Intended for use with an Open University (England) course, the book contains 27 papers on issues affecting handicapped students in special education. Topics considered include the individual and his/her relationship to the environment; the history of special education in the United Kingdom; varieties of special programs; relationships among parents, professionals, and children; special education policy factors; and research, theory, and practice. Among titles and authors are the following: "Sociological Perspectives on Mild Mental Retardation" (J. Mercer); "Physical Handicap in Children: Source of Variation" (J. Golding); "Mental Handicap: The Historical Background" (J. Ryan, F. Thomas); "The Origins of Special Education" (G. Sutherland); "Maladjustment: A History of the Category" (I. Bowman); "Young Children with Special Needs in Ordinary Schools" (M. Chazan, et al); "A Junior School Resource Area for the Visually Impaired" (S. Hegarty, K. Pocklington); "Special Provision for PH Pupils in Secondary Schools" (C. Cope, E. Anderson); "Intermediate Treatment, Special Education and the Personalization of Urban Problems" (P. Beresford, S. Croft); "Special Provision in Post-School Education" (J. Panckhurst); "Parents and Professionals" (J. Gliedman, W. Roth); "The Provision of Health Services to Handicapped Children and Their Families" (The Court Report); "Finance and Policy-Making in Special Education" (J. Lukes); "Handicap in Northern Ireland: A Special Case?" (F. Stephen); "The End of a Quiet Revolution: The United States Education for All Handicapped Children Act, 1975" (A. Abeson, J. Zettel); "Street Level Bureaucrats and Institutional Innovation: Implementing Special Education Reform" (R. Weatherley, M. Lipsky); "The Role of Psychological Research in Special Education" (C. Sinha); and "Principles of Curriculum and Methods Development in Special Education (D. Power). (CL)