Date

Spring 2022

Document Type

Master's Thesis (Open Access)

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Department

Teacher Education

Abstract

The Individual Education Plan (IEP) is the foundation of the special education system. The IEP is the contractual agreement between a family and a school district regarding how a student’s disability will be inclusively accommodated. A key element of the IEP is the collaboration between the team members, including preservice educators. Though preservice educators are required to participate in the IEP development, evidence shows they receive little training to do so and report feeling unprepared to participate meaningfully. Furthermore, it has been noted in the literature that educators’ attitudes towards inclusive education impact their ability to effectively practice inclusive education. A quasi-experimental study using a pre-test/post-test design measuring preservice educator attitudes toward inclusive education was conducted for the Mock IEP. A total of 45 education credential candidates participated in this study. The simulation IEP (Mock IEP) was a 3-part meeting requiring participants to engage in 2 days of preparation for the 3rd meeting when the participants conducted the Mock IEP meeting. The results indicate that participation in the Mock IEP had a positive impact on educator attitudes toward inclusive education, indicating the potential of the Mock IEP as a tool for improving educator preparation for the IEP process and inclusion.

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