Preparing Preservice Teachers for Inclusive Education Through Standards-based Curriculum

Abstract

This paper explores factors that impact inclusive teacher preparation programs in the United States, such as federal legislation, inclusive teacher shortage, state policies, and the standards developed by the accreditation organizations and specialty professional associations. It also discusses the process of developing and implementing a curriculum based on multiple sets of standards from different professional organizations to prepare preservice teachers for inclusive education in dual-certification teacher education programs in a mid-sized university located in the Northeastern US. Crosswalk examples between the Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) standards, Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) standards, the New York State Teacher Certification Examination (NYSTCE) – Students with Disabilities Content Specialty Test (SWD CST) Framework, and an excerpt of a standards-based assessment rubric are shared to help provide insights into the preservice inclusive teacher preparation in New York State, the United States.