If our students are to be prepared for the demands of the 21st century, we must find ways to meet their educational needs. We have increasing numbers of students with special needs, in particular a dramatic increase in students identified with Autism Spectrum Disorder. In 2009-10 there were 2,548 more of these identified students than five years…

Since the transition movement in the 1980s, numerous transition practices have been developed. Kohler (1993) provided a comprehensive review and analysis of transition best practices and divided them into substantiated and implied practices based on the existence of empirical evidence. Since that review was published, the field of transition has…

Alternative education programs (also called alternative schools) first appeared on the American landscape in the 1960s. Despite the proliferation of these programs, a generic description of what constitutes an alternative education program, historically, has been elusive. Most alternative education programs have the general criteria of serving…

The purpose of this study is to describe the educational programs for adolescents with autism (age 12-16 years) in inclusion and noninclusion settings as reflected in their Individual Education Plan (IEP) goals, services, and curricular adaptations. Students who were included in general education math and language arts instruction had fewer…

The available data suggest that both students and adults with disabilities sustain injuries and are victims of crimes at high levels. Despite these alarming data, several researchers have suggested that safety skills instruction has largely been ignored as a curricular domain. Further, although parents can serve a critical function in educational…

The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) funds schools located on 63 reservations in 23 states across the nation. Of the 183 schools, 59 are Bureau operated and 124 are tribally controlled. One-hundred and sixteen schools provide instructional programs, 55 provide instructional as well as boarding services and 12 peripheral dormitories provide only…

This report presents selected findings from the Public School and Private School Data Files of the 2011-12 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS). SASS is a nationally representative sample survey of public and private K-12 schools, principals, and teachers in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. School districts associated with public schools…

The case studies contained in this document were developed as part of a national project to identify communities that have made substantial progress toward developing comprehensive, coordinated, community-based systems of care for children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances and their families. After initial identification,…

This literature review describes and evaluates five accelerative methods for teaching intellectually gifted students at the secondary level. The review stresses the importance of matching student characteristics and instructional type, citing research demonstrating that intellectually gifted students achieve at higher levels when their educational…

Part of a training curriculum designed to prepare a multidisciplinary team of preservice/inservice personnel to deliver vocational and special education experiences for disabled individuals, this competency-based module focuses on model vocational special needs programs. Content includes rationale, objectives, prerequisites, evaluation procedures…

In describing the implications for public schools of P.L. 94-142, The Education for All Handicapped Children Act. The booklet cites reactions of local and state administrators, supervisors, and classroom teachers. The first chapter details the content of P.L. 94-142, provides comments from lawmakers and educators, and lists questions and answers…

Many University of Minnesota students enrich their campus-based academic programs with study and travel overseas. They may participate in a variety of formal study-abroad programs sponsored by the university or available to students through cooperative arrangements with other institutions; or, as growing numbers of students are doing, they may…

This report reviews the history of open education, the philosophy supporting it, and some conclusions drawn from testing children who have been exposed to it. The basic theory of open education is that children learn in different ways at different times from things around them which interest them. Ideally, the teacher acts as a guide and resource…

Presented is the participant's copy on the Educational Plan Game, a program designed to assist exceptional child educators in diagnosing students and assessing educational needs. Tables, charts, and guidelines are provided for the eight program components: the card game (an introductory exercise), spelling, basic sight vocabulary, informal pupil…

A computerized adaptive testing model was assessed in a technical training system. The model, a modification of Lord's flexilevel paradigm, consisted of: the sequencing of test items in a difficulty hierarchy, adaptive entry of students into the test at a difficulty level appropriate to their predicted score, and systematic movement of students…