This review of eligibility criteria for students with special needs was the result of a 2-month analysis of the Massachusetts special education law and the current state of education within Massachusetts. The review was intended to examine the original intent of the special education statute, possible reasons for the high number of special…

Children with mildly handicapping conditions spend a considerable amount of their instructional lives receiving instruction from general education teachers. At the preservice level, efforts to assist general education teachers have employed one of two models--the inclusion of special education topics into general education coursework and a…

This study was designed to assess the roles played by middle school educators while participating in a collaborative teaching program which combined a regular educator, a special educator, and their respective students for one period of content instruction per day. During one semester, six teams of two teachers in three different middle schools…

This manual outlines a process for building the good working relationships needed to develop inclusive school environments. It outlines five steps involved in achieving inclusion of children with special needs in ordinary classrooms: (1) clarify the family's intention to include their child in the neighborhood school and get to know the child's…

Two papers address integration of students with disabilities and the implementation of change in special education services in Winnipeg (Manitoba, Canada) schools. The first paper briefly describes such Winnipeg programs as Project CHAMPS, which focuses on establishing enabling learning environments; the furtherance of human rights and…

This paper outlines a collaborative research project between six teacher training universities in Australia and South Africa which investigated preservice teachers' acceptance of and social interactions with people with a disability. Preservice teachers (n=2,850) were asked to complete a 20-item Interactions with Disabled Person Scale and twelve…

Inclusive education (i.e., the elimination of special education as a separate classroom in isolation from the mainstream of the education process) poses a significant challenge to educational leaders of the 21st century. Leaders of the next generation need to commit teachers to acquiring a repertoire of new teaching practices that weave technology…

This essays in this book contain valuable and up-to-date information about current issues and developments in assessing special educational needs. The context of the book is the mainstream setting in the United Kingdom. The aim of these chapters is to consider special needs in inclusive education, consistent with British special needs legislation.…

This paper discusses the findings of a study that examined the perceptions of 270 elementary school principals about a new Alabama certification model which abolishes categorical certification areas in special education and creates a generic "Collaborative Teacher" certification. Results indicate the most frequent special education…

Thirteen research and demonstration projects developed by Ohio school districts for the education of gifted students are described. The programs involve inservice teacher education; interdepartmental teamwork; collaboration with community and university resources; a continuum of services for gifted children in regular classrooms; learning options…

This document consists of the eleven issues of the "Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability" issued from 1987 through 1990. Ostensibly a quarterly, the jouranl had only two numbers in 1987, three in 1989, and two in 1990. Some feature articles during this period have the following titles and authors: "Perception of Tutoring Services by…

This final report describes the development of eight computer based science simulations designed for use with middle school mainstreamed students having learning disabilities or mild mental retardation. The total program includes software, a teacher's manual, 3 videos, and a set of 30 activity worksheets. Special features of the software for…

Information on the implementation of services for preschool children with special needs and their families, acquired from a survey of 60 states and jurisdictions is presented. The information is organized into nine sections reflecting major state activities related to the Part B--Section 619 portion of the Individuals with Disabilities Education…

This collection of papers offers advice on restructuring education to create heterogeneous schools, with the goal of creating happy, comfortable, and successful learning environments for all the children and adults who learn and teach in them. Section I, titled "A Rationale for Restructuring and the Change Process," contains the following papers:…

This practicum focused on the problem of lack of involvement of the parents of 32 mainstreamed fifth grade students with special learning needs. Evening workshops were conducted for parents and their at-risk, mainstreamed students in fifth grade. Sessions focused on the use of computers, manipulatives, make and take home instructional games, study…