This is a technical report of agency actions and legislative recommendations for programs regulated by the state or government-to-government responsibilities that must be met for children aged 3-5. As changes in PreK services affect enrollment in birth-3 and school-age care, impacts on these other programs are vital to alignment work. Partnering…

The Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing's (MECDHH's) "POINT" (Providing Opportunities for Integrating New Technologies) project is implementing a telepractice, distance learning collaborative in Maine with eight hub sites and 18 end points using Tandberg videoconferencing technology. This network is planned to be a…

States and local school districts are required by federal law to educate preschool age children with disabilities in typical early childhood programs alongside children who do not have disabilities to the maximum extent appropriate. This policy brief provides an overview of the law and sets forth a list of policy recommendations that can help…

Inclusion is a federal and state mandate, making it critical that early childhood teachers have adequate preparation in their preservice program for serving young children with disabilities. One of the challenges states face in increasing the availability of high-quality inclusive programs is ensuring adequate numbers of confident, competent…

The study examines the status of providing services to children in out-of-district placements and the implementation of the least restrictive environment mandate for handicapped children. Part I reviews the statutory mandate for least restrictive placement and notes policy problems associated with the effort. Part II identifies state policies to…

The book describes Pennsylvania's approach for determining placement of handicapped students in the least restrictive environment (LRE), as mandated by P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. Separate sections address the following two topics (subtopics in parentheses): the LRE decision process (content for the decision…

Intended for program developers, the document discusses Level I programs for mainstreamed handicapped children in the state of Maryland (Level I services are those that can be provided in the general education classroom with supplementary services and aids not provided in the general program). An introduction to Level I services is presented,…

The author considers the implications of minimum competency requirements for handicapped students, teachers of the handicapped, and mainstreaming. (SBH)

Outlined are special educational programs and supportive services provided for handicapped children in Michigan during the year 1970-1971. Included are goals for serving the estimated 12.5 0/0 of the school age population needing special services; a listing of incidence rates by handicapping condition; federal and state sources of funds; the…

This circular outlines the inclusion policy of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Inclusion is defined as a combination of long-standing "least restrictive environment" policies, with an emphasis on active social membership in the class or community, but not representing a legal requirement that every child be educated in the same…

Project Accommodate, a program designed to improve inservice to regular Nebraska secondary teachers serving handicapped students, is described. The state's needs for inservice training to implement the goal of providing services in the least restrictive environment are discussed as background to Project Accommodate's development. Goals of the…

Kansas Institutions of Higher Education (KIHE) is a program which disseminates information, processes and procedures relating to personal, attitudinal, and organizational change from a single Dean's Grant Project at Kansas University to all the teacher education programs in Kansas. The program focused on preparing teacher-trainees to educate…

Legislation supporting the mainstreaming of exceptional children is reviewed, and the Illinois Network of Exemplary Occupational Education Programs for Handicapped and Disadvantaged Students is described. Considered are P. L. 94-482, the Education Amendments of 1976; PL L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act; and P. L. 93-112,…

California's approach to training regular education teachers to deal with mainstreamed handicapped students as mandated by P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, is described. Training focuses on preservice education and the state's development of competencies regarding exceptional students for teachers and administrators.…

The study to determine ways in which the educational programs for the deaf and hard of hearing in California's public schools might be strengthened and improved was undertaken by the State Department of Education, assisted by statewide committees of teachers and administrators involved in programs for the deaf. The final report, consisting of…