Zero-tolerance policies should not be used solely to rid the school of troubled students needing special counseling and mentoring. Administrators should involve teachers, parents, community leaders, and student representatives in formulating such policies. School-safety considerations and student rights must be balanced. (MLH)

Using the Revised Behavioral Checklist, teachers rated at-risk adolescents from an urban alternative school. Researchers compared these students to normal and severely emotionally disturbed (SED) children in order to develop a definition of at-risk students. Results indicated that at-risk students differed significantly from normal children,…

Examined name calling and bullying of Gypsy and Show Travellers in Scotland and the schools' response. Found that teachers viewed Gypsy Traveller students as having and presenting more difficulties in school than Show Travellers. Both groups of students experienced frequent bullying and name calling, often not acknowledged by their school.…

Evaluation of out-of-district special education placement costs in the 15 largest Massachusetts public school districts found the criterion school district (which had developed a system-wide approach to behavioral intervention) had the lowest per capita cost, lowest percentage of total school budget consumed by out-of-district placements, and the…

Examined the relationship between aspects of the parenting environment and children's conduct problems and anxious symptoms among socioeconomically comparable samples of African American and European American mothers and their kindergarten children. Although many relationships were similar across ethnic groups, there were ethnic differences in the…

The implementation of a school-wide discipline plan based on the Effective Behavior Support model in nine elementary and middle schools, in addition to the Second Step violence prevention curriculum, resulted in reductions of discipline referrals, improved social skill knowledge, improved school operations, and motivation to continue with the…

Ten suggestions are offered for managing disruptive behavior so that optimal test performance is elicited from children (ages 2-12), including: establish rules and teach a ready position; provide praise; give effective instructions; use rewards; time breaks carefully; use active ignoring and redirection; use choice statements; and maintain…

This article reviews the use of video therapy as a strategy to address social and emotional needs of gifted children and suggests sources and activities. A list of films is included that address behavior problems, disability, African American issues, social/emotional issues, gifted females, performing arts, and the process of talent development.…

Examined flexibility in mothers' parenting goals and attributions; identified correlates and determinants of beliefs in response to preschoolers' defiance and aggression, and the effects of maternal beliefs on children's social outcomes. Found that mothers demonstrated flexible beliefs according to the nature of the misdeed and responded…

Overviews challenges that rural educators face in meeting the diverse needs of students. A case study illustrates key elements of creating a positive behavior support plan: establishing a collaborative problem-solving team, determining the student's strengths, identifying the purpose of the negative behavior, identifying prevention strategies,…

Evaluated the stratification or dispersion of first grade teachers' perceptions of children's competence as a moderator of the relationship between teachers' and parents' perceptions of individual children's competence. Found that greater stratification predicted teachers' perceptions of less child competence and predicted less change in teachers'…

Discussion of science and education focuses on a 35-year collaboration of University of Kansas scientists with an inner city, economically impoverished community, the Juniper Gardens Children's Project. The project has conducted research designed to improve the developmental and educational experiences and achievements of the community's children.…

Children exposed to parental substance abuse, mental illness, and violence face profound challenges, including increased risk for emotional and behavioral problems, substance abuse, and victimization. In this article, we describe the characteristics of a sample of children of women entering treatment. These children had been exposed to domestic…

There are a number of factors that can undermine a teacher's ability to respond successfully to behavior problems in schools. They include: (1) difficulty relating to an increasingly more diverse group of students; (2) lack of skills to adequately assess student behavior and to identify major factors associated with problem behavior; and (3) the…

Background: Recent theories of stress and coping in parents of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) emphasize the importance of cognitive appraisals in influencing parents' levels of stress and their adaptations to difficulties presented by the children. This study investigated the relationships between parental cognitions, child…