The vast majority of special education teacher preparation programs in the United States incorporate the IRIS Center’s STAR Legacy modules into their coursework. Given the diversity of module content and ways in which the modules are employed, the purpose of this study was to explore the potential mediating effects of instructional context on learner outcomes. Using an experimental, pretest-posttest-maintenance design, 115 participants experienced three different IRIS modules (Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies [PALS], Accommodations, and Classroom Management) under three instructional conditions (i.e., homework, instructor facilitated, and “flipped classroom”). Strong effect sizes from pretest to posttest were found across all three modules across all conditions. Instructional condition has a significant effect on learning for the PALS module only. Differences in participants’ perceptions of topic importance, module quality, and knowledge gained, however, were found for the Classroom Management module. Implications for teacher education are discussed.

A greater emphasis on measuring the outputs of teacher preparation programs such as practice-based evaluations (e.g., edTPA) has increased the need for teacher educators to examine “best practice” for developing the skill-based competencies of teacher candidates. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of practice and feedback on teacher candidates’ knowledge and skill acquisition of a specific evidence-based practice, the provision of opportunities to respond (OTRs). Using an experimental, pretest–posttest design, 48 teacher candidates in an introductory special education course (i.e., nonpracticum course) were randomly assigned to a distributed practice with feedback (experimental) condition or a massed practice with no feedback (business-as-usual) condition. Candidates in the experimental condition outperformed candidates in the business-as-usual condition on a measure of knowledge and a performance measure on the accuracy of specific OTR technique delivery. There were, however, no differences between the groups in terms of rate of OTR delivery. Implications for teacher preparation are discussed.

No abstract

Since their launch in 2002, open educational resources (OER) developed by the Innovative Resources for Instructional Success, better known as the IRIS Center, have become a staple of teacher preparation programs. In the spring of 2019, a survey of users revealed a diversity of ways teacher educators incorporate IRIS Center OERs within their preparation programs. This article describes these innovative applications and presents a snapshot of who IRIS users are and which IRIS Center OERs are most frequently used.

No abstract