scholarly journals Introduction to the Special Issue—A Necessary Step in Pursuit of Equity: Developing a Racially/Ethnically Diverse Special Education Teaching Force

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 195-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Audrey A. Trainor ◽  
Elizabeth Bettini ◽  
LaRon A. Scott
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Empirical Research ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Ethnic Diversity ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
Ethnically Diverse ◽  
Equitable Access ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Racial Ethnic ◽  
Teaching Force

This special issue of Remedial and Special Education is a collection of theoretical and empirical research addressing equity in the preparation of a diverse special education teaching force, with a focus on racial/ethnic diversity. The purpose of this special issue is to open a conversation about equity as it pertains to special education teachers, including both students’ equitable access to special education teachers who share their racial/ethnic and/or cultural background and prospective special educators’ equitable access to the profession.

Diversity Issues and the Special Education Teaching Force: Advancing the Discussion

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 261-264
Author(s):  
Deborah L. Voltz
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Ethnic Diversity ◽  
Special Education Teacher ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Education Teacher ◽  
Diversity Issues ◽  
Teacher Workforce ◽  
Racial Ethnic ◽  
Teaching Force

This piece is a commentary on the papers included in the special issue on the racial/ethnic diversity of the special education teacher workforce.

Variables Affecting the Reintegration Rate of Students with Serious Emotional Disturbance

1994 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 254-268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elana Esterson Rock ◽  
Michael S. Rosenberg ◽  
Deborah T. Carran
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Emotional Disturbance ◽  
Teacher Attitudes ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Educational Program ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Serious Emotional Disturbance ◽  
K 12

This study examined educational program and teacher variables to identify factors that predict the reintegration of students with serious emotional disturbance (SED) into less restrictive placements. Data on program demographics, reintegration orientation, teacher reintegration training, and teacher attitudes toward reintegration were collected from 162 special education teachers and 31 administrators in restrictive placements for K-12 students with SED. This information was compared to the reintegration rates of students in those schools through the use of a hierarchical set regression analysis. Results indicated that reintegration orientation, demographic characteristics of restrictive SED programs, and particular experiences/training of special educators predict the reintegration of students with SED into less restrictive programs.

Cultural Competency: A Key to Effective Future Social Work with Racially and Ethnically Diverse Elders

2005 ◽  
Vol 86 (3) ◽  
pp. 347-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jong Won Min
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Ethnic Diversity ◽  
Ethnically Diverse ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Future Generations ◽  
Service Needs ◽  
Gerontological Social Work ◽  
Strategic Approach ◽  
Racial Ethnic

With 2 dominant demographic imperatives of the aging population and increasing racial/ethnic diversity of the older population, current and future generations of racially and ethnically diverse elders are expected to experience complex and diverse sets of service needs. More than ever, the social work profession needs a strategic approach to working with current and future generations of diverse elders. The author presents information that allows a better understanding of future issues and problems facing racial/ethnic minority elders and discusses how social work can effectively and successfully address these future needs. Five specific recommendations are proposed: (a) reconceptualize race/ethnicity and diversity in social work practice, (b) identify and develop a conceptual framework for social work with racially and ethnically diverse elders, (c) consider a multidisciplinary community-oriented and neighborhood-based approach, (d) advance culturally competent gerontological social work with diverse elders, and (e) strengthen gerontological social work education with an emphasis on cultural competence.

Practicing What We Preach: Reclaiming the Promise of Multicultural Transition Programming

2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 188-193
Author(s):  
Edwin Obilo Achola
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Ethnically Diverse ◽  
Career Transition ◽  
Clinical Applications ◽  
Youth With Disabilities ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Transition Outcomes ◽  
Transition Programming ◽  
Multicultural Research

Translating multicultural research and theory into practices that improve transition outcomes for all children especially, youth who come from predominantly culturally and ethnically diverse (CED) communities, remains a substantial challenge for career transition specialists (CTSs) today. The purpose of this article was to consider the state of transition programming for CED youth with disabilities, paying particular attention to the clinical applications of Banks’s dimensions of multicultural pedagogy in addressing inequities in transition programming. In light of this discussion, a set of five research- and practice-based tips for CTSs, special education teachers, and other members of individualized transition teams are shared.

From Caring to Cared For

2019 ◽  
pp. 102-117
Author(s):  
Lindsey A. Chapman ◽  
Chelsea T. Morris
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Teacher Retention ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
Positive Outcomes ◽  
Marginalized Populations ◽  
Practical Application

Special educators dedicate their careers to caring for one of the most vulnerable and historically marginalized populations of students despite often working in environments that do little to reciprocate this care. Amidst an ever-changing education landscape, special education teachers are becoming increasingly stressed, experiencing burnout at alarming rates, and far too frequently leaving the field altogether. In this chapter, caring school leadership is examined in the context of special education. The authors seek to bridge a theoretical stance with practical application to the field. Three necessary conditions for caring are discussed and specific “transactions of care” are recommended. The chapter concludes by upholding the idea that ensuring special educators feel cared for by school leaders has the potential to mitigate issues of poor working conditions, teacher retention, and consequently, promote positive outcomes for students with disabilities.

Rural regular and special education teachers’ perceptions of teaching hyperactive students

1988 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 10-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Peterson ◽  
Cleborne D. Maddux
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
School Counselors ◽  
School Psychologists ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Potential Value ◽  
Use Of Time ◽  
Time Out ◽  
Rural Settings

This article explores the perceptions of teachers in rural settings concerning the teaching of hyperactive students. Regular and special educators (N=101) identified minimizing distractions, providing clear expectations and rules, and the use of time-out techniques as the most successful strategies for teaching such students. Although both regular and special education teachers believe that the skills of teaching and managing hyperactive students are important, regular teachers were critical of the emphasis given these skills during their training. The teachers rated the advice they received from peers as the most useful, while advice from school psychologists, principals, parents, and school counselors were rated as least helpful. The results suggest the potential value of peer problem-solving committees, peer consultant models, and more effective preservice and inservice preparation in the area of hyperactivity.

