This paper evaluates the impact of exposure to a voucher program for disabled students in Florida on the academic performance of disabled students who remain in the public school system. The authors utilize student-level data on the universe of public school students in the state of Florida from 2000-01 through 2004-05 to study the effect of the…

A seven-week summer academic noncategorical training program for special education teachers organized around specific teaching competencies resulted in significant academic gains for 80 mildly handicapped elementary students. (CL)

Five components were identified as crucial to the success of the mainstreamed peer tutoring program (selection, training, matching, supervision, and communication with/support for the regular classroom teacher). Data provided support for the conclusion that the on task behavior of tutees improved significantly as a result of the program. (SB)

The author describes an approach to mainstreaming handicapped middle school students in which students were placed in a regular remedial class with a regular education teacher, a special education teacher, and an aide. The model evolved originally because of staffing problems, but achievement in both self confidence and academics resulted in its…

This paper describes Project ASSIST, an early intervention pilot project involving 40 Singaporean infants with disabilities (ages 2-5) that integrated children with mild disabilities into mainstream preschool centers. Results indicated high levels of peer and school personnel acceptance and the feasibility of integrating children with disabilities…

A computer assisted instruction system for drilling educationally handicapped children in word decoding skills is described. A theoretical rationale for the objectives and design of the system, based on research from the psychology of reading literature, is discussed. In addition, certain system design constraints, applied in order to accommodate…

An instructional model for improving reading skills of poor readers is described and progress data of mildly handicapped elementary and secondary students are reported. The approach includes curricular assessment and placement in lower levels of classroom curricula, direct instruction in deficit skills areas, data-based instruction, repeated…

Project RETAIN (Retention in Education Technical Assistance and Information Network) is a Florida project that assists school districts through identification and dissemination of effective practices that keep students with mild disabilities in school. One part of the project was the development of a database of school district efforts in the area…

The report describes the development and operation of a program to serve two groups of hearing impaired children: students who need a highly structured multisensory curricular approach to the standard curriculum objectives, and students who need a heavy emphasis in life skills and activities for daily living. Monitoring data is presented on…

Nine documents report on activities of Project RETAP (Regular Education Teachers and Principals), an inservice training program which focuses on the development of teacher competencies necessary for the successful integration of the mildly handicapped child. The ultimate goal of the project is the assimilation and overt application of a variety of…

This paper discusses the development of an assistive technology (AT) toolkit for special education teachers to use in integrating assistive technology with general curriculum standards for students with high incidence (mild) disabilities. Participants were 31 K-8 special education teacher-volunteers recruited from schools representing urban,…

Implementation of a pyramid model to teach behavior management strategies to the staff of an integrated childcare center found improvements in performance of the three trained "specialists," improvements in other staff trained by the specialists, changes in child behavior, and general satisfaction with the training procedures. (DB)

A family literacy program was developed for families containing young children and learning-challenged adults whose limited reading skills made it impossible for them to read aloud to their children. The program's primary objective was to upgrade the parents' reading skills and knowledge of children's literature. The program was staffed by a…

This paper describes the successful implementation of an inclusion program which placed students with mild disabilities in regular education classes in a rural Louisiana school system. A unique quality of this program is that it utilized only existing staff. Advantages and disadvantages of such a program and the seven-step program development and…

This final project report describes three related studies that examined reform efforts in a major metropolitan school district. Emphasis was on seven schools that had developed collaborative service approaches to reduce fragmentation of service delivery, increase accountability for students "at risk," and eliminate duplication of services. In…