An alternating treatments design with a best treatments phase was used to compare two active student response (ASR) conditions and one on-task (OT) condition on the acquisition and maintenance of social studies facts during computer-assisted instruction. Each week for six weeks, five students were provided daily computer-assisted instruction on 21…

Primary objective: To determine if structural priming can be demonstrated in young children with and without specific language impairment (SLI). Research design: A mixed-model design was used to compare children with SLI to two groups of typically developing (TD) children, and to compare priming conditions. Methods and procedures: Eighteen…

Previous studies have consistently demonstrated self-correction to be more effective than "traditional" approaches to spelling instruction. This investigation examined the comparative effects of self-correction after attempting each word and self-correction after attempting a list of 10 words by six fifth-graders with learning disabilities or…

People with learning disabilities can have mental health problems like anyone else. People with learning disabilities should be able to use the same mental health services as anyone else. In this article we say how we have tried to make this happen. It is now well recognized that people with learning disabilities experience the full range of…

The current study examines how a computerized learning environment assists students with learning disabilities (LD) enrolled in a distance learning course at the Open University of Israel. The technology provides computer display of the text, synchronized with auditory output and accompanied by additional computerized study skill tools which…

This article describes the method and adaptations used by the author in including students with special needs in an instrumental music program. To ensure success in the program, the author shares the method he uses to include exceptional students and enumerates some possible adaptations. There are certainly other methods and modifications that…

In Ontario, Canada, there is a demand for psychometrically robust screening tools capable of efficiently identifying students with specific learning disabilities (SLD), such as dyslexia. The present study investigated the ability of the Dyslexia Adult Screening Test (DAST) to discriminate between 117 post-secondary students with carefully…

A responsiveness-to-intervention (RTI) approach to diagnosing LD is a leading alternative to current practice. This study conducted a meta-analytic review of research on four existing large-scale RTI models and other models implemented for research. Twenty-four effect sizes and unbiased estimates of effect (UEE) were computed. Results found a…

Cognitive subtest scatter has often been considered to be diagnostically significant. The current study tested the diagnostic validity of four separate operationalizations of WISC-III subtest scatter: (a) range of verbal, performance, and full-scale subtests; (b) variance of verbal, performance, and full-scale subtests; (c) number of subtests…

This article provides a brief primer overview of Differential Item Functioning (DIF) analysis. DIF analysis investigates a differential characteristic of a test item between subpopulations of examinees and is useful in detecting possibly biased items toward a particular subpopulation. As demonstration, a dataset from a 40-item math test in a…

Many educational theorists in recent decades have argued for the plurality of forms of knowledge, both in the mind and in the curriculum. Two popular ways of conceptualizing this plurality have claimed that individual students either differ in their "learning styles" or possess "multiple intelligences". Both theories have encountered numerous…

In this article, the author criticizes the requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) for students with learning disabilities and points out some faulty and misguided thinking and assumptions embodied in NCLB's approach to special education. The author fears that the law's unrealistic expectations for these students and their teachers give…

This study compared the school performance of a sample of slow learners who qualified for special education as learning disabled with a sample of slow learners who did not qualify for special education. The intent of the study was to determine which group of slow learners was more successful in school in order to know if special education or…

Effective transition planning is of paramount importance in maximizing post school outcomes for students with disabilities. The purpose of this study is to examine data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study--2 regarding the transition planning for students with mental retardation. In addition, for comparison purposes, data on transition…

The purpose of this pilot study was to determine if a single math-based chronometric task could accurately discriminate between college students with and without a diagnosed math disorder. Analyzing data from 31 students (6 in the case group, 25 in the clinical comparison group), it was found that the single chronometric task could accurately…