As P-12 education changes to meet the needs of children and federal and state regulations, teacher education must change to prepare candidates with knowledge and skills expected of today's educators. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and No Child Left Behind Act increased opportunities for students with disabilities to be educated within the general education classroom, thus increasing the accountability of general educators for the progress of these children. Today's general and special educators must develop skills as collaborative educators to educate children with disabilities. This article explores this collaborative relationship, discusses implications for change in teacher preparation, and describes one teacher education seminar designed to provide prospective general and special educators with opportunities to practice essential skills of collaboration.

While many general education classroom teachers encounter issues of sexuality in the middle school classroom, few teacher candidates feel prepared to address them. One source of information for teacher candidates is the role modeling provided by their own teachers when they were elementary and secondary students. In this study, 107 teacher candidates enrolled in a middle level preparation course completed five stem sentences describing their experience of being educated about sexuality when they were younger. The results revealed that 69% of the teacher candidates described poor role modeling. Most commonly, these teacher candidates detailed wanting "more" from their teachers-more depth and breadth, more honesty, and more commitment to providing sexuality information. They indicated that they would have liked to have teachers who were more comfortable with the subject matter and who covered topics such as love and relationships. Without preparation to address these topics, teacher candidates may have the impression that sexuality education is intimidating and uncomfortable and can be handled by a book, video, or outside consultant. Because of the likelihood that non-health teachers will be required to address sexuality, teacher preparation programs need to provide opportunities for teacher candidates to develop confidence and competence relative to sexuality education.

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“This is going to be a very, very, very, very tough question. It is going to take a lot of serious thinking. It is not going to be quick and easy. You are going to have to think about the ones column and the tens. Thirtyfour take away—look what I am going to do to you—sixteen. Now think it out.”