A Self-Advocacy Plan for High School Students with Learning Disabilities: A Comparative Case Study Analysis of Students', Teachers', and Parents' Perceptions of Program Effects Patricia Phillips

This qualitative study examined immediate perceived effects of a selfadvocacy plan for students with learning disabilities (LD) in a 4-year comprehensive high school The study's design was based on information-processing theory and qualitative research techniques, such as participant/observation and interviews. Subjects were 15 ninth- and tenth-grade students with LD, their parents, and their resource teachers. Participants responded to standardized open-ended interview questions upon completing the first step of the Self-Advocacy Plan. The study suggests that the SelfAdvocacy Plan is an effective program increasing students'awareness of the vocational and academic services they qualify for, clarifying their perceptions of their roles as learners and individuals with LD, increasing their understanding of LD as a condition that has certain general characteristics, and developing their awareness of career and educational opportunities. The study provides suggestions for future self-advocacy research and for special educators who wish to design programs for students with LD incorporating the concepts of psychosocial development of the individual, information-processing theory, and self-advocacy.

A

lthough the concept of consumer advocacy is infused into the service structure of Public Law 94-142, this legislation has given little direction as to when students with learning disabilities (LD) should begin to advocate for themselves. Without the attainment of separation and autonomy, the adolescent cannot be expected to achieve mature relationships, have a sense of identity that is consistent and unified over time, or be confident in the pursuit of a vocation (Erikson, 1968). Parents have always been viewed as advocates for their children, legally and socially, but that tradition is being questioned as more persons with handicapping conditions demand the right to speak for themselves. Academic programs currently designed for high school students with LD teach students how to compensate for skills deficits and how to employ learning strategies (Deshler, Schumaker, & Lenz, 1984), with the resource teacher assuming responsibility for planning, implementing, and determining adaptations needed for the program. Although this may be appropriate in early instructional 466

stages to remediate skills deficits, it does not sufficiently prepare adolescents to advocate for themselves in the adult world. Affective and cognitive roadblocks persist that can impede a student's acquisition of self-advocacy skills. Seligman (1975) conceptualized the perception and expectation of responseoutcome independence as "learned helplessness, " resulting from believing that one cannot control the outcome of a situation and from seeing no relationship between effort and changes in surroundings or attainment of goals. Various LD syndromes are also often accompanied by emotional overlays such as poor selfesteem, low motivation, and depression (Phares, 1973; Thomas, 1979). A requirement for any functioning system is that it include the capacity for self-awareness: an accurate understanding of its own properties and weaknesses (Bobrow & Norman, 1975). Students frequently do not have a complete picture of their strengths and weaknesses, which contributes even more to their learning problems (Levine, Clarke, & Ferb, 1981). Adolescents with LD are able to generate,

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in part, the demands assessment of a task and a self-assessment of strengths and weaknesses, but they lack the ability to do in-depth self-assessment because of their sparse knowledge of underlying components of clear situational demands and personal skills (Ellis, Deshler, & Schumaker, 1989). Cognitive and affective growth through mediated learning develops the cognitive operations necessary for learning independently (Feuerstein et al., 1981). If students reduce the perceived difficulty of a task by employing appropriate adaptations that they themselves have generated to their specific needs, the likelihood for success is increased. This approach enhances the student's role as control agent and increases the student's selfknowledge and awareness of the demands of the learning situation. For students who have academic postsecondary plans, the college setting presents its own unique challenges. Two thirds of young adults with LD want to continue their education beyond high school. The admissions procedure is often rigorous for students with LD, requiring interviews to evaluate motivation, goals, thinking ability, assertiveness, self-advocacy skills, self-sufficiency, awareness of academic strengths and weaknesses, preferred learning style, and understanding of the disability (Mangrum & Strichart, 1986). Students need to be prepared to express their significant learning differences to officials when applying to colleges and when pursuing an academic career. High school students with LD can succeed with the supervision of their resource teachers, but they fail in college if they are not well prepared to meet the demands of professors and the high degree of independence and academic excellence this setting demands. The author's Self-Advocacy Plan has been shown to simulate the transition from parent advocacy to self-advocacy by providing the student with practice in assuming responsibility for planning and decision making. In the plan, students work toward becoming mature learners by identifying their particular learning styles, expressing their style to others, and adapting to tasks and situations as required. The activities taking place at each step of the plan follow. Step 1 begins at the planning and Journal of Learning Disabilities

