Divides the stated aims of practical work, listed in some of the A-level syllabuses of the GCE examining boards, into four groups and discusses each: didactic aims, the development of skills, the scientific method, and affective aims. (GA)

Four basic considerations of curriculum development for nursing orientation programs are briefly reviewed: goals, learning objectives, learning experiences, and evaluation. A comprehensive individualized program and two of its components, a manual and audiovisual aids are described. Also described are two evaluation instruments developed for the…

Describes the basic components of the Individually Guided Education (IGE) system of individualized instruction, and reviews some evaluation studies that show IGE to be a success. (JG)

A program for 30 additional medical students for the first two years of the medical school curriculum has been developed, and two groups of students have advanced to the clinical years. The course has been accepted as a continuing part of the curriculum and provides a more flexible track for some students. (Editor/LBH)

A behavior management approach, designed to enhance the active involvement of children (ages 6-11) with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, has parents present behavior management situations requiring the child's choice between compliance and noncompliance and involving linkage to a consequence. Having parents (n=75) meet with therapists in…

The Fostering Individualized Assistance Program (FIAP) was driven by permanency and family-focused values and involved intense case management to ensure that services could be adjusted as children's situations and needs changed. Compared to children in standard foster care, FIAP children with, or at risk for, emotional/behavioral disorders showed…

Family-Centered Intensive Case Management, a New York State-sponsored research demonstration project, empowers and supports families of children with serious emotional disturbance, by providing respite care, flexible funding, parent support groups, and behavior management skills training. The project found that, given intensive and individualized…

Low predictability (ability to identify what events will be happening in the future, when, with whom, for how long, and with what outcomes) may be associated with increased problem behavior among children with disabilities. This paper describes strategies for assessing stability and predictability in a school or community context, and using the…

This article provides a description of the birth of The Odyssey Initiative. As teachers, this group of three, all educators, knew that there was outrage about the state of education in America. Griping about our nation's schools has almost become a pastime, and with very good reason. However, they found the solutions being offered to save our…

Individualized learning plans (ILPs) are becoming an important tool used by states to support youth in becoming college ready and career ready. The contents and names of ILPs vary from state to state. Based upon several years of research investigating the nature and use of ILPs in states across the United States, the National Collaborative on…

The purpose of this study was to examine the quality of the literacy environment in inclusive early childhood special education (ECSE) classrooms ("N" = 54). The first aim was to describe the quality of the literacy environment in terms of structure (i.e., book materials and print/writing materials) and instruction (i.e., instructional…

In December of 2004, the reauthorization of IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) was signed into law and went into effect on July 1, 2005, making dramatic changes in the area of transition from school to post-secondary life. The President's Commission on Excellence in Special Education created recommendations that influenced the new…

The Families Involved in Schools and Community (FISC) Project was a federally funded project to develop and demonstrate the use of a model Individualized Family Service Plan process for young children with challenging needs and their families. The model emphasizes an individualized family systems perspective, informal nonintrusive assessment and…

The author describes her experience as special education teacher at Berkeley High School (BHS), an urban school with over three thousand students, and how she began to question the way the school defines disability. The diversity of any large urban school has its benefits, but the size itself will always be the downfall when the school focuses on…

For over four decades, America's educational system has overrepresented Black students in its special education programs. To little avail, and no avail if discussing a decrease in the disproportionate rates America identifies and refers the Black student for special education services, many authors have addressed the overrepresentation phenomenon.…