This study used simulation techniques to evaluate the technical adequacy of three methods for the identification of specific learning disabilities via patterns of strengths and weaknesses in cognitive processing. Latent and observed data were generated and the decision-making process of each method was applied to assess concordance in…

The present study employed an alternating-treatments design to compare the differential effect of group contingencies on the improvement of homework completion and accuracy of students with disabilities in a self-contained fifth-grade classroom. Generally, past investigations have indicated a positive association between homework performance and…

The current study replicated MacQuarrie, Tucker, Burns, and Hartman (2002) with a sample of 20 students who had been identified with a disability and had an IQ score that was between 1 and 3 standard deviations below the normative mean. Each student was taught 27 words from the Esperanto International Language with the following conditions: (a)…

Schools are increasingly using curriculum-based measurement reading procedures to conduct universal screenings as a means of identifying students whose level and rate of growth are discrepant from peers. Despite abundant evidence supporting the reliability and validity of curriculum-based measurement-reading procedures, researchers have not fully…

The primary potential benefit of the response-to-intervention model is its utility for serving students with unmet instructional or behavioral needs. Although discussion and debates have often focused on the potential "promise and pitfalls" of using response to intervention to make eligibility decisions, less attention has been devoted to key…

The new Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2004) offers local education agencies the choice of using a student's response to intervention (RTI) as a major component to determine eligibility for special education under the category of specific learning disabilities (SLD). Using a RTI model, it is not expected that different…

This invited commentary on the series of articles regarding the state of the extant research and practice concerning the implementation of response to intervention (RTI) will focus on the following issues: (a) what constitutes a comprehensive service delivery system that uses RTI as its driving principle; (b) the dependent measure by which the…

Within the context of a multilayered prevention system, responsiveness to intervention (RTI) integrates increasingly intensive instruction and, at each layer, employs assessment to identify students who are inadequately responsive and who therefore require intervention at the next, more intensive layer in the system. Over the past decade, RTI has…

The current study examined the extent to which treatment integrity was increased and maintained for 4 teachers in their regular classroom settings as a result of performance feedback and negative reinforcement. Teachers received daily written feedback about their accuracy in implementing an intervention and were able to avoid meeting with a…

A variety of coding schemes are available for direct observational assessment of student classroom behavior. These instruments have been used for a number of assessment tasks including screening children in need of further evaluation for emotional and behavior problems, diagnostic assessment of emotional and behavior problems, assessment of…

Despite the success of independence-oriented interventions such as strategy instruction (SI) in secondary populations, very little research has examined the effectiveness of SI at the postsecondary level. Thus, we sought to determine if one form of SI, the Paired Associates Strategy (PAS), improved the recall of factual information by…

Academic enabling behaviors play a significant role in the development of academically competent students. Academic enablers are behaviors that facilitate learning such as social skills, study skills, motivation, and engagement. In this study, teacher and student ratings were used to describe the academic enablers of a nationally representative…

This article describes efforts to examine the validity of a screening process that provides objective data for multidisciplinary team meetings where consideration is being given to teacher referral of a student for assessment and possible placement in special education. In this study, the accuracy with which this process, called Problem Validation…

Word boxes and word sorts are two word study phonics approaches that involve teaching phonemic awareness, making letter-sound associations, and teaching spelling through the use of well-established behavioral principles. The current study examines the effectiveness of word boxes and word sorts. Findings revealed that word boxes and word sort…

The present study, a meta-analysis of 61 studies of self-concept, shows that children with learning disabilities (LD) perceive their academic ability less favorably than their non-LD peers. In contrast to previous research, this study indicated no differences in self-concept as a function of special education setting. Implications for research and…