Few studies have been conducted in Greece focusing on the education of conversational skills of individuals with developmental disabilities. The aim of this qualitative research was to educate seven individuals with developmental disabilities, who are living in an intensive treatment residential facility, in social exchanges and particularly in…

The purpose of the present study was to investigate practices that support the inclusion of students with severe disabilities in the learning and social activities of inclusive K-8 schools to inform inclusive school reform research and practice. Eighteen K-8 students with severe disabilities in six schools recognized for their implementation of…

The components of quality educational planning for students with moderate and severe intellectual disability are well established, but schools and special educators may not always achieve a desirable standard. This article reports on the change in quality of documentation related to individual planning and programming over a span of 4 years in a…

Background: In spite of the profound cognitive and physical problems, people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD) are able to develop joint attention behaviours (JAB) and benefit from positive interactions. Aims: To investigate which context factors influence the JAB of people with PIMD. Method: Based on video recordings of…

People with profound intellectual disabilities often receive medication through enteral feeding tube (EFT). In a previous study, we found that current guidelines concerning medication preparation and administration through EFT are often not followed in residential care facilities (RCFs) for individuals with intellectual disabilities. The present…

Over the years, much has been accomplished in the area of severe disabilities--by professionals, academic scholars, parents of persons with disabilities, and self-advocates. It was not that long ago that children with severe disabilities were most likely to be excluded from school altogether or, if they received an education at all, it was far…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study is to achieve an understanding of the perceptions and experiences of Israeli parents of students with severe disabilities about their involvement in the Individual Education Program (IEP) process. Data collection in this study involved interviewing 20 parents whose children study in special…

The purpose of this study is to analyze the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) data that states and U.S. territories report from the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and discuss the status of the most restrictive special education placement settings for students with disabilities. In this analysis, we found that (a) states do not set…

Research in social interaction and nonverbal communication among individuals with severe developmental disabilities also includes the study of body movements. Advances in analytical technology give new possibilities for measuring body movements more accurately and reliably. One such advance is the Qualisys Motion Capture System (QMCS), which…

Romer and Walker's "Appreciative Inquiry," which obtained input from 16 capable personal assistants, challenges some influential assumptions about personal assistance and opens a way to think about the demanding work of developing capable and committed personal assistants. Attempts to depersonalize the relationship between people…

This brief clinical exchange article supports the use of milieu training (MT) as a communication treatment option for adults with severe intellectual disabilities (SID). It examines aspects of MT that appear well matched to the communication and other abilities of adults with SID. It also provides an argument that MT is not unlike functional…

Developing high-quality programming for students with moderate to severe disability (MSD) and/or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be challenging for teachers across the range of experience and training including those in rural contexts. This article outlines a process for the iterative refinement of teaching programs comprised of an evaluation…

School psychologists are well-positioned to assist practitioners in engaging students in physical activity (PA) which can increase student access to improved well-being and associated health benefits. This may be of particular importance for adolescents with moderate to severe developmental disabilities (DD; autism and intellectual disability) who…

This study used a single-subject alternating treatment design across students to compare mass discrete trials and distributed mass trials distributed in a shared story reading on the acquisition of functional skills for students with Autism. The results of this study examined a functional relationship between the interventions on the acquisition…

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at higher risk for developing self-injurious behaviors (SIB) and other challenging behaviors than typically developing individuals. SIBs often occur owing to deficits in communicative ability and can have undesirable consequences in an individual's environment. This study demonstrated the use of…