Two authors of a paper (EC 602 058) reporting a factor analysis on records referring students to special education comment on their research: how their interest developed, their reaction to critics, clinical impressions acquired from the data, and the possible bias of school personnel toward referring more boys than girls for special education.…

This article presents the authors' comments concerning their paper (EC 602 059) that examined teachers' thought processes during instruction of at-risk students. The article comments on the authors' reasons for doing the study, their response to critics, and changes they would make if conducting the study again. (JDD)

An author of a paper (EC 602 060) that presents two causal models of learning disabilities comments on his interest in the research, how the research design developed, limitations of the research, and the need for replication with other disability groups. (JDD)

The effectiveness of peer-mediated intervention on the social behavior of eight socially withdrawn preschoolers was examined. Intervention conducted by classroom assistants resulted in the withdrawn preschoolers increasing their social interactions with peers during instructional triads and improving their behavior. (Author/JDD)

This commentary on EC 606 262 (a study on the effectiveness of peer-mediated intervention on the social behavior of eight socially withdrawn preschoolers) emphasizes the importance of assessing multiple measures of integration, the need to implement research in real world settings, and the need for research on enhancing generalization and…

This essay on EC 606 264, which found that more intense early intervention programs for children with disabilities were not more effective, comments on the "political incorrectness" of the results, the possibility for misinterpretation of the results, and the need to reexamine beliefs about what contributes to effective intervention programs. (JDD)

Comparison of three learning strategies (elaborative interrogation, spontaneous strategy, or repetition control) with 53 high achievers in grades 5 and 6 found that both elaborative interrogation and spontaneous strategy conditions were equally effective and both were superior to the repetition condition. (DB)

Two studies found that 5 students (ages 9-10) needing emotional support acquired behaviors shown in instructive feedback conditions that were unrelated to the target behaviors, whereas target material presented with related instructive feedback stimuli were acquired at a slightly faster rate. The importance of considering novelty, interest, and…

A multisensory program using a counting technique was effective in teaching math skills to three elementary students with mild disabilities. Results showed significant gains in acquisition of target skills as well as maintenance and generalization to novel math problems. (Author/DB)

The author of EC 606 782 reflects on aspects of the elaborative interrogation strategy evaluated with high achieving fifth- and sixth-grade students, noting the importance of an extensive knowledge base for using this strategy and the likelihood that the strategy is inappropriate for low achievers. (Author/DB)

The authors of EC 606 783 examine the background of instructive feedback stimuli either related or unrelated to target behaviors, devised for students with disabilities. Issues discussed include the selection of feedback stimuli, presentation of feedback stimuli, and unique applications of instructive feedback. (DB)

The author of EC 606 784 describes the background of her research, noting her experience with the "TOUCH MATH" manipulative materials to help students with mild disabilities acquire math facts and computational skills. (DB)

Five countable indices of writing quality were examined for their suitability in making special education screening-eligibility decisions, based on writing samples from 2,160 students. Even the best index was only moderately efficient. "Percentage of words spelled correctly" was best overall, and "percentage of correct word sequences" was best for…

This study demonstrated that a columnar notetaking strategy was an effective way for secondary teachers to help 198 heterogeneous students abstract the main ideas, special terms, and facts from textbooks. The treatment involved a diagnostic-prescriptive approach to placing students with learning disabilities, remedial students, and nondisabled…

Intermediate-level students (n=41) with learning disabilities, regardless of initial attitude or the type of program (game or drill-and-practice) used, significantly improved their arithmetic facts proficiency after four sessions of computer-based practice. The game format had a facilitative effect on continuing motivation of students with low…