The opening of a new alternative school in a suburb of a small midwestern city in 1995 provided the opportunity to elicit student perceptions of their past and current school environments. Students were asked at two different times to complete three short scales that characterized teacher, counselor and administrative responsiveness to them: the…

The past decade has given rise to a resurgence of interest in the investigation of antecedent events that "set the stage" for the occurrence of problem behaviors and, correspondingly, the role of these antecedents in developing preventative interventions. A growing literature supports the impact of teacher interactions and classroom structure on…

Research examining environmental factors associated with adolescents' life satisfaction (LS) has revealed that familial variables (e.g., parent-child conflict, family structure) are crucial correlates. The purpose of the current study was to identify particular dimensions of authoritative parenting (strictness-supervision, social…

In an effort to address the problem behaviors of children and youth, professionals have advocated for the implementation of three-tiered prevention programs: primary, secondary, and tertiary. The wraparound approach has been advanced as an appropriate tertiary program that can be used to address the complex behaviors and needs of students and…

The early identification and remediation of emotional or behavior disorders are high priorities for early-childhood researchers and are based on the assumption that problems such as school failure can be averted with early screening, prevention, and intervention. Presently, prevalence, severity, and topography of mental health needs among…

Alternative education programmes, in the form of vocational education and flexible or personalised curricula, are rapidly becoming established as a main plank in both mainstream and special schools' responses to pupil disaffection. In this paper, "alternative curriculum" will be used as an umbrella term to include all forms of curricula which are…

The Academy For Learning (AFL) serves urban students with emotional and behavioral problems. Through a Personal and Social Responsibility program, students develop skills for personal growth and service learning. Many alternative programs for troubled students offer little more than a curriculum for containment and control. In contrast, students…

This paper reports on a study that examined teachers' concerns and attitude toward inclusive education of students with disabilities in Ghana. A 20 item Attitudes Toward Inclusion in Africa Scale (ATIAS) was completed by 100 teachers from five "Inclusive Project" schools and five Non-Project coeducational basic schools in three different…

This study followed 515 4-year-olds from Head Start entry to exit to investigate their social and behavioral skills and the impact of these skills on school readiness outcomes. Results indicated that, on average, social skills improved across the preschool year, while behavior problems remained relatively stable. Social skills and behavior…

To interrogate pedagogical discourses relating to child behaviour as "practices that systematically form the objects of which they speak" this paper features the analysis of three texts through the development and deployment of what might be called a poetics of pedagogical discourse. The principal text is a statement describing…

The Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) is the nation's oldest and largest membership-based child welfare organization committed to engaging people everywhere in promoting the well-being of children, youth, and their families and protecting every child from harm. By publishing a diverse range of views on a wide array of topics, "Children's…

This paper investigates the determinants and malleability of noncognitive skills. Using data on boys from the National Education Longitudinal Survey, I focus on youth behavior in the classroom as a measure of noncognitive skills. I find that student behavior during adolescence is persistent. The variation in behavior can be attributed to…

"KidsCount in Colorado!" is an annual publication of the Colorado Children's Campaign, which provides the best available state- and county-level data to measure and track the education, health and general well-being of the state's children. KidsCount in Colorado! informs policy debates and community discussions, serving as a valuable…

Most interventions for at-risk youth are group based. Yet, emerging research indicates that young people often learn to become deviant by interacting with deviant peers. In this important volume, leading intervention and prevention experts from psychology, education, criminology, and related fields analyze how, and to what extent, programs that…

Practical and concise, this introductory guide is filled with real-world tips and strategies for anyone working to improve the communication of children with moderate, severe, and multiple disabilities. Emphasizing the link between behavior and communication, three respected researchers transform up-to-date research and proven best practices into…