In 1995 it became mandatory to establish individual educational plans (IEPs) for children with special educational needs in the Swedish compulsory school. On the basis of the pupils' needs, such a plan should contain information about the pupils' school situation and performance, the class, teaching etc. The aim of this article was to study how…

The rejection of pupils with behaviour problems is a serious problem for inclusive education schools. Sometimes parents prefer special schools because they do not want their children to become outsiders in integration classes. Are they right? The study presented here surveys children with behaviour problems in integrated primary school classes and…

This study examines how teachers actually cope with behavioural problems of included students. In order to understand the impact of individual differences on teachers' coping strategies, the authors looked at the relationship between these strategies and teachers' democratic beliefs and self-efficacy. Participants were 33 teachers in Israel, who…

The behavioural and emotional development of children with ADHD visiting day treatment centres after school hours is described and the childrearing factors that govern positive development explored. Test scores on the "Child behaviour checklist" (CBCL) and "ADHD behavioural symptoms rating scale" were obtained over a period of nine months, in a…

In recent years there has been a significant debate regarding the ways in which different educational systems throughout the world could develop more inclusive practices in their schools. Based on the notion that the education of children considered as having special needs should be considered as part of a wider process of school development, in…

This paper describes how the occupational therapist's looking at the child and his/her play could build a basic history of the subjects, providing the occupational therapist with clues to guide his/her proposed assistance. The authors understand the activity of play as a dimension that enables the subject to creatively establish contact with…

Since August 2003, pupils with auditory, communicative, motor, mental or multiple disabilities, as well as severe behavioural/emotional problems, in The Netherlands have been entitled to receive a pupil-bound budget when attending a mainstream school. The first experiences with this budget in regular Dutch primary schools are described in this…

As a result of a new law passed in The Netherlands, in 2002, an increasing number of children with profound and multiple learning difficulties will attend school. The complexity of the target group requires appropriate assessment that is focused on programme planning. A new instrument, the "Checklist of child characteristics," has been developed…

Early identification of children experiencing difficulties in learning is essential for timely and effective intervention. The aim of this study was to develop a screening instrument for identifying students with learning difficulties at the end of the first term of Primary 1 in Hong Kong. This paper describes the development and validation of a…

In their specialized schooling, blind children are now frequently presented with raised line figures and maps. However, there is still much to do in evaluating the cognitive effects of training using these displays. The purpose of this research is to determine if the level of expertise in the haptic exploration, and the perception of the raised…

Successful inclusion of children with special educational needs (SEN) in school settings depends largely on the attitudes of parents of peers without SEN. The purpose of the present study was to explore the attitudes of Greek parents of primary school children without SEN towards inclusion. The participants were 338 parents (182 fathers, 156…

The literature on selective mutism provides little information on the child's own perspective. Six adults who had been selectively mute were interviewed about their childhood and adolescence. Data analysis led to identification of five themes, each of which has potentially important implications for teachers. (1) Origins of selective mutism: all…

In recent years, there has been an increased recognition of the importance of parenting and the way in which parenting programmes can be an effective intervention in changing behaviour and parent-child interactions. The aim of this research, funded by the Department for Education and Skills, was to provide a map of parenting programme provision in…

This paper reports on work undertaken within phase 2 of a research study concerned with the use of online problem-based learning (PBL) resources with teachers studying for a specialist qualification through distance education. The principal aim of this phase was to explore how pilot online PBL resources could be effectively embedded within two…

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of a peer mediation intervention on self-regulated learning of students with learning disabilities. The research captured both process and outcomes of peer tutoring following the tutors' experience of the intervention programme. Tutors' self-regulated learning was measured by…