Discusses six proactive strategies to help teachers improve classroom discipline: (1) move around the room; (2) teach social skills; (3) have a sense of humor; (4) don't personalize unruly behavior; (5) look for causes of discipline problems; and (6) promote student responsibility. (SM)

Explores group experiences for first-semester, counselor education students (N=23). Focuses on interpersonal attitudes, emotional awareness, behavioral learning, interpersonal learning, and insight. Students exhibited positive reactions to an experience that created an uncomfortable level of anxiety. Likewise, interpersonal and authority conflicts…

Investigates the role of language in adult numeracy classrooms, utilizing the resources of systemic functional linguistics and constructs derived from conversational analysis and ethnomethodology to examine how these classrooms are constructed in discourse. The study characterizes these classrooms as mixed-mode discourse sites and examines how…

Following a survey of employers and recent graduates that rated communication the most important personal skill, two pilot surveys were conducted to learn the efficacy of interactive video on the development of interpersonal skills. The first showed no significant effect. The second showed that student learning through interactive video was higher…

This study evaluated the social goals and objectives in 163 Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) of preschool children in early childhood special education settings, using 3 federal criteria for evaluating quality of objectives: specification of setting, measurability, and criterion for success. Results indicated IEPs were lacking both in the…

This commentary on the quantity and quality of Individualized Education Program (IEP) objectives dealing with social competence in preschoolers with disabilities focuses on whether IEP goals and objectives are meaningful for achieving a functional effect, influencing social competence beyond the specific skill, and influencing the child's…

Describes features of social pretend play and identifies characteristics of young children's cognitive and social play that may inhibit their participation. Describes approaches for supporting the social pretend play of children with mild to moderate developmental delays and disabilities, including assessment of play skills, use of structured play…

This article examines the relationship between parents' substance abuse and the behavioral disorders exhibited by their children. Family relationships are investigated, including family roles, characteristics, trust, and social and communication skills. Effective educational interventions are recommended that target children from substance-abusing…

This study conducted item reduction analyses on two measures of job-related social behavior for adolescents and young adults with emotional/behavioral disorders (Scale of Job-Related Social Skill Knowledge and Scale of Job-Related Social Skill Performance). The shortened measures contained 40 and 94 items, respectively. Reliability was…

This paper briefly reviews the research in social and behavioral interventions with autism in the past 30 years. Progress in the areas of decreased placement in highly restrictive environments, parent training, effective treatments, functional behavioral analysis, and emphasis on improved quality of life is noted. Research needs in the area of…

Examined the relationship of kindergartners' to second graders' dispositional sympathy to individual differences in emotionality, regulation, and social functioning. Found that sympathy was associated with relatively high levels of regulation, teacher-reported positive emotionality, and general emotional intensity; and, especially for boys, high…

Explored development of interpersonal understanding by observing two four-year-old boys as they played checkers. All interactions were coded and conflicts were isolated and coded for resolution. Found a decrease in impulsive strategies and an increase in reciprocal strategies during the year, and increased ability to resolve conflicts and a…

This article presents a strategy to teach young children with developmental delays how to interact cooperatively and effectively on their own initiative. Based on metacognitive research, this social skills training program, called social metacognitive strategy training, is designed to help students generalize social skills from one activity to…

This paper presents a list of 21 articles and books and three videos from 1992-96 on teaching social skills to younger students with exceptionalities. The list is divided into three sections: teaching social skills in the early years, teaching social skills in the elementary school, and teaching social skills to gifted students. (CR)

This article addresses three issues concerning the development of social skills in young children with special needs, especially children with severe social limitations. First, the importance of children's social skills is stressed; next, specific peer-related social skills that should receive priority in early intervention are identified; and…