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The environments of most young children present many opportunities for learning. However, preschoolers who have severe motor disorders are frequently unable to explore the world around them. Project Participate addressed the problems presented by the limitations placed on the activities of preschoolers who have severe motor disorders. During the course of this project a decision model and guidelines for interventions designed to enhance the ability of these children to participate actively in their educational programs were developed. Interventions to increase child participation in the areas of play with preschool materials, communication, social interaction, and mobility are described. The results of the evaluation of the project are presented. These findings indicate that this project was well received by educational personnel and the interventions that were used significantly increased active involvement by preschoolers with disabilities. Dissemination and staff training activities are described. In addition, training materials, including guidelines for implementing interventions to increase child participation are provided. (Author)

An instructional methods survey of full-time faculty at five midwestern colleges and universities was conducted during the fall of 1978 in an effort to provide both a description of current instructional practices and an historical perspective on their development over the last quarter century. The survey consists of a list of 42 method items including teaching methods, standards for evaluation of student performance, and 15 types of tasks. Results concerning methods of teaching and grading used by approximately 1,000 faculty are discussed in the context of institutional and disciplinary perspectives and are compared to the results of a similar survey of midwestern and southwestern institutions published in 1954. Results indicate that institutional size is not related to the rank order or frequency of use of the different teaching and grading methods. However, disciplinary affiliation was moderately influential on order and frequency of use of instructional practices. Discipline-associated trends involving the sciences and education faculty are discussed. Relationships between teaching methods and evaluation standards are also described. The most frequently used teaching methods in the current survey were similar to those indicated in the results of the 1954 survey. A comparative analysis of results from these two surveys is included. The survey methodology, results, and questionnaire are appended. (SF)

The Verbal Measure of Information Rate (VMIR) is a measure of information rate which reflects the elements, features, and changes in a complex environment. Subjects rated 14 bipolar adjective pairs to indicate an appropriate description of the learning situation or information load (simple-complex, novel-familiar). The measure was administered to undergraduates in a four-unit experimental course entitled "Learning Analysis." Each unit presented a different subject and teaching method: speech (experiential learning); mathematics (peer discovery); physics (lecture-demonstration); and English (open classroom). Students rated the last week of each of the four units, and again rated all four units during the final exam. Statistical analyses were conducted for evidence of group consensus in the ratings, as well as consistency of individual ratings over time. The results demonstrated that the students were able to describe the environmental load of a classroom in a consistent and logical manner, and suggested that the VMIR may be better used in a comparative framework than for rating a single environment. (Author/JAC)