Dr. Timothy E Morse

This book addresses fundamental topics pertaining to the design and implementation of appropriate special education services for students with exceptionalities, particularly students who are characterized as exhibiting mild disabilities. In the first several chapters, the legal basis for special education services is explained and definitions for key vocabulary are presented. Next, tiered intervention frameworks are explained, followed by an in-depth discussion of the general least restrictive environment requirement and the continuum of alternative placements. Finally, the second half of the book centers on the presentation of effective and efficient instruction. Emphasis is placed on the use of an explicit instruction approach to teach mathematics, reading, and writing. Supplemental information about proper classroom management and behavior modification is presented at the end of the book.

This intrinsic case study looks closely at one pre-service teacher in an early field program as she addressed the complexities of supporting the literacy learning of a group of students in a class for learning disabled students and a group of students in a regular class setting. Data were collected through surveys, observation notes, dialogue journal entries, videotapes of lessons, and e-mail correspondence. The inquiry portrays the pre-service teacher as a reflective practitioner with high expectations for her students' success and a high level of control regarding her capabilities as a teacher. The research also illuminates the low self-esteem and inadequate reading and writing abilities of the students in the class for learning disabled students despite 2 years of systematic phonics instruction. Implications of the research relate directly to special education policies and practices and pre-service teacher programs. (Contains 61 references.) (SM)