Handicapped Pupils Research Articles

Suspension and Expulsion of Handicapped Pupils

In recent years parents and advocates for handicapped children have asked the courts to define educational rights granted by Public Law 94-142. One issue, suspension and expulsion of handicapped pupils, has been particularly difficult for parents and school administrators to address. Current regulations implementing Public Law 94-142 do not discuss discipline; consequently, when serious disciplinary infractions of the school code involve handicapped children, parents and school administrators are unsure of their rights and responsibilities respectively. The courts are being asked to rule in cases that balance educational rights of handicapped children with schools' need to maintain order and preserve educational rights of other children. This paper reviews litigation and discusses issues related to suspension and expulsion of handicapped pupils. Recommendations for reviewing school disciplinary codes are made; finally, an active role for special educators in this process is suggested.

ASSESSMENT AND PLACEMENT OF HANDICAPPED PUPILS INTO SECONDARY VOCATIONAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS

ASSESSMENT AND PLACEMENT OF HANDICAPPED PUPILS INTO SECONDARY VOCATIONAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Handedness in the mentally handicapped.

The prevalence of left-handedness and the degree of handedness were examined in 130 normal and mentally handicapped pupils of both sexes, aged between seven and 18 years. Handedness was assessed by means of 10 performance items. The prevalence of left-handedness among normal pupils (10.6 per cent) was significantly lower than that for the mentally handicapped group (26.5 per cent). There was no significant difference in the prevalence of left-handedness between the mentally handicapped pupils with and without Down's syndrome. The degree of handedness was also reduced in the mentally handicapped group, but again there was no difference between those with and without Down's syndrome.

Bias in the Assessment of Handicapped Children

Prior research demonstrates that examiner unfamiliarity negatively affects the test performance of handicapped preschoolers. The present investigation sought to determine whether examiner unfamiliarity also interferes with the performance of handicapped school-age pupils and nonhandicapped children. Sixty-four subjects (16 language-handicapped and 16 nonhandicapped preschoolers and 16 language-handicapped and 16 nonhandicapped school-age students) were tested during a period of 2 weeks, once by a familiar examiner and once by an unfamiliar examiner, within a crossover design. A significant interaction was obtained for examiner familiarity and handicapped status, indicating that whereas nonhandicapped subjects scored similarly when tested by familiar and unfamiliar examiners, handicapped children scored higher with the familiar testers. By selectively depressing handicapped children’s test performance, examiner unfamiliarity constitutes a systematic source of error, or bias, and threatens the validity of handicapped students’ test performance. Implications for the assessment of handicapped children are discussed.

The microeconomics of referral and reintegration: A paradigm for evaluation of special education

The term (SE), as used in the United States, is currently reserved to describe a host of educational and related clinical activities for handicapped populations. As a service delivery system, SE is directed toward a wide array of mental, physical, and behavioral pupil characteristics. The diversity of administrative structures subsumed by the concept is such as to defy generalizations pertaining to salient defining criteria. However, both policymakers and practitioners tend to allude to SE as if to communicate a unified, standardized, and replicable organization and instructional delivery system. Similarly, the term Education Evaluation is frequently used to imply an attempt to draw conclusions about the SE enterprise in general - ignoring the variation that naturally exists in operationalizing SE among school districts. It is common to refer to SE programs by alluding to the categorical labels of the pupils they are designed to service. Hence, we find reference to Learning Disabilities (LD) programs, Mental Retardation (MR) programs, and the like. Added confusion exists in the practice of referring to such programs by using administrative variables as identifiers, while implicitly inferring instructional characteristics (e.g., Resource Room, Special Class, Mainstreaming programs). This latter practice apparently ignores the overlaps that exist in instructional practices across and within administrative arrangements (Semmel, Gottlieb, & Robinson, 1979). It suffices to assert that there is no current universal set of defining features that adequately describe pupil characteristics and instructional interventions operationally included under the rubric of special education in the United States. There is no currently acceptable, empirically or theoretically based scheme for uniquely matching specific instructional activities to unique characteristics of mentally and/or behaviorally handicapped pupils in the schools. This paper discusses the problems inherent in attempting to evaluate the SE enterprise rather than specific, local arrangements for instructing handicapped children. It argues first that these problems arise from essentially uncritical assumptions about the relationship between rules of inference in experimental science and evaluation of activities generated by public policy. Moreover, these evaluation problems are viewed as being maintained by an invalid application of what might be termed an ed-psychometric scientific paradigm (Shapiro, 1984). Classical psychometric orientations tend to limit evaluation research to

