Teachers' Opinions about Inclusion: A pilot study in a Palestinian context

The present study explored teachers' opinions about the inclusion of students with disabilities and special needs in regular primary schools in a Palestinian context, and factors that influenced such opinions. The sample consisted of 90 teachers at six schools. Eighty-seven (97%) of them had students with disabilities or special needs in their classes. Fifty-four (60%) of the teachers were of the opinion that students with disabilities and special needs should have an opportunity to attend public schools. Opinion-related factors were identified and compared to results of previous studies. Eighty-one (90%) of the teachers expressed a need for changes in the public schools in order to meet the needs of students with disabilities and special needs. Their focus of interest for building their own competence was on knowledge and skills that could empower them as teachers, not on knowledge about the students' disabling impairments.     

Attitudes of School Psychologists Towards the Integration (Mainstreaming) of Children with Disabilities

SCHOOL psychologists serving primary and secondary schools in New South Wales were surveyed to ascertain their attitudes towards the main‐streaming of children with a wide range of disabilities. They were also asked to identify the resources required to meet the needs of these children in regular classrooms and to indicate their perceived role in the process of mainstreaming. Results indicated that school psychologists appeared to have a fairly optimistic perspective with regard to mainstreaming when compared with teachers. Comparisons of factor analyses of attitudes also suggested that school psychologists tended to group disability characteristics more in terms of traditional handicapping categories than with regard to the educational demands made upon teachers. While children with learning and behavioural difficulties represented psychologists’ largest case load, they did not always feel they had the skills to assist this group and were even less confident about other categories of disability. School psychologists also saw their roles with regard to mainstreaming as consultative rather than interventionist and attached little importance to knowledge of classroom techniques to facilitate the mainstreaming of children with disabilities. Implications of these data for the training and practice of school psychology were subsequently discussed.     

Catalyzing the Primary Prevention Revolution in the Schools: The Role of School Psychologists

The introduction of primary prevention programs into schools has great potential to expand the roles of school personnel. Working collaboratively, school psychologists, teachers, and school administrators could facilitate adoption of social skills and health promotion programs. Leaders within schools are needed to initiate the move toward primary prevention. School psychologists are ideally placed to take a leadership role in this shift toward primary prevention. However, they need to receive more information about primary prevention, both in training programs and in written works, if they are to be adequately prepared to introduce programs and to consult to school personnel. The information that school psychologists are currently exposed to provides an inadequate level of detail for those who wish to implement such programs. We offer recommendations to school psychologists and members of other professions within the schools on how to acquire the information they need to serve as leaders in the primary prevention revolution.     

A renewed focus on strengths‐based assessment in schools

School‐based practitioners are often called upon to provide assessment and recommendations for struggling students. These assessments often open doors to specialised services or interventions and provide opportunities for students to build competencies in areas of need. However, these assessments often fail to highlight the abilities of these students and instead focus on areas in need of remediation. The use of a more positive, or strengths‐based, approach to working with students is needed. Although strengths‐based assessment (SBA) is not a new concept, it is not routinely incorporated into school‐based assessment services. This article provides an overview of SBA and its benefits, along with empirically‐driven models that support the implementation of SBA in schools, and calls for a renewed focus on understanding students from a strengths‐based model. Examples of SBA measures and techniques are included, along with implications for practice for both students and psychologists.     

CURRENT AND FUTURE SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS’ PREPAREDNESS TO WORK WITH LGBT STUDENTS: ROLE OF EDUCATION AND GAY‐STRAIGHT ALLIANCES

This study sought to assess current and future school psychologists’ attitudes toward and preparedness to address the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students in schools. Two‐hundred seventy‐nine school psychologists (n = 162, 58%) and school psychology graduate students (n = 117, 42%) were included in the study. Participants completed measures of attitudes toward LGBT students, preparedness to address the needs of LGBT youth, and social desirability. For both school psychologists and graduate students, increased education was associated with improved attitudes and increased preparedness to treat LGBT youth. For school psychologists, presence of a gay‐straight alliance was associated with increased knowledge about LGBT youth, as well as higher ratings of preparedness to treat LGBT youth; the same associations did not hold true for the graduate students. These findings have implications for the training and practice of school psychologists in addressing the needs of LGBT youth in schools.     

