Personnel Preparation and Service Delivery Issues in Rural Areas: The State of the Art

Abstract

Preparation of high quality personnel to provide educational services to students with disabilities living in rural areas is, at best, challenging. Findings from a comprehensive study concerning the status of the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in rural settings and the issues such implementation presents to teacher education programs in these areas are discussed. Members of the American Council on Rural Special Education (ACRES) participated in the study. Results indicated that strategies for enhancing personnel preparation, recruitment, and retention of individuals to institutions of higher education and K-12 schools in rural settings include distance learning, on-site professional development opportunities, salary incentives/increments, and benefits. Linking evaluation data to the general education curriculum and determining how the student's disabilities affect his/her progress in general education are issues for practitioners implementing IDEA in rural settings. Recommendations are provided for enhancing personnel preparation and service delivery based on the results.

Effectiveness of Online Professional Development for Rural Special Educators

“…National research studies suggest that a primary obstacle to retaining teachers is isolation-both geographic and social (Hammer et al, 2005;Provasnik et al, 2009;Schwartzbeck & Prince, 2003). One promising, evidence-based strategy for increasing special education teacher retention in rural areas is professional development via online technology (Sundeen & Wienke, 2009;Williams, Martin, & Hess, 2002).…”

The Impact of Online Professional Development on the Assessment Efficacy of Novice Itinerant Teachers of Students with Multiple Disabilities Including Visual Impairments

“…Two trends emerged from the literature, as contributors to the predicted shortage of special education teachers and TVIs (Ludlow et al, 2005;Summer et al, 2006 and individualized education services and affects the quality of instruction (Summer et al, 2006). Of the literature reviewed (Berry, Petrin, Gravelle, & Farmer, 2011;Billingsley et al, 2009;Carlson, Brauen, Klein, Schroll, & Willig, 2002;Piwowar, Thiel, & Ophardt, 2013;Sindelar, Brownell, & Billingsley, 2010) (Kluwin, Morris, & Clifford, 2004;Pogrund & Wibbenmeyer, 2008;Seitz, 1994;Swenson, 1995;Williams & Warren, 2007;Williams, Martin, & Hess, 2010). Pogrund and Wibbenmeyer (2008) described the significance of the TVI's role as follows:…”

“…The literature review suggested that novice itinerant TVIs lack opportunities for professional development that is specific to their field of special education and often have limited to no access to a veteran TVI (Griffin-Shirley et al, 2004;Seitz, 1994;Williams et al, 2010). Billingsley et al (2009) reinforced the importance of targeted professional development and stated: "these experiences (i.e., content specific to their field of teaching) were perceived as more helpful than generic efforts aimed at professional development of all beginning teachers" (p. 28).…”

“…Veteran TVIs often have their own caseload to manage and have limited time to offer beneficial support to the novice TVI. Along with traveling and working in multiple settings, novice itinerant TVIs have difficulty accessing targeted professional development(Williams et al, 2010). Providing flexible opportunities to access veteran TVIs and reinforce skills pertinent to the work of TVIs through online professional development may be one way to provide an anchor of support for novice itinerant TVIs.…”

Reducing Isolation through Regional Mentors and Learning Communities: A Way to Support Rural Learners

“…Students are opting to participate in distance versus traditional campus-based courses for a variety of reasons, such as the lack of geographic proximity to university classrooms and fmancial or family obligations that preclude attendance in traditional campus-based programs (Braun, 2008;Riffell & Sibley, 2004;Yudko, Hirokawa, & Chi, 2008). Increasing the pool of potential new teachers by providing access for all ' qualified applicants to special education teacher training programs via distance education programs is particularly pertinent in light of nation-wide shortages of special education teachers (Katsiyannis, Zhang, & Conroy, 2003), especially in rural areas (Menlove &c Lignugaris/Kraft, 2004;Sundeen & W^ienke, 2009;Williams, Martin, & Hess, 2002). I Distance teacher preparation programs have become an increasingly popular and effective vehicle for preparing highly qualifidd special education teachers in rural areas (Brownell, Bishop, & Sindelar, 2005;Ludlow & Brannon, 1999;Spooner, F. Spooner, Algozzine, & Jordan, 1998).…”