Educators are taught how to work with specific students or disabilities. For instance, if you are teaching a student with Down syndrome who has speech and hearing problems, you might receive instruction in sign language or a picture board communication system. Children with severe speech problems often use augmentative communication devices. These can range from the simple to the highly technological, like the computerized voice synthesizer used by Stephen Hawking, the eminent theoretical physicist. Educators are taught how to write goals and objectives that relate to the curriculum and state standards.
Most training takes place at the school site.
Instructors may include school personnel with expertise on a given topic. As public schools seek to accommodate an increasing range of students, however, teachers are being required to work collaboratively and to build a communal knowledge base. Talk to the special education people in your building. Contact your local special education director, or the state office of the Council for Exceptional Children, to find out about courses, classes, or workshops held at the state level. Also, most districts have a certain amount of inservice or staff-development days.