Regular and Special Educators

Abstract

Communication breakdowns between regular and special educators integrating students with handicaps into the regular education classroom have been associated with differences in professional orientation. The extent of these differences has not been well defined. In this study, 128 regular education teachers and 133 special educators from 21 school districts responded to a questionnaire addressing management, professional, and educational concerns relating to handicap integration (i.e., mainstreaming). The two groups of teachers were similar in their attitudes. Regular educators were more negative in their attitudes, but the differences rarely reached significance. Group differences became more apparent when attitudes concerning specific handicapping conditions were addressed. A factor analysis revealed that the components of mutual factors were frequently dissimilar. Where the defining variables were the same, the direction and intensity of the group attitudes frequently differed. The implications of these findings for special education consultants working with regular education teachers are discussed.

Rethinking the Relationship Between Consultation And Collaborative Problem-Solving

“…The first problem with consultation is that a lack of congruence may exist between suggestions for classroom interventions made by consultants and general educators' understanding of those suggestions (Abidin, 1975;Gans, 1985). The training and experience of special education teachers generally is geared to individualized instructional settings, which are very different from the demands and pressures of the typical general education classroom.…”

Integration of technological resources into the curriculum in the fourth industrial revolution: the context of primary schools in Pinetown District.

“…In the 1980s, according to Cassidy (1982), integration was not new in the education profession, especially during the teaching and learning process (See the study conducted by Gans (1985) on integration attitudes and implications). It is revealed that integration is about examining involvement in technology based on past and present activities to shape future activities.…”

“…It is revealed that integration is about examining involvement in technology based on past and present activities to shape future activities. Integration gives teachers a chance to analyse difficult situations, tackle the problem, and to think differently in finding solutions to problems (Gans, 1985). Integration thus involves personal thinking in finding the solution.…”