Students In Special Education Programs Research Articles

Transition Tasks and Resources

Summary This paper examines the transition of twelfth grade students graduating from high school. The authors followed two groups, one drawn from mainstream educational programs, and the other from special education programs for students with learning disabilities or behavioral disorders. Participants were followed from the last semester of their senior year until six months following their graduation from high school. The study is presented through an ecological perspective that emphasizes the relationships between individuals and their social contexts. Attention is paid to both education-and employment-related transition outcomes, and to the processes involved in negotiating the transition, both generally and with regard to seeking employment. Results indicate that while most of the participants in both groups were engaged in some type of meaningful activity following the transition, the special education group showed higher risk for disengagement. Respondents reported relying on informal resources (e.g...

Development and Reliability of the Research Version of the Minnesota Handwriting Test

Poor handwriting is often the trigger for evaluation by occupational therapists of students in special education programs, yet psychometrically strong tests for assessing primary grade printing are lacking. The Minnesota Handwriting Test was developed to meet the need of occupational therapists for an educationally relevant, norm-referenced test that can identify students with handwriting difficulties as well as document treatment effectiveness. In this report, the development of the research version of the test and studies of the test's reliability are reported.

Development and Reliability of the Research Version of the Minnesota Handwriting Test

Poor handwriting is often the trigger for evaluation by occupational therapists of students in special education programs, yet psychometrically strong tests for assessing primary grade printing are lacking. The Minnesota Handwriting Test was developed to meet the need of occupational therapists for an educationally relevant, norm-referenced test that can identify students with handwriting difficulties as well as document treatment effectiveness. In this report, the development of the research version of the test and studies of the test's reliability are reported.

Rural School Services for Students with Severe Disabilities: Changes in Personnel and Programs

Since the enactment of the Education of All Handicapped Children Act in 1975, the provision of special education programs for students with severe disabilities has been a challenge for school systems in rural America. This study assessed the changes in patterns of personnel deployment and program implementation used by rural schools providing services to students with severe disabilities. Findings showed that teacher certification, recruitment, and retention problems remain despite increased availability of personnel. Difficulties in providing least restrictive placement options and an array of related services persist as barriers to effective educational programming.

Perceptions of Control at School Among Students In Special Education Programs

Data are reported on special and regular education students' perceptions of control at school and the importance to the students of having such control. For both special and regular education populations, comparisons were made between students enrolled in experimental and nonexperimental programs. Findings indicate comparability among the four groups with regard to areas in which control is valued. Perceptions of control at school for those in the standard special education group were lower than the ratings of regular education students and lower than those given by special education students in the experimental program.

Multimeaning Words and Reading Comprehension

This article discusses the relationship between knowledge of multimeaning (polysemic) words and reading comprehension. Many poor readers, including those students in special education programs, may not be aware of the various meanings of many multimeaning words. This paucity of semantic knowledge reflects an inadequate development of the students' prior knowledge and may contribute directly to reading comprehension problems. It is argued that teachers should be more aware of the prevalence of polysemic words in reading materials. Teachers may also need to provide imaginative, direct vocabulary instruction. The authors include examples of teaching techniques most likely to be effective in broadening and deepening students' knowledge of word meanings--- a prime factor in reading comprehension.

Consultation Services: Changing Roles for SLPs

Speech and language consultation services are presented as a viable form of service delivery in the public schools. Expert and process models of consultation are presented for consideration by SLPs working with teachers. The roles and responsibilities of the SLP consultant are highlighted for each model. Collaborative consultation is proposed as particularly useful for meeting the speech-language needs of students in special education programs. It is presented as a supplement to the individual or small-group direct therapy services provided in the public schools. Principles of consultation are presented and key consulting behaviors (active listening, situational leadership, feedback, reinforcement, observation, and data collection) are described.

Status of educational services to handicapped students with limited English proficiency: report of a statewide study in California.

The purpose of this study was to develop an information base on educational service delivery for limited English proficient (LEP), handicapped students in 145 randomly selected school districts in California. Information on the districts was gathered both from existing data banks and a survey questionnaire. The survey instrument was returned by 104 districts for a response rate of 71%. Information was gathered on the following: proportion of LEP students in special education programs; the procedures commonly used in the screening, identification, evaluation, and reevaluation of LEP, handicapped students; educational placement options; and the curricula and instructional practices employed. The study concluded that quantitatively the state was doing well relative to identification and placement into special education of LEP students but that qualitative aspects of service delivery are frequently contrary to those recommended by both theory and research.

A statewide examination of secondary special education for students with mild disabilities: implications for the high school curriculum.

