Evaluating Special Education Facilities∗

Surveys of facilities for disabled adults in Australia have indicated that the Activity Therapy Centre, a form of continuing education, was seriously deficient. One approach to improving the effectiveness of ATCs was the development of a formative evaluation procedure which could focus upon information likely to be useful in upgrading the programs offered. The paper describes the principles underlying the evaluation procedure (SEP), its development and application. Modification of SEP has enabled its use in evaluating special school programs as well as ATCs. Finally, the relevance of SEP and its underlying principles to evaluating future TAFE programs for adults with disabilities is discussed.

     

Greece: Special Education—An Overview

In 1906, the Home of the Blind was established in Athens. This institution continues to offer its services but now under the title "Centre for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind." In 1923, The National Institution for the Protection of the Deaf was set up, and this, too, continues to serve the education of the deaf and partially deaf children of school age, with its five branches in Thessaloniki, Patras, Volos, Drama, and Chania-Crete. In 1937 was established the still existing Protypon Special School of Athens for educable mentally handicapped children. The Hellenic Association for Protection and Rehabilitation of Physically Handicapped Children was set up in Athens in 1945. In 1964 was created the Psychological Centre of Northern Greece, in Thessaloniki, which provides special education for mentally handicapped children. The Special Education Division of the Ministry of Education came into being in 1970, to become in 1976 a Directorate in the General Directorate of General Education. In 1972 was established a one-year special education course in the Maraslion Didaskalion of Primary Education. Since 1975 this course has become of two years' duration and prepares teachers for the special education sector. In order to be accepted for the course, applicants must have five years of teaching experience in public schools and pass severe examinations.     

Teachers’ Understanding of Interactive Approaches in Special Education

This paper considers the adoption of interactive approaches in the history of special education and addresses teachers’ use and conceptualisation of interactive approaches. Teachers in special schools and units in the United Kingdom were asked whether they used interactive approaches and, if so, what this meant in their context. Interactive approaches were reported to be used by two-thirds of the sample and what this meant to the 58 respondents, from different areas of special education, varied considerably. Their responses are compared with the central elements of interactive approaches in the literature. Areas of consensus are discussed and a relative lack of emphasis on process amongst the teachers is identified.     

Examining Secondary Special Education Teachers’ Literacy Instructional Practices

This study presents findings from a survey of secondary special education teachers who teach reading. Respondents were 577 special education teachers from a large Midwestern state who completed an online or mail survey. Results based on quantitative and qualitative analyses indicate predominant foci of secondary special education teachers’ reading instructional practices were teaching vocabulary and comprehension, engaging in ongoing formative assessment, and incorporating technology into instruction. Major themes included the widespread use of commercial reading programs and a bifurcation of instructional roles. These findings are discussed in relation to the national discourse on adolescent literacy and current schooling initiatives including the Common Core State Standards and Multi-tiered Systems of Support.     

Preliminary Study: Special Education Doctoral Students’ Perceptions of Self-determination

This preliminary study investigated 118 special education doctoral students’ knowledge of and attitudes toward self-determination. In addition, this study examined the relationship between self-determination coursework and special education doctoral students’ perceptions of how well they were prepared for implementing self-determination in their future careers. The results indicated that although the majority of respondents possessed adequate knowledge of self-determination concepts, they reported lacking confidence in identifying how it can be taught and assessed. Most of the respondents indicated that they would integrate self-determination knowledge and skills into their future teaching; however, more than one-half of the doctoral students felt that they were unprepared with regard to the instruction of self-determination. Also, the findings indicated that there were statistically significant relationships between pre-service courses and doctoral students’ perceptions of self-determination. The results of this study showed a gap in current doctoral students’ knowledge about self-determination and confidence related to application within pre-service teaching.     

In‐service Training in Special Education as Research and Innovation Work

The article reports on a research and innovation‐based approach to in‐service training for special education in Norway, with a particular focus on vocational education.

The present basis of policy for special education in Norway is stated, and the author goes on to examine the needs of in‐service training in this field. The role of the Norwegian College of Education for Teachers of Vocational Subjects (NCETVS) is described, and the author examines also the developmental project based on Moholt and Brundalen Schools.

Particular attention is given to the role of evaluation in this project.     

Teachers’ Special Education Decisions Does Test Information Make a Difference?

ABSTRACT

Forty-five classroom teachers participated in a study designed to investigate the influence of a student’s individual psychological test performance (learning disabled [LD] vs. normal) and the achievement level of the child’s school (below average, average, above average) on their special education classification decisions. The achievement level of the school did not influence the teachers’ decisions to identify a child as handicapped. The student’s psychological test information did. For the LD case study, the teachers were more likely to have lower academic expectations and to diagnose the child as LD. In contrast to the findings of other studies, teachers were not likely to diagnose the normal case study child as handicapped. In short, these teachers did not ignore individual psychological information but rather utilized the information appropriately in their decision making.     

Teachers’ Literal and Inferential Talk in Early Childhood and Special Education Classrooms

Research Findings: This study examined preschool teachers’ literal talk (LT) and inferential talk (IT) during shared book readings in early childhood education (ECE) and early childhood special education (ECSE) classrooms. We aimed to characterize and compare teachers’ LT and IT in these 2 classroom contexts and determine whether differences in LT and IT are predicted by classroom type, teachers’ educational background, or children’s average language skills. We examined the shared book reading activities of 52 teachers (26 ECE classrooms, 26 ECSE classrooms). Results revealed that ECSE teachers used significantly more LT and showed more variability in their LT and IT than ECE teachers. ECSE classroom type predicted teachers’ use of LT when we controlled for teacher education and children’s language skills, whereas teacher education predicted teachers’ use of IT when we controlled for classroom type and children’s language skills. Practice or Policy: These findings have implications for best practice guidelines and policies, particularly for ECSE environments.     

