Should teachers be required a general course in educating and manging special needs populations?

Question

I was not satisfied with previous chosen answer to my first attempt. (previous focus was on the assumption that all teachers did receive this as apart of their 'licensing'.. we are not licensed. We are degreed and then certified here..according to nclb standards)

I am a grad student. I know my degree plan and have had to evaluate other degree plans and courses from several colleges before I decided on my particular path. The object is to answer the question and not presume the best case scenario is available everywhere. I am asking this particular question based on the lack of education received by current teachers in "MY AREA".

Is this a good delivery method or is there another means to assure that a majority of teachers receive the necessary education regarding special needs students?

Please do not assume the laws are the same everywhere. (my tone is not meant to discourage general answers but to avoid more assumptions instead of focus on the answer...thank you.

Answer 1

Yes- all teachers should be familiar with the needs of special populations and how to help them in the mainstreamed classroom.  They are all our children.  The easiest way to ensure that teachers develop knowledge and skills in this area is to require coursework for certification.  There are other ways to develop knowledge and skills (field experiences, professional development workshops, etc.) but it is hard to ensure that those will effectively address the material and apply to all teachers.  The easiest way to ensure the knowledge is to require coursework as proof that this was done.  

You are correct about differences from one area to another.  I taught in seeral states and found a great deal of variety.  By the way, don't be distracted by the terms license versus certificate.  In many cases, that is just the term a state uses without any significant difference in the level of preparation.  Many states already require one (or more) courses on mainstreaming and/ or special populations.  Others do not yet.  Keep in mind,  there are special populations that need to be addressed more strongly in certain regions but may seem relevant in other regions (such as Native Americans, English Language Learners,  Appalachian, ...).  

If your degree plan does not seem to adquately prepare you to work with special needs populations, take a course as an elective in addition to your required coursework.  Those who designed your program probably had to stick to the basics in order to attract students (who don't want exra courses).  In many cases, good courses are dropped when the state adds some new requirement and something else has to be dropped to make room.  Teacher preparation requirements change every few years as new things are added (and sometimes dropped to squeeze in the new requirements).   I know that PA is in the process of adding several new requirements in relation to training for special needs.  Other states may be making changes also.

Answer 2

all accredited colleges that offer majors in primary or secondary education require general course work in special ed...any state you apply for a license in checks your college transcript to make sure you have the right classes...however, taking the class doesn't mean you are an expert or even well versed in it...i took the SPED class training and was totally unprepared for my special needs classes...

BTW...as a grad student you really should work on your writing style, this post was almost impossible to decipher and it is probably your own fault that you did not get the answer you wanted the 1st time...people should not have to work this hard to figure out what you are asking...