Belize: Special Education Teacher Development for a Developing Country

Cortland-Belize Partnership in Special Education Teacher Development for a Developing Country

William Hopkins
State University of New York at Cortland

The Problem
The country of Belize has only seven educators whose focus is special education. The average primary-school teacher/student ratio is 1/31, with no aides. Except for severely disturbed or severely limited children, all students with special needs are in regular classrooms. The education system is close to 100 percent inclusive. However, teacher preparation for dealing with student impediments to learning varies considerably throughout the country.

Why couldn't Belizean teachers develop their knowledge and skills for special education through higher education? Access to higher education is limited in Belize, as it is in other developing countries. There are only a few colleges, a limited number of college faculty with expertise in special education, and limited access by potential students because of cost, distance to college sites, and little discretionary time of primary school teachers for advanced learning.

The Invitation to Partnership
At the invitation of the Belize Special Education Unit, I, a professor of Educational Psychology, visited Belize in February, 2005 to explore ways that the State University of New York (SUNY) at Cortland (a major teacher-preparation college in the U.S.) might be of assistance in meeting their expressed needs. The challenge was how to help the approximately 2,600 primary school teachers, as well as administrators, to either learn, develop, or hone already developed skills to work with students with impediments to learning in an inclusion setting.

Considerations: At our initial meeting, the problems in special education in Belize were seen as a lack of resources, particularly in terms of adequate funds, and a lack of trained personnel for both general and special education. The quick fix--were it feasible--would be more money and more personnel. Neither is a realistic possibility. Further, it is understood among educators that filling such deficits does not always lead to improvements for special-education students. Another approach, also of questionable promise, was to bring in outside experts to share information and do teacher in-service sessions on what to do to improve the learning of the special- education students. The experts come in, do their workshops, and leave. They are seldom available for later consultation, especially without fee. This is of limited value too.

A Novel Approach
The view taken with the current project was that the needed resources are already present in Belize, but they are underdeveloped. The overarching model is empowerment of the administrators and the 2,600 primary school teachers in the 282 primary schools. The proposed solution was to create a multi-pronged approach of common-language materials for educators that are inviting, easily accessed, clear and specific, and reflect established principles for effective approaches. Through these materials it is anticipated that teachers and administrators can be brought up to speed for serving special populations. Funding is not seen as an issue, for the project requires very little money.

Methods and Means
After several consultations with Belizean administrators and teachers, as well as visits to many classrooms in a cross-section of schools in five of the six political districts, we began developing materials.

Resource Manual. We first created a resource manual for each school. The manuals are in 3-ring binders, thus easily amended as needs dictate. Located in the principal's office of each school, the binders address identification of problems, structuring the classroom and curriculum to meet students' needs, and specific strategies for addressing the major problem areas. The sections are tabbed for easy access. For the most common problems, pullout packets are provided. The teacher can take a packet to the classroom and keep it for periodic review. When the packet supply is exhausted in the binder, it can be replenished.

Web CT Site. We then worked to develop a Web CT site as another means of communicating relevant information. This web site essentially replicates the information in the resource manuals. A special feature of the site is the means for teachers to communicate with one another, expressing both questions about problems as well as suggestions of strategies they have found effective. This came about because it was clear from school observations that some teachers had skills that others did not. Teachers sharing effective approaches on line will increase their sense of professional identity, and they will contribute to a compendium of best practices already field-tested by Belizean teachers. We are in the early phases of this part of the project.

In one relatively isolated school in a northern district, a third-grade teacher taught himself Braille so he could then teach it to a blind student in his class. In a southern district, a teacher has a student who is becoming blind. Through the web CT discussion feature. the first teacher can become a source of knowledge and general support for the second teacher. As the project director, I will also be available as a consultant through the list-serve function of the Web CT site.

Reproducible Materials. Another means for upgrading teachers' knowledge and skills is the generation of low- or no-cost materials which teachers can create themselves. A collection of reproducible materials (e.g., flash cards for nonverbal students) and samples and directions for making other stimulating and effective materials will be assembled for each school.

While as project director, I am creating the manuals and web-site information, I am also working carefully to make them reflect feedback from teachers and administrators from each of the six districts in Belize. The feedback was obtained through three visits, one including an all-day workshop with 30 carefully chosen educators representing all the districts. During the workshop, each section of the manual was assessed for cultural compatibility, language, style, appropriate graphics, and completeness. Recommendations are being incorporated into the final version of the manuals and the Web CT site.

Video Recordings. Yet another element of the project is video segments demonstrating the implementation of the strategies for specific problems. The video segments will be placed on the Web CT site and on CD's or DVD's. In the coming year, all materials will be refined for improved quality.

On-Site Workshops. Periodically in the future, I, along with experienced teachers from the Cortland, NY area, will be conducting workshops to address critical issues and present established as well as cutting-edge practices for special needs. These will be done on a voluntary participation basis, akin to the Doctors without Borders concept. In fact, we are considering a "Special Education without Borders" program in the future.

The major costs for the project are travel and room and board in Belize for me and for the volunteer teachers who join me. A second cost is for material production, but this is minimal. These and other incidentals most likely will be funded through small grants and some donations from alumni at Corland.

Implications
It is often acknowledged among educators that special education considerations and strategies are also useful for general education. It is likely, then, that the upgrading of knowledge and skills for teaching special populations will transfer to the teaching of general-education students, as well. The measure of overall program effectiveness will be an improvement in academic achievement and a decrease in problem patterns and behaviors. Such results are easily documented. Teacher satisfaction ratings also will be a measure of program efficacy.

While the project was developed for one developing country, it most likely will have potential for others. For this initial venture, it is fortunate that Belize is English speaking, but translation to other languages should pose no great obstacle. Tailoring the language, examples, and strategies to the cultures who might wish to test and perhaps to implement the program will be important, however. But the empowerment feature and the low cost should make the program particularly attractive to other developing countries.

Eventually, as knowledge and skills are acquired, Belizean educators themselves most likely will conduct in-service workshops, present at conferences, and expand upon the initial set of materials and means for communication. We are already using an internet communication interface that allows free exchange between me and the Belizean teachers, two thousand miles away. Televised communication is also planned. This will eventually allow supervision of interns and student teachers from a distance, with the added asset of immediate feedback to them. Currently, I am already supervising one SUNY intern who is working in special education in Belize.

A final word: While low-cost has been emphasized, this element was only possible because of the exceptional cooperation from myriad staff members at SUNY Cortland. Additionally, the program might seem like a one-person venture, but such is far from the case. Faculty, administrators, staff, and students at SUNY Cortland have all made significant contributions that have brought the project from zero to its current state in just one year.

About the author

William Hopkins is a professor of Educational Psychology, with an emphasis on special children, at State University of New York at Cortland. His 38 years of professional experience has included extensive work with schools and 20 years of consulting for agencies serving individuals with developmental disabilities. His teaching specialties have been in educational psychology and psychology of the exceptional child. He can be reached at hopkinsb@cortland.edu and at Department of Psychology, SUNY Cortland, Cortland, NY 13045.