Disability and Vocational Rehabilitation in Rural Settings


Book Description

This first-of-its-kind textbook surveys rehabilitation and vocational programs aiding persons with disabilities in remote and developing areas in the U.S. and abroad. Contributors discuss longstanding challenges to these communities, most notably economic and environmental obstacles and ongoing barriers to service delivery, as well as their resilience and strengths. Intersections of health, social, structural, and access disparities are shown affecting rural disabled populations such as women, racial and sexual minorities, youth, and elders. In terms of responses, a comprehensive array of healthcare and health policy solutions and recommendations is critiqued with regard to health, employment, and service effectiveness outcomes. Included among the topics: Healthcare initiatives, strategies, and challenges for people with disabilities in rural, frontier, and territory settings. Challenges faced by veterans residing in rural communities. The Asia and Pacific region: rural-urban impact on disability. Challenges after natural disaster for rural residents with disabilities. Meeting the needs of rural adults with mental illness and dual diagnoses. Capacity building in rural communities through community-based collaborative partnerships. Disability and Vocational Rehabilitation in Rural Settings makes a worthy textbook for graduate students and upper-level undergraduates in the fields of social work, community and environmental psychology, public health, sociology, education, and geography. Its professional audience also includes vocational rehabilitation counselors serving these dynamic populations.







A Collaborative Approach to Transition Planning for Students with Disabilities


Book Description

A Collaborative Approach to Transition Planning for Students with Disabilities is designed to inform aspiring special education teachers, special education teams, transition planning specialists and school administrators about the complex process of transition planning and to meet the transition requirements of special education legislation. Author Dr. JoAnn Rae has been in the field of special education for 34 years, in service as a special education teacher, special education administrator, teacher certification supervisor and as college faculty. The framework she outlines is specially designed to advance students’ involvement and participation in their lives, not only in the presence of the most severe sensory and intellectual disabilities, but also in the case of multiple disabilities. Unique scenarios not typically seen in other textbooks, such as IEP team disagreements, students with terminal illnesses, students with ill or overworked parents or students living in poverty are also explored. The text also includes: Descriptions of research-based practices to maximize students’ self-determination, autonomy, goal setting and ability to have successful life experiences Opportunities to integrate knowledge with practice by providing strategies that relate to the real-life difficulties students and transition planning specialists may encounter Easy-to-replicate communication tools, such as letters to students and parents, as examples to enhance collaboration Methods for teachers to effectively promote and increase student involvement and collaboration by using structured and interactive interviews A Collaborative Approach to Transition Planning for Students with Disabilities reflects the universal challenges that teachers, families and finally, the students themselves face, as they progress through school with a disability. For students with disabilities, the key component to successful transition planning is creating a collaborative atmosphere that allows them to be successful. This book promises to serve as an essential resource to all who are dedicated to that goal.




Cultural and Social Diversity and the Transition from Education to Work


Book Description

This edited volume provides multidisciplinary and international insights into the policy, managerial and educational aspects of diverse students’ transitions from education to employment. As employers require increasing global competence on the part of those leaving education, this research asks whether increasing multiculturalism in developed societies, often seen as a challenge to their cohesion, is in fact a potential advantage in an evolving employment sector. This is a vital and under-researched field, and this new publication in Springer’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training series provides analysis both of theory and empirical data, submitted by researchers from nine nations including the USA, Oman, Malaysia, and countries in the European Union. The papers trace the origins of business demand for diversity in their workforce’s skill set, including national, local and institutional contexts. They also consider how social, demographic, cultural, religious and linguistic diversity inform the attitudes of those seeking work—and those seeking workers. With clear suggestions for future research, this work on a topic of rising profile will be read with interest by educators, policy makers, employers and careers advisors.