This article reports the partial findings of a statewide survey of high school special education programs for students with mild disabilities. The focus of this article is on the curriculum. Three sources of information were tapped for this study: (a) special education administrators, (b) high school special education teachers, and (c) parents of high school students with mild disabilities. The return rates were very high: 91%, 89%, and 45% of the three groups, respectively. Four basic topics concerning the curriculum were investigated: (a) its focus and content, (b) discrepancies between availability and utilization, (c) barriers to mainstreaming, and (d) conditions required for improvement. Both data and recommendations with respect to these topics are presented.

Transition services for secondary students with mild disabilities: a statewide perspective.

This article reports the partial findings from a statewide study of Oregon's secondary special education programs for students with mild disabilities. The focus of this article is on the current status and satisfactoriness of districts' transition services. Subjects included the population of LEA administrators and teachers, and a stratified random sample of parents of students with mild disabilities. Results indicated that (a) very few districts were using written interagency agreements or providing other incentives to secure the involvement of community agencies; (b) there were considerable discrepancies between administrators and teachers over who was responsible for transition planning; (c) teachers wanted more and better parent involvement in all levels of the school program; and (d) follow-up of previous students was rare. Findings were compared with those of other recent research and several key elements that should be targeted for improvement are discussed.

A 5-Year Follow-Up of Reading-Comprehension Achievement of Hearing-Impaired Students in Special Education Programs

Reading comprehension was assessed in 1974 and again in 1979 for 1,664 hearing-impaired students enrolled in special education programs across the United States. The Special Edition for Hearing Impaired Students of the 1973 Stanford Achievement Test, an adaptation of the regular edition of the Stanford but with identical items and subtest structure, was used to assess students' achievement both years. The major research question concerned the relative importance for achievement growth of the most salient handicapping characteristics of the population (specifically, the degree of hearing loss and the presence of any additional, educationally significant handicaps) compared with basic student demographic characteristics, such as race, age, and sex. A repeated-measures statistical analysis' of the data indicated that the growth in reading achievement of the typical hearing-impaired student over a 5-year period was approximately one-third that of the average hearing student. In addition, degree of hearing loss, age, and racial background had significant effects on reading-comprehension growth.

The Stability of Special Education Categorical Assignments

This study investigated the stability of psycho metric classifications as reflected by perfunctory reevaluations. Surprisingly, over 40% of a sample of 410 routine psychoeducational reaissessments of students in special education programs resulted in categorical changes. Students from educable mentally retarded classes were the most likely to be reclassified. Test data and rationale for observed changes are presented.

Overrepresentation of Low-Socioeconomic Minority Students in Special Education Programs in California

Historically, special education placement has been a controversial and emotional issue among educators and psychologists (Baca & Cervantes, 1978; Oakland, 1977). Some critics have alleged that special education has served only as a vehicle for transferring urban, poor minority pupils from regular classrooms into stigmatizing classes for learning disabled and/or behavior problem youngsters. A number of investigators have noted the disproportionate overplacement of minority children from low-socioeconomicstatus families in special education programs (Dunn, 1968; Patrick & Reschly, 1982; Tomlinson, Acker, Canter, & Lindborg, 1977). Ten years ago, the results of a longitudinal study conducted in Riverside, California, (Mercer, 1973) revealed that (a) the rate of placement of Hispanic students in classes for the mentally retarded was four times larger than would be expected based on their proportion of the general student population, while the rate for black youngsters was three times larger than expected; and (b) children from low-socioeconomic-status homes were twice as likely to be labeled mentally retarded as children from highsocioeconomic-status homes. Significant Special Education Litigation Since the late 1960s, many court decisions have affected special education services in the public schools (Theimer & Rupiper, 1975). The court cases fall into two general areas: (a) those establishing the right of all handicapped children to an education, e. g., Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 1971 (Note 1); and (b) those concerned with the procedures followed when placing a student in a special education program, e.g., Diana v. Board of Education, 1970 (Note 2) and Larry P. v. Riles, 1972 (Note 3). Cases of the first type were initiated by parents of handicapped children usually moderately or severely retarded against school districts that did not admit these youngsters. In the Pennsylvania case, a landmark decision was handed down by a Pennsylvania federal district court which upheld the contentions of the parents and ordered the state to provide free and appropriate educational services for handicapped children. The rights of handicapped children, gradually gained throught the courts, were incorporated into the historic Education of All Handicapped Children Act (Public Law 94-142) enacted in November, 1975. Based on the assumption that all handicapped children are capable of benefiting from education, PL 94-142 established these children's right to education and related services at public expense (Monroe, 1979). The second type of cases concerned overrepresentation of minority students in special education programs for the mentally retarded. The basic issues in Larry P., for example, included the same concerns as those addressed in Diana with certain crucial additions. In the latter, the plaintiffs requested revision and reform of assessment practices, whereas, in the Larry P. case the plaintiffs originally requested elimination of all standardized tests including individual intelligence tests. The plaintiffs cited data from 1974 indicating large overrepresentations of