This book was designed to share lessons learned from vocational rehabilitation research conducted at 11 Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers. Papers for the book were developed to provide practical guidance to the common efforts of professionals, advocates, consumers, and public figures interested in creating workable rehabilitation…

This presentation paper reviews concerns regarding the inclusion of students with disabilities in regular education classrooms. Misunderstandings of the student placement requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act are discussed, as are misunderstandings regarding the difference between mainstreaming and inclusion. The lack of…

This report reviews Federal legal requirements for including students with disabilities in general education classrooms, describes the continuing obstacles to inclusion, and provides guidance for challenging the placement of students with disabilities outside of the general education classroom. Barriers to full inclusion are identified, followed…

A method is proposed for optimizing cutting scores for a selection-placement-mastery problem simultaneously. A simultaneous approach has two advantages over separate optimization. First, test scores used in previous decisions can be used as "prior data" in later decisions, increasing the efficiency of the decisions. Then, more realistic…

This paper presents the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as statutory frameworks for providing educational services for students with disabilities. The paper then addresses the issue of disciplinary exclusion as provided for in each of…

In 1990, Massachusetts Bay Community College (MBCC) collaborated with six other Massachusetts colleges to assist them in using MBCC's assessment program as a model to supplement or replace their existing assessment strategies. At each associate college, campus coordinators were selected and assessment task forces were formed to identify assessment…

This digest reviews writing assessment--what it means and how it works--at a selected number of colleges and universities in the United States. The digest discusses outcomes assessment, placement testing, placement and the writing process, and end-of-course evaluation. The digest concludes with a brief reminder for college-bound students of what…

This handbook is intended to assist South Carolina parents of children with severe emotional disturbances as they participate in the state's "Continuum of Care" program, which attempts to provide community based treatment in the least restrictive environment for each client. The handbook begins with a letter from a parent of an autistic…

This paper examines policy options in implementing least restrictive environment (LRE) requirements of federal legislation (Public Laws 99-457 and 94-142), and offers recommendations regarding the array of placement options that should be available in relation to preschool children with handicaps. First, the legal interpretation of LRE is analyzed…

The 21st annual survey of recruiting trends analyzed responses of 464 organizations and businesses employing new college graduates. Of those interviewed, 83.8 precent were businesses, industries, manufacturing organizations, and service sector employers and 16 percent were local, state, and Federal Government agencies and the military services.…

This manual is designed to help parents learn how the special education system works in Pennsylvania and how parents can use the system to benefit their child. Chapters of the manual cover the student's right to: (1) a free appropriate public education; (2) pre-evaluation screening; (3) evaluations and re-evaluations; (4) an individualized…

This paper reports an investigation of the situation of employment in the Netherlands for individuals with mental retardation and discusses the function of schools in preparing students for the labor market. Background information on special schools for students with mental retardation is provided, focusing on vocational preparation of students.…

The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) assesses proficiency in English both generally and for special purposes of non-native English speakers studying, training, or learning English in English-speaking countries. The Speaking subtest of the IELTS measures a candidate's general proficiency in speaking in everyday situations via a…

Given the growing need to look across national borders in order to be prepared for global challenges confronting higher education in the coming decades, it can be expected that institutional administrators in the U.S. and other western countries will need information on the quality and efficiency of their activities, including an international…

Educators commonly recommend that children born during the summer months, especially boys, be given an extra year to mature before entering kindergarten so that they will not suffer from the academic disadvantages of being among the youngest children in a class. Terms such as "academic red-shirting" and "graying of the…