Teacher Competencies Needed

Inclusive schools don't ask "how does this student have to change in order to be a fourth grader?" but rather, "How do we have to change in order to offer full membership to our students with disabilities?"

What competencies do general education teachers and special education teachers need to be competent inclusive teachers?

• Ability to problem solve, to be able to informally assess the skills a student needs (rather than relying solely on standardized curriculum).
• Ability to take advantage of children's individual interests and use their internal motivation for developing needed skills.
• Ability to set high but alternative expectations that are suitable for the students; this means developing alternative assessments.
• Ability to make appropriate expectations for EACH student, regardless of the student's capabilities. If teachers can do this, it allows all students to be included in a class and school.
• Ability to determine how to modify assignments for students; how to design classroom activities with so many levels that all students have a part. This teaching skill can apply not just at the elementary or secondary level, but at the college lev el as well. It will mean more activity-based teaching rather than seat-based teaching.
• Ability to learn how to value all kinds of skills that students bring to a class, not just the academic skills. In doing this, teachers will make it explicit that in their classrooms they value all skills, even if that is not a clear value of a w hole school.
• Ability to provide daily success for all students. Teachers have to work to counteract the message all students get when certain students are continually taken out of class for special work.

Other competencies that will help general education teachers in an inclusive environment include:

• a realization that every child in the class is their responsibility. Teachers need to find out how to work with each child rather than assuming someone else will tell them how to educate a child.
• knowing a variety of instructional strategies and how to use them effectively. This includes the ability to adapt materials and rewrite objectives for a child's needs.
• working as a team with parents and special education teachers to learn what skills a child needs and to provide the best teaching approach.
• viewing each child in the class as an opportunity to become a better teacher rather than a problem to be coped with or have someone else fix.
• flexibility and a high tolerance for ambiguity.

State by state teacher competencies are quite broad for the generalist and many states base them on the INTASC Core Standard Competencies (Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium) and the Council for Exceptional Children competencies. Teachers and administrators may want to review the broader competencies at these web sites:

INTASC Core Standard Competencies -- http://www.ccsso.org/intascst.html

Council for Exceptional Children
1920 Association Dr.
Reston, VA 20191-1589
1-888-CEC-SPED
http://www.cec.sped.org/index.html

"Teachers today more fully recognize the value of inclusion because they see its power as an effective instructional practice. We feel that two factors are critical to the effectiveness of the district's inclusion efforts: effective collaborati on among classroom teachers and the special education staff, and a weekly block of instructional planning time."   Logan, Diaz, Piperno, Rankin, MacFarland, & Bargamian. (December 1994/January 1995). Educational Leadership.