Suggests a process for evaluating and planning integrated optical jukebox storage systems. Considerations regarding architecture and system performance are summarized, and a modeling program for tailoring system response to specific applications is presented. Five robotics algorithms are examined to illustrate different hardware configurations.…

Discusses how Perkins Act mandates for accountability in vocational education necessitate modification of performance standards and measures for special populations. (SK)

Organizational change may benefit performance and survival chances if it occurs in response to dramatic restructuring of environmental conditions and builds on established routines and competencies. These propositions are tested on the savings and loan industry in California, which has experienced technological, economic, and regulatory shifts…

Students (n=150) ages 11, 14, and 17 were asked to explain the meanings of 24 different idiomatic expressions. Performance on the task gradually improved as subject age increased. High-familiarity idioms were easier to explain than moderate-familiarity or low-familiarity expressions. Easier idioms tended to be more transparent. (Author/JDD)

This paper reviews limitations in the interpretations of group differences in studies that use younger, language-matched controls in addition to age-matched controls to examine the role of "language level" on performance. Problems arise because of the multidimensional nature of language, extraneous age effects associated with language matching,…

A survey of 39 elementary special education teachers in Colorado indicated that more respondents had knowledge of Down's syndrome than of fetal alcohol or fragile X syndromes. Respondents' level of education, date of most recent degree, and years of experience were not associated with greater awareness nor knowledge of fragile X syndrome.…

Using examples from public libraries and community parks and recreation, the author argues that increased emphasis on relevant performance comparisons with other local governments and appropriate standards could capture public attention and encourage greater accountability. (SK)

Students with severe/profound mental retardation performed functional tasks under training or probe conditions. Analysis of nine students' records indicated that students do not react to probe conditions as if they were extinction conditions; training data do not consistently reflect performance under probe conditions; and data collected under…

Sixty eight year olds in tutor-tutee pairs on two tasks (spatial-numeric and item recall) benefited from elaboration (being taught principles guiding task performance). However, when child-tutors generated their own principles for guiding learning, performance was not improved. (SK)

Etiology-specific profiles of intellectual abilities were compared in 30 males (ages 6-12) with fragile X syndrome, Down's syndrome, or nonspecific mental retardation using the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children. All three groups scored lower on sequential processing than on simultaneous processing or achievement, and etiology-specific…

This literature review on antecedents, behaviors, and consequences in the noncompliant behavior of people with mental retardation found that noncompliance is more likely when instructions are vague or task demands are too difficult and that noncompliance responds well to programs utilizing combinations of social and tangible rewards. (Author/JDD)

Stuttered sentences pronounced by 12 4- to 6-year-old children in spontaneous conversation were analyzed for length and grammatical complexity. Results indicated that sentences in which stuttering occurred within the first three words were significantly longer and more complex than sentences where no fluency failure was found. Implications for…

Surveys individuals teaching full time while at the "All but Dissertation" (ABD) stage to discover barriers and paths to successful completion of the dissertation while employed. Provides suggestions on how to successfully complete the dissertation while teaching full time. (SR)

Twenty-four hearing-impaired subjects (mean age 67 years) were tested for lipreading skills under 3 conditions (full face, eyes masked, only lips visible). Results show no significant association between facial visibility and lipreading ability. Results are interpreted in the context of the phonological and semantic components of speech.…

Assisted and unassisted performance of 14 average readers and 14 readers with learning disabilities (ages 10-13) were compared on a reading comprehension task. The groups differed in how easily they learned to find the main idea under different topic sentence placement conditions, with the learning-disabled readers requiring significantly more…