This final report describes activities of the 3-year Generalized InService Training (GIST) Project to develop and field test an inservice training model for educators serving children with moderate, severe, and profound handicaps. Critical elements of the approach are identified, including: (1) training of educators and supervisors to work…

Given that faculty advising plays an important role in college level retention, this paper examines three possible forms of faculty advisor-student relationships--paternalism, agency, and contract--and found the contract form to be superior. The paternalistic model in which the advisor assumes responsibility and authority for decision making was…

This literature review considers the theory and practice of retention efforts in higher education, with special focus on community college programs. Introductory material looks at the conditions (e.g., tighter budgets and decreased enrollments) that have brought the issues of attrition and retention to the forefront. The next section reviews…

This report describing family day care in Denmark is based on discussions with early childhood professionals in Denmark. Regulations for conducting family day care are set out in national guidelines which focus on: (1) supervision of children and providers by a trained child care professional who oversees not more than 50 children; (2) selection…

A framework to consider a successful change effort in an organization consists of four elements: conditions for change; manner of initiation; road blocks or facilitators; and lasting results. A specific case study in which this framework can be applied is the process of change in one university. While the immediate manner of initiation was an…

Controlled educational choice, defined as parental or student choice of educational programs within the public school system that is regulated for public purposes, has become a leading proposal for educational reform. This paper reviews evidence from three working models of choice: the Minnesota Postsecondary Enrollment Options program (PEO), the…

Detailed methodology used to evaluate a causal model of school environment is presented in this report. The model depicts societal features that influence school district values and organizational characteristics, which in turn influence school operations and personnel attitudes and values. These school variables affect school community members'…

In 1984, Maine established the Task Force on Special Education and Chemical Dependency, which developed a report recommending, in part: collaboration between special education and local alcohol and drug abuse prevention programs; training for general and special education staff; and development of a vehicle for identification, assessment,…

The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research and the National Institute of Mental Health jointly sponsored a project for the development of statewide organizations for parents of children with emotional disorders. The Statewide Parent Organization Demonstration Project (SPODP) has two major goals: to stimulate and support the…

Bar foundations and bar association staff members involved in law-related education (LRE) have taken a number of different approaches to working with school districts, boards of education, teachers, and administrators. This bulletin looks at three of the approaches. One approach is networking with schools and enthusiastic resource people who can…

Two models of literacy stand in contrast to one another. The first, termed the "autonomous model" by British anthropologist Brian Street, portrays literacy as a value-free, technical skill which effects uniformly positive changes in both individuals and societies. The "ideological model," in contrast, focuses on specific social…

This booklet is a collection of writing by ninth-grade students taken from the 1987 and 1988 Canadian Territorial Achievement Tests. The booklet's 70 pieces of writing include essays on education in the Northwest Territory, narratives on how the best laid plans can go wrong, humorous treatments on uses for chewing gum and the best ways to keep…

This publication reviews issues and processes in the quest for less-biased, least-biased, non-biased assessment. It is intended to aid the school psychologist in assisting all individuals in placement or program decisions for school-age children. The first section articulates the common sources of bias in assessment and identifies concepts…

Trends suggest that 11 million children in the United States will need day care services by 1995. Presently, corporations provide child care support through subsidies to low income employees or through community facilities, parent education, and information and referral (I & R) services. Such support results in reduced rates of absenteeism and…

The Far West Laboratory used a five-step instructional systems design (ISD) model to develop a nationwide training and educational curriculum and delivery system for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Stages of the model involved defining a comprehensive set of objectives, defining a priority curriculum, assigning training strategies,…