A survey of early childhood intervention policies in 50 states and the District of Columbia focused on handicapping conditions served, overseeing agencies, interagency contracts, state regulations, training/certification, etc. Results showed a national shortage of trained early childhood personnel, less than optimal funding, lead agency…

Attitudes of 60 nonretarded fourth graders toward mildly mentally retarded people were examined. Listening to a story about a mildly mentally retarded boy led to more favorable attitudes on a social distance measure; only students who were asked focusing questions before the story reported more favorable attitudes on an integration-segregation…

Describes two experiments that were designed to test the effectiveness of a microcomputer-based vocabulary program for high school students. Pretest and posttest methodologies are described for learning-disabled, remedial, and general students, and results for the experimental and control groups are compared. (18 references) (Author/LRW)

Identifies possible causes of head injury among reservation American Indians. Discusses the range of problems to look for following head trauma and offers some common sense safety precautions for head injury prevention. Describes a plan of action for teachers of American Indian children who have sustained head injuries. (JHZ)

Key developmental tasks of adolescence and the unique problems that face the learning-disabled adolescent are outlined, focusing on the role of social competency and communication effectiveness. Components of a comprehensive social competency training program include the nature of the learning disability, the affective-defensive pattern, adaptive…

Attitudes of 38 work-experience employers toward the employability of high school special education students were studied. Employers had positive attitudes toward the employment potential of mildly handicapped students and stated that their participation in the work experience program increased the likelihood that they would hire a special…

Research on learning-disabled secondary school students' academic deficits, response to classroom environment, and response to instructional interventions is integrated with research on metacognition in text learning. A metacognitive orientation is recommended for instructional intervention programs, which should address general comprehension…

Developmental intervention programs for infants with handicaps and their parents generally focus on preventing eventual developmental delays; changing the infants' behavior, development, or relationships with caregivers; or changing the family system. For each intervention purpose, exemplary programs are described. Issues related to efficacy and…

Mothers (n=45) of developmentally delayed young children were surveyed concerning family resources, personal well-being, and adherence to professionally prescribed child-level interventions. Adequacy of resources was related to both well-being and intervention commitment, even after the effects of maternal age, socioeconomic status, and child age…

The impact of regular and special education on 11 learning-disabled children in fourth through sixth grade was studied by analyzing their slope of improvement on curriculum-based measures of reading scores. A time series analysis indicated that daily reading instruction in a resource room was a more effective intervention than regular education.…

Learning-disabled sixth through eighth grade students (n=25) received vocabulary instruction involving matching negation prefixes to root words. The students used an instructional computer game or a computer program that operated identically but without game features. Both programs produced equal gains in task skill, but the game produced higher…

Sensory integrative therapy as a treatment for self-injurious behavior (SIB) was contrasted with an attention control condition involving a 15-year-old multiply handicapped boy. Lower rates of SIB during but not following treatment sessions were effected. Effects of such therapies are concluded to be highly variable across individuals. (Author/JDD)

Discusses recent research on learning style, revealing some of the problems with the research as well as how work on learning modality can help students with trouble in school. Also discusses tests that identify learning style, and advises teachers to keep an open mind about learning style research. (SKC)

California public school children (n=84, aged 3-21) with mild mental retardation who were referred for evaluation of psychiatric, medical, or other disorders were studied to create a profile of children for whom schools may need critical assistance. Associated psychiatric and biomedical problems were evident, while levels of psychosocial…

The competencies needed for leadership personnel in the field of postsecondary learning disability programs are delineated. The preservice doctoral training in the University of Connecticut's learning disability college program and the inservice program at Connecticut's Learning Disability College Consortium are described. (Author/JDD)