Roles of Special Educators in St. Lucia: Implications of Policy and Practice on Inclusion

2018 ◽  
pp. 000-000
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Lubin
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Behavior Management ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Education Assessment ◽  
Academic Instruction ◽  
Responsive Behavior ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Special Education Assessment

Abstract Using an adaptation of Brownell and Smith's (1993) conceptual model, this study sought to examine the perception of primary and secondary special educators in St. Lucia of their roles as compared to roles of special education teachers universally. A survey, consisting of 89 Likert-scale statements and five closed ended questions, was administered to the entire population (i.e. 82) of special educators in primary and secondary schools in St. Lucia. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics including percentages, means, and t-tests. The independent sample t-test was used to determine the difference in the frequency of role engagement between the two groups of special educators. The results revealed that like special educators globally, special education teachers in St. Lucia engaged in all roles under study (i.e., Academic instruction, Non-academic instruction, Instructional Support, Responsive Behavior Management, Special Education Assessment, Classroom Assessment, Special Education Paperwork) but engaged in them at varying degrees. They regarded all but one role (i.e. Responsive Behavior Management) to be very-to-extremely important. Respondents utilized a continuum of practices from exclusionary to inclusionary but made greater use of exclusionary practices. Implications as well as recommendations to improve practice are discussed.

Visual Representation in Mathematics: Special Education Teachers’ Knowledge and Emphasis for Instruction

2016 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Delinda van Garderen ◽  
Amy Scheuermann ◽  
Apryl Poch ◽  
Mary M. Murray
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Research Design ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
Visual Representations ◽  
K 12

The use of visual representations (VRs) in mathematics is a strongly recommended practice in special education. Although recommended, little is known about special educators’ knowledge of and instructional emphasis about VRs. Therefore, in this study, the authors examined special educators’ own knowledge of and their instructional emphasis with VRs in mathematics for students with disabilities (SWDs) in Grades K-12. A total of 146 teachers (pre- and in-service) responded to an online survey. A mixed methods triangulation research design was utilized. Findings include the following: (a) teachers hold conceptions about VRs and the roles they serve in problem solving; their ideas, however, lack depth and are narrow in perspective; (b) what teachers emphasize about VRs to SWDs tends to match their own conceptions, but the explanations they provide for SWDs need expanding and refinement; and (c) given their narrow conceptions, VRs may be limited to a peripheral role in special educators’ instruction.

Administrative Pressures to Practice Unethically: Research and Suggested Strategies

2009 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 112-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
George Helton ◽  
Barbara Ray
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
School Counselors ◽  
School Psychologists ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
School Administrators ◽  
Ethical Reasoning ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Reasoning Strategies ◽  
School Based

Research indicates that school psychologists and special education teachers sometimes face pressures from school administrators to practice unethically. It includes quantitative and qualitative data on: School psychologists’ and special education teachers’ predictions of their responses to administrative pressures to practice unethically; personal and situational factors related to their predictions; errors in some respondents’ ethical reasoning; strategies for responding to pressures to practice unethically; and the ethical obligations shared by school psychologists, special educators, and school counselors in responding to these pressures. The purpose of the article is to increase school-based practitioners’ abilities to understand and cope successfully with administrative pressures to practice unethically.

scholarly journals Exceptional Educators: Canada’s First Special Education Teachers, 1910–45

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Ellis
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
Professional Lives ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Length Of Service ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Elementary Schools ◽  
Vital Records ◽  
History Of

The article examines the personal backgrounds and professional lives of Canada’s earliest special education teachers. It considers the approximately 340 women and men who, between 1910 and 1945, taught special education classes in the public elementary schools of Toronto and Vancouver—the first two systems in the country to offer special education programs. Twelve selected special educators are discussed in more depth based on traces of their lives found in an eclectic array of sources, including school reports, the census, and vital records. The article considers early special educators’ gender; teacher training, certification, extra qualifications, and length of service; and their relationship as non-disabled adults to children with disabilities. It discusses each of these factors in light of what it can tell us about the uniqueness of early special educators and what in turn the personal and professional stories of these individuals can tell us about the history of special education.RésuméCet article explore les antécédents personnels et la vie professionnelle des premiers enseignants en éducation spécialisée au Canada. Il prend en compte les quelque 340 femmes et hommes qui, entre 1910 et 1945, ont donné des cours d’éducation spécialisés dans les écoles primaires publiques de Toronto et de Vancouver — les deux premiers systèmes scolaires au pays à offrir des programmes d’éducation spécialisée. Cet article s’intéresse particulièrement au profil de douze éducateurs spécialisés dont il est possible de suivre la trace à partir d’un ensemble de sources éclectiques incluant les rapports scolaires, les recensements, et les registres d’état civil. Il prend en compte le genre des premiers éducateurs spécialisés, la formation des enseignants, la certification, les qualifications supplémentaires, le nombre d’années de service, ainsi que la relation de ces adultes non handicapés avec des enfants ayant une limitation fonctionnelle. Chacun de ces facteurs est analysé à la lumière de ce qu’ils peuvent révéler à propos du caractère unique des premiers éducateurs spécialisés, de même que ce que leurs histoires personnelles et professionnelles révèlent sur l’histoire de l’éducation spécialisée. 

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