This presentation introduces the methods of negotiation and mediation in transdisciplinary decision-making, and applies the methods specifically to the educational needs and placements of students with disabilities. Four stages of mediation are described: problem identification, generation of problem-solving options, evaluation of options, and…

This paper presents results of an investigation designed to examine the effectiveness of a structured problem-solving process entitled peer collaboration to assist general classroom teachers in developing and implementing alternative interventions focused on the needs of students with mild learning and behavior problems. Forty-eight teachers from…

Investigative reporting won new attention in the wake of the Watergate exposures of the 1970s, but few focused on the role of teamwork. Given the historiographical tendency to declare the Muckraking Era of the early 1900s the dawn of investigative reporting, this limitation of the popular reaction to Watergate was not surprising. In the twentieth…

The effects of New Hampshire's guardianship law on other disciplines in dealings with disabled persons are examined. Transdisciplinary efforts to promote more normalizing methods of protection are noted, and the bias underlying many service systems (that disabled persons do not have a right to make wrong choices) is exposed. A multi-layered…

Twenty-three matched pairs of high-school students with mental retardation who obtained gainful employment were compared. One member of each pair remained successfully placed for at least 6 months, and the other did not. By selecting pairs from model programs under the transition-from-secondary-education initiative of the U.S. Office of Special…

The presentation describes the development of an interdisciplinary team approach to working with mildly retarded students (5-9 years old). The approach featured group discussions and activities to enhance students' listening, communication, and social skills, and to improve individual and group behavior. Individual and group goals were designed by…

In this paper a rationale is presented for the formation of teams of college faculty (subject experts), computer programmers, and instructional designers to develop instructional software for use with classroom and laboratory microcomputers. The advent of an "electronic publishing" industry, one of the major products of which is…

The narration for a slide tape presentation describes vocational, technical, and adult education services offered by Broward County (Florida) for handicapped youth and adults. Program requirements are briefly described, as are exploratory prevocational services offered to middle school students, vocational work evaluation performed in grade 9, and…

The Comprehensive Developmental Teams (CDT) program, a multidisciplinary approach to improving Head Start services to handicapped children is described. Reviewed are the team's tasks--to identify, screen, and assess the children's strengths and weaknesses in order to develop comprehensive programs of intervention, including provision of individual…

An alternative educational program, ADVANCE (Alternative Design for Vocational and Necessary Cognitive Education), was developed for emotionally disturbed secondary school students in New Jersey. To develop and modify social behaviors needed to complete academic and vocational training to facilitate a return to the mainstream of secondary…

A rural land use project originated in the early 1970s when a landowner approached the University of Montana's Department of Geography asking for assistance in planning the use of more than 10,000 acres. The planning process evolved into four phases; the first three phases (biophysical assessment, capability analysis, and master planning) have…

The Montgomery County Maryland, public school system utilizes a bilingual assessment team as a means toward achieving nonbiased, cross cultural assessment to identify handicaps in limited English proficient students. Special education placement begins with referral from a teacher, parent, counselor, or the student himself; moves to consultation…

The paper reviews the experiences of special education administrators in Quincy (MA) Public Schools regarding compliance with P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. Noted are the decentralized model of Pupil Personnel Service Teams, the administrator's role in guiding teachers to set priorities in academic and vocational…

This paper offers a plan for increasing communication effectiveness in organizational setting through a team building approach. The first section of the paper provides a scenario that places team building in an organizational development context and presents a detailed description of a team building process used to increase communication…

The administrative team is made up of all personnel in the school environment who are directly involved in the instructional process. The principal serves as the team leader responsible for the supervision of instruction in the school and the development of a staff organization which best implements the educational program. Recognizing that modern…