Resumen de Identifying the gaps between study and practice for trainee teachers of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): A qualitative study
Teacher preparation programmesare vital because they providestudents with the knowledge and experience necessary to teachacademic and life skills to children withautism spectrum disorder(ASD). This studyaims to identify the gaps between study and practice for trainee teachers who will teach students with ASD. This was achieved by examining and evaluating responses from trainee teachers in their first field experiences of working withstudents with ASD and understanding their perspectives regardingwhat they felt was missing from their college preparation beforethe in-field experience. A qualitative design was utilised in which semi-structuredinterviews were conducted with six trainee teachers from the specialeducationdepartmentduring their firstfield training withstudents with ASD. Six main themes were identified,including the first encounter with real confirmed cases, the reality ofbooks, challenges dealing with teachers, difficulty communicating with parents, inadequateknowledge of evidence-based practices (EBP) for childrenwith ASD, and the need for critical assessment from different parties.
