The education of children with special educational needs in England

In the last few years, the Warnock Report and the 1981 Education Act have had a major effect on the education of children with special educational needs in English schools. This paper discusses the main points of the Report and the subsequent legislation and then takes examples of three local educational authorities — Leicestershire, Coventry, and Barnsley — to illustrate the range of responses that have been made. Although there is obvious overlap, the three approaches are rather different in emphasis and illustrate the ways in which an educational system based on local autonomy can respond to proposals and legislation made at national level.

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Zusammenfassung Der Warnock Report und das Schulgesetz von 1981 haben an englischen Schulen erheblichen Einfluß auf die Erziehung von Kindern ausgeübt, die einer Sonderschulerziehung bedürfen. Der vorliegende Artikel behandelt die in dem Warnock Report hervorgehobenen Schwerpunkte und die daraus hervorgegangene Gesetzgebung. Um die Verschiedenartigkeit der Reaktionen aufzuzeigen, werden Beispiele von drei kommunalen Erziehungsbehörden (local education authorities) aus Leicestershire, Coventry und Barnsley angeführt. Trotz offensichtlicher Überschneidungen unterscheiden sich die drei o.a. Ansätze in ihrer Akzentuierung; sie zeigen, wie ein auf lokaler Autonomie basierendes Erziehungssystem auf Vorschläge und Gesetzgebung reagieren kann, die auf nationaler Ebene Gültigkeit haben sollen.

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Résumé Au cours des dernières années, le rapport Warnock et la Loi de 1981 sur l'Education ont eu une répercussion remarquable sur l'éducation des enfants ayant des besoins éducatifs spéciaux en Angleterre. Cet article traite les principaux points du rapport et de la législation subséquente et cite en exemples trois autorités éducatives locales — Leicestershire, Coventry et Barnsley — pour illustrer les différentes réponses qui ont été données. Bien que les trois approches se chevauchent clairement, elles se focalisent sur des points plutôt différents, et illustrent les façons dont un système éducatif basé sur une autonomie locale peut répondre aux propositions et à la législation émanant du niveau national.

     

Sequences of reward magnitude and runway performance

Three groups of rats underwent 24 days of training and 12 days of extinction (three trials per day) in a runway under conditions of increasing (I), decreasing (D), and random (R) sequences of reward magnitudes (0, 45, and 500 mg). The I Ss ran faster over the daily trials, the D Ss slowed down, and the R Ss ran at approximately equal speeds on each trial. The patterned running observed in training persisted in extinction, with the R Ss running fastest and the I Ss next. The results were discussed in terms of Capaldi’s sequential theory and Amsel’s frustration theory.     

Curriculum Lessons from Europe?

Next year Britain will enter the Single European Market. This may encourage greater alignment of special educational legislation here with the laws in other member countries. Roger Merry, senior lecturer in education, School of Education, Leicester University, asks what lesson can be learned from practice in Europe, especially in relation to the National Curriculum.     

A COMPARISON OF FACTORS INFLUENCING ISSUE DIVERSITY IN THE U.S. AND TAIWAN

The study extends agenda-setting research by examining issuediversity as a consequence of media exposure. Results from twosurveys—one conducted in the United States, the otherin Taiwan—illustrate differences in the cultures of thetwo samples. In general, older individuals who find low utilityin advertising information but who read a variety of newspapersand feel a strong civic duty to keep informed believe thereare many important issues facing the United States. Younger,highly educated individuals who have a high interest in politicalnews and who read a variety of newspapers believe there aremany important issues facing Taiwan.