Peers with mild intellectual disabilities taught first aid skills to 4 students (ages 7-11) with moderate intellectual disabilities. Results suggested that the peer teaching program resulted in acquisition of first aid skills, and the participants' skills generalized to the home, to novel simulated-injury locations, and to new trainers.…

The Process Skills Rating Scales were designed to rate how well a student uses those process skills that develop an ability to think, reason, and search for knowledge independently and to communicate and interact effectively with all members of society. Forms are available for students (elementary and secondary), teachers, and parents. (JDD)

A theoretical description of hypertext is presented, and three applications of hypertext are discussed: electronic studying allows linkage of electronic note cards for writing and interrelating concepts; literary exploration allows construction and interpretation of stories with provided literary elements; in qualitative research, hypertext helps…

A self-help skills instructional program used graduated guidance as a method of teaching independent dressing to an 11-year-old girl with profound mental retardation, seizure disorder, deafness, and blindness. Dressing skills improved with instruction and were maintained. Task analyses are presented for putting on socks, shorts, and shirts. (JDD)

This study, which involved training four young adults with moderate or severe mental retardation on housekeeping and janitorial work skills, found that simulation instruction based on general case methodology can be used to teach complex sequences, that naturalistic instruction seemed more efficient than simulation instruction, and that neither…

This article presents an integrative skills assessment approach for teaching students of social work to perform assessments. The approach is based on technical eclecticism and combines three practice models: (1) psychosocial, (2) cognitive-behavioral, and (3) systems. Specific teaching strategies as well as shortcomings of this approach are…

Analysis of 15 young children with autism and their mothers as they proceeded through a program of skill training and family support found that behavior problems were significantly reduced and teaching skills were significantly improved over the course of training. The difficulty of the task was related to behavior problems and teaching skills.…

Describes efforts to move beyond formal education's preoccupation with data accumulation toward the promotion of thinking over memorization. Identifies 10 principles central to history instruction that encourages critical thinking and eight specific skills that history instruction can help develop. Argues that students can both acquire facts and…

Discusses Pennsylvania's Tests of Essential Learning Skills (TELS) program. Suggests avoiding "teaching the test" by implementing a program to improve reading and math skills across the curriculum. Offers strategies for promoting reading skills in social studies class. Describes structured overview, anticipation guides, level guides,…

In a college world affairs course, the teacher acted as foreign policy/national security advisor to the president and assigned students as staff members for different geographic regions. Students briefed him daily, first on current events, then on specific issues. Students enjoyed the challenging assignments, intensive questioning, and policy…

Thirty-one primary caregivers at group homes for clients with developmental disabilities completed a one-week workshop in behavioral theory and treatment techniques. Trainees showed increased treatment skills, but preworkshop and postworkshop observations indicated no evidence that the workshop had any effect on group home client functioning.…

This article describes the development and pilot testing of a curriculum to teach rape prevention and self-defense skills to visually impaired women. As a result of the course, five visually impaired women improved their physical self-defense skills, self-confidence, and problem-solving ability in hypothetically dangerous situations. (Author/DB)

The Albany Law School (New York) first-year course, "Introduction to Lawyering," integrates two traditionally distinct programs: clinical legal studies and legal reasoning, writing, and research. Its objective is to offer a broad context in which to understand the lawyering process and to introduce essential professional skills and…

The movement toward quantitative, "scientific" planning in organizations ignores an element essential to progress: communication within and among disciplines to explore available options. For this reason and because of the growth of technology, it will be important for higher education to expand into the field of communications. (MSE)

The process of developing and evaluating an interactive videodisc system to teach communication skills for community and institutional pharmacy practice settings is described. An interdisciplinary team was used to integrate therapeutics, communication theory, media design, video production, and computer programing in the software development…