A Promising Practice: Low Incidence Teacher Education in Rural and Remote California

Abstract

California has a critical shortage of teachers. The US Department of Education reported approximately 2,500 teachers of deaf and hard of hearing are needed annually. The majority of teachers serving deaf and hard of hearing students in the rural northern California areas are not credentialed in the area of Deaf Education. Some of the reasons include: the long distance to a university that offered the credential, limitations of employers, high costs of commuting, and limited access to online learning as well as the hardware necessary to study and complete coursework requirements. This research discusses an alternative method and a promising practice for preparing teachers of the deaf from remote distances and how to support and mentor these new teacher candidates in times when it is critical to be a highly qualified teacher.

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