A Performance Based Early Childhood Special Education Teacher Preparation Program: Overview.

Overview & Synopsis

This monograph presents an overview of the Early Childhood-Special Education Teacher Preparation Program designed to prepare preschool teachers to be developmental diagnosticians and learning facilitators for young children, including children with handicaps, from birth to age 7. This report describes the operational aspects of the program (sequence, module requirements, practicum policies, and evaluation). The program provides a performance-based, field-centered, personalized, and systematically designed teacher education curriculum at the Master's Degree level. Descriptions of the program components and evaluation procedures with samples of appropriate forms are included. The child education program component, which provides an experience-centered curriculum for children, and the education program for parents of participating children, are discussed briefly. (ED)