Program offers individual reading lessons. Students are dismissed from the program when they reach a certain level of proficiency. A study of the errors made at entry reveals learning-disabled children rely on visual information and ignore supportive language, while other at-risk children utilize both. (VM)

Aspects of the current state of education for learning disabilities (LD) discussed include the theoretical and philosophical orientation, definitions of specific learning disabilities, especially for preschool children, delivery of services, and the role of the LD specialist. (MSE)

Key concepts of the book include the lack of evidence supporting the neurological explanation for "learning disabilities," basic flaws in research based on this theory, and an alternative "interactivity" theory which posits that systemic economic, social, and cultural conditions are the principal influences contributing to learning failure. (DB)

A study used systematic classroom observation to describe pupil behavior and pupil-teacher and pupil-peer interaction in four classrooms in schools for children with moderate learning disabilities. Results are compared with a previous study of mainstream elementary classrooms. (MSE)

An analysis of parent contact logs on 161 learning disabled and behavior disordered elementary students indicated that the most widely used or requested services were for program information and informal feedback. Teacher expectations regarding need for advocacy group membership and parent-advisory-group participation exceeded parental…

Addresses the need for a bilingual special education program in Canada. Outlines 10 principles of language acquisition supporting the view that language minority children with special needs require special consideration. Proposes a language assessment and development center, and describes its goals, activities, and first clients. (SV)

Students with learning difficulties can develop their literacy for daily living by using daily-living literature, which provides knowledge and skills for accomplishing some societal task. Daily-living materials approximate real-life materials and differ from general literacy materials in organization, style, and format. Suggestions are provided…

A semantic mapping heuristic is presented which provides an instructional strategy for teaching notetaking, recognizing main ideas and pertinent details, and sorting and organizing them into a report. The strategy enables learning-disabled students to read independently about a topic and subsequently write a report, thus establishing a…

Seventh- and eighth-grade students with learning disabilities (n=29) who reasoned through factual prose sentences did not recall more information than students who were prompted to try to remember the content after each sentence. However, students trained in thinking skills produced more correct explanations of the information than control…

This discussion of fostering recall and developing reasoning processes in students with mild disabilities considers the role of mnemonic strategies, similarities between mnemonic strategies and elaborative interrogation to facilitate information retrieval, constructivism and elaborative interrogation, and such problems as generalization and…

The recent development and adoption by the Council for Learning Disabilities of principles of ethical practice are recounted. The 5 major principles are presented, supported by 27 examples of appropriate actions. Principles address respect for the rights of individuals, effective educational practice, professional integrity, collaborative working…

Junior high school students (n=72) with learning disabilities received direct instruction in cognitive strategies, instruction in metacognitive activities, or both. Students improved in mathematical word problem performance and compared well with normally achieving peers. Discussion focuses on the treatment effects and maintenance and the issue of…