Ainsworth's system of classifying attachment patterns will not be easily displaced primarily because of difficulties involved in a dimensional approach. Problems include the number of dimensions involved, need to develop reliable scales, and need to describe how behavior changes across age and in the Strange Situation. Only when an alternative…

Investigated relations between children's attributes and peer play competence among African American preschoolers attending Head Start. Identified six distinctive profiles of personal attributes linked to adaptation in social functioning. Children with highly adaptable temperaments, strong ability to approach new situations, and above average…

Examined the types of play and social interactions in which nine preschoolers with disabilities engaged while at their chosen learning/activity centers in an inclusive program. Found individual differences in the amount of time spent in various centers, the number of different types of play engaged in, and in the amount of time spent in play of…

This article explains the combination of instructional practices called personalized contextual instruction (PCI) and illustrates its implementation by a general education teacher, a special education teacher, and a paraprofessional working together in a multiage primary inclusive classroom. The PCI approach incorporates individual learning…

Provides background information and basic options of Didascalia, a computer-assisted language learning center at the University of Antwerp (Belgium) in the domain of language methodology and technology. (CK)

Discusses the development of the Adaptive Testing Linguistic Achievement Significance (ATLAS) test used to evaluate second language proficiency of Belgian civil servants. Notes that testers encountered various problems caused by the complexity of language, the difference in background of the candidates and the absence of official objective test…

Presents six suggestions for personalizing professional development for middle school teachers: (1) encourage openness to change; (2) facilitate teachers' self-assessment; (3) urge teachers to be learners; (4) encourage a focus on the enjoyable in teaching; (5) advocate that teachers contribute to peers' growth; and (6) promote full lives beyond…

Investigates how four bilingual writers from one culture attend to audience in persuasive writing in Malay and English, and the relationship between audience awareness, culture, and quality of their written products. Findings suggests individual differences between bilingual writer's use of audience strategies when composing were intertwined with…

Examined social support for students as it relates to individual and provincial characteristics in Canada using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth and census data for 7,648 students aged 8 to 11 years. Findings show that perceived personal support does not fluctuate with provincial characteristics, but is less for…

This analysis of current trends in special educational needs in the United Kingdom, especially Scotland, examines five ways in which the notion of disability and responses to it are being unhelpfully removed from the educational arena. It suggests that no one's interests are served if, in fostering inclusion, the implications of students'…

This study investigated the relationship between temperament and cognitive modifiability with 92 academically successful but disadvantaged Black South African adolescents. The Task Orientation and Personal-Social Flexibility temperament dimensions were directly related to learning, academic performance, and cognitive change. (Author/DB)

Ethnographic techniques were applied to a post hoc examination of children's incidental behaviors during a metalinguistic intervention procedure--behaviors ignored in the original experimental design. The reflective and qualitative nature of ethnography was used to account for the 12 phonologically impaired 4-year-olds' varied perceptions of…

Urban Canadian sixth-graders (n=84) were tested on 80 arithmetic word problems developed as part of a larger set to reflect individual differences in problem solving. Problems varied in complexity of language and amount of extraneous information present. Results indicated substantial internal consistency and concurrent validity relative to…

Presents a former family day care provider's reflections on preschool teaching priorities. Priorities include teaching flexibility and creativity, acceptance of one's own and others' vulnerability, valuing of each other's individuality, and development of empathy. (BB)

Identifies and discusses three major themes guiding research on mental health in adolescence. Reviews empirical investigations of adolescent mental health and development within the social context of the family. (Author/BJV)