Equity and Advocacy Expectations of Culturally Diverse Families’ Participation in Special Education

The authors contend that the equity and advocacy expectations imbedded in the legal mandate for parent participation in the special education decision-making process directly contradict the hierarchy of professional status and knowledge on which the positivist paradigm of professionalism is based, and are also in conflict with the values held by many families from culturally diverse backgrounds, contributing to low levels of participation and advocacy. They argue the need for professional education to incorporate opportunities for professionals to identify the cultural assumptions imbedded in the field of special education towards more balanced and effective collaboration.     

Special Education–Non-Special Education Achievement Gap in Math: Effects of Reporting Methods,Analytical Techniques,and Reclassification

Federal regulations indicate that the achievement gap must be closed between subgroups, including the gap between special education and non-special education students. We explored the ways in which achievement trends are influenced by three methods of reporting (cross-sectional, cohort–static, and cohort–dynamic). We also investigated (a) the ways in which achievement gaps change when different analytical techniques (proficiency levels, scale scores, effect size) are used, and (b) the relationship between student achievement and the extent to which students’ special education status changes across years. We conclude by discussing the practical and policy implications of using the three methods for reporting data about the performance gap.     

Introduction to Special Issue—STEM Workforce: STEM Education and the Post-Scientific Society

Journal of Science Education and Technology - An assumption is often made that STEM shortages can be remedied by either increasing the number of STEM graduates or...     

"职业教育"="Vocational Education"?

对“职业教育”一词内涵的理解,应随着职业教育的发展而与时俱进。无论从融入21世纪“全民终身教育与培训”的国际潮流思考,还是从当前大力发展中国特色职业教育的现实出发,都要求我们树立“大职业教育”观,从思想上到实践上切实地将传统的Vocational Edu-cation拓展为TVET。     

The Amalgamation of Special Education? On Practices and Policies that may Render it Unrecognizable

The decades-long assault on principles of special education—some knowingly, such as the regular education initiative, and some unknowingly, such as certain presumptions and practices of full inclusion—have consequences that may negatively affect the future of the field. Protracted criticisms on the character, role, and legitimacy of traditional special education and its related policies and practices have, in some ways, weakened its identity. It is conceivable that special education, as a robust and independent educational component is being threatened. Factors leading to this conclusion are discussed as well as a call for recognition of policy implications and needed research to guide policy development.     

Does Empathy Predict Instructional Assignment-Related Stress? A Study in Special and General Education Teachers

The role of empathy in the teaching profession has been vastly investigated in relation to its effect on students, but research on how teachers’ empathy affects their own well-being at work is limited. This study investigated empathy and instructional assignment-related stress factors of primary school teachers serving in general or special education; moreover, it investigated if empathy predicted instructional assignment-related stress. Data were collected from 190 primary school teachers using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index and the Inventory of Job-related Stress Factors. Teachers reported moderately high levels of perspective-taking and empathic concern and lower levels of fantasising and personal distress. Also, they reported moderate to low levels of stress regarding instructional assignment-related factors. General and special education teachers did not differ in their reported scores on empathy or stress-related factors. Finally, it was found that instructional assignment-related stress factors can be predicted by personal distress and fantasising; however, the core empathy skills (empathic concern and perspective taking) were not found to be strong predictors of the stress factors tested.     

Cross‐cultural Collaboration in Special Teacher Education: An arena for facilitating reflection?

The present study explored how cross‐cultural collaboration involving university lecturers from Norway (the North) and Egypt (the South), and student‐teachers from Egypt, can be an arena for facilitating student‐teachers’ reflection and for challenging student‐teachers’ preconceived beliefs and perspectives about disability and education. The findings, based on interview data, showed that an emphasis on reflection, exploration and evaluation rather than on drills and repetition was both unexpected and unfamiliar for most of the Egyptian student‐teachers. Some of the Egyptian and some of the foreign lecturers were able to encourage student‐teachers to reflect, although some of the foreign lecturers had a tendency to lecture as they had done at home. Lecturers who wanted to pursue teaching methods that enhanced reflection needed to prioritise time for this, even if the majority of the student‐teachers asked for more information, more facts and for presentations of “the right methods” for teaching learners with disabilities. As the findings in this study illustrate, the partner in the North carries a major responsibility for critically considering the request for expertise because the participants in the South may not necessarily question and challenge the authority of well‐educated professionals from the North. It may not be sufficient for lecturers and supervisors to be well‐qualified practitioners within their home culture. They should be context sensitive, have an inquiring and accepting attitude, and experience challenges, encounters and exposures in the project country over time. Competence in approaches in teacher education is also required, although this meta‐competence may not be explicitly requested by those concerned.     

A “can-do” Attitude for Students with Disabilities: Special Education in Rural Charter Schools

ABSTRACT

Charter schools are often the only alternative to traditional public schools for students with disabilities in rural communities. Part of a larger study, we employed a qualitative multiple case study design to examine special education practices in five rural charter schools to understand the services provided, barriers to providing these services, and any novel practices used to provide these services. Data analysis revealed the following themes: (a) intentional school models facilitated individualized approaches, (b) schools responded to tight labor supply by prioritizing retention and making efficient use of staff time, and (c) schools demonstrate flexibility and willingness to problem solve.     

Easy Special

一年365天,24本杂志的时间。新年钟声如约响起,感谢与感慨充溢心头,关于过去,我们深藏心头,让回忆成为它的载体;至于未来,我们留于笔尖,希望同你们分享,当然,连带着的,还有我们的私人最爱,因为有他们,也因为有你们,2006年,一定很Easy。