Discusses problems of classifying racial and ethnic groups when collecting statistical data. Argues that surveys must acknowledge the great diversity of the American population and give respondents the freedom to choose the group or groups to which they belong. (FMW)

Examined are the political, historic, and economic influences in England and Wales affecting the categorization and labeling of pupils with special educational needs. The paper concludes that adoption of a non-categorical classification system has been unsuccessful in abolishing labeling, but has obfuscated statistical information reported by the…

This paper describes the social, political, and professional climate that prevailed in special education in the 1950-70 period, especially in Minnesota. Consideration of changes from that period to 1993 suggests the need for a delivery management plan that fosters an equal sharing of responsibility between regular and special education and…

Past, present, and future concerns regarding the definition of learning disabilities (LD) are documented. Research on efforts to clarify the LD label is discussed, including the questionable utility of the discrepancy model. An approach is presented for operationalizing the definition of LD of the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities.…

This commentary discusses whether the American Association on Mental Retardation should change its name. It argues that the term "mental retardation" has become a potent, utterly dismissive invective in the mouths of adults and school children and should be replaced with the term "intellectual disability". (Contains 1…

This commentary discusses whether the American Association on Mental Retardation should change its name. It suggests that it is time for a name change, however, the term "mental retardation" should be kept for diagnostic and entitlement purposes until such time as a better term is found and accepted. (Contains references.) (CR)

This commentary discusses whether the American Association on Mental Retardation should change its name. It offers some ideas on how society might think about elemental change in terminology so a healthy outcome can be achieved without simply rearranging prejudices. The term "cognitive- adaptive disability" is proposed. (Contains three…

A pathological image of the African American has infiltrated U.S. education. With desegregation and the arrival of African American children in white America's schools has come the application of psychological and educational labels that create and constrain the educational experiences of the African American child. These labels have not evolved…

Most high school students fall into the "unspecial" category--they are not at either extreme of achievement, and they receive a small share of the fiscal and human resources of their schools. Anxieties about these average students' performance in high school and their tendency to clog college developmental English and math classes…

Myths often associated with behavioral disorders are examined, and for each myth, strategies that can be implemented by teachers and systems to dispell the myths are identified. It is suggested that the myth that parents caused the child to be behaviorally disordered (BD) can interfere with the child's programing and growth and effective…

This paper considers what can be done to shape an educational system that meets the needs of all students; it then recommends such a system to replace the existing situation in which certain students are labeled as "handicapped" and placed in separate programs. In evaluating the current situation, the paper examines existing educational…

We should seek an updated perspective on intelligence testing because it is useful to reevaluate any practice that has long become institutionalized, especially one that is subject to severe criticism. Cultural bias is the most prominent criticism. Testing proponents contend that intelligence tests reflect skills and knowledge emphasized in school…

Addresses the problems of special education in the larger context of curriculum theory. Points out the inadequacy of considering such issues as mainstreaming, identification of exceptional students, and teacher training in isolation from more fundamental questions of learning goals or outcomes. (TE)

Although most parents want school officials to enforce rules for a drug-free school environment, they often feel differently when their own children are the objects of student searches. This paper argues that as long as searches are directed at "others,"--those who are known or assumed to be guilty of school rule violations or criminal…

It is contradictory to expect all students to achieve certain marks and to master given course content and simultaneously to call some students low achievers to accommodate test distribution curves. Mastery learning, emphasizing students' learning rates and presentation of material, can help resolve this contradiction. (PP)