Most students with autism engage in the general education (GE) setting for a majority of the school day. Though there are standards to identify the expectations for educating students with autism in the inclusive classroom, GE teachers and paraeducators report limited knowledge and self-efficacy in supporting students with autism, and both…

Through a mixed-methods study, teacher educators investigated recent graduates' perceptions of their preparation program. Beginning special education teachers completed surveys and indicated (a) their level of preparation and confidence associated with 25 core competencies, (b) the most beneficial components of their preparation program, (c)…

University faculty and supervisors dedicated to the preparation of future teachers are facing more challenges than ever before in doing more with less. This includes supervising more preservice teachers in more schools, spread out over a wide geographic area. Feedback is essential to learning, and recent research suggests that the most effective…

This article provides a description of service learning implemented in an introductory special education course focused on the culture of disability. Collaborating with liaisons from five community service organizations, students provided services to individuals with disabilities in a variety of projects across two semesters. Communication and…

Special education faculty members (n = 12) from a large Western university participated in a four-year professional development program centered on increasing their cultural responsiveness. During the fourth year the primary investigator interviewed faculty members regarding their perceptions and the impact of the program. Each interview was…

This study examined the perceptions of 88 graduate students on the use of Web-based instruction in preparing special education personnel. Following the collection of data using surveys, 6 participants were randomly selected from the original sample and interviewed. Findings supported Web-based instruction as a convenient way for students to pursue…

Although research identifies a plethora of evidence-based instructional practices, classroom teachers find research difficult to access and often of little relevance to classroom practice; therefore, they do not implement these practices. Bridging the gap between research and practice requires continued and mediated support as teachers translate…

Paraeducators have been widely used to expand services provided in special education programs. The effectiveness of paraprofessionals depends heavily on their preparation and supervision. Training and supervision are carried out primarily by teachers, yet traditionally teacher education programs have not adequately prepared teachers for this…

Faculty from three universities cooperatively prepared and delivered a special education course for general educators. Interactive television was used for four of the six remote sites. Two sites reviewed videotapes of presentations. Participants preferred interactive presentations and judged content and teachings as less effective when it was not…

Regular classroom teachers (N=212) who took a course on mainstreaming felt that learning and physically disabled students were easiest and behaviorally disordered students were hardest to mainstream; and that the course provided a useful knowledge base on mainstreaming and was more useful than inservice training and contact with other…

West Virginia University's five-year preservice teacher education program prepares general education teachers for students with special needs. Using a strand approach, special education learning outcomes and competencies have been incorporated into core education courses. A survey of 72 program participants and 11 faculty members indicates…

This study investigated on-going program evaluation techniques designed to assess 22 special education preservice students' perceptions of the efficacy of a direct instruction course. Based on formative and summative evaluations, the study revealed a high level of satisfaction with direct instruction components that increased after field-based…

Documentation, satisfaction, and student performance data collected during 1984-85 from students and teachers were used to evaluate the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill graduate teacher training program in special education. Findings resulted in changes in course content, required courses, required course products, and student teaching…

Graduates of seven teacher preparation programs, all combining early childhood and early childhood and early childhood special education programs were surveyed. Respondents reported greater perceived strengths in general early childhood and child development than in special education. Graduates desired more content and application in working with…

No significant differences in academic achievement or problem-solving ability were found when 212 undergraduate and graduate students in an introductory special education course received class lecture alone or class lecture and either a hypertext-based instructional program or a linear drill-practice computer-assisted instructional program.…