This paper examines change and change facilitators as they affect full use of adaptive and assistive technology (AAT) in special education, and compares qualitative versus quantitative methods of researching the change process. Four administrators and two teachers from a rural school district completed the Stages of Concern Questionnaire, which…

This practicum was designed to train special education teachers and paraprofessionals at a private, special education facility in ways to identify precursor behaviors and antecedent events eliciting maladaptive behaviors in children with developmental disorders and behavior disorders. Staff were given five inservice sessions (totalling 10 hours)…

This report presents promising curricular practices for use with special populations of gifted students, such as students who are economically disadvantaged, have handicapping conditions, live in rural areas, or belong to a minority group. The report first presents a transition curriculum which enriches and extends the regular curriculum for…

Instructional conversations (ICs) represent an alternative approach to the instruction of culturally and linguistically diverse populations. It has instructional intent, but appears to be a spontaneous conversation with natural language interactions. Successful ICs depend on identification of a text-specific theme that is significant and tied to…

This collection of annotated bibliographies focuses on a broad spectrum of legal issues, and is drawn from a national database of current programs and literature regarding adolescents with chronic illnesses and other disabilities. Bibliographic materials listed include documents and articles concerning the following: consent and confidentiality…

This study sought to determine if there is a difference in the self-concept of students who are labeled or nonlabeled as having a disabling condition. Subjects in the study were 50 general education Chicago (Illinois) students (ages 12-15) and 50 special education students labeled as having learning disabilities, educable mental handicap, or…

The 111 spelling tests described in this bibliography include those that assess spelling only and test batteries in which spelling is one of several skills being evaluated. Both achievement and diagnostic tests are described, as well as tests for special populations such as visually impaired persons and Spanish speakers. Occupational tests and GED…

This study of the financing of special education programs for children with disabilities or giftedness/talent was mandated by the legislature of Nevada to: (1) examine the amount of federal, state, and local money expended for special education programs and the proportion of total funding for special education programs provided from each source;…

This guidebook was developed to assist Wisconsin parents, educators, and other professionals who deal with young children in the early identification of hearing problems. Section 1 provides an overview of the topic and discusses the importance of early identification and treatment of hearing problems. Section 2 examines state and federal laws,…

This chapter considers the situation of special needs children who are seen as wrongly segregated due to federal, state, and local regulations, and identifies needed reforms and changes to remedy the problem. Presented from a social work perspective, the paper notes the trend toward mainstreaming of children with disabilities, children in Chapter…

This report critically examines special education in Baltimore (Maryland) public schools and proposes major reform of Baltimore's special education system. Criticisms focus on: poor instructional quality (there is little "special" about special education); segregation of special education students from regular education; special…

This document summarizes the final reports of five Colorado classroom projects funded to promote and evaluate effective instructional techniques for students with learning disabilities. (However, the projects also involved students who were not disabled.) The five projects dealt with: (1) effectiveness of using an edu-kinesthetic whole brain…

Under federal and California law, cost alone cannot be used as a defense for modifying or denying education and support services to a student with a disability. This has contributed to growth in special education spending. However, funding has not kept up with costs, forcing school administrators to "encroach" upon general education…

A variety of topics on human development is covered in this annual report. The 11 articles are: (1) "Young Children's Personifying and Vitalistic Biology" (Kayoko Inagaki and Giyoo Hatano); (2) "Acoustic Analysis of Natural Maternal Speech to Preschool Language Impaired and Normal Children" (Debora L. Scheffel and Murray…

This study explored resource allocation issues in schools that had moved toward inclusive education. Rather than document or analyze actual costs, the study sought general information related to resource allocation through interviews with local special education administrators in 12 school districts across the United States. Specifically, the…