The Role of Cost in Educational Decisionmaking for the Handicapped Child

Copyright ? 1985 by Law and Contemporary Problems * Associate Clinical Professor of Law, Duke University. I am indebted to Chris Schroeder and Judith Wegner for their insights during numerous conversations I had with them while I was writing this article, and to Richard Boulden, Matt Lavine, and Howard Vingan for their research assistance. 1. Hicks, Should Every Bus Kneel? in DISABLED PEOPLE AS SECOND CLASS CITIZENS 13-14 (1982) (quoting Must Every Bus Kneel to the Disabled?, N.Y. Times, Nov. 18, 1979, at 18E). 2. See Oversight of P.L. 94-142 The Education for All Handicapped Children Act, Part 1: Hearings before the Subcommittee on Select Education of the Committee on Education and Labor House of Representatives, 96th Cong., 1st Sess. 82 (1979) (statement of Walter Tice, American Federation of Teachers); J. KAKALIK, W. FURRY, M. THOMAS & M. CARNEY, THE COST OF SPECIAL EDUCATION 5 (1981) [hereinafter cited as KAKALIK] ($3577 average cost per student for handicapped child in 1977-78; $4898 average cost in the following 3-year period). Residential placements, not included in the Kakalik study, are even more expensive. See Stark, Tragic Choices in Special Education: The Effect of Scarce Resources on the Implementation of Pub. L. No. 94-142, 14 CONN. L. REV. 477, 491, 493 (1982). A residential placement may cost well over $50,000 per year. See Clevenger v. Oak Ridge School Dist., 744 F.2d 514, 517 (6th Cir. 1984) (ordering residential placement costing $88,000 per year); Stanger v. Ambach, 501 F. Supp. 1237, 1241-42 (S.D.N.Y. 1980) (discussing residential placement that would cost at least $52,410 for the 1980-81 school year). 3. KAKALIK, supra note 2, at 339, 343. (This study noted that, depending on the type of handicap and educational placement (excluding residential placements), the cost of educating a handicapped child is between .49 (full-time work placement for learning disabled students) and 6.78 (regular class plus part-time special teacher) times the cost of educating a nonhandicapped child. See also M. MOORE, L. WALKER, & R. HOLLAND, FINETUNING SPECIAL EDUCATION FINANCE 50-51 (1982) [hereinafter cited as MOORE, WALKER & HOLLAND] (depending upon the type of handicap and method of computation, the cost of special education ranges from 1.37 to 5.86 times the cost of a regular education); Marriner, The Cost of Educating Handicapped Pupils in New York City, 3 J. EDUC. FIN. 82, 86-88 (1977) (average cost of special education was $5897 per student, compared to $2294 per student for a regular education; average per student cost of special education ranged from $4022 to $14,072, depending on the program). The factors considered in measuring the cost of special education are discussed in MOORE, WALKER & HOLLAND, supra, at 45-58.

A Small Business at Fountaindale

Leavers in the work unit at Fountaindale School for physically handicapped pupils in Mansfield are helping to run a small business which manufactures paperweights, badges and cushions write Patsy Brown and Stella Berry, head and deputy head of the secondary department

Attitudes of Physical Educators Toward Teaching Handicapped Pupils

This study assessed the attitudes of physical educators (n = 194) toward teaching handicapped pupils in the regular class. The survey instrument used was the Physical Educators Attitude Toward Teaching the Handicapped (PEATH), which assesses teacher attitudes according to the type of handicapping condition (learning and physical) and grade level (K-3, 4-6, 7-8). A 2 × 3 randomized block factorial design and the Tukey (HSD) post hoc analysis were applied to the data. Results indicated that physical educators held more favorable attitudes toward teaching pupils with learning handicaps than those with physical handicaps. Furthermore, as grade level advanced from primary (K-3) to intermediate (4-6) and upper (7-8) grades, teacher attitudes became progressively less favorable.

