This guidebook offers practical advice to support special education teachers in their first year of teaching. The first chapter, "Getting Ready To Teach," outlines preparations necessary before school begins, such as organizing the classroom and establishing planning and record-keeping strategies. "Tips for the Classroom" lists what teachers…

The shortage of qualified special educators in Louisiana is critical, particularly in rural areas. Factors contributing to this shortage include low teacher salaries, reduction of tuition exemption for teachers taking certification courses, and higher tuition costs. University training programs must assist teachers in developing necessary…

A portfolio assessment process was implemented in the Special Education Division of Central Washington University's teacher education program. The portfolio assessment was designed as an "end of major" assessment with three goals: provide a continuous assessment of the program of studies, determine the quality of program graduates, and…

This manual, together with the continuing education or inservice teacher workshops for learning the Systematic Integrated Teaching/Learning Approach (SITLA), can help teachers use different approaches to work effectively with a population of adults 18 years and older who are enrolled in special education classes, college-based developmental skills…

This paper outlines the need to diversify the education profession at practitioner, administrative, and personnel preparation levels in order to better serve culturally and linguistically diverse children with disabilities. Needs identified include developing effective recruitment and retention programs for members of ethnic minority groups;…

This conference was held to enhance communication between the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and State education agency staffs, and to furnish information and technical assistance to State agencies in the areas of data management and improvement of data reliability, validity, and comparability. Abstracts of presentations include the…

The National Rural Independent Living Network, funded to Murray State University (Kentucky) by the National Institute of Handicapped Research, is developing Community Independent Living Service Delivery Systems (CILSDS) for rural people with disabilities which will be housed in over 500 communities by early 1986. The CILSDS, staffed by citizen…

A brief description is provided of ways in which vocational programs have been modified for handicapped students at Portsmouth High School (New Hampshire). Examples are: (1) regular vocational programs with support services and modification curriculum; (2) special vocational programs in which pre-vocational entry level skills are developed prior…

Does personality impact differently on occupational choice and occupational performance? In a study of established teachers, interests, the Five-Factor Model, and attributions were examined in relation to occupational choice and performance. Attributions were assessed using a new instrument designed for teachers. Choice of teaching specialty was…

This document is a monograph in a personnel development series addressing issues that are pertinent for policy-making personnel concerned with inservice personnel development of vocational/special educators. Chapter 1 addresses the state of the art in inservice education and includes a definition and information on legislative provisions, the…

This article illustrates the collaborative team process for inclusion as it grew within two schools attempting to improve their efforts to welcome students with disabilities into general education classrooms. Team members learned specialized skills needed for successful collaboration, in the context of bringing about specific changes they deemed…

Research was conducted that initially focused on identifying and synthesizing the large number of previously identified vocational special needs teacher competencies into an educational model. The model contained a matrix that organized all these competencies into twelve domains of four performance phases each. The Competency Matrix was the…

Vocational, academic, and special education teachers who had received inservice education in the individualization of instruction were observed to determine the effect of the education on their teaching. Data collection and conversion instruments were developed. Six trained observers performed 364 classroom observations in 10 Texas districts with…

Described in this report are the findings from a Kentucky state-wide study of the perceptions of vocational educators, special educators, and vocational rehabilitation workers concerning vocational programming for the handicapped. Numerous tables depict and compare agency ratings regarding the importance and present status of the following…

Finding and hiring highly qualified candidates in today's education marketplace can be as frustrating and demanding as it is rewarding and satisfying. National projections suggest special education personnel shortages in the coming years may tax the ability of schools to provide services for children with disabilities. While teacher turnover rates…