This digest provides an overview of considerations for teaching students with autism. General considerations for providing effective instruction for students with autism include: (1) ensure that the student is in good health, free from pain and irritation, and in a safe, stimulating, and pleasurable setting; (2) provide structure in the…

The main purpose in preparing this bulletin is to assemble so far as practicable and publish in brief form such official statistics as are available on illiteracy in the various countries of the world, to tell where those data may be found, and if possible, to give a general estimate of world-wide illiteracy. Incidental to this purpose, it…

Reviews and considers the developmental implications of recent evidence on the nature of sibling interaction from observational studies of preschool children. Argues that, in contrast to complementary interaction, sibling influence is most plausibly associated with reciprocal interaction and with sociocognitive development. (Author/RH)

To test possible cultural differences in strength of individualistic motivation and explore reliability of different individualism measures, two individualism measures were administered to 476 Anglo American, 156 Mexican American, and 101 Black children, aged six to 12. Results indicated age but not cultural differences in strength of…

Discusses the nature and importance of social skills for the elderly, including social skills deficits and psychological disorders related to aging, in five papers presented as part of a Symposium on Social Skills at the XII International Congress of Gerontology, Hamburg, July 1981. (JAC)

As the adolescent matures, drinking situations occur outside of the home with friends. This period is characterized by drinking habits, patterns, and attitudes which are different from those of the parent population; the peer group and situational factors are significant influences on drinking behavior during this phase. (Author)

Reviews theory and research on various aspects of prosocial development, discusses curricula designed to increase the ability of young children to behave in prosocial ways, and lists six factors that can be used to facilitate children's prosocial development. (RH)

Results of a multiple discriminant analysis suggest that, although current residence and occupation are correlated with a rural culture, place of residence at age 16 along with several personal demographic features such as religion, income, and age, are more central to understanding the broader concept of rurality. (Author)

Israeli children responded to a questionnaire assessing self-esteem, locus-of-control, and classroom social climate. Data were compared according to school grades, socioeconomic status, and sex. Affective personality variables and children's perception of the school social environment followed divergent patterns of development according to social…

The author focuses on some of the research needs for early adolescents (ages 10 to 15). It highlights areas in which federal policy concerns intersect with developmental research, and discusses six areas: social equity, basic skills, school discipline, parent participation, and school effectiveness. (Author/KC)

Retarded subjects were compared with mental- and chronological-age matched controls on serial short-term memory (STM) tasks. Retarded subjects were inferior to the control groups on both primacy and recency items, under two recall conditions. These data are discussed in relation to possible mechanisms underlying IQ-related individual differences…

To measure the development of formal thought, as defined by Piaget and Peel, separate tests on judgment, creativity, concept formation and concept attainment were administered to 1,710 subjects, ages eight to adult. (CP)

A survey of 191 sixth through eighth grade students suggests that newspaper exposure is a positive predictor of political information and interest, that television exposure is a negative predictor, and that--contrary to expectations-- interpersonal communication is a negative influence on political information. (GT)

A study of University of Plymouth (England) student records investigated predictors of degree performance. Mature students gained better degrees than traditional students, and those with nontraditional qualifications performed best of all. Gender, year of graduation, and type of qualifications were weak predictors, but results differed…

Examined intraindividual and interindividual differences in self-esteem among 142 rural adolescents during a four-year period encompassing the transition to high school. Cluster analysis identified three distinct, divergent trajectories of self-esteem change from early to middle adolescence: (1) consistently high; (2) small increase; and (3)…