Predictors of successful transition from self-contained special education to regular class settings

The adjustment of 129 newly mainstreamed learning disabled, emotionally disturbed, and mildly developmentally disabled pupils was rated by regular classroom teachers at the end of the children's first year in regular class. While the teachers were, in general, very satisfied with the pupils' progress in both academic and behavioral areas, satisfaction declined after grade six. IQ data did not predict satisfactory adjustment. WRAT arithmetic score was associated with ratings of satisfactory classroom behavior. Pupils who had spent one to two years in special classes were rated as having more acceptable classroom behavior than those who were enrolled for shorter or longer periods of time.

Self-recording of attention by learning disabled students in the regular classroom.

Increased attention to task through self-monitoring procedures has been well-established in recent literature on learning disabled students in self-contained special education classrooms. This study investigated the adaptability of the self-monitoring procedures to regular classroom settings. In the first part of the study, an ABAB design was used. Treatment consisted of having each member of an entire class of second graders monitor his or her own attending behavior. Data from four target students indicated that the procedure was effective in increasing attending behavior. In the second part of the study, using a CBC design, a reinforcement contingency was added to the self-monitoring intervention to ensure that children were actually using the self-monitoring system. Even higher levels of on-task behavior resulted when reinforcement for adherence to the system was in effect. The results show that self-monitoring procedures are readily adaptable for use by learning disabled pupils in the regular classroom setting and that using self-monitoring procedures correctly is an important variable to consider when implementing them.

A study of some factors influencing attitudes to teaching the handicapped among Nigerian student teachers

The main aim of this study is to study the attitudes towards teaching handicapped pupils among a group of Nigerian student teachers. A 13-item Likert-type scale, specially constructed to measure attitudes towards the teaching of handicapped pupils, was administered to 149 Nigerian student teachers, of differing ethnic and educational backgrounds. The respondents were also questioned about their preferences for teaching certain types of handicapped pupils. It was found that female student teachers had a much more favourable attitude towards teaching the handicapped than male student teachers. Student teachers under twenty-five had more favourable attitudes towards teaching the handicapped than older student teachers. Ibo students showed the most favourable attitudes towards teaching the handicapped, and specialist-trained students showed more favourable attitudes towards teaching the handicapped pupils than their counterparts who had not been specially trained. When it came to preferences for teaching certain categories of handicap, a clear sex difference appeared. Almost half of the 101 males nominated teaching the mentally handicapped as their first choice, with only about 10% selecting the visually handicapped as their first choice. The situation was reversed in the case of the females, with over a third selecting visual handicap as their first choice, and only about 10% selecting mental retardation as their first choice.

Science with handicapped pupils

Science with handicapped pupils

A teacher-training program to enhance mainstreamed, handicapped pupils' self-concepts

This study assessed the effectiveness of the Utah State University Self-Concept Protocol Modules in changing teacher behaviors presumed to be related to pupil self-concept. This research focused on teachers and handicapped pupils in mainstreamed intermediate grade classrooms. The modules cover specific teacher behaviors including ways of expressing anger, listening skills and nonjudgemental messages, praising and giving instructions, and ways of fostering positive self-perception statements by pupils. The experimental group contained 15 teachers; 18 teachers were in the control group. Seven hundred and fifteen pupils (251 of which were in the experimental group) from the classrooms of the participating teachers were included. Observational data were collected on the teacher behaviors. The intermediate form of the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale was administered before and after teachers were trained. Analyses of covariance (with prescores as the covariates) in which the experimental treatment was the independent variable and the postscores for the teacher behaviors were the dependent variables revealed a significant difference between the experimental and control group teachers. The experimental group had more favorable postscores than the control group on four of the teacher behaviors. For children's self-concept postscores, a significant treatment X pupil classification interaction was found indicating that experimental group handicapped pupils scored significantly higher ( p<.05) than the control group handicapped pupils. Enhancement was not obtained for either the nonhandicapped nonminority or minority group pupils.

