This action research study describes the perceptions of third through fifth grade classroom teachers and special services teachers who provided services to students needing special modifications in their instruction or interventions in order to succeed in regular classrooms. Participants indicated their level of agreement with 14 questions on a…

This article discusses prereferral consultation and intervention assistance in educating children with and without disabilities. The article focuses on the history, rationale, and philosophical perspectives of prereferral intervention and legal and public policy considerations. The article reviews studies evaluating Teacher Assistance Teams,…

This article explains how educators can use the ecological congruence assessment process for identifying functional goals for young children with disabilities. Process steps include: teacher collects information about functioning in usual classroom activities, routines, and transitions; summarizes the collected information; and shares the…

Describes four teaming roles for special educators of the deaf and general educators. Specific functions of both the general and special educator are given for: (1) pre/post assessment of knowledge and skills of content; (2) organization of learning experiences; (3) provision of instruction; and (4) monitoring student participation. (DB)

Describes an interactive-teaming model for delivering inservice education to teams providing services in early-childhood educational settings. Explains the model's critical features and how these features link with an interactive teaming format. Results of preliminary participant evaluations are also presented. (Author/DB)

To counter low test scores, a rising dropout rate, and teacher apathy, a small group of teachers at Hollywood (California) High School developed a career academy, an interdisciplinary school-within-a-school stressing small classes and business speakers. The program recruited interested students and promoted a career theme with good employment…

This article presents BASE (Big ideas, Analyzing areas of difficulty, creating Strategies and supports, and Evaluating the process), a unit-planning process that teachers have used successfully with ninth-grade nontracked math classes to help secondary students with disabilities and students who are at-risk to be successful in a "reform" math…

This article presents an overview of the concepts of collaboration and inclusive schooling within the context of change in public education. It defines the concepts, reviews current legislation and recent research on the effectiveness of collaboration, and discusses major barriers to and facilitators of effective collaboration. Recommendations for…

Traces the resolution of knowledge conflicts by the staff of a London (England) primary school who were committed to collaboration. Teachers either appropriated the headteachers' knowledge or left the school. There was no evidence of joint construction of shared knowledge or evidence of teachers' knowledge being accommodated. (SM)

A study evaluated the effectiveness of a collaborative model for making grading adaptations. Parents, students, general educators, and special educators collaborated to develop and implement personalized grading plans for four middle school students. All participants perceived the process to be more fair and effective than adaptations used…

This article describes a collaborative prosocial skills program. Steps of the intervention include forming teams of educators, targeting necessary prosocial skills, developing an instructional plan, determining the setting and collaborative roles, delivery instruction, and providing opportunities for student practice, reinforcement, and…

The importance of communication skills for students with the most significant disabilities is highlighted. Specific attention is paid to the need to recognize and understand unconventional means of communication. Ideas for augmenting the student's communicative efforts are provided, and the critical importance of team collaboration is emphasized.…

Recent research links the development of a collaborative community of educators to enhanced teaching and learning effectiveness. This study contributes to this research by testing a work group effectiveness model with a sample of teachers from middle school teams. The study assesses the interrelationships among the model's antecedent variables…

Purpose: To investigate relationships between teamwork, trust and teacher team commitment. Design/methodology/approach: Research has confirmed the value-added effects of organizational commitment in terms of job performance, organizational effectiveness, and employee retention. This study focused on teacher teams as the unit of analysis, and…

There is a strong relationship between students' socioeconomic status and their levels of academic achievement. Although educators should be held accountable for improving the performance of all students, including those living in poverty, schools alone can't eliminate the negative factors associated with poverty that lead to a large achievement…