Perceptions of the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) process for children with disabilities were assessed in a statewide (North Carolina) survey of approximately 600 child service coordinators. Divergent viewpoints about the usefulness and process of developing the IFSP emerged, depending on the program with which the child service…

A study of 105 parents and 30 state-level administrators from six states investigated the state-level policy- and organization-centered strategies that are compatible with the needs identified by families of young children with disabilities. Results found parents identified access to services and the need for improved coordination as continuing…

Summarizes the present status of supported employment for people with disabilities, discusses major accomplishments of the initiative (such as positive results in benefit-cost analyses) and identifies challenges, including continuing high numbers of individuals in segregated programs, lack of supported employment services for individuals with…

Current trends in mental retardation services in Massachusetts were investigated using the New England region, the state of Michigan, and the United States as comparative frames of reference. Massachusetts' movement toward reducing reliance on state institutions, reallocating funding, and developing community services and family support is…

This article discusses the differences in providing special education services to adults and children with disabilities in Great Britain, including differences in terminology, identification and assessment, incidence, educational settings, and teachers. (CR)

Rather than viewing an early intervention team in isolation, a systems perspective considers the interrelationships and interdependence of the various elements comprising service delivery for children with disabilities. This article proposes a model, a multilayered framework, that takes into account the larger system of community and organization…

The Vermont Independent Services Team Approach (VISTA), is a cross-disciplinary method for planning consensus decisions about type, mode, and frequency of related services required to support a student's educational program. After six student planning teams used the VISTA model, team members reported higher levels of confidence in team practices…

As in a US study, the most problematic factors affecting delivery of special education programs in nonurban areas of New Zealand were recruitment and retention of qualified staff, resistance to change, and long distances between schools. Lists 19 problems in special education service delivery, suggested solutions to 12 specific problems,…

Discusses instructional delivery models and their physiology in distributed learning systems. Highlights include building delivery models; types of delivery models, including distributed classroom, self-training on the Web, online training, communities of practice, and performance support systems; and actors (users) involved, including experts,…

Research seeks to determine key elements in sustainability of projects to reorient an aspect of their service to an early intervention approach in mental health. Findings confirm literature on capacity building which suggests several crucial predictors of success in changing the ways agencies run. These include the development of interagency…

Describes the "Educate Your Child" program, a Cuban family-based program supported by UNICEF and designed to enhance the total development of children from birth until the start of formal schooling for the 80 percent of Cuban children who do not attend the Children's Circle preschool program. Highlights the importance of the regional…

The "one-size-fits-all" approach to teaching and program delivery is indefensible. Minnesota has enacted a law specifying standards of knowledge and skills that high school students must demonstrate to qualify for a diploma via multiple pathways. All pathway programs (classical, postsecondary, interactive-technology evening school,…

A special education lawsuit against the Baltimore City Public School System resulted in a consent decree that evolved into a systemwide management plan. By 1997, the system collapsed and a city-state partnership integrated special and regular education. The focus on outcomes for court disengagement instead of student outcomes is discussed. (CR)

Used four-subtest short form of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised to develop efficient, simultaneous screening/assessment procedure for identifying gifted students for special programs. Estimated statistical relationship between subtest and full-test scores using test score data from 203 students. Found subtest score of 52 both…

The study with 16 at-risk second grade readers found that specialized instruction (special education or Chapter I) did not appear more differentiated or more appropriate than the regular education services and were neither organized to contribute to success in the classroom reading curriculum nor differentiated enough to be considered…