Presents six empirically supported strategies to aid counselors in helping unemployed workers cope with the consequences of job loss: encourage broad sense of self-esteem; maintain activity and daily structure; develop social support networks; encourage external causal attributions; establish links with community resources; and make referrals to…

To overcome factors inhibiting effective decision making by child study teams, a rationale is established for the development of pandisciplinary tools to assist in interpersonal communication, group decision making, and assessment. Specific examples of such tools are presented, and their relationships to current practices are discussed.…

College and university planned giving program administrators are advised to establish an advisory committee of financial professionals (attorneys, certified public accountants, brokers, investment advisors, financial planners, trust officers, insurance professionals) to act as a source of referrals, advice, and program support. Member selection,…

Nebraska family physicians (n=184) were surveyed concerning requests for consultations and referrals to early intervention services for hypothetical cases. Consultations and referrals were influenced by the child's level of developmental delay and age. Requests for educational and psychological consultations were in the low to moderate range.…

The intellectual and achievement characteristics of 906 students with learning disabilities (LD) and 836 students referred but deemed ineligible for special services were studied. LD students achieved significantly below ineligible students, and exhibited severe discrepancies between expected and actual achievement. Indiana's LD guidelines for…

This study, with 45 elementary school classroom teachers and 64 elementary education majors, found that the classroom teachers were able to consistently identify children with disordered voices. Students were somewhat inclined to underrefer children with possible voice disorders. (Author/DB)

Compared characteristics of 234 elementary school students of average intelligence, 114 of whom were referred for psychological services. Found boys referred 4 times as frequently as girls; 16 times as many boys within relatively youngest group were referred as girls within oldest group. Groups were discriminated using mathematics achievement,…

This study involving 113 students identified factors (attentiveness, child's level of involvement, and feedback received from the teacher) differentiating children at risk for special education referral from other low achievers and low achievers from mainstreamed special education students and average achievers. Urban/suburban differences were…

Survey data from 21 otolaryngologists (70 percent return rate) and 32 speech-language pathologists (46 percent return rate) in Maine found differences in opinions between the 2 professional groups concerning referral patterns and treatment of vocal nodules in children and adults. Attitudinal problems were found to hamper a teamwork approach for…

The severity and diversity of problems for which drug-using clients (N=182) seek treatment is investigated during assessment and follow-up using cluster analysis. Five clusters in eight life-functioning domains were identified at each point. The constellations and severity of problems reported indicate changes over time in service needs. (EMK)

Founded by Norma Gray in 1972 as an early-childhood demonstration center, River Valley Child Development Services now operates various programs related to young children in nine southern West Virginia counties and a statewide apprenticeship program for child-development specialists. Programs provide child care, after-school programs,…

Reviews the use of IQ scores in determining special education placement. It argues that although IQ is central to state education codes and their eligibility criteria for special education, the evidence shows that many children exhibiting psychometric scores that would make them eligible are never referred. (Author/CR)

This study examined test characteristics of the Pediatric Language Acquisition Screening Tool for Early Referral-Revised (PLASTER-R), a set of developmental questionnaires for children 3 to 60 months of age. The PLASTER-R was moderately to highly successful in identifying children within normal limits for language development. Test-retest…

Discusses library reference services. Topics include the historical development of reference services; instruction in library use, particularly in college and university libraries; guidance; information and referral services and how they differ from traditional question-answering service; and future concerns, including user fees and the planning…

A study involving 24 elementary teachers found they were not using Student Support Teams (SST) as designed. Teachers believed the primary purpose of SST was to test and place students into special education, referred students with whom they had not been successful, and believed there was a covert evaluation process. (Contains references.)…