As many of us probably do, when I think of “evolution” I often think about other related ideas, such as natural selection, change, genes, long periods of time, speciation, interactions between living things and their environments, and lots more. There’s just a lot happening on my concept map for “evolution.” The concept of evolution is closely tied to the work of Charles Darwin, of course. See On the Origin of Species,1 for example. Darwin’s work has influenced endeavors in many domains of science, including anatomy, botany, biochemistry, ecology, theology, genetics, geology, physiology, zoolo ..read more

In a famous study about a chimp1 named Sultan, Professor Wolfgang Köhler (2018) showed the chimp solving a problem of obtaining some food. The chimp was in a space where food was hanging from the ceiling, but out of reach; there was also a box in the space and, after many unsuccessful attempts to get the food, Sultan positioned the box under the food, stood on the box, and reached it. The popular idea is that Sultan showed insight in solving the problem.2 I encourage readers to put on their SkeptiCaps (SceptiCaps, for those with a less US-centric spelling bias? Should we register these terms ..read more

Okay, dear readers, this is the 44th issue of the 3rd volume of the Special Education Today newsletter. It is the 932nd post in the history of SET. We keep getting closer to the last issue in the 3td volume year. There’re still a few issues to go, but something about the numbering makes me wonder if I messed up with it earlier—again! I have to go back and check…but first, let me get this issue completed. This week’s photos may not make everyone’s mouths water, but they surely make me salivate. I eat a lot of salsa fresca, a product I learned to make under the guidance of my mother in law, the ..read more

“Fred” has posted another edition of The FI. There are contents classified into nine clusters in “ABA this week” for 21--27 April 2024. Among the specific items in those categories to which I want to emphasize are these Effects of script-fading on social initiations during discrete-trial teaching with children with autism Training Behavior Analysts as Strategic Scientists Cultural Responsiveness in Assessment, Implementer Training, and Intervention in School, Home, and Community Settings: A Systematic Review Entrevistas Motivacionales: BOP en Español 8 con la Dra. Monica Gilbert Bria ..read more

Henry Winkler sent a message about dyslexia that deserves wide dissemination: “How you learn has nothing to do with how brilliant you are.” Mr. Winkler—yes, the actor who played “Fonzie” in the TV show Happy Days (among many celebrated roles)—used the phrase in a brief interview with Tom Carroll, a content creator with the Los Angeles Times, under the headline “The interview with Henry Winkler you literally won’t see anywhere else” that was published 20 April 2024. How you learn has nothing to do with how brilliant you are. I found the interview delightful. It was shot while the two rode thr ..read more

H. Holden Thorp, the editor in chief of Science, published an editorial entitled “Science needs neurodiversity” in the journal 25 April 2024. In the editorial he argued that scientific endeavors will benefit from recognizing the potential of neurodivergent individuals and disclosed that he has been diagnosed as autistic. Here’s the lede: All brains work differently. Individuals process information and engage with the world in ways that are influenced by a multitude of biological, cultural, and social factors. In the world of science, these differences are what spark innovation. This is why th ..read more

Parents and educators of children with disabilities may have read about questions about the diets of children. There is almost certainly a long history of such concerns: A few notable examples include the Feingold Diet that was supposed to eliminate salicylic acids that caused hyperactivity and gluten-free diets for children with autism neither of which have proved valuable (see , Kavale & Forness, 1983, and Zang et al., 2013, respectively, for reviews). Whether the children have autism, learning disabilities, attention-deficit disorder, fetal alcohol syndrome, or other problems, there are ..read more

Readers of Special Education Today know from previous posts (e.g., “Editorial: What do special educators make?”) that I recommend much higher pay for teachers. According to an article in Ed Week by Madeline Will,1 teachers share that opinion. I doubt many readers are surprised, but they may find Ms. Will’s report of interest. In “Here’s What Teachers Think Their Salaries Should Be,“ Ms. Will reported the results of one aspect of an annual survey about finance in education that asked educators what they thought teachers should make. Here’s what Ms. Will reported about the salaries for teachers ..read more

Here we have the 43rd issue of the 3rd volume of the Special Education Today newsletter. We are closing in on the last issue in this volume year. Stay tuned! I have three images for this week’s newsletter. They show UVA spots events I saw recently. I present them not as an advertisement for my former employer, but as an accompaniment to the topic I’ll discuss in this week’s commentary. From the top they are (a) the finish of a women's 1500 M heat (I did not speed that up), (b) the view from above the visitors' dugout at a baseball game; and (c) the view from centerfield at the same park during ..read more

Another edition of “Fred’s” The FI is available. There are contents classified into nine clusters in “ABA this week” for 13--20 April 2024. The categories include Scholarly publications Book publications Podcasts Blogs Licensing & professional organizations Business world Accidentally behavior analysis Continuing education Flashback As usual, there’s lots of content under each of these categories. Just skip right on over there and read the original post. The illustration for The FI Subscribe now Share ..read more