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Efficacy of an intensive reading intervention implemented during the nonacademic summer was evaluated in children with reading disabilities or difficulties (RD). Students (ages 6-9) were randomly assigned to receive Lindamood-Bell's "Seeing Stars" program (n = 23) as an intervention or to a waiting-list control group (n = 24). Analysis of pre- and posttesting revealed significant interactions in favor of the intervention group for untimed word and pseudoword reading, timed pseudoword reading, oral reading fluency, and symbol imagery. The interactions mostly reflected (a) significant declines in the nonintervention group from pre- to posttesting, and (2) no decline in the intervention group. The current study offers direct evidence for widening differences in reading abilities between students with RD who do and do not receive intensive summer reading instruction. Intervention implications for RD children are discussed, especially in relation to the relevance of summer intervention to prevent further decline in struggling early readers.

The primary purpose of this study was to assess the educational efficacy of the pamphlet Treatment Options for Avascular Necrosis of the Hip for patients with avascular necrosis (AVN). This pamphlet was designed to provide patients with information on 3 domains: (a) basic knowledge of AVN, (b) understanding of the risk factors associated with AVN, and (c) awareness of current AVN treatment options. The sample was composed of 20 AVN patients reflecting the racial diversity of the Eastern urban academic medical center. Fourteen (70%) of the patients were aware of their AVN diagnosis, and 13 (65%) reported of having conducted research on AVN. Prior to the presentation of the pamphlet, the AVN Assessment Inventory, a 13-item true/false test assessing the three domains, was answered by the patients (see Appendix A). The principal investigator presented to the sample the educational pamphlet for their review and the AVN Assessment Inventory for their answers once again. Results of the 2 (Time: pre/post) X 3 (Domain: knowledge, risks, treatment) X 2 (Diagnosed: yes/no) X 2 (Prior research: yes/no) mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) supported the educational efficacy of the patient pamphlet Treatment Options for Avascular Necrosis of the Hip. Implications of this study are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Massachusetts Department of Youth Services (DYS), which is the state agency responsible for handling juvenile offenders committed by the courts, has undergone several stages of organizational change in the past two decades. What is unusual about this state is that none of the transformations were forced by legislative mandate, as has been the case in many other jurisdictions. Amidst widespread public controversy calling for reforms to the juvenile justice system, change in DYS was in fact steered at important junctures by key juvenile justice advocates to ensure the development of DYS's rehabilitative model, even for seriously violent offenders. This article analyzes three waves of change activity that led to the present community-based system. The article describes the techniques of political negotiation that successfully affirmed DYS's ideological priorities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]