Perspectives of teacher training for Special Education in the 21st century

Educators are well aware of the increasingly diverse student population in the schools. It is also widely accepted that instruction of students with disabilities is no longer equated with separate, “pull-out ” programs. The move toward inclusion entails changes in schools, in curriculum, in instruction, in the roles of the teachers and in the manner in which teachers are prepared. Placement of special needs children in the regular class in general education affected the role of the special education teacher in these inclusive schools. A study by Klinger and Vaughn (2002) illustrates clearly these changes. For a period of six years the researchers followed up Joyce who was a special education teacher in a self-contained classroom solely with LD students and had to adapt to teaching in an inclusive setting. “What did we learn? Joyce’s role as an inclusion teacher for students with LD was complex and multifaceted and depended largely on her successful interpersonal and communication skills. Much of the knowledge and skills she required was a blend of (a) special education assessment and intervention skills, (b) the ability of creatively adapt and accommodate instructional lessons and assignments to meet the needs o