Data from current studies of the grief process experienced by parents whose children have disabilities have been incorporated with the results of observations of 130 parents from two support groups to develop a visual representation of this process. The current model is useful in working with parents to facilitate their movement through stages of the grief process into more functional behavior. Behaviors from the traditional models of grief are organized into clusters for a conceptualization that will aid professionals in its use as a counseling tool with families of children with disabilities. Implications drawn from the grief cycle for use with parents and other family members are described including the full range of interactions in this model. These interactions make it unnecessary for the professional to view the parent or family members as dysfunctional.
In recent years there have been calls to improve the interfacing of regular education and special education (Greenburg, 1987). Some of the advocates have proposed a merging of special education and regular education into one system (Lilly, 1986; Stainback & Stainback, 1984; Will, I 984, I 985). It is hard to look at the special education delivery systems and the legal concept of least restrictive environment and not to see that special and regular education are two parts of a system that must have a close working relationship and be more unified than they have been before. The purpose of this article, however, is not to debate the merits of the regular education initiative, or the interfacing of regular and special education. Instead we will look at one of its cornerstones, analyze• the problems inherent in its application, and express our concerns about its widespread implementation. BACKGROUND As Assistant Secretary of Education, Madeline Will has been the torch bearer for this movement. Will (1984, 1985) articulated the need for regular education and special education to be combined, with the local school principal being empowered as the instructional leader. Robson (in Greenburg, 1987) has suggested that this arrangement already has been approached in the job roles of principals. Will introduced her proposal for the Regular Education Initiative in speeches and in journal articles. Further, she established policy, including a National Task Force to Advance the Regular Education Initiative, to facilitate the interfacing of special education and regular education. Among its members is Margaret Wang. Although Will is generally considered to be the initiator of the concept, the influence of Wang and her associates, as revealed in the literature, was paramount in shaping Will's thinking. In fact, Wang's Adaptive Learning Environment Model (ALEM) is central to Will's regular education initiative movement (Wang & Reynolds, 1985). Development of the model was funded by both the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation and the National Follow Through Program (dealing with the education of disadvantaged children).
In the face of the epidemic increase in school age children who attempt or commit suicide, this article addresses the preparation of future teachers for fulfilling their legal responsibilities in that area. We describe the parameters of the legal responsibility teachers face when threats or attempts of suicide occur. We then draw implications and make specific suggestions about how to address those implications in schools and in teacher education.
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