Revisiting the Trajectories of Special Teacher Education in China through Policy and Practice

Abstract

The preparation, recruitment, work, and career of teachers are important in education. This is no exemption for special education. However, the shortage of qualified teachers serving students with disabilities has long been an international problem. In China, both the quantity and the quality of special education teachers are of concern. This places unrelenting pressure on special teacher education. Given its growing size and challenges, special teacher education has received increasing attention from research, policy, and practice. However, there is a dearth of scholarship published in English to address these issues. To the best of our belief and knowledge, there is no systematic, comprehensive, and contextualised examination of special teacher education in China to date. This article aims to make a contribution in this regard. First, we present the complexities of the Chinese context in which special teacher education is situated. Second, we synthesise recent literature on special teacher education in China through an extensive review of the relevant studies scattered in English publications. Third, we provide insights into special teacher education in China, regarding its trajectory of policy-making, its history of development, and its strategies and challenges. Finally, we conclude our article with some practical recommendations to aid the future development of special teacher education.

Keywords:

• China
• disability
• education policy
• in-service training
• Learning in Regular Classrooms
• pre-service education
• special education
• special teacher education

Acknowledgements

There was no research funding for this study, and no restrictions have been imposed on free access to, or publication of, the research data.

Notes

1. Normal universities and colleges refer to education institutions that are traditionally responsible for teacher education. They are also termed tertiary normal institutions.