An alternative model of special education teacher education socialization

The process of organizational socialization sheds light on the difficulty of a university program to effectively socialize its special education teacher candidates into believing and acting on theories of inclusion for students with disabilities in public schools. In general, people are socialized by prior experiences, then the university, then the workplace. In this case, the workplace socialization exists prior to participation in the university setting and in conjunction with it potentially complicating traditional university socialization. This study explores how prospective special education teachers in a moderate/severe special education teacher credential program adopt, adapt, and redefine the concept of inclusion. An analysis of their use of the term “inclusion” in semi-structured interviews draws attention to the degree to which they have or have not been socialized into believing and acting on inclusion at their schools.     

Institutional separation in schools of education: Understanding the functions of space in general and special education teacher preparation

The purpose of this spatial study is to understand the function space play in a combined credential program in the US in helping or hindering the program’s inclusive mission. The study examines how physical and social manifestations of general and special education are (re)organized in the new program. The data provides evidence for the pervasive separation between general and special education within the new program. This study points to the importance of examining space in relation to teacher education reform as a way to highlight where policy, institutional, programmatic, physical, and pedagogic changes are needed to support inclusive teacher preparation.     

Enhancing quality: Listening to participant voices to improve our Master's program in special education

Newly inducted special education teachers must be well-prepared to address changes in today's schools, including increased student diversity, implementation of tiered systems of support, and the need for increased collaboration with general education teachers and specialists. The purpose of this qualitative study was to develop and implement a data-based continual improvement approach to identify the strengths of our special education Master's program and address changes needed to ensure that graduates are ready to engage with the demands of their chosen profession. Using data gathered from 24 recent graduates and 20 field mentors, we describe our model and what we have done with our results over two years. An important finding is that our students greatly value the relationships they form during the program and the relationships the faculty model, and participants attribute our graduates' skills in collaboration to our program's modeling of collaborative processes and positive relationships. Implications for effective approaches to continuous improvement of special education teacher preparation programs are discussed.     

Sustaining and retaining beginning special educators: It takes a village

The need to support and retain beginning teachers has become critical given: (1) the shortage of teachers in certain disciplines, and (2) the current emphasis on teacher qualifications and student achievement. In this study, five first year special education teachers in the southwestern section of the United States provided information on the persons and activities that supplied them with much needed and valued support. The results indicate that having a strong network of support and a variety of resources positively influenced these teachers’ ability to focus on student learning and on their intent to remain in their positions.     

The use of evidence-based instructional strategies in special education settings in secondary schools: Development,implementation and outcomes

The lack of effective training and an inability to maintain fidelity are two major barriers to implementing evidence-based practices in schools. This study examined the level of implementation of evidence-based practices by teachers after they participated in a unique training program aimed at enhancing the use of evidence-based practices. The results indicate that five months posttraining, 62% of the evidence-based strategies had been implemented and these levels were maintained 13-months posttraining. While the level of exposure to students of the evidence-based practices was low, significant longitudinal improvements in reading and levels of inclusion were documented.     

Mind the gap: accountability,observation and special education

There is an absence of observation-based tools designed to evaluate teaching in special education classrooms. Evaluations derived from classroom observations are integral to the accountability process, adding value to understanding teaching and learning by providing a lens into the classroom that test scores cannot capture. The present paper systematically examined existing classroom observation tools, identifying constructs measured and noting elements unique to special education classrooms. Results demonstrate that most extant tools tap into three primary categories of teacher behaviours, but overlook the role paraprofessionals play as well as teacher professional behaviours. Taken together, results reflect the need for a tool designed specifically for special education classrooms. Limitations and implications for practice and policy are discussed.     

The quality of special education for students with special needs in ordinary classes

Teachers and the school psychological services were asked to assess the quality of educational programmes offered to students who were found eligible for special education in Norway and who attended ordinary classes. Adequacy and equity of the programmes and an assessment of social inclusion were used as indicators of quality and as dependent variables. Financial resources, centrality of residence of the students, presence of physical restrictions, availability of teaching materials, grade level, class size and students’ disabilities were used as independent variables. The results showed that resources made available by the municipalities had an impact on equity as well as adequacy. This was also found for the availability of teaching materials, which had a significant impact on the quality of the programmes. A significant relationship between the three dependent variables and grade level was found as quality decreased with grade level. Special problems with equity as well as adequacy of the programmes offered to students with moderate to severe problems in reading, writing and arithmetic, and for students with psychosocial problems, are reported. Although the students scored low on social inclusion as assessed by the teachers, the parents reported that most of them thrived well or very well at school.     

