ABSTRACT
General educators, special educators, and classmates without disabilities were surveyed at the end of the first year that middle-school students with severe disabilities were integrated into general education classes in two suburban midwestern communities. Results of this preliminary study revealed many benefits for educators and students. Educators and classmates concurred that positive outcomes, particularly in the area of perceived social competence, were realized by the students with severe disabilities. Acceptance of these students by classmates was considered to have increased substantially. Educators felt the general class integration experiences were positive for themselves and for students, although there were differences in perspectives between general and special educators.
Subject(s)
Disabled Persons , Education, Special , Mainstreaming, Education , Adolescent , Curriculum , Female , Humans , Male , Peer Group , Social EnvironmentABSTRACT
Effects of age difference in dyadic relationships where one child was severely mentally retarded and the other was nonretarded were investigated. Interactions of 53 dyads were behaviorally coded in two situations: a free-play context and a teaching context. Behavioral data, teacher's reports, and nonretarded children's self-reports suggested that relationships were most balanced, symmetrical, fun, and engaging when partners were closer in age. The behavioral results were strongest in the teaching situation. These effects were discussed with respect to the obvious asymmetry implicit in relationships between children with very different levels of competency.
Subject(s)
Child Development , Intellectual Disability/psychology , Interpersonal Relations , Peer Group , Adolescent , Age Factors , Child , Child, Preschool , Education of Intellectually Disabled , Female , Humans , Mainstreaming, Education , Male , Play and Playthings , Social Adjustment , Social BehaviorABSTRACT
The impact of teachers' verbal interventions upon the dyadic social interactions between 40 elementary school children with severe mental retardation and their regular-education peers was investigated. All interactions occurred in the context of a structured program designed to facilitate social interactions. Half of the dyads were further instructed in specific cooperative play behavior. Students' and teachers' behaviors were coded. Results showed that the intervention initially positively affected various social play behavior; however, these effects diminished or reversed themselves as the intervention continued. The possibility was discussed that early teacher intervention may improve interactions between peers with and without severe handicaps but should be withdrawn over time, allowing students to resolve interpersonal difficulties on their own.
