Walking the Walk: General Education Teachers of Students With Disabilities

• In Event: 49.088 - Roundtable Session 17
  In Roundtable Session: 49.088-3 - Inclusive Strategies for Learners With Exceptional Needs

Abstract

There has been enormous growth in the inclusion of students with special needs in the general education classroom, which has influenced teacher education programs and national organizations to specify the skills and knowledge that general education teachers must have to teach students with disabilities. However, teachers continue to express feelings of inadequacy and ill-preparedness for teaching these students. Using a qualitative case study approach, I examined how general education teachers interpret their roles in regard to students with disabilities and enact those roles in inclusive secondary classrooms, in relation to existing professional standards. In addition, I make several recommendations for teacher education and professional development programs based on my data and grounded in the literature.

Author

• Amanda Stefanski, University of Maryland