Milwaukee's voluntary student transfer program started in 1976 and today includes the city school district and 23 suburban districts. This year, 5,856 Milwaukee students chose to attend suburban schools, whereas 874 suburban students are attending Milwaukee schools. A participating superintendent describes the legal-agreement process and…

Four students with profound multiple disabilities were taught to use a microswitch communication system to request a change in recreational stimuli during social interactions with nondisabled peers. Outcomes are discussed in terms of the effects of controlling stimulus presentation on student behavior and the stability of preference hierarchies…

Considers the relationship between teacher development and the workplace, examining the effect of individual characteristics and significant others. Researchers interviewed beginning teachers about workplace relationships, teaching situations, high/low points, critical incidents, obstacles, and opportunities. The article looks at rethinking…

Relations among dominance, sociometric preference, and social behavior were examined in groups of unacquainted first and third grade boys meeting in play sessions. Younger groups with high aggression showed less coherent organization than did others. Dominance was associated with social preference in younger groups, and with leadership in older…

Examined responses of 97 students who witnessed space shuttle disaster on video at school. Asked them to rank three things that had affected them most. Only 8.9 percent of females ranked space shuttle first, and only 30.4 percent ranked it in top three. More males (88.9 percent) mentioned space shuttle, and 38.9 percent saw it as top concern.…

This study involving three autistic and four nondisabled preschool children found that a peer-initiation intervention produced increases in peer initiations and social interactions when the teacher verbally prompted, but not without verbal prompts. When a correspondence training/visual feedback package was implemented, peer initiations and social…

This study compared peer acceptance of 100 mainstreamed (mostly learning-disabled) elementary school students with acceptance of classmates of low, average, and high reading ability. Analysis found that mainstreamed and low-ability students were similar in peer acceptance, as were high-and average-ability readers. (Author/PB)

The interactions of three dyads, consisting of one student with moderate mental retardation and one nondisabled peer, were assessed while playing computer games. Results indicated that students (ages 13-14) exhibited more frequent social initiations, higher degrees of game satisfaction, and equal/higher degrees of peer satisfaction while playing…

Junior high school students with deafness explored their feelings about having someone with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) enroll at their special school and then wrote about what their reaction and the reaction of the staff, parents, and other students would be. Students seemed to become more compassionate and understanding toward…

After outlining theoretical issues involved in the social construction of literacy, reports on a study of 16 third and fourth graders and their teacher. Found that children's active engagement with peers that focused on written texts was more important for certain aspects of literacy development than access to an expert, such as a teacher. (MDM)

Interviewed third-, fifth-, and seventh-grade students to assess who, why, and in what situations students ask for help when they have problems in math. Found that students generally saw teachers as more likely than classmates to facilitate learning. Several grade-related differences are also reported. (MM)

Examined parent/peer linkages and how both types of experiences influence substance use in European-American adolescents. Found that mothers' responsiveness lessened adolescents' peer orientation, which reduced substance use. This process was moderated by maternal values regarding adolescent alcohol use. Among fathers, closer monitoring was…

In an attempt to identify the earliest, most efficient, and most accurate predictors of emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), characteristics of 155 third-graders at risk for EBD were examined. Students categorized as high-risk experienced higher rates of peer rejection and poor social skills and exhibited hyperactivity and defiant behaviors.…

This case study describes the inclusive education program of a student (age 12) with deaf-blindness. Critical factors associated with the program's success included direct administrative involvement, teachers' and peers' problem-solving skills, adaptations of materials and activities and the environment, effective teaming, and positive attitudes…

Describes a school reintegration program aimed at overcoming the numerous psychological, physical, environmental, and family-based deterrents to school reentry for chronically ill children. The program uses a systems approach to children's mental health with an emphasis on multiple aspects of the child's environment (i.e., family, medical…