Misconceptions of undergraduate teacher trainees to intellectual disability

The recent development of special education courses within teacher education degrees has focussed attention on the content of these courses. Although several policy documents recommending content for these courses have been published in recent years, very little empirical work has been conducted to determine the relevance of such proposals. This study examined the misconceptions of teacher trainees about intellectual disability as a means of identifying particular aspects of special education content that may need to be addressed in special education courses. The sample held several misconceptions which suggest that many teacher trainees may have a poor understanding of intellectual disability.