The problem of this study was to identify professional competencies considered essential for the generic special educator. The purpose of this study was to identify competencies essential to the successful performance of a generic special educator to be used in the development of special education personnel. The identified competencies were utilized in the newly developed competency-based generic special education program at North Texas State University. To accomplish this study, a non-proportional stratified random sample of fifty-one school districts was selected from Regions VII, VIII, X, and XI. An instrument was developed, pilot tested, and revised. The instrument was administered to the sample of selected professional personnel within each selected school district. Descriptive data from the questionnaire were compiled and presented in tables by position and sub-group. The Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient was applied as a measure of association among the various sub-groups on the basis of the rank ordering of items. In order to determine significant differences among sub-groups on the variable of importance of competency item, analyses of variance were calculated. Trainability ratings were analyzed using the chi square test of independence to test the degree of agreement of training environment among the four sub-groups.

Novice special education teachers often enter their professions with unique perspectives that contribute to the overall educational experience of their students. This research was designed to inform the existing literature revolving around novice special education teachers' experiences, and how they subsequently effect the perceptions and interactions engaged in with students with disabilities from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Five novice special education teachers who currently serve students with disabilities from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds offered their unique perspectives for this research. This research study consisted of individual interviews, two direct classroom observations, and responses to three reflections of recent experiences. The data yielded three main categories: (a) student attributes, (b) establishing rapport, and (c) teacher responsibilities, which included properties and sub-properties. To verify findings rival explanations were sought and triangulation procedures were utilized. Findings of this research are discussed in detail, with implications relating to novice special education teachers, K-12 school administrators, and special education teacher educators being addressed. Methods to address potential limitations to this research are presented, followed by suggestions for future research.

The reality of changing state and federal policy, as well as the process of program improvement across teacher preparation programs has prompted a line of research into the exploration of an alternative curriculum-based value-added model (VAM). Based upon a thorough review of VAMs as they have been applied to education policy and decision-making, this line of inquiry focused on a curriculum-based approach to increasing our understanding of how the instructional efforts of our candidates affect the learning gains of the K-12 students they teach. Designed to conform to the fundamental principles of evidence-based practice, candidate and program level data for 109 student teachers between 2013 and 2017 were analyzed. Results indicate that variation in K-12 students’ learning gains can likely be attributed to the instructional efforts of our special education teacher preparation program (TPP) completers. Limitations, implications, and directions for future inquiry across policy, practice, and scholarship are discussed. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

This project assesses Saudi Arabian special education teachers’ perceptions about their competencies and professional development needs on assistive technology (AT). The researcher developed an online self-administrated 27 question survey in order to evaluate special education teachers’ perceived knowledge regarding AT, as well as to investigate their needs for professional development. The survey webpage link was sent via email to 110 special education teachers at General Directorate of Education in Unaizah, Saudi Arabia. A total of 37 teachers participate in this study for a 33.6% response rate. The findings indicate that special education teachers are not confident in their ability to correctly utilize AT in a classroom. The results also show that participants are interested in receiving AT training. In addition, it indicates that special education teachers preferred face-to-face learning methods for AT training.

The purpose of this study was to identify general and special education teachers' understanding of professional learning communities (PLCs) at 2 public suburban elementary schools in the western United States. Both schools were in the second year of implementation of PLCs but seemed to be using PLC time to plan lessons. This quantitative descriptive survey sought to to identify the teachers' overall understanding of the 6 dimensions of the Professional Learning Communities Assessment - Revised (PLCA-R) and to determine if there was a difference between general and special education teachers' perceptions of PLCs. This survey was administered to general and special education teachers who had at least 3 years of teaching experience and at least 1 year of participation in a PLC. A total of 23 general education teachers and 10 special education teachers participated. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data from the 6 dimensions and the PLCA-R. The results indicated that both groups understood the PLC process and had favorable perceptions of PLCs. The results of the ANOVA for each of the 7 hypotheses showed that there was no significant difference between general and special education teachers' perceptions of PLCs. The dissemination of results will help administrators focus on the 6 dimensions of a PLC to provide teachers with an in-depth understanding of PLCs, which can help students to achieve their potential.

