Preparing Teacher Candidates in Classroom Management Prior to Entering the Teaching Profession

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to evaluate the promise of a specialized curriculum designed to prepare general education teacher candidates to effectively implement classroom management strategies within a multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) framework. Participants were 110 teacher candidates enrolled in a student teaching internship course. Fall participants (intervention group; n = 69) received the specialized curriculum that focused on implementation of classroom management strategies for students with emotional and behavioral disorders and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), in concert with their internship; spring participants (comparison group; n = 41) did not. All participants completed pre- and postquestionnaires, which included measures assessing knowledge of classroom management principles, knowledge of ADHD, and self-efficacy. Measures of satisfaction with the curriculum were also collected. Fourteen teachers (seven intervention group, seven comparison group) participated in follow-up observations in their first teaching semester. Results demonstrate significant differences in knowledge of classroom management principles and ADHD between groups from pre- to postinternship, and high levels of participant satisfaction with the curriculum. Preliminary observations reveal greater use of evidence-based classroom management strategies in the intervention group. Implications for further program development and educator preparation as well as suggestions for future research are discussed.

Automated summary

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a specialized curriculum in preparing general education teacher candidates to implement classroom management strategies within a multi-tiered systems of support framework. The results showed significant differences in knowledge of classroom management principles and ADHD between the intervention group and the comparison group, indicating the effectiveness of the specialized curriculum.