A wide variety of legislation impacts the jobs of special education teachers in the United States. In 2002, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) was signed into law, mandating that states develop standards and report outcomes for all students in the key areas of math and reading. In 2004, the reauthorized Individuals with Disabilities Education…

According to the U.S. Department of Education, shortages of special education and/or related services personnel continue to be a significant challenge for all states. In response to this challenge, state education agencies (SEAs) are implementing various strategies to improve recruitment and retention efforts. The purpose of this document is to…

The purpose of this study was to determine the reported level of special education knowledge of Utah charter school principals/directors. In order for charter schools to provide a learning environment that is accommodating, accepting, and promotes the success of children with special needs a systems change may be in order. For the change to be…

This study examined the nature and content of work-safety-skills instruction delivered to Utah students with disabilities at the middle and secondary levels. Analysis of 68 surveys completed by school personnel suggest that only a minority of special education personnel provide ongoing safety-skills instruction and the frequency of such…

The paper argues for noncategorical certification of special educators drawing on the effective schools literature, educational philosophy, legal precedent, research, and practical considerations. The Utah experience in establishing noncategorical certification is described. (DB)

A survey of 64 Utah elementary and junior high special education teachers found that they provide little vocational and vocationally related task training. Middle school teachers in self-contained classrooms placed most emphasis on vocational training, followed by elementary resource room teachers, elementary self-contained teachers, and middle…

Responding to a shortage of special education teachers with multicultural training, the University of Utah designed a series of American Indian specialization courses for teachers, leading to a master's degree in professional practice. Essential course components include cultural awareness, nonbiased assessment, specialized curriculum and…

This document is the final report of the 3-year Rural Transition Teacher Preparation Project in Utah which made it possible for the Special Education Department of the University of Utah to offer rural special educators field-based coursework in the area of secondary transition services for mildly and moderately handicapped students. Project…

This final report describes activities and accomplishments of a federally supported project at Utah State University to prepare 77 early intervention and preschool special education personnel. The project's three strands proposed to improve the existing early childhood special education certification program by preparing special educators to work…