Characteristics of emotional disturbance of female and male students in elementary, middle, and high school

Provide data on the five characteristics of emotional disturbance (ED). For 503 students with ED and 2016 without disabilities, teachers rated the characteristics (Inability to Learn; Relationship Problems; Inappropriate Behavior; Unhappiness or Depression; Physical Symptoms or Fears), plus Socially Maladjusted. We applied a 2 (ED, without disabilities) × 2 (female, male) × 3 (elementary, middle, high school) covariance analysis, with follow‐up comparisons. Students with ED showed greater problems than students without disabilities on all five characteristics, and Socially Maladjusted. On Inability to Learn, among students with ED genders did not differ at elementary but males had greater problems at middle school. On Inappropriate Behavior and Physical Symptoms or Fears, students with ED varied across school levels but students without disabilities did not. All five characteristics discriminated students with ED from those without disabilities. Differences between genders and school levels varied across characteristics

Obstacles to Success of Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder in General Education Settings

The purpose of this study was to survey teacher opinions of 14 potential obstacles to teaching in general education classes attended by students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The anonymous participant responses were received from 16 elementary school teachers, 60 middle school teachers, and 131 high school teachers. Participants completed a questionnaire in which they rated 14 items. Rating data were uploaded to STATA data analysis software. The Kruskal-Wallis (K-W) statistic was used to analyze and interpret the data. Results identified items that significantly discriminated among teachers of the three grade levels and show a difference in the perceptions of teachers at different grade levels for some obstacles. Teachers at the elementary school level generally perceived greater obstacles than teachers at the middle school level, who perceived greater obstacles than those at the high school level. The results can be considered by educators and service providers when identifying professional development topics and resources to assist educators and service providers in the provision of instruction to maximize the potential for academic and social success for students with ASD in general education settings

Panel

to bring the best available evidence and expertise to bear on the types of systemic challenges that cannot currently be addressed by single interventions or programs. Authors of practice guides seldom conduct the types of systematic literature searches that are the backbone of a meta-analysis, although they take advantage of such work when it is already published. Instead, authors use their expertise to identify the most important research with respect to their recommendations, augmented by a search of recent publications to ensure that research citations are up-to-date. Unique to IES-sponsored practice guides is that they are subjected to rigorous external peer review through the same office that is responsible for independent review of other IES publications. A critical task for peer reviewers of a practice guide is to determine whether the evidence cited in support of particular recommendations is up-to-date and that studies of similar or better quality that point in a different direction have not been ignored. Because practice guides depend on the expertise of their authors and their group decisionmaking, the content of a practice guide is not and should not be viewed as a set of recommendations that in every case depend

The Mating Systems and Pollination Biology of Three Species of Verbena (Verbenaceae)

Because their flowers can be cross- and/or self-pollinated Verbena stricta, V hastata and V urticifolia are facultatively xenogamous. We suggest the flowers can be cross-pollinated because I) the fruit set of caged plants was substantially lower than that of open-pollinated plants, i.e. pollinators were necessary for typical fruit set and 2) the flowers of each species attracted a diverse array of hymenopteran, dipteran and lepidopteran pollinators that were capable of moving pollen between plants. Self-pollination was low due to the spatial separation of anthers and stigmas and/or an angled corolla that decreased the likelihood of pollen dropping from the anthers onto the stigma. However, the limited ability of flowers to self-pollinate was supplemented by the intrafloral movement of pollen by thrips. In addition, both the pollen-ovule ratios and pollination efficiencies of these species were consistent with those of other facultatively xenogamous species, and the available data were consistent with each species being self-compatible. Finally, we discuss a protocol for distinguishing between self-pollination and the intrafloral movement of pollen by thrips

Applied Examples of Screening Students At Risk of Emotional and Behavioral Disabilities

Early identification of student behavioral needs allows educators the opportunity to apply appropriate interventions before negative behaviors become more intensive and persistent. A variety of screening tools are available to identify which students are at risk for persistent behavior problems in school. This article provides two examples in which the Emotional and Behavioral Screener (EBS) was used to identify students at risk of emotional or behavioral problems. Example 1 demonstrates how the EBS can be used within a school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports framework to inform decision making. Example 2 demonstrates how the EBS can be used to inform behavioral intervention decisions in an individual teacher’s classroom. Finally, suggestions for using the EBS across various school formats are provided

Defining Autism: Variability in State Education Agency Definitions of and Evaluations for Autism Spectrum Disorders

In light of the steady rise in the prevalence of students with autism, this study examined the definition of autism published by state education agencies (SEAs), as well as SEA-indicated evaluation procedures for determining student qualification for autism. We compared components of each SEA definition to aspects of autism from two authoritative sources: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) and Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA-2004). We also compared SEA-indicated evaluation procedures across SEAs to evaluation procedures noted in IDEA-2004. Results indicated that many more SEA definitions incorporate IDEA-2004 features than DSM-IV-TR features. However, despite similar foundations, SEA definitions of autism displayed considerable variability. Evaluation procedures were found to vary even more across SEAs. Moreover, within any particular SEA there often was little concordance between the definition (what autism is) and evaluation procedures (how autism is recognized). Recommendations for state and federal policy changes are discussed

A consumer\u27s report to special education doctoral programs.

The marketplace for new graduates of doctoral training programs in special education has changed from one in which demand exceeded supply to a more balanced one in which supply meets or may exceed demand. The resulting competition for faculty positions has resulted in higher expectations of these applicants by special education departments, a major consumer of the products of doctoral training programs. Results of recent searches for new faculty members indicate that those who have accomplished professionally valued objectives during their doctoral training have a distinct advantage over those who have completed only a traditional doctoral program. Implications for doctoral training and future investigations are discussed from a consumer\u27s point of view