Social skills and levels of inappropriate assertiveness/impulsiveness were assessed using the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters, with 17 autistic children (ages 2-21) and 17 matched nonautistic children. Significant differences in both appropriate and inappropriate social behaviors were found. Results suggest the importance of…

This paper analyzes the methodology and effectiveness of the training approaches implemented in 28 empirical studies on basic motor skills instruction for children with neuromotor delays. For all types of training approaches (neuromotor interventions, sensory integration techniques, behavioral programing, and naturalistic programing), assessment…

This study evaluated the use of facilitated communication (FC) paired with a direct instructional strategy to improve the basic academic skills of 12 youths and young adults with autism. Results did not support use of FC as an educational tool, with subjects averaging below-chance performance in FC and both control conditions. (DB)

This document comprises nine commissioned papers and four literature review chapters that are part of the first report of the Study of Academic Instruction for Disadvantaged Students, a 3-year investigation of curriculum and instruction in elementary schools serving high concentrations of poor children. (A summary of this report is presented in…

Many basic skills are chains of cognitive operations. For teaching such skills, two questions have not been adequately investigated: (1) how the operations comprising the skill should be sequenced, and (2) the relationships among the operations that need to be taught. This investigation entailed four studies on different types and lengths of basic…

Underlying structure of the Basic Achievement Skills Individual Screener (BASIS) and the Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement (K-TEA) were investigated using canonical correlation. Both are individually administered placement and screening instruments currently in use in many school systems that measure achievement in mathematics, reading, and…

The study investigated which addition facts children and preservice teachers view as being difficult, whether it is possible to determine facts which are difficult for all children, and whether children and adults agree on which facts are difficult. Results indicated that children and adults disagree about the difficulty of facts. (PK)

This report offers numerous cross-sectoral explorations in the context of health and human resources analyses in Africa. Intended as a resource document for funding agencies, program managers, and policy makers in Africa, the study aims to spark interest in using basic education to foster behavior conducive to broad-based, sustainable economic…

Analyzes a broad range of data examining the relationship among basic skill development, behavior problems, and later negative social development. Results strongly corroborate assumptions that low levels of basic skills at an early age are not per se a precursor of later maladjustment. Includes statistical data and tables. (MJP)

A multiple-probe design across behaviors assessed the effectiveness of a simultaneous prompting procedure in teaching expressive identification of photos of community signs to two elementary students with moderate intellectual disabilities in a small group instructional arrangement. The procedure was effective in teaching both students the…

Discusses the history of Russian literacy from Kievan Rus, through the Muscovite period, the Imperial period, and the postrevolutionary Soviet Union. Presents tables of literacy levels for various periods. Discusses evidence, theories, and problems with historians' assumptions. Concludes that, until recently, little impetus existed for the bulk of…

A study was conducted at Miami-Dade Community College (MDCC) to examine the separate and combined effects of entering basic skills levels and curriculum-related variables (i.e., grades in required English and math courses, the length of time between the course and the test, and the number of credits in developmental courses) in predicting student…

This paper describes the development of the Basic Educational Skills Test (BEST) in the Austin Independent School District. In 1982 future options for the AISD minimum competency program, which requires all students to meet minimum proficiency levels in reading and mathematics before graduation, were evaluated against legal and local criteria. It…

When student achievement lags expectations, explanations are usually sought. One possibility is that the curriculum, as taught, is out of line with what is needed, and many feel that careful descriptions of the implemented curriculum are in short supply. Elementary school mathematics is used as a context for considering what can be learned from…

This report summarizes the proceedings of a conference at which delegations from 40 Commonwealth countries and 7 dependent territories gathered. The principal theme of the conference was "Improving the Quality of Basic Education." The first part of the report presents the findings of ministerial committees on four theme topics: (1) better schools…