The use of a needs assessment instrument as part of the evaluation of a statewide systems change grant, "Increasing Transition Opportunities for Connecticut Youth with Disabilities," is described. A Connecticut Transition Needs Assessment instrument was revised to include seven school components and five community components identified…

This presentation addresses ways to meet the needs of African-American gifted students and offers suggestions for inclusive classroom interventions that are liberating for students who exist simultaneously in African American culture, American mainstream culture, and as gifted and talented learners. The identification of these learners must begin…

Students' willingness to befriend a mentally retarded student was investigated using written vignettes about students said to be enrolling in the subjects' school. The study population included 60 fourth grade students from 5 social studies classes in a small southern community. Students were randomly assigned to experimental or control…

This paper presents 15 questions for educators and administrators to ask themselves in designing and implementing inclusive and collaborative school programs. Questions, and the accompanying answers, cover such issues as funding, parental support, district philosophy, support for teachers, service delivery, teacher attitudes, regular education…

This study explored teachers' attitudes toward gifted students and students with learning problems integrated into their classrooms. A sample of 46 fourth and fifth grade teachers in a rural school district completed attitude questionnaires about all of their students and personal data forms about themselves. The teachers' attitudes toward their…

Junior Achievement (JA) offers high school students its traditional evening program, in which business advisors help students run their own mini-businesses. In 1980, JA offered this program to mentally, emotionally, and physically disabled students aged 16-21. The special needs component operates an in-class program where students run companies…

This document reports on the proceedings of a forum on special education, called by Alberta's Minister of Education. The forum was intended to present Alberta Education's preliminary position on the integration of students with special needs and solicit feedback, review concerns raised in the Special Education Review Action Plan, and provide ideas…

Focusing on special education and early childhood policy and practices, this paper highlights global educational and social forces that demand professional attention and study. These global forces include: (1) the movement toward educational reform and an improved competitive edge in the world marketplace; (2) the unionization of educational…

This paper describes the Gallaudet University Child Development Center (an early childhood program serving the children of university staff, faculty, and students), focusing on its model integration program at the Kendall Demonstration Elementary School (District of Columbia). The program uses a "split placement" model to promote…

To facilitate the least restrictive education of handicapped children required by Public Law 94-142, special educators are encouraged to cooperate with regular classroom teachers in meeting the needs of handicapped children. An outline of eight suggestions for developing communication skills and effective consultation techniques focuses on being…

Designed to identify and develop reading skills, stimulate the desire to read, promote an appreciation of literature, and encourage reading as a lifelong habit, the Department of Defense Dependents Schools Comprehensive Reading Program presented in this pamphlet outlines the major functions of the reading improvement specialist (RIS). These…

A critical examination of problems in delivery services to students with mild learning and behavior problems points out weaknesses in special education programs. These programs have grown indiscriminately, resulting in over-identification of "handicapped" students. The special education placement system is time-consuming and is not the most…

This book is about a set of alternatives to the traditional instructional system: cooperative learning methods. These are techniques that use cooperative task structures, in which students spend much of their class time working in 4-6 member heterogeneous groups. These learning methods also use cooperative incentive structures, in which students…

Computer Aided Instruction for Teacher Education (CAITE) is a system of individualized self-instructional materials designed to teach educators basic information, attitudes, and skills related to mainstreaming. This booklet is to be used with the first of 16 modules in the set. The module provides instruction on: (1) the target audience for the…

This classroom research project focused on 10 fifth-grade students, all of whom had been labelled low-average achievers by their school. Students were encouraged to read, write, draw, talk, tell stories, and play freely. Five case studies emerged from the interactions. It became apparent that the children were shaping literature to their…