Presented are activities that focus on gathering, using, and interpreting data about fingerprints as a basis for integrating mathematics and science. Patterns, classification, logical reasoning, and mathematical relationships are explored by making graphs, classifying fingerprints, and matching identical fingerprints. A parent-involvement activity…

Opinions of 503 support services professionals in Iowa were surveyed regarding reforms in service delivery designed to integrate special and regular education programs for students with low achievement. The majority of psychologists, social workers, and special education consultants supported providing services for students without formal…

Describes current special education identification, classification, and assessment practices, and evaluates them in light of emerging concerns about their reliability, usefulness, and fairness. Alternatives to conventional practices are discussed, and a revised funding system that can yield the dollar figure available to support the special…

Describes library automation issues during the planning and construction of College Hill Library (Colorado), a joint-use facility shared by a community college and a public library. Discuses computer networks; hardware selection; public access to catalogs and electronic resources; classification schemes and bibliographic data; children's…

The adolescent peer group constitutes a vital component of the institutional culture of the contemporary secondary school. Formed among students and reinforced by administrators and teachers, it takes the form of a structured status hierarchy whose membership and boundaries are clearly understood within the school community. Individual students'…

Learning technologies are becoming a common, and in many cases essential, component of the contemporary learning environment. As such, those who design, implement and control these encompassing technologies have emerged as major contributors to the success (or otherwise) of such systems. This article considers the power and responsibilities of…

The purpose of this study was to identify the different subgroups of students at risk of dropping out of school. The typology was developed based on the three main contexts associated with school dropout risk, namely, the personal, family and school contexts. On the basis of these factors, the clustering results enabled us to categorize at-risk…

This article describes how workshop sessions have attempted to help teachers from one curriculum area develop their diagnostic skills to use in assessment for learning. The approach uses the metaphor of the teacher-as-learning-doctor to encourage teachers to think about the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of learning "bugs". The…

This report, containing both English and Portuguese text, describes the historical background and current state of preschool education systems in Portugal, and presents recommendations on guideline consolidation in the implementation of a common preschool education policy. Part 1 of the report, "Historical Background," discusses the…

A collection of essays on linguistic human rights includes: "Combining Immigrant and Autochthonous Language Rights: A Territorial Approach to Multilingualism" (Francois Grin); "On the Limits of Ethnolinguistic Democracy" (Joshua A. Fishman); "Linguistic Human Rights and Educational Policy in Russia" (Alexei A.…

This learning packet, one in a series of eight, was developed by the Eno River State Park in North Carolina for Grades 5-6 to teach about various aspects of water life on the Eno River. Loose-leaf pages are presented in nine sections that contain: (1) introductions to the North Carolina State Park System, the Eno River State Park, and to the…

This paper is the introduction to a workshop session demonstrating how English and language-arts teachers can teach critical thinking and writing simultaneously to students in grades 4 through 14. It describes how to transform specific skills into frames for critical thinking and writing such as: (1) explaining; (2) categorizing; (3) comparing and…

Computer applications that facilitate the use of the World Wide Web (WWW) within elementary and secondary education must provide support for educators to locate materials quickly and easily; they must minimize the amount of time spent waiting for files to traverse the network; and they must deal sensitively with censorship. The MicroWeb Toolkit is…

This conference was held to enhance communication between the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and State education agency staffs, and to furnish information and technical assistance to State agencies in the areas of data management and improvement of data reliability, validity, and comparability. Abstracts of presentations include the…

Today, school personnel are facing many challenges in their efforts to serve diverse families and children with disabilities. Inadequate human and fiscal capacity, attitudinal and cultural barriers are among the many hurdles that must be surmounted for successful provision of related services. Decisions about who is educated versus who is…