This compilation presents five papers on issues and research in special education. "Qualitative Research in Special Education: An Evaluative Review" (Charles A. Peck and Gail C. Furman) explicates some of the epistemological assumptions underlying qualitative research methods, reviews examples of qualitative research, evaluates the contributions…

This book on effective curriculum for gifted students begins with an introduction that discusses gifted education's use of the special education model and implications of current educational reform. Part 1, "General Issues in the Design and Development of Appropriate Curricula for the Gifted," then explores scope and sequence in curricula for the…

Novice teachers face formidable tasks of planning and management as they enter the classroom for the first time as professionals. They also bring with them mental imprints of what teaching and learning are like, images gained not from their professional preparation programs, but from their years as students. This qualitative study is part of a…

The teacher assessment that is the subject of this paper is an essentially informal activity. The teacher assesses the student by posing questions, observing activities, and evaluating work in a planned or ad hoc way. The information obtained may be partial or fragmented, but repeating such assessments over time will allow the buildup of a solid…

This guide was developed during a demonstration project conducted in three diverse, multiethnic Western Pennsylvania communities to use older adult tutors as mentors to improve Head Start parents' literacy skills and ability to develop their children's literacy. The guide is intended to facilitate tutors' learning about family literacy and to give…

Built around the case method approach recommended by the Carnegie Foundation in their report "A Nation Prepared: Teachers for the 21st Century," this hands-on, practical book presents 33 cases to absorb, analyze, and solve. The cases in the book dramatize the learning difficulties of students and the instructional options of teachers and…

A discussion of second language program evaluation focuses on the interpretability of test scores as a criterion in program evaluation. It looks at both test design and research design issues. First, eight method-comparison, program evaluation studies that compare acquisition-based and analysis/practice based methods are described. Acquisition…

The effects of Chapter 1 (Education Consolidation and Improvement Act) reading pull-out programs on the reading achievement of participating students was studied for 30 fifth- and sixth-grade students from a Chicago (Illinois) elementary school serving a low socioeconomic neighborhood with a minority enrollment of 99 percent. Fifteen students had…

This book presents current knowledge about teaching culturally diverse populations that are traditionally underserved in U.S. schools. Such ethnic minority populations include African Americans, Appalachians, Native Alaskans, Native Americans, and Latin Americans. Part 1, "Shaping a Vision for the Schooling of Diverse Populations,"…

Focusing on corrective strategies for improving reading skills of at-risk community college students, this document reviews the history of such strategies, highlights current efforts, and assesses future needs. The first section traces the history of remedial reading programs at community colleges, beginning with small individualized sections…

To determine if differing ability levels will affect the acquisition of problem-solving skills and self-esteem as a result of participation in two approaches to teaching problem-solving skills, a study was conducted with sixth graders in a posttest-only control group experimental design. Subjects were 102 sixth graders randomly assigned to 5…

Portfolios, collections of student work representing a selection of performance, are being used in classrooms today in the tradition of the visual and performing arts in which they serve to showcase a student's best pieces and the student's evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the pieces. Portfolios are useful as a support to new…

Until recently, writing instruction had been dominated by an emphasis on rhetorical forms, rules, and written products. This view has been superseded for the most part by a mode of instruction whereby teachers assist students in developing planning and revising skills, with less emphasis on grammatical rules. Similar trends are evident in second…

This book provides theoretical and practical information to meet the challenge of individualizing instruction for gifted and talented adolescents of different learning styles and different cultural backgrounds. Part 1 consists of six chapters that present the broad theoretical background of giftedness and learning style. It includes the following…

This report is a summary of Washington State's first 18 months of public higher education assessment activities. The two main sections of the report provide, first, summaries of the institutional assessment activities and, second, a discussion of the statewide assessment indicators. Specific sections examine the collection of entry-level baseline…