Teaching Athletic Skills to Students Who are Mentally Retarded

P.L. 94–142 provides the right to physical education for handicapped pupils including nonacademic and extracurricular activities such as athletics. Despite the legislative mandate for physical education and the value of athletic activity, few validated programs have been published to teach complex gross motor skills, such as sports, to mentally retarded students. Therefore, two experiments were conducted to evaluate procedures to teach athletic skills to moderately and severely mentally retarded students. Participants were taught the standing long jump (Experiment 1) and the 50-yard dash (Experiment 2), using task analysis and a training package of prompts and response consequences. Experimental control was evaluated by the multiple baseline across subjects design. Results showed acquisition and maintenance of the two athletic skills. The efficacy of behavioral techniques for teaching athletic skills to moderately and severely retarded persons is also discussed.

Nutritional status of handicapped pupils in Ile-Ife, Nigeria.

Nutritional status of handicapped pupils in Ile-Ife, Nigeria.

Meeting the needs of disabled pupils

(1983). Meeting the needs of disabled pupils. Cambridge Journal of Education: Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 3-8.

Grading Mainstreamed Handicapped Pupils: What Are the Issues?

Grading mainstreamed handicapped pupils has caused considerable consternation for special and regular educators. Because grading practices relating to handicapped pupils have received little attention, this paper investigates the pertinent issues and gives examples. The major purpose is to avoid the confusion caused by arbitrary grading systems. Graders and consumers must be clearly identified, as must the messages intended by the grades. Choosing satisfactory grading formats is discussed. The issues are generalized to all children, including those without handicaps.

Performance of Handicapped Students in a Competency Testing Program

An issue surrounding Minimum Competency Testing (MCT) is the participation of handicapped students. Using data from the North Carolina Competency Test, samples of handicapped and nonhandicapped pupils were compared on the following: initial MCT performance, participation in remediation, improvements in subsequent MCT, and eligibility for receiving high school diplomas. It was determined that nonhandicapped pupils generally fared better than the handicapped on all measures. However, sharp differences were found across categories of exceptionality, with results for learning-disabled and physically impaired students approaching those of the nonhandicapped sample. Findings for educable mentally retarded (EMR) pupils showed weak initial performances, high rates of school withdrawal after a MCT failure, and repeated MCT failure among those who remained in school. It is concluded that EMR students should, at a minimum, be provided with intensive remediation to achieve MCT mastery. Under the best of circumstances, however, it seems unlikely that a majority of EMR pupils could pass a high school MCT. It is suggested that MCT programs continue to include most exceptionalities, while exempting the mentally retarded.

Development and implementation of effective individualized education programs (IEPs): Evaluation of two team approaches

Development and implementation of an Individualized Education Program (IEP) occurs following determination of a child's eligibility for special education and by means of a multidisciplinary team approach. Although discussion has occured about various team approaches to the IEP development and implementation, no empirical evidence has been reported about the effectiveness of these alternatives for enhancing IEP goal attainment of handicapped pupils. In this paper, results of a study are reported that compared the relative effectiveness of two team approaches to IEP development and implementation in four elementary schools in an urban public school district. The COMPASS approach, an explicit 5-step problem-solving procedure, was evaluated relative to the district's traditional approach. Results indicated the COMPASS approach allowed for a greater degree of pupil goal attainment and IEP completeness than the traditional approach, and also was judged as a socially valid team approach by classroom teachers and by team members from other school districts.

Response Prompting and the Transfer of Stimulus Control: Methods, Research, and a Conceptual Framework

Teachers of severely handicapped pupils frequently employ various types of assistance antecedent to pupil responses in order to increase the likelihood that behaviors will be performed. This assist...