This Master's degree project developed a program for decreasing disruptive student behavior in order to increase the amount of on-task time in the classroom. Types and occurrences of disruptive behavior were documented over a 6-week period in two classrooms at each of two junior high schools (grades 6-8) in Illinois. Analysis of the data revealed…

The papers comprising this volume discuss research based on an ecobehavioral interaction approach to special education. Six papers are included, which range from a highly conceptual discussion of second language instruction/learning to research concerning interventions to reviews of the research literature. The papers have the following titles and…

This policy brief outlines how the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) relates to high schools: (1) States must set adequate yearly progress (AYP) objectives (steadily increasing test scores and graduation rates) to ensure 100 percent of high school students achieve at proficient levels by spring 2014; (2) States must include high school graduation…

The 24th annual report to Congress on the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is organized into four major sections. Section 1 is on context/environment and includes four modules that address special education teacher quality (from the Study of Personnel Needs in Teacher Education (SPeNSE)); costs of special…

The White House Conference on Child Health and Protection has recently pointed out how inadequately this country is providing educational opportunities for exceptional children. One-half million gifted children, another half million retarded children, three-quarters of a million children exhibiting serious behavior problems, three hundred thousand…

The need for an environment conducive to achievement for diverse learners is especially challenging at the middle and high school levels, where more students with learning challenges are included in the general education program, but teachers tend to be less tolerant of disruptive and distractible behaviors. Thus, students who do not conform to…

The "new federalism" paradigm offers an explanation why the federal government has devolved much of its administration of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF, formerly AFDC) and Medicaid (through managed care) programs. A review of child and family outcomes data resulting from these devolutionary changes in TANF and…

These four newsletters from the South Carolina Department of Education focus on teaching and serving students with disabilities. The first newsletter includes articles addressing ways that special education professionals can be good to themselves so they can meet the needs of exceptional children; strategies for instructing children with attention…

This document presents narrative descriptions of 14 selected programs for reducing truant and disruptive behavior in schools, as selected by a group of Virginia educators in a project sponsored by the Virginia Department of Education. Among the tools utilized in these programs are behavior modification using tokens, in-school tutoring, in-school…

This text integrates state-of-the-art theory and empirical research on a wide range of child and adolescent disorders. Featuring contributions from leading scholars and clinicians, the volume provides comprehensive coverage of the biological, psychological, and social-contextual determinants of childhood problems. Each chapter focuses on a…

With its comprehensive coverage of instruction and intervention practices in natural environments, this is the essential methods textbook for preservice educators and therapists preparing to work with young children who have disabilities. Focusing on children from birth to age 5, this text gives future professionals a wealth of specific, practical…

This one-year collection of three serial issues focuses on problem solving skills for children with deaf-blindness, the history and change in the education of children who are deaf-blind since the rubella epidemic of the 1960's, and early identification of infants who are deaf-blind. Specific articles include: (1) "Research to Practice Focus…

In the United States black women have for decades been twice as likely as white women to give birth to babies of low birth weight who are at elevated risk for developmental disabilities. Does the black-white disparity in low birth weight contribute to the racial disparity in readiness? The author summarizes the cognitive and behavioral problems…

The provision of a coherent "parenting," "teaching," and "developmental" program is a complex undertaking. It has all the makings of an organizational, managerial, and therapeutic nightmare when different types of workers, with marked differences in personality and values, become responsible for different children with a variety of problems in a…

A professional development program which trained whole school staffs in the use of positive behavioral interventions for the purpose of reducing referral rates of students for misbehavior and special education evaluation. The program focused on training teachers and paraprofessionals in behavior management strategies to increase "high approval…