Rethinking Special Education Teacher Preparation for a Post-Pandemic World

The pivot to remote teaching was a wake-up call for institutions of higher education (IHE) teacher preparation programs. This discussion will share solutions and tips for successfully building capacity in a new teacher preparation era. Many IHEs problem-solved, resulting in a myriad of solutions to keep their teacher preparation programs running and relevant during the pivot to remote teaching and learning. This presentation discussion will assist in uncovering a list of teacher preparation program practices that evolved out of the Covid-19 pandemic that seeks to increase the number of pre-service teacher candidates enrolled in IHE teacher preparation programs. The presenters also argue a collaborative, curated post-pandemic pedagogical solution will improve outcomes for teacher preparation candidates and, in turn, advance the positive results for their future students in a post-pandemic world

Why Stay? A Phenomenological Look at Special Education Teacher Retention

This phenomenological study examined the teaching experiences of veteran special education teachers (SETs) and why they chose to remain in a special education teaching setting. Guided by Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems framework, veteran SETs were interviewed and asked to describe the experiences and situations that have influenced their decision to remain in special education. Three themes and two sub-categories emerged as their motivation for persevering: (A) a calling from above, (B) standing up for the underdog, (b) personally committed to my kids, my babies, (C) beating the bushes with the apathetic, (c) against my ethical judgment. Specific information related to these themes is reported with implications for hiring practices of special education teachers and future special education teacher retention/attrition research