Pre-Service Teachers with Learning Disabilities: Perceptions of Professional Training

Abstract

The study presented herewith examines the perceptions of pre-service teachers with learning disabilities (LD) of their professional identity. The sample included 31 pre-service teachers with LD in their first years of training for a Bachelor of Education (BEd) degree over one semester. Four main aspects of the teaching profession and teacher-education training were examined both at the beginning of the semester and again at the end of the semester: roles of teachers, various components of teacher-education, training agents, and the connectedness between classroom training and teaching practice. The results reveal unique perceptions and needs of pre-service teachers with LD as well as common perceptions of pre-service teachers during their training. The study calls attention to the needs of pre-service teachers with LD in terms of training and support during their post-secondary education.