The identification by teachers of special educational needs in primary school pupils and factors associated with referral to special education

This paper addresses the identification of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream primary schools by their teachers. Data were analysed from two consecutive measurement occasions of a large cohort study in the Netherlands. The types and severity of pupils’ problems, and their school careers were studied. Around 25% of the pupils were considered by their teachers to have SEN. Results show that a substantial percentage of pupils who had been identified with SEN at the first measurement occasion were not identified with SEN three years later, whereas the same percentage had not been identified with SEN at the first occasion but was at the second occasion. Significant predictors of being identified with SEN include results from skills tests, and the teacher’s views on the pupil performing below expectations, having a less favourable attitude to work, being less popular with classmates, and being more dependent on the teacher. In addition, boys are more likely to be identified with SEN in comparison to girls. Cognitive impairment and/or delayed cognitive development proved to be the most influential predictor of referral to special education. In addition, chances of a pupil being referred to special education are influenced by several other pupil characteristics. Implications of these outcomes are discussed.     

Development of a formative peer observation protocol for STEM faculty reflection

Abstract

Faculty peer observation has seen increasing uptake in recent years, in some cases as an alternative or supplement to student teaching evaluations. While many universities encourage faculty peer observation, it is not widely used in a formal way for formative assessment. This article outlines the development of a new faculty peer observation protocol designed for formative assessment of evidence-based educational practices. The goal of the protocol is to foster reflective teaching practices. The peer observation protocol has been designed to mitigate common faculty fears of classroom observation, with detailed assessment methods for specific topic areas. Preliminary testing of the protocol at one university indicated positive faculty outcomes with regard to personal reflection: all the faculty who tested the protocol reported that the observation process had been helpful for them to reflect on their teaching.     

General, special and … inclusive: Refiguring professional identities in a collaboratively taught classroom

In implementing inclusive education, special educators frequently collaborate with general educators in various settings. How does such collaborative practice complicate the configuration of their professional identities? This paper uses the framework of figured world ( Holland, Lachiotte, Skinner, &; Cain, 1998) to scrutinize the practice of one special educator, Stephanie. Alternatively assuming both subordinate and lead positions within a collaborative teaching team, Stephanie refigured her professional identity and practice contingently, initiating a trajectory of change that extended to “out-of-classroom” spaces ( Clandinin &; Connolly, 1996). Stephanie’s improvisations in this process index the significance of teachers’ authorial spaces in the implementation of inclusive education.     

Exploring the participation and agency of students with special education needs in a Macau-Chinese secondary school

The research explores the perceptions of five secondary school students with special education needs (SEN) about their participation in learning, group membership, and agency within an inclusive school in Macau SAR. This goal is achieved by using students' voices documented in open-ended interviews and is underpinned by the conceptual framework of heutagogy. The aim is to shed light on students' perceptions on school effectiveness in supporting their needs through successful participation and agentic possibilities. Findings showed that students were more prone to social rejection and being isolated or bullied than their peers. They were struggling to feel included or participate, their needs were only partially being met, and they had few opportunities to exert influence on their educational trajectories. Recommendations are provided to assist educators and schools in enhancing students with SEN to connect to the learning process and community, with the provision of appropriate learning adjustments and more active approaches to ensure their acceptance by mainstream students, including the formation of coaching peers to assist in developing social and academic skills under teacher's scaffolding practices. This study highlights the contribution of the heutagogical perspective to advance research on the participation and agency of students with SEN in mainstream schools.     

The aims of special education schools and units in Kenya: a survey of headteachers

The paper reports a questionnaire survey of headteachers of special schools and special units in Kenya, focusing in particular on their educational aims. The study is located in the broader context of special educational provision and developments in Africa. These include the colonial legacy, the influence of indigenous and traditional concepts of education and disability, and national policies engaging with issues of curriculum and inclusion. The aims the headteachers said were important were wide-ranging and included conventional academic achievement, personal and social development and citizenship, alongside skills of personal care and the control of difficult behaviour. However, the relative emphasis given to different aims suggests that the importance of traditional aims of special education in terms of control, containment and care still outweigh those of a broad and balanced educational provision. Surprisingly, there was relatively little emphasis on the importance of preparation for employment. The analysis suggests that although there have been rapid developments in the provision for special educational needs in Kenya, there remains a gap between the ambitions of national policy and actual provision at school level.     

Questioning special needs-ism: Supporting student teachers in troubling and transforming understandings of human worth

This paper is offered to spark discussion about teacher educators' contestation of ‘special needs’ ideology, to disrupt discriminatory thinking that diminishes educational opportunities for labeled students. Following discussion of the overarching purpose of education and evidence of the tenacity of special needs-ism, I explore multidisciplinary pedagogical tools that may facilitate engagement with student teachers, to trouble and transform hegemonic beliefs. These include notions of dysconsciousness, critical consciousness, threshold concepts, and pedagogies of discomfort, all of which highlight the role of emotion in realizing new understandings. Recognizing the inherent human worth of all students is considered fundamental in addressing educational inequities.     

Special education pre-service teachers' interest,subject knowledge,and teacher efficacy beliefs in mathematics

Teacher efficacy beliefs is an important characteristic to predict instructional quality and the level of cognitive activation and educational support. Since teacher efficacy beliefs are context and domain specific, this study focuses on how special education pre-service teachers' individual interest and subject knowledge in mathematics predict their efficacy beliefs in teaching mathematics. Data were collected from 57 special education pre-service teachers. The results indicated that the individual interest of pre-service teachers has a strong effect on teacher efficacy beliefs, while subject knowledge has only an indirect effect.     

