This book contains a compilation of papers presented at the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT) 2024, organized by the World Institute for Advanced Research and Science (WIARS), held in International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT) 2024, held in Porto, Portugal, from 20 to 22 of April…

This article presents an exploration of diverse adults' motivations for action to promote social and environmental change at a California public university. Semi-structured interviews with current or graduated university students reveal how they navigate their own identities and intersectionalities in developing an activist orientation and their…

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for safe school facilities that protect the health of children and staff. With the first day of school just weeks away, most K-12 schools are likely to rely on distance learning for the start of the academic year. When schools do reopen, adhering to current guidelines on physical distancing, cleaning,…

In December 2017, the California Department of Education released the new California School Dashboard, replacing the field test version from March 2017. The web-based dashboard includes new, up-to-date data and comes with higher stakes than the earlier version. Using multiple color-coded measures, with Red representing the lowest rating and Blue…

According to the U.S. Department of Education, shortages of special education and/or related services personnel continue to be a significant challenge for all states. In response to this challenge, state education agencies (SEAs) are implementing various strategies to improve recruitment and retention efforts. The purpose of this document is to…

What advice do paraeducators offer regarding the work they do in inclusive classrooms? What barriers and benefits do paraeducators face? In this study, over 200 paraeducators from 38 different states in the USA volunteered to respond to a national survey. Their responses were corroborated in follow-up interviews with 27 different paraeducators at…

The authors share the results of a national study of the changing roles of paraeducators who work in inclusive classrooms. The purpose of the study was to add to the research with respect to paraeducators' voices, given that so few studies have been published between 1996-2006 of paraeducators in inclusive classrooms. In addition, the results of…

The purpose of this publication is to share models and case examples of the process of inclusive arts curriculum design and evaluation. The first section explains the conceptual and curriculum frameworks that were used in the analysis and generation of the featured case studies (i.e. Understanding by Design, Differentiated Instruction, and…

Access and equity for all students in California colleges and universities continues to be a high priority of the California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC). Over the past year, CPEC staff conducted research, collected data, convened an advisory committee and hosted a panel of service providers and students. They identified areas where…

An analysis of the California Work and Health Survey indicates that people with disabilities have lower employment rates and less secure kinds of employment than those without disabilities. Once on the job, the two groups do not differ fundamentally in their working conditions. (Contains 19 notes and references.) (Author/JOW)

This manual on curriculum adaptation for inclusive classrooms was developed as part of the PEERS (Providing Education for Everyone in Regular Schools) Project, a 5-year collaborative systems change project in California to facilitate the integration of students with severe disabilities previously at special centers into services at regular school…

Many students with disabilities entering the 9th grade express concern about getting lost in the larger high school environment, being picked on by older students, and having more challenging academic classes. The transition from middle-to-high school process for students with disabilities at Westminster High School in suburban Los Angeles is a…

Interviews with 23 teachers in an inclusive suburban high school in southern California focused on how inclusive education affected teachers personally and professionally, the accompanying changes in classroom climate and curriculum, and teachers' recommendations. Teachers had positive experiences and identified benefits that disabled students…

As a field, special education presents an excellent case study of the paradox of differentiation and integration, wherein we seek solutions through increased specialization but, in so doing, we redefine a problem in terms of discrete parts at the expense of the whole. As Thomas Skrtic pointed out more than a decade ago, a large and ever-widening…

Schoolwide positive behavior support (SWPBS) exemplifies a longitudinal research program originating in the fields of special education and school psychology that has produced an extensive national database encompassing an evidence-based set of practices applicable to general education as well as special education students including those with…