Professional development is a necessary component of maintaining competency in professional practice. Technology has opened the door to new formats for delivering professional development, in addition to more traditional modes of training. This study compared three professional development formats for improving the quality of standards-based…

This book provides information about emotional, behavioral, learning and developmental disabilities; disability-specific entitlements; and approaches for professionals who work with youthful offenders with disabilities throughout the juvenile process. Chapter 1 describes characteristics of common disabilities among youthful offenders and details…

This document consists of the three second-year issues of a newsletter concerning people with deaf-blindness. These issues include the following major articles: "A Report on Deaf-Blind Technical Assistance Collaboration" (Paddi Henderson and Rich Mulholland); "Rabbits and Retards" (Joyce Ford), in which a parent describes an…

In 2002, the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) published a study on charter schools and special education that documented significant unresolved issues between Colorado charter schools and Local Education Agencies (LEAs). This study specifically examined the cost and quality of services, school district/Boards of Cooperative Educational…

This text examines the characteristics that define autism: impairments in communication; abnormal social development; and clinically significant odd behaviors. Specific chapters include: (1) Neural Mechanisms in Autism (Andrew W. Zimmerman and Barry Gordon); (2) Epidemiology of Autism and Other Pervasive Developmental Disorders: Current…

The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and the Policymaker Partnership (PMP) of the National Association of State Directors of Special Education have joined together to consider challenges and opportunities for coordinating special and compensatory education among states, districts, and schools. As part of this effort toward increasing…

This appendix to the 14th annual report on implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act contains reports on progress in addressing the needs of two special populations: migrant students with disabilities and Native Pacific Basin and Native Hawaiian students with disabilities. Migrant students with disabilities tend to have…

The purpose of this article is to discuss the major research findings associated with the reading/literacy development of students who are d/Deaf and hard of hearing (d/Dhh) in inclusive education classrooms. The conditions for developing effective literacy skills are also described. A professional review approach was utilized, and relevant…

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) III, the purpose of this commentary is to describe school-based and school-relevant interventions and instructional approaches for children and youth with autism that have been developed and employed during that time period. The commentary begins with a brief…

Special education is now an established part of public education in the United States--by law and by custom. However, it is still widely misunderstood and continues to be dogged by controversies related to such things as categorization, grouping, assessment, placement, funding, instruction, and a variety of legal issues. The purpose of this…

This issue consists of a collection of articles that focus on the types of skills and programs that youth with disabilities need to travel independently. Articles include: (1) "An Introduction to Travel Training" (Margaret M. Groce) discusses the support for travel training provided by the Americans with Disabilities Act and the…

Mateo was like many students, neither fluent in English nor in American Sign Language (ASL) and significantly delayed in literacy skills. At Model Secondary School for the Deaf (MSSD), he was provided with emerging signers services to develop his expressive and receptive ASL skills. He was also provided with speech and language services by a…

This one-year collection of three serial issues focuses on problem solving skills for children with deaf-blindness, the history and change in the education of children who are deaf-blind since the rubella epidemic of the 1960's, and early identification of infants who are deaf-blind. Specific articles include: (1) "Research to Practice Focus…

In 2004, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act outlined specific considerations for students with individual education programs in relation to their needs and application of assistive technology (AT) devices and services used to access school curriculum. Teachers will interact with a variety of assistive technologies during their career…

This brief, co-produced by the National Center on Deaf-Blindness (NCDB) and Accessible Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Systems (ATLAS), provides important information about students with dual sensory loss who also have significant cognitive disabilities, as well as recommendations for identification and implications for instruction. The…