Current Issue Report #1

Brieana Kelly                                                                                                                           6/4/19

Current Issue Report #1

Article Title: Most Classroom Teachers Feel Unprepared to Support Students with Disabilities

Author: Corey Mitchell

Source: Education Week

Publication date: May 29, 2019

Link to article: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/speced/2019/05/teachers_feel_unprepared_to_teach_students_with_disabilities.html

The article, “Most Classroom Teachers Feel Unprepared to Support Students with Disabilities,” is about how the majority of general education teachers don’t feel that they can teach students with learning disabilities, according to two surveys from national advocacy groups. It was found that people who took the surveys feel as though this problem lies in teacher preparation programs. This is because many of them were either not required to take courses related to working with students with disabilities, or because they took a course that still left them feeling unprepared. The survey report also outlined steps that can be taken in order to improve education for students with disabilities. These recommendations included prioritizing professional development opportunities, encouraging more collaboration between teachers and specialists, and utilizing targeted instruction in the classroom.

The article also mentioned a third survey released by the Council for Exceptional Children. This survey found that special education teachers had concerns about general education teachers working with students with disabilities because they thought they were not prepared for it. Something I found surprising when reading this article was the difference between how general education teachers and special education teachers view IEPS. The first two surveys found that general education teachers were more likely to view them as simply paperwork, compared to the special education teachers who see them as critical documents that play a major role in success. In addition, the report found that there was a perception that IEPs included unnecessary accommodations. These findings are at odds with the Council for Exceptional Children survey, which did find that IEPs are extremely important when it comes to the success of special education teachers.

Although many general education teachers were not optimistic about their ability to work with students with disabilities, I think it is important to note that they did express interest in learning how to become better at it. It is also important that teachers are able to self-reflect on this and want to make changes. There are millions of children with disabilities in K-12 public classrooms in America and it is important that their diverse needs are addressed. I think the fact that these misconceptions are being brought to attention is a step in the right direction to place more of an emphasis on the importance for general education teachers to be able to meet the needs of ALL learners across the spectrum of ability levels. Also after reading this article, it makes me appreciate that in this program we are encouraged to think about and include adaptations that allow students with specific needs to demonstrate their learning in the lesson plans we design. Not only that, but we also have been including what we know about the students' everyday experiences, cultural backgrounds and practices, and interests. I think this training will contribute to me developing into a teacher who feels strongly about my ability to work with students that have learning disabilities. 

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