THE TRANSFORMATION OF TEACHER-EDUCATION AND SPECIAL-EDUCATION - WORK-IN-PROGRESS

AS PUBLIC SCHOOLS IMPLEMENT THE NATIONAL REFORM AGENDA AND AS EDUCATIO NAL PHILOSOPHY AND PRACTICE REFLECT THE CHANGES IN CULTURE AND SCIENCE , TEACHER EDUCATORS ARE FINDING THEMSELVES NEEDING TO MAKE MORE EXTENS IVE CHANGES IN THEIR PROGRAMS AND IN THEMSELVES. WHAT FOLLOWS IS A DIS CUSSION OF THE CHANGES IN ONE DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION THAT RES TRUCTURED ALL ASPECTS OF ITS PROGRAM IN ORDER TO RESPOND TO EDUCATIONA L REFORMS IN INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TO THE REFORMS RELAT IVE TO SERVICES INTEGRATION. ADDRESSING THE BROAD REFORM AGENDAS THAT CUT ACROSS AND INTEGRATE FIELDS OF EDUCATION, SOCIAL WELFARE, PUBLIC H EALTH, AND OTHER SERVICE SYSTEMS HAS RESULTED IN CHANGES BOTH WITHIN T HE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA AND BETWEEN THE UNIVERSITY AND THE COMM UNITY. A MAJOR FOCUS OF THIS ARTICLE IS ON OUR ATTEMPT TO ADDRESS THE CHANGING NEEDS OF TEACHERS AND SCHOOLS. A DISCUSSION OF THE NATIONAL A ND LOCAL CONTEXTS OF OUR WORK, AND THE PHILOSOPHY GUIDING OUR RESEARCH AND PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT, IS FOLLOWED BY A DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC CHA NGES IN OUR APPROACH TO TEACHER EDUCATION AND OUR WORK IN THE COMMUNIT Y.