Research Alliance for Children with Special Needs

On this Page:

Skip Table of Contents
New 2007 Publications
What is RACSN?
RACSN Final Report (FREE to download)
Measure the Impact of Research Oriented Partnerships (FREE to download)
More FREE Research Publications

New 2007 and In Press Publications

King, G., Currie, M., Bartlett, D., Gilpin, M., Willoughby, C., Tucker, M. A., Strachan, D., & Baxter, D. (2007). The development of expertise in pediatric rehabilitation therapists: Changes in approach, self-knowledge, and use of enabling and customizing strategies. Developmental Neurorehabilitation, 10(3), 225-242.

King, G., Bartlett, D., Currie, M., Gilpin, M., Baxter, D., Willoughby, C., Tucker, M. A., & Strachan, D. (2007). Measuring the expertise of pediatric rehabilitation therapists. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 54(4), 381-406.

King, G. (2007). Expertise in evidence-based clinical decision-making: Working effectively with families. Perspectives on Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 16(3), 2-7.

King, G., Currie, M., Bartlett, D. J., Strachan, D., Tucker, M. A., & Willoughby, C. (in press). The development of expertise in paediatric rehabilitation therapists: The roles of motivation, openness to experience, and types of caseload experience. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal.

Law, M., Petrenchik, T., King, G., & Hurley, P. (2007). Perceived barriers to recreational, community, and school participation for children and youth with physical disabilities. Archives in Physical Rehabilitation and Medicine, 88, 1636-1642.

Missiuna, C., Moll, S., King, S., King, G., & Law, M. (in press). A trajectory of troubles: Parents’ impressions of the impact of developmental coordination disorder. Physical & Occupational Therapy in Pediatrics.

What is RACSN?

The Research Alliance for Children with Special Needs (RACSN), based in London, Ontario, Canada, was a multidisciplinary partnership of community and university faculty researchers from the fields of education, health, mental health, rehabilitation sciences, and social sciences.

Originally formed in January 2000 with funding (2000-2003) from the Community-University Research Alliance program of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), RACSN was awarded a further two years of funding (2003-2005) from SSHRC to work towards its mandate of "Enhancing the participation of children with special needs." RACSN focused on the child, family, and environmental factors that influence children's participation in community settings of all types and aimed to enhance the life experiences of children with special needs. The Alliance disbanded in 2005 with the end of the grants.

To continue to distribute our research results, this RACSN website will continue to be available until the end of December 2008.

As the lead agency of the Research Alliance, Thames Valley Children's Centre (TVCC) is committed to continuing to produce publications (Facts To Go) about research and topics of interest. You may be interested in visiting the Research Program at the TVCC website www.tvcc.on.ca. Thames Valley is a regional rehabilitation centre for children with physical disabilities, communication disorders, and developmental needs located in London, Ontario, Canada, and serving the Southwestern Ontario region.

RACSN Final Report (available to download free)

Now available to download, FREE...the RACSN Final Report

This 70-page report outlines the creation of the Research Alliance; our structure, roles, and goals; and our accomplishments in the areas of research education and training, knowledge generation, and knowledge sharing. We have included indicators of productivity (grants obtained, projects, presentations made, etc.), the utilization of information resources and other products, and their impacts on our target audiences of service providers, university students, families of children and youth with disabilities, and researchers in the field of childhood disability.

To download a free copy of the RACSN Final Report, visit our Publications page.

Measure the Impact of Research Oriented Partnerships (available to download)

Measure the Impact of Research Oriented Partnerships

A Model of the Types of Community Impacts of Research Partnerships

We created a model that outlines three major areas of impact that correspond to the core functions of collaborative research partnerships discussed in the research literature (i.e., knowledge generation, research education and training, and knowledge sharing; see Currie et al., 2005).

To access our interactive, animated model, visit our webpage: http://www.impactmeasure.org/model.htm

The CIROP Measure

The CIROP (Community Impact of Research-Oriented Partnerships) will inform research partnerships about the amount of impact, if any, they are having on their target audiences in the areas of Knowledge Enhancement, Research Skill Development, and Information Use. This tool is designed to measure the impact of research partnerships (in the social and health service sectors) from the perspective of community members and researchers (i.e., those receiving information or services from the partnership, or those involved in the partnership).

Research partnerships wishing to evaluate their effectiveness may invite the intended users or beneficiaries of their partnerships knowledge sharing and education efforts to complete the CIROP. This instrument also will allow community stakeholders and advisory boards to capture the success of their collaborative research initiatives.

To get a FREE copy of the CIROP, visit our website: www.impactmeasure.org.

More Publications

For more FREE research publications, visit Thames Valley Children's Centre's Publications website to see the following:

Address

Research Alliance for Children with Special Needs

c/o Thames Valley Children's Centre
779 Base Line Road East

London, Ontario N6C 5Y6 Canada
Phone: 519-685-8680 Fax: 519-685-8696

See also the [Contacts] page for more contact information.