In The Netherlands, a growing number of vocational education and training institutes are implementing competence-based approaches to learning, including new career guidance practices. These practices often involve instruments such as portfolios or personal development plans, and are aimed at supporting students in their search for a sense of…

This study attempts to further our understanding of how expertise is acquired in a specific vocational context. Using unstructured interviews with both individuals and groups, carried out whilst engaged in practice, it examines what happens when dry stone wallers are developing their skills, how they gain expertise and how they communicate their…

This article provides an update on the Special Edition of the "Journal of Vocational Education and Training" 57, no. 3, 2005, which focused on the launch of the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS) in South Africa. The analysis here evaluates the impact of the first phase of the NSDS, which ran between 1 April 2001 and 31 March 2005. The…

This study investigated the perspectives of teachers in an early childhood center concerning their thoughts and feelings about the implementation of a school wide assistive technology (AT) program designed to enhance emergent literacy skills for children identified as being at-risk or having special needs. Qualitative methodology was used to gain…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore: (a) the underlying beliefs of those involved in determining the need for guardianship for young adults with developmental disabilities, (b) the overarching frameworks or theories that might explain some of the more predominate beliefs, and (c) the relationship of transition assessment,…

This study examined the effects of adding perspective sentences to Social Stories[TM] on improving the adaptive behaviors of students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and related disabilities. In Study 1, two students with ASD read two different types of Social Stories: Social Story without perspective sentences (SS without PS) and Social…

This research synthesis verifies the effectiveness of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) for improving the functional communication skills of individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The research synthesis was focused on the degree to which variations in PECS training are associated with variations in functional…

This study evaluated the ability of peers in special education to implement pivotal response training (PRT) with two students with autism in order to increase social interactions. Peers were taught the strategies using modeling, role-playing, and feedback. After training, peers implemented PRT strategies with the children with autism. Picture…

The purpose of this study was to determine methods for and barriers to including students with disabilities in high school service learning programs (HSSLPs) with non-disabled peers. Focus groups were conducted with adult stakeholders at five schools nominated as having exemplary inclusive HSSLPs and at least 3 years experience implementing such…

Mental retardation (MR) has traditionally been defined as a disorder in intellectual and adaptive functioning beginning in the developmental period. Guided by a federal definition of MR described in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, it is the responsibility of each of the United States to describe eligibility guidelines for special…

This study evaluated the effectiveness of and reliability of peer tutors implementing a constant time delay procedure when teaching four high school students with moderate and severe disabilities to prepare foods using picture recipes. We used a multiple probe design across subjects to determine the effectiveness of the peer tutor implemented…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a peer intervention program designed to increase interactions between children with and without disabilities in an inclusive summer camp. A multiple probe single subject design was used to determine the effects of the STAR intervention on six dyads of campers aged five through ten over two…

The use of a handheld prompting system by four students with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities to independently transition between an ordered chain of tasks was examined in a community vocational setting. Effectiveness of the handheld prompting system was assessed using a multiple-probe design across participants. Analysis of the data…

A model of treatment acceptability is proposed that distributes overall treatment acceptability into three separate categories of influence. The categories are comprised of societal influences, consultant influences, and influences associated with consumers of treatments. Each of these categories are defined and their inter-relationships within…

The focus of this manuscript is on the challenges faced by individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities within the criminal justice system. Prevalence data are cited and these data are interpreted in light of possible rationales for the disproportionate number of individuals with disabilities present within the system. Then the…