Evaluation of a Special Education Professional Development Program

An earlier article in EJA (Piggot-Irvine 2008) reported on the background, methodology and overall results for an evaluation study of a special education teacher professional development project that involved action research (AR) or action learning (AL). The ‘Success Case study’ component that constituted the third phase of the evaluation is reported here. The Success Case studies confirmed the most significant outcome of the previous survey (Phase 1) and focus group (Phase 2), that is, an overwhelming willingness of staff and supporters to see students with special education needs excel. Additional distinctive elements emerged that were common to all Success Case schools and the most significant included that: projects were at a small-scale, manageable, level; the classic stages of AR and AL were followed, even though schools may not have been aware of these stages; data/evidence was used to examine both the current situation and outcomes; and ‘best practice’ and/or a relevant literature underpinned this examination.