"This book provides a review of the basic tenets and practices of special education for novices and seasoned veterans alike. As the principles are reviewed, they are embedded in activities and narrative designed to foster epistemic empathy, a quality which holds great promise for enhancing learning for both students and professionals"--

This book offers practical guidance on such topics as roles and responsibilities, school environment and culture, classroom organization and management, collaboration with other professionals, and individual professional development.

What every special education teacher needs to know to survive and thrive A Survival Guide for New Special Educators provides relevant, practical information for new special education teachers across a broad range of topic areas. Drawing on the latest research on special educator effectiveness and retention, this comprehensive, go-to resource addresses the most pressing needs of novice instructors, resource teachers, and inclusion specialists. Offers research-based, classroom-tested strategies for working with a variety of special needs students Covers everything from preparing for the new school year to behavior management, customizing curriculum, creating effective IEPs, and more Billingsley and Brownell are noted experts in special educator training and support This highly practical book is filled with checklists, forms, and tools that special educators can use every day to help ensure that all special needs students get the rich, rewarding education they deserve.

Practical and forward-thinking, Developing Teacher Leaders in Special Education is the administrator's essential guide to growing special educator leadership in any school, district, or program. Special educators need to be flexible, proactive, and collaborative – qualities that make them uniquely suited to roles in school leadership – but these skills are often overlooked when choosing effective teacher leaders. Featuring helpful tips and detailed examples to demonstrate the concepts in action, this book breaks down the qualities that special educators can bring to your school leadership team and explores how you can leverage those skills to create a more inclusive and successful community.

Integrating coverage of the most important knowledge base, research, and practice in the field, this book prepares educators for the challenging role of special education leader. Special Education Leadership provides leaders with tools to review programs, implement special education law, and build special education programs that effectively supervise and support teachers. Grounded in theory, this book also includes best practice for day-to-day operations, such as issues of teaching and learning, personnel selection and evaluation, basic financial management, working with parent relations, mental health issues, and legal matters related to special education. Full of advice from practitioners, end-of-chapter questions, and coverage of emerging trends, this book helps prepare special education administrators and supervisors to survive the pressures of working with students with disabilities while supporting appropriate services and preventing litigation.

"What tools are in the toolkit of an excellent special educator, and how can teacher preparation programs provide these tools in the most efficient, effective way possible? This practical, clearly written book is grounded in current research and policy as well as the author's extensive experience as a teacher educator. It identifies what special education teachers need to know to work competently with students with a wide variety of learning challenges and disabilities. Chapters present specific guidelines for helping teacher candidates build critical skills for instruction and assessment, get the most out of field placements, and collaborate successfully with other school personnel and with parents. Subject Areas/Keywords: assessments, curriculum, disabilities, exceptional children, field work, IEPs, inclusion, instruction, learning, lessons, professional development, special education, special needs, standards, students, teacher preparation programs, teacher training, teachers, teaching Audience: Teacher educators in special education, graduate students preparing to be teacher educators, and school district personnel who provide staff development for special education teachers"--

As states adopt more rigorous academic standards, schools must define how special education fits into standards-aligned curricula, instruction, and assessment. Utilizing PLC practices, general and special educators must develop collaborative partnerships in order to close the achievement gap and maximize learning for all. The authors encourage all educators to take collective responsibility in improving outcomes for students with special needs.

Written by legal and education experts and aligned with the reauthorization of IDEA 2004, this practical resource provides a step-by-step plan for creating, writing, and evaluating IEPs.

Improve teacher retention by understanding and supporting the work of special education teachers! Are you concerned about special education teacher attrition? Do you wonder about how to meet the demand for highly qualified special educators? This book highlights the problems that drive many special educators out of teaching and outlines practical recommendations that leaders can use to increase retention. Drawing on field experience as well as research findings, Billingsley provides a comprehensive framework for supporting special educators. Cultivating and Keeping Committed Special Education Teachers provides effective ways to: Recruit and hire qualified special educators Provide responsive induction programs for new teachers Design effective professional development opportunities Create inclusive and collaborative schools Provide reasonable work assignments and reduce paperwork Promote wellness by reducing stress This book emphasizes the important role that principals play in supporting special educators and how they can make a difference in what special educators accomplish in their schools. Numerous assessments, tools, and resources are included to help leaders, mentors, and teachers improve the conditions of special education teaching.

The topic of special education is rich in knowledge and pedagogy that covers multiple disciplines within the school environment. Many special educators complete graduate degrees and explore a variety of topics within the special education context; however, there is a need for more resources that provide essential knowledge to special education professionals. New Considerations and Best Practices for Training Special Education Teachers discusses best practices and strategies special education professionals require to become more proficient in teaching students with exceptional needs and addresses the most important components of the special education teacher’s job. Serving as a guide of what a special educator must know to be effective within the classroom and providing an overview of the most important components of the special education teacher’s job, the needs of the special educator, along with new research in the field, this timely book covers a range of topics such as assistive technologies and special education law. It is ideal for special education teachers, industry professionals, guidance counselors, academicians, professors, researchers, practitioners, and students.