placement team (PPT) meeting for transition to high school. Parents are given a short explanation of the plan, and parents and students are given a written booklet that describes the plan in greater detail and includes final goals and objectives. This is important, because effective learners are cognizant of the end product of a learning activity (Brown, Bransford, Ferrara, & Campione, 1983). Students then may indicate willingness to participate. Three to 5 weeks into the first marking period of the ninth grade, a case meeting is scheduled for the student with all of the classroom teachers and the resource teacher. The student is required to be present but need not be active in the discussion. The resource teacher presents a summary, prepared with the student's help, of the student's strengths and weaknesses and suggests necessary classroom modifications. A brief conference is held with the student afterward to review perceptions and feelings about the meeting. Throughout the entire Self-Advocacy Plan the resource teacher is a mediator of learning, rather than a remedial educator. According to Feuerstein (1980), a mediator of learning is a supportive other (parent, grandparent, teacher, sibling, counselor, etc.) interposed between the learner and the environment who intentionally influences the interaction. This is the principal means by which children develop cognitive operations necessary for learning independently, and it involves the resource teacher in framing, selecting, focusing, and providing feedback on environmental experience in such a way as to create an appropriate learning set. The student is perceived as a novice in this learning situation (Borkowski & Cavanaugh, 1979; Campione* Brown, 1978; Feuerstein, 1980; Sabatino, Miller, & Schmidt, 1981). At the start of the second marking period, students are asked to participate in the learning disabilities seminar, which meets once per week for 10 weeks under the coleadership of a counselor and a resource teacher. Participants receive no high school credit for the seminar. Topics for discussion include: 1. The concept of a learning disability 2. Information about specific learning disabilities

3. School and social relations issues that relate to learning disabilities 4. Specific learning strengths and weaknesses of participating students 5. People who have a learning disability and have succeeded in careers 6. Legislation regarding learning disabilities (P.L. 94-142 and Rehabilitation Act 504) 7. The availability of postsecondary assistance 8. Responsibilities of the Division of Rehabilitation Services On-site visits to colleges are planned to reinforce the content of the topics under discussion in the group and so that high school students can meet with support personnel and college students receiving support services. When students understand the applicability of what is to be learned, transfer and generalization are more likely to take place (Brown, 1978; Brown et al., 1983; Flavell, 1983). Adults with LD are asked to speak during the seminar and share their early failures and successes. Overall, the LD seminar helps students gain accurate knowledge and/or understanding of themselves and the nature of LD (Bobrow, 1975). Several weeks after the seminar is over, students are organized into small groups to focus on and discuss their learning styles and strategies. They are required to keep learning logs, which consist of personal observations of what works for their learning in class and what strategies have been less successful, and to fill out a learning style inventory. These activities allow the students to identify their strengths and weaknesses and focus on how they think and learn. They raise students' self-awareness and help them to acquire explicit knowledge of their own cognitive resources (Baker, 1982; Brown et al., 1983; Hagen & Huntsman, 1971; Levine et al., 1981). The information becomes very useful for the student when he or she attends the annual PPT meeting and is encouraged to actively participate as much as possible, using a prepared student report form. By implementing newly acquired learning in the context of the school setting, the student relates what is learned to the total school experience (Rogers, 1969). Step 2 begins in the 10th grade, with

the resource teacher's review of students' strengths and weaknesses. Students develop outlines describing their particular learning styles. Case meetings are held with the student 3 to 5 weeks into the first quarter. This year most students play an active role by stating their own strengths and weaknesses to the teachers. In the second marking period, students participate in a career awareness seminar with other students with LD. Tenth grade activities emphasize career exploration tasks such as taking vocational interest inventories and job shadowing. Career exploration courses may be offered in the mainstream, but these courses often present the same reading, writing, and general coping problems that make survival in the other content area courses difficult (Smith, 1983). Students synthesize information to help them plan for the future by looking at planned courses, extracurricular activities, and summer employment that relate to newly acquired career information. The synthesizing helps ensure compatibility of programming efforts and student needs. This information is useful at PPT meetings, when students plan their academic courses for future years. Step 3 begins in 11th grade. Students compare each teacher's teaching style with their learning styles and try to identify with the resource teacher when their styles are in conflict. Students then set up individual conferences with certain teachers to discuss possible adjustments or modifications in classroom procedures or expectations. Students keep records of these meetings, which are documented in the PPT file. The students must state how they function as learners and describe any modifications needed in the classrooms. The resource teacher often uses role playing to prepare them for these negotiations. Step 4 is a developmental one. Some students demonstrate, through observed behavior, their ability to self-evaluate and to decide why and if they need to use the resource room and for what purpose. After maintaining at least average performance in all major academic subjects, they are eligible to request an individual education plan (IEP) that states that they will have access to the resource room on a consulting or "as needed" basis. As with other steps in the Self-Advocacy Plan, 467

