Preparing Effective Special Education Teachers

Nancy Mamlin, PhD, is Associate Professor of Special Education and Coordinator of the Learning Disabilities Program at the H. M. Michaux, Jr. School of Education, North Carolina Central University. Dr. Mamlin received her initial teacher preparation at Indiana University in the areas of intellectual and emotional disabilities. She taught in Palo Alto, California, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, before earning her master’s degree from the University of Maryland. After teaching in Rockville, Maryland, for 2 years, she returned to school and earned a doctorate in special education (with a concentration in learning disabilities) from the University of Maryland in 1995. Dr. Mamlin has been a teacher educator at Appalachian State University and North Carolina Central University, and has prepared teacher candidates by working with them in their student teaching and internship settings. She has focused her research on general and special education teachers and what they need to know in order to work with their students who have special education needs.

1. A Framework for Teacher Education in Special Education: Teacher Education Matters 2. Who Are the Candidates? 3. Field Experiences: A “Must Have” 4. The “Job” of a Special Education Teacher 5. Special Education Knowledge Base 6. Assessment: Have We Met Our Goals? 7. Preparing Excellent Special Educators List of Abbreviations Annotated Bibliography Appendix A. Council for Exceptional Children Standards for Professional Practice Appendix B. Council for Exceptional Children Personnel Preparation Standards Appendix C. Association of Teacher Educators Standards for Teacher Educators Appendix D. Council for Exceptional Children Code of Ethics