During early childhood, practitioners and family members are often tasked with determining optimal approaches to support social skill development in young children with developmental disabilities in inclusive and self-contained settings. Eight different evidence based approaches are highlighted (social narratives, scripting, pivotal response…

Educators today are challenged with the task of designing curricula and standards for students of varying abilities. While technology and innovation steadily improve classroom learning, teachers and administrators continue to struggle in developing the best methodologies and practices for students with disabilities. "Models for Effective…

This high school's successful suspension alternative assigns disruptive students to an alternative classroom for several days, where they are isolated from the remainder of the student body all day, and excluded from participation in or attending all regular programs and cocurricular activities. (DCS)

Discusses the two Calgary Bearspaw Centres (separate classrooms staffed by a teacher-counselor and an attendance counselor) that have successfully provided an alternative to formal student suspension for inappropriate behavior since 1979. Describes referral, interview, and classroom procedures; types of students served; daily schedule; class…

The response cost (RC) procedure has been applied in regular classrooms and playgrounds, self-contained and resource rooms, and residential settings with normal children and elementary-age, behavior-disordered children. RC involves the removal of previously awarded or earned reinforcers for the purpose of reducing deviant, maladaptive, or…

This guide describes the development and implementation of a functional/vocational program for self contained severely and mildly handicapped students in grades K-12. The model emphasized instruction in skills needed by students to live as adults in the least restrictive way. Elementary children receive instruction in self contained classrooms and…

The author describes the advantages of stratified heterogeneous grouping, a compromise between ability grouping and random grouping which assures students and teachers opportunities to learn and teach that are not inherent in other methods of grouping. (Author/KC)

The article examines three educational options for handicapped adolescents (self-contained classes or units, resource programs, and vocational education) in terms of the three main rationales underlying such options: fit the system, change the system, and ignore the system. (DLS)

Two articles present suggestions for enhancing classroom management in creative ways. The first article describes how to use flexible seating arrangements to encourage cooperation, friendship, and community. The second article discusses how to encourage and work with classroom volunteers from the community. (SM)

This study examined classroom life of children with behavioral/emotional disorders in self-contained classrooms. Site visits were made to 26 programs, and 200 parents responded to questionnaires. Despite visible mainstreaming efforts, results indicated gaps in quality of classroom life, amount of attention on students' mental health needs, and…

Roller skates and fairy tales, Big Macs and snowflakes all blend with the curriculum to bring back the good old, brand-new "funner" class setting. (Editor)

Stories are a good way to teach students numerous skills from reading comprehension to vocabulary--and this holds true even for special needs students. This book aims to guide teachers and librarians in helping grades 3-5 special education students meet the content standards produced by the National Council of Teachers of English and the…

The one room school is a challenging educational setting for both teacher and student. Isolation of the school, limited availability of educational resources, and the demanding role of the school as the only formal educational institution within the community are conditions which make classroom efficiency an important consideration for the…

The readings in this ready-reference report on specific program evaluations, offer critical guidance in the development and utilization of instruments for assessing gifted and talented programs, and are designed to stimulate the discussion of issues surrounding the evaluation of gifted programs. Key features include: (1) Carolyn M. Callahan's…

This study was conducted to determine whether changes from traditional organizational patterns in elementary schools make a difference in reading achievement. The study was conducted through comparisons of student populations in three suburban schools. Two schools were experimental (one nongraded, one open space), and the third was a traditional…