A chronic shortage of certified special education teachers has plagued rural West Virginia counties. This shortage is exacerbated by difficulties in teacher recruitment and retention. The highest priority of training must go to teachers currently employed in special education positions on temporary permits, since they are likely to continue…

A major problem in assessing off-campus experiential learning is the need to structure the learning process and document the learning outcomes. This report describes the procedure developed by the University of California at Los Angeles, that logically analyzes the learning that is taking place and therefore helps to shape and improve subsequent…

This study explores peer assessment and self-efficacy in a counseling practicum. Data was gathered on the perceptions of practicum students, in their second year of a master's program, with regard to the counseling competencies of their peers and themselves. Counselor self-efficacy was measured using the Counselor Self-Efficacy Rating Scale.…

Guidelines for the development of the University of Utah's externships and clerkships in community, hospital and clinical pharmacy practice are discussed. Topics include competency guidelines, curriculum, preceptor selection criteria, site selection, and preceptor and student evaluation. Behavioral objectives, library recommendations, and rating…

The primary form of experiential education in political science is an internship in a government office. Too often, however, with little actual monitoring of their experiences, government interns become little more than classic office "gofers." Fortunately, there are strategies to make political internships not only useful learning experiences for…

This investigation asked a small group of student teachers participating in their first pre-service teaching practice in New Zealand to state what they understood by the term feedback, how they expected to be given feedback, what they hoped to gain from the feedback they received, and what they found useful, particularly in relation to influencing…

Throughout the hundred years history of education for librarianship some issues have been discussed again and again without agreement being reached. A number of these are quite central to the problem of education for a profession: the desirability (or otherwise) of professional schools; the control of education by professional bodies; theory vs.…

This digest focuses on the use of technology in the supervision of counselors. Each generation of new technology, from audiotapes and videotapes to fax machines and virtual reality, creates challenges and opportunities for the counseling supervisor. Increased use of computer-related technologies has given this generation of supervisors new ideas…

A year long practicum for preparation of learning disability teachers is described. The first of two components provides a field based internship intended to give the student an opportunity to apply skills learned in coursework. Among 20 skills emphasized in the field based component are classroom organizational skills; communication with…

The relationships between Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey raw scores and supervisor and peer rankings of competency were explored for master's degree practicum counselors. Overall, the scales correlated significantly better with supervisor rankings than with peer rankings for both sexes. (Author)

This study investigated the effects of three prepracticum counselor training approaches on counselor performance: T group, behavioral skills, and discussion control. The results of the study have implications for both the length and type of training approach used in effective counselor education practices. (Author)

Issues involved in personnel preparation are addressed in the position paper developed by the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities. Among problems cited in this area are obstacles to making changes in policy, curricula, and practica; territorality among professional training programs; lack of interdisciplinary education and training;…

The Sleight Clinician Anxiety Test (SCAT) was developed to rate the anxiety of speech language pathology students during their practicum. Items were selected based on writings in speech language pathology, education and psychology and four areas previously identified as of concern to new practitioners: (1) living up to supervisory standards, (2)…