“I Thought I Hated Data”: Preparing MSW Students for Data-driven Practice

Social work is an applied profession using a combination of theory, research, and practice to meet the needs of client populations. First-hand experiential learning is central to social work education. Just as students learn clinical skills by interacting with clients in a practice setting, students need a forum to use real data to develop their skills in accessing, understanding, interpreting, and presenting answers to pertinent social work research questions. This paper describes one university's efforts to design and implement coursework opportunities for students to integrate the use of actual data to answer pertinent real-world research and evaluation questions.     

Discussion Paper--Creative Partnerships: Public and voluntary services working together

Recent Government initiatives (National Healthy School Standard; Department for Education and Employment, 1999) and Guidance (Promoting Children's Mental Health within Early Years and School Settings; Department for Education and Employment, 2001) are placing increased expectations on schools to promote the emotional well-being of children. However, teachers are unlikely through initial training to have the skills and knowledge required to undertake these responsibilities unassisted. Moreover, the external support available to schools through public sector agencies is insufficiently resourced to meet a significant and sustained rise in demand. Through its Compact (Home Office, 1998), the previous Government acknowledged the contribution currently made to society by the voluntary sector and its potential to provide further support for those in need. Charities supporting children's social/emotional development and mental health may have much to offer. Projects run by the voluntary sector are already supporting schools across the country, and rapid growth is underway. However, schools need help in procuring, monitoring and evaluating this support to assure quality standards and pupil safety. Both schools and Local Education Authorities (LEAs) have a duty of care. Educational psychologists, trained in child development, research and evaluation, and with access to regulatory processes such as Children's Services Planning and Best Value, should be well-placed to assist and guide their LEA, schools and voluntary sector partners.     

Supporting the career development of gifted students: New role and function for school psychologists

The American ethos that you can be whatever you want to be has not always been a helpful adage for gifted students. Gifted students require career counseling to understand the world of work, and to identify their interests and values in addition to their already-identified talents. Academic planning and career development for gifted students is an important and complex process that requires thoughtful consideration. School psychologists have the skills and abilities to provide valuable career development services to gifted students. The authors explore the unique challenges and career development needs of gifted students and provide suggestions for interventions.     

Attitudes and mainstreaming: A literature review for school psychologists

“Mainstreaming” legislation requires that special needs students participate in regular classroom activities to the extent possible. Studies indicate, however, that, neither parents, peers, nor professionals may be expected to hold positive attitudes toward these students or be competent providers of positive growth experiences. Existing evidence supports the need for comprehensive training programs for these groups which provide an interface between their experiences with special needs students and an introduction to new knowledge. School psychologists should assume a leadership role in development and implementation.     

J. E. W. Wallin's diagnostic theory for classifying the feeble-minded and backward in early twentieth-century public schools in America

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, American psychologists began addressing problems related to the intellectual capacity of students enrolled in public schools. This paper focuses on the role and influence of psychologists in addressing these problems, specifically the difficulty of classifying students deemed feeble-minded and backward. This paper discusses the diagnostic theory of the clinical psychologist John Edward Wallace Wallin (1876–1969), who was one of America's leading proponents of diagnosing and classifying students in public schools. I show that, in addressing treatment for the feeble-minded and backward, he emphasised educational instruction suited to a child's individual needs and adopted individual/multiphase methods rather than primarily focusing on efficiency-based diagnostic methods. In a democratic society, such as the USA, it was important to establish educational placement and differentiated instruction suited to individual needs.     

肯塔基州问责考试改革对教学实践的影响

学校问责制度,要求学生、教师、学校领导和学区管理者对学生的学业成就负责,目的在于提高学生学业成就。它从问责考试入手,各州先建立考试标准,然后选定年级和学科推行州级考试,用州级标准规定的分数来衡量学生学业成就,对未达到州级标准的学校追究其责任。问责考试使课堂教学实践在三方面发生了改变:不同学科教学时间的分配;写作教学实践;数学教学实践。学校能力是问责考试影响教学实践的中介。     

师范生信息化教学技能实验室的规划与建设

随着教育信息化的发展,中小学校对教师的信息化教学技能要求越来越高,师范生面临更多的挑战。为促进师范生信息素养的培养和教学技能的全面提高,需要建设一个集实用性、多功能性、开放性于一体的信息化教学技能实验室。本文结合信息化教学技能实验室建设的实际情况,从实验室构建依据出发,充分体现"五化三性"特征,将实验室布局为多媒体教学实训区和多模块媒体实践区。通过媒体设备系统的多样化搭建与验证性、综合性、设计性实验项目的合理设计,以满足多种学科多种教学功能的需要,并为课外实践、学科竞赛提供了良好的开放学习环境,促使师范生教学技能和信息素养的不断提高。     

