Inclusive education represents a new agenda for educational reform that spans a wide range of socio-political, cultural, ethical, personal and interpersonal dimensions. Working towards educational inclusion demands commitments, responsibilities and initiatives on the part of all parties to take into consideration the meanings and purpose of…

This literature review examined five terms used to describe the inclusion of students with disabilities in general education schools and classrooms. The objective was to determine if these terms have consistent definitions and descriptions. Major journals and texts in education, and position statements and newsletters from special education…

This digest in a question and answer format, provides basic information on cluster grouping of gifted students. Questions address such concerns as: the meaning of cluster grouping, differences between cluster grouping and tracking, advantages of cluster grouping, learning needs of gifted students, the argument that gifted education is elitist, the…

This module was developed as part of a federally funded study group project, to answer the question of how students with severe disabilities can actively participate in lessons within regular elementary classrooms alongside their nondisabled peers, while still meeting their individualized goals and objectives. The module presents a brief overview…

This paper questions whether genuine adoption of the inclusive education philosophy can occur within a school setting before it has been tested by the involvement of the whole school in school reform. It sees inclusion as one component of overall school restructuring. Experiences at three schools are compared. At the first school inclusive…

The paper examines an Idaho Supreme Court decision (Thornock versus Boise Independent School District) that placement of a severely handicapped student in a regular classroom with the assistance of an aide was preferable to placement in a segregated special education classroom. The paper argues that this decision is contrary to the provisions of…

This report presents the views of the Advisory Council for Special Education Needs for Queensland, Australia concerning effective education for students with special educational needs in regular schools. Three issue areas are identified: (1) commitment and advocacy; (2) effective management of education; and (3) improved human resource development…

As schools develop programs to serve students with increasingly complex conditions and as greater numbers of students with severe disabilities are mainstreamed into their neighborhood schools, requirements for safely transporting these students have become more complicated. This document provides special education administrators, transportation…

This proceedings document presents a series of papers critically examining the complex issue of full inclusion of students with emotional or behavioral disorders. It contains presentations by two keynote speakers: "Caring for Students with Emotional/Behavioral Disorders amidst School Reform" (Jo Webber) and "Planning for Inclusion:…

This study observed changes in patterns of friendship preference of three- and four-year-old children in mainstreamed preschool classes over the course of a school year. Sociometric assessments were obtained from the nonhandicapped children three times during the school year. At the beginning of the school year, three-year-old children did not use…

The second of five reports on Project REACH (Regular Education for All Children with Handicaps) describes an inservice approach to the integration of severely disabled students. REACH inservice is ongoing, systematic, and responsive and focuses on attitude and behavior change of both students and teachers. Three chapters address such preliminary…

The Parallel Alternate Curriculum (PAC), a model providng regular content courses, in regular classes, to secondary students with learning problems, combines basic skill instruction with alternative teaching strategies. PAC, a mainstreaming implementation program, is designed to provide inservice training emphasizing the process of how students…

The report describes an attempt to develop a cost-effective/program-effective service delivery model for providing special education to mildly handicapped students in Bellevue, Washington. Objectives include: needs assessment; analysis of delivery system options and fiscal resources; and establishment of delivery system priorities, evaluative…

A model for integrating severely handicapped children and youth is composed of five major components: (1) general integration (in which a needs assessment determines such aspects as visibility of the classroom, interaction with regular classroom staff, and school-home communication); (2) active integration (in which educational and social…