Class placement and academic and behavioral variables as predictors of graduation for students with disabilities

Dropout rates impacting students with high-incidence disabilities in American schools remain staggering (Bost, 2006; Hehir, 2005). Of this group, students with Emotional Behavioral Disorders (EBD) are at greatest risk. Despite the mandated national propagation of inclusion, students with EBD remain the least included and the least successful when included (Bost). Accordingly, this study investigated the potential significance of inclusive settings and other school-related variables within the context of promoting the graduation potential of students with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) or EBD. This mixed-methods study investigated specified school-related variables as likely dropout predictors, as well as the existence of first-order interactions among some of the variables. In addition, it portrayed the perspectives of students with SLD or EBD on the school-related variables that promote graduation. Accordingly, the sample was limited to students with SLD or EBD who had graduated or were close to graduation. For the quantitative component the numerical data were analyzed using linear and logistic regressions. For the qualitative component guided student interviews were conducted. Both strands were subsequently analyzed using Ridenour and Newman’s (2008) model where the quantitative hypotheses are tested and are later built-upon by the related qualitative meta-themes. Results indicated that a successful academic history, or obtaining passing grades was the only significant predictor of graduation potential when statistically controlling all the other variables. While at a marginal significance, results also yielded that students with SLD or EBD in inclusive settings experienced better academic results and behavioral outcomes than those in self-contained settings. Specifically, students with SLD or EBD in inclusive settings were found to be more likely to obtain passing grades and less likely to be suspended from school. Generally, the meta-themes yielded during the student interviews corroborated these findings as well as provided extensive insights on how students with disabilities view school within the context of promoting graduation. Based on the results yielded, provided the necessary academic accommodations and adaptations are in place, along with an effective behavioral program, inclusive settings can be utilized as drop-out prevention tools in special education.

Class Placement and Academic and Behavioral Variables as Predictors of Graduation for Students with Disabilities

Dropout rates impacting students with high-incidence disabilities in American schools remain staggering (Bost, 2006; Hehir, 2005). Of this group, students with Emotional Behavioral Disorders (EBD) are at greatest risk. Despite the mandated national propagation of inclusion, students with EBD remain the least included and the least successful when included (Bost). Accordingly, this study investigated the potential significance of inclusive settings and other school-related variables within the context of promoting the graduation potential of students with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) or EBD. This mixed-methods study investigated specified school-related variables as likely dropout predictors, as well as the existence of first-order interactions among some of the variables. In addition, it portrayed the perspectives of students with SLD or EBD on the school-related variables that promote graduation. Accordingly, the sample was limited to students with SLD or EBD who had graduated or were close to graduation. For the quantitative component the numerical data were analyzed using linear and logistic regressions. For the qualitative component guided student interviews were conducted. Both strands were subsequently analyzed using Ridenour and Newman’s (2008) model where the quantitative hypotheses are tested and are later built-upon by the related qualitative meta-themes. Results indicated that a successful academic history, or obtaining passing grades was the only significant predictor of graduation potential when statistically controlling all the other variables. While at a marginal significance, results also yielded that students with SLD or EBD in inclusive settings experienced better academic results and behavioral outcomes than those in self-contained settings. Specifically, students with SLD or EBD in inclusive settings were found to be more likely to obtain passing grades and less likely to be suspended from school. Generally, the meta-themes yielded during the student interviews corroborated these findings as well as provided extensive insights on how students with disabilities view school within the context of promoting graduation. Based on the results yielded, provided the necessary academic accommodations and adaptations are in place, along with an effective behavioral program, inclusive settings can be utilized as drop-out prevention tools in special education.

