This article provides a case study (an eighth-grader with autism) within a case study (an urban middle school) in terms of the implementation of positive behavioral support (PBS). Information is provided on the characteristics of three key components of schoolwide PBS, universal support, group support, and individual support. (Contains…

Children with complex disabilities such as autism spectrum disorders and Landau Kleffner syndrome often lack means to participate in everyday family routines. Serious problem behaviors may result from their challenges in responding to and initiating communicative interactions. These behaviors can change routine family activities such that the…

This study examined the perceptions of African American faculty on their socialization to the academic professional culture, and is based on the premise that the process of such socialization is circumscribed by the organizational culture. Taking a qualitative research approach, the study used a three-part interview process. The focus of the first…

Three studies that applied quantitative procedures to measure motor and sensory/motor acquisition among handicapped and nonhandicapped infants and children are presented. In addition, a study concerning the replication of the quantitative procedures for assessing rolling behavior is described in a fourth article. The first study, by C. Janssen,…

Described are the objectives, activities, and outcomes of a program to provide individualized educational programing to 30 multiply handicapped children from preschool through grade 3 at the Western Pennsylvania School for Blind Children in 1970-71. Noted are individualized activities which emphasized task analysis and positive reinforcement in…

The special language of particular occupations, the role playing of those who practice them, and the terms in which the communications media and the general public refer to them evoke problematic cognitions about occupational functions and practitioner traits that determine an occupation's high or low social standing. Perceptions of occupations…

Defining the museum as a learning environment, this book analyzes devices that can be used to make the experience more meaningful for visitors in existing and new exhibits. Although the typical museum audience is heterogeneous and voluntary with no particular instructional objectives on which to base museum exploration, instructional technology…

Verbal prompts, modeling, physical guidance, positive reinforcement, fading, and chaining procedures were used to teach two nonverbal individuals (one severely and one moderately mentally retarded) an interactive signing dialogue in a naturalistic setting. Although clients learned to use signed communication, extensive training was required and…

This study of drill-and-practice computer-assisted instruction (CAI) compares CAI with reinforcement, CAI with formal classroom instruction, and CAI alone to determine which is most effective for gains in achievement. Results are analyzed for remedial students in grades four to eight who studied reading and math, and future research needs are…

This report describes the methodology and initial results of an evaluation of the universal (school-wide) Positive Behavioral Intervention and Support (PBIS) initiative in Illinois, including (1) strategies for establishing research-based practices and data-based evaluation systems in implementation schools; (2) methodology and initial findings of…

This technical paper is one of three produced by a large-scale effort aimed at implementing a new approach to measuring productivity, and using that approach to assess the impact of feedback, goal setting, and incentives on productivity. The productivity measurement system was developed for five units in the maintenance and supply areas at an Air…

Parent Cooperative Preschool, designed to provide experiences tailored to the children enrolled, teaches specific skills the children will need when they begin informal schooling, and develops parent-child relationships which will sustain motivation once the child enters public school. The preschool operates on the premise that these goals can be…

Looks at effective teaching research in order to identify a "correct" teaching sequence. Analyzes rehearsals to determine how teachers with varied levels of training and experience conformed to the optimal sequence. Finds that teachers spent too little time in correct sequences and failed to use enough positive reinforcement. (Author/LS)

Investigates the effects of familiarity with a teacher and rehearsal context on students' interpretations of teacher verbal praise. Finds that students could distinguish between deserved and instrumental praise, could make the distinction better with familiar teachers, and were not unanimous in their interpretations of the same signal. (DSK)

Free time is the natural medium through which youngsters express themselves and develop motor, cognitive, and social skills. Nevertheless, free play on the playground is rarely used in the school as a means of enhancing students' motivation to learn. This study uses play as an application of Premack's principle (D. Premack, 1965) to the classroom.…