This study involving five individuals (ages 5 to 21) with mental retardation and behavior problems, found that momentary changes in establishing operations can influence responding during the course of a functional analysis, and that comparisons of response levels associated with the presence or absence of putative reinforces can provide…

A study contrasted two instructional approaches for teaching decimals to 44 junior high school remedial students and students with learning disabilities. Findings indicate significant effects on conceptual tasks for students who were taught decimals with an emphasis on conceptual understanding; however, low-achieving students required considerable…

Provides a rationale for a content-based vs. skills-based approach to second- and foreign-language instruction. A variety of in-class and community-related activities are presented that can be integrated in a content-based classroom. Focusing on "gender-role stereotyping," the activities are designed to develop students' language skills…

Notes that allegations of child abuse in day care centers often create a storm of negative publicity and false accusations; presents a guide for estimating damage potential in these situations. Highlights the guide's investigative, prosecutorial and adjudicative categories, and discusses biases, errors, and misconduct in abuse charges. Details the…

Governmental legislation in Great Britain has substantially changed headteachers' roles and underlined their responsibility for school improvement. This paper presents a preliminary evaluation of the HEADLAMP (Headteachers' Leadership and Management Programme) scheme for beginning principals. Interviews with some program participants revealed…

Describes the Vermont Interdisciplinary Leadership Education for Health Professionals Program, which has developed a family-centered, interdisciplinary, community-based assessment and consultation process to serve children with disabilities and their families. Aspects of the community-based assessment and consultation process are explored and…

Three teaching strategies for problem solving proved to be successful with undergraduates with deafness enrolled in mathematics courses. Strategies included giving an explanation to a peer observer in sign language, visualizing the problem-solving process prior to starting to solve a problem, and observing the teacher modeling the analytical…

A study involving 27 elementary children with hearing impairments indicated positive, moderate correlation between the Test of Nonverbal Intelligence, 2nd edition, (TONI-2) IQ, and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 3rd edition, Performance IQ that supported concurrent validity. The TONI-2 had predictive value for Stanford Achievement…

Describes WebMAC Junior, a tool developed to provide elementary students in grades one through four with hands-on experience in evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of Web sites. Discusses Web evaluation criteria and includes ideas for incorporating Web evaluation into the curriculum that promote information literacy. (LRW)

Describes seven topics that should be included in a course for teachers on performance assessment and provides some ideas for teaching them. The topics range from assessment selection to recognizing inappropriate, unethical, or illegal assessment methods and uses. (SLD)

Focuses on the evaluative use of teaching portfolios for personnel decisions in higher education and compares claims for their merits against fundamental research on evaluating faculty teaching. Draws on the literature on teaching portfolio development and suggests meta-analysis to examine the impact of using portfolios for personnel decisions.…

Describes the difficulties low achieving students, many of whom are from ethnic minorities, have in dealing with the language of Business Studies in the British curriculum and suggests some strategies to raise language awareness within the discipline and increase the business vocabularies of students. (SLD)

Identifies sources of variability in reading and spelling performance of Spanish-speaking children learning English as a second language and suggests specific intervention procedures to facilitate development of reading and spelling skills in these children. An integrated approach that addresses reading and spelling as reciprocal processes is…

Presents a set of 22 sequentially structured statements on the nature and origin of human abilities, gifts, and talents. The statements are grouped into three sections: the nature of human abilities, individual differences and their origins, and the specific case of gifts and talents. (Author/CR)

Responds to the previous article, which proposed a set of 22 sequentially structured statements on the nature and origin of human abilities, gifts, and talents. Takes issue with the distinction made between natural abilities and systematically developed abilities, and thus the distinction between giftedness and talent. (Author/CR)