The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires school districts to educate students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment (LRE). The IDEA does not require mainstreaming in all cases; however, in several recent cases, courts began to tip the scales in favor of inclusive programming for these students. Reviews cases…

A case study is presented of a girl (age six) with multiple disabilities including moderate to severe mental retardation who was fully included in a regular first-grade classroom. The experience indicated that students with multiple disabilities can learn to follow classroom routines, follow directions, acquire new skills, and improve their…

The National Center on Educational Outcomes offers guidelines for including students with disabilities when identifying outcomes, assessing students, defining acceptable performance, and reporting on schools' progress in meeting outcomes. Schools should include all students in their accountability and data collection programs. All students have…

Offers insights into successful elementary instruction for Limited English Proficiency (LEP) students in the regular classroom: learn as much as possible about each student's culture; encourage LEP students to share their history, culture, and language with the class; invite parents to take an active role; and employ the same literacy teaching…

The social support and self-esteem of 115 adolescents with visual impairments who attended mainstream Finnish schools, and a control group of 607 classmates were assessed. Self-esteem of the adolescents did not differ; relationships with friends contributed to the enhancement of the self-esteem of the adolescents with visual impairments.…

A study examined data from annual reports to Congress regarding placement practices for students with learning disabilities over the past six years. Results found that students with learning disabilities are being educated in increasingly less restrictive settings, although placement practices differ considerably from state to state. (Author/CR)

This article discusses methodologies for differentiating instruction for gifted students in regular social studies classes including curriculum compacting, conceptual thematic units, questioning strategies, interest development centers, independent study, and mentorship. Recommendations comply with performance expectations of the National Council…

Reviews and comments on educational policy reform issues in Hong Kong in the areas of: (1) quality education; (2) English language benchmarking; (3) initial teacher training; and (4) integration of students with special needs into ordinary classrooms. Discusses reforms in terms of consistency, coherence, and cultural fit. (SLD)

Describes a social science curriculum, "Amazing Discoveries," which meets the needs of middle school students with learning disabilities for social skills intervention, is appropriate for all students and fits in with the mandated social science curriculum. The curriculum includes 28 experiments and demonstrations that teach principles of social…

An interview with Margo Mastropieri, special-education-teacher educator, discusses science instruction for students with learning disabilities in inclusive settings. The value of activity-based approaches to science instruction for these students is emphasized. Ways of adapting both textbook-based approaches and activity-based approaches are…

Federal statutes, regulations, and major least-restrictive-environment cases provide numerous consistent principles that schools must adhere to in promoting inclusive educational practices. There are four major themes: consideration of an individual student's unique needs, presumptive right to an integrated education, educational appropriateness,…

This article presents two comparative case studies of young people with visual impairments that illustrate different degrees of success in integration into mainstream education in the United Kingdom. The cases illustrate a successful coordinated early integration versus a poorly coordinated and unsuccessful late integration effort. (Contains eight…

This study investigated the social competence of children with normal hearing (n=10) and children with impaired hearing (n=10) who attended an integrated preschool program for 4- to 5-year-olds. Observation of sociodramatic play and nonplay activities showed child entry behaviors were associated both with the hearing status of participants and…

Presents findings of a nationwide survey into the extent to which United Kingdom schools for students with emotional and behavioral difficulties reintegrate their pupils into mainstream schools and on the problems they have encountered. Results indicate that very few of these pupils ever return to mainstream school. Considers study's implications…

A multiple baseline design was used to examine the effects of classwide peer tutoring relative to traditional reading instruction on reading skills and social interaction time for three high-functioning students with autism and their typical peers in integrated elementary classrooms. Results revealed increased reading fluency and reading…