机械类实训室设备管理中存在的问题与对策

高等职业技术教育是一种以职业能力为基础的教育,既具有职业技术的属性,又具有高等教育的属性,其目标是培养适应生产、建设、管理、服务第一线需要的高等技术应用性专门人才。高职院校越来越重视实践教学,为了满足社会的人才需要,提高实训室设备管理对实践教学,培养技能型、实用型人才起着至关重要的作用。文章针对高职院校机械类实训室教学设备的运行管理中所存在的普遍问题,从有利于学生更高掌握实践技能;有利于健全规范管理机构,加强改进制度建设,规范设备管理;有利于培养专业化懂管理、懂设备、懂维修队伍几方面来阐述实训设备管理的对策。     

Interdisciplinary Course Design

America's unyielding academic achievement gap has been a national priority for a long time; yet, some schools have succeeded with academically disadvantaged youth. Usually, these institutions embrace a culture of success and follow an academic curriculum that is grounded in core knowledge and scholastic vocabulary. Academically disadvantaged students need school-wide programs that meet their distinct needs. These programs emphasize basic knowledge, grounded in contextual references. Students are taught to decode and comprehend domain specific and academic vocabulary. They learn skills and content that will help them achieve as successful adults. These schools are the antithesis of “mean streets.” They welcome disadvantaged students and provide the intellectual and emotional tools they need to thrive, while instilling self-discipline and hope in their pupils.     

Training School Counselors To Work with Students with Handicapping Conditions

As students with handicapping conditions have been integrated into public schools, the role of the school counselor has been expanded to meet these students' needs. As a result, counselor training programs need to be adjusted to include theory and practice in working with exceptional children. In this article the authors discuss the issue of students with handicapping conditions in public schools and provide suggestions for training school counselors.     

关于以学生为本,进一步提升初中数学教学质量的探讨

数学是初中生十分重要的一门基础性课程。本文结合作者的教学实践,提出了创设质疑情境和探索性问题情境;合理安排问题的梯度,分层教学;设置课堂标杆以满足不同层次的学生需求等多项教学改革措施,以进一步提升初中数学的课堂教学质量和提高学生的数学能力。     

Widening Our Global View: The Development of Career Counseling Services for International Students

The increased number of international students in United States universities and colleges have created the need for the development of services that appropriately reflect their needs and characteristics. The Career Center at the University of Missouri, Columbia reacted to this phenomenon by developing career services exclusively for international students. Career services are provided as individual services and online services, and consist of information on graduate schools and entrance examination practices, information on available employment opportunities and work permit policies, career assessments, and information about specific skills for obtaining a job in the United States. Several marketing strategies were used to ensure international students' use of services. Important points in developing career services for international students are presented.     

盲校教师实现专业成长路径探索

自1980年以来,国家加强对特殊教育的重视并出台更多指导特殊教育发展的法律、法规。盲校是满足视障学生需求并开展特殊教育活动的专门场所。盲校教师作为特殊教育教师,不仅需要具备普通教师的技能,还需加强对特殊教育和特殊教育学生的理解。加深对盲校课程设置的原则和策略认知从而确定教学原则和教学方法,依据专业发展途径实现教师的专业成长。     

Improvements in school climate associated with enhanced health and welfare services for students

School improvement initiatives are needed to better meet the needs of underprivileged students, to reduce underachievement and to break a continuing cycle of disadvantage. This article describes part of a school improvement initiative in New Zealand that provided additional funding for school nurse and social worker services in nine secondary schools with the most disadvantaged students in New Zealand. It describes the nature and delivery of services provided by the social workers in these schools. In addition, the article reports changes over time in staff and student views about school climate including a comparison with non-participating schools of similar socioeconomic status. The findings indicated that school climate is a useful intermediate measure of the effectiveness of school improvement initiatives. There were significant improvements in staff views about school climate over time, with staff views about school climate becoming more favourable on scales measuring Improvements in the Last 12 Months and Support for Ethnic Diversity compared to eight non-participating schools. Student views were more favourable on scales measuring Satisfaction with School, Support for Achievement and Support for Ethnic Diversity, compared to the non-participating schools.