Session Information
ERG SES F 01, Inclusive Education
Parallel paper session
Contribution
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). SEN remains a national priority area for Initial Teacher Training in England. The funding made available to providers has enabled the implementation of additional placements in specialist settings.
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.
Additionally, the recent Green Paper, Support and aspiration: A new approach to special educational needs and disability - a consultation places greater responsibilities on schools and class teachers to understand and meet the needs of diverse learners whereas historically such support may have come from centrally organised services. The European Agency for Development in
Special Needs Education (2010) reported on the need for ITE providers to enable beginning teachers to develop their knowledge and understanding of Inclusive Practice, however the OECD TALIS survey (2009) found that teachers who have recently completed their training did not feel fully prepared to cope with the challenges of students with SEN.
During 2010/11 initial research was carried out by this group which attempted to consider the impact of the SEN placement in relation to the development of trainees' core teaching skills and to analyse the relevance of such placements to aspiring teachers. The initial findings were presented at ECER 2011. Part of the feedback at ECER 2011 suggested that the study should be further extended to consider the impact of such placement as trainees move into their first year of teaching.
The additional research highlighted several anomalies which form the basis of this subsequent research. When questioned, trainees who completed the SEN Placement reported significantly lower confidence that their peers who hadn’t undertaken a placement in a SEN context in relation to the following five areas which are key in effectively managing the learning in diverse classroom,
- their confidence in managing the needs of all learners
- assessment of individual progress
- managing the physical environment
- knowledge of inclusive practice
- knowledge of behaviour
This study focusses on nine newly qualified teachers all of whom completed a placement in a special educational needs context. All nine trainees evaluated the placement highly and have now taken up first teaching posts in mainstream primary classrooms.
The study will evaluate how Newly Qualified Teachers’ knowledge and understanding of these key areas has developed during their first year of teaching and consider to what extent the SEN placement impacted on their current practice.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
DEPARTMENT for CHILDREN, FAMILIES and SCHOOLS (DCFS) (2009) Lamb Inquiry: Special Educational Needs and Parental Confidence.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 Florian, L. & Black-Hawkins, K. (2011) Exploring Inclusive Pedagogy. British Educational Research Journal, 37(5), 813-828. European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education, (2010) Teacher Education for Inclusion – International LiteratureReview, Odense, Denmark: European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education Florian, L. & Linklater, H. (2010) Preparing Teachers for Inclusive Education: Using Inclusive Pedagogy to Enhance Teaching and Learning for All. Cambridge Journal of Education, 40(4), 369-386. Florian, L., Young, K. & Rouse, M (2010) Preparing Teachers for Inclusive and Diverse Educational Environments: Studying Curricular Reform in an Initial Teacher Education Course. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 14(7), 709-722. Florian. L. (2010) The concept of inclusive pedagogy. In G. Hallett & F. Hallett (Eds.). Transforming the role of the SENCO, pp 61-72. Buckingham: Open University Press. 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 OECD (2009). Creating Effective Teaching and Learning Environments: First Results from TALIS. Paris: OECD. 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
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