INITIAL AND ONGOING TEACHER PREPARATION AND SUPPORT: CURRENT PROBLEMS AND POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

THE EFFECTIVE initial preparation and ongoing support of teachers of students who are deaf and hard of hearing has always been a difficult and controversial task. Changes in student demographic characteristics and educational settings, combined with the rapidly diminishing number and diversity of deaf education teacher preparation (DETP) programs, indicate that the field of deaf education may be at a tipping point. In the present article, the author establishes the dimensions of the current problems and proposes specific solutions to increase the accessibility and effectiveness of DETP programs that would simultaneously enhance the supply, retention, and instructional effectiveness of teachers of students who are deaf and hard of hearing.