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resource teachers of the first step of a systematic, planned program teaching students to self-advocate in the natural setting of a comprehensive high school. Formal data collection covered an 8month time span, beginning October METHOD 1987 and continuing through May 1988. The study used qualitative data collection Participants and analysis methods in which the inThe sample population was composed vestigator conducted standardized, openof 15 adolescents with LD (13 male and ended interviews during April and May 2 female). The students' ages ranged 1988 with students, resource teachers, from 13 years 8 months to 16 years 2 and parents. All interviews were audiomonths, with a mean age of 15 years 3 taped and a written transcription was months. They were all white, middle made for each. For reliability, all interclass students in a predominantly white, viewees were given summaries of their middle class school district. The full-scale responses a week later and asked to comIQ range for the group was 87 to 121 ment on their content and accuracy. Data (mean IQ = 105.2). Seven of the students were coded in relation to the research had been retained for one year in elemen- questions. Coded data were clustered and tary school. Eleven had attended the analyzed for emerging themes, patterns, same school system since kindergarten. or explanations (Bogdan & Biklen, 1982). The participants were identified as hav- Additional data included field notes of ing LD by a planning and placement the students' personal records and PPT team (PPT) under the following criteria files. The researcher as participant/ob(from P.L. 94-142): (a) a discrepancy of server facilitated the collection of obserat least 1 standard deviation between in- vational and ancedotal data. To validate tellectual ability and academic achieve- student perception of program effects, ment; (b) a difference between ability and the researcher used the interviews of the achievement due to a disturbance involv- resource teachers and parents, content ing a basic psychological process; and (c) analyses of the transcriptions for the LD learning problems not caused by such seminar, document analysis, and particiconditions as deprivation, blindness, or pant/observer field notes. mental retardation. All of the students were performing from 1 to 2.5 standard deviations below the mean in one or RESULTS more academic areas. Most had problems with written expression and spell- 1. Has participation in the plan affected ing. The participating adults were three students' knowledge of services they resource teachers directly serving the might qualify for or their rights under students, and the parents (n = 15) of all federal law? the students chosen for the study. Students had received special education serThe answer to this question was yes. vices from 0 to 11 years. The mean num- Observational data recorded by the reber of years of service through special searcher at each student's annual PPT education was 7. At the time of the study meeting (May 1988) showed that all stu2 subjects had just been identified as hav- dents participating in the study requested ing LD and the other 13 had received ser- classroom modifications for the school vices for a minimum of 5 and a maxi- program. A comparison between classmum of 11 years. The school records did room modifications in 1987 and 1988 not indicate that any of the students ex- showed that resource teachers and parhibited overriding emotional difficulties. ents requested, on an average, 1.5 class-

Step 4 may not be the only component of the IEP; students may have additional goals and objectives.

Procedure This qualitative study investigated the perceptions of students, parents, and

room modifications per student in 1987 (such as extended time for reading assignments or provision of a quiet setting for tests), whereas in 1988 students themselves requested an average of 3.6 classroom modifications per student. In an

