Abstract:

Many students with disabilities are being educated in a general education classroom by teachers who have little, if any, formal experiences with these children in their teacher preparation programs. Some teacher education preparation programs require field placements with children with disabilities. This study attempts to discover the influence of the intensive special education field placement on pre-service teachers’ suggestions for early childhood general education teacher preparation programs for inclusion through individual interviews, and focus groups discussions. It is realized that these experiences influenced the pre-service teachers as they formed recommendations regarding field placements, and curricular changes.