Soft and hard variables in determining pre‐service teachers' intentions and decisions to pursue a special education career

This study examined the roles of hard variables and soft variables in determining college teachers' intentions to pursue a special education career and education majors' actual decisions to major in special education. This study surveyed 243 college students taking special education courses at a state university, including 213 education majors. The survey questions included four blocks of variables, pertaining to demographics, training and work experience, soft variables (i.e., personal connections to people with disabilities, personal value and commitment and perceived social support) and hard variables (i.e., estimated salary, workload, professional development opportunities and job security). Results suggest that (1) after controlling for other variables, hard factors such as salary did not add significant contributions to college students' intention or education majors' actual action to pursue a special education career; (2) soft variables, such as value, commitment to special education and perceived social support, significantly predicted college students' intention to pursue a special education career, but did not significantly influence education majors' actual decision to choose a special education program, and (3) workloads significantly affect education majors' decisions making decisions of enrolling in a special education program. Implications are discussed about the importance of enhancing soft‐variable aspects of working conditions for special education recruitment and retention.     

Attachment security and the school experience for emotionally disturbed adolescents in special education

Adolescents with disabilities are at increased risk for school failure, and those in special education as the result of emotional disturbances consistently have the highest dropout rate of any disability. This paper discusses the importance of feelings of security in relationships for these adolescents and the results of a study designed to determine the effects of these feelings on their educational experience. The impact of several relationships in the home and school life on the school experience of the emotionally disturbed adolescent is explored. These relationships include those with mother, father, teachers, social workers/therapists and peers. All of these figures are potentially ‘secure bases’ for adolescents, providing the experience of emotional safety necessary to engage in the challenges of the academic environment. The resources need to be provided to enhance feelings of emotional safety in the school setting, including the services of social workers and other mental health professionals.     

Entrepreneurship education: motivation and effort for pupils with special needs in Norwegian compulsory school*

Pupil enterprises are a widespread type of entrepreneurship education. In this working method, pupils start up, manage and close a business over short period of time. National and international policy documents claim that practical working methods through the use of pupil enterprises are beneficial to increase motivation by being a realistic and cross-curricular approach. This paper investigates whether this is the case for pupils who receive special education. No previous research has focused on the situation for this group of pupils when working with pupil enterprises. The data are collected from a survey with the participation of 1880 pupils in the 10th grade. Our econometric results indicate that participation in pupil enterprises has no particular impact on motivation or effort for pupils receiving special needs education. Even though there are many positive features with pupil enterprises and they offer a practical and realistic way of learning, we do not find evidence to support that pupil enterprises also have a positive effect on the general school motivation and effort. Thus, the political claim of the practical dimension as a solution to increase motivation for learning in school is not supported by our findings.     

Promoting inclusive education in secondary school in Norway: a national programme for teacher development

There is a great need in many countries for extended and new teacher competence to meet the challenges of inclusive education. This paper presents a national programme for developing new teacher competence in secondary schools in Norway. The programme was developed and implemented during the 1990s, its aim being to start a continuing process in schools directed at promoting inclusive education and improving the quality of education for pupils with special educational needs. Further, the paper presents some findings from a national survey of 2240 teachers and school administrators in 104 schools one year after the implementation of the programme. The survey partially replicated a survey carried out before the programme started. The purpose was to give an overall picture of the situation with respect to teacher competence in special needs and inclusive education, and the impact of the competence building programme on teacher practice, and to identify possible system changes in schools.     

Speechlessness,anxiety, and confusion in a teacher education student group

The aim of the study was to explore the tensions, as experienced by student teachers, in a teacher education program that is based on psychodynamic theory. Previous research shows that students have had orientation problems in innovative university studies because it involves students having to take steps toward their discomfort zone. It was therefore considered important to study the mismatch or match of the training model and student experiences. The data were gathered through student interviews. The data analysis utilized a case study methodology and proceeded from thematic network analysis toward a deeper interpretation of the data. The analysis shows students struggle to understand the meaning and practices of psychodynamic-oriented pedagogy. The analysis also shows that students were unable and unwilling to share their learning experiences with students outside the new program. This can be understood as a tension between different conceptual understandings of learning.     

Inclusive special education: development of a new theory for the education of children with special educational needs and disabilities

Inclusive education and special education are based on different philosophies and provide alternative views of education for children with special educational needs and disabilities. They are increasingly regarded as diametrically opposed in their approaches. This article presents a theory of inclusive special education that comprises a synthesis of the philosophy, values and practices of inclusive education with the interventions, strategies and procedures of special education. Development of inclusive special education aims to provide a vision and guidelines for policies, procedures and teaching strategies that will facilitate the provision of effective education for all children with special educational needs and disabilities.