Implementation of federally mandated classroom inclusion of students with disabilities (SWDs) in the United States is inconsistent. Research has been limited on how teachers implement inclusion in classrooms, which has prevented systemwide improvements of inclusion practices. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to describe the circumstances and experiences of regular and special education teachers in 3rd to 6th grade inclusion classes. The theory of organizational learning served as the conceptual framework for the study. Data were collected in interviews with 7 regular education teachers (RETs) and 5 special education teachers (SETs) from 3 public school districts in a south-central U.S. state. Data were analyzed using open coding to identify themes and patterns. Results indicated that SETs served SWDs from multiple classes and sometimes from multiple grades rather than following 1 student throughout the day. Further, RETs had students with and without disabilities from up to 7 different grade levels in their inclusion classrooms. Findings also revealed that none of the participants engaged in collaborative content planning. Almost all participants expressed the need for additional teachers to reduce the teacher-to-student ratio and for more training for RETs to support inclusion of SWDs in their classes. Findings may provide information to leaders at the building, district, regional, state, and legislative levels regarding how inclusion can be improved in classrooms, including how systemic change in public school systems may be implemented.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Delaware, 2006. / Principal faculty advisors: Michael Gamel-McCormick and Michael Ferrari, Dept. of Individual & Family Studies. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 166-189).

Abstract The aim of our study was that from a Preschool Manager’s perspective to describe, analyze and understand the function of special education and the Special Education Teacher’s profession within preschools. We conducted twelve interviews with Preschool Managers in two northern Swedish municipalities. From a theoretical base, we used both the relational and categorical perspectives. All answers from these interviews have been analyzed from these perspectives. The result showed that the majority of Preschool Managers considered that, above all, the contribution made by special education was in the form of additional competence – the Special Education Teacher. Furthermore, the results showed that the Special Education Teacher was considered to have the skills to further develop the preschool operations by mentoring other teachers. The mentoring could contribute to the development of working methods directed to the entire group of children thereby facilitating working with individual children in need of special support. In some preschools, the Special Education Teacher was principly used to address and fix an individual child’s problems. Even though the Preschool Managers described the Special Education Teacher as an everyday developer, the result however showed that the Special Education Teacher was most often used to directly intervene with individual children. The result also showed that a good cooperation between Preschool Managers and Special Education Teachers strengthened the special education function within the preschool. Keywords: Special education teachers, preschool, preschool managers, special education

The purpose of this study was to describe the influence of increased legal requirements on current or former Inter local tenured special education teacher attrition or retention by reporting their reasons for staying or leaving through the theoretical perspectives of organizational learning and organizational culture. I conducted a qualitative multiple case study of two units of analysis through a constructionist epistemology. Data were collected from current and former Inter local tenured special education teachers through focus groups, semi-structured interviews, the Left Hand and Right-Hand Column Case Method (LHRHCCM), and review of appropriate documents. Data collected were analyzed using text analysis software, content analysis, and pattern matching. Four salient findings from my study were: (1) Current tenured special education teachers want to be listened to and have their needs considered, (2) Current tenured special education teachers feel overwhelmed by the workload related to state assessments, (3) Current and former tenured special education teachers believe that legally-required changes affected them in practice, and (4) Current and former tenured special education teachers perceive that time requirements for administrative tasks reduce time for student services. Implications for praxis include organizational learning and organizational culture that encourage listening to the experience of tenured special education teachers and including them in decisions that affect them in an effort to retain them. My study adds to the body of knowledge surrounding special education teacher attrition by describing how tenured special education teachers believe increased legal requirements influence their retention or attrition. Areas for future research include studying the time it takes special education teachers to complete legally-required administrative tasks and why those tasks are perceived as stressful, and the impact of special education administrator leadership on special education teacher retention, including the application of resources within an inter local. During this time of critical shortage of special education teachers, findings from this study may be crucial to understanding the factors related to the retention and attrition of tenured special education teachers in the Inter local and elsewhere. / Thesis (Ed.D.)--Wichita State University, College of Education, Dept. of Educational Leadership