Describes the Learning Support Center (LSC), an inclusive program that provides support services to at-risk and marginal high school students. The LSC uses nontraditional staffing (including sources from outside the school), establishes schoolwide ownership via staff involvement, and uses educational instruments such as the Personalized Learning…

Argues that universal tertiary education in Australia is hampered by the country's binary system which separates tertiary education into higher education and vocational education and training sectors. Describes the application of an alternative model at Victoria University of Technology, a dual-sector university which has introduced personalized…

Examines issues arising from Careers Service refocusing its work with the 'disaffected' in the UK, with particular attention to preventive work with the under 16s as a new direction for careers practitioners. Discusses the extent to which 'inclusion' is likely to be achieved via enhanced guidance. Suggests that guidance is ineffective if it fails…

All students, including those with significant cognitive disabilities, must participate in accountability testing under NCLB regulations. Each state must provide an alternate assessment for students unable to participate in general accountability testing. Carefully designed alternate assessment systems have the potential to go beyond meeting…

This study determined whether chronological age differences among students in the same grade level affected their respective levels of academic performance on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) mathematics assessment. The study analyzed the additional independent variables of gender, socioeconomic status, and special education…

This study examined the perspectives of parents of children with autism receiving special education services in an upper Midwestern state. This study sought to determine parent perspectives of priorities for the child's IEP, parent perspectives of content of the child's IEP, and parent perspectives of their experiences at the school, comfort level…

Various interventions have been developed to promote student individualized education program (IEP) participation. Although they are generally endorsed by educators and researchers, critics argue that interventions to promote self-determination and IEP participation may be counter to the values of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD)…

Special educators struggle to develop legitimate Individualized Educational Plans (IEPs) that describe student needs and lead to academic achievement. The purpose of this study was to determine if using a rubric to create an IEP resulted in an increase in academic achievement. The conceptual framework is drawn from a synthesis of the literature on…

Meeting a growing need for school-based practitioners, this book provides vital tools for improving the academic, behavioral, and social outcomes of students with high-functioning autism or Asperger syndrome (HFA/AS). Research-based best practices are presented for conducting meaningful assessments; collaborating with teachers, students, and…

Meeting the needs of children with disabilities requires strategies for engaging each and every child as an individual and facilitating their participation as a member of a group. The use of the project approach meets the needs of individual children by building on an awareness of children's interests and high expectations. All early childhood…

Drawing on interviews with parents of children with significant disabilities, as well as administrators and special education consultants, between the early 1990s and 2008 in a mid-Atlantic US state, this paper examines the work of parental advocates as they translate special education policies to negotiate concessions for parents, bring issues…

This study examined the effectiveness of a new school to adult life transition planning lesson package titled "Student-Directed Transition Planning". The "Student-Directed Transition Planning" lessons teach transition terms and concepts to provide a means to increase self-determination skills and student participation in…

Introduction: The results of a 2009-2010 program evaluation study that examined parents, teachers of students with visual impairments, administrators, and students regarding overall satisfaction with and effectiveness of the short-term programs at a residential school for students who are blind and visually impaired are described. The findings are…

The present study identified factors influencing determination of educational setting for students with Emotional Disturbance (ED). Determination of most appropriate educational setting, a key provision of students' individualized education programs (IEP) continues to be one the most contentious issues in special education. Focus group interviews…

Bearing in mind the requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation, Louisiana's Steering Committee projected performance targets through the year 2014 for the important areas of: (1) Graduation with a Diploma; (2) Dropout Rate; (3) Placement, ages 6-21 and ages 3-5; (4) Achievement Performance Levels, and (5) Discipline. Annual gains were…