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Development and evaluation of an advocacy course for early childhood special educators

Description:

Globally, there are political, social, and financial obstacles to providing high quality, inclusive early childhood education to young children with disabilities and their families. Many teachers are able to identify the systemic issues that negatively impact their work; however, many early childhood special education (ECSE) teachers do not have the competence or confidence to advocate for systemic change. In the U.S., one reason for ECSE teachers not engaging in advocacy is an absence of content, practice, and opportunities to learn about advocacy in traditional teacher preparation programmes. This mixed methods study explored how an 8-week graduate level course focused on advocacy for ECSE trainees influenced their knowledge, skills, and dispositions towards advocacy. The course content, assignments, and activities are described as well as pre- and post-course evaluation data. Implications are discussed regarding the course outcomes, lessons learned, and future directions for infusing advocacy content and experiences in ECSE training programmes. (author abstract)

Resource Type:
Reports & Papers
Country:
United States

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