Developed by the New York State Education Department at the University of the State of New York, the document presents preliminary study findings which recommend the removal of the current definition of "a handicapped child" and categorical labels such as "neurologically impaired". Modifications are suggested which strengthen…

The interview presents opinions of Nicholas Hobbs on the classification of exceptional children, including topics such as ecologically oriented classification systems, the role of parents, and need for revision of teacher preparation programs. (IM)

William Rhodes reviews 1975 predictions about the future development of the mental health system, along with his current (1982) opinions about the predictions. (SEW)

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…

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.…

Offers a poststructuralist analysis of the UK higher education sector's academic division of labor, exploring some new contradictions from a contract researcher's standpoint. Raises political, social, and methodological questions about these divisions by exploring their class and gender dimensions. Too many academics remain silent about adverse…

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…

The use of a traditional syndrome-classification system for aphasics is examined critically from the different perspectives of medicine and psychometrics. Medicine views syndromes as dichotomous (present or not present) and necessarily indicative of an underlying pathognomic state or process, and psychometrics sees performances as varying along a…

This course, one of 16 sequential courses comprising phase one of a part-time Bachelor of Arts degree program in Australian Studies, discusses the conditions, mechanisms, and functions that characterize classificatory systems, taking as an example the 19th century classification of some types of behavior as madness. It is designed for independent…

The author uses a behavioral model to discuss probable and demonstrable conditions through which retardation might develop. Noted are criteria for etiological classification and explained are four reasons why terms such as cultural deprivation should not be used to label mentally retarded individuals. The need to consider developmental retardation…

Poor academic performance can result from single, multiple, interacting, and unknown causes, rather than being an entity with a specific cause and course. It is better to adopt a descriptive approach and define retardation as relative failure on a cluster of socially determined behaviors, varying over cultures and over time. (Author)

This paper examines statistics that appear to show a 20 percent decline in the number of students identified as mildly mentally retarded. Evidence is provided which suggests that the primary reason for these declining figures is that these children are being classified as learning disabled. Relatively loose criteria for the learning disabilities…