This article explores the effects of labeling children as gifted, including possible sex differences in labeling effects, effects on self-concept and self-esteem, and effects on family and peer relationships. The need for empirical data regarding the process of labeling; the labeling event; and the changed or modified expectations of parents,…

This paper discusses changing aspects of gifted education in the past 40 years in relation to definitions, identification, and service provision. The field is seen to have broadened to a more holistic and dynamic approach in which the complexity of human potential is accepted and the equal importance of family, community, and school is recognized.…

This article offers pediatricians a practical approach to identifying children (birth to three years) with developmental delays. The article discusses evidence of the effectiveness of early intervention, legislation mandating early intervention services, child-find activities, procedures for referral to the early intervention system, services…

Describes the development of the North Carolina State University Volleyball Skills Test Battery which offers accurate measurement of three volleyball skills (serve, forearm pass, and set). When physical educators tested 313 students, the battery objectively measured their abilities, providing a gamelike means of teaching, testing, grouping, and…

Results of a survey of 47 state departments of public instruction regarding eligibility criteria for the identification of children with mental retardation are compared to results of 1981-82 and 1985-86 surveys. Although states continue to vary widely in definitions and procedures, more states now specify assessments of intelligence, adaptive…

This study, involving 24 children or adolescents with pervasive developmental disorders, assessed 3 autism scales: Autism Behavior Checklist, Real Life Rating Scale, and Childhood Autism Rating Scale. The study analyzed interrater reliability, correlations between pairs of the three scales, diagnostic classification cutoff scores, and…

The Autism Behavior Checklist was completed for 67 autistic and 56 mentally retarded and learning-disabled children (ages 6-15). The checklist was effective in classifying children when using either the full scale or only the more highly weighted items. Results did not support a single unidimensional scale or subdividing the checklist into five…

Examines racial identity attitudes that characterize African-American people at different stages of life and the relationship of these attitudes to several demographic variables, using the model of psychological nigrescence of W. E. Cross with 37 male and 77 female adults. Findings suggest that the model may require expansion. (SLD)

To provide a systematic means of selecting hearing-impaired children for cochlear implants, the Children's Implant Profile has been developed for use by teams of educational staff. The profile assesses 11 factors, such as speech and language abilities, family support, and cognitive learning style. A case study illustrates the process. (PB)

Written feedback was collected from 170 parents and professionals concerning psychoeducational reports about 80 children referred to pediatric hospitals for suspected learning difficulties. Reports were generally rated favorably for understandability, explanatory value, and utility. Parents gave lower ratings for understandability and reported…

Two parent report inventories geared at assessing language skills in toddlers are examined, in terms of reliability, validity, and application. The MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory: Toddlers and the Language Development Survey are compared and their combined use in handicap identification is discussed. (PB)

Discusses the tendency of whites to deflect attention from racism, which is the main problem underlying the need for multicultural education, and suggests a role for whites in examining their own generally unrecognized white racial bonding. To mitigate effects of white racial bonding, advocates of multicultural education must recognize them. (SLD)

The progress of a Chicano prison inmate in a tutorial literacy course demonstrates ways in which writing can negotiate and reorganize race, class, gender, and power identities for both tutor and student, and legitimize the voice, native language, and discourse stance of the student. (SLD)

Examines problems inherent in the overuse of testing as a way to identify giftedness, especially with respect to assessing the culturally diverse. Use of portfolios is suggested as an alternative procedure that can provide a more equitable and culturally fair assessment of the culturally and linguistically diverse child. (SLD)

Reviews and critiques the ethnic preference research that views minorities' own-group preference behavior as indicative of self-esteem and identity achievement. The assumption that own-group preference is ideal, normative, or healthy is called into question; and an alternative conceptualization is presented that considers age and maturity of the…