Educators are faced with many decisions regarding supporting students' writing. While writing achievement and curriculum-based measure scores provide numbers that are important for high-stakes decisions like determining special education eligibility, they do not provide educators with information on a student's explicit instruction needs. Written…

Since its inception, special education has historically been an underfunded federal mandate leaving states and school districts unable to offer more than a basic level of support for individuals with disabilities. The amount and frequency of time allotted for special services including Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Physical Therapy is…

Although this author had experience teaching postsecondary academic writing, she had never done one-on-one tutoring. Therefore, One-on-One Literacy trained her as a novice volunteer tutor to work with adults who wished to expand their reading and writing skills. The tutor training included developing an individualized program suited to the…

This article, intended to inform educators on how to use iPad apps for literacy development for young children with developmental disabilities, briefly reviews the literature on iPad apps for literacy development, examines key apps for literacy development for children with developmental disabilities, and discusses how to incorporate iPad apps…

Successful writers have proficient skills in three areas: handwriting, spelling and composition. Many students with disabilities experience difficulties in the area of spelling, which in turn may lead to difficulty in composing written work. Spelling deficits should be addressed by the student's Individualized Education Program (IEP) team to…

Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (E/BD) have been consistently experiencing dismal outcomes. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a brief overview of outcomes for this population, examine school-based instructional and behavioral strategies, and discuss transition related practices intended to improve present and future…

Adolescents with learning disabilities need explicit supports to improve their written expression, but those structures and supports are best utilized in an environment that promotes authentic writing resembling the writing students will produce in adult life and work. Classroom blogs may offer special educators an authentic context for writing…

The staff of the Individualized Language Arts Diagnosis, Prescription, and Evaluation Project, a funded ESEA Title III program, has developed methods based on a diagnostic-teaching framework designed to analyze students' writing skills for grades 1-12. The program structure also provides teachers with methodology for developing and reinforcing…

Many students with intellectual disabilities want to graduate with their peers and move on to the next phase of their lives. By the time students have reached age 18, most have exhausted the coursework the school system has to offer, and they have yet to master the skills necessary for employment and independent living. Community-based transition…

The Learning Center at Glendale Community College is described in this four-part report which also evaluates the success of the Center in meeting the needs of new, nontraditional students. Part I reviews the literature dealing with the high dropout rate of nontraditional students admitted via the "open door" and provides definitions for the terms…