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Students in the School of Education are exposed to real-world scenarios through avenues other than field experience. In fact, the Inclusions Solutions cohort is working on bringing the real world into the classroom by using the case study method of teaching. This method helps students make the leap from theory to practice and is preparing them to teach thoughtfully in diverse classrooms.
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The Preparing Students for Inclusive Education cohort demonstrated that students in the SoE benefit from a variety of teaching methods. The cohort worked to involve pre-service teachers directly in their own learning through the case-study method. This method utilizes real-world situations, specifically cases that involve inclusive education, to help students understand the multiple relevant viewpoints of inclusive education.
The cohort members, SoE students Melia Johnson and Marie Hooper and faculty leader Monica Brown, worked together to implement technology into the case-study learning method. The cohort involved students in Professor Brown's classes during the fall and spring semesters. Using Blackboard for the fall and a web site on the KU server for the spring, the cohort posted case studies on the Internet for students to study.
While field experience is a useful and necessary component of teacher education, this cohort demonstrated that the real world can be brought into the classroom through case studies. Cases help students make the leap from theory to practice, thus preparing them to teach thoughtfully in diverse classrooms. Furthermore, this cohort showed once again that technology is a valuable component in classroom learning.
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