This practicum developed and implemented an organization development plan to improve agency and team effectiveness and staff satisfaction at a private agency that provides educational and treatment services to children with emotional, mental, or behavioral disorders. An extensive literature review on organizational development was conducted and…

Phase I of this study sought to identify the specific social skills that 21 teachers of students with serious emotional disturbances (SED) and nine regular education teachers deemed as essential for successful classroom functioning. Subjects were asked to list such behaviors in four categories: environmental behaviors, interpersonal behaviors,…

This paper reports activities and accomplishments of a practicum which implemented school-wide staff training in a systematic crisis intervention approach, Life Space Crisis Intervention (LSCI), with junior high school students who have emotional disturbances. The 8-month implementation involved two inner-city, special education public school…

Consumer satisfaction and social validity were measured during a double-blind, placebo-controlled evaluation of risperidone in treating aberrant behaviors of persons with developmental disabilities. A survey showed all 17 caregivers felt participation was positive. Community members (n=52) also indicated that when on medication, the 5 participants…

Guidelines are offered for making mainstreaming placement decisions for students with emotional or behavioral disorders. Characteristics of effective teachers of mainstreamed students are listed, and a classroom observation form and student/teacher match form are presented for use by the special education teacher in determining optimal mainstream…

Pursuant to a bill passed by the Iowa legislature requiring training for mandatory reporters of child abuse, this manual addresses the fundamental issues of identifying and reporting child abuse. Chapter 1 is an overview of the history of child abuse and how the current system of reporting has evolved. Chapter 2 is a basic primer on the physical…

This handbook presents state guidelines for alternative education in Mississippi, which is designed to serve as a learning alternative placement for students who have had difficulty with the regular classroom environment or who have experienced disciplinary problems in the classroom or school. The handbook contains the following sections: (1)…

This monograph discusses development and implementation of positive behavioral intervention plans with students who have emotional and/or behavioral disorders. It focuses on four steps of a 10-step methodology using functional behavioral assessment and intervention. Emphasis is on the use of positive behavioral intervention plans and supports as…

This kit presents the Systematic Screening for Behavior Disorders (SSBD) as a tool to identify behavior disorders in elementary-aged students. The SSBD procedure is a three-stage, multiple-gating mass screening system. In the first stage the teacher systematically ranks all students according to either externalizing or internalizing behavioral…

The project investigated differences in perceptions and attributions for successful and unsuccessful IEP (individualized education program) conferences between 85 mothers of mentally retarded and emotionally or behaviorally disabled children (5-15 years old) and 81 special education teachers. Trained parents (those who received information about…

This study examined whether acts leading to suspension or expulsion of students with disabilities were different from those committed by other students, based on a survey of 441 Kansas secondary school principals. Students with disabilities were found to be more than twice as likely to be suspended/expelled than other students, with 87 percent of…

The document consists of a 125-item evaluation instrument for use in assessing the overall plan and quality of programs in the area of serious emotional disturbance (SED) or behavior disorders. Questions are organized according to the following nine categories (based on identified components of a well-designed SED program): (1) respondent and…

Human rights review is a process by which agencies assure that an intrusive behavioral program is appropriate in a given case. Methods are described for local education agencies to accomplish human rights review of proposed and ongoing intrusive behavioral treatment with students who have severe behavior problems. One approach to human rights…

The author presents a worksheet designed for use in parent-teacher conferences, specifically those dealing with Attention Deficit Disorder. The worksheet was developed in response to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and is designed as a simple measure to provide parents with a way to document their children's needs. (KW)

A random sample of Minnesota school districts participated in a study that examined the participation rates of students with disabilities in school choice options and tuition agreements. Surveys were sent to 100 Directors of Special Education; the response rate was 74%. The Directors of Special Education were asked to document the number of…