Comic Strip Conversations is a positive behavioral support strategy that has been used effectively to improve the social skills of students with autism. Research on the effectiveness of this strategy was extended to four students with other mild/moderate learning, cognitive and behavioral disabilities. Two elementary teachers used Comic Strip…

Watch any young child and you will likely see him or her engaged in some form of play. Play is an integral part of early childhood development in which typically developing children learn social and language skills, as well as appropriate behaviors, problem solving, and a variety of other cognitive skills. By its very definition, autism is a…

Interaction styles of special education teachers were investigated using semi-structured observation of 13 student-teacher pairs during one-on-one language arts instruction of elementary students with cognitive disabilities. Teacher use of directions and responses of differing communication modes and types were analyzed. Student task-engagement…

This study examined factors associated with the curriculum and instructional environments for secondary students with mild mental retardation, based on teacher report. A survey was mailed to 378 secondary special education teachers in Michigan. Teachers provided demographic information and answered questions regarding curriculum and instructional…

Ethical guidelines for behavior analysts state that functional assessment should be used before implementing treatment plans. In this paper, we discuss the ethical implications of this position using self-injurious behavior in people with developmental disabilities as a focus. Evidence is reviewed that suggests that treatment based on results of a…

Assessment procedures for students with moderate or severe disabilities cover a range of procedures and practices. This article reviews recommendations for assessment practices for these students. These recommendations are compared with the assessment actually conducted by a sample of 22 teachers of students with moderate and severe disabilities.…

Respondents' experiences most frequently reported in open-ended descriptions of their forming perceptions of persons with intellectual disability were "passive" experiences, such as coming across them as a stranger in one's town. These were generally not associated with positive attitudes. Formation of positive attitudes mainly derived from…

This study examined high school and middle school transition practices from the perspective of special education teacher leaders. Results indicated that the majority of schools offer functional curricula, social skills training, and an array of school-based functional learning opportunities. However, a significant number of schools did not provide…

This study investigated effects of an audiotape self evaluation intervention on the instructional behavior of three student teacher interns in classrooms for students with various developmental disabilities. A multiple baseline design was used to evaluate the intervention. Results indicated a positive effect on all interns' use of specific social…

In this study, predictive classification accuracy was used to select those tasks from a kindergarten screening battery that best identified children who, three years later, were classified as educable mentally handicapped or as having a specific learning disability. A subset of measures enabled correct classification of 91% of the children in…

A multiple probe design with probe conditions across behaviors was used to evaluate effectiveness of constant time delay on teaching snack and drink preparation skills to children with mental retardation. In addition, generalization effects across settings, time, and materials, and maintenance effects were examined. Three students between the ages…

This study examined the effectiveness of simultaneous prompting in teaching naming relatives to individuals with autism. Two 5.5 year old male participants who were diagnosed with autism were taught eight different relative names using simultaneous prompting. Maintenance and generalization data across materials, settings, and trainers were…

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the Teacher Performance Rate and Accuracy Scale (TPRA) which is a method of direct teacher observation used in the teacher evaluation and training component of the Comprehensive Application of Behavior Analysis to Schooling (CABAS [R]) model of schooling. The TPRA builds on the concept of academic engaged…

This article explores the ability of the training and work experience offered under public works programmes to promote employment in South Africa. Public works are a key component of South African labour market policy and are ascribed considerable potential in terms of addressing the core challenge of unemployment. However, despite this policy…

The concept of Return on Investment (ROI) in training has hitherto been largely associated with the corporate world where Kirkpatrick's model of training evaluation is widely used. Interest in Kirkpatrick is growing in the public sector. This article examines how the Kirkpatrick model is actually used in a range of commercial organisations and…