The widely accepted theory that college participation is a "rite of passage," where academic and social integration is required for student persistence, is criticized as misinterpreting anthropological notions of ritual and holding consequences harmful for racial and ethnic minorities. An approach focusing on emancipation and empowerment is…

Discusses various approaches to analysis of ethnic unrest in the former Soviet Union. With the collapse of the communist system in 1991, ideology has been replaced by ethnicity as the driving force in politics. The failure of the regime to address ethnic issues doomed it. (SLD)

This article describes effects of four reform efforts on the role of the gifted and talented specialist in Oregon including Oregon's Educational Act for the 21st Century, adoption of both site-based decision-making models and integrative education models, and Oregon's Talented and Gifted Mandate. The emerging collaborative consultant role is…

A survey of 351 secondary distance education students (181 responses) found significant relationships between 2 academic variables (educational goals and study time) and academic persistence; no relationship between family assistance and persistence; significant relationship between attitudes toward tutors and persistence; and no relationship for…

This follow-up study examined the daily routines and activities of 85 young adults with severe/profound mental retardation 4 years after moving to community residential units from an institutional setting in Melbourne, Australia. A more normalized lifestyle, increased daily variation, more community interaction, and greater parental involvement…

This research demonstrated a social network intervention for youths with moderate and severe disabilities. Two groups of nondisabled peers participated in weekly discussions with an adult integration facilitator to increase social interaction for two students (one autistic and one moderately mentally retarded). Both quantity and quality of…

Twenty-eight children with and without disabilities were observed during free play in integrated early childhood programs, and associations among program quality indicators and children's play were analyzed. The study attempted to predict dynamic/process measures of program quality (teacher behavior) from global and structural measures of quality…

A "social guide" model was used to teach staff of an apartment-based residential program to use a set of "community network strategies" to improve the social relationships of three women with severe or moderate mental retardation. The intervention resulted in increased size of participants' social networks and more frequent social integration…

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…

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…

A study investigating the effect of a freshman seminar on students' social and academic adjustment to college (the University of North Carolina (Charlotte) found that seminar participants (n=150) had higher grades and participated in more out-of-class contacts with faculty than did a matched group of non-seminar students. (Author/MSE)

The influence of skill level, behavioral characteristics, and labeling upon the attitudes of 320 members of 12 private tennis clubs toward the participation of individuals with mental retardation was investigated. Attitudes and intentions toward people with mental retardation were positive regardless of label assigned and perceived skill level.…

Community integration of individuals with mental retardation in Treguier, Brittany (France) was examined. A grid-group typology of cultural regimes was employed to measure change in social status as reflected in social interactions. Each regime linked the presence of individuals with mental retardation to shared values in a community and produced…

Studies children's social networks, interpersonal concerns, and help-seeking behavior as functions of gender, school performance, and economic status. Shows significant differences based on all three independent variables, with the most negative results demonstrated by economically disadvantaged boys. Discusses various strategies to counteract the…

This article identifies three areas in early childhood special education which need further work: working with families to define social outcomes, expanding our definition of social behaviors and moving toward a framework based on social relationships, and developing interventions that are socially valid, ecologically valid, and sustainable across…