26:T432,

This article describes a follow-up study that experimentally evaluated the effects of supplemental reading instruction for children in kindergarten through Grade 3. Students from 10 elementary schools in three school districts were screened using the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills. Two hundred fifty-six K—2 students were identified for participation, then randomly assigned to receive or not receive 2 years of supplemental reading instruction that taught basic decoding and comprehension skills. Reading ability was measured in the fall prior to the first year of the intervention and again in the spring of Years 1, 2, and 3. At the end of the 2-year intervention, children who received the supplemental instruction performed better on measures of word attack, word identification, oral reading fluency, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. One year after the intervention, children in the supplemental instruction group still showed greater improvement in word attack and oral reading fluency than the comparison students.

27:T40d,

This study examined the degree to which parents are informed about syndrome-based behaviors in children with three genetic mental retardation syndromes: Down syndrome (n = 21), Prader-Willi syndrome (n = 25), and Williams syndrome (n = 21). Parents were informed regarding blatant behavioral features associated with their children's syndromes (especially concerning maladaptive behaviors) but were less informed about certain subtle syndrome-based cognitive processing outcomes. Compared to the parents of children with the other two syndromes, parents of children with Down syndrome were more informed about syndrome-related behaviors; in addition, greater numbers of individuals (e.g., parents, school psychologists, teachers, speech—language pathologists) brought information about children with Down syndrome into the classroom setting. Across all three groups, the supportive educational services received by the children were generally not adjusted to syndrome profiles.

28:T41d,

From a larger sample of field-tested mathematics production response items, 11 were selected that individually (a) differentiated between high and low achievers on a general math achievement test, (b) measured a mathematical concept rather than a procedure, and (c) were conducive to the creation of alternate forms of the items. This math concept curriculum-based measure (CBM) was administered to 171 students in eighth grade. Scores were correlated with scores from a computer adaptive test (CAT) designed in conjunction with the state to approximate the official statewide mathematics achievement test. Correlations for general education students (r = .80; n = 90) and students with learning disabilities (r = .61; n = 81) were high. Regression analysis showed that relatively few of the 11 items were needed to predict CAT scores. Implications for students with learning disabilities, who traditionally receive little instruction in conceptual understanding, are discussed.