Handbook of Special Education


Book Description

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 13-part, 57-chapter handbook is to help profile and bring greater clarity to this sprawling and growing field. To ensure consistency across the volume, chapter authors review and integrate existing research, identify strengths and weaknesses, note gaps in the literature, and discuss implications for practice and future research. Key features include: Comprehensive Coverage—Fifty-seven chapters cover all aspects of special education in the United States including cultural and international comparisons. Issues & Trends—In addition to synthesizing empirical findings and providing a critical analysis of the status and direction of current research, chapter authors discuss issues related to practice and reflect on trends in thinking. Categorical Chapters—In order to provide a comprehensive and comparative treatment of the twelve categorical chapters in section IV, chapter authors were asked to follow a consistent outline: Definition, Causal Factors, Identification, Behavioral Characteristics, Assessment, Educational Programming, and Trends and Issues. Expertise—Edited by two of the most accomplished scholars in special education, chapter authors include a carefully chosen mixture of established and rising young stars in the field. This book is an appropriate reference volume for anyone (researchers, scholars, graduate students, practitioners, policy makers, and parents) interested in the state of special education today: its research base, current issues and practices, and future trends. It is also appropriate as a textbook for graduate level courses in special education.




Community-based Instruction


Book Description

This guide is intended to provide teachers of student with disabilities with resources, ideas, and procedures in implementing community-based instruction (CBI). The first chapter defines CBI, explains its importance, differentiates CBI from field trips, discusses appropriate CBI participants and stakeholders, and reviews the research on CBI. Chapter 2 focuses on expectations for CBI including expected outcomes, expectations for students, expectations for families, expectations for communities, and how expected outcomes of CBI respond to school reform issues. The following chapter considers procedures for program implementation including 10 steps to utilizing CBI, CBI sites for older students, and necessary resources and support systems. Chapter 4 considers the school and classroom component of CBI such as application of the general curriculum and alternative curriculum approaches and the transition portion of the Individualized Education Program. The following chapter focuses on development of independence and self-determination skills as well as natural environments for CBI and transfer of skills from classroom to community. Chapter 6 addresses issues concerned with evaluation of CBI programs, noting important evaluation questions and how to use assessment information to show accountability. The last two chapters focus on maintaining and generalizing community skills and the dynamics of community-based instruction, respectively. Appendices include a variety of sample forms. A CD-ROM containing the appendix files is also included.(Individual chapters contain references.) (DB).




Inclusive Education


Book Description

A comprehensive look at inclusion, this book provides success stories by administrators and teachers who have found that inclusion is the be st way to meet the least restrictive environment needs of their studen ts. Complete with checklists, in-service materials, and pre- and post- evaluation methods, this detailed guide will help you meet student nee ds in a way that complements the educational, fiscal, and legal outloo ks--as well as the attitudes--of your school division.




Book of Majors 2013


Book Description

An in-depth look at the top 200 college majors and a guide to 3600 colleges offering any or all of these programs.




Educating One and All


Book Description

In the movement toward standards-based education, an important question stands out: How will this reform affect the 10% of school-aged children who have disabilities and thus qualify for special education? In Educating One and All, an expert committee addresses how to reconcile common learning for all students with individualized education for "one"â€"the unique student. The book makes recommendations to states and communities that have adopted standards-based reform and that seek policies and practices to make reform consistent with the requirements of special education. The committee explores the ideas, implementation issues, and legislative initiatives behind the tradition of special education for people with disabilities. It investigates the policy and practice implications of the current reform movement toward high educational standards for all students. Educating One and All examines the curricula and expected outcomes of standards-based education and the educational experience of students with disabilitiesâ€"and identifies points of alignment between the two areas. The volume documents the diverse population of students with disabilities and their school experiences. Because approaches to assessment and accountability are key to standards-based reforms, the committee analyzes how assessment systems currently address students with disabilities, including testing accommodations. The book addresses legal and resource implications, as well as parental participation in children's education.




Book of Majors 2014


Book Description

The Book of Majors 2014 by The College Board helps students answer these questions: What's the major for me? Where can I study it? What can I do with it after graduation? Revised and refreshed every year, this book is the most comprehensive guide to college majors on the market. In-depth descriptions of 200 of the most popular majors are followed by complete listings of every major offered at more than 3,800 colleges, including four-year and two-year colleges and technical schools. The 2014 edition covers every college major identified by the U.S. Department of Education—over 1,200 majors are listed in all. This is also the only guide that shows what degree levels each college offers in a major, whether a certificate, associate, bachelor's, master's or doctorate. The guide features: • insights—from the professors themselves—on how each major is taught, what preparation students will need, other majors to consider and much more. • updated information on career options and employment prospects. • the inside scoop on how students can find out if a college offers a strong program for a particular major, what life is like for students studying that major, and what professional societies and accrediting agencies to refer to for more background on the major.