Disability and Equity in Education Commons^™

A brief structural analysis of instructional variables assessed levels of task engagement and self-aggression behavior in a seven-year- old child with multiple disabilities. Results indicated increased levels of task-engagement and reduced levels of self-aggression as stepwise changes in treatment components occurred, validating use of structural analysis of instructional variables in the classroom setting.

In the United States, a gender gap both in achievement and retention in science continues to plague science educators. Over the last decade, a variety of strategies to close this gap have been proposed—encouraging girls to take more science classes, providing scholarship programs, mentoring promising students, and designing special programs for girls. These strategies have defined the problem as increasing girls’ interest and survival in science classes and careers. Although the achievement gap between boys and girls has narrowed, simply improving access girls’ access to science has not solved the problem totally (Shaw, 1995; Walkerdine, 1998).

By focusing specifically on …