Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Summer 2025
Abstract
setting. When the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) was reauthorized in 2004 along with the mandates set in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), students with disabilities were required to be taught in the general education setting with the necessary accommodations, modifications and support services to make learning approachable for them. While these federal laws move education forward for students, teacher pre-service training and professional development has not moved forward to adequately prepare general education teachers for an inclusive setting. General education teachers need to understand accommodations, modifications, differentiation strategies, and support services. The first part of this study investigated Iowa’s colleges’ current course offerings on differentiation and inclusion for general education teachers. Then, the researcher surveyed general education teachers’ perceptions of their pre-service teacher education, current professional development and collaboration, and what they would like to see in future professional development. The findings revealed that a majority of Iowa’s colleges offer two or less courses to prepare teachers for the inclusive classroom setting, and teachers would like more professional development on inclusion, differentiation, accommodations, and modifications. Further research is needed to include a larger amount of general education teachers in the survey; as well as, research what is actually taught in the various college courses.