Investigating special education teachers  knowledge and skills: Preparing general teacher preparation for professional development

Byrd, David R.; Alexander, Melina

doi:10.33902/jpr.2020059790

Cited by 45 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…These findings are not surprising as there are several studies in the current literature indicating that general education teachers do not feel prepared to work with students with special educational needs in their classrooms (Byrd & Alexander, 2020;Page & Davis, 2016;Sime-Cummins, 2015). As previous research has shown, it is important for general education teachers to possess a specific expertise and pedagogy to meet the diverse needs of these students in the inclusive classroom (Byrd & Alexander, 2020, Dingle et al, 2004. This can be improved through improved teacher co-operation such as collaboration modules between general education and special education teachers (McKenzie, 2015) Some participants (teacher 3, 4) also consider it to be important to work with pupils with special needs in their own resource room, and not in mainstream education.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Special educators perceptions of their role in inclusive education: A case study in Finland

Mihajlovic¹

2020

JPR

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Qualitative research methods were used to conduct case studies in three public schools in Finland to explore the changing role of the special education profession in Finland after the legislative reform in 2011 regarding educational support. With the implementation of the three tiered-support system, the special educator has become a profession with versatile tasks. This paper investigates mainly the participants' points of view regarding the work structure and pedagogical settings within their schools, as well as challenges and positive aspects related to their work. Semi-structured interviews and participant observation were used as data collection tools. Four special educators in mainstream schools located in Southern Finland participated in the research undertaking. Given this small sample group, the results of the study make no claims for generalisability but the findings revealed that the work of special educators mainly consists of teaching and background work, depending on their operational area. Although the consultative role exists, the findings showed that it has not yet become a regular part of the work for most special educators. The focus of their work lies on the support for students with different learning needs in the classroom.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Special educators perceptions of their role in inclusive education: A case study in Finland

Mihajlovic¹

2020

JPR

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“…The mathematics teachers easily help the students to solve mathematical problems through a continuum of simple to complex forms. The programs also capitalize on effective instructional methodologies, which harness the skills of learners when they are young and malleable (Byrd & Alexander, 2020;Andenet, 2005).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Special Education Teachers and Student Academic Achievement in Saudi Arabia

Almughyiri

2022

IJSE

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Teaching evaluation has been used widely in learning institutions globally to address achievement gaps for students with special needs, math learning disabilities (MLD), and learning impairments, such as autism. In most cases, learners with disabilities impeding the acquisition of mathematics and languages receive preferential consideration for special education. Successful knowledge acquisition for special needs students usually involves teacher guidance, especially in the evaluation of learning needs and dissemination of curriculum content, and student interactions. In this study, data collected from 170 special education administrators drawn from three regions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) (Riyadh, Makkah, and Medina) was used to explore the effectiveness of training and certification of special education teachers on the attainment of desirable academic outcomes in mathematics. A purposive sampling strategy was used to recruit the participants. A descriptive analysis design was applied to study the underlying characteristics of the sample population. The findings from the study, which were presented using graphs and tables based on the responses from the participants, showed the diversity in the composition of special education teachers in KSA. Specifically, qualified practitioners, uncertified personnel, and unfilled teaching vacancies accounted for 55.88%, 38.24%, and 5.88% of all positions respectively. A considerable proportion of special education teachers (52.94%) reported that they use teacher-directed instruction as opposed to student-centered learning (47.06%). The implications of the findings and the recommendations are discussed in the final sections of this report.

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“…Further, "While pre-service teachers gained some knowledge and developed many positive attitudes towards inclusive education, this was insufficient to instil confidence and capacity to ensure inclusive teaching in the classrooms" (Chhetri, 2019, p.11). This in turn can have negative impact towards teacher's quality of interaction with the students and garner stress to the teacher (Byrd & Alexander, 2020).…”

Section: Review Of the Related Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

“…While students with special education needs are included in the general classroom setting, teachers are required to adapt their teaching approaches to meet all students' needs (Byrd & Alexander, 2020). However, they noted that general teachers are not aware completely as to how to support students with special need.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teachers’ perceptions of students with Special Educational Needs in Two Western Districts of Bhutan

Dhendup¹,

Womling²,

Jatsho³

2020

JETS

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The present study examined Bhutanese teachers’ general perceptions, challenges towards special educational needs (SEN) students, and professional development (PD) and training attended by teachers with their levels of stress. A total of 53 teachers of two SEN schools in western Bhutan participated in this study. The data were collected using the online survey. The findings of this study suggest that although, 55% of teachers felt that teaching students with or without disabilities together is a good thing, however, one of the challenges certainly was the inadequate numbers of trained and specialised teachers. The findings also indicated that teachers learnt skills in SEN mostly through personal initiatives such a doing further research and reading. Similarly, the results of the study showed that the female teachers were said to have experienced more stress compared to their male counterparts. Further, the study also revealed that some of the challenges identified by teachers while teaching students with SEN were the lack of teacher collaboration within the school, lack of resources, overcrowded classrooms and the lack of professional development and training. Alternatively, the correlation and the prediction analyses further revealed that an estimated of 52% variability of stress can be predicted by the PD/trainings attended by the teachers.

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Investigating special education teachers knowledge and skills: Preparing general teacher preparation for professional development

Cited by 45 publications

References 15 publications

Special educators perceptions of their role in inclusive education: A case study in Finland

Special educators perceptions of their role in inclusive education: A case study in Finland

Special Education Teachers and Student Academic Achievement in Saudi Arabia

Teachers’ perceptions of students with Special Educational Needs in Two Western Districts of Bhutan

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