While literacy interventions can be implemented in any grade, focusing on interventions in grades 3-8 is critical because it is often the best chance for students identified with earlier reading deficiencies to become ready for the literacy demands of postsecondary education and careers. States in both the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL)…

To stem the tide of students dropping out, many schools and districts are turning to early warning systems (EWS) that signal whether a student is at risk of not graduating from high school. While some research exists about establishing these systems, there is little information about the actual implementation strategies that are being used across…

A literature review, the experiences of the authors, and the results of the Project To Improve and Reward Teaching (PIRT) at the University of Cincinnati, Ohio, are used to derive suggestions for change in academic departments. A qualitative study of change in eight PIRT departments has provided data to support the suggestions. Assessing the…

Schools and agencies are under pressure to demonstrate program effectiveness and be cost accountable. Systems methodology, developed for use in other fields, may have the potential for program development in counseling. This article discusses some ways in which systems technology may be directly employed in a counseling setting. (Author)

The monograph offers an overview of the history of health care for children with disabilities. Health goals for the disabled child are considered and a systems model discussed that views health care services as part of the child's total service needs. Routine and specialized health care needs of disabled children are covered, and service areas…

The authors define a needs assessment, consider issues involved in conducting a problem-focused needs assessment, and outline practical considerations in conducting needs assessment for inservice training in regular education. (CL)

The article discusses the application of business and industry-derived training techniques, strategies, and ideas to the in-service training of special education and regular teachers. Three scenarios are presented to illustrate serious deficiencies in providing training at the local, regional, and state levels. (DLS)

A "Multidimensional Needs Assessment Framework" developed by the authors and used in public school districts for planning special service programs is described. An overview, rationale/description are included. The steps applied in utilization of the framework are delineated, and potential implementation problems are considered.…

Increased concern has been directed toward students who have been identified as disaffected or alienated and who are not responding to the traditional school program. These students are not usually classifiable as educationally handicapped. A system-wide programmatic approach to deal with disaffected and disruptive students in a manner that allows…

The counselor works in a difficult position, and school guidance programs are in jeopardy today. To develop meaningful programs, administrators must hire counselors who will meet the needs of the school and participate in the evaluation of program outcomes. (MD)

This manual contains training materials on full participation in independent living for a national conference for personnel in agencies concerned with independent living for people with disabilities. Preliminary materials include the conference agenda, background information about the trainers, and organizational information on Independent Living…

Suggests guidelines for establishing a secondary school experiential program in the areas of assessing school and student needs, setting goals and devising plans to meet the goals, planning for necessary resources (time, energy, finances, supplies), and selling the program to administrators and teachers. (NEC)

Poses questions--and some answers--essential to the development and expansion of technical communication offerings beyond the basic course in technical writing. (RL)

A conceptual scheme developed by the National Needs Analysis Project in Behavior Disorders is presented for guiding program description and evaluation in the behavioral disorders field. The scheme identifies essential program components such as philosophy, community involvement, and exit procedures. Underlying assumptions, the development process,…

The article focuses on a practical prioritization process as a method to bridge the gap between assessment and planning of individualized education programs for severely handicapped students. This prioritization process is based upon a set of criteria agreed to by planning teams which include educators, related service personnel, and families.…