Since 2008, the TDA (Training and Development Agency in England) have actively supported the identification of Special Educational Needs (SEN) placements for students undertaking courses in primary and early years Initial Teacher Training (ITT).  The TDA has guided Higher Educational Establishments (HEIs) to link these placements with their current provision.  To support the planning of such SEN placements, the TDA has also established a series of cluster groups to enable HEIs to share practice. 

The Department for Children, Schools and Families in England commissioned Toby Salt to lead an independent review into the supply of teachers trained to meet the needs of children with severe and profound learning difficulties.  The report, published in 2010 questioned the focus and coverage of SEN and Disability within ITT programmes and encouraged all ITT providers to provide opportunities for school based training in schools for children with special educational needs.

This proposal is submitted jointly from one such cluster group the members of which are all in their third year of delivering a placement in special educational needs for ITT students.  Review and evaluation of such placements indicate that students and tutors believe that the impact is profound and far reaching.  Specific areas identified by both tutors and students involved in the SEN placement

·         Building relationships with staff and children

·         Planning for individual needs

·         Differentiation

·         Resourcing

·         Assessment

·         Working with other professionals

·         Behaviour management

·         Classroom layout

The identification of these core teaching skills, all of which are embedded within the Qualified to Teach (2008) standards which all trainees in England have to achieve by the end of their training, provides the basis for this research.

Research has already been undertaken which (Feeney et al 2010, Lamb & Bones, 2008) advocates the benefit of placements in special educational needs schools.  However, all members of the cluster group teach on ITT programmes which are based on mainstream provision of which SEN is an important part.

Once students have completed their placements in special educational needs schools they then go on to complete assessed placements in mainstream education contexts the following year as part of their programme.  The central aim of this research is consider the impact of the special educational needs placement in relation to the development of their teaching skills (identified above) within a subsequent placement within primary or early years education and to present this research to a wider European audience in order to analyse the relevance of such placements to aspiring teachers.

DEPARTMENT for CHILDREN, FAMILIES and SCHOOLS (DCFS) (2009) Lamb Inquiry: Special Educational Needs and Parental Confidence.Nottingham: DCSF. DEPARTMENT for CHILDREN, FAMILIES and SCHOOLS (DCSF) (2010) Salt Review: Independent Review of Teacher Supply for Pupils with Severe, Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties. Nottingham: DCSF. Feeney, A Gager, A and Hallett, G (2010) The transformative nature of the special school placement: reporting ‘insistent’ data from emerging teachers and exploring an agenda for future research. Support for Learning 25 (4) pp 159-165 Golder, G., Norwich, B. and Bayliss, P. (2005) Preparing teachers to teach pupils with special educational needs in more inclusive schools: evaluating a PGCE development. British Journal of Special Education, 32, 2, 92–99. Lambe, J and Bones, R (2008) The impact of a special school placement on student teacher beliefs about inclusive education in Northern Ireland British Journal of Special Education 35 (2) pp. 108-117 OFSTED (2008) How Well New Teachers are Prepared to Teach Pupils with Learning Difficulties and/or Disabilities. London: OFSTED. [Online at www.ofsted.gov.uk/publications/070223]. Yin, R (2009) Case Study Research: Design and Methods. London: Sage