This study examined the impact of play activities, teachers' predictions of children's sociability, and intervention fidelity variables on levels of interaction between three preschoolers with autism and their nondisabled peers. Results indicated that social reciprocity and peer effort correlated highly with children's levels of social…

The final report describes the 3-year project, "Functional Mainstreaming for Success," designed to develop a model for instructional mainstreaming of 162 handicapped children (3-6 years old) in community settings. The major feature of the project was development of a full reverse mainstreamed preschool program, which included children…

Barclay Classroom Climate Inventory was administered to 45 randomly selected classes from a population of 115 classes representing Self-Contained Selected Academic Placement and Learning Center models. It appears that stronger social support systems exist and fewer problems emerge for children who are placed with others of similar cognitive…

There is a need for a systematic evaluation of the socio-adaptive aspect, (peer group and teacher attitudes) within integrated educational programming for educable mentally retarded children. (Author/JYC)

Reports a study which assessed the attitudes of 886 fourth graders, 34 of whom were in small-group remedial classes. Found that (1) remedial readers are not so socially well-accepted as their classroom peers, and (2) remedial readers rated themselves low on social acceptance in relation to their classroom peers. References. (VJ)

Examined preschoolers' peer acceptance, aggression, and peer competence. Found that children with at least one mutual friend were better liked by peers and were rated by teachers as being more competent than children with no mutual friend. Children with at least one mutual friend were better liked by peers a year later than children with no mutual…

Examined whether features of preschool children's mutual friendships were associated with prosocial and aggressive behavior. Teacher reports of friendship features showed moderate interrater reliability and were associated with teacher reports of aggression and prosocial behavior, and with peer reports of acceptance and rejection. Friendship…

Participant observation and interviews were employed in a first grade class in which a moderately mentally retarded boy participated on a part-time basis. Findings indicated significant discrepancies between the students' definitions of what it means to be part of first grade and the teacher's efforts to include Peter and present him as a member…

A study focused on listeners' perceptions of three children (ages 3-5), one with specific language impairment (SLI). The listeners consisted of 30 teachers, speech-language pathologists, undergraduates, and sixth-graders. All four listener groups consistently perceived the child with SLI more negatively. The need to be aware of social bias is…

Examines 8-12 year olds' peer assessment of prosocial behavior and their relationship to self-assessment, teacher assessments, and peer acceptance. Reports that popular children were rated as significantly more prosocial, while rejected children were rated as significantly less prosocial than all other groups. Includes references. (CMK)

Early research on imaginary companions suggests that children who create them do so to compensate for poor social relationships. Consequently, the peer acceptance of children with imaginary companions was compared to that of their peers. Sociometrics were conducted on 88 preschool-aged children; 11 had invisible companions, 16 had personified…

This study compared the peer functioning of a community sample of preschool boys with pervasive hyperactivity (N=33) and comparison boys (N=34), and examined the extent to which any differences in peer functioning between these groups could be explained by comorbid child conduct problems and parenting factors. The quality of boys' peer relations…

The observational study investigated the process of mainstreaming 32 learning handicapped children (grades 4-5) into regular education programs. Ss were enrolled in special day classes and mainstreamed for approximately one hour per day. Systematic observations focused on the handicapped student, nonhandicapped students, and the regular class…

This research is concerned with the stereotypes of gifted children held by average ability students and by teachers. The results of this study show that gifted boys are viewed positively by their age-mates, whereas gifted girls are quite disliked. Attitudes were elicited from educators familiar with gifted students, and from educators with no…

In a study on the effects of labeling, 78 fourth-grade Ss from a rural school containing an integrated special-education program viewed one of two videotapes that depicted a child demonstrating various kinds of academic and social behavior. (Author/PHR)