interview, students were given two hypothetical problems to solve that tapped into their knowledge of services they qualified for or their rights under federal law: Imagine that you require from the regular education teacher, a college professor, or an employer modifications for taking a test or examination, and these aren't followed through with. What might happen? Imagine that your family moved to California in the middle of the school year. You have to enroll in a new school. You arrive and meet your new guidance counselor. The problem is that none of your school records have arrived yet and they need to put you in classes. What would happen? Fourteen of the 15 students were able, in both the high school setting and the settings of college or work, to generate at least one realistic solution. Rating the quality of the solutions, the researcher found that 11 of the 15 students offered them with moderate to good detail. Global problem-solving strategies (any statement related to generating solutions to a problem) were categorized and rated as follows: Positive ( +): Definite solution presented, for example, "See my counselor or resource teacher." Negative ( - ) : No solution presented. Ratings: 1 = No reality and no solution. 2 = Realistic solution with one or more alternatives and no detail (e.g., "I wouldn't finish the book" "I would ask for extended time"). 3 = Realistic solution with moderate detail and one or more alternatives. Self-disclosure and reference to rights may be included: "I would tell my counselor to put me in B-level classes and that I need a tutor's help in the resource room." 4 = Realistic solution with good detail and offering two or more alternatives. Self-disclosure and reference to rights may be included (e.g., "I would tell you and my teacher what the problem was and see what you or she could do. The teacher could give me another book to read that's not as difficult, or I could have someone in my family read to me"). 2. Has participation in the plan affected students' perceptions of themselves as individuals with LD and their perceptions of the nature of LD?

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rated "optimistic" when students indi- fected their children in any way. Five of cated that a person with LD could hold the 15 parent responses were rated posiany career without qualification, such as tive (statements such as "I can give an un"I can do anything." Nine of the 15 qualified 'Yes' for that"), and 10 were students stated that persons with LD, rated neutral (statements such as "It's when considering a career, might have to hard for me to say"). The parental redo some personal evaluation or might sponse with the highest frequency (7 of have to devise some strategies for the job the 15 responses) was in the area of makif their learning disability interfered, for ing decisions and taking responsibility. example, "There are not restrictions on Four of the parents perceived the effects jobs. As long as modifications were in of the program to be in the area of confidence and acceptance of self, although place you could hold any job." Observational data recorded by the they were unsure whether to attribute researcher at the students' annual review students' confidence to the plan or to PPT meetings (May 1988) showed that maturation factors. This ambivalence all students agreed to updated academic may have been due to the parents' limited and psychological testing when the PPT involvement in any part of the plan's imsuggested that this information would plementation. Other answers reflected facilitate further career and vocational perceptions of changes in terms of an inImagine that you are enrolled in the one- planning (if they chose to apply for ser- crease or development on the part of the semester Issues course at school. This course vices from the Division of Rehabilitation students in talking and communicating covers topics of interest to students, and at Services or to self-identify as a college their needs to adults and classroom the start of the class students write down what applicant with LD). teachers. Four of the parents reported a they are particularly interested in and want change regarding their roles at the PPT discussed. One topic is handicapped people. The classroom teacher knows you are a stu- 4. How do students perceive the effects meeting as a result of their children takdent with a learning disability and asks you of the SelfAdvocacy Plan on themselves? ing more active roles in advocating for to talk about learning disabilities in general their own needs. and what it means to have one. What would When students were asked how parhappen? ticipation in the Self-Advocacy Plan af- 6. How do resource teachers view the efResponses to this question showed that fected them, 8 of the 15 were able to cite fects of the Self-Advocacy Plan on their 13 of the 15 students agreed to self- the following specific benefits: increased students? disclose to their peers by sharing infor- ability to speak to others, increased mation regarding their learning disability. knowledge of how to improve themselves, All of the resource teachers' responses When asked what they would say, 5 of increased ability to think about things were positive. Responses with the highest the students were able to describe certain differently, improved understanding of frequency concerned students' increased generalized characteristics of the popula- the special education process, and a more ability to speak to others, increased tion. Ten of the students related LD positive attitude toward the future. When understanding of how LD affects them, specifically to their specific strengths and students were asked what they would tell and increased ability to accept criticism an incoming eighth-grade student about and change behavior. Other answers reweaknesses. the plan, their answers reflected benefits flected benefits in terms of increased con5. Has participation in the plan affected in the following areas: increasing their fidence, responsibility, motivation, ability students* awareness of career and educa- ability to understand themselves, making to try new things, understanding of the things easier and more fun in school, special education process, realization that tional opportunities? learning about college and the law, help- there are many others with LD, and Participation in the Self-Advocacy ing students have a say in what happens strengthening of self-advocacy skills. Plan did appear to affect students' aware- in school, and making plans for the funess of these opportunities. At the PPT ture. The two responses with the highest meeting following Step 1 of the Self- frequency, each given by 5 of the 15, DISCUSSION Advocacy Plan, 5 of the 15 students were increased ability to understand themdemonstrated high school course plan- selves and helping students have a say in In an overall comparison of resource ning beyond the coming school year to what happens in school. teacher, parent, and student responses, help achieve their career and vocational all 3 resource teachers, 10 of the 15 stugoals. During their post-LD seminar in- 5. How do parents perceive the effects dents, and 5 of the 15 parents indicated terviews, 13 of the students were able to of the Self-Advocacy Plan on their that they had perceived positive change. generate specific career and/or voca- children? Students developed the knowledge of sertional goals, and 14 were optimistic revices they qualified for in high school garding the ability of persons with LD Parents were asked during their inter- and were able to ask for those services. to have any career goal. Statements were views if participation in the program af- They could generate realistic and detailed The answer to this question was also yes. At the start of the LD seminar students were asked what their best and worst subjects in school were, and why. They were able to identify the subjects but were not able to give reasons. In the final interview at the end of Step 1, students were again asked the same question and were all able to attribute success or failure in a subject to something either intrinsic to themselves or something outside of themselves, such as the content demands of the subject or the classroom teacher's style. During this interview students were also given hypothetical situations to solve that dealt with specific areas of learning weakness, such as:

