The relative accuracy of teacher judgments of academic performance in classifying students as learning disabled (LD) or nonhandicapped (NH) was contrasted to standardized tests of intelligence and academic achievement. Results indicated that teacher judgments were as accurate in separating LD and NH groups as standardized tests of intelligence and…

Research literature is reviewed that shows a relationship between phonemic skills and learning to decode written words. Several tests that can be used to assess phonemic skills are described. The role of the school psychologist in screening and monitoring kindergarten and first grade children for possible deficits in phonemic skills is discussed.…

Determined that mildly handicapped students need an average of 46 repetitions in context for a word to be recognizable on a word recognition test. Also found that low imagery words require significantly more repetition and that high imagery words are as learnable in isolation as in context. (SKC)

Forty learning-disabled fourth graders learned to use a spelling study strategy, studied words under varying conditions, and predicted their scores on a subsequent test. Results indicated that, even without inclusion of specific metacognitive training components, strategy training produced important metacognitive improvement and that metacognitive…

Socialization difficulties encountered by a particular learning disabled adolescent may be related to the type of underlying learning disability. Two subtypes of learning disability are discussed (language disorders and disturbed visual spatial functions) along with implications for problems in development of social skills and for effective…

A learning-disabled adolescent male who exhibited inappropriate behavior, poor academic work, and inadequate social skills is described. His teacher devised a disruptive behaviors checklist, conducted a reliability check, and decided on a motivational intervention whereby the subject's behavior determined consequences for the entire class. The…

The study analyzed communication performance of tenth grade learning disabled (LD) students (N=1,098) on the Florida State Student Assessment Test-II (a minimum competency test). LD students demonstrated better literal communication skills and poorer interpretive and written communication skills. Employers (N=240) also supported the importance of…

The expository writing difficulties of exceptional students are examined in relationship to the writing process, expository text structures, and students' metacognitive knowledge. Approaches to the teaching of expository writing are discussed, and a dialogic approach, involving teacher modeling and a series of think sheets, is described.…

Three holistic approaches to reading comprehension instruction for learning-disabled children are described: text-based instruction, explicit comprehension instruction, and a combined model. Following discussion of each model's strengths, weaknesses, and teaching techniques, the combined model is recommended. (Author/JDD)

A survey of classroom teachers revealed that most support remedial and learning-disabled resource room reading programs, although many teachers would prefer smaller classes to the many federal programs which they feel do not always address their needs. (CB)

Teachers of the learning disabled (LD) and mainstream teachers can incorporate preventive cuing practices into existing classroom management procedures to stop disruptive behavior before it starts. They can encourage LD students to accept responsibility for self-management and can maximize cooperation, minimize conflict, and promote positive…

A major focus in reading difficulty is lack of automaticity in decoding, which overloads the attentional system, leads to the use of small, meaningless visual processing units such as the individual letter, places heavy demands on short-term memory, and interferes with comprehension. Techniques for diagnosis and remediation are noted. (Author/JW)

Essay and annotated bibliography provide information on print sources and databases containing descriptions and reviews of tests assessing exceptional children and adolescents. These sources cover a large number and variety of instruments that may be used by teachers and diagnosticians in the areas of mental and physical handicaps and giftedness.…

The "Phonic Remedial Reading Lessons" is a systematic, comprehensive phonics program designed for reading-disabled children. The 77 lessons teach about single letters and single sounds, two-letter sounds, consonant blends, graphemes, exceptions to configurations, and word building. The program's underlying strategies and other…

This study evaluated the diagnostic validity of a task measuring abstract categorization ability in learning disabled (LD) and non-LD children. Data showed that the component of abstract category knowledge that best disciminates LD children from non-LD, is the knowledge of how members of abstract categories differ from each other. (Author/JAZ)