Internationally, governments are keen to identify and enact policies to encourage increased contributions from enterprises for the skill development of their employees. However, the goals for these policies often remain unclear and the means of securing these purposes are vexed. Drawing on a review of international literature and interviews with…

This study surveyed 94 school leavers with mental retardation or learning disabilities 1 to 3 years later. Students who were more self-determined fared better across multiple quality of life categories, including employment and access to health and other benefits, financial independence, and independent living. (Contains references.) (Author/PB)

This study examined effects of person-centered planning on career choice and employment outcomes attained by 83 supported employees. High and moderate levels of match between career preferences and current employment were attained by 83%; wages and length of employment did not correlate to match. A focus group of service providers identified a…

This study investigated play behaviors in 30 pairs of children with and without disabilities. Children without disabilities perceived children with disabilities as playmates, but noted that limitations in communication and behavior problems made it difficult to maintain fuller friendship. (Contains references.) (Author/PB)

A preschool screening battery was presented to a sample of 198 children with and without mild learning problems. Cross-sample test validation was demonstrated when 81% of both groups were correctly classified. Interrater reliability of 80% or greater on all but one of the tasks was demonstrated. (Contains references.) (Author/PB)

This study compared efficacy and efficiency of constant time delay and interspersal of known items to teach sight words to four students with mild mental retardation and learning disabilities. Results support effectiveness of constant time delay and suggest that interspersal of known items was more effective with students with learning…

This study compared effectiveness of word sorts on word recognition, pseudo-word recognition, phonological awareness, and spelling among 16 children with mental retardation or undiagnosed reading problems. Both groups completed sorts successfully, but children without disabilities made greater gains on a pseudo-word naming task. (Contains…

This study observed ten students with profound and multiple disabilities, with particular attention paid to social and communicative variables operating in educational settings. Comparisons are made with other published studies of behavior state assessment and socio-communicative processes observed in special education programs. (Contains…

This study explored the effects of portfolio assessment on locus of control among 90 eighth-graders with and without disabilities. Results indicated that all participants scored more internally oriented in terms of locus of control than those not involved in portfolio assessment. (Contains references.) (Author/PB)

This study reviews 26 meta-analyses in mental retardation in terms of selected hypotheses, sampling information, representative characteristics of the review, analysis of primary studies, interpretation of results, and reporting of the integrative view. Results indicate a wide variation in the amount of reported data similar to other analyses of…

This article describes variables that may influence alternate assessment outcomes for students with disabilities and offers recommendations to enhance student achievement. These variables include technical quality, curriculum access, data collection, instructional effectiveness, risk factors, and resources allocated to instruction. Two of four…

Discussion of trends in the American Association on Mental Retardation's definition of mental retardation notes a shift toward a support paradigm and a definition stressing the interaction between a person's independent functioning and the various contexts of the person's life. The current definition is seen to promote greater access to the…

This study evaluated effects of a training package to improve behaviors of residents with mental retardation and staff responses. The training procedure included video feedback and self-management procedures (for residents) and video and graphic feedback (for staff). Results showed improved behaviors for residents with both internalizing and…

This study compared cardiovascular fitness of 60 children (mean age 95 months) either with or without mental retardation (MR). Results indicated that nondisabled children exhibited significantly greater levels of aerobic fitness than those with MR and supported the need for a critical examination of physical activity programs for children with MR.…

This study investigated physical activity patterns of seven adolescents with mental retardation over a seven-day period. It found 6 to 14 bouts of moderate physical activity per day lasting from 2 to 4 minutes. Intrinsic motivation was high and lack of motivation scores were low in this sample. Results identified two main explanatory factors of…