Thomas Hehir, special education chief of Chicago Public Schools, is evangelist of integrating children with disabilities into regular classrooms. By completely reorganizing department viewed as political patronage dumping ground, Hehir has made remarkable progress in handling large number of children awaiting evaluation and placement in special…

This special section includes five articles: (1) "Places for ALL Children: Building Environments for Differing Needs"; (2) "To Teach Each Child: The Trials and Rewards"; (3) "A Place for Marie: Guidelines for the Integration Process"; (4) "Preferred Words for Referring to Disabilities"; and (5) "Supporting Teachers Who Work with All Children."…

This article clarifies literacy issues that affect the achievement and performance of students with severe visual impairments. The article discusses the nature of the braille code and offers suggestions and strategies for helping children with limited sight overcome difficulties and for making braille and print accessible for group activities.…

This guide provides information on serving students with visual impairments in the regular classroom setting. It discusses types of visual impairments, behaviors that may indicate visual problems, important classroom environment factors, optical aids, special educational needs, and suggestions for curriculum adaptations. (JDD)

This commentary on a paper by Douglas Fuchs and Lynn Fuchs identifies several rhetorical devices that the paper used to attack the proponents of inclusive education: "create the villain," academic sleight of hand, and "portray oneself as a pragmatist and portray the intellectual opponents as zealots." (JDD)

Disabled children placed in regular classrooms are supposed to get special services so that they can participate academically and socially without disrupting other students' learning. Since most states and school districts are adopting full inclusion to save money, such services are unlikely. Requiring all disabled children to be included in…

Sapon-Shevin's classroom scenarios featuring creative, inclusive adaptations for gifted students are unrealistic. Special programs for advanced learners are typically established because their needs are overlooked in regular classrooms. Teachers are more inclined to make adjustments for struggling learners than for advanced ones. By viewing gifted…

Originally developed for gifted-education programs, the Schoolwide Enrichment Model can be used in inclusive schools doubling as laboratories for talent development. The model, which provides a broad range of advanced-level enrichment experiences and bases follow-up on students' varied responses, requires three components: a total talent…

The effort to "mainstream" English-as-a-Second-Language students will require fundamental changes in the educational system at large, but it will also create discomfort for the change agents themselves. Institutional and instructional changes, conditions under which they may be possible, and some unexpected sources of resistance are discussed. (25…

The effects of a friendship awareness activity on frequency and type of social interactions between elementary students with mental retardation and their nonhandicapped peers were evaluated. Results indicated that the one-time friendship awareness activity was inadequate to produce changes in social interactions. (Author/DB)

The role of educational interpreters for deaf students mainstreamed in regular classes was examined through interviews with 35 educational interpreters. Among concerns were (1) defining their professional role, (2) the variety of sign systems used in schools, (3) their relationships with the students they serve, and (4) professional development.…

Eighteen handicapped and six nonhandicapped preschool children were observed during free play time. Children engaged in social behavior more often when playing with toys classified as social toys compared to isolate toys, and the incidence of social play was higher in integrated groups than in nonintegrated groups. (Author/JDD)

Parents (N=41) of special education students and parents (N=93) of general education students whose children were placed in integrated elementary classrooms were surveyed. Both groups of parents were equally satisfied with the integrated option, and parents' satisfaction levels either held constant or improved after several months with the…

This column presents a discussion of the philosophy and practice of inclusion of students with disabilities and a review of five books and articles on inclusive schools; and an annotated bibliography of nine journal articles and reports on gifted students and educational reform. (JDD)

This article describes a school reorganization in Woodstock (Illinois) resulting in the establishment of an Early Learning Center serving all the district's young children (525 children, ages 3 to 6). Advantages of this center approach for the students (such as integrating students with disabilities), for teachers, for parents, and for the…