Beginning special education teachers today are highly likely to be asked to co-teach with general education teachers at some point in their career. Besides supporting their students, new special education teachers may be tasked with persuading their colleagues to try out both new methods of collaboration and unfamiliar models of instructional…

The authors describe findings from a research synthesis on content area instruction for students with disabilities. Seventy studies were identified from a comprehensive literature search, examined, and coded for a number of variables, including weighted standardized mean-difference effect sizes. More than 2,400 students were participants in these…

Twenty-six junior high school students with learning disabilities studied two science units via an activity-based, inquiry-oriented approach or a textbook approach. Students performed higher on immediate and delayed unit tests when they had learned by the inquiry approach, and reported a preference for this approach. Vocabulary acquisition was…

Students with learning disabilities (LD) are increasingly expected to master content in the general education curriculum, making the need for effective instructional supports more important than ever before. Science is a part of the curriculum that can be particularly challenging to students with LD because of the diverse demands it places on…

Science and social studies have much to offer to all learners--including those with disabilities. However, instruction in these subjects has often been overlooked in the quest to better understand and improve leaning in English/language arts and mathematics. As we demonstrate in this paper, science and social studies help students attain skills,…

Differential effects of a peer-tutoring intervention on the academic achievement of 203 7th-grade science students with and without disabilities in co-teaching and non-co-teaching settings were examined over an 8-week period. Impact of peer tutoring was assessed using a 2 condition by 2 settings by 2 types of students analysis of covariance with…

Throughout the history of education, debate has existed between the relative merits of instructed versus constructed knowledge. In this article, we review our program of research in science education for students with disabilities in order to reveal some insights into this debate. We review research in science curriculum, mnemonic strategies,…

Four different methods of study were presented to fifty-six learning disabled students, who were to learn characteristics of North American minerals. Methods were: (1) direct instruction; (2) mnemonic instruction; (3) reduced-list direct-instruction; and (4) free-study. Results supported findings that learning was superior in the mnemonic…

This manual is intended as a resource for teachers who have special education students in their mainstream science classes, for curriculum adoption committees, and for publishers and consumers of science curriculum materials. Part 1 describes general characteristics of students with disabilities and provides general mainstreaming strategies and…

This article describes the concept and varieties of mnemonic instruction and how mnemonics interacts with the specific learning characteristics of learning-disabled students. The effectiveness of the techniques, as reported in research studies, is described. Implications for classroom instruction and further research are provided. (DB)

This study employed a randomized experimental design to investigate the effectiveness of a self-questioning strategy for improving student reading comprehension of grade-level social studies text material. Fifty-seven seventh grade students with a range of abilities, including English as second language learners and students with learning and…

Thirty-two qualitative investigations of co-teaching in inclusive classrooms were included in a metasynthesis employing qualitative research integration techniques. It was concluded that co-teachers generally supported co-teaching, although a number of important needs were identified, including planning time, student skill level, and training;…

The paper presents a research-based case for mnemonic instruction with mildly disabled students, and recommends learning tasks, designs, and implementation formats. Evolution of the research, from theory-driven laboratory research to long-term classroom applications, is described. Recommendations are offered for further research. (Author/JDD)

This article elaborates on the work of Paris and Winograd (EC 233 118) in examining metacognitive instruction with respect to special education research and practice. The article describes research supporting instruction in self-appraisal and self-management with mildly handicapped students, motivational characteristics of these students, the…

This book conveys practical information on the instruction of students with mild disabilities, whether in self-contained, resource, or general education classroom settings. Emphasis is on research-based special education teaching methods. It first describes general principles of effective instruction, followed by more specific details associated…