Special Education Teacher Preparation Policy
The state should ensure that special education teachers know the science of reading instruction and are fully prepared for the instructional shifts related to literacy associated with college-and career-readiness standards. This goal was consistent between 2015 and 2017.
Scientifically Based Reading Instruction—Tests and Standards: Pennsylvania's Educator Certification PreK-4 test (PECT) addresses the science of reading and is divided into subtests, but because the reading questions are combined with other English language arts topics as well as at least one other core subject, it does not amount to a stand-alone reading test. Additionally, only candidates that add their license to a PreK-4 license have to pass this test. Pennsylvania addresses the science of reading in its program guidelines for PreK-4 preparation programs.
Informational Texts: Test requirements incorporate some of the instructional shifts associated with Pennsylvania's college- and career-readiness standards for students. The PECT test addresses informational texts within the cited examples for the objective "understand assessment, instruction, and intervention for PreK-4 students in reading fluency, vocabulary development and reading comprehension." Candidates with dual certification as a reading specialist (K-12) will have passed the Praxis II Reading Specialist assessment, which requires teachers to "understand reading comprehension strategies for nonfiction," including the ability to "describe how to select and use a variety of informational, descriptive, and persuasive materials at appropriate reading levels to promote students' comprehension of nonfiction, including content-area texts."
Literacy Skills: Pennsylvania's 4-8 Program Guidelines partially address incorporating literacy skills into other content areas, while the state's candidate competencies for secondary teachers broadly address this instructional shift.
Struggling Readers: The needs of struggling readers are partially addressed at each grade level through grade-level program guidelines.
Pennsylvania Educator Certification Test www.pa.nesinc.com Praxis II Tests www.ets.org/praxis PK-4 Program Guidelines http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_123236_893942_0_0_18/Prek4Guidelines.pdf 4-8 Program Guidelines http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_123236_588882_0_0_18/4_8ProgramGuidelines.pdf Secondary Guidelines http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_123236_823088_0_0_18/SECONDARYGUIDELINES7-12_%204-19-10.pdf English Program Guidelines http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=18&objID=1246969&mode=2 PA Code Chapter 49.85 Chapter 49-2 Final Form Regulations http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/chapter_49/8627/chapter_49-2_final_form_regulations/506814
Require all elementary special education teacher candidates to pass a rigorous assessment in the science of reading instruction.
Pennsylvania should require a rigorous reading assessment tool to ensure that its elementary special education teacher candidates are adequately prepared in the science of reading instruction before entering the classroom. The assessment should clearly test knowledge and skills related to the science of reading and address all five instructional components of scientifically based reading instruction: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. If the test is combined with an assessment that also tests general pedagogy or elementary content, it should report a subscore for the science of reading specifically. Elementary special education teachers who do not possess the minimum knowledge in this area should not be eligible for licensure.
Ensure that new special education teachers are prepared to incorporate informational text of increasing complexity into classroom instruction.
Although Pennsylvania's PreK-4 test addresses knowledge of informational texts, the in-depth coverage of the topic is presented as examples. Therefore, the extent to which this information is required is unclear. Pennsylvania is encouraged to make certain that its framework captures the major instructional shifts of college- and career-readiness standards, thereby ensuring that all special education teacher candidates have the ability to adequately incorporate complex informational text into classroom instruction. Further, the state should strengthen its policy and ensure that secondary special education teachers are able to challenge all special education students with texts of increasing complexity.
Ensure that new special education teachers are prepared to incorporate literacy skills as an integral part of every subject.
To ensure that special education students are capable of accessing varied information about the world around them, Pennsylvania should also—either through testing frameworks or teacher standards—include literacy skills and using text to build content knowledge in history/social studies, science, technical subjects and the arts. Because Pennsylvania's program guidelines and candidate competencies address this at the middle and secondary levels only, there is no guarantee that elementary special education teachers will be prepared to incorporate literacy skills in all the core content areas.
Support struggling readers.
Pennsylvania should articulate more specific requirements ensuring that all special education teachers are prepared to intervene and support students who are struggling with reading. With reading difficulties generally representing the primary reason for special education placements, it is essential that all special education teachers have the knowledge and skills to diagnose and support students with literacy needs.
Pennsylvania recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis, however this analysis was updated subsequent to the state's review. The state also noted that Pennsylvania's Education Certification Test for PreK-4 (PECT) modules and the grades 4-8 test measures comprehensive reading knowledge and skills for teaching in reading in the elementary grades.
4B: Teaching Special Education Reading
Teaching children to read is the most important task teachers at the elementary level undertake. Over the past 60 years, scientists from many fields have worked to determine how people learn to read and why some struggle. This science of reading has led to breakthroughs that can dramatically reduce the number of children destined to become functionally illiterate or barely literate adults. By routinely applying in the classroom the lessons learned from the scientific findings, most reading failure can be avoided. Estimates indicate that the current failure rate of 20 to 30 percent could be reduced to 2 to 10 percent.
Scientific research has shown that there are five essential components of effective reading instruction: explicit and systematic instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Many states' policies still do not reflect the strong research consensus in reading instruction that has emerged over the last few decades. Many teacher preparation programs resist teaching scientifically-based reading instruction. Reports by NCTQ on teacher preparation, beginning with What Education Schools Aren't Teaching about Reading and What Elementary Teachers Aren't Learning in 2006 and continuing through the Teacher Prep Review in 2016, have consistently found the overwhelming majority of teacher preparation programs across the country do not train teachers in the science of reading. Whether through standards or coursework requirements, states must direct programs to provide this critical training. But relying on programs alone is insufficient; states must only grant licenses to new special education teachers who can demonstrate they have the knowledge and skills to teach children to read.
Effective early reading instruction is especially important for teachers of special education students. By far, the largest classification of students receiving special education services are those with learning disabilities. Based on data from the U.S. Department of Education, it is estimated that reading disabilities account for about 80 percent of learning disabilities. While early childhood and elementary teachers must know the reading science to prevent reading difficulties, special education teachers, and especially elementary special education teachers, must know how to support students who have already fallen behind and struggle with reading and literacy skills. States should require no less from special education teachers in terms of preparation to teach reading than they require from general education teachers.
College- and career-readiness standards require significant shifts in literacy instruction. College- and career-readiness standards for K-12 students adopted by nearly all states require from teachers a different focus on literacy integrated into all subject areas. The standards demand that teachers are prepared to bring complex text and academic language into regular use, emphasize the use of evidence from informational and literary texts, and build knowledge and vocabulary through content-rich texts. While most states have not ignored teachers' need for training and professional development related to these instructional shifts, states also need to attend to the parallel need to align teacher competencies and requirements for teacher preparation so that new teachers will enter the classroom ready to help students meet the expectations of these standards. For special education teachers, preparation and training must focus on managing these instructional shifts while also helping students who may have serious reading deficiencies.