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There is strong evidence to show that beliefs about knowing and knowledge held by individuals (personal epistemologies) influence preservice teachers' learning strategies and learning outcomes (Muis, 2004). However, we know very little about how preservice teachers' personal epistemologies change as they progress through their teacher education programs. This study investigated changes in personal epistemology and beliefs about learning for a group of preservice teachers as they progressed through the four years of a Bachelor of Education degree. Preservice teachers completed the Epistemological Beliefs Survey (EBS, Kardash & Wood, 2000) when they commenced their course (Time 1) when they were in the 3rd year of their course (Time 2) and then again in the final year of their degree (Time 3). Findings indicated that there were significant changes in preservice teachers' personal epistemologies between course entry and the final year of their course across all but one of the dimensions measured. Results are discussed in terms of the implications for teaching and teacher education.

THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERvENTION programs to inclusive school settings presents a range of social challenges for children with developmental disabilities. In Queensland, in the year of transition to school, many children with developmental disabilities attend an Early Childhood Development Program for two to three days each week and also begin attendance in a mainstream program, with the latter increasing to full-time attendance during the year. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected by questionnaires regarding 62 children participating in the Transition to School Project. Their parents and teachers were asked for their perceptions of the success of the transition process and the benefits and challenges of inclusion. Both parents and teachers saw a range of benefits to children from their inclusion in 'regular' classrooms, with parents noting the helpfulness of teachers and their support for inclusion. Challenges noted by parents included the school's lack of preparation for their child's particular developmental needs, especially in terms of the physical environment, while teachers reported challenges in meeting the needs of these children within the context and resources of the classroom. Parents were more likely than teachers to view the transition as easy. Correlational analyses indicated that teachers were more likely to view the transition as easy when they felt the child was appropriately placed in a 'regular' classroom. Findings from this project can inform the development of effective transition-to-school programs in the early school years for children with developmental disabilities.

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a b s t r a c tThis large-scale longitudinal population study provided a rare opportunity to consider the interface between multilingualism and speech-language competence on children's academic and social-emotional outcomes and to determine whether differences between groups at 4-5 years persist, deepen, or disappear with time and schooling. Four distinct groups were identified from the Kindergarten cohort of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) (1) English-only + typical speech and language (n = 2012); (2) multilingual + typical speech and language (n = 476); (3) English-only + speech and language concern (n = 643); and (4) multilingual + speech and language concern (n = 109). Two analytic approaches were used to compare these groups. First, a matched case-control design was used to randomly match multilingual children with speech and language concern (group 4, n = 109) to children in groups 1-3 on gender, age, and family socio-economic position in a cross-sectional comparison of vocabulary, school readiness, and behavioral adjustment. Next, analyses were applied to the whole sample to determine longitudinal effects of group membership on teachers' ratings of literacy, numeracy, and behavioral adjustment at ages 6-7 and 8-9 years. At 4-5 years, multilingual children with speech and language concern did equally well or better than English-only children (with or without speech and language concern) on school readiness tests but performed more poorly on measures of English vocabulary and behavior. At ages 6-7 and 8-9, the early gap between English-only and multilingual children had closed. Multilingualism was not found to contribute to differences in literacy and numeracy outcomes at school; instead, outcomes were more related to concerns about children's speech and language in early childhood. There were no group differences for socio-emotional outcomes. Early evidence for the combined risks of multilingualism plus speech and language concern was not upheld into the school years.