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Preparing special educators through collaborative partnerships.

Article Excerpt
Abstract

This article describes a collaborative venture between the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and the Clark County School District for preparing special education teacher candidates at the undergraduate level. As part of one of the requirements for degree and licensure, teacher candidates combine coursework in strategies for working with students with learning disabilities, emotional disturbance, and mental retardation with 10 hours of practicum experience at Paradise Professional Development School (PPDS). The experience provides teacher candidates with hands-on experience within an inclusive setting with a mentor teacher, under the auspices of faculty from the Departments of Special Education and Curriculum and Instruction. The participants' capstone activity incorporates technology through a Powerpoint description of their students at PPDS.

Introduction

As teacher educators and practicing professionals collaborate to address the shortage of special educators throughout the country and ensure each student has a highly qualified teacher, collaboration and consultation between institutions of higher education and school districts is critical (Kozleski, Mainzer, & Deshler, 2000; U.S. Department of Education, 2002). Pre-service preparation of general educators through professional development schools (PDS) has been one vehicle for ensuring that teacher candidates in general education are prepared for the challenges posed by changing educational environments for more than a decade (Holmes Group, 1990; Ishler & Edelfelt, 1989). The purpose of this article is to report a collaborative venture between the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and the Clark County School District for preparing special educators at the undergraduate level to meet the needs of students with disabilities within an inclusive setting.

Professional Development Schools: Historical Context

The Holmes Group, a consortium of approximately 100 large universities offering teacher education programs, initially proposed the concept of Professional Development Schools (Holmes, 1990). The Holmes Group initiated the model to ensure that future educators would be prepared to practice the theories they were being taught during their formal teacher preparation classes within an actual school setting. Goodlad (1993) enhanced the concept of PDS, envisioning the PDS as laboratory schools within a school district rather than on a university campus. The Holmes Group articulated the following key principles regarding the organization of Professional Development Schools:

1. Teaching and learning is for understanding;

2. Classrooms and schools are organized as "learning communities;"

3. Teaching and learning are intended for all students;

4. Teachers, teacher educators and administrators are expected to continue learning; and

5. School and university faculty, working as partners, will promote thoughtful, long-term inquiry into teaching and learning to promote reflection and research on practice (Holmes, 1990).

Throughout the past decade, numerous institutions of higher education have partnered with school districts to develop Professional...

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