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solutions to hypothetical high school and post-high-school situations, and could tell appropriate adults that they had LD. Students showed increased knowledge of themselves as learners and could attribute success or failure in school subjects to internal or external factors. The results support the concept and design of the Self-Advocacy Plan as a potentially effective approach to affecting students' knowledge of services they qualify for, their perceptions of themselves as learners and individuals with LD, their understanding of LD as a condition that has certain general characteristics, and their awareness of career and education opportunities. The study, although a positive effort, should be viewed as formative due to these limitations: the single middle class setting, the small number of subjects, the absence of replication and long-term study, and the qualitative research design. There are several important implications for future research and for special educators who wish to design programs for students with LD that consider psychosocial development. The Self-Advocacy Plan appears to be a feasible method of increasing a student's level of awareness of the law, the special education process, and the ways both can work for him or her in securing more meaningful and effective services. Students' participation as members of the PPT meetings and their collaboration in creating and managing their own IEPs with the resource and classroom teachers may contribute to their sense of identity and sense of competence as learners. Acceptance of students as contributing members of the PPT implies that changes are needed in the traditional roles that parents, resource teachers, and counselors perform with relation to the student. Successful implementation of the SelfAdvocacy Plan in the high school setting, from the investigator's point of view, can be attributed to the following: (a) resource teachers having a thorough understanding that their traditional roles of remedial educators became roles of mediators of learning, (b) the principal supporting the concept from the start, and (c) classroom teachers being brought into the plan from the beginning, through small department meetings and being asked for specific feedback regarding

IEP goals and implementation. The program took 2 years to implement, giving all involved a chance to accept the innovation. Students who required additional practice and instruction for the SelfAdvocacy Plan received this from resource teachers, and students were always given the option to discontinue participation at any time. Since the study, some unexpected outcomes have been observed and recorded by the researcher. When the LD seminar was offered, two regular education students asked if they also could attend because of their interest in the subject of learning differences. Two students who completed the program wrote research papers on LD for regular education classes. Several high school juniors and seniors volunteered to speak to students with LD who were entering from the junior high school about the Self-Advocacy Plan and how it had worked for them. One lOth-grade student wrote a composition for her English class on her experiences, and it included the following passage: I am receiving the best gift anyone could ask for. This is not a gift like a present, but it is something more special. I have been going to the resource room ever since I was little. When I first started going, I did not want anyone to know why I was leaving the room. I always thought if you went to this awful room you were stupid! But this is not true. I realized that a lot of people go to the resource room, and they are far from stupid. Also, I thought I was taking up the teachers' time and bothering them, but this is also not true. I have received this gift for years, and now I finally don't care who knows and who doesn't know. Although classroom teachers' perceptions of the Self-Advocacy Plan were not measured, the teachers offered no resistance to the implementation of classroom modifications when students negotiated them in a conference setting. The issue of classroom teachers working with selfadvocating special education students in the regular classroom setting has implications for future research. In summary, the Self-Advocacy Plan appears to be an effective transition plan that addresses unique issues facing adolescents with LD who are about to enter the postsecondary world. Additional research is needed to examine the longterm effects of the entire program to see

