In this article I outline how and why I have established a self-assessment system for class participation scores in an English-speaking skills course at a Japanese university. I explain how my experience with one particular student, who personally admitted to having abused the system, led me to realize that elements from Yin and Yang have been…

The unique challenges presented by children with autism can quickly overwhelm unprepared teachers. Educators need direction on how to begin to understand and address the behavioral problems and social communication needs of children with autism. They require practical techniques that can be incorporated during naturally occurring instructional…

Restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRBs) are a core symptom of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). There has been an increased research emphasis on repetitive behaviors; however, this research primarily has focused on phenomenology and mechanisms. Thus, the knowledge base on interventions is lagging behind other areas of research. The literature…

Critical reflection (CR) is a process by which one may identify the assumptions governing one's actions, question them, and develop alternative behaviors. This article presents two cases that demonstrate the use of CR to raise social workers' awareness of gaps between what Schon and Argryis term social workers' "espoused theories" and the…

Critical pedagogy scholars have long struggled to reconcile their desire for a democratic, participatory classroom with the necessity of creating a learning environment that is safe and inclusive. Indeed, in critical pedagogy theory there is a tension between enabling students to think for themselves and convincing students to read the cultural…

The Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework for instruction that values the social, emotional, and academic diversity in the classroom while using this diversity to create a classroom environment of respect and appreciation for others. Through multiple means of representation, expression, and engagement, the UDL framework demands that…

"Autism at-a-Glance" is a series of practitioner and family-friendly documents created by the Center on Secondary Education for Students with ASD (CSESA) designed for high school staff members supporting students on the autism spectrum, as well as family members of adolescents with ASD. The purpose of the "Autism at-a-Glance"…

School counselors are regularly tasked with managing student's emotions and behaviors that impede school performance. This daunting assignment can be overwhelming for school professionals. With the many diagnoses that may provide an explanation for dysfunctional behavior amongst students, the possibility of grief is frequently overlooked. The…

It is seldom useful to try to persuade staff to abandon coercive methods in the moment when they are angry or frustrated with students. Instead, these topics can be discussed during new employee orientation and in ongoing staff development. Ironically, many staff members share that in their own roles as parents they seldom rely on spanking or…

People are born with certain temperament traits. Some children are easy going and easy to get along with. Some are not. This article describes the temperament traits of the strong-willed child. The strong-willed is viewed as stubborn to parents and teachers. The child's goal is to always be in control of his own behaviors, regardless of the needs…

A student's experience in the middle grades is a selection of classes they go through in a day. If they experience inconsistent expectations across those classes, they and the school will struggle to achieve high outcomes. Middle grade students need to have common behavioral and academic expectations, recognitions, and consequences throughout the…

Foster care is a government-based, temporary system of support for children and adolescents whose biologic parents are either unwilling or unable to parent them. Variability exists with regard to the type of foster care continuity of services offered as well as to the placement homes themselves, and--of the nearly half-million youth currently…

Educating children and youth with significant social, emotional, and behavioral (SEB) problems continues to pose significant challenges for special and general educators. The long-term effects of challenges this group of students experience include school dropout, mental health problems, unemployment, and high incarceration rates. To date, the…

The overarching goal of this special issue is to consider peer victimization involvement and corresponding interventions for youth with disabilities from a social dynamics perspective that situates risks for being a victim, perpetrator, or both within a person-in-context framework. The focus here is not on a specific age range or type of…

In this article, Nicholas Covino states that mental illness is a problem many people do not want to discuss, yet it affects everyone. Today, one in four adults and one in five children have a diagnosable mental illness, and one of two Americans will suffer from mental illness at some point in their lives. Suicide will claim one American every 13…