This paper reports on the use of the Q sort technique as a method for identifying the Special Education Service needs of primary schools. Use of the Q sort technique has provided planners associated with the Box Hill Special Education Unit (Victoria) with an empirical base for decision making. Through the use of Q sort, principals and teachers in the Inspectorate have become aware of the services offered by S.E. U. units and have become actively involved in selecting the special education services suited to the needs of their schools. As a result of the systematic identification and analysis of need, S.E.U. consultants in the area have been able to plan their activities, assured that the services they offer are appropriate to their clients’ needs.

The present study investigated the sources of referral of young children placed in Junior Special Classes. It was found that more than half of the children were referred by kindergarten or classroom teachers. These results were discussed in the light of (i) overseas findings; (ii) the need for special education content in teacher training courses; and, (iii) providing practising teachers with a checklist for ascertaining which children require detailed assessment.

Nearly all applications of computer assisted instruction have utilized the conventional keyboard as the input/output device for the computer. This has a limiting effect on which areas of education can be supplemented by computerised techniques. This paper describes applications of computer assisted instruction in handwriting and number conservation using special interactive devices which have been designed for teaching these skills. In addition, it outlines evaluative studies which have demonstrated significant improvements in the skills being taught. The broader implications of this work, especially with respect to how education might best utilize computer technology, are also discussed.

A behaviour management flowchart is presented which outlines a format for trainers to follow when attempting to teach a non-compliant child an educational task. The content of the flowchart emphasises that management techniques should be viewed as complementary to structural learning approaches, such as precision teaching, and not as strategies independent of the teaching context.

The term ‘diagnostic teaching’ as used by Lerner is discussed. Most published material using this strategy concentrates on pupils and teachers in elementary schools. But diagnostic teaching procedures are possible in secondary schools and this paper presents an example of such teaching in a Year 9 English class. The particular girl in the study had a listening problem. One year of carefully structured teaching could not eliminate the years of failure that preceded this teaching, but sufficient progress was recorded to illustrate the value and possibilities of diagnostic teaching at the secondary level.