Investigating the influence of achievement on self-concept using an intra-class design and a comparison of the PASS and SDQ-1 self-concept tests

Background. The formation and measurement of self-concept were the foci of this research. Aims. The study aimed to investigate the influence of achievement on academic self-concept and to compare the Perception of Ability Scale for Students (PASS, Boersma & Chapman, 1992) with the Self-Description Questionnaire-1 (SDQ-1, Marsh, 1988). Sample. The participants were 479 grade 5 (mean age 126.6 months) coeducational Australian students, located in 18 schools. Method. An intra-class research design was used to investigate the influence of frame-of-reference on self-concept development. Results. As students' academic scores rose above their class mean their self-concepts increased and as students' academic scores fell below their class mean their self-concepts decreased. Students' difference from class mean predicted their self-concept scores. This finding was consistently shown across the reading, spelling, and mathematics domains using test and teaching rating data. A comparison between the PASS and the SDQ-1 demonstrated concurrent validity across self-concept domains. Conclusion. The findings support the notions that the social environment is a significant agent that influences self-concept, and that teacher ratings and standardised tests of achievement and the PASS and the SDQ-1 are valid measures for self-concept research.

CID alumni from 1986-1990: relation of performance at graduation to present class placement

This paper discusses a study to determine the relationship between the performance of a child prior to leaving CID and their performance in the current school setting.

Spectral gap for Glauber type dynamics for a special class of potentials

We consider an equilibrium birth and death type process for a particle system in infinite volume, the latter is described by the space of all locally finite point configurations on Rd. These Glauber type dynamics are Markov processes constructed for pre-given reversible measures. A representation for the ``carré du champ'' and ``second carré du champ'' for the associate infinitesimal generators L are calculated in infinite volume and for a large class of functions in a generalized sense. The corresponding coercivity identity is derived and explicit sufficient conditions for the appearance and bounds for the size of the spectral gap of L are given. These techniques are applied to Glauber dynamics associated to Gibbs measure and conditions are derived extending all previous known results and, in particular, potentials with negative parts can now be treated. The high temperature regime is extended essentially and potentials with non-trivial negative part can be included. Furthermore, a special class of potentials is defined for which the size of the spectral gap is as least as large as for the free system and, surprisingly, the spectral gap is independent of the activity. This type of potentials should not show any phase transition for a given temperature at any activity.

A note on the eigenvalues of a special class of matrices

In the analysis of stability of a variant of the Crank-Nicolson (C-N) method for the heat equation on a staggered grid a class of non-symmetric matrices appear that have an interesting property: their eigenvalues are all real and lie within the unit circle. In this note we shall show how this class of matrices is derived from the C-N method and prove that their eigenvalues are inside [-1, 1] for all values of m (the order of the matrix) and all values of a positive parameter a, the stability parameter sigma. As the order of the matrix is general, and the parameter sigma lies on the positive real line this class of matrices turns out to be quite general and could be of interest as a test set for eigenvalue solvers, especially as examples of very large matrices. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Solvability near the characteristic set for a special class of complex vector fields

This work deals with the solvability near the characteristic set Sigma = {0} x S-1 of operators of the form L = partial derivative/partial derivative t+(x(n) a(x)+ ix(m) b(x))partial derivative/partial derivative x, b not equivalent to 0 and a(0) not equal 0, defined on Omega(epsilon) = (-epsilon, epsilon) x S-1, epsilon > 0, where a and b are real-valued smooth functions in (-epsilon, epsilon) and m >= 2n. It is shown that given f belonging to a subspace of finite codimension of C-infinity (Omega(epsilon)) there is a solution u is an element of L-infinity of the equation Lu = f in a neighborhood of Sigma; moreover, the L-infinity regularity is sharp.

Making citizens of the mentally limited; a curriculum for the special class,

Bibliography at end of each chapter except the first two.

Class Placement and Academic and Behavioral Variables as Predictors of Graduation for Students with Disabilities

This study investigated the impact of specified variables related to academic history, behavioral history, and availability of inclusive systems as potential risk factors for dropouts, impacting students with disabilities. Results indicated that a successful academic history was the only significant predictor of graduation potential when statistically controlling all the other variables.

Inclusive education: exploring teachers' perspectives /

This study explores 5 teachers' perspectives on inclusive education. The literature reviewed gives a historical background of special education as well as discusses a number of current methods and techniques that have been implemented as a means to include exceptional students in regular classroom settings. This is a qualitative study that collected and interpreted data in narrative form. Common themes emerged from the accounts that were shared by the participants. This study found that the understanding of mUltiple intelligences and differentiated instruction might assist a teacher to better meet the needs of exceptional students within inclusive classrooms. Based on this study, it is determined that a range of considerations needs to be weighed when choosing an educational placement for a student with an exceptionality. Each decision needs to be based on the individual student and the options open to himlher. When a decision about class placement is to be made, not only are the student's strengths and needs to be considered, but also the school and community, the teacher, and the parents' desire for their child must be taken into account. More work still needs to be done around inclusive education that is at the practical level, so that the needs of both the student and the teacher can be met. Inclusive education did not mean the same thing to each person. It was individualized, just as each student is an individual and what works best for himlher is individual. In learning about inclusive education, settings and strategies need to be considered to allow for each individual student to achieve hislher personal best.

Composition and invertibility for a class of generalized functions in the Colombeau's theory

In this work we define the composite function for a special class of generalized mappings and we study the invertibility for a certain class of generalized functions with real values.

On the parameters of the Lewis metric for the Lewis class

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Composition for a class of generalized functions in Colombeau's theory

In Colombeau's theory, given an open subset Ω of ℝn, there is a differential algebra G(Ω) of generalized functions which contains in a natural way the space D′(Ω) of distributions as a vector subspace. There is also a simpler version of the algebra G,(Ω). Although this subalgebra does not contain, in canonical way, the space D′(Ω) is enough for most applications. This work is developed in the simplified generalized functions framework. In several applications it is necessary to compute higher intrinsic derivatives of generalized functions, and since these derivatives are multilinear maps, it is necessary to define the space of generalized functions in Banach spaces. In this article we introduce the composite function for a special class of generalized mappings (defined in open subsets of Banach spaces with values in Banach spaces) and we compute the higher intrinsic derivative of this composite function.

WW domain-mediated interactions reveal a spliceosome-associated protein that binds a third class of proline-rich motif: The proline glycine and methionine-rich motif

Pre-mRNA splicing requires the bridging of the 5′ and 3′ ends of the intron. In yeast, this bridging involves interactions between the WW domains in the splicing factor PRP40 and a proline-rich domain in the branchpoint binding protein, BBP. Using a proline-rich domain derived from formin (a product of the murine limb deformity locus), we have identified a family of murine formin binding proteins (FBP’s), each of which contains one or more of a special class of tyrosine-rich WW domains. Two of these WW domains, in the proteins FBP11 and FBP21, are strikingly similar to those found in the yeast splicing factor PRP40. We show that FBP21 is present in highly purified spliceosomal complex A, is associated with U2 snRNPs, and colocalizes with splicing factors in nuclear speckle domains. Moreover, FBP21 interacts directly with the U1 snRNP protein U1C, the core snRNP proteins SmB and SmB′, and the branchpoint binding protein SF1/mBBP. Thus, FBP21 may play a role in cross-intron bridging of U1 and U2 snRNPs in the mammalian A complex.

Bacterial Killing Via A Type Iv Secretion System.

Type IV secretion systems (T4SSs) are multiprotein complexes that transport effector proteins and protein-DNA complexes through bacterial membranes to the extracellular milieu or directly into the cytoplasm of other cells. Many bacteria of the family Xanthomonadaceae, which occupy diverse environmental niches, carry a T4SS with unknown function but with several characteristics that distinguishes it from other T4SSs. Here we show that the Xanthomonas citri T4SS provides these cells the capacity to kill other Gram-negative bacterial species in a contact-dependent manner. The secretion of one type IV bacterial effector protein is shown to require a conserved C-terminal domain and its bacteriolytic activity is neutralized by a cognate immunity protein whose 3D structure is similar to peptidoglycan hydrolase inhibitors. This is the first demonstration of the involvement of a T4SS in bacterial killing and points to this special class of T4SS as a mediator of both antagonistic and cooperative interbacterial interactions.