The purpose of this article is to offer teacher training and professional development recommendations in mathematics based on the findings of a federally funded 3-year intervention study that improved the problem solving of middle school students with a focus on students with learning disabilities. Over the 3-year project, 29 seventh and eighth…

Fractions are an essential foundational skill for future mathematics success (NMAP, 2008). The purpose of this article was to review current instructional practices for teaching fractions to struggling learners and to examine the quality and effectiveness of contemporary research with a view to indicating directions for future research. A…

There is reliable evidence that new vocabulary is primarily acquired through wide independent reading. However, struggling readers tend to avoid reading, resulting in limited word encounters and inadequate vocabulary growth, and they often have difficulties inferring the meanings of new words from context. While there are no clear solutions to the…

This article extends a previous review of the literature (Maccini & Hughes, 1997) on mathematics interventions for secondary school students with learning disabilities (LD). A systematic review of the literature from 1995 to 2006 yielded 23 articles that met the criteria for inclusion. It was determined that a number of practices demonstrated…

The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of research-based interventions that incorporate self-regulation strategies to improve mathematics performance of students with learning disabilities (LD). Self-regulation is a metacognitive function essential to academic success. Students with LD are notoriously poor at self-regulation and…

The analysis identified discursive strategies used by general education teachers in inclusion classrooms to orchestrate and scaffold the verbal participation of all students, including students with learning disabilities (LD). The context was writing instruction. A whole-class lesson involving teacher student collaboration to write a text was…

The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of a supplemental peer-tutoring reading program on phonological and reading fluency skills of first graders (N=78) who were in predominantly Hispanic Title 1 classrooms. Sixty-eight percent of the students were Hispanic, all were English speaking. Six classrooms were randomly assigned to either…

A study compared the reading fluency, comprehension strategies, and content test scores of 16 students with mild disabilities who participated in a nine-week world history class taught using peer tutoring or teacher-directed guided notes. Students who were participated in peer tutoring significantly outperformed the other students on content-area…

This article reviews 15 research studies published from 1990 to 2000 examining effects of cooperative learning strategies on the academic achievement of students with learning disabilities. Despite design problems, the review finds that cooperative learning strategies that incorporate individual accountability and group rewards are likely to…

This study was part of a larger research program designed to investigate how effort interacts with strategy use to mediate the academic performance of successful students with learning disabilities (LD) and how teachers' and students' perceptions influence these relationships. The sample consisted of 46 students with LD and 46 matched students…

This study investigated changes in teachers' and students' perceptions of students' effort, strategy use, and academic difficulties when strategy instruction was infused into the classroom curriculum. The sample consisted of 201 students with learning disabilities, 210 average achievers, and 57 teachers from Grades 4-9 in two urban and suburban…

This article describes one teacher's application of mnemonic strategy instruction in her inclusive, 4th grade social studies class. It explains how the strategy was employed to promote recall of academic content, the strategy's effectiveness, and students' attitudes. Discussion focuses on theoretical and empirical support for mnemonic instruction…

This article describes the Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS) program for developing reading skills in grades 2-6. It notes a 3rd grade teacher's perspective and reports on research and development efforts supporting use of PALS reading with students with learning disabilities. Noted is the recent extension of PALS reading downward into…

This article describes implementation of the Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) approach to help students learn a specific essay writing strategy in preparation for a state writing test. It also reviews the theoretical and research bases for using SRSD to teaching writing strategies. (Contains references.) (DB)

Review of 180 intervention studies identified instructional components that best predicted effect sizes for students with learning disabilities. These included sequencing, drill-repetition-practice feedback, segmentation of information, technology (structure-presentation medium), controlling task difficulty (e.g., scaffolding), modeling…