if skills developed and used by the students are generalized. ABOUT THE

AUTHOR

Patricia Phillips is a special education administrator with the East Lyme, Connecticut, school district. She received her PhD in educational leadership from The University of Connecticut in 1988 and has taught students K-12 with learning disabilities for 18 years. Address: Patricia Phillips, East Lyme High School, PO Box 210, East Lyme, CT 06333. REFERENCES Baker, L. (1982). An evaluation of the role of metacognitive deficits in learning disabilities. Topics in Learning & Learning Disabilities, 2(1), 27-35. Bobrow, D.G. (1975). Dimensions of representation. In D.G. Bobrow & A. Collins (Eds.), Representation and understanding: Studies in cognitive science (pp. 1-34). New York: Academic Press. Bobrow, D.G., & Norman, D.A. (1975). Some principles of memory schemata. In D.G. Bobrow & A. Collins (Eds.), Representation and understanding: Studies in cognitive science (pp. 131149). New York: Academic Press. Bogdan, R., & Biklen, S. (1982). Qualitative research for education. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Borkowski, J.G., & Cavanaugh, J.C. (1979). Maintenance and generalization of skills and strategies by the retarded. In N.R. Ellis (Ed.), Handbook of mental deficiency: Psychological theory and research (pp. 569-611). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Brown, A.L. (1978). Knowing when, where, and how to remember: A problem of metacognition. In R. Glaser (Ed.), Advocates in instructional psychology (Vol. 1, pp. 77-165). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Brown, A., Bransford, R., Ferrara, R., & Campione, J. (1983). Learning, remembering, and understanding. In H. Flavell & EM. Markman (Eds.), Carmichaels manual of child psychology (Vol. 1, pp. 77-166). New York: Wiley. Campione, J.C, & Brown, A.L. (1978). Toward a theory of intelligence: Contributions from research with retarded children. Intelligence, 2, 279-304. Deshler, D.D., Schumaker, J.B., & Lenz, B.K. (1984). Academic and cognitive interventions for learning disabled adolescents: Part I. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 17, 108-117. Ellis, E„ Deshler, D., & Schumaker, J. (1989). Teaching adolescents with learning disabilities to generate and use task-specific strategies. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 22, 108-119. Erikson, E. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. New York: Norton. Feuerstein, R. (1980). Instrumental enrichment: An intervention program for cognitive modifiability. Baltimore: University Park Press. Feuerstein, R., Miller, R.t Hoffman, M., Rand, Y., Mintzker, Y., & Jensen, M. (1981). Cognitive modifiability in adolescence. The Journal of Special Education, 15, 269-287. Journal of Learning Disabilities

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The Journal of Special Education, 15, 125-144. Flavell, J.H. (198J). Cognitive monitoring. In W.P. Mangrum, C, & Strichart, S. (1986). Guide to colleges with programs for learning disabled children. Seligman, M. (1975). Helplessness. San Francisco, Dickson (Ed.), Children's oral communication CA: W.H. Freeman. Princeton, NJ: Peterson's Guides. skills (pp. 35-59). New York: Academic Press. Hagen, J.W., & Huntsman, N.J. (1971). Selective Phares, E.J. (1973). Locus of control: A personality Smith, C. (1983). Learning disabilities: The interacdeterminant of behavior. Morristown, NJ: Gention of learner, task, and setting. Boston: Little, attention in mental retardation. Developmental eral Learning Press. Brown. Psychology, 5, 151-160. Thomas, A. (1979). Learned helplessness and exLevine, M., Clarke, S., & Ferb, T. (1981). The child Rogers, C. (1969). Freedom to learn. Columbus, OH: Merrill. pectancy factors: Implications for research in as a diagnostic participant: Helping students Sabatino, D., Miller, P., & Schmidt, C. (1981). Can learning disabilities. Review of Educational Redescribe their learning disabilities. Journal of intelligence be altered through cognitive training? search, 49(2), 208-221. Learning Disabilities, 14, 527-530.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION CONVENTION CALENDAR October 3, 1990 • Collaboration in the Schools Training Institute sponsored by the Institute for Learning and Development and Association for Educational and Psychological Consultants • Austin, Texas • Contact: Institute for Learning and Development, 2201 N. Lamar, Suite 207, Austin, TX 78705; 512/482-0744 October 4-6, 1990 • 12th International Conference on Learning Disabilities • Austin, Texas • Contact: CLD, PO Box 40303, Overland Park, KS 66204; 913/492-8755 October 12-13, 1990 • 1990 PROPEL Workshop: "Learning Disabilities: Social and Behavioral Ramifications" • Litchfield, Connecticut • Contact: PROPEL Workshop Director, Forman School, Litchfield, CT 06759; 203/567-8712 October 13, 1990 • "Learning Disabilities in the Decade of the Brain," A Symposium Sponsored by Tufts University • Boston, Massachusetts • Contact: Tufts University School of Medicine, Office of Continuing Education, 136 Harrison Ave., Boston, MA 02111; 617/956-6579 October 18-20, 1990 • 1990 CECs Multicultural Symposium • Albuquerque, New Mexico • Contact: CEC, 1920 Association Dr., Reston, VA 22901; 703/264-9448

House Square, Bowling Green, OH 43402; 419/354-9010

November 14-17, 1990 • 13th Annual Conference of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children • Anchorage, Alaska • Contact: Thomas W. Sileo, University of Alaska Anchorage, School of Education, Special Education Program, 3211 Providence Dr., Anchorage, AL 99508; 907/786-1778

October 31-November 3, 1990 • Mid-South Regional Conference on Psychology in the Schools • Nashville, Tennessee • Contact: Ernest L. Thomas, PhD, 5153 North Hill Dr., Jackson, MS 39211; 601/956-1481 October 31-November 3, 1990 • The Orton Dyslexia Society Annual Conference • Washington, DC • Contact: Rosemary Bowler or Cindy Scruggs, 724 York Rd., Baltimore, MD 21204; 301/296-0232 November 1-2, 1990 • Learning Disabilities of Minnesota, 22nd Annual Conference • Minneapolis, Minnesota • Contact: Susan M. Hayes, 1821 University Ave., Suite 494N, St. Paul, MN 55014; 612/646-6136 November 1-3, 1990 • 19th National Conference on Physical Activity for the Exceptional Individual • Sacramento, California • Contact: Marlene Donahue-Gandy; 916/722-5611 November 9-14, 1990 • National Council on Family Relations, 52nd Annual Conference • Seattle, Washington • Contact: 3938 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550, Minneapolis, MN 55421.

October 20-24, 1990 • Internationa] Early Childhood Conference on Children with Special Needs • Albuquerque, New Mexico • Contact: CEC, 1920 Association Dr., Reston, VA 22091; 703/620-3660

November 12-13, 1990 • Harvard University's Sixth Annual Conference, "Learning Disorders: Focus on Strategies" • Cambridge, Massachusetts • Contact: Learning Disorders Conference, Harvard Graduate School of Education, 339 Gutman Library, Cambridge, MA 02138; 617/495-3572

October 21-24, 1990 • The National Association of Pupil Service Administrators, 25th National Conference • Cincinnati, Ohio • Contact: Douglas Garman, Wood County Office of Education, #1 Court

November 14-17, 1990 • National Association of Social Workers, Social Work *90 • Boston, Massachusetts • Contact: Beth Ledford, 7981 Eastern Ave., Silver Spring, MD 20910; 301/565-0333

November 28, 1990 • College for Learning Disabled Students: Preparation and Options • New York, New York • Contact: Georgeann duChossois, 566 LaGuardia Place #701, New York, NY 10012; 212/ 998-4980 December 6-8, 1990 • The Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 17th Annual Exhibit Show • Chicago, Illinois • Contact: TASH, 7010 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115; 206/523-8446 December 13-14, 1990 • First International Symposium on Brothers and Sisters: Research on Sibling Relationships and Therapeutic Applications • Leiden, the Netherlands • Contact: PAOS, PO Box 325, 2300 AH Leiden (the Netherlands); (0)71-143141, FAX (0)71-140145 January 4-6, 1991 • Fourth Meeting of the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement • Cardiff, Great Britain • Contact: Lisa Parle, School of Education, University of Wales College of Cardiff, Cardiff, Great Britain; 44/222 874000 ext. 5333 January 18-19, 1990 • "Prenatal Drug Exposure: The Challenge to Education" • Oakland, California • Contact: Betty Henry, California Association of School Psychologists, 180 El Camino Real, Suite 5, Millbrae, CA 94030.

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