Provision of practicum in Australian postgraduate courses preparing special/inclusive educators

The importance of professional experience is clearly recognised in initial teacher education and in other professions. In this study, we explore one element of professional experience for trainee special/inclusive educators, placement in an educational setting for practicum, and how it is provided in postgraduate Australian special/inclusive education courses. We extracted data from publicly available material for all Australian postgraduate courses designed to prepare special and/or inclusive educators. Available data included the length of practicum, content of the unit related to practicum, supervision and placement arrangements, and assessment. We found that only 59% of courses included a unit that required completion of a practicum placement. Given there are no mandatory standards for special/inclusive educators, there was considerable variation in the way practical skills were assessed, the content of practicum units, mentoring arrangements and personnel involved. Practicum placements ranged from 10 to 30 days, and only two courses provided more than one placement. Further research is needed to consider the broader range of professional experiences that may be embedded in courses. We suggest that longer practicum placements should be mandatory in special/inclusive educator professional preparation and should include assessment of the implementation of